“Farewells”

Sunday, October 18, 2009

First Church of the Brethren

H. Kevin Derr

Acts 20:1-37

“Farewells”

¹ When the uproar had ended, Paul sent for the disciples and, after encouraging them, said good-by and set out for Macedonia. ² He traveled through that area, speaking many words of encouragement to the people, and finally arrived in Greece, ³ where he stayed three months. Because some Jews had plotted against him just as he was about to sail for Syria, he decided to go back through Macedonia. ⁴ He was accompanied by Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, Gaius from Derbe, Timothy also, and Tychicus and Trophimus from the province of Asia. ⁵ These men went on ahead and waited for us at Troas. ⁶ But we sailed from Philippi after the Festival of Unleavened Bread, and five days later joined the others at Troas, where we stayed seven days.

⁷ On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. ⁸ There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting. ⁹ Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. ¹⁰ Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “He’s alive!” ¹¹ Then he went upstairs again and broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left. ¹² The people took the young man home alive and were greatly comforted.

¹³ We went on ahead to the ship and sailed for Assos, where we were going to take Paul aboard. He had made this arrangement because he was going there on foot. ¹⁴ When he met us at Assos, we took him aboard and went on to Mitylene. ¹⁵ The next day we set sail from there and arrived off Chios. The day after that we crossed over to Samos, and on the following day arrived at Miletus. ¹⁶ Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus to avoid spending time in the province of Asia, for he was in a hurry to reach Jerusalem, if possible, by the day of Pentecost.

¹⁷ From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church. ¹⁸ When they arrived, he said to them: “You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia. ¹⁹ I served the Lord with great humility and with tears and in the midst of severe testing by the plots of the Jews. ²⁰ You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. ²¹ I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.

²² “And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. ²³ I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. ²⁴ However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.

²⁵ “Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. ²⁶ Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of everyone. ²⁷ For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. ²⁸ Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. ²⁹ I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. ³⁰ Even from your own number some will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. ³¹ So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.

³² “Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. ³³ I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing. ³⁴ You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. ³⁵ In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”

³⁶ When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. ³⁷ They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him.

Prayer:

1. As we continue, Paul’s journey is taking us through Europe and Asia Minor, and this area on the eastern end of the Mediterranean is very much part of the Hellenized world that was the legacy of Alexander.  We are likely close to the time of Easter, but notice the time of the year is still set according to the Jewish feasts, the feast of Unleavened Bread, part of the Passover celebration.  We are in the year 51 or 52 AD and we begin with the after effects of the near riot at Ephesus.
   1. Luke writes, ¹ When the uproar had ended, Paul sent for the disciples and, after encouraging them, said good-by and set out for Macedonia. ² He traveled through that area, speaking many words of encouragement to the people, and finally arrived in Greece, ³ where he stayed three months. Because some Jews had plotted against him just as he was about to sail for Syria, he decided to go back through Macedonia. ⁴ He was accompanied by Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, Gaius from Derbe, Timothy also, and Tychicus and Trophimus from the province of Asia. ⁵ These men went on ahead and waited for us at Troas. ⁶ But we sailed from Philippi after the Festival of Unleavened Bread, and five days later joined the others at Troas, where we stayed seven days.
   2. The riot is over and Paul is already making plans:
      1. i.      He sends for the disciples, offers some encouragement and sets out for Macedonia.
         1. He stopped and encouraged believers along the way and was accompanied by a group of disciples, we know only of men, but there may well have been women traveling with him also.
            1. Now why does he have a group of people traveling with him?  He is teaching and training the disciples
               1. i.      He is in one sense simply following the example of Jesus.
               2. ii.      One part of the company set out for Troas
               3. iii.      The second part group from Philippi after the feast of Unleavened Bread.
                  1. It is important to note, they are still counting time in terms of Jewish feasts
                  2. These men in may ways regard themselves as Jewish, not separate from the Jews.
   3. In this you will note that we find the church practicing some of the things we continue to do to this day.  We also see a practice that harkens back to the prophets of Old.  Luke writes ⁷ On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. ⁸ There were many lamps in the upstairs room where we were meeting. ⁹ Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. ¹⁰ Paul went down, threw himself on the young man and put his arms around him. “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “He’s alive!” ¹¹ Then he went upstairs again and broke bread and ate. After talking until daylight, he left. ¹² The people took the young man home alive and were greatly comforted.
      1. i.      On the first day of the week, on Sunday.  By this time it had become a common practice for the followers of Jesus to gather on the first day of the week.
         1. This was also a special occasion, Paul was there along with a contingent of fellow believers and it was a day of teaching and preaching along with the breaking of bread
         2. There we find to more common elements with the modern church, a time of preaching or teaching as well as communion.
            1. The breaking of bread takes on a more than just a fellowship mean here, it is beginnings of what we understand as communion.
            2. Now Paul and his party would be leaving the next morning, so he planned on speaking late, at this point it was midnight or later.
               1. i.      It was then that Eutychus, fell out of the window he was sitting in and died.
               2. ii.      Now, before we blame Paul for a less than exciting sermon, this time of preaching, communion and fellowship may well have been going on since before dawn.
               3. iii.      Eutychus was appropriately tired.
                  1. When they got to him, he was dead, he fell from a third story window.
                  2. At this point Paul covers Eutychus’ body with his own, an odd reaction don’t you thing?
                     1. Remember the story of Elijah and the Widow of Zerpath from 1 Kings 17?

¹⁷ Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. He grew worse and worse, and finally stopped breathing. ¹⁸ She said to Elijah, “What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son?”

