Respoonding To The Oportunity

Last week we talked about Becoming Fishers of Men (Elab)

Today I want to look at the guidance that we are given through the Spirit

• Or more specifically how the Spirit can guide us with the process of

• Being Fishers of Men

Opportunities happen everyday we just have to be open to them.

• We have become so obsessed with our daily lives

• That we miss these opportunities

We have to fine tune our Spiritual Reception so that we can hear the Spirit when He talks

• And That’s exactly what we see happening in today’s text (Acts 8:26-39)

• The Holy Spirit creates an opportunity and Phillip Listens

• And Not only does he listen but he responds

And what I want us to notice is that because he was faithful and responds

• The Holy Spirit doesn’t Abandon him (leave him hanging)

• He stays with him through the entire encounter.

Ac 8:26 As for Philip, an angel of the Lord said to him, “Go south down the desert road that runs from Jerusalem to Gaza.” Ac 8:27 So he did, and he met the treasurer of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under the queen of Ethiopia. The eunuch had gone to Jerusalem to worship, Ac 8:28 and he was now returning. Seated in his carriage, he was reading aloud from the book of the prophet Isaiah.

Ac 8:29 The Holy Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and walk along beside the carriage.”

Ac 8:30 Philip ran over and heard the man reading from the prophet Isaiah; so he asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” Ac 8:31 The man replied, “How can I, when there is no one to instruct me?” And he begged Philip to come up into the carriage and sit with him.

Ac 8:32 The passage of Scripture he had been reading was this: “He was led as a sheep to the slaughter.And as a lamb is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth. Ac 8:33 He was humiliated and received no justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth.”

Ac 8:34 The eunuch asked Philip, “Was Isaiah talking about himself or someone else?” Ac 8:35 So Philip began with this same Scripture and then used many others to tell him the Good News about Jesus.

Ac 8:36 As they rode along, they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look! There’s some water! Why can’t I be baptized?” Ac 8:38 He ordered the carriage to stop, and they went down into the water, and Philip baptized him.

Ac 8:39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away. The eunuch never saw him again but went on his way rejoicing.

The first thing that we notice is that Philip wasn’t only a faithful preacher;

• He was also obedient

• And Just Like Jesus, he was willing to leave the crowds

• And deal with one lost soul.

Now The angel could have told this Ethiopian official how to be saved,

• But the problem is that God didn’t give the Great Commission to angels:

Jesus told the disciples and us that we are to Mt 28:19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Mt 28:20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.

God gave this command to His people.

• And the reason is Angels have never personally experienced God’s grace;

• And because of this, they can’t witness about what it means to be saved.

We see is that Phillip is told to Go

Go south down the desert road that runs from Jerusalem to Gaza.

• A command is given and Phillip responds (Just like we should)

• He obeys (Elaborate)

• And Notice that the Holy Spirit doesn’t say

• Where he is to going or what he is suppose to do when he gets there

• He simply tells Phillip To Go.

• And he does.

How many of us would do this

• Most of the time We like to have everything planned out in advance

• How many of us would take of on a vacation without even a road map?

• We just don’t do things this way.

• Why? Because we like to be in control.

• We find it hard to surrender control to anyone for any reason.

One good example of this is Men

• We hate to give up control

• TV Remotes, / Who drives the car, and / Yes most of all stopping for directions.

• Because if we stop for directions it means that we can’t handle the situation