God worked in a marvelous way! New converts actually forsook their former practice of black magic, and in a public burning, they destroyed over $10,000.00 worth of occult scrolls and magic charms, thus openly proclaiming their faith in the Lord Jesus.
Illus: Wilmington states, "It is often noted, even today, by missionaries in such places as Haiti where voodoo is still practiced, that a private confession of faith is almost worthless, until the individual is willing to go to his home, bring out his occult objects, and openly and publicly destroy them.”
The new converts of chapter 19 wanted everyone to know they had been saved from the occult, that is why they publicly burned all their occult objects. Any time God does something in an extraordinary way, we can rest assured Satan will try to undo what the Lord does. The situation in chapter 19 is no exception. After that great revival, Paul felt it was time to leave. He made arrangements to leave, but had to alter those plans due to the severe riot that broke out as a result of Paul's preaching. Once that riot had been quieted, Paul felt the Ephesian church was stable enough for him to leave, so he departed to go into Macedonia.
I. THE FAREWELL (VERSES 1-6)
A. THE PLAN
Verses 1-3, "And after the uproar was ceased, Paul called unto him the disciples, and embraced them, and departed for to go into Macedonia. And when he had gone over those parts, and had given them much exhortation, he came into Greece, and there abode three months. And when the Jews laid wait for him, as he was about to sail into Syria, he purposed to return through Macedonia."
After Paul spent three months in Greece exhorting the Christians, he was preparing to go to Syria, when he discovered a plan that the Jews had against his life. Once he knew about the plan, he decided to return through Macedonia instead.
B. THE PEOPLE
Verses 4-6, "And there accompanied him into Asia Sopater of Berea; and of the Thessalonians, Aristarchus and Secundus; and Gaius of Derbe, and Timotheus; and of Asia, Tychicus and Trophimus. These going before tarried for us at Troas. And we sailed away from Philippi after the days of unleavened bread, and came unto them to Troas in five days; where we abode seven days."
As he traveled through Macedonia, several associates were traveling with him. Sopater, Aristarchus, Secundus, Gaius, Timotheus, Tychicus, and Trophimus. Why does the Bible make a point of mentioning that Paul was not alone? So that we might understand that God's work is always done by a body of believers. As great a man as Paul was, he was not great enough to do God's work alone. He would not have gotten anywhere if he had to do it by himself. For example, it was probably one of his loving associates of verse 3 that made Paul aware that the Jews had a plan to kill him.
The reason many churches are at a standstill, or even going backwards, is because it takes many in God's work to get something done for Him. Paul was aware of that, and as we read of this great man of God, we read over and over again, how he was surrounded by other great men of God.
II. THE FALL (VERSES 7-12)
A. PAUL PREACHING
Verses 7-8, "And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight. And there were many lights in the upper chamber, where they were gathered together.”
Evidently, though Paul arrived at Troas on the Jewish Sabbath, he did not go to the Synagogue until the following “...first day of the week,..”, and at that time he met with the church, for the Bible makes no mention of his going to the Synagogue the first day that he arrived. The Bible does state that he was in church, as was the custom with Christians, on “...first day of the week,..” In Old Testament days, the Jews met on the Sabbath, what we know to be Saturday. Once the Lord had died, was buried, and was resurrected on the first day of the week, Christians began to worship on that day to celebrate His resurrection.
Illus: The New Scoffield Bible States, “The fact that Paul and others sometimes attended Sabbath services in Jewish Synagogues does not prove that the apostolic church kept the seventh day as a special day of worship. It only shows that the early missionaries took the gospel message wherever and whenever they found people gathered together.”
B. PAUL’S PERIL
Verses 9-12, "And there sat in a window a certain young man named Eutychus, being fallen into a deep sleep: and as Paul was long preaching, he sunk down with sleep, and fell down from the third loft, and was taken up dead. And Paul went down, and fell on him, and embracing him said, Trouble not yourselves; for his life is in him. When he therefore was come up again, and had broken bread, and eaten, and talked a long while, even till break of day, so he departed. And they brought the young man alive, and were not a little comforted."
