Will You Tell the Story? (Philip on the Desert Road 1)
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
In Acts 1:8 Jesus said...
8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”
After the death of Stephen and the persecution of the church in Jerusalem, believers began to flee, telling the story of Jesus in Judea, Samaria, and beyond.
This section of the book of Acts highlights four men who played a large role in taking the story of Jesus to the ends of the earth so to speak.
We’ve already mentioned Stephen, the first Christian martyr who served faithfully and preached boldly in Jerusalem.
In the weeks ahead, we’ll talk about Saul the persecutor who will be transformed into the Paul the Apostle, and we’ll talk about Cornelius, a gentile who was led to faith in Christ by the Apostle Peter.
Today though, we are continuing to talk about Philip, a faithful servant and bold preacher like Stephen.
We’ve already seen Philip telling the story of Jesus in Samaria.
Today we see him telling the story of Jesus on a desert road.
[READING - Acts 8:25-40]
25 So, when they had solemnly testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they started back to Jerusalem, and were preaching the gospel to many villages of the Samaritans. 26 But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip saying, “Get up and go south to the road that descends from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is a desert road.) 27 So he got up and went; and there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure; and he had come to Jerusalem to worship, 28 and he was returning and sitting in his chariot, and was reading the prophet Isaiah. 29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go up and join this chariot.” 30 Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31 And he said, “Well, how could I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 Now the passage of Scripture which he was reading was this: “He was led as a sheep to slaughter; And as a lamb before its shearer is silent, So He does not open His mouth. 33 “In humiliation His judgment was taken away; Who will relate His generation? For His life is removed from the earth.” 34 The eunuch answered Philip and said, “Please tell me, of whom does the prophet say this? Of himself or of someone else?” 35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him. 36 As they went along the road they came to some water; and the eunuch said, “Look! Water! What prevents me from being baptized?” 37 And Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” 38 And he ordered the chariot to stop; and they both went down into the water, Philip as well as the eunuch, and he baptized him. 39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away; and the eunuch no longer saw him, but went on his way rejoicing. 40 But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he kept preaching the gospel to all the cities until he came to Caesarea.
[PRAYER]
[TS] I have two QUESTIONS for you. One we’ll talk about this morning and the other we’ll talk about tonight.
Do you believe the story of Jesus?
Will you tell the story of Jesus?
Major Ideas
Major Ideas
Question for this morning: Do you believe the story of Jesus?
Question for this morning: Do you believe the story of Jesus?
I think most of us would say, “Yes! I believe the story of Jesus!” but how do you know that you believe the story of Jesus? What do you mean when you say you believe the story of Jesus? What evidence can you give that you believe the story of Jesus?
In this passage, we see the Ethiopian eunuch believe the story of Jesus, and in his believing we can see at least a few ANSWERS to those questions.
Answer #1: If you believe the story of Jesus, you understand that the Scriptures are about Jesus.
Answer #1: If you believe the story of Jesus, you understand that the Scriptures are about Jesus.
29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go up and join this chariot.” 30 Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31 And he said, “Well, how could I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 Now the passage of Scripture which he was reading was this: “He was led as a sheep to slaughter; And as a lamb before its shearer is silent, So He does not open His mouth. 33 “In humiliation His judgment was taken away; Who will relate His generation? For His life is removed from the earth.” 34 The eunuch answered Philip and said, “Please tell me, of whom does the prophet say this? Of himself or of someone else?” 35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him.
[EXP] The road from Jerusalem to Gaza was about 60 miles long. It keep extending south into Egypt and the African continent beyond. The Ethiopian that Philip met was at least a God-fearer—someone who revered YHWH—but likely not a full-fledged Jewish convert because he would have been denied access to the temple as a physical eunuch.
He had been to Jerusalem to worship at one of the annual festivals but was now returning home. As he did so, he was reading the Prophet Isaiah. Specifically he was reading that part of Isaiah that is about the Servant of the Lord, Isaiah 52:13-53:12.
There it says, the coming Servant of the Lord would be high and lifted up, which sounds like exaltation, but His appearance would be marred more than any man,which is suffering, and His blood would be a cleansing sprinkle (Isa. 52:13-15).
