I would like to begin this morning in exactly the same way that we began last Wednesday.
As I said that night, Luke has not given us a parable or allegory in these verses.
What we read here is the short history of an “accident,” a death, and a miracle.
But as Christians we know that there isn’t such a thing as an “accident” in the sight of the sovereign God.
Jehovah permitted, controlled and used Eutychus’ drowsy fall for the Lord’s own glory.
And that Luke was lead by the Holy Spirit to record this for us, means that the Lord has something to tell us
But the question is: What?
Someone might wonder how it is possible that a miracle of this magnitude could be stated so matter-of-factly.
Luke’s account is almost like that of a newspaper reporter.
It’s not worded in spectacular or dramatic language.
The story is told almost bluntly.
Is that so hard to believe?
Or could it be that the Spirit doesn’t want us to focus on the gory details, but on the spiritual lessons.
I lived in a bunk house and was allowed to eat anything that the little restaurant in town served.
I would never have guessed that I could tire of t-bone steaks,
but in the same way that Israel tired of manna, after 6 or 8 weeks I got a little bored with those t-bones.
Not only did they take the miracle for granted, they even began to despise it.
Just the reverse of my case, they wanted t-bones instead of manna.
the resurrection of Eutychus was an ACTUAL and SPECTACULAR miracle.
Luke could not avoid bringing it to our attention,
It wasn’t a vision, or dream; it was not an allegory meant to tell some sort of spiritual story.
Despite that fact, I would like to look at AS IF IT WAS an allegory or parable.
I would like to use the words of this scripture to illustrate a couple of other important Biblical truths.
I believe that I have the leadership of the Holy Spirit and the example of the Lord Jesus in doing so.
This word “neanias” (neh-an-ee’-as) and its cousin “neaniskos” (neh-an-is’-kos) are found 15 times in Bible, and they are ALWAYS translated “young man.”
This was not a little boy, who under ordinary circumstance was in bed by 7, who has fallen out the window.
This was a young MAN, someone who was, at the very least, in his mid-teenage years.
If he was like most young men, he would not have been happy to be called a “boy.”
He was a young MAN.
He was well along in his education; he was learning a trade, and he may have been bringing a small income home.
His voice had dropped; he had a driver’s licence; he may have had a tiny, fuzzy beard.
He was probably a member of the Baptist church in Troas.
He expected to be treated with respect; he expected to be treated as a young MAN.
One of the problem with young men is that their expectations often outstrip what they perceive as their responsibilities.
In other words, they think that they deserve more than they are willing to grant to others.
But with every privilege come at least a couple of related responsibilities.
And no matter who we are, if we don’t take care of our responsibilities, we don’t deserve our privileges.
As a member of that church, or at least being the member of a family of that church,
He had the responsibility to learn what was being taught; to INGEST it; to DIGEST it; and to INVEST it.
If he expected the respect of Paul, then he needed to respect Paul by staying awake and alert.
If he expected Paul to listen to him when HE had something to say, then he needed to listen to Paul as he preached the Holy Word of God.
I think that most of the talk about a generation gap, is a lot of garbage.
The problem is not the difference in age between parents and children, grand-parents and grand-kids.
The problem is the deteriorating respect between these groups.
And that problem lies on the shoulders of the older people as much as the younger.
But Eutychus DID fall asleep, and he DID fall out a third storey window – to his death.
Death is never a pleasant occurrence; it is never an happy event; it is never convenient.
But in some ways, the death of a YOUNG man is the saddest of all deaths.
We expect the elderly to eventually die; it is a part of life.
and it doesn’t surprise us to hear that our friends or other people our age have been struck down.
They are vulnerable.
There are many, many of those littlest people who die without any explanation ever given.
But young men are supposed to live forever.
They will have passed through all the potentially lethal childhood diseases.
They haven’t yet been beaten up with life.
They should have grown out of the climbing and falling out of trees stage.
If they are as smart as they say they are, they aren’t risking their lives doing really stupid things.
Nevertheless, Eutychus was dead.
And so, young men need to be brought to life.
Particularly, they need to be born again.
They need to realize that there is both physical life and there is spiritual life.
And they need to realize that their spiritual lives are far more important than their physical lives.
Eutychus was dead
Even young CHURCH MEMBERS can be dead in trespasses and sins, because church membership doesn’t convey spiritual life.
Young people may deceive themselves into thinking that their desire to go to Heaven was the same thing as faith in Christ.
They may have been confused as a child, thinking that fear of eternal punishment was the same thing as repentance for sin.
That young man is not a child, he should be able to understand, humanly speaking, the importance of Spiritual things.
He should have been able to see that the beauty, intricacy and order of the world demands the recognition of a divine Creator.
His 15 or 16 years should have taught him to see that his heart is filled with sin.
