The Bible presents many figures to us, people from whom we can learn many lessons.

One of them, a young

man named Eutychus in Acts 20:9, teaches us many things even though he appeared in the Bible for only a
short while.
Who is Eutychus and what can we learn from him? Let's talk about that.
A notable event
Eutychus' story in Acts 20 isn't heroic or inspiring at all. It's actually tragic, something that has lessons we
should take to heart, especially for the young ones. The account in Acts 20:7-12 tells us,
"Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the
next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight. There were many lamps in the upper room
where they were gathered together. And in a window sat a certain young man named Eutychus, who was
sinking into a deep sleep. He was overcome by sleep; and as Paul continued speaking, he fell down from the
third story and was taken up dead. But Paul went down, fell on him, and embracing him said, "Do not trouble
yourselves, for his life is in him." Now when he had come up, had broken bread and eaten, and talked a long
while, even till daybreak, he departed. And they brought the young man in alive, and they were not a little
comforted."
Important points to highlight in the story:
1. Upper rooms - In both Luke and Acts, upper rooms provide an intimate setting for Jesus’ followers. For
example, in Luke 22:7-38 Jesus communes and dines with his disciples in an upper room on the night of
his arrest. Later in Acts 1:13-14, Jesus’ disciples have again gathered in an upper room prior to the arrival
of God’s Spirit. Likewise, Peter resuscitates Tabitha from the dead, whose body had been laid in an upper
room in Acts 9:36-42. Finally, in Acts 20:7-12, the Christians in Troas worship God in an upper room. In
all of these units, the setting connotes a context of intimacy and sincere discipleship.
2. Worship - The Christians in Troas show themselves to be a faithful gathering of Jesus’ followers by means
of their faithful worship of God. They are breaking bread, worshipping God, and existing in unity much
like we see in Acts 2. For example, the believers in Acts 2 “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching
and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and prayers. Awe came upon everyone, because many wonders
and signs were being done by the apostles” (Acts 2:42-43). Notably, all of those elements (teaching,
fellowship, breaking bread, and a miracle performed by an apostle)
3. Lamps - The lamps allow them to continue in light throughout the night while darkness has fallen outside
of the upper room. The Christians in Troas prepared ahead of time for an entire night of worship and
communion when they brought their lamps with them
At the time, Paul was in Troas in Greece. He met with the believers there, and because he was about to leave
the following day, spent considerable time with the believers to speak to them. They gathered in an upper room
that had many lamps. As the gathering continued until late in the evening, one of the people present there, a
young man named Eutychus, fell asleep and fell down from the third floor window where he was sitting. He
"was taken up dead."
He literally died.
Paul, embracing the young man whose name literally meant "fortunate," brought him back to life, by the power
of Christ, to the comfort of the believers.
What can we learn from him?
Well, perhaps we're wondering, "what can we learn from this guy?" After all, he didn't do anything fancy, didn't
preach, and died from falling while asleep. That doesn't sound so inspiring, not at all.
Still, there are a few things we can learn from him. Here are some of them:
1) Be careful always
Just because God is protecting us and keeping us safe from the enemy, that doesn't mean we should be
careless. (Matthew 26:41) The spirit is willing but the flesh/body is weak.
Eutychus was there listening to Paul's message alright, but he died because he sat down somewhere he
shouldn't have sat, at a time he shouldn't have sat there. (1 Thess. 5:6) for safety/self-control
We've got to exercise plain common sense. (Matthew 24: 42) Stay awake!
2) We've got to balance things
As Paul kept speaking to them although already late in the evening, Eutychus felt sleepy. Here's one thing that
we should then learn to manage: our health.
It's a great thing to prioritize our spiritual health, but we should also balance it with other things like physical
and emotional health. The Lord Jesus Himself grew in aspects aside from the spiritual:
"And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men." (Luke 2:52)
Young people in particular need to learn this. Passionate Christians can give so much of their time to church
activities or work or service that they neglect their studies, their families, and even their time to rest and be
alone with the Lord in prayer. Balance is key.
(Ecclesiastes 3:1-8) There is time for everything
3) God honors our efforts for Him
Alright, Eutychus fell down from that high window because he fell asleep while listening to Paul speak. Does
that mean God punished him for sleeping during the service? No, He didn't. God's response actually showed
the opposite:
That He valued Eutychus' life and drive to have fellowship and break bread with fellow believers, even as it
was likely beyond his bedtime. The young man died, but He brought Eutychus back to life through the hands of
Paul.
God cares about every single thing that we do for Him. 1 Corinthians 15:58 tells us,
"Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing
that your labor is not in vain in the Lord."
The Lord Jesus Himself said in Mark 10:29-30,
"Assuredly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or
children or lands, for My sake and the gospel's, who shall not receive a hundredfold now in this time—houses
and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions—and in the age to come,
eternal life."
Hebrews 11:6 also tells us,
"But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He
is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."

One might assume that only daytime is associated with God’s work and nighttime with the opposite,
but that is not quite right. On occasion God’s will is fully realized in the nighttime hours, but only those
who are awake participate in it.