Acts 8:26-40

Radiant Church, December 8, 2019 Mike Rydman Acts 8:26-40 Example of loving other people with God-focused, Christlike love Philip one of the deacons – cares about the Greek-speaking widows Goes to the hated Samaritans – and shares the gospel Simon the Sorcerer causes Peter and John to come from Jerusalem to help Things are really happening – and he instead follows the Spirit into the desert where nothing is happening Example of yielding to the Spirit’s directives and guidance: Acts 8:26-28 Now the angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place. 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 and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. Acts 8:29-31 And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. Understand and Explain the Good News to People: Acts 8:32-33 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. In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth.” Ask Questions that Open Conversation Doors: Acts 8:34 And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” “What is your source for truth in this world?” “What is the basis for your identity?” “What gives you hope?” Know the Bible and Be Prepared to Explain the Good News: Acts 8:35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. Do we know enough of the Bible to see how the Scriptures point to Jesus? Can we communicate the gospel of Jesus with any confidence? The GOSPEL is that God is our holy Creator and righteous Judge. He created us to glorify Him and enjoy Him forever, but we have all sinned, both in Adam as our representative head, and in our own individual actions We therefore deserve death – spiritual separation from God in hell – and are in fact already spiritually dead, helpless in our sins and in need of God to impart spiritual life to us. But God sent His Son Jesus Christ, fully God and fully man, to die the death that we deserved, and He raised Him up for our justification, proving that He was God’s Son. If we would have Christ’s perfect righteousness credited to us, and the penalty for our sins accounted to Him, we must repent of our sins and believe in Jesus Christ for salvation. Expect the Holy Spirit to Do Something as you Explain the Good News: Acts 8:36 And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?” What happened to verse 37? [Acts 8:37 And Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he replied, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”] Acts 8:38-40 And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. And when they came out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he preached the gospel to all the towns until he came to Caesarea. Philip stays in Caesarea, raises a family of daughters to love and proclaim Jesus, and lives a normal Christian life (Acts 21) Luke calls Philip “the Evangelist,” meaning, he was always telling people about Jesus