Acts 8:26-40
Q.1. What made Philip leave Samaria and go to south of Jerusalem? Who was the man whom he met along the desert road? What did the Holy Spirit tell him to do? – (Acts 8:26-29)
It is interesting that the Holy Spirit would call Philip away from a revival that he had led, to a solitary man on a desert track (Acts 8:26-27). This underscored the truth that God considers individual people to be precious in His sight (c.f. Jn.4:7, 27-30; 5:5-6). Just as the Samaritan woman had a great impact amongst the Samaritans, this Ethiopian eunuch had great influence, as – … 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 (Acts 8:27). The Holy Spirit prompted Philip to join this chariot (Acts 8:29).
Q.2. What was the man doing and what was he reading? How did Philip share the Gospel? From where did he get his information? – (Acts 8:30-35)
As it happened, the eunuch was pondering over the section in Isaiah chapter 53 that spoke of the Suffering Servant. Though this passage was traditionally interpreted by rabbis as referring to Israel’s suffering (and still is today – 2 Cor.4:3-4), the Holy Spirit was calling this view into question. – Then Philip opened his mouth and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him (Acts 8:35). Philip had no New Testament Scriptures. He used the Old Testament to reveal Christ to the eunuch. This is a powerful reminder that we should familiarize ourselves with the whole Bible in order to present the Gospel. Just as a tree and its roots are nourished by the same sap, so the same crimson thread runs through the Old and New Testaments. It has been observed that (i) The New is in the Old concealed – The Old is in the New revealed. (ii) The New is in the Old contained – the Old is in the New explained.
Q.3. What made Philip baptize the eunuch? How did he baptize him? What impact did the baptism make on the eunuch? Where did Philip go and what did he do? – (Acts 8:36-40)
Doubtless, the eunuch, as a Jewish proselyte, would have been familiar with baptism. He had now embraced faith in Christ. When he came upon a stream, he asked Philip to baptize him into Jesus Christ. This would demonstrate to his entourage that he was now a follower of Jesus. Philip, who was part of the first church, did not just symbolically baptize the eunuch but – 38 … 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 (Acts 8:38-39). This act of surrender brought rejoicing. Philip was snatched away as mysteriously as he appeared – 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 (Acts 8:40 c.f. Acts 21:8-9). He did not return to the persecuted church in Jerusalem but settled in Caesarea. NOTE: Acts 8:37 was in the Greek manuscripts of the Textus Receptus, from which The Luther Bible, William Tyndale’s Bible, and the King James Bible (1611) were produced. Though many preachers in the past gave great sermons based on Acts 8:37, the verse did not appear in earlier manuscripts, so is not included in the Majority Text that is used in modern translations of the Bible. However, the verse is totally supported by the rest of the N.T. – 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’.