Friday, 23^rd   October 2026

Alex Buabeng-Korsah

TOPIC: A LIFE THEY COULD CHECK

THEME SCRIPTURE: "You yourselves know how I lived among you the whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia." (Acts 20:18, ESV)

 

PREPARATORY QUESTION

1. If people who know me best were asked about my life, what would they say?

 

Paul was in a hurry. He was heading for Jerusalem and wanted to arrive by Pentecost (Acts 20:16). Yet his ship stopped at Miletus, about thirty miles from Ephesus. He sent for the elders of the church and made them travel to him.

Then he made an unusual appeal. He did not start with a sermon. He pointed to his own life. "You yourselves know how I lived among you."

Paul had spent about three years in Ephesus. He lived there, worked there, and taught there. The people saw him on good days and bad days. They saw him in public and in private. He was willing to be checked.

This matters because words alone do not carry a message. A life either backs the words or cancels them. Paul could speak to the elders with authority because they had watched him for years. His conduct and his teaching matched.

Notice the phrase "from the first day." Paul did not start well and fade. He was the same at the end as at the beginning. Many people can impress for a season. Few stay consistent for years.

The Ephesians had just come out of sorcery, superstition, and hidden practices. They needed more than ideas. They needed to see what a life under Christ looked like. Paul showed them.

You are also being watched. Family, coworkers, and friends are learning what Christ is like from you. They may never open a Bible. They will read your life.

You may not have come to perfection. But you can be honest, consistent, and open to correction. Live in a way that lets others say, "We know how he lived."

Key Takeaway

A consistent life gives your words their weight. Others believe the message when they can check the messenger.

Beloved, choose one area where your private life and public life do not match. Fix it today, and stay faithful to it.

Remain blessed.

 

FURTHER READING

- Acts 20:17-18

- 1 Timothy 4:12

- Philippians 3:17

 

Call to Salvation: Today is your day if you have not received salvation by turning over your life to Jesus Christ. Click here to do so.

 

QUESTIONS TO HELP YOU MEDITATE ON THE WORD

1. Where do my words and my actions disagree?
2. Am I the same person at home as I am at church?
3. Who has watched my life long enough to speak truthfully about it?

 

PRAYER

Father, make my life match what I say I believe. Remove every double standard in me. Keep me steady from the first day to the last. Let those who watch me see Christ. In Jesus' precious name, Amen.

 

ONE-YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN

Exodus 19–20; Psalm 40