SERMON OUTLINE:
The Characters
• An evangelist called Philip (vs 26)
• A eunuch from Ethiopia (vs 27)
The Situation.
• The servant of the Lord (vs 27)
• A seeker of the Lord (vs 27-28)
The Conversation.
• The helpful evangelist (vs 30 and 36)
• The questioning enquirer (vs 31-34)
The Conclusion
• The convert was baptised (vs 36-39a)
• The Christian was redirected (vs 39b-40)
SERMON BODY:
Philip and the Ethiopian
Reading: chapter 8 verses 26-40.
Ill:
• On December 17, 1903,
• The Wright brothers piloted the first powered airplane.
• Orville Wright piloted the first powered airplane.
• He flew 20 feet above a wind-swept beach in North Carolina.
• The flight lasted 12 seconds and covered 120 feet.
• Three more flights were made that day with Orville's brother Wilbur;
• Piloting the record flight lasting 59 seconds over a distance of 852 feet.
• Thrilled, the Wright brothers telegraphed this message to their sister Katherine:
• The message read:
• "We have actually flown 120 feet. Will be home for Christmas."
• Katherine hurried to the editor of the local newspaper and showed him the message.
• He glanced at it and said,
• "How nice. The boys will be home for Christmas."
• Transition:
• The editor of that newspaper had totally missed the big news;
• Probably the story of the decade, maybe even the century;
• For the very first time man had flown!
• Trivia:
• As an aside - the flight of the wright brothers was 120ft (36.5 m);
• Which is actually shorter than the wingspan on a Boeing 747jumbo jet
• That newspaper editor had missed the opportunity of a lifetime;
• He had missed the story of a century,
• In life God gives us opportunities – some of them only come along once;
• Let’s make sure we do not miss them!
(A). The Two Characters
(1). An evangelist called Philip (vs 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”.
Philip was first introduced to us in Acts chapter 6;
• He was one of the seven deacons who served in the Church at Jerusalem,
• That description ‘deacon’;
• Means his spiritual gift to the Church was at first practical rather than spiritual.
• i.e. You would have probably asked him to fix a broken table,
• Than to preach a sermon.
• But by the time you read chapter 8:
• We discover Philip also had other spiritual gifts;
• i.e. He could preach (vs 5);
• i.e. And in this story he was also a very good personal worker (vs 35).
Application:
• As a Christian whether you consider your gifts practical or spiritual:
• Every Christian is called to be a personal worker;
• To share Christ with those we come into contact with.
Ill:
• At the entrance of one of the great manufacturing plants in America;
• Is a sign that reads;
• “If you are like a wheelbarrow - going no farther than you are pushed;
• You need not apply for work here!”
• When it comes to evangelism, too many Christians have wheelbarrow mentality;
• Sadly. Too many see it as an optional extra and not as an essential!
Ill:
• Two shoe salesman were sent to Africa.
• One sent a telegram home that said: “Get me home, nobody here wears shoes.”
• The other salesman’s telegram said:
• “Send me all of the shoes you can, nobody here wears shoes.”
• We live in a world of needy people;
• May God give us the vision and the desire to reach them!
Quote: Edward Everett Hale, the poet & former Chaplain of the U.S. Senate:
“I am only one, but I am one.
I cannot do everything, but I can do something.
What I can do, that I ought to do.
And what I ought to do, by the grace of God, I shall do.”
(2). A eunuch from Ethiopia (vs 27)
“So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians”.
Notice: that we are told two things about this man:
FIRST: He was a significant political leader,
• He is called ‘an important official’,
• And described as the chancellor of the exchequer of Candace.
• Candace is a title not a place name,
• All the queens of Ethiopia bore it.
SECOND: He was a eunuch:
• A eunuch is a castrated man,
• In ancient times they were used to guard the women's living areas at an oriental court.
• After all if a man has no genitalia;
• He is unlikely to make advances against the kings concubines.
Note: this court official did not come from Ethiopia, as we know it today:
• But rather his home was ancient Nubia,
• Nubia is a region along the Nile river,
• Which is located in northern Sudan and southern Egypt.
• If you are keen you can ‘Google’ and see a map of this region.
• It was the area that the Queen of Sheba came from in the days of Solomon;
• In other words there had already been a strong link between that area and Judaism.
• Which is probably why he is reading Jewish scriptures;
• And why he has travelled hundreds of miles seeking after reality in the Jewish faith.
Ill:
When the famous missionary, Dr David Livingstone,
• Started his trek across Africa he had 73 books in 3 packs, weighing 180 pounds.
• After the party had gone 300 miles,
• Livingstone was obliged to throw away some of the books;
• Because of the fatigue of those carrying his baggage.
• As he continued on his journey his library grew less and less,
• Until he had but one book left—his Bible.