There it says, the coming Servant of the Lord would not be stately, majestic, or attractive in appearance, and He would be despised, forsaken, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief because He would bear all our griefs! He would be pierced for all our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities(Isa. 53:1-6)!
6 All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.
There it also says, the coming Servant of the Lord would suffer willingly and experience injustice although He had done no violence and only spoke the truth (Isa. 53:7-9).
7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth. 8 By oppression and judgment He was taken away; And as for His generation, who considered That He was cut off out of the land of the living For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?
There it says, the coming Servant of the Lord would be crushed according to the will of God, and He would offer Himself as a guilt offering to satisfy the justice of God, so God says…
“My Servant, will justify the many, as He will bear their iniquities,” (Isa. 53:10-12).
Guided by the Spirit of God, the Ethiopian eunuch asked the most important question, “Please tell me, of whom does the prophet say this?”
35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him.
If we believe the story of Jesus, we believe the Scriptures in the Bible because all the Scriptures in the Bible are about Jesus.
[ILLUS] After Jesus was crucified and resurrected, two of his disciples were on their way to another town when Jesus appeared to them. They were kept from recognizing Him, and so told Him everything that had happened to Him. But they also said that they didn’t understand, and so Luke 24:27 says…
27 Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.
[APP] Everything in all the Scriptures points to Jesus.
Some parts of Scripture point to our need for Jesus by pointing out our sinfulness or our foolishness.
Some other parts of Scripture—like the part in Isaiah that the Ethiopian man was reading—point to the coming of Jesus.
Other parts of Scripture tell the story of His coming, His earthly ministry, and His first followers.
Still other parts of Scripture point to how we should live as we followers Jesus.
And still other parts point to His return and what awaits us in eternity with Him.
But all of Scripture flows from Jesus, through Jesus, and to Jesus. It’s all about Him!
The Ethiopian eunuch believed the story of Jesus because Philip explained to Him that the Scriptures were all about Jesus.
[TS]…
Answer #2: If you believe the story of Jesus, you will be baptized in the name of Jesus.
Answer #2: If you believe the story of Jesus, you will be baptized in the name of Jesus.
36 As they went along the road they came to some water; and the eunuch said, “Look! Water! What prevents me from being baptized?” 37 And Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” 38 And he ordered the chariot to stop; and they both went down into the water, Philip as well as the eunuch, and he baptized him.
[EXP] Earlier in Acts when Peter preached and people were so convicted by the Holy Spirit that they asked, “What should we do?” Peter said, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins...” (Acts 2:37).
Philip may have said something similar to this Ethiopian man, but being at least a God-fearer, he likely understood that to be baptized in person’s name was to become a follower of that person.
Thus, for this Ethiopian to be baptized in the name of Jesus was to declare to the world (or whoever was present in the desert at that time) that he was a follower of Jesus because Jesus was his Savior and Lord.
[ILLUS] There’s a lot of confusion about baptism, but I think the main meaning of baptism is summed up in the hymn, I’ll Tell the World that I’m A Christian, which says…
I’ll tell the world, that I’m a Christian,
I’m not ashamed, His name to bear;
I’ll tell the world, that I’m a Christian,
I’ll take Him with me anywhere.
When the Ethiopian eunuch went down into the water and come up again in Jesus’ name, he was telling the world that he’s a Christian.
If you’re a Christian—if you believe the story of Jesus—you’ll be baptized in His name if at all possible.
[APP] WHAT IS BAPTISM?
Water baptism is an outward expression of an inner reality.
Inwardly, we are baptized by the Holy Spirit as we trust in Jesus for salvation. We are spiritually included or spiritually immersed in the death and resurrection of Jesus through faith.
That means that Jesus’ death counted as our death—the death we deserved because of our sins.
That means that Jesus’ resurrection counted as our life—the life we received because of His sinlessness.
As the Ethiopian went under the water, it symbolized his being spiritually buried with Jesus in death.
As the Ethiopian rose up from the water, it symbolized his being raised with Jesus to eternal life.
