What Prevents Me?

By Jared Warner

Willow Creek Friends Church

April 28, 2024

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Bofya kusoma kwa Kiswahili

Acts 8:26–40 (ESV)

²⁶ Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place. ²⁷ And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship ²⁸ and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. ²⁹ And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” ³⁰ So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” ³¹ And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with 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 before its shearer is silent, so he opens not 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 And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” ³⁵ Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. ³⁶ And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?” ³⁸ And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. ³⁹ And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. ⁴⁰ But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he preached the gospel to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

Today’s reading is one of those passages that I really do not know what to do with. It is filled with so much interesting information that I spent the greater part of this week just reading about several different aspects this passage. When I say that Bible study is my favorite pass time, I am not just saying that to look like a really good pastor. I mean it. I can get lost for hours at a time just reading about a word and how it is used in a passage, how it is used elsewhere in scripture, and in wider literature of that time. I can read about a person and what they accomplished, where tradition says they went, and what we can prove historically. There are so many interesting facts, concepts, perspectives, and interpretations surrounding scripture that I could be quite content just reading all day.

I like history, but I am not a historian. When I read something about history, I might know more than some, but I have not developed the discipline to be an academic in that field of study. When I speak about the history, I encourage you to look things up for yourself. I relay concepts that I have read and find interesting, but I know that there is a great deal more that I do not know.

When it comes to this passage. There is much going on. Who is Philip? Who or rather what is Candace? And why was it important to include this story about the Ethiopian?

“Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, ‘Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.’”

Initially we might think that this is Philip the apostle, at least that was my first thought when I first read the book of Acts. But I was wrong. We really do not hear much about the Apostle Philip. We only hear of him a couple of times in all the Gospels and never in the book of Acts, which I find odd since the Apostle Philip was usually included in the list of the closest of the apostles. He was Peter’s brother Andrew’s friend. Just like the Apostle Philip. Philip the Evangelist is also rarely mentioned. Which is why we often get them confused.

Shortly after Pentecost, the church began to rapidly grow and with this growth came persecution. The Apostles were going around as they did with Jesus, teaching and performing miracles. They were brought before the council and they were concerned that they were distracting people from worship at the temple. Yet the Apostles continued to preach.

In the Gospel of John we are told that the followers of Jesus were often threatened to be removed or cast out of the synagogue. We may not fully understand this threat, but it was serious. It was to be removed from the community, labeled as an outcast. Many that faced the reality of this threat lost all family connections, and were often unable to sustain their lives because the community would not do business with them.

This caused social hardship, but the church rallied. Everyone did what work they could. Those that had property used their resources to help those that did not, and some even sold their property and gave the money to the Apostles so that they could provide for the needs of those who were unable to provide for themselves. They shared all they had. We often look at this first century church in awe. They had everything in common, we are told, but they did not live in unity.

Eventually this community grew to the point that twelve people could not oversee everything, and some complained of favoritism. It is refreshing to know at times that the people in scripture were not so different than us. Those of Hellenistic background claimed that the apostles were favoring those of Hebrew origin, so the apostles chose seven men from the disciples to serve the tables and assist them in the ministry. Philip was one of these seven.

Philip was appointed to this position that would later be known as a deacon. Each of these seven assisted the apostle with the day to day ministry of the church as well as assisting in discipleship. Shortly after these appointments there was increasing tensions between the followers of Jesus and the rest of the Jewish community. Stephen one of the other deacons was stoned to death, and a man by the name of Saul was given authority to seek out all the followers of Jesus to arrest them.

This intense persecution cause some of the followers of Jesus to leave Jerusalem and travel into the surrounding regions. Philip was one of those that began to travel, going to Samaria. While in Samaria he gained a great deal of attention. He boldly taught about Jesus. As he spoke unclean spirits fled and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed. This attracted the attention of local showman named Simon. He once wowed the crowds with his magic, but once Philip came to town the crowds no longer came to watch him. Simon was upset at this so he went to see who this Philip was. He too was amazed, and he believed in power in Philip.

Philip had a great ministry going in Samaria, and because so many were receiving the Word, the Apostles sent Peter and John to pray with them, because they had not yet received the Spirit. When the Apostles came to pray the Spirit moved throughout Samaria, and Simon saw the power. He too wanted that power, so he went to Peter and John and said, “Give me this power also, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”

We might think this is amazing. God had turned this practitioner of magic to himself, but that is not what the Apostles saw.

