Philip the Evangelist

This is an amazing account of the power of the gospel as it goes out from Jerusalem. On Friday we looked at how Saul led the first great persecution against Christians as a whole, having them arrested in their homes. This drove many to flee out of Jerusalem, but they didn't just go and hide! They took the gospel with them and planted churches!

Philip, one of the "seven" from Acts 6, goes out to Samaria. There, he preaches the Gospel and many believe. This fulfills Acts 1:8, where Christ orders His followers to take His message to Samaria.

After this, an Angel appears and tells Philip to go out on the desert road, which he does. He meets an Ethiopian eunuch, and finds that the man is reading a copy of the book of Isaiah. After asking if he understands (which he doesn't), Philip takes this CLEARLY God-given opportunity to explain how both Isaiah and the rest of the scriptures are about Jesus. He shows that, like the Samaritans who were cast out from worship in the Temple, the gentiles and even eunuchs can worship Jehovah through his Son.

The eunuch believes, and has such great joy in his salvation, that when he sees some water nearby, he immediately asks to be baptized. He asks, "What prevents me from being baptized?" What a great question!

So where is your heart? Do you have understanding of Jesus' gospel? Do you understand the wrath that God has against your sin? Do you have joy in the scriptures because you know that Jesus' death atones for your sins, and that nothing else will do? If so, and you haven't been baptized, why not?