Introduction
Henry T. Mahan, former pastor of the 13th Street Baptist Church in Ashland, KY, said:
“Persecution and opposition ought to encourage rather than discourage us, for we are faithfully warned by our Lord that the natural man and the religionist will not receive the gospel of the grace of God” (John Blanchard, The Complete Gathered Gold: A Treasury of Quotations for Christians [Webster, New York; Darlington, England: Evangelical Press, 2006], 445).
This was the Apostle Paul’s experience.
Consider Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, in which he recounts his sufferings. He said he had:
“…far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches” (2 Corinthians 11:23b-28).
Paul’s most recent run-in with trouble took place in Ephesus.
A riot broke out because idol-worshippers were becoming Christians. Consequently, they were no longer buying silver shrines, and the silversmith guild was furious about their loss of income.
Paul's third missionary journey started in Acts 18:23.
Paul initially revisited churches in Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening the disciples there.
Paul arrived in Ephesus, a major city in the province of Asia and a significant commercial hub.
Paul spent approximately three years in Ephesus, using it as a strategic base to spread the gospel throughout the region.
During this time, he ministered to both Jews and Greeks, and he or his converts likely established many of the churches in the Asian cities mentioned in Revelation 2-3.
Paul's preaching in Ephesus challenged the worship of the goddess Artemis, resulting in a significant decline in the associated business and leading to a riot incited by Demetrius, a silversmith.
It is at this point in Paul’s third missionary journey that we pick up our text for today, Acts 20:1-12.
A feature of our text for today is the use of the word “encourage.”
It occurs twice in verses 1-2 (as “encouraging” in verse 1 and as “encouragement” in verse 2).
The same word also appears in verse 12, where it is translated as “comforted.”
Sometimes in literature, when a passage begins and ends with the same word or phrase, we call that an “inclusio.”
It is a clue to the reader that everything in between relates to the keyword or phrase, in this case, the word “encourage.”
Therefore, it is a passage that illustrates how God encourages his people.
Let’s read about the danger of falling asleep during a sermon. I admit that does not sound very encouraging, but let us see how it is!
Scripture
Let’s read Acts 20:1-12:
1 After the uproar ceased, Paul sent for the disciples, and after encouraging them, he said farewell and departed for Macedonia. 2 When he had gone through those regions and had given them much encouragement, he came to Greece. 3 There he spent three months, and when a plot was made against him by the Jews as he was about to set sail for Syria, he decided to return through Macedonia. 4 Sopater the Berean, son of Pyrrhus, accompanied him; and of the Thessalonians, Aristarchus and Secundus; and Gaius of Derbe, and Timothy; and the Asians, Tychicus and Trophimus. 5 These went on ahead and were waiting for us at Troas, 6 but we sailed away from Philippi after the days of Unleavened Bread, and in five days we came to them at Troas, where we stayed for seven days.
7 On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight. 8 There were many lamps in the upper room where we were gathered. 9 And a young man named Eutychus, sitting at the window, sank into a deep sleep as Paul talked still longer. And being overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead. 10 But Paul went down and bent over him, and taking him in his arms, said, “Do not be alarmed, for his life is in him.” 11 And when Paul had gone up and had broken bread and eaten, he conversed with them a long while, until daybreak, and so departed. 12 And they took the youth away alive, and were not a little comforted.
Lesson
Acts 20:1-12 shows us how God encourages his people.
Let’s use the following outline:
1. God Encourages His People Through Faithful Shepherds (20:1-2)
2. God Encourages His People Through Loyal Colleagues (20:3-6)
3. God Encourages His People Through Engaging Worship (20:7-12)
I. God Encourages His People Through Faithful Shepherds (20:1-2)
First, God encourages his people through faithful shepherds.
In verse 1a, Luke noted, “After the uproar ceased….”
Luke was referring to the uproar in Ephesus.
The Ephesians had crowded into the Ephesian theater, a semicircular outdoor amphitheater seating 25,000 people.
For two hours, they shouted, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” (v. 28).
Eventually, the town clerk managed to quiet the crowd and sent them home.
Then, “Paul sent for the disciples, and after encouraging them, he said farewell and departed for Macedonia”(v. 1b).
Remember, Paul had spent almost three years in Ephesus. This is the longest that Paul had stayed in any place.
So, he was familiar with the Christians.
He loved them. And they loved him.
Here is where we first encounter the word “encouraging.”
“Encouragement” is putting courage into someone. It gives someone the confidence or boldness to do something.
Think of a coach giving his team a pep talk before their final game of the season. He is encouraging the team. He is giving them confidence and boldness to finish the season well.
Paul gathered the Christians together. He gave them the confidence and boldness to continue loving Jesus well and making him known in Ephesus.
Then he said, “Goodbye,” and he was off.
Most likely, Paul went to Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea.
In verse 2, we read, “When he had gone through those regions and had given them much encouragement, he came to Greece.”
“Greece” is another name for the province of Achaia, where Corinth was located.
Once again, we find that Paul gave the disciples in those regions “much encouragement.”
Tom Phillips was a Christian businessman who met disgraced Chuck Colson in the aftermath of the Watergate scandal.
Chuck Colson spent seven months in prison for his role in the Watergate cover-up.
Tom Phillips invited Chuck Colson to his home. He shared passages from C. S. Lewis’ Mere Christianity with Colson.
Phillips encouraged Colson to look to Jesus and find hope in him.
That conversation deeply moved Colson, and later, while sitting in his car, he broke down in tears, realizing his need for Jesus.
This moment of encouragement led Colson to surrender his life to God, marking the beginning of his journey from a hardened political operative to a devoted Christian leader.
Colson’s newfound faith was met with skepticism, but he remained steadfast in his convictions.
Having served time in prison, Colson founded Prison Fellowship, which became one of the largest ministries for incarcerated individuals worldwide.
His story is a testament to how one act of encouragement—being urged to turn to Jesus—can have a profoundly life-changing impact.
This is what Paul did wherever he went.
He encouraged the saints in their walk with Jesus.
He also pointed non-Christians to Jesus.
Paul’s ministry of encouraging people in the word of God was so powerful that it was said of him in Acts 19:10, “so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.”
God encourages his people through faithful shepherds.
II. God Encourages His People Through Loyal Colleagues (20:3-6)
Second, God encourages his people through loyal colleagues.
Paul spent three months in Corinth.
He wanted to go to Jerusalem via Syria.
But he learned about a plot against his life by the Jews.
So, instead, he decided to return through Macedonia.
Then, we read the following in verses 4-6:
“Sopater the Berean, son of Pyrrhus, accompanied him; and of the Thessalonians, Aristarchus and Secundus; and Gaius of Derbe, and Timothy; and the Asians, Tychicus and Trophimus. These went on ahead and were waiting for us at Troas, but we sailed away from Philippi after the days of Unleavened Bread, and in five days we came to them at Troas, where we stayed for seven days.”
What is striking is that there were seven men listed in these verses.
However, an eighth person was part of the group who was not named.
That person was Luke. We know he was part of the group because the words “us” (in verse 5) and “we” (in verse 6) appear, meaning that Luke had rejoined Paul on his journey.
They were his companions and colleagues in the ministry.
They accompanied him on his journeys.
They were assigned to different service locations by him.
God encouraged Paul by giving him loyal colleagues who served with him and helped advance the gospel.
God has often given wonderful, loyal colleagues to his servants to help them advance the good news about Jesus.
For example, Martin Luther had Philipp Melanchthon. Melanchthon was Luther’s closest collaborator, known for his theological precision and efforts in education reform.
John Calvin had Theodore Beza. Beza was Calvin’s successor in Geneva and helped solidify Reformation theology.
Huldrych Zwingli had Heinrich Bullinger. Bullinger continued Zwingli’s work after his death and helped unify Swiss Reformed churches.
William Tyndale had John Frith. Frith was a fellow English reformer who supported Tyndale’s efforts to translate the Bible into English.
John Knox had William Farel. Farel encouraged Knox to take up leadership in the Scottish Reformation.
Some of you have a godly spouse. Your spouse encourages you in your walk with Jesus.
Some of you have godly parents. Your parents pray with and for you, teach you the word of God, set an example of Christlikeness before you, and encourage you to embrace Jesus as your own Lord and Savior.
Some of you have godly friends. They encourage you in your service to your Savior. They help you when you feel down. They warn you when you sin. They love you when you feel unloved.
So, thank God who encourages his people through loyal colleagues.
III. God Encourages His People through Engaging Worship (20:7-12)
And third, God encourages his people through engaging worship.
Paul had arrived in Troas.
His colleagues were all with him in Troas.
They joined the Christian believers in Troas for worship.
Luke provides a fascinating description of how Christians worshiped in Troas.
Let us note several elements in their engaging worship service.
A. The Lord’s Day (20:7a)
First, the Christians met on the Lord’s day for their engaging worship service.
For millennia, the people of God met on the seventh day of the week for worship. Saturday was the day God’s people worshiped him.
In verse 7a, Luke said, “On the first day of the week….”
This is the first time in Scripture that we read of the Christians worshipping on Sunday, the first day of the week.
The first day of the week came to be called “the Lord’s Day” because Jesus was raised from the dead on the first day of the week (Revelation 1:10).
Pentecost, the day on which the Holy Spirit was poured out on God’s people, also took place on the first day of the week.
During the early years after Jesus’ resurrection and ascension, Christians continued to observe some Jewish traditions, such as the hours of prayer (Acts 3:1).
However, as time passed, they shifted away from the Mosaic calendar and developed distinct Christian patterns centered on the resurrection of Jesus.
That is why Christians worshipped Jesus on the Lord’s Day.
B. The Lord’s People (20:7b)
Second, notice the Lord’s people participating in the engaging worship service.
Luke said in verse 7b, “… when we were gathered together….”
The church met on Sunday evenings in those days.
Why?
Because in those days, Sundays were a workday for people.
So, Christians gathered together on Sundays after work to worship the Lord.
The tradition of Sunday as a day off from work did not begin until March 7, 321 AD, when Emperor Constantine, the first Christian emperor of Rome, declared Sunday to be a public holiday.
Constantine’s decree mandated that work should cease on Sundays, allowing people to attend worship services and observe a day of rest.
So, for the first three hundred years after Jesus’ resurrection, Christians worshiped in the evenings because they worked during the day.
Christians also did not have church buildings in which to meet in those days.
So, they typically meet in the homes of believers.
Most likely, Christians with larger homes would offer their homes as a place for the Christians to gather for worship.
In Troas, it was a house with several stories.
C. The Lord’s Supper (20:7c)
Third, their engaging worship included the Lord’s Supper.
Luke said in verse 7c that the Christians met together “to break bread.”
Christians had been doing this since the early days in Jerusalem (Acts 2:42).
The Lord’s Supper in those days involved a “potluck” meal and was referred to as a “love feast” (agape), after which they would observe the Lord’s Supper (1 Corinthians 11:17-34).
It appears that they were going to eat together and then observe the Lord’s Supper afterward.
It is also likely that Christians in those early centuries observed the Lord’s Supper each Lord’s Day when they gathered for worship and fellowship.
When Paul set down instructions for Corinthians about the Lord’s Supper, he did not specify that the Lord’s Supper had to be observed weekly.
He said in 1 Corinthians 11:26, “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup….”
D. The Lord’s Message (20:7d)
Fourth, the Lord’s message was proclaimed in the engaging worship service.
Luke said in verse 7d, “Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight.”
Knowing that this would likely be his last meeting with the Christians in Troas, Paul had a great deal to say to them.
Paul spoke to them until early morning with an interruption when Eutychus fell out of the window.
Note that the people of God were thrilled to sit under the ministry of the word of God.
They did not want just thirty minutes of preaching.
They wanted a whole night of God’s word!
Now, I don’t think we should plan for that to be the norm, but we should take note of the hunger for God’s word that God’s people had.
When I was a new pastor in my previous church, a lady would often get upset with my thirty-minute sermons.
One time, she said in a loud voice so that people in several rows around her could hear, “When is he going to end?”
David Platt is known for his intense, Scripture-rich teaching during an event known as Secret Church.
This is a gathering where believers spend six hours studying the Bible.
This was inspired by his time with Christians in persecuted countries where they have no pastor and no one to teach them the word of God.
So, when he went there, they sat through the entire night listening to him open the word of God to them.
That is what happened with Paul in Troas.
We need to plead with God to give us such a hunger for his word that we would desire to spend hours studying his holy and inspired word.
E. The Lord’s Power (20:9-12)
And fifth, the Lord’s power was evident in the engaging worship service.
In verse 8, Luke made the following comment, “There were many lamps in the upper room where we were gathered.”
That may seem like an odd observation, but it is not.
The Christians were meeting in an upper room on the third floor.
We are not told how many Christians were there, but presumably the room was packed.
They used lamps to keep the room lit so that they could see each other and Paul.
The point of mentioning the lamps is that the lamps sucked the oxygen out of the room.
Therefore, it is not surprising that a person would become drowsy.
Luke noted in verse 9, “And a young man named Eutychus, sitting at the window, sank into a deep sleep as Paul talked still longer. And being overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead.”
One scholar stated that Eutychus was between the ages of eight and fourteen.
Moreover, the word “youth” in verse 12 could also refer to a servant.
It is possible that Eutychus was a servant boy who had put in a full day’s work, was tired, and was sitting in a room with diminished oxygen, which prevented him from staying awake.
Some commentators say that he was spiritually lethargic.
I don’t believe that for a minute.
He was overcome by fatigue and fell to his death.
His fall would have caused a commotion in the room.
Paul rushed down to the street, took him up in his arms, and said, “Do not be alarmed, for his life is in him”(v. 10).
The Lord used Paul to revive Eutychus.
The Lord demonstrated his power through the new life that Eutychus received.
So, everybody went back upstairs.
They all ate a meal together, and Paul continued teaching them until daybreak.
Then Paul left them and continued on his journey.
Luke tells us in verse 12, “And they took the youth away alive, and were not a little comforted.”
I am inclined to think that Luke had British blood in him because of how he understated the comfort, which is the same word as “encouragement,” that the people received.
The people had just witnessed a dramatic demonstration of God’s power.
Instead of saying, “They were greatly comforted,” Luke said, “They were not a little comforted.”
That is classic British understatement!
By the way, do you know what Eutychus means?
Eutychus means “Lucky.”
“Lucky” was given new life by God’s power through the ministry of the Apostle Paul.
Isn’t that what happens when God encourages his people through engaging worship?
Sinners are given new life in Jesus.
Believers are encouraged to live in the abundant life that Jesus offers.
God is well worshiped because he alone is the giver of new life.
Conclusion
God is a God of encouragement.
He encourages his people through faithful shepherds, loyal colleagues, and engaging worship.
Let us thank God for the many ways he encourages us. Amen.
