Psalm 22:25-31
Acts 8:26-40
1 John 4:7-16
John 15:1-8
Homilist: Halcyon Wison

      Historians believe the book of Acts was written by Luke during the years 63-70 AD. The story we read this morning of Philip and the eunuch took place during this time. In various translations and commentaries, he is referred to as the Ethiopian, and the Greek speaking Jew. The country of Ethiopia, just south of Egypt, mentioned also in some translations as Meroe, seems to have been a wealthy country, in what is now Sudan. It was definitely an African country. It was ruled by a queen known as Candace. This queen trusted her wealth to an African-Ethiopian-Greek-speaking Jew, known to us only as the eunuch. Making men eunuchs was a common practice among courts of the day. Apparently it made them more trustworthy.

      This Greek speaking Jew went to Jerusalem to worship, something many Jews did during their life-time living away from Jerusalem. Actually, the race of the eunuch has been debated by scholars. Some think he was a Jew serving in this high office of a foreign government much as did Joseph, Daniel, or Nehemiah. Others hold that he was a native Ethiopian who had embraced the Jewish faith. If that is the case, he then was a proselyte, and because he was a eunuch, he was considered a “Proselyte of the gate” and would not have been permitted to enter the inner courts of the temple.

        One of my commentaries states that during this period, many Gentiles were attracted to Judaism because of its high ethical standards and its belief in one God. Archeologists have discovered records of a Jewish settlement in southern Egypt; so it would have been quite possible for this country of Ethiopia to have had contacts with Jews. This man certainly had made a serious commitment to Judaism, for he had made a trip of several hundred miles to visit the temple in Jerusalem, probably for one of the important annual feasts. Devout proselytes, such as this Ethiopian, were often ready converts to Christianity during the early days. They seemed to be more responsive to the gospel than other Jews. (From John W. Wade, ACTS, Standard Bible Studies, 1973, pages 85-88))

        As the eunuch rode along, he was reading from the book of Isaiah. Bumping along in a chariot on a road that was not exactly a superhighway did not make his task any easier. It says something about his desire to understand.

      It certainly seems providential that he was reading at that time from Isaiah 53 , one of the richly Messianic passages from that book. And isn’t it providential that at that moment the Spirit directed Philip to approach the chariot?

      Let me talk about Philip. . .

      Jesus’ last words to his followers were a command to take the gospel everywhere, but the followers seemed reluctant to leave Jerusalem. “Success had attended their ministry . . . and there was danger that the disciples would linger there too long . . . forgetting that strength to resist evil is best gained by aggressive service. They began to think that the work was so important that they needed to shield the church in Jerusalem from the attacks of the enemy. Instead of educating the new converts to carry the gospel to those who had not heard it, they were in danger of taking a course that would lead all to be satisfied with what had been accomplished.” (DA 105)

      They probably felt they needed each other, or they couldn’t leave their homes, or . . . I’m sure they had many good reasons. So they congregated in small groups, and apparently needing to receive assistance in feeding their families.

      During this time, the apostles needed help distributing food to the new believers. They met together and chose Philip (not the apostle Philip) to help in this endeavor. This Philip was a member in good standing, full of the Spirit and wisdom. He was one of seven deacons chosen to help with this task.

      Then Stephen was stoned under the direction of Saul of Tarsus. Persecution started and was rampant, including women and children. (A note: Women were not usually imprisoned. They were usually ignored. Yet at this time they were so important to the work of the new church, that they were targeted also. It says something about the activities and importance of women in forming the new church.) This group of believers in Jerusalem were afraid, therefore they spread out to safer places. Of course, this meant that the Gospel was taken throughout the area. It took intensive persecution to scatter them from Jerusalem into Judea and Samaria. That is just where Jesus had instructed them to go!

      There were already believers in Samaria because Jesus had spent time there. Remember the story of the Samaritan woman at the well told in John 4 ?  Philip was sent down to the city of Samaria, probably because it was less dangerous than Jerusalem. Saul, the persecutor, being a strict orthodox Jew, would not be going to Samaria. The ministry was so successful there, that Philip asked Peter and John to come and help. They quickly became involved themselves, seeing firsthand God’s acceptance if those who previously were considered unacceptable. The enemies became the protectors and converts.

      In the middle of all this, Philip was told by an angel to go “toward south, on the way down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is wilderness.” This he chose to do, apparently not knowing exactly why. I don’t know how the angel talked to him. In a dream? In person? Whatever way, Philip believed and acted on it. Which says to me that he was very close to the Spirit of God, and knew that voice, and was willing to obey without questioning. Surely the angel could have appeared to the Ethiopian, but that is not God’s plan. How wonderfully divine that as humans we are expected to do the work of spreading the Gospel.

      As Philip was walking, probably wondering what it was that the Lord wanted him to do, he saw this Ethiopian traveling the same way he was. I can’t imagine this man, this Greek speaking Jew, this treasurer of the courts of Ethiopia, traveling alone. Surely he had an entourage of servants and horsemen with him tending to his needs. And his chariot was large enough to seat two people. Did this attract Philip’s attention?

      “Then the Spirit said unto Philip, ‘Go near, and join yourself to this chariot.’” (verse 29) And Philip ran to him and noticed the Ethiopian was reading from a scroll. It must have been rather prominent, for this was most likely the Septuagint, a Greek translation of the Old Testament. It would not be a small book! And reading from a Greek scroll was not easy, for these manuscripts had no word divisions, punctuation, or accent marks.

      Philip was inspired to ask, “Do you understand what you are reading?”

      The Ethiopian answered, “How could I, unless someone guides me?”

