Acts 8
... and beginning from this Scripture, he preached Jesus to him. - Vs 35
Two words jump out of this chapter at me: Persecution and proclaiming.
At the stoning of Stephen in chapter seven, a young man stood by watching this godly man's death, holding the coats of those who threw the stones that killed him. That young man was Saul. He was already in the employ of the high priest with the responsibility of rounding up Christians and throwing them in jail. The joy of Pentecost had quickly turned into the hatred of persecution for the early Christians. Stephen had been their first martyr.
But God has a way of turning tragedy into triumph and oppression into opportunity. The persecution of Saul ended up scattering the thousands of believers who had been gathered in Jerusalem since the days immediately following Pentecost. These Jewish converts had become Christ-followers and now, out of the fear of possible imprisonment, were "scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria." God had never intended for them to remain in the city of Jerusalem. He wanted them to take what they had heard and received, and share it. Little did Saul know that his plan for destroying the church would actually end up causing its growth.
Verse four tells us they "went abroad preaching the word." This included Philip, one of the seven men "of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom" who had been chosen to oversee the distribution of food to the widows (6:3). Philip ends up in the city of Samaria and he begins "proclaiming Christ to them" (vs 5). Like Stephen, Philip ends up being a lot more than just some administrative type with the gift of service. Along with his preaching, he casts out demons, heals the lame and the sick, and leads one of the town's leading celebrities to the Lord. But God isn't done with Philip. An angel of the Lord gives him a new assignment. He is to get up and go to the desert road that leads from Jerusalem to Gaza. That's all the information he received. But he obediently went. Once he arrives on the scene, he meets a visiting dignitary, the treasurer for the Queen of Ethiopia.
A "Chance" Encounter
When Philip gets to his destination on the desert road, he meets this Ethiopian official from Candace's court. He has his chariot parked and he just happens to be reading from the writings of the prophet Isaiah. Philip, sensing that this is his divine appointment, asks the gentleman if he understands what he's reading. The visitor pleads ignorance and invites Philip, a perfect stranger, up into his chariot to explain to him the meaning of this obscure passage from the Hebrew scriptures.
It just so happens that this Ethiopian has been reading from what we now know as chapter 53 of the book of Isaiah. For whatever reason, he had chosen to read from a section of Isaiah's writings that are Messianic in nature. They prophesy of the coming of the Messiah. The Ethiopian is intrigued and wants to know who Isaiah is referring to in these verses. What a set up? Philip has got to be thinking to himself, "Lord, can you make this any easier?" Luke tells us that Philip "opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him" (vs 35).
He Preached Jesus
When I go back and read Isaiah 53, it makes me think that Philip probably didn't have to go very much further than this single passage to preach Jesus to this spiritually starving man. In this prophetic passage, Isaiah tells of the One to come:
... our griefs He Himself bore ...
... our sorrows He carried ...
... He was pierced through for our transgressions ...
... the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him ...
... the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him ...
... the Lord was pleased to crush Him ...
... putting Him to grief ...
... He would render Himself as a guilt offering ...
... [He] will justify the many, as He will bear their iniquities ...
... He Himself bore the sin of many, and interceded for the transgressors ...
Wow! There it is right there. I think Philip had a field day with this passage. He was able to preach Jesus right from the writings of Isaiah. And the result is that this Ethiopian dignitary recognizes that he is a sheep who has gone astray. He sees that he has turned to his own way. He understands that the Lord had caused his iniquity to fall on Jesus. That Jesus had died in His place as his sin substitute. His eyes are opened and he steps from unbelief to belief, from lostness to salvation, as he confesses, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God" (vs 37).
Are You Going and Telling?
Philip was obedient. When the angel of the Lord said, "Go!", Philip went. Not knowing what was going to happen when he got there. But God had prepared the way. He had been working on the heart of a stranger, drawing him to Himself, fertilizing the soil so that Philip could plant the seed of Truth. All Philip had to do was preach Jesus. He had to be ready to proclaim Jesus as Lord and Savior. He simply had to tell the Ethiopian that Jesus was the one he had been reading about. Jesus was the one who had accomplished all those things. And all for him.
So what about you? Are you willing to go? Are you ready to tell someone else about Jesus? God still arranges divine appointments. He still brings people into our path who want to hear, who are dying to know. But are we ready to preach Jesus to them? Philip was. And it changed one man's life forever.
Father, I want to be ready to go when you call. I want to be ready to tell when the opportunity presents itself. Give me a heart like Philip and a sensitivity to all those around me, so that I can see the ones You place in my path who are fertile soil for the good news of Jesus Christ. Amen.