The Dedication of Paul July 30th, 2023
God of the seeking heart, we search for truth in a world filled with hidden agendas. Send us your Holy Spirit to guide us to the treasures hidden in your Word, for the sake of Christ who is the Way, the Truth and the Life for us. Amen
As we continue our study this morning of the Apostle Paul and his many adventures spreading the word of the Gospel, our reading from the book of Acts, which came from the beginning of chapter 20, opened with these words, “After the uproar had ceased, Paul sent for the disciples; and after encouraging them and saying farewell, he left for Macedonia.”, which leaves us with more questions than answers. What we can be sure off, is that Paul’s faith and dedication to God were unshakeable.
What had taken place was that Paul and his fellow missionaries had been in the city of Ephesus preaching the Gospel message to its inhabitants. Many of the people had come to faith in Christ, so many that the local tradesmen who made silver charms of Artemis, who was the pagan god which the Ephesians worshipped, saw their business drop off. To try and discredit Paul and his fellow missionaries they incited the people to riot, hoping that they would get rid of those Christians. It worked for a short while but, with the help of the God, in the end the rioters were calmed down and Paul was able to continue to evangelise the Ephesians and they found their true faith.
So now it was time for Paul to continue his missionary work elsewhere. So, after encouraging the new believers in Ephesus to continue their work in spreading the Gospel Paul departs and goes into Greece. Here’s Luke description of Paul’s travels, “When he had gone through those regions and had given the believers much encouragement, he came to Greece, where he stayed for three months. He was about to set sail for Syria when a plot was made against him by the Jews, and so he decided to return through Macedonia. He was accompanied by Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Beroea, by Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, by Gaius from Derbe, and by Timothy, as well as by Tychicus and Trophimus from Asia. They went ahead and were waiting for us in Troas; but we sailed from Philippi after the days of Unleavened Bread, and in five days we joined them in Troas, where we stayed for seven days.” Paul does quite a bit of moving around. Over a relatively short period of time, probably 5-6 months, he travelled through a number of towns in Greece and Macedonia. Paul was intent on preaching the Good News of Salvation through faith in Jesus Christ to as many people as he could.
The most notable event which we hear about in today’s reading took place in the city of Troas, which was in modern day Turkey. We’re told that Paul and his companions, including the Apostle Luke, spent a week there preaching the Gospel. Here’s what happened on the night before they were to leave, “On the first day of the week, when we met to break bread, Paul was holding a discussion with them; since he intended to leave the next day, he continued speaking until midnight. There were many lamps in the room upstairs where we were meeting. A young man named Eutychus, who was sitting in the window, began to sink off into a deep sleep while Paul talked still longer. Overcome by sleep, he fell to the ground three floors below and was picked up dead. But Paul went down, and bending over him took him in his arms, and said, ‘Do not be alarmed, for his life is in him.’ Then Paul went upstairs, and after he had broken bread and eaten, he continued to converse with them until dawn; then he left. Meanwhile they had taken the boy away alive and were not a little comforted.”
What had taken place was that Paul was planning to leave Troas the next day. But before leaving he wanted to have one final meeting with the new believers in order to strengthen them in the faith for the time when he would no longer be with them. They evidently had met in an upstairs room for a communion service, and the Apostle seized the occasion to teach them from the Scriptures. Paul loved to teach the Word because he knew it would deliver these people. He had very little time to spend in Troas, but he did take a week to teach them about Jesus Christ being the Saviour for mankind.
And in his last evening there, before they gathered at the Lord's table to celebrate Communion, he took time to teach them further from the Scriptures. He went on at considerable length, prolonging his speech for hours. We’re not told how long Paul spoke, but it must have been for quite some time as Luke tells us he was still talking at midnight. It was at this point that we’re told by Luke, “A young man named Eutychus, who was sitting in the window, began to sink off into a deep sleep while Paul talked still longer. Overcome by sleep, he fell to the ground three floors below and was picked up dead.”
Interestingly enough, Luke gives us this detail about the room where Paul was speaking, “There were many lamps in the room upstairs where we were meeting.” So, no doubt in those days before electricity, it would have been a hot, stuffy, even smoky, atmosphere. It almost seems like Luke is trying to explain that Eutychus fell asleep because of the heat and the smoke, not because of Paul’s preaching. At any rate, whatever the reason, Eutychus fell out of the window and died in the fall.
But the story didn’t end there, we’re told, “But Paul went down, and bending over him took him in his arms, and said, ‘Do not be alarmed, for his life is in him.’” Through the work of the Holy Spirit Paul was able to bring that young man back to life. And, as Luke says, “Then Paul went upstairs, and after he had broken bread and eaten, he continued to converse with them until dawn; then he left. Meanwhile they had taken the boy away alive and were not a little comforted.” It’s amazing to read what God did through the ministry of the Apostle Paul. Those early days of Christianity were a special time in the life of the Church, many lessons can be drawn from the Bible writings at that time.
