Acts 8: 26 Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” 27 So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake (which means “queen of the Ethiopians”). This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, 28 and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet. 29 The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.”30 Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked. 31 “How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 This is the passage of Scripture the eunuch was reading:“He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth. 33 In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth.” 34 The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?” 35 Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus. 36 As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptised?” 38 And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptised him. 39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. 40 Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.
The Eunuch - A Spiritual Man
He is one of the highest ranking officials in Ethiopia.
He has access to the Queen and possibly other female royals, so he has been castrated.
Which means he may have looked strange. He may have had no facial hair. His voice may not have broken, depending on when the procedure took place.
He is a seeking man. He has been to worship in the Temple in Jerusalem and is now reading from the book of Isaiah, in a scroll (27-28). To own such a thing indicates his wealth, but his position of being the treasurer of Ethiopia would mean he had immense wealth.
But being wealthy and seeking, did not equate salvation. There’s a dissatisfaction in his soul.
All of us who know Jesu know what that was like. That feeling that there must be more to life than this. That feeling of wanting to believe in God but finding God unbelievable. That knowledge that no matter how good our life is, we are falling short.
Philip - Gets Alongside
27: So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch….. 29 The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.” 30 Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet.
Initially Philip walks. He is just going along the road God has marked out for him.
Then he runs alongside! The majority of us who are saved know Jesus because somebody came alongside us. For me, that was Sam Patterson and Pastor John Harrison. Who ran alongside you?
My friends, sometimes we walk the road and sometimes we have to run, but either way we have to get alongside our friends to tell them about Jesus.
The Right Question!
He asks the question, 30: “Do you understand what you are reading?”
We need to learn to ask questions first and listen to the answers. Asking the right questions is sometimes more important than saying the right things when witnessing. The right question unlocks the conversation.
31: “How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?”
Philip accepts the invitation to come and sit with him. He gets closer to him. The right question unlocks deeper friendship.
31b: So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
The conversation turns to Jesus. The right question will lead to Jesus.
32: This is the passage of Scripture the eunuch was reading: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth…
I used to have a keyring that said: Jesus is the answer, now what’s the question?
Jesus is the answer to the big questions in life. Who am I? Why am I here? Who am I in relation to God?
Is it Jesus?
The eunuch is reading from Isaiah who had prophesied the events in Jerusalem and Jesus’ death.
34: The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?”
We are all faced with this amazing question: is it Jesus?
One day we will all stand before God. The question He will ask us is what did we do with His son? Did we reject Him or accept His offer of salvation?
35 Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.
What is the Good News of Jesus?
It is what the people being baptised have discovered. It is what so many of use here today have discovered.
That Jesus came to walk among us, live without sin, was crucified as a sacrifice for our sin, died and was raised to life by God.
Romans 3: 23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25a God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith…
The Good News is that the punishment we deserve for our wrongdoing, Jesus has paid for. But we have to accept that offer. Then the scales of justice weigh in our favour.
Wrapping this Up:
36 As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptised?”
Baptism is a reminder of what Jesus has done for us. Going down represents His death. Coming up, represents His resurrection.
Baptism is a public confession of faith that we have decided to follow, identify with and commit to Jesus.
Baptism is not salvation: there’s nothing special about the water. It is a sign that we are saved, not perfect. Each one being baptised today is still a work in progress.
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