¹⁹ “Give me your son,” Elijah replied. He took him from her arms, carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his bed. ²⁰ Then he cried out to the LORD, “LORD my God, have you brought tragedy even on this widow I am staying with, by causing her son to die?” ²¹ Then he stretched himself out on the boy three times and cried out to the LORD, “LORD my God, let this boy’s life return to him!”

²² The LORD heard Elijah’s cry, and the boy’s life returned to him, and he lived. ²³ Elijah picked up the child and carried him down from the room into the house. He gave him to his mother and said, “Look, your son is alive!”

²⁴ Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the LORD from your mouth is the truth.”

1. There are some clear similarities between these stories, and Paul would have known this account.
2. iv.      The disciples again break bread after Eutychus is restored to life.  In a clear sense, it may be to reassure that Eutychus is really alive, and they can see him eating and drinking.  On the other hand would be a better response to experiencing such a miracle?
3. The next passage picks up a little more of the groups travel plans.  Luke writes  ¹³ We went on ahead to the ship and sailed for Assos, where we were going to take Paul aboard. He had made this arrangement because he was going there on foot. ¹⁴ When he met us at Assos, we took him aboard and went on to Mitylene . ¹⁵ The next day we set sail from there and arrived off Chios. The day after that we crossed over to Samos, and on the following day arrived at Miletus. ¹⁶ Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus to avoid spending time in the province of Asia, for he was in a hurry to reach Jerusalem, if possible, by the day of Pentecost.
   1. i.      All of this expresses not only the where we were question, but it points us directly at the issue that is driving Paul
      1. He wants to make Jerusalem before Pentecost.  There are roughly 50 days between Passover and Pentecost.  Pentecost was a major festival in Jerusalem; pilgrims came from all over the world to be there.
      2. On top of this is it also an important day in the history of the followers of Jesus, because it marks the coming of the Holy Spirit.
      3. ii.      We begin to see the development of the Christian calendar here also, celebrating communion at the feast of the Unleavened Bread, and being in Jerusalem for Pentecost.
      4. iii.      In other words we see the formation of many of the basic Church festivals being formed.
         1. Was it common for Jewish Christians to return to Jerusalem for Pentecost?
         2. At what point did the gentile believers begin to observe Pentecost?
4. Paul begins to explain his reasons for going to Jerusalem to the Believers at Miletus.  Luke recounts Paul’s words, ¹⁷ From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church. ¹⁸ When they arrived, he said to them: “You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia. ¹⁹ I served the Lord with great humility and with tears and in the midst of severe testing by the plots of the Jews. ²⁰ You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. ²¹ I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.
   1. At Miletus Paul speaks to the Ephesians Elders
      1. i.      He has them recall how he lived with them
         1. He served the Lord with humility and with tears
         2. He was tested  by plots from Jews and Gentiles
         3. He did not hesitate to preach
         4. He taught publically and in homes, doing whatever he could to help the church in Asia
         5. He made it plain to both Jews and Greeks that everyone must turn to God in repentance and put their faith in Christ Jesus.
      2. ii.      In one regard it seems that Paul is saying, I’ve done what I could with you, I’ve done my part faithfully, and now I must go on to what is in store for me
   2. We also get the impression that Paul sees his life taking a difficult turn.  Paul tells these elders that something is going to happen to him.      ²² “And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. ²³ I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. ²⁴ However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.
      1. i.      He says, I am compelled by the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, to go to Jerusalem
         1. He has concern about going to Jerusalem
            1. Will the gift he carries be accepted by the church in Jerusalem?
            2. Will the Jews in Jerusalem, his former colleagues, seek his death as they have in other cities?
         2. He is prepared for prison and hardship, he says the “The Holy Spirit has warned me this is coming in every city.”
      2. ii.      Paul has come to the point of having one goal, to finish the task he has been called to do, to testify to the good news of God’s grace, even if it means his life is forfeit.
         1. There is a resolve in his language, a sense of concern, but ultimately his desire is to do the will of God.
            1. He is clear on his task and calling, and now sets aside any thing that my hinder that goal.
            2. If only our sense of calling were as clear, if only we were as determined to see it through
         2. Paul’s goal is now the completion of his God given task
   3. Paul is saying goodbye to people he loves, to people he has worked with, to people he has poured his life into, all to bring them to a deep and abiding relationship with God the Father through the Son, our Lord.  He tells them, ²⁵ “Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. ²⁶ Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of everyone. ²⁷ For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. ²⁸ Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. ²⁹ I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. ³⁰ Even from your own number some will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. ³¹ So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.
      1. i.      Paul is saying, after this we will never see each other again, this is the end.
         1. I did my part, I told you about Jesus and the whole will of God, no one can hold me accountable for the blood of anyone
            1. He shared the gospel freely with both Jews and Greeks and did not withhold the good news from anyone.
            2. He has discharged his duty
         2. He then calls them to take responsibility for the people in their charge
            1. He tells them, to be shepherds of God’s church
            2. It is precious, he bought it with his own blood
         3. There are trials and tests coming, the church will be attacked from without and within, be ready
      2. ii.      Protect and care for the church, as Jesus said to Peter, feed me sheep
      3. iii.      My part is done, now yours begins in truth

1. III. Paul then blesses them and gives them a final charge:  ³² “Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. ³³ I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing. ³⁴ You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. ³⁵ In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”
   1. “Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified”
      1. i.      He then says, follow my example
         1. Don’t covet anyone’s silver or gold or clothing
         2. Work hard, provide for your own needs and for the needs of the weak
         3. Know that as Jesus said, “it is more blessed to give than receive.”
      2. ii.      Then they prayed together, wept together and prepared for what was to come.  Luke recounts it like this, ³⁶ When Paul had finished speaking, he knelt down with all of them and prayed. ³⁷ They all wept as they embraced him and kissed him.