But what can we learn in today’s world from this account of Paul's journey and ministry? I want to highlight three lessons that apply to us today as followers of Christ.
Lesson 1: Be faithful in serving God and his people, even in times of trouble.
Paul had just experienced a violent riot in Ephesus, where he was accused of undermining the worship of Artemis, the goddess of the city. He could have easily given up his mission and gone into hiding, but instead he chose to continue his work of preaching the gospel and strengthening the churches. He did not let fear or opposition stop him from fulfilling his calling.
We also face many challenges and difficulties in our Christian life and service. We may encounter ridicule, even persecution, rejection, hostility, or apathy from those around us. We may face personal problems, such as illness, financial stress, or family conflicts. We may face spiritual attacks from the devil, who tries to discourage us and make us doubt God's love and power. God knew it would be difficult, that’s why he gave us so many examples of strength and faith in the Bible.
So how do we respond to these troubles? Do we give up or give in? Do we complain or lose hope? Or do we follow Paul's example and remain faithful in serving God and his people? Do we trust God's sovereignty and grace in every situation? Do we seek his strength and wisdom in every challenge? Do we look for opportunities to share his gospel and love with others?
Paul didn’t serve God out of his own strength or ability. He served God out of his love for God and his gratitude for what God had done for him. He served God out of his dependence on God's Spirit and power. He served God out of his obedience to God's will and word. He served God out of his vision for God's glory and kingdom.
We are called to serve God with the same attitude and motivation as Paul. We are called to serve God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. We are called to serve God with joy, humility, courage, and faithfulness.
Lesson 2: Be committed to growing in your knowledge and application of God's word.
Paul was not only a preacher of God's word; he was also a student of God's word. He spent time studying the Scriptures and teaching them to others. He did not just give superficial or shallow messages; he gave deep and rich explanations of God's truth. In one of his letters to Timothy, a young man Paul had introduced to the message of the Gospel, Paul warned him about simply trying to please people in his sermons. He wrote, “For the time is coming when people will not put up with sound doctrine, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own desires and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander away to myths.” (2nd Timothy 4:3-4) We definitely see a lot of that in today’s culture. But Paul didn’t just tickle people's ears; he challenged their minds and hearts.
We see an example of this in Troas, where Paul gathered with the believers on the first day of the week to break bread and to teach them. He spoke until midnight, and even after the incident with Eutychus, he continued until dawn. He had so much to share with them from God's word that he could not stop.
We also need to have a hunger and thirst for God's word. We need to spend time reading, studying, meditating on, memorizing, and applying God's word to our lives. We need to listen attentively and eagerly to those who teach us God's word. We need to ask questions, seek answers, discuss issues, and learn from one another.
God's word is our spiritual food, our source of life, our guide for living, our light for darkness, our comfort for sorrow, our hope for eternity. We cannot afford to neglect it or take it for granted. We need to treasure it daily and obey it.
Lesson 3: Be ready to share your testimony and witness with others.
Paul was not only a teacher of God's word; he was also a witness of God's grace. He shared his personal testimony of how he met Christ on the road to Damascus and how Christ changed his life. He shared his experiences of how God worked in him and through him in his ministry. He shared his hopes and plans for what God would do in the future.
We also have a testimony and a witness to share with others. We have a story of how we came to know Christ as our Saviour and Lord. We have stories of how God has been faithful and good to us in our journey with him. We have stories of how God has used us to bless others in his name. The way we live and our experiences in our time are important too.
We need to be ready to share these stories with those who do not know Christ or who need encouragement in their faith. We need to be bold and clear in proclaiming the Gospel of Christ as the only way of salvation. We need to be loving and compassionate in showing the love of Christ as the greatest expression of grace.
Paul changed the world by being faithful in serving God and his people, by being committed to growing in his knowledge and application of God's word, by being ready to share his testimony and witness with others. We can also change the world by following Paul's example as he followed Christ's example.
Let us pray that God would help us do so by his Spirit. We’re called on to do the same thing Paul did: love God and the Church, who are God’s people, demonstrating our faith in every way we can. We pray that the Lord uses the dedication of Paul and makes it the pattern of the lives of all people.
Let us Pray:
Heavenly Father, we thank you this morning for the opportunity to share your word together. We thank you for the various ministries that you’ve committed to each of us through the spiritual gifts that we have. And, Father, we pray that we might as Paul did, love your church so much that we give ourselves in all we are, all we do and all we have for the sake of those who are the loved and beloved of God. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen