Going through Demetrius’ commotion, Paul escaped another crisis. He wanted to go from Greece to Syria by way of Macedonia, but when he heard that they were trying to harm him, he made a detour to Macedonia and headed for Troas. Accompanying Paul were Sopater, Aristarchus, Segundo, Gaius, Timothy, and Trophimus. To ensure Paul’s safety, they had checked the route to Troas in advance and were waiting for him there.

At Troas

Paul stayed in Troas for a week and took care of the church. The day before his departure, the first day after the Sabbath, Paul spoke his word until midnight. The first day after the Sabbath is the day of Jesus’ resurrection and is also the day when Jesus appeared to the gathering of his disciples. In the meeting at this time, there was a “breaking of bread” in the middle of the meeting. This breaking of bread was also called the name given to Sunday worship (2:42,46). Prior to the breaking of bread, there was a worship service with a sermon. This is followed by a communal meal. The mention of a church at Troas is found only in this text. Perhaps it was built when Paul was contemplating whether to go to Asia or Macedonia from there (16:8-11).

Eutychus Died and Resurrected

A young man named Eutychus listened to a sermon late into the night and fell asleep from sleep. Paul went downstairs, fell on his body, embraced him, and told the people around him, “He is alive. He is alive.” After confirming that he was alive, all the congregation went up to the meeting place and after speaking, they had time to break bread. And it was a pity to part, so we continued to talk until late at night.

The power of resurrection/ the power of life

In verse 9 of this text, the author admitted that Eutychus actually died. And in verse 10 it says that he died and came back to life. The resurrection of the dead is already mentioned in several places in the Bible. The fact that Peter had already saved Tabitha in Joppa is introduced in Acts (9:36-40). The resurrection of the dead refers to the resurrection and eternal life that Jesus gives to Christians who belong to him. The power of life and resurrection that Jesus will give us in the future has already been realized in the early church age. The incident of Eutychus’ resurrection was a great comfort to the Troas believers. As much as the depth of their suffering, it came to be settled in their hearts as comfort and hope.

Appearance as a Pastor

When Eutychus fell, Paul would have immediately gone down and prostrated himself on it, earnestly seeking God’s help. It was not because Paul’s ability saved him, but because Paul’s earnestness was in accord with God’s will. He also talked with Saints who stayed up all night. The attitude of treating the saints with another earnestness is a virtue that we should imitate.

He preached his word until midnight. Christians should always be zealous in preaching the Word to those who are thirsty for the Gospel as much as they want. As the Lord’s return approaches, we should all have the heart of a pastor and the passion of a preacher. Paul is setting the best example as a church leader. When passion for the Word and works of power are combined, the trials of the church are restored and the faith of the church is strengthened.

Think about

The church in Troas longed for the Word of God, and Paul preached the Word to them all night long with passion. Eutychus also had a longing for the Word, so he would have sat by the window and listened to the Word. I don’t know why many lamps were lit there, but the tiredness from the day’s work, the warmth from the lamps, and the sweetness from the Word might have made him drowsy. When he fell and died, the saints who witnessed the work of God answering Paul’s prayer would have been moved more than the grace of the word they received without being involved in this incident. We pray that this power of resurrection will appear in the field of our lives today as well. We earnestly desire to experience not only physical death, but also resurrection from spiritual death, resurrection from disease, and resurrection from problems even before receiving the full resurrection grace through Christ who returns.

President Sung Jin Lim
World Mission University