Many of the experiences that Paul had, no other preacher alive has had, but there is one that he had that almost every preacher has had, that is having some people sleep during the sermon.
Illus: That reminds me of the story of the preacher who was called upon to substitute for the regular minister, who had failed to reach the church because he was delayed by a snow storm. The speaker began by explaining the meaning of a substitute: “If you break a window, and then place a cardboard there instead of glass, that is a substitute.” The substituting speaker started preaching, and was getting much more out of his message than the listeners were getting. He preached for several hours, and after the service one woman said, “You were no substitute ... you were a real pane (pain).”
Illus: A conference, where some of the “greats” of today were preaching some of their best sermons, did not seem the likely place to find anyone napping, but while most were thrilled at the preaching of God's Word, there were a few who settled back and slept right through the service.
It brings comfort to a preacher's heart, to note that God gave space in His Word to mention the fact that a man would sleep, even when the greatest preacher that ever preached God's Word was preaching.
Illus: Many ministers are like the Baptist minister, who would rush down to the train station every single day to watch the Southern Pacific train go by. There was no chore he wouldn't interrupt to carry out this ritual. Members of the congregation became concerned about him, because he was so dedicated to this ritual, and they asked him to give it up. He said, “No, gentlemen, I preach your sermons, teach your Sunday School, bury your dead, marry your young, run your charities, and chair every drive it pleases you to conduct. I won't give up seeing that Southern Pacific train every day. I love it! It's the only thing in this town I don't have to push.”
Anyway I believe God recorded this incident of Eutycus falling out of a window, so that every pastor will know that if someone could fall asleep on the apostle Paul and fall out of a window, then any pastor does not need to be surprised if someone falls out of the pew while he is preaching.
Notice verse 1, "And there were many lights in the upper chamber... " That service was held in an upper room on the third level. The light back then was provided by many smoky lamps which would have made the air thick. Today we have much better conditions, and with good ushers controlling the temperature and lighting in our buildings, much of the sleeping is eliminated because the surroundings are not conducive to sleep. Still you will have some who will sleep.
Ill. THE FOREKNOWLEDGE (VERSES 13-17)
“And we went before to ship, and sailed unto Assos, there intending to take in Paul: for so had he appointed, minding himself to go afoot. And when he met with us at Assos, we took him in, and came to Mitylene. And we sailed thence, and came the next day over against Chios; and the next day we arrived at Samos, and tarried at Trogyllium; and the next day we came to Miletus. For Paul had determined to sail by Ephesus, because he would not spend the time in Asia: for he hasted, if it were possible for him, to be at Jerusalem the day of Pentecost. And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church.”
The next day, after the incident with Eutychus, Luke and others went from Troas to Assos, while Paul traveled by foot, and met them there at Assos. From there they sailed to Mitylene, passed through Chios, and the next day landed at Samos, and a day later they arrived at Miletus. He decided not to stop at Ephesus because he was in a hurry to get to Jerusalem for the celebration of Pentecost.
A. THE STEADFASTNESS
Verses 18-21, “And when they were come to him, he said unto them, Ye know, from the first day that I came into Asia, after what manner I have been with you at all seasons, Serving the Lord with all humility of mind, and with many tears, and temptations, which befell me by the lying in wait of the Jews: And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have showed you, and have taught you publicly, and from house to house, Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.”
While Paul was at Miletus, he sent for the elders of the church to meet with him. When they got there he reminded them how he served them with humility of mind, many tears, and many temptations, but still he kept back nothing that would benefit them. He did not just do this occasionally, he was steadfast in doing this every time the opportunity presented itself.
B. THE SUFFERING
Verses 22-24, “And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there: Save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me. But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.”
Paul had foreknowledge of what was going to happen to him. God had already shown him things, even though he did not know how greatly he would have to suffer. With his foreknowledge of this suffering, he said, "…none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy... "
He was willing to go, knowing that he would suffer greatly, and considered laying aside his desires as a small thing, so that he might finish the course with JOY!
Illus: Christian life is much like secular life in one respect. If a person wants to have something, he has to be willing to work. That is, he has to sacrifice time to work, even though he might rather be doing something else. The same goes for eternal rewards. Everyone wants them, but the fact is, if you are going to have any eternal rewards, it will be because you made time to earn them after you came to Christ.
Illus: There used to be a television program that featured contestants who would do certain things to become eligible to pick one of three doors, behind which a prize was concealed. The contestant knew that behind one door there was only a consolation prize, or a joke prize; behind another was perhaps something nice, but then behind one was a grand prize. If you ever watched that program, you saw people select the wrong door, and you saw the look of sadness on their faces when they discovered they had selected the wrong door. What made things worse, the emcee would have the door opened that had the grand prize behind it, and everyone saw the agony on the faces of the contestants when they saw what they could have had.
The saddest day in the lives of professing Christians, will be when they, one day, will see what they could have had if they had made the right choices, and been willing to suffer for the cause of Christ. If you teach a Sunday School Class, drive a church bus, are a church usher, a deacon, or whatever; if you are going to do anything for the Lord, you have to be willing to suffer and sacrifice for the cause of Christ.
Illus: The story is told of the little girl who heard about some recreation that a Sunday School teacher was providing for her friend. She said, “Our teacher won't do anything with us. We never do anything in our class.” She might as well have said, “Our teacher will not sacrifice any time for us. We never do anything in our class.” Many teachers won't, because they know beforehand that it will cost them, so they back off.
Paul knew that there was suffering and sacrificing ahead. He said, (verse 24) “…none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself…”
C. THE SURENESS
Verses 25-27, “And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more. Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men. For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.”
Illus: This reminds us of Ezekiel's words (3:18), “When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.”
Christians today act as if soul winning were optional. Well, God has left it up to us to choose if we will obey His command or not, but it does not stop there. If we do not warn the lost person of the consequences of his sin, and tell him of Christ's provision, then his blood will be upon our hands. Paul told the Ephesian elders that he had preached the whole counsel of God's Word every time he had an opportunity, and that he could stand before the Lord Jesus with his hands clean of the blood of any man.
D. THE SERVICE
Verses 28-32, “Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears. And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.”
Paul went on to tell those spiritual leaders that God had placed them as OVERSEERS, over the flock of God. He did not say the deacons were the overseers. He stated emphatically that the position of a pastor is an OVERSEER. He also stated that he knew once he was gone that, "...grievous wolves..." would filter into the congregations, and tell them things that were not consistent with what he had been teaching them. That was why he told the elders to (verse 31) , “...watch, and remember...”, and to guard that flock the same way a shepherd guards his flock, to protect them from the wolves that would devour them.
E. THE SUPPLIES
Verses 33-38. “I have coveted no man's silver, or gold, or apparel. Yea, ye yourselves know, that these hands have ministered unto my necessities, and to them that were with me. I have showed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive. And when he had thus spoken, he kneeled down, and prayed with them all. And they all wept sore, and fell on Paul's neck, and kissed him, Sorrowing most of all for the words which he spake, that they should see his face no more. And they accompanied him unto the ship.”
In other words, they were to take care of THEMSELVES and THEIR FLOCKS.
Conclusion:
I. THE FAREWELL (VERSES 1-6)
A. THE PLAN
B. THE PEOPLE
II. THE FALL (VERSES 7-12)
A. PAUL'S GREATER
B. PAUL'S PERIL
III. THE FOREKNOWLEDGE (VERSES 13-17)
A. THE STEADFASTNESS
B. THE SUFFERING
C. THE SURENESS
D. THE SERVICE
E. THE SUPPLIES