• Well, like Livingstone this eunuch realised;
• The answer lay in the holy-scriptures – the Bible!
(B). The Situation.
• The servant of the Lord (27)
• A seeker of the Lord (27-28)
(1). The servant of the Lord (vs 27).
“Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip”,
• Verses 4-8 tells that Philip was leading a successful mission in Samaria:
• Where people were being converted and things couldn't have been going better,
• Peter and John came for a short time to preach but had now gone back to Jerusalem.
• Philip was the front line-man, he would appear to be indispensable,
• Yet God suddenly steps in with some unexpected new directions.
• “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.”
• In contrast to Samaria which was full of people,
• Philip was sent to a desert road that was almost empty!
• This road goes down about 60 miles from Jerusalem to Gaza,
• And beyond Gaza was the entrance to Egypt, and the African continent.
Note: Three times in this passage God speaks to him:
• Verse 26: “An angel of the Lord said”.
• Verse 29: “The Spirit told Philip”.
• Verse 39b: “The Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away”.
Question:
• How about us?
• Are we sensitive to the leading of God’s Spirit?
Ill:
• Preacher and author Charles Swindoll tells the story;
• Of how his young daughter Colleen;
• Was trying to tell him something important that had happened to her at school that day.
• Charles the dad was preoccupied with other things;
• And his daughter was getting really frustrated trying to get his attention.
• When it seemed at last to her that her dad was listening she said:
• “Daddy, I wanna tell you somethin' and I'll tell you really fast.”
• Realizing his daughters frustration, he answered:
• “Honey, you can tell me -- and you don't have to tell me really fast. Say it slowly."
• Charles Swindoll said: "I'll never forget her answer”:
• She simply said; “Then listen slowly"
As Christians we believe the Spirit of God speaks to us (he does not need to shout!)
• Are we sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s voice?
• Or do we let the busyness of life and other things crowd it out!
• May each of us like Philip - hear his voice;
• And as we hear it - obey it!
(2). A seeker of the Lord (vs 27-28)
“Philip met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship,
and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the book of Isaiah the prophet”.
This Ethiopian was seeking after the true God:
• He was not a Jew,
• But somehow he had become aware of and attracted to the Jewish religion.
• Worshippers or seekers of God,
• Were referred to by the Jews by one of two names:
• First: If they accepted the Jewish religion and were circumcised;
• They were called proselytes.
• Because later on in his Book, Luke the writer of Acts;
• Calls Cornelius the first Gentile convert (chapter 11 verse 1).
• We can say that this Ethiopian was not a proselyte.
• Second: If like this man;
• They did not go that far, but attended a synagogue and read the Jewish scriptures;
• They were called God-fearers.
This Ethiopian was probably a ‘god-fearer’ not a proselyte;
• Due to the fact he was a eunuch, that is somebody castrated,
• According to Old Testament Jewish Law (Deuteronomy chapter 23 verse 1).
• He would have been barred from worshipping at the Temple.
• We might say that despite all his efforts;
• i.e. financial cost of the trip and & the time involved;
• He was still seeking after the truth. He was still lacking an answer;
• He appears to be no nearer to God now, than when he had first arrived.
Ill:
• A boy visited his local Anglican Church;
• As he sat listening he looked around and saw a long list of names,
• On a large marble plaque in the church.
• "What are all those names for?" he asked his mum.
• His mother answered, "those are in memory of all the people who died in service."
• The boy replied: "WHICH service, mum? The morning or the evening service?"
Remember the Jewish religious system was very corrupt at the time of Jesus:
• And so we can pretty well say in Acts chapter 8,
• Not much had changed when these events took place.
• Their religion was dead; full of empty rituals and formulas,
• That eased their worshippers consciences;
• But did nothing to bring them into contact with God.
• Jesus described the religious leaders “as the blind leading the blind”.
• They should have radiated light, but instead they were shrouded in darkness.
Notice:
• Although the Ethiopian did not find God:
• He did find something!
• Someone had given him the scriptures to read.
• And that is what we find him doing,
• He is making his way home and as he travels along this desert road,
• And he is reading out loud a scroll of Isaiah the prophet.
Ill:
• I am a great believer in the Word of God;
• We gave out over 700 Luke gospels at the recent LIFE Expo – www.lifeexpo.co.uk
• It is good to pray for and support the work of groups like the Gideon’s.
Notice: the hand of God in all of this:
• No one but God could have known where he was,
• Or even how receptive this man was to the good news.
• Philip had no idea that this man was the reason for his unexpected journey south.
• But because he was available, the Lord was able to bring the two together.
• Often God uses us not just because of our abilities,
• But because of our availability.
• If we are willing to be used of God, if we are serious about it,
• Then he will use us, but often in a way we are not expecting.
Quote:
“There are no accidents in the life of God’s people”.
