A strange Command

                            

John Egglen had never preached a sermon in his life.  It was not that he didn't want to, he just never needed to.  One morning the snow left his town of Colchester, England, buried in white.  When he awoke on that January Sunday in 1850, he thought of staying home.  Who would go to church in such weather?  But he reconsidered, he was after all a deacon. And if the deacons did not go, who would? So he put on his boots, hat, and coat and walked the six miles to the Methodist Church.  

He was not the only member who considered staying home.  In fact, he was one of the few who came.  Only thirteen people were present; twelve members and one visitor.  Even the minister was snowed in.  Someone suggested they go home.  Egglen would hear none of that.  They had come this far; they would have a service.  Besides, they had a visitor, a thirteen-year-old boy. The boy's name was Charles Haddon Spurgeon; he became one the greatest preachers in the world.

The young boy tells the rest of the story. “I sometimes think I might have been in darkness and despair until now had it not been for the goodness of God in sending a snowstorm, one Sunday morning, while I was going to a certain place of worship. When I could go no further, I turned down a side street and came to a little Primitive Methodist Chapel. In that chapel there may have been a dozen or fifteen people. I had heard of the Primitive Methodists, how they sang so loudly that they made people's heads ache;

But, that did not matter to me. I wanted to know how I might be saved, and if they could tell me that, I did not care how much they made my head ache. The minister did not come that morning; he was snowed up, I suppose. At last, a very thin-looking man, a shoemaker, or tailor, or something of that sort, went up into the pulpit to preach. He was obliged to stick to his text, for the simple reason that he had little else to say”.

Shortly after Stephen was stoned to death for proclaiming Christ (Acts 7), widespread persecution broke out against Christians, causing many from flee Jerusalem. Philip fled to Samaria, where he started a fruitful ministry (Acts 8:1-8). While there an angel of the Lord said to him, “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza”(Acts 8:26).

The angel's unexplained command to go south through an empty stretch of road would probably appear strange to Philip. He was being called away from a city where the work had begun in such a promising manner to go away to a desert country. Perhaps that is why God sent a visible representative to him so there would be no doubt the command was divine. Philip arose at once and went. He was flexible and willing to go where God wanted him to go.

“Phillip met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake . This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet”( Acts 8:27-28). We are about to witness one of those amazing meetings that take place from time to time on earth, the details of which are all determined in heaven and directed by the Spirit of God.

Behind the angels abrupt command was the foreknowledge of God. He knew all about the Ethiopian, knew the position he held in his native land. God knew why he had come to Jerusalem and he knew the deep, unsatisfied hunger of his heart. God knew the Ethiopian was on the way home and exactly where was on the road. God knew what book the Ethiopian was reading and about his perplexity.

The Ethiopian’s condition prevented him from being a full participant in Jewish worship at the temple; eunuchs were not allowed in (Deut.23:1). But, God certainly accepted them. Isaiah 56:3-5 says “let no eunuch complain, “I am only a dry tree.” For this is what the Lord says: “To the eunuchs ... who choose what pleases me and hold fast to my covenant, to them I will give a memorial and a name better than sons and daughters... an everlasting name that will endure forever”.

Clearly this Ethiopian had a devotion to God as he knew him. He had a desire in his heart to seek God and travelled a great distance to worship Him. As the story unfolds God acknowledged the sincerity of the Ethiopian's heart desire to worship Him and thus providentially orchestrated events to assure that he would have a personal encounter with Jesus Christ. Those who seek God diligently certainly find him (Prov. 8:17; Jer. 29:13).

We clearly see the providential guidance of God in the passage the Ethiopian was reading when Philip's arrived (Acts 8:31-33). God had directed him to that portion of the book of Isaiah which of all passages of the entire Old Testament spoke most clearly of Christ. This was not coincidence but divine providence.  God knew that this meeting would be brief, so he prepared the Ethiopian in advance for it. When Philip came, he was merely picked the ripe fruit which had been prepared by God.

The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.” Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked . How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him” (Acts 8:29-31). First it was an angel (Acts 8:26) and now it’s the Spirit of God. What a supernatural life Phillip must have been experiencing! He was so in touch with heaven, he was receiving clear direction from there.

Although the Ethiopian’s entourage must have been impressive, Philip was not intimidated. The Holy Spirit filled him boldness. Reading the Scriptures aloud was a common practice at the time, which is why Stephen was able to hear. God knew what questions were welling up in the Ethiopian's mind. At just the right moment he brought Philip across his path. It’s surprising that this important man allowed a "stranger and a commoner" to sit with him in the chariot and to teach him the word of God.

Spiritual truth can only be spiritually discerned (1 Cor. 2:14). While the Ethiopian could read the passages and have a general sense of the concepts, he could not discern the spiritual meaning behind the words. For that, God sent Philip who could explain the passages and show him how these passages pointed to Jesus. Ultimately it’s the Holy Spirit who opened the Ethiopian’s heart to the things explained by Philip.

‘As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptized?” And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him’ (Acts 8:37-38).  Once again we see God's hand of providence, for this was a desert road and yet they came across water just when it was needed.

Both Philip and the Ethiopian went down into the water with the eunuch's entourage witnessing the baptism. This was a testimony that his old life of sin had been buried through the death of Christ and now he was a new creature in Christ. Baptism has no power to save. If you go into the water as an unbeliever, you will come out as an unbeliever. Baptism is for those who have come to faith in Jesus Christ.

“The Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing” (8:39). God had performed miracles and signs to confirm his servant’s witness to the people of Samaria. Philip’s sudden disappearance was a startling miracle which confirmed to the entire entourage that they had indeed encountered a man of God. They must have read about Elijah, God’s “disappearing” prophet (1 Kings 18:11-12).

Just as the gospel was received with much rejoicing in the city of Samaria (Acts 8:8), now there is rejoicing  in the desert. Joy is a mark of a believer (Acts 13:52; Rom. 14:17; Gal. 5:22). Peter wrote “Jesus Christ is revealed. Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls” (1 Peter 1:7-9).

“Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and travelled about preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea” ( Acts 8:40). Caesarea was an important city. It was at one time the most important city of all Syria. Philip seems to have made his home there (Acts 21:8-10). His was a godly home; the members of his family were earnest workers with him. If the full history were written we would likely learn that multitudes heard Philip there and many believed.

The story of Philip, like that of Stephen, is briefly told but we have in him one of the shining lights of history. In his example of faith and service we have one which constantly spurs us on to holy living, courageous witnessing and earnest preaching. He was an effective evangelist. To this day, there are all kinds of “chance” meetings, arranged from heaven, for those who are sensitive and obedient to God’s leading.

One wonders why the Lord did not direct one of the apostles in Jerusalem to share the Gospel with the Ethiopian Eunuch. Meanwhile, Philip could have continued his fruitful ministry in Samaria. Later, Philip was in Caesarea where a centurion needed to hear the gospel. But rather than send Philip, who was in Caesarea, God sent Peter, who was in Joppa (Acts 10).  Sometimes God does things that seem illogical to us. But, we can be sure that he knows what he is doing.

This is the first recorded account of an African and a full Gentile to convert to Christianity.  Philip was the first disciple to witness to the “half-breed” Samaritans and now is the first to witness to a full Gentile. He was willing to witness to someone from a different race. Philip was "color blind" as is the Gospel. All believers should be "color blind" because “with his blood Jesus purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev.5:9).

Why would God send Philip to one soul on a desolate desert road? The phrase "you can count the seeds in an apple, but you can't count the apples in a seed" is a proverb that highlights the idea of hidden potential and the infinite possibilities that can emerge from a single small beginning. While the number of seeds in one apple is finite and countable, each of those seeds could grow into a tree and produce many more apples, a process impossible to fully count or predict.