2/06/24 - Acts 8:26-40

  Acts 8: 26-40

Observation:

An angel of the Lord speaks to Philip instructing him to go toward the south from Jerusalem to Gaza. Philip obeys and encounters an Ethiopian eunuch who was a high official and in charge of the treasury of the queen of the Ethiopians. The Ethiopian came to Jerusalem to worship, and as the eunuch was returning home, he was seated in his chariot reading the book of Iasaiah. The Spirit instructs Philip to join the eunuch's chariot and when Philip runs to the chariot, he hears the eunuch reading Isaiah. Philip asks the eunuch if the eunuch understands what he's reading. The eunuch replies that he needs someone to guide him, and he invites Philip to join him in the chariot. The passage the eunuch reads a passage that speaks of a suffering servant, and he asks Philip about whom the prophet is refering to, himself or someone else. Philip begins with that Scripture and shares the good ndews of Jesus. They go along the road, they come to some water, and the unuch asks to be baptized if he believes. Philip baptizes the eunuch and when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carries Philip away, and the eunuch does not see him again but goes on his way rejoicing. Philip finds himself at Azotus and continues preachign the gospel in all the towns until he reaches Caesarea.

Interpretation:

Philip being strong with the Lord and the Spirit is being guided by the divine as the angel of the Lord instructed Philip to go to a specific place. This underscores the theme of God orchestrating events to fulfill His purposes. This also showcases Philip's obedience to God's calling and his relationship with God on being able to hear God's voice calling out to him. After being instructed Philip encounters the Ethiopian eunuch, a man of significant influence in the Ethiopian region. This encounter was not by coincidence nor chance; rather, it was by God's design and intention that this meeting took place. This also showcases God's plans and power on being able to reach people from other backgrounds with the message of salvation. God was readying the Ethiopian's heart by having him yearn to learn more about the scripture and the message. When Philip meets with the Ethiopian, Philip can hear the eunuch reading the book of Isaiah and informs Philip that he needs guidance to understand its meaning. Without Philip, the eunuch would not be able to understand the spiritual truths and meaning therefore the eunuch would end up staying lost. Again, this shows how God was orchestrating the pieces together. Philip then uses the passage from Isaiah 53:7-8 as a starting point to preach the gospel of Jesus and shared the "good news" with the eunuch. The eunuch's response to the gospel shows how his heart was ready to become a believer himself and in turn, he confesses his faith in Jesus and Philip baptizes the eunuch. And even though after getting baptized, when the eunuch did not see Philip, he still rejoiced as it is evident Jesus was living in the eunuch's heart and the encounter transformed the eunuch.

Personal Reflection:

When reading this passage and writing the interpretation, one thought that came up throughout the entire time, "how many people has my father evangelized or shared the gospel/good news?" One thing not a lot of people know about my father was that he was a missionary who went to China during the mid-1990s and during his time there, he had to go into hiding as it was awfully dangerous to be handing out Christian booklets, Bibles and other Christian related materials. He never really told me of his experiences over in China, and unfortunately, since he's passed, I'll never get to know. I never got to ask my father on why he went to China in the first place. There were several problems taking place at home during that time, but my father still got up and went. If it indeed was a true calling then I'm happy that my father obeyed and did what God called on him to do. We don't really know what Philip was doing prior to his encounter with the Ethiopian other than traveling to Samaria and preaching the good message and many people experiencing healing. But when Philip was called, he obeyed. I, myself, did end up going to China on a short-term missions trip to China in 2004. I remember the calling so well. One of our missions partners came and told us about the China ministry and offered short-term missions for those who want to go. My heart burning for the Lord, I can hear God telling me to go and without any hesitation, I said yes on going. But while I was there, I was discouraged as I did not get the opportunity to share the gospel. We were there as English teachers and overall, it was an amazing experience as my team leader told me that while I did not share the gospel, God still used me in His glorious ways. She told me that my serving, positive attitude helped everyone go through the trip without much worries as we faced numerous hinderances. Recently I had two opportunities to share the gospel with my friends who are non-believers and while they did not accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, I can sense the seeds have been laid and the roots are starting to grow. There is another friend of mine who I want to go back to attending church. He's been a believer all his life but he's not stop attending during the mid-2010s. I need to constantly pray for him and give it all to God. But one thing that has been burning in my heart is a member within the cell group to reach out and help guide him on what it means to be a husband, father and a man of God.

Application:

Regarding my friends, I will continue to pray for them and continue to share with them the good news when appropriate. Right now, I simply want to show them how God has impacted my life through both the good and bad times. As for my friend who has stopped going to church, I need to have a sit-down with him and question where his faith is at right now. But for some reason God is pushing me to reach out to one cell group member and be there for him. I'm not sure what it is but I will obey and reach out to him. One thing I'm trying to push myself on doing is being open and reaching out to the cell group members and get to know them. Sometimes I feel like I'm incredibly out of their age range and we will have a hard time connecting. I need to break out of that barrier that I put onto myself and let God handle the rest. It's the same thing with my children. I'm afraid what they think of me especially when I open up to them about certain things. I don't want them to think any lesser of me even when I'm showing my vulnerable side. I guess it's that "Asian-men" mentality where the men should not show "those" type of feelings. Maybe that's why my father never shared his stories with me. But I don't want my children to not know me before I pass like how I barely got to know my father before he did.