The Evangelist and the Eunuch

 "Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, 'Go south to the road - the desert road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.' So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. 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. The Spirit told Philip, 'Go to that chariot and stay near it.'

    Then Philip ran 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...Then Philip began with that very passage of scripture and told him the good news about Jesus." Acts 8: 26-31, 35

    I have had many Philips in my life and I was blessed to be surrounded by many of them last Sunday when I was baptized. As I sat in the back of the church with my little granddaughter in my lap, I felt saturated by the love of God inside and out as I recounted the people in my life, sent by God, who brought the gospel to me, encouraged me and courageously spoke truth to me. 

     I thought of the very first Philips, my parents, who are with Jesus now. They taught the love of God to me daily as they lived out the Scriptures. Along the way, there were Sunday School teachers who may have thought I wasn't listening, but I can recall some of the songs and stories to this day. 

    Then there were teams of volunteers who brought Vacation Bible School to me, where I made a macaroni cross. The pastor, who baptized me as an infant, also taught me the ins and outs of the Bible in Catechism class. As I grew and moved around, there were pastors, teachers, radio broadcasts and printed media that nurtured my faith along the way. Friends sent cards or bible verses; people interceded for me in prayer. 

    At times, I have been like the eunuch in this account who needed help understanding the scripture. Other times, I have been able to come alongside another and explain the gospel truth, like Philip. Either way, it is the Holy Spirit who dispatches believers to spread the good news, and it is this same Spirit who aids the listener to comprehend what's being said. Apart from Him, we can do nothing.

    So, whether we have questions or answers, no one stands alone. We need one another.

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us." Hebrews 12:1