Acts 20:24-32

²⁴But I will keep going to Jerusalem. I want to finish the work that our leader Jesus told me to do. I have to tell people the good news that God is good to us, and he saves us. I really don’t care about myself, even if they kill me, so long as I can tell them that good news.

²⁵I went all around your country and told you how to join God’s family. And now I know that none of you will see me again.

²⁶So I want you all to understand that if any of you doesn’t end up in God’s family, you can’t blame me.

²⁷I told all of you everything that God wants to do for you.

²⁸Now you leaders have to watch out for yourselves, and watch out for God’s people here too. Make sure you keep on following Jesus properly, and help all God’s people to follow him properly too. The Holy Spirit picked you to be their leaders, so look after them properly. Remember, God bought his people with the blood of his own son.

²⁹I know that after I go away from here, other people will come to you and they will teach you lies. They will try to trick all of God’s people. They will be like cheeky dingoes that kill sheep. Even in your own group of Christians, some men will get up and trick other Christians. They will change the true story and tell it wrong, so they can get people to follow them.

³¹So watch out. Make sure each one of you keeps on believing the true story about Jesus. Remember, I was here with you for 3 years, and for all that time I always told you not to believe a different message. And if I thought you were going wrong, I even cried about you.”

³²Paul kept on talking. He said, “Now I’m asking God to keep you safe, and to keep you believing the true message that God is very good to you and will save you. If you keep on believing that message you will grow strong spiritually. You will know you are in God’s family, and God will give you the good things he is keeping for his own people.