Lechem Panim #157 "The Ethiopian Eunuch” (Acts 8:26-40) Pastor Cameron Ury

Hello and welcome again to Lechem Panim. We are continuing our study today of Acts chapter 8, looking at verses 26-40 today, which of course is the story of Philip’s sharing the Good News of the Gospel with an Ethiopian Eunuch, who comes to faith in Jesus Christ.

An Example of Genuine Faith— Now you'll remember that a couple of weeks ago we talked about the sorcerer Simon and the false nature of his faith. He became a part of Christianity for selfish personal gain rather than to be used by the Holy Spirit of God to join with God in his mission of reaching the world. However, in our passage today we are given an example of true, genuine saving faith; a faith that is demonstrated by three very important elements; the proper preparation (as the Eunuch was seeking truth in the Word of God, the proper presentation (as Philip came alongside of the Ethiopian to explain the Gospel message to him), and the proper response, which is seen in the Ethiopian being baptized and truly repenting.

Witnessing Not Overwhelming— Now I don’t know how you feel about witnessing. I think we all agree that it has to be done. But often we have qualms about who is supposed to do it. It can be uncomfortable. But that is because we complicate it too much; or we place to much of the burden on ourselves rather than God. We think that if we slip up then we’ll push people farther away. But that view completely takes God out of the equation. It is humanistic because in thinking that way we are assuming it is us doing the work; but it’s not. You are just called to play a part in God’s work. And that doesn’t have to be a complete sharing of the Gospel. Sometimes it can be (like it was with Philip in our passage today) coming alongside of a person and answering some questions; working with them through an issue they might be facing and offering them the hope that you have found if you feel God leading you to. I think that we get overwhelmed by thinking witnessing means you have to give a full presentation of the Gospel and be able to (afterwards) convince them of their sin and to accept Christ. But most of the time that’s a multi-person job. Don’t worry about the big picture of whether or not they come to Christ; because that’s in God’s hands. Just focus on the opportunities God is leading you into. You may be the planter; you may be the waterer; and only occasionally the harvester; and that’s okay. Just be content with the part God has called you to play. That’s how it was with Phillip.

Moved Into Ministry— Now Philip had the unexpected joy of causing something big to happen merely because he was willing to obey an immediate call from God to come alongside a stranger. Now keep in mind this is not Philip the Apostle, but Phillip the Evangelist, one of seven men chosen to help distribute food to the Greek-speaking Jewish widows who had been overlooked in the daily distribution (probably because of a language barrier); because the Jews in Palestine spoke mainly Aramaic. So Philip was originally called to serve the Lord by waiting on tables so that the apostles could devote themselves more fully to prayer and to the ministry of the word. But then something happened nobody expected. Stephen, who had proclaimed the Gospel of Christ to the Sanhedrin, was stoned and killed. And on that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria. (Acts 8:1) But, like we said before, this scattering only served to strengthen and grow the Church rather than weaken it.

Ministering in Samaria— Now Philip (who was a Hellenist; a Greek-speaking Jew; and therefore one of the primary targets of this great persecution) goes to Samaria and actually becomes a mighty preacher of the Word. And God moved through him in incredible ways. He becomes the first ever Christian missionary to non-Jews; to these half-breed Samaritans, as they were called. He performed miraculous signs, he cast out demons, he healed paralytics and cripples. And the people of Samaria listened to him and rejoiced at what God was doing through him. But then God kind of shifts gears on him by calling him to an unexpected place. It says in…

Acts 8:26 (ESV)— 26 Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.”

Now what kind of place is this? Luke tells us: This is a desert place. So from great revival in Samaria to a desert place. But it says…

Acts 8:27-28 (ESV)— 27 And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship 28 and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah.

Eunuch— Now the word “eunuch” […can refer to one who had been emasculated or generally, to a government official. It is likely he was both since Luke refers to him as a eunuch and as one who held a position of authority in the queen’s court—that of treasurer, much like a Minister of Finance or Secretary of the Treasury. {But listen to this; because this is very important} As a physical eunuch, he would have been denied access to the temple (Deut. 23:1) and the opportunity to become a full proselyte to Judaism.] And maybe just as bad (at least in the mind of a Jew) is the fact that he will not have any descendants to carry on his name and his heritage.

Hope for A Better Heritage— And in ancient culture your value was very much dependent on the heritage you left. Well here is a guy who probably physically cannot have children because he has (because of his job) been made a eunuch. And yet [Isaiah held out the promise that God would grant devout eunuchs a heritage “better than sons and daughters” (Isa. 56:3–5).] Well, what is that heritage? Salvation in Jesus Christ. So as he’s drawing near that chapter in Isaiah, here comes Philip to share the message of Christ with him so that he can be part of that heritage. How AWESOME is that! Now the way the Holy Spirit timed this encounter is simply amazing, which we will see more in a minute. But it says…

Acts 8:29-34 (ESV)— 29 And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” 30 So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31 And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this:
   “Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter
       and like a lamb before its shearer is silent,
       so he opens not his mouth.
33    In his humiliation justice was denied him.
       Who can describe his generation?
   For his life is taken away from the earth.”
34 And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?”

A Sheep Before It’s Shearers— And we know that this passage from Isaiah is actually a prophecy of Jesus, who was silent before Pilate and those who were persecuting Him. And so here Philip has been given a golden opportunity to share Christ with him. And of course he does. It says…

Acts 8:35-36a (ESV)— 35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. 36 And as they were going along the road they came to some water,

Now just think… [Philip and the eunuch arrive at a rare watering place in the desert precisely when the eunuch requested baptism.] Once again the Holy Spirit is leading in a very clear and amazing way.

Acts 8:36b-40 (ESV)— and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?”
38 And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. 39 And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away [much like Elijah was (2 Kings 2:11).], and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. 40 But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he preached the gospel to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

From Seed to Great Harvest— Now Philip probably didn’t know this, but Church tradition tells us that this Ethiopian eunuch also became a preacher of the Gospel and that in fact that place where Philip baptized the Ethiopian eunuch (in Gaza) [marks the start of the Ethiopian Church], of which one branch today, the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church has a membership of 36 million. You see, God can use our obedience to witness to bring about great change in people’s lives.

A "sign" to start witnessing?— [Norman Cates shared the humorous story of a guy who prayed this prayer every morning: "Lord, if you want me to witness to someone today, please give me a sign to show me who it is." One day he found himself on a bus when a big, burly man sat next to him. The bus was nearly empty but this guy sat next to our praying friend. The timid Christian anxiously waited for his stop so he could exit the bus. But before he could get very nervous about the man next to him, the big guy burst into tears and began to weep. He then cried out with a loud voice, "I need to be saved. I’m a lost sinner and I need the Lord. Won’t somebody tell me how to be saved?" He turned to the Christian and pleaded, "Can you show me how to be saved?" The believer immediately bowed his head and prayed, "Lord, is this a sign?" Are you looking for a "sign" to start witnessing?]

God Waiting For Us— The fact is there are people all around us who are (like the Ethiopian) waiting for us to connect the dots for them; to make the scripture connect with them so that they might find Jesus Christ. God is simply waiting on us to be willing to be His hands, His feet, and His voice in those moments that He opens for us to share. And the question is, are we going to be faithful? If we are, God can also use us in amazing ways. And so let’s commit to God today to come alongside people and help them to encounter Jesus. Amen.