Baptism: Think Rightly, Go Rejoicing & Preach The Word

Acts 8:32–33 NASB95PARA

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.”

Acts 8:

NOTE: NANA’S BIRTHDAY

Two things about the book of Acts to put us in proper context:

First: Though it is called the Acts of the Apostles, it is more accuratley the Acts of Chrsit through the Apostles

Second: You must remember that the NT scriptures do not yet exist during this and the Apostles are serving in the role as scripture does for us today - teaching all things.

Since we last spoke and have continued our readings the church has grown in weeks or months 120 to over 8000 members.

After rapid growth the church elects 7 Deacons. 2 of the Deacons that we see the results of: Stephen & Philip

Stephen after preaching an amazing sermon on the crucifixion of Christ is stoned to death.

Begining ch.8 we learn that Saul (Paul) was in full agreement - perhaps leading the way or giving permission to the murder of Stephen.

It is at this time that great persecution against the church begins. Saul is going house to house and dragging away Christians to prison.

Think on the soverignty of God here. Can you imagine. Saul is God’s redeemed though he does not yet know it. Stephen is God’s redeemed living in full light of it. God allows Saul/Paul to murder Stephen and imprison multiple other believers. God is in control.

It is at this time that great persecution against the church begins. Saul is going house to house and dragging away Christians to prison.

This results in a scattering of the church

The description of the scattering church is not one of hiding but, they were scattering and preaching the word.

Of this scattering group we zoom in on Philip briefly

Philip a deacon in the church, but now being scattered he proclaims the Word of God.

We are told that Philip preached Christ. That is what the church ought to preach. There are far to many sermons preaching how to manage money, relationships, happiness, community, entertainment, outreach, woman’s encouragement, mans struggles... but not Christ. We preach Christ. Philip preached Christ. As 1 Cor. states…we are not like most Christians who use deciet in the preaching of Christ.

During this ministry there arises a man named Simon who practiced magic and claimed power from God.

The dynamic ministry taken place through Philip brings the apostles to send Peter and John to Samaria. The apostles are as scripture during this time. Peter and John represent the Word of God. They represent what you hold in your hand. God is representing His Word in His Apostles…your authority is in the Bible, not in a creed or person. It is the teaching of the apostles led by the Spirit of God and commissioned by Jesus Christ that the credentials of one in the church must be held up to at this time - as the NT is not in place yet.

What we have today is the Word of God. You tell me which you would prefer...

Would you prefer to have the apostles or the finished word of God? I would not trade the completed word of God for any of the experiences that we are reading. Would you prefer a miriacle or the Bible? Would you say that my word is more authentic if I pulled off some miracle with it or if you examine it under the word of God?

Would you prefer to have the apostles or the finished word of God? I would not trade the completed word of God for any of the experiences that we are reading.

Would you prefer a miriacle or the Bible? Would you say that my word is more authentic if I pulled off some miracle with it or if you examine it under the word of God?

So the apostles come and the Samaritan believers were baptized/identified into the body of Christ, but they do not have a Bible. The apostles pray for the outward manifestation of what dwells within. These are God ordained evidences until the completion of the Word.

We also at this time read of the apostles interaction with Simon the Magician.

Few thoughts on this:

Don’t be so quick to throw Simon out of Heaven. We don’t know his eternal state.

The purpose of , isn’t to tell us of Philip & Simon or Philip & the Eunuch.

The purpose is to teach us spiritual truth.

Simon thinks that something can be offered by man to gain the gift of God and that is what the modern Christian church thinks.

If we can say that someone was under conviction but hesitated and the next moment died and it’s a real shame because if they would have just come to the front and accepted Christ then they could have gone to Heaven. That’s the finished work of Christ + coming down and whatever. Thats not gospel.

Dearly beloved - we are redeemed because Jesus Christ died for us. That is what Philip and the Apostles are preaching and we do a disservice to the word of God if we move to fill in the white spaces with works based reasoning.

Dearly beloved - we are redeemed because Jesus Christ died for us.

In we read of the interaction with Simon

Acts 8:22 NASB95PARA

22 Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray the Lord that, if possible, the intention of your heart may be forgiven you.

Repent - the word is to change your mind. Change your thought on what you have heard, on what you are saying.

