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26 Then an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Get up and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza." (This is a wilderness road.) 27 So he got up and went. Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of her entire treasury. He had come to Jerusalem to worship 28 and was returning home; seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah. 29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, "Go over to this chariot and join it." 30 So Philip ran up to it and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah. He asked, "Do you understand what you are reading?" 31 He replied, "How can I, unless someone guides me?" And he invited Philip to get in and sit beside him. 32 Now the passage of the scripture that he was reading was this: "Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter, and like a lamb silent before its shearer, so he does not open his mouth. 33 In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth." 34 The eunuch asked Philip, "About whom, may I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?" 35 Then Philip began to speak, and starting with this scripture, he proclaimed to him the good news about Jesus. 36 As they were going along the road, they came to some water; and the eunuch said, "Look, here is water! What is to prevent me from being baptized?" 37 38 He commanded the chariot to stop, and both of them, Philip and the eunuch, went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. 39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away; the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. 40 But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he was passing through the region, he proclaimed the good news to all the towns until he came to Caesarea. (Acts 8:26-40 NRSV)
May this Wednesday find you in a wonderful place; anxious to hear God speak to you in marvelous ways. Use this opportunity, dear one, to find new ways to serve Christ in your life. Make time for demonstrating God's love with all people. Use that time also in prayer, lifting up the names of those who need God's blessings on and in their lives. Please pray for one another; pray for yourself as well.
We meet Philip the Evangelist, whom some believe we first met in Acts 6:5, who along with Stephen was chosen as servants known as deacons. He was a faithful follower of Jesus, and as such was filled with God's Holy Spirit. To be filled with the Holy Spirit is to be ready to be taken to the next big adventure; and this story clearly shows us that when the Spirit says move, we move! At least Philip did! God sent an angel who told Philip, "Get up and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza." Here we find the four key words in God's commands to His people; Get up and go! We find this in almost all passages where God orders a major move or action from one of His followers. It takes faith to say yes and double faith to get up, then triple faith to go! Imagine being sent down a road without a real clue as to what to do or whom to meet. But as always happens in God-ordained situations, the need makes itself very obvious. In this case on this isolated road, he meets up with a foreign government official who, while seated in his chariot, he is reading the prophet Isaiah. As Philip nears the chariot, the Spirit said to him to join the chariot. Getting closer, he hears the official reading out loud the words from Isaiah, "Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter, and like a lamb silent before its shearer, so he does not open His mouth. In His humiliation justice was denied Him. Who can describe His generation? For His life is taken away from the earth." So, naturally, Philip asks is he understands what he is reading. The official replies with a question, "Who are they talking about?" And this was why Philip was there because he took the opportunity to share the good news about Jesus. And Philip did such a good job, the official was ready to be baptized at that point and time. And he asks for baptism for himself by pointing out some water. The chariot is ordered to stop, and the two of them enter the water and Philip baptized him. When he comes up out of the water, Philip is snatched away by the Spirit, and the official saw him no more. Philip finds himself in another setting where he begins to share the good news to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.
Philip, along with Stephen and the other deacons, volunteered to wait on tables. This was not a menial job, it was an important task of believers for new believers. This could be considered front-line ministry of the Spirit-led kind as we read about in the opening verses of chapter 6 in Acts. As a result of a complaint about unfair treatment of one racial group over another, the entire community met to elect those who were Spirit-filled people of strength and wisdom to help in the distribution of food. Those elected were commissioned by the laying on of hands and they began their ministry. It's very interesting to see how some of them were actually deployed. Stephen was a gifted preacher and used that gift to give witness to the Lord Jesus Christ and as a result, like Jesus, was killed for his faith. Philip, a gifted evangelist; one who shares the good news, is sent by God to convert a man from Ethiopia. We don't read any one of the deacons saying that work was beneath them or not worthy of their being there; these were faithful disciples who put Jesus first and His ministry first, and sought to serve Him however He felt was worthy and necessary. Interesting that upon receiving his call to get up and go, he didn't ask where, or is there at least a Walmart in that place? Will I be within driving distance to an HEB? Can my spouse find decent work nearby? No, we read of faithfulness and fruitfulness because of trusting obedience.
If you love Jesus, you know Jesus loves you and seeks only the best for you; opportunities will come and our willingness to serve will bless others and you will also find, they will bless you. So, what are you waiting for?
PRAYER: Faithful Father, send me where Thou will; and put me to doing whatever it is Thou would have me do. Let me in all ways seek only honor and glory for Thy name; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Find a moment today to say, "Here I am, Lord; Send me!"
Receive my blessings of peace and joy,
Pastor Eradio Valverde