He should not only have heard, but come to realize that sin cannot, and will not, go unjudged.
Young men need to be brought to spiritual life, before they are even more hardened by sin.
But young people are more apt to ignore, overlook, or put off this necessity.
They may foolishly think that they have 50 years in front of them,
or to place their souls in the hands of the Lord.
Most young men are slow to realize the deadness of their spirits, and how near eternity always is.
Young men, need to be brought to life, to be born again.
And there is only one way for young men to be brought into spiritual life.
They must be brought into connection with the Lord.
It’s not just a matter of church attendance or Bible reading; it’s a matter of union with Christ.
The Lord Jesus is the only way, the truth and the only life; there is no coming to God apart from Him.
As a young man should love his mother and his father, he also needs to love the Lord with a holy but passionate zeal.
Young men need to be brought to life.
Trouble not yourselves; for his life is in him
And they brought the young man alive, and were not a little comforted.”
There have been misconceptions about the nature of Christianity since the moment that the Lord Jesus first said, “Come unto me.”
One of those misconceptions has been that church, religion and Christ are for old men, women and the little kids.
There have never been more manly men than those whom we have been studying in the Book of Acts.
Look at him joyfully and confidently walking to the place of his execution.
And listen to Peter when he is arrested again and again, but he replies, “We must obey God rather than men.”
I never had a desire to participate in the Promise Keeper’s movement.
but I rejoiced in its declaration that real men love and worship Christ.
So Eutychus has been given life. Amen!
Now young man, what are you going to do with that new life of yours?
If the life that you have has been granted to you by the grace of the Lord,
then don’t you owe something to your Heavenly father?
What risks can you take with that strong body and able mind of yours?
Hannah, the wife of Elkanah, for quite some time had no children.
But eventually the Lord was gracious and granted to her a son.
And she promptly gave him back to the Lord,
gave himself to God as much as his parents did.
Young man, if the Lord has granted you life, THEN LIVE.
Trouble not yourselves; for his life is in him.
And they brought the young man alive, and were not a little comforted.”
Yes, young people are untested and unproven, like David putting on the armor of King Saul.
Yes, despite what they think about their strength, intelligence and personal beauty,
They need to be protected and nurtured.
They need to be encouraged.
They need to be given the opportunity to become what the Lord intended them to become.
I can just picture an old crusty deacon, a pillar in the church for 50 years.
He thinks that he is a good judge of character; he thinks that he has even made a preacher or two.
He is thinking about others in the church, to whom each successive point should have struck home.
Yes, he is happy that the boy’s life has been restored, but he is embarrassed by it all.
“If that kid was worth his salt, he should have been in a pew next to his mother, taking notes on the sermon, shouting “amen” every now and then at appropriate points.”
He thinks, “I am embarrassed to admit that we have lazy, sleepy children like that in our church.”
Yes, they are not perfect, but in some ways they may be closer to the Lord than you are in your pride and arrogance.
Don’t look down your nose at this embarrassment.
You should praise the Lord for this new life.
Now, take him under your wing; take a personal interest in him.
Forget your embarrassment and help him to overcome HIS embarrassment and his other infirmities.
Here is another potential Timothy, but unfortunately for him, Paul is leaving in the morning.
Who is going to nurture this young man into Christian maturity?
Maybe it should be YOU.
Young people should be brought alive INTO the arms of the Lord’s church.
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.”
Would you like to learn a new word?
Try this one on for size: “litotes” (lie te tez).
Although this was originally a Greek word, it is now a little-used English word.
A litotes is a figure of speech, consisting of an understatement in which an affirmative is expressed by negating its opposite.
It’s easier illustrated than defined.
The church was “NOT a LITTLE comforted;” in other words they were GREATLY comforted.
The Bible is filled with these litotes
Acts 17:4 – “And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few.“
Acts 17:12 – “Therefore many of them believed; also of honourable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few.“
“Not a few” means that there were a whole bunch of people who believed the gospel and joined the Lord’s churches
And well they should have been.
This is as it should be with ALL young Christians.
They shouldn’t be dead wood in the church, but branches attached to Christ and bringing forth fruit.
John 15 isn’t talking about middle-aged Christians; it’s talking about Christians – period.
Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
If ye abide in me, & my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, & it shall be done unto you.
Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.”
Young men, who have been restored to life, ought to bring great blessings to their churches.
They should bring their parents comfort, because mom and dad know that their sons are safe in the arms of Christ.
Have YOU provided your parents with that testimony?
Have you taken the plunge of scriptural baptism, as all Christians have been commanded to do?
And they should bring joy and comfort through ministering to others what the Word of God has given to them.
Eutychus brought great comfort to the church in Troas.
I would guess that he had also been born again.
And he was a vital part of the Lord’s church in Troas.