(C). The Conversation.
• The helpful evangelist (30 & 36)
• The questioning enquirer (31-34)
(1). The helpful evangelist (vs 30 and 36):
• Notice that Philip took the initiative;
• It was Philip who made the first move (vs 29 to 30).
• I would suggest that it is most unusual for people to come to us seeking God;
• The norm is that we go to them!
Ill:
• A few years ago the BBC had a series of programmes on the TV called:
• ‘Man’s search for God’.
• But actually that title is flawed;
• Most human beings do not search for God;
• If they did then our Churches would be packed to overflowing every week.
• The programme would have been better called ‘God’s search for man’;
• And that of course is the message of the Bible;
• And the Great Commission Jesus gave to his Church; “Go…..and preach…”
• Most of the time it’s up to us (Christians) to be pro-active in sharing the faith.
• Because if we don’t - then people will not be saved.
The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.”
Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked.
• Prompted by the Holy Spirit;
• Philip approaches this high ranking official.
Philip took the initiative and he took it humbly:
• He wasn't out to impress him with his knowledge,
• He was not out to win an argument.
• He didn't even charge up to the chariot wielding answers,
• Or declaring he had the truth and the Ethiopian had better listen.
Quote: Margaret Millar who said:
“Most conversations are simply monologues delivered in the presence of a witness”.
• Philip knew how to communicate;
• How to have a conversation with someone.
• Philip graciously asks a simple question,
• "Do you understand what you are reading?"
• He starts by asking a simple inoffensive question - and he shut up!
• He waited for an invitation, to come and share what he knew about the scriptures,
(2). The questioning enquirer (vs 31-34)
“How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?”
So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
Now notice how Philip responds:
• He doesn’t give him a list of does and don’ts,
• He does not dump a load of religious theology on him.
• Verse 35:
• Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture & told him the good news about Jesus.
Ill:
• Two drunks who were sitting against a wall slowly getting drunk;
• Sadly one of the drunks died and his friend had not realised this.
• When it was time to move on;
• He picked up the dead man, and tried to make him stand and sit upright.
• Finding his effort without avail, he said to himself,
• "He needs something inside him."
Notice:
• Philip did not try to prop this Ethiopian eunuch up with religious scaffolding,
• i.e. Do good deeds, just go to Church etc.
• The man was spiritually dead (dead in his trespasses and sins),
• So Philip gave him LIFE! He introduced him to Jesus the life giver.
• “I am the way, the truth and the life”
• Way: know God, Truth: about God, Life: of god!
The Conclusion
• The convert was baptised (36-39a)
• The Christian was redirected (39b-40)
(1). The convert was baptised (vs 36-39a):
“As they travelled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. Why shouldn’t I be baptized?”
Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” The official answered, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God”.
And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him.”
The message of the New Testament is ‘Believe and be baptised’.
• Jesus instituted it in the great commission.
• The apostles and first Christians practiced it;
• e.g. You will see this again and again and again in the book of Acts.
Listen:
• Now you can become a Christian and not be baptised;
• Because becoming a Christian is inward, it is a commitment you make with the Lord.
• But the fact that you have become a Christian means you will want to please Jesus;
• This book makes it very clear that we do that by being baptised!
• Becoming a Christian is personal (between you and God),
• But it is never private (we witness publicly through baptism that we follow the Lord).
Remember that this important official would have been part of a caravan train:
• As an official he would have had his slaves and attendants and bodyguards with him,
• You always travelled in large numbers, in convey for protection.
• So his request for baptism,
• Was a very public demonstration of his new found faith.
Notice:
• When the eunuch mentions baptism,
• Philip wisely puts first things first:
• "If you believe in your heart you may".
• First there is a private acceptance of the message.
• Second there is baptism,
• An outward demonstration of an inward faith.
• ill: Wearing the wrong football shirt (does not make you a fan of that club etc.)
Challenge this morning is this one:
• Are you a Christian, do you have a living faith in Jesus Christ?
• Are you baptised? If not why not?
• There is only one qualification for baptism;
• That is to be saved, converted, to be a Christian!
(2). The Christian was redirected (vs 39b-40):
“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.
Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and travelled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea”.
• Notice this story ends how it started:
• With Philip sensitive to the voice, the leading and guiding of God’s Spirit.
• 3 times Philip gets a divine nudge in this story,
• Verses 26, 29, 39 and each time he obeys.
These verses are a good illustration of how the Christian life should be:
• First: We get saved (that is we become a Christian – LIFE!)
• Second: We get baptised (show to others that we mean business with God)
• Third: Like Philip we serve God,
• We let God lead us from one adventure to another!
• I use the word adventure deliberately;
• Christian service is more than singing hymns and going to meetings!
• It is about allowing the living God to work in you and through you for his glory
• And for you to experience real adventure and real life!