Every person genuinely baptized in the name of Jesus makes this same outward expression of the inner reality of salvation.
WHO IS BAPTISM FOR?
Baptism is for the one who has turned from sin and called on Jesus for salvation.
The Ethiopian heard about his sin and about his Savior from the Scriptures in Isaiah as Philip taught him.
After he heard, he turned from sin and trusted in Jesus as the Son of God who came into the world to take away sin.
Every person who hears and believes the Gospel of God’s grace in Jesus Christ and believes—that person is a candidate for baptism.
HAVE YOU BEEN BAPTIZED?
As baptists, we believe in baptism.
We believe in believer’s baptism rather than infant baptism.
We believe in baptism by immersion rather than baptism by sprinkling.
We believe in baptism as certainly necessary for the saved but not necessary for salvation for salvation is by faith alone.
But most of all as baptists, we believe in baptism in the name of Jesus Christ.
He lived the perfect life of obedience that we should have lived.
He died the painful death on the cross that we deserved.
He rose from the grave so that all who believe on Him can be saved.
Have you believed on Him?
Then, if you haven’t already, you should be baptized in His name.
You should tell the world that you’re a Christian.
Be not ashamed, His name to bear.
[TS]…
Answer #3: If you believe the story of Jesus, you go on your way rejoicing in Jesus.
Answer #3: If you believe the story of Jesus, you go on your way rejoicing in Jesus.
39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away; and the eunuch no longer saw him, but went on his way rejoicing.
[EXP] The Lord had business for Philip elsewhere. Just as He sovereignly directed Philip to the Ethiopian’s chariot, the Lord now sovereignly directed Philip to some other place. We will see him again later in Acts living in Caesarea.
For now, though, notice that when the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away and the eunuch no longer saw him (perhaps never saw him again on earth), the eunuch went on his way rejoicing.
Salvation filled him with joy, and so he went on rejoicing.
He rejoiced in peace with God.
He rejoiced in mercy new every morning.
He rejoiced in sins no longer remembered.
He rejoiced in grace undeserved.
He rejoiced in forgiveness full and free.
He rejoiced in hope of a future certain to be brighter.
His castration as a eunuch kept him out of the temple, but his inclusion in Christ Jesus would bring him into the very presence of God in Heaven.
[ILLUS] I was recently watching a documentary that interviewed a number of drug dealers, crooked politicians, dishonest lawyers, and many other people that would give the Apostle Paul a run for his money as the chief of sinners.
But one man in particular in this documentary had been convicted of multiple murders and confessed to more than thirty.
He said, “I know I’m going to hell. There ain’t nothing I can do to change that.”
As soon as he said it, Cheryl and I both said, “Yes there is.”
That man could turn from his sin and trust in Jesus.
In Jesus, there is grace greater than all our sin.
In Jesus, there is grace so great that it gets us in.
[APP] The castration of the eunuch was a reminder of the curse of sin like any other mutilation or deformity in the body. Because it was a reminder of the curse of sin, the God’s law said this man wasn’t allowed to enter the temple for worship.
He wasn’t allowed to come into the presence of God because he bore the marks of sin on his body.
But Jesus covers all the sins we’ve committed and Jesus heals all the marks of sin we carry on our bodies.
And because Jesus covers and heals, we get in—in to the very presence of God to worship Him forever.
[ILLUS] There’s a new Christian song called Scars in Heaven. A part of the chorus goes…
The only scars in Heaven
They won't belong to me and you
There'll be no such thing as broken
And all the old will be made new
One day, at the return of Jesus, that Ethiopian eunuch will receive his glorified body—a body with no scars and no brokenness; a new glorified body.
And as much as he will rejoice in that body on that day, that new body will only cause him to rejoice even more in the salvation he found on that desert road as he read Isaiah 53 and heard about Jesus and was baptized in His name.
[TS]…
Conclusion
Conclusion
If you believe the story of Jesus, you understand that the Scriptures are all about Him.
If you believe the story of Jesus, you have been or you’re going to be baptized in the name of Jesus.
If you believe the story of Jesus, you go on your way rejoicing in Jesus.
[PRAYER]