Gospel Conversations (Acts 8:26-40)

Matthew 13:44 ““The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”

Matthew 13:45–46 ““Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.”

would my/your life be described like either one of these parables?

do we realize the supreme value of knowing Jesus and being part of His kingdom?

am I/are you completely sold out to Jesus and His clear command to make disciples?

Matthew 28:19 Jesus — “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,”

as a blood-bought believer in Jesus,

where does making disciples fall on your priority list?

what is ahead of making disciples? will it matter in 1,000 years?

how does God want to reorient your priorities this morning?

“We have lost a biblical idea of what it means to be a follower of Christ. Our definition nowadays of what it means to be a Christian has been reduced to avoiding stuff: don't get drunk, don't commit adultery, don't lie. Jesus didn't say, “Come, follow me and don't do stuff.” No, he said, “Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19). Following involves fishing. If you are not fishing, you are not following. Churches are supposed to help their members be successful at catching fish and helping those fish mature and multiply.” Bob McNabb, Spiritual Multiplication in the Real World

what if we were all in?

lived our lives in light of eternity?

had making disciples as our main goal?

our lives would look a lot like a man named Philip

gospel conversations

background

8:4

no plan

no map

even through persecution

God is supernaturally orchestrating the mission

Acts 1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.””

8:26-30a

A disciple-maker…

Jesus — “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations,”

Philip not an apostle

a disciple who is intentional about making disciples who make disciples

is led by the Spirit

make case since not crystal clear

an angel of the Lord said to Philip (8:26)

the angel was God’s mouthpiece

functional equivalent to the HS

And the Spirit said to Philip (8:29)

being led by the HS is not automatic

must be sensitive

are you choosing to be in the right place to be led by the HS?

quiet time

shaped by preaching/teaching

prayer life (listening)

must be intentionally listening

usually when God speaks with a bang, it is not pleasant

distractions distort our hearing (cell phones, children, work, friends)

always something “better” to do than be in God’s Word and pray

watch Astros stomp Rangers

scroll FB

Pinterest

must spend significant time with someone to hear the whole message

like a well-marinated relationship

dad clear throat from choir

Amanda smile with a picture of a puppy

the more we focus on God’s Word, the better we know what He wants of us

the better we pray, the better we hear

Christian, in your daily life are you making decisions to be led by the Spirit?

simply obeys

8:26-27a

8:29-30

radical/weird/peculiar/odd/uncharacteristic/unusual

EVEN IN CHRISTIAN CIRCLES

spiritual maturity is not knowing more

it is obeying more

thus knowing and doing are not the same thing

“Trust and Obey”

Joseph, Jesus’ earthly father

Philip didn’t have to be creative on how to obey

the HS was in the lead

if I only had the HS speak to me…

in Philip’s time, the NT had not been inspired by HS and written

BUT it has now

the Lord did speak

we carry it around in our hands, hearts, and phones

we know far more than we obey

He still speaks

through the same Word that we can so easily neglect

I don’t want to hear when I have to give an account of my life

Jesus,

“Remember that clear command I gave to make disciples?

How many disciples did you make?

Did you even try?”

Christian, do you obey what you know?

rejects worldly barriers

8:27b-28

Ethiopian eunuch’s goodness wasn’t enough

man of character

a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians,

who was in charge of all her treasure

feared God

He had come to Jerusalem to worship (8:27)

extremely devoted

distance

map (x2)

extreme limits of the civilized world

to SEE temple (x2)

read the Bible

impressive that he even had a scroll of Isaiah (copied by hand)

hope even for this eunuch just a few chapters over (Isaiah 56:3-5)

Philip had every reason to reject Ethiopian eunuch

Gentile

eunuch

never able to be full member of Israel

foreigner (black)

plus, Philip was untrained in personal evangelism

yet Philip isn’t the radical, the Holy Spirit is

Gentile, eunuch, foreigner (black) is baptized into full membership through Christ