Wickedness - the word here is not pornea but is a greek word for baselessness. That is again descriptive of the wrong way of thinking.

Now I believe that it is at the very least possible and if not likely that Simon is redeemed and that we are witnessing the powerful teaching and instructing of the Apostles.

First they have instructed him of the error in his thinking..

Second the if in “if possible” is in first class condition (in this context: obviously true or factually possible), speaking of forgivness coming to the intention of his heart

Third - the word used for forgivness here is one used primarily with God’s own where sins are left behind.

This again having the Word of God point us not to the works of man but the work of God, the kindness of God, the soverignty of God over all including salvation.

Finally verse 25, which is not to be completley disconectted shows us not rejection of the word but a fullnes of teaching.

Acts 8:25 NASB95PARA

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.

Change your mind repent. (22).

Change your mind - repent.

of wickedness - not pornea but baselessness - that is wrong way of thinking

If - first class condition - obvieously true(lead us to believe Simon is forgiven)

The word for forgivness is one used primarily with his own where sins are left behind.

Now in chapter 8 verse 25 Philip and John and Peter have concluded speaking the word of the Lord and begin back to Jerusalem. They preach the gospel all along their travels in many villiges of the Samaritans.

The purpose is to teach us spiritual truth.

Simon thinks that something can be offered by man to gain the gift of God and that is what the modern Christian church thinks.

If we can say that someone was under conviction but hesitated and the next moment died and it’s a real shame because if they would have just come to the front and accepted Christ then they could have gone to Heaven. That’s the finished work of Christ + coming down and whatever. Thats not gospel.

Dearly beloved - we are redeemed because Jesus Christ died for us.

Change your mind repent. (22).

Change your mind - repent.

of wickedness - not pornea but baselessness - that is wrong way of thinking

If - first class condition - obvieously true(lead us to believe Simon is forgiven)

The word for forgivness is one used primarily with his own where sins are left behind.

Acts 8:26 NASB95PARA

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.)

Philip is divinely directed to depart from the trip back to Jerusalem and go south

This is a desert road or deserted city…if you look at current layout of the land you will see it is desert.

Acts 8:27 NASB95PARA

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,

God leads him to an Ethiopian eunuch. A rich official of the queen, who is in charge of her treasure and probably traveling with an eunterouge.

Acts 8:28 NASB95PARA

28 and he was returning and sitting in his chariot, and was reading the prophet Isaiah.

Now before I go any further I want to bring in another point to help show that this is not so much about the Ethiopian Eunuch as it is what God is doing. It is interesting to me that of all of the newly identified redeemed (over 8000) we zero in on this portion of Philips ministry. Why? I don’t know. But I do know a pattern or way in which God shows Himself to work in scripture that I find most interesting.

Since we are speaking of the spread of the gospel our minds easily go to “all tribes, tounges and nations” our thoughts go to the pattern of the spread of the church…Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the uttermost. The question is then, how does this fit into that? Often we look ahaed and we try to label every tribe…we think of it kind of how one might originally think of Noah getting every animal on the ark…if you don’t realize that it’s two of every kind then your head gets really baffled. Well let us go back to Noah for this as well.

What we see throughout scripture is that God deals with mankind through Noah, or rather through the Sons of Noah. With Noah the world was flood and we have a sort of humanity restart, and with that you have Noah’s three sons. Shem -Ham -Japeth -

Shem -

Ham -

Now as you study scripture you will find that these three tribes are how God deals with mankind…here are a few examples:

Japeth -

Abraham

Sarah - Shem

Haggar - Ham

Jatorah - Japeth

Christ

Shepherds - Shem

Wisemen - hamites

Greeks - Japeth

Crusifixion

Israel - Shem

Simon - Hamite

Roman - Japedeck

Gospels

Matthew - Shem

Mark - Ham

Luke - Japeth

Now as to why I bring this up. The spread of the gospel:

Spread of Gospel

Jerusalem - Shem

Ethiopian Eunuch (Egyptian) - Ham

Roman Ceturian - Japeth

God dealt graciously with Shem, Ham & Japeth and thus with the world.

Here we are witnessing God dealing with the tribe of Ham, by His sovereign will through Philip

Acts 8:29 NASB95PARA

29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go up and join this chariot.”

Now notice: God gives direction & Philip obeys. Then God gives direction & Philip will obey. God is leading this. God is establishing this whole thing and His interaction, who He is communing with is Philip. God is working with Philip.

The eunuch is sitting in his chariot. The traveling pace of a chariot is not much different than that of a walk. Philip coming up to this chariot is not the same as you or I coming up to a car. This doesn’t mean that Philip jumped up into his chariot, but could just as easily be Philip walking beside his chariot joining together with it in pace as verse 30 seems to lean towards. Philip only joins him in the chariot once invitation is given.

Acts 8:30–31 NASB95PARA

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.

Acts 8:30 NASB95PARA

30 Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?”

Acts 8:

Acts 8:32–33 NASB95PARA

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.”

Acts 8:32-

Notice the scripture and how this would impact a eunuch. The one in Isaiah wasn’t going to have any children, but then He ends up with a whole bund of children. It is a man humiliated and slaughtered with the question of, “who will relate or describe His origin or family as his life is removed from this earth.” So this eunuch would wonder the same about himself. and thus:

Acts 8:34 NASB95PARA

34 The eunuch answered Philip and said, “Please tell me, of whom does the prophet say this? Of himself or of someone else?”

Acts 8:

Relating in description, who is this so that one might find our more? Who is this so that his relation and origin might be known?

Acts 8:35 NASB95PARA

35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him.

Acts 8:35

All scripture points to Christ. This is what the Bible scolars at the time of Christ missed completley

John 5:39 NASB95PARA

39 “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me;

Acts 8:

After rapid growth the church elects 7 Deacons. 2 of the Deacons that we see the results of: Stephen & Philip

Acts 8:36–40 NASB95PARA

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.

Water being present here is another indication of the sovereignty of God. There was a certain water…not a certain place, but a certain water. We don’t know the amount of water.

I believe the water is there for Philip, not the Eunuch.

How did the Eunuch know that he needs to be baptized? He didn’t have the NT. Philip has been walking him through the OT scripture and showing how they point to Christ. The Eunuch knew about baptism because of Philip

This also highlights that when water is a part of baptism it says so.

How did the Eunuch know that he needs to be baptized? He didn’t have the NT.

When water is a part of baptism it says so.

Now this is important because this is the passage that is often used to argue the “how to” of baptism.

As a refresher, I have previously spent much time describing that, baptizo is untranslated abd tge best word to define it would be “identified” (not immersion)

baptizo is untranslated - best word would be “identified”

This will be my third point of emphasis on what is known as “believers water baptism”

First: We spoke of the command…well let me say this first: I am neither for nor against

I am against it if it is used as a requirement for redemption salvation or church membership

My first week that I spent on the topic of baptism I tried to clarify that baptism is not commanded. The verse in Matthew often used, the command is not to baptize but to teach and the result of the teaching to the Word, and keeping the word of Christ is that you will be identifed with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Second: I spoke of what may be called the president. John the baptist.

What did John say in ? They asked him why he came baptizing with water

The Jews had a service called a micva which was a purification with water...

So they were familiar with it…so they came to John and said why are you doing it?

John 1:31 NASB95PARA

31 I did not recognize Him, but so that He might be manifested to Israel, I came baptizing in water.”

The Jews had a service called a micva which was a purification with water...

So they (the Jews) were familiar with it…so they came to John and said why are you doing it?

So they were familiar with it…so they came to John and said why are you doing it?

John was baptizing to manifest Christ to Isreael.

I believe that is the primary reason that water baptism occurs in scripture, to manifest Christ to Israel.

So they were familiar with it…so they came to John and said why are you doing it?

I challenge you to find any place in scripture where water baptism occurs where a Jew isn’t present?

There is always a Jew present…they require a sign.

Here, it is Philip (I believe) who is the one who needed this water baptism as a sign.

Philip is the one who needed this water baptism.

We have a desert unpopulated area of which God has provided water there for Philip who preaching

Third: here we have our third topic of water baptism, that which is used as the “How To” meaning sprinkle or full immersion.

This is all based upon two Prepositions:

ice/eic - into or to

We have a desert unpopulated area of which God has provided water there for Philip who preaching

ek - out from under or away from

So now we have a passage displaying the magnificent soverignty of God being used to justify manner or tradition and dividing fellowships becuase of two prepostions which by the way…either translation works just fine in the greek.

Prepositions:

Beloved: we can’t divide over presuppositions. But this I offer is where we get to, when we wrongly interpret commands, then we have to find ourselves how to fulfill the command.

ice/eic - into or to

ek - out from under or away from

we can’t divide over presuppositions

We know that the eunuch was baptized with water. We do not know if Paul was. We do know that Paul said that God didn’t send him to baptize.

We know that the eunuch was baptized with water. We don’t know how or with how much. We do not know if Paul was ever baptized with water.... We do know that Paul said that God didn’t send him to baptize.

This passage I believe is showing us the amazing sovereignty and grace of God. In the middle of just witnessing Saul murder Philips counter part, we are moved to Philip...

We now see when they came out of the water, the spirit called away Philip…It doesn’t say that he was spoken to, but he was called away. We don’t know if Philip said he had to go or if he just disappeared.

We never hear of the eunuch again other than he goes on his way rejoicing. (and we now have a Hammite in the spread of the gospel).

Are you going on your way rejoicing?

We seem to want to base our rejoicing on our physical circumstances rather than what God has done for us. Here we have a childless man with not hope of family, yet rejoicing because of what he has just heard from the Word of God. I wonder…How do we leave church?

But here is another reason I say this is what God is doing through Philip.

Philip goes up the coast preaching. Chapter 21 we find out that he settles down in Caesarea. Nice home, got married, had 5 daughters who were prophetess and, GET THIS: entertaines the appostle Paul when he came.

Let me say it again…Saul/Paul, just murdered Stephen…Philips counter part. Just 13 or so chapters later Philip will entertain welcome in Saul, now Paul a now Christian brother and Apostle. This is the Acts, the Works of Christ Jesus in the building of His church and it screams the soverignty of God, the eternal graciousness of the glorious election of God as He moves throughout all of mankind to bring home His own whom He has foreknown since before the foundations of the earth.

Those who belong to him…think rightly:

Just as with Simon you can not bring any credit or merit of your own

Just as with Saul/Paul we cannot in our depravity loose His righteousness which we do nothing to obtain

But just as the Eunuch we ought to go away rejoicing

And as we go, just as Philip we must preach the Word which is Christ Jesus

God deals with people through the sons of Noah: Through thes

Shem -

Ham -

Japeth -

Abraham

Sarah - Shem

Haggar - Ham

Jatorah - Japeth

Christ

Shepherds - Shem

Wisemen - hamites

Greeks - Japeth

Crusifixion

Israel - Shem

Simon - Hamite

Roman - Japedeck

Gospels

Matthew - Shem

Mark - Ham

Luke - Japeth

Ham -

Spread of Gospel

Japeth -

Jerusalem - Shem

Ethiopian Eunuch (Egyptian) - Ham

Roman Ceturian - Japeth

God dealt graciously with Shem, Ham & Japeth and thus with the world.

Sameria - Shem

Eunuch - Ham egypt

Ceturian - Japeth

Isaiah 27:13 NASB95PARA

13 It will come about also in that day that a great trumpet will be blown, and those who were perishing in the land of Assyria and who were scattered in the land of Egypt will come and worship the Lord in the holy mountain at Jerusalem.

Isaiah 27:13

Would you prefer to have the apostles or the finished word of God? I would not trade the completed word of God for any of the experiences that we are reading. Would you prefer a miriacle or the Bible? Would you say that my word is more authentic if I pulled off some miracle with it or if you examine it under the word of God?

The purpose is to teach us spiritual truth.

Simon thinks that something can be offered by man to gain the gift of God and that is what the modern Christian church thinks.

If we can say that someone was under conviction but hesitated and the next moment died and it’s a real shame because if they would have just come to the front and accepted Christ then they could have gone to Heaven. That’s the finished work of Christ + coming down and whatever. Thats not gospel.

Dearly beloved - we are redeemed because Jesus Christ died for us.

Simion

Change your mind repent. (22).

Change your mind - repent.

of wickedness - not pornea but baselessness - that is wrong way of thinking

If - first class condition - obvieously true(lead us to believe Simon is forgiven)

The word for forgivness is one used primarily with his own where sins are left behind.

Baptism: Think Rightly, Go Rejoicing & Preach The Word

Sermon Scripture

The Baptism Part: