The Encourager

 DEVOTION

THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES

THE ENCOURAGER

Acts 20:1-6

20:1 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 the Jews made a plot 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 Feast of Unleavened Bread, and five days later joined the others at Troas, where we stayed seven days.

NIV

This is not much more than a travel log plus a list of all the men who traveled with Paul who he must have gathered from all those places he has visited. Yet there is one thing that we could garner from this and that is the word encouragement. However, this word is used twice. First, it is used when it is said Paul sent for the disciples and after encouraging them, said goodbye. Next, it is used as he traveled throughout the area he encouraged the other believers in all those places. It is interesting there are two distinct different Greek words, but only one English word. However, when Paul sent for his disciples what we find is two Greek words, parakaleo and aspazomai. Here they are used together as to call them to himself and embrace them, bidding them farewell. This was saying goodbye with much love and sadness because he was leaving their company. This implies a closeness, a koinonia, more the friends, but dear brothers who cared for each other deeply. This was more then just a surface-type acquaintance that seems to happen so often in our community of faith, unless there are certain little cliques within the church, who really are not friendly to outsiders at all. This might be human nature to develop cliques, but we would think that believers who are professing to follow Jesus, would be in the midst of being transformed into the likeness of Christ, reflecting his glory to all, both other believers and non-believers.  Paul did have traveling companions, in that day, it was always a safety factor to travel in groups as they traveled on foot. Here Paul calls the disciples together and embraces them. These would be those who became believers in Ephesus. The next time the word encourage is used is when he did so to all those brothers he met before as he traveled through the region. This time it is the Greek word parakaleo, which can be used as comfort, exhorting, console, to encourage by strengthening, and is used as admonishing. We would think Paul did all of that, in the sense of pastoring them, which we would think all those things would be part of being a pastor to the people. So to encourage would mean to call people to our side and comfort, exhort, console and strengthen them. What a great way to live as a follower of Jesus, pastoring or shepherding his people, and that does not singularly apply to the paid person hired to fill the position of pastor, but this should apply to all us believers, as we build each other up until we all reach the unity in the faith.