Jesus said, “I will make you fishers of men”

here the fish jumps into the boat

if the gospel is powerful to save anyone,

Christian, who have you written off that you should reconsider?

our world loves to divide age/race/gender

the gospel unites (Gal 3:28)

evangelizes [define] the lost

8:29-40

HS was at work leading Philip

but also at work with Ethiopian eunuch reading Isaiah 53:7-8

evangelism requires

1. opening mouth

Then Philip opened his mouth (8:35)

false: “Preach the gospel. Use words if necessary.”

no one can be saved because of your actions

truth: words are required for salvation (Rom 10:17)

evangelism needs an evangel (ēˈvanjəl)

2. telling about Jesus

beginning w/this Scripture he told [εὐαγγελίζω] him the good news about Jesus (8:35)

how can someone be made right with God?

3. baptizing believer (8:36-37; Matt 28:19b)

Ethiopian eunuch has special situation concerning baptism

prohibited from becoming full proselyte

Gentile unable to become proselyte because of physical condition

no matter how close he got to God’s people, he couldn’t be one

enter the good news of Jesus

Gentile, eunuch, foreigner (black)

is baptized into full membership through Christ

baptism is big deal to Ethiopian eunuch

See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized? (8:36)

went on his way rejoicing (8:39)

normative—believe then baptized

not normative—different situation with Ethiopian eunuch

historically Christians have found it beneficial

to make sure baptism candidate knows

what is going on before baptizing

not normally wise to baptize on the spot (except extenuating circumstances)

Kat Von D from witchcraft

plus baptism is an ordinance of the church

not an individual Christian (missionary context)

if you are a Christian, and have not been baptized

Connection Card

what an encouraging account

about Philip

not an apostle

not a pastor

not seminary education

no evangelism training

but obedient to the Lord

about the Ethiopian eunuch

was close to God’s people but never good enough to become one

until Christ

the personal encounter between these 2 unlikely men had eternal ramifications

personal evangelism is the most effective method of evangelism

false “Go into the world and preach the gospel. If necessary, use words.”

Rom 10:13-15, 17

your friend will not get saved by watching your life (no biblical promise)

yet your life gives credibility to (or denies) the gospel

highest sense of accountability this side of heaven

where you ask a question…and wait for an answer

relational

slick evangelistic spiels are sniffed as fake a mile away

relationships are the way of Jesus and should be our way too

John 3—Jesus and Nicodemus

John 4—Jesus and the woman at the well

John 5—Jesus ministered to a helpless man

who does God want YOU to have a gospel conversation with?

have a few transition questions ready

Can I share a something that has made a difference in my life?

What do you think about the man Jesus?

In your opinion, what do you think it takes for a person to go to heaven?

If you were to die today, where do you think you would go? Why?

If God asked you why He should let you into heaven, what would you say?

invite to combined service

then have follow up conversation

gospel conversations

1. know the gospel

gospel

one and only God created us

but we sinned and are separated from Him

in His great love

God became man in Jesus

lived a perfect live

took on our punishment for sin by dying on the cross in our place

God raised Him from the dead

God calls us to repent of our sins

and trust Christ alone for our forgiveness

Jesus died for my sin

do you know the gospel?

have you responded to the gospel?

2. develop your salvation testimony

before Christ

how came to Christ

after Christ

if you don’t have a clear salvation testimony

then you may not be saved

future—require for all members

someone may dispute Bible

cannot dispute your story

3. pray for lost people

warms our heart

God uses our prayer in salvation

4. pray for opportunities to share the gospel

pray for boldness

5. share the gospel

success

success in evangelism is in the sharing, not the saving.

Only God can save, but He commands us to share.

Our responsibility begins and ends with the sharing of the gospel.

the main way to fail at evangelism is to not do it

6. ask them to repent of sin and trust in Christ alone

highest level of accountability this side of eternity

ask then wait for an answer

need a nudge? want some help?

evangelism training — Monday, October 23, 6p

who in your life needs you to have a gospel conversation with them?