      The passage the eunuch was reading is another amazing point. It was Isaiah 53:7 , 8 a part of the moving “Suffering Servant” poem. This important man was humble enough to accept the help of an unknown man, and without question, invite him on board and further their discussion. It is not surprising that the Ethiopian did not understand it, for the Jewish scholars from Isaiah to the time of Christ did not consider these verses Messianic. Their concept of the Messiah saw Him as majestic and triumphant, not rejected and humiliated. The Ethiopian probably had been schooled in that thought also.

      As he pondered these verses, the question that puzzled him was the identity of the sheep that was led to the slaughter. He mentioned two possibilities, the prophet himself or some other person. And if another person, who? 

      What better opening did Philip need? What a beautiful and appropriate way to explain the good news of Jesus Christ! Is there a better place in the Old Testament to explain the mission of Jesus? The Gospels give accounts of Jesus’ suffering and death but none of the New Testament accounts describe any more vividly the real meaning of Jesus’ passion. Is the picture of an innocent lamb silently and meekly dying for others any more vividly available to us?

"HE WAS LED AS A SHEEP TO SLAUGHTER;  
AND AS A LAMB BEFORE ITS SHEARER IS SILENT,  
SO HE DOES NOT OPEN HIS MOUTH.  
IN HIS HUMILIATION JUSTICE WAS DENIED HIM;  
WHO CAN DESCRIBE HIS GENERATION?  
FOR HIS LIFE IS TAKEN AWAY FROM THE EARTH."

      We don’t know how long the discussion lasted, but I imagine it took some time to tell him about the life of Jesus, how the disciples struggled to understand. He must have related to him some of the parables and miracles, and then the horrible torture and death, He must have described Jesus’ silence throughout it all, just as the lamb being taken to be killed, and the ultimate triumphant resurrection. Philip must have given a marvelous lesson study, and the eunuch was a willing learner.

      As they traveled along, the Ethiopian, seeing some water, asked if there was any reason why he could not be baptized? Apparently baptism was also covered in this study! Maybe Philip told him about Jesus’ baptism.

      I read that ancient manuscripts state that Philip said “If you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, you may be baptized.” However it was presented, this African Greek speaking Jew from Ethiopia believed in repentance and commitment and asked to be baptized.

      They walked down into the water – a stream or pool large enough for both to be in and for one to be immersed. The eunuch died to the old man of sin and arose to walk in the new life. As soon as they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away.

      The eunuch must have been mystified by the sudden disappearance of the man who had brought him the word of salvation. But he apparently was not upset by it for we are told that he went on his way rejoicing. Do you suppose he thought Philip to be an angel? I would have . . .

      This is the last we hear of the Ethiopian eunuch. A second-century Christian writer, Irenaeus, informs us that the eunuch returned to Ethiopia, where he evangelized among the people. While this was certainly the response to be expected from a Christian, we have no clear historic evidence that this is what actually happened. We do know that missionaries arrived in Ethiopia at a later date and a church was already established there. If the eunuch did win converts in Ethiopia, most of them would have been Gentiles. But they were so isolated from Jerusalem that news of this activity would not readily have reached it.

      Africa and its people play various roles in biblical history – refuge and oppression. “Herein lays the theological import of Acts 8 : 26-40, for the Ethiopian eunuch’s conversion to Christ marks the fulfillment of Old Testament prophesies. Africans are not recent additions to the story of God’s salvation; rather they have been actively present in biblical history from the earliest chapters of Genesis to the earliest expansion of the gospel.” (The IVP Women’s Bible Commentary, page 616)  

      Philip next appeared at Azotus, known in the Old Testament as Ashdod, one of the five great Philistine cities. He evangelized in that area and then made his way up to Caesarea, preaching as he went. It is likely that he preached in Lydda and Joppa, for we know that Peter found saints there only a short time later (Acts 9:32-37 ). Philip later made his home in Caesarea, and Paul and his companions visited with him there. We are told that he had four daughters who prophesied (Acts 21:8 , 9). Good man!

      The conversion of the Gentiles begun by Philip, and other leaders in the movement, was later continued across the entire Roman Empire by Paul, formerly Saul of Tarsus, and hopefully we continue to do so today.

      As interesting as this story is, there are several lessons we can dwell on

1. The amazing divine guidance in people willing to hear, and act. Even today, stories are abundant.
2. The new believers congregated in Jerusalem, forgetting to spread out and evangelize. Were they too comfortable? Were they afraid? Did they think the message was only for Jews?
3. We could talk about the statement in DA that states “strength to resist evil is best gained by aggressive service.” That would be an entire series!
4. We could discuss how you and I today hear and act on the voice from God.
5. The most important discussion would be to remember the center of the Gospel is Jesus Christ. Nothing else is that important.
6. The meaning of baptism would be a good subject. Does one have to join a church in order to be baptized?

      However, I want to spend just a few moments on verse 31: “How could I understand, unless someone guides me.”

      Let us always remember that helping each other understand difficult passages is important. It is why we are here today. We need to hear each other’s voices, thoughts, opinions. Even if we may disagree. Those of us, who are long time Adventists, need to check out our preconceived ideas and be open to new ones. We need to remind ourselves that the Gospel evolves according to the needs of each generation, and culture. Let us remind ourselves that we are on a journey, just as the eunuch was, and as Philip was. We grow and learn throughout our lives and we will again and again be impressed with the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ, by various means. Just as the eunuch learned something new to him, Philip learned to obey the voice which directed him, and in so doing he was more prepared to spread the Gospel elsewhere. There is no end in the study of grace and the life of Jesus of Nazareth. 

      May you and I continue to study and grow, and to share this wonderful good news.