They refused to pray with Simon, instead they commanded him to repent and pray. They saw something that others were unable to see, they saw that Simon wanted the power. He wanted the attention. He wanted people to look at him and see his greatness. Simon only believed in the power but did not see that the only reason for the power was to bring light into the darkness, and hope to the hopeless. The gifts of the Spirit are not intended to bring honor and glory to us but to point people to God.

Philip and the Apostles returned to Jerusalem. While they were making that trip, “an angel of the Lord said to Philip, ‘Rise and go toward the south.’” Notice the wording, the wording is very similar to the wording of the Old Testament. In the Old Testament we will often see the phrase, “The Angel of the Lord.” This is what is being said here. It can be translated an or The angel of the Lord spoke to Philip. The Angel of the Lord was how the prophets of old spoke of a visitation by the very presence of God. So we are seeing a transition between the Old Testament and New Testament phrases.

God Told Philip to go. God commanded Philip to rise and go. He commanded him to get up right now and start walking south out of Jerusalem on the road to Gaza, through the desert. Notice the obedience Philip exhibits. He heard the voice and he immediately went. He did not ask why he simply responded to the calling.

Philip did not know what he was supposed to do on this journey. If I were to think about this I would question the wisdom. Things were going good in Samaria. Why would I want to go south when clearly the Spirit was moving in the north. He might have wondered what was going on yet he did go. And as he walked along this path down out of the mountains leading to the coastal plain, he saw a chariot in the distance. This chariot was carrying an important figure.

“And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure.” This man had been in Jerusalem to worship and was returning back to his country.

We could rush through this sentence and miss what is being said.

He is Ethiopian, not Jewish. Actually the term used here is not actually Ethiopia, as during this period of history Ethiopia as we know it did not exist, this would instead refer to Cush or the kingdom of the upper Nile. At this time it was most likely the kingdom of Meroe. This place is important because this is the portion of Africa that remained unconquered by Greece and Rome. They were outside the Empire. They were unconquered they were mysterious and a source of curiosity, but to the Hebrew people this place held even more importance. In Isaiah it is said that, “In that day the Lord will extend his hand yet a second time to recover the remnant that remains of his people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Cush, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea.” This prophecy speaks of the time when God will reverse the curse of rebellion and sin and bring all nations back to him. In the Hebrew mind Cush was near the edge of the world, everything beyond Cush was uninhabited wilderness.

This man was not only a man from this mysterious land, but he was the treasurer of the kingdom. He servant of Candace the queen. Candace is not the name of the queen, but it is a title. Some say that it is a term that means Queen or Queen mother, but as they have learned more about this region we are beginning to realize that this is a hereditary title within this culture much like Pharaoh was to Egypt. The difference though is that Candace was female, this culture gave the title not to the males but females. I do not know why this is but I find it interesting and something to look into. Their culture is like the polar opposite of what we traditionally see as the structure of power.

This man was the servant of a queen of a completely foreign land to Philip’s understanding. He was not only a servant but he was the servant that was responsible for the treasury. Every transaction, every expense, every purchase made by the this unconquered kingdom went through him. He knew the strength of their military because he approved the transactions for weapons and food. There was probably no one, except Candace, more important in the land of Ethiopia higher than him. This man had earthly power. But there is something we still need to consider.

He was a eunuch.

This is a major issue in the Hebrew community. In Deuteronomy, it says that emasculated males are not welcome in the community. But later Isaiah wrote,

Isaiah 56:3-5

Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say, “The Lord will surely separate me from his people”; and let not the eunuch say, “Behold, I am a dry tree.” For thus says the Lord: “To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, I will give in my house and within my walls a monument and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off.

This gives us mixed messages. The law said they should not be accepted in the community and yet the prophet says that those, including the eunuchs, that join themselves to the Lord will not be separated from his people. And we have a eunuch from Cush, reading in the book of Isaiah while he is traveling home from worshiping in Jerusalem.

The man is not a Hebrew, he is a foreigner, and he is a eunuch. Everything about this man would cry out to us that he was and would not be accepted as a God fearing gentile. This has lead many scholars to think that maybe we have misunderstood what the eunuch means.

Some commentaries have suggested that it might be possible that this man might have taken a vow of celibacy, or maybe he was just unable to have children. I thought about this as I was studying. It does sound nice in our minds except that is not how the ancient people thought. They did not have the same medical knowledge that we have today, and some of the practices they utilized even children today would find strange. In the ancient world it was believed that the women was unable to bear children, and that the males planted the seed of children. So to believe that they were speaking of a man that was unable to become a father would be hard to believe because there is only one way for that to occur in their minds. They would be unwilling to plant the seeds of life. The idea of celibacy though is a possibility because of Jesus’s teaching in Matthew 19, but this seems unlikely in this case.

The reality of the situation is that in most ancient cultures the practice of emasculation was common and it was done for various reasons. The first was to shame captured warriors. A second was for men to be able to participate in the temple rituals to pagan goddesses. And a third was for slave that were to serve women.

The Hebrew culture would frown upon each of these practices, especially in reference to the emasculation for goddess worship. As I researched this topic it was goddess worship that several commentators saw as the main drive for the law written in Deuteronomy. This man is a servant to the Candace. The female ruler of Ethiopia or Cush. He is her trusted financial advisor. The idea that he was a physical eunuch is the most likely case.

This man had many barriers place in front of him. He was a foreigner, non-Hebrew, and a eunuch. Everything about him points toward rejection, yet he traveled from a distant land to worship in Jerusalem. He wanted to worship so badly that he purchased scripture to take with him to his home. This is not something to take lightly, because scrolls were cherished and expensive. He was so eager to learn that he was willing to read while he was riding in a chariot through the Judean mountains.

And Philip is walking along that road, at that moment. He sees the chariot. He hears the man reading aloud. And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” Philip began to run to catch up to this man and as he approached he cries out, “Do you understand what you are reading?” The steward says to Philip, “How can I, unless someone guides me?”

As I was studying this week, that phrase struck me differently than it has before. I used to think the man is reading Isaiah it is a book of prophecy of course it is hard to understand. But this week as I read I felt a sense of rejection. This man traveled all the way from a distant country with one desire, to worship God. His desire to know God is so great that he spent a fortune to purchase scripture. And when he approached the place of meeting, he was turned away. “How Can I, unless someone guides me?” I hear him crying out to Philip, I have traveled to learn about this God, but no one will teach me.

Philip could see who he was, it is clear that this man was a eunuch because we have been told this is how he is described. Philip hears the words coming from this man’s mouth and he can still hear the voice of the Spirit telling him to join this man on the chariot. He likely has mixed feelings. He too had lived his entire life being taught the same law and traditions that barred this man from the assembly of Israel. His feelings may have been mixed but He was commanded to go and join this man on that chariot, so he was obedient to the Spirit of God.

This man was reading from Isaiah. He and he asked was the prophet speaking of himself or someone else. Philip from that moment had an opening to tell this eunuch about Jesus. They continue to talk and travel down the road, and in this desert they come to a place where water had accumulated. God commanded Philip to rise and go. He commanded him to go and join. And now they approach, in a desert, a pool of water.

And this I think is the key to this entire story. God provided that pool of water, where normally water would not be. This eunuch, see the water after hearing the stories told by this man of God and he asks an important question. “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?”

What prevents him from being baptized? What would bar him from being accepted into the family of God?

I began by telling the story of who Philip was, and what he did. He was the first missionary of the church. He went to Samaria and many believed, and he faced a problem there. He had a person wanting to join the church for their own profit and the apostles rejected him. Now he has a man that is earnestly seeking God, he has made great sacrifices seeking God while facing rejection all along the path. What does Philip do?

In the English Standard version they make a note that some of the manuscripts had a verse added that was not in all the manuscripts, that if you notice would be verse 37. That verse contains what is believed to be an ancient baptismal confession. “’If you believe with all your heart you may.’ The eunuch answered, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.’”

What prevents a person from participation in the assembly of Christ? So often we can get caught up in being right about everything, instead of listening. So often we focus on an appearance. But this Ethiopian eunuch cut to the heart of faith. What prevents me from being accepted?

John 3:16-21

For God so loved the world that he sent his one Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world and the people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.

“What prevents me from being baptized?” the eunuch asks? And the chariot stopped, and Philip takes this man to the water and he baptized him. The most important thing is true belief and a true relationship with God. Simon the magician wanted power. This powerful man just wanted acceptance. What bars? What prevents? Is it God or is it us and our desires. Rise and go, go and join, be obedient to the call of God, and speak the word to all who seek.

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