These words were spoken by Paul to a group of men whom he loved dearly, the elders of the church in Ephesus. Paul had lived and worked with these men but now he must say a final goodbye to them. There is no doubting the sadness that engulfed this occasion as is evidenced by the reaction of the elders recorded in verses 37 and 38. This moment in the life of Paul should serve as a reminder to all of us that we are going to face many goodbyes as we make our journey along life's pathway. For the most part, these goodbyes will be accompanied with great sadness.
The saddest goodbyes we ever have to make are those in which we must bid farewell to one we have loved so dearly in this life when they go the way of all the earth (Eccl. 12:5-7). With heavy hearts and tears flowing from our eyes, in our own way and time, we say goodbye to them for at least a little while. In all likelihood, a memorial service will take place to honor our loved one and offer to us words of encouragement and hope.
More and more, I find myself turning to the words of Paul in Romans 8:28, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose." I believe with all my heart the truth of this passage and do not doubt for a moment its truthfulness. Yet, when my heart is burdened with the heaviest burden known to man, saying goodbye to one I love so dearly, my heart tends to cry out, "how can this be"? I believe that as we behold the silent city of the dead and even as we must say goodbye to one we love, there is, even though it is never actually spoken, a message that should be heard by all of us.
It is a message that begins by saying to us that we need to come to a knowledge of our own end and to measure the days we have on this earth (Psalms 39:4-5, Psalms 90:9-12, Job 14:1-2, 2 Samuel 14:14, James 4:13-15). The words of the Preacher are so powerful, "the dust shall return to the earth as it was and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it" (Eccl. 12:7). Our end on this earth is a certainty (Hebrews 9:27). This is a message that should impress upon each of us how weak and frail this human frame is. David once put all this in the proper perspective when he said, "there is but a step between me and death". (1 Samuel 20:3). How true this is for all of us today. In just one step, one heartbeat, who knows what will happen? A final thought in this message to us simply says, put your faith and trust in God knowing that if we follow and obey him, he will help us and never leave nor forsake us (Isa. 12:2-3, Proverbs 3:5-6, Eccl. 12:13-14, 1 Peter 5:7, Hebrews 13:5). Do you think, perhaps, that this message echoing from the silent city of the dead could be one of the reasons that all things, even death, could work for our good?
Charles Hicks
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