Before we get to Philip and his mission, from chapter 6 of the
book of Acts in the Bible, we’ll need a little background on what is happening
in the world of his day so we can understand his unique mission.
In the New Testament book of Acts, chapter 1, verses 7-9, the
resurrected Jesus is about to ascend into heaven. His disciples have just
asked him whether he was at that time going to restore the kingdom to
Israel. They still had a lot to learn about Jesus’ mission – restoring
the kingdom to Israel was not going to happen at that time, or in the earthly
way they expected.
Instead of supplying an answer, he left them with these
words:
“It is not for you to know the times or
dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power
when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem,
and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’ After
he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from
their sight.”
On the day of Pentecost (a Jewish feast held 50 days after the
Passover), the Holy Spirit, third person of the Trinity, and the One who would
indwell believers with the very life of Jesus, was given just as Jesus
promised. On the same day, the Apostle Peter, filled with the Spirit,
gave a very convicting sermon, after which 3000 people became believers in
Jesus! But that was just the beginning! Through the testimony of
the Apostles, accompanied by confirming miracles, the church of Jesus Christ
continued to grow – however, for the most part, it had not yet spread beyond
Jerusalem.
In chapter 7, Stephen, a Grecian Jew, “full of God’s grace and
power”, who did great wonders and miraculous signs among the people,
attracted the attention of those who opposed the followers of Jesus. He
was accused of blasphemy and arrested. When questioned, he also preached
a powerful sermon, beginning with the call of God upon Abraham, tracing the
rebellious history of idolatry of God’s people Israel, and ending with their
rejection of Messiah Jesus. For this Stephen was
stoned.
Acts, chapter 8, verse 1 says this:
On THAT day (the day on which Stephen was martyred),
a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except
the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria.
Remember Romans 8:28 which says:
And we know that in all things God works
for the good of those who believe in him, who have been called according to his
purpose.
This was a perfect example!
God had good plans for the worldwide expansion of his church that persecution
was about to accomplish! Jesus’ command that his people, filled
with the Holy Spirit, were to be his witnesses in all Judea and Samaria, and to
the ends of the earth was launched!
Acts 8:4-8:
Those who had been scattered preached the
word (the gospel of Jesus Christ) wherever they went. Philip went down to
a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Christ there. When the crowds heard
Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to
what he said. With shrieks, evil spirits came out of many, and many
paralytics and cripples were healed. So there was great joy in that city.
The first time we hear about Philip is back in chapter 6, verse 5,
where we read about Stephen for the first time as well. Both were Grecian
Jews, chosen to be sure that their widows received equal care and treatment as
the widows of the Hebraic Jews. From serving widows in Jerusalem, Philip now
finds himself in Samaria, where he preached the gospel, and in the power of the
Holy Spirit, also did miraculous confirming signs. And people were
listening!
Samaria was an interesting choice for this great work of God’s
Spirit because Jews hated Samaritans. Samaritans were considered half
breeds, who worshiped the God of Israel, while at the same time adopting the
idolatrous practices of the nations around them.
A good Jew, like Philip, would normally avoid Samaria like the
plague, often walking miles out of the way, so as not to step foot inside its
borders. Yet this is exactly where we find Philip, having a hugely
successful ministry of preaching the good news of the kingdom and the name of
Jesus Christ. As a matter of fact, the people were so responsive to
the gospel that when the apostles in Jerusalem heard about it, they sent Peter
and John to Samaria. Peter and John stayed there a while,
testifying, and proclaiming the word of the Lord, preaching the gospel in many
Samaritan villages before returning to Jerusalem.
Wow, what a miraculous explosion of faith! The long hated
and avoided Samaritans had now received, and believed, in the gospel of Jesus
Christ! A huge revival had broken out and Philip was right in the thick
of it!
Can you imagine how exciting that would have been?
There was so much work to be done you can almost SEE Philip rolling up his
sleeves! They would need Bible studies to show from the Old Testament
Scriptures how Jesus was the Messiah, prayer meetings, discipling ministries to
help people grow and live their faith, people to care for and counsel – Philip
could have been busy for years! But God had other plans for this
man – plans that did not include staying put!
Was he surprised, I wonder, when in the middle of this thriving
ministry opportunity, we read this in v. 24:
Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip,‘Go
south to the road – the desert road – that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza’.
What might have been going through my mind if I was Philip would
be:
What, am I hearing you right? Are you sure, Lord? The
work here in Samaria is just getting started! This is so exciting that I
want to stay here. I don’t want to miss what you’re doing. I think
I’m really needed. Will you run those instructions by me again?!
Philip doesn’t say any of that – at least nothing like that is
recorded. Verse 25 simply reads:
SO HE STARTED OUT.
There is no record of Philip questioning God’s mission or timing.
He didn’t seem to look back with longing, or disappointment, or
resentment. He got his marching orders, he obeyed those orders and
went. And wow, was he rewarded!
Acts 8:26-38 says:
On his way, he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an
important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace, queen of the
Ethiopians, who had gone to Jerusalem to worship (probably a convert to Judaism).
On his way home (the eunuch) was sitting in his chariot reading the book
of Isaiah the prophet. The Spirit told Philip, ‘Go to that chariot and
stay near it.’ So he ran up to it and heard the man reading Isaiah 53:7-8
and asked if the man understood what he was reading.
Because he didn’t, Philip explained it to him.
He was led like a sheep to the slaughter,
and as a lamb before the shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth.
In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his
descendants? For his life was taken from the earth.”
Isaiah 53:7-8
When the eunuch asked about whom this passage spoke, Philip told
him the good news about Jesus, and he believed and was baptized.
When they came up out of the water, the
Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away and the eunuch did not see him
again, but went on his way rejoicing. Philip, however, appeared at Azotus
and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached
Caesarea. Acts
8:39
So what was Philip’s mission? Apparently, it was to go
wherever the Lord called him - in order to preach the gospel – and then to move
on to the next place the Lord called him to do the same, until He called him to
the next place, and on and on.
It didn’t matter to Philip that God had a new assignment even
though revival was breaking out in Samaria. It didn’t matter to him that
God was leading him from the “known” revival to an “unknown” assignment
somewhere on the road to Gaza. He even went before he knew what the
assignment was! It didn’t matter that God was calling called him away to
another assignment immediately! (Don’t you want to know what happened in
Ethiopia when the eunuch got home?).
Philip didn’t hesitate to leave the revival in Samaria to meet
ONE man because the Holy Spirit told him to go and stay near him.
Compared to what was going on in Samaria, this didn’t seem all that significant
– Philip may never have known ultimately the significance it would have to the
kingdom in the future – but he went anyway and seized the opportunity to do
what he had been called to do – preach the gospel of Jesus Christ to this one
man. Not just any man, but a man of influence, who went away
rejoicing over the blessing of knowing Jesus, the Messiah. Can you
imagine this man keeping the joy of his newfound Savior to himself once he got
back home??? Not a chance!
How did Philip do it? How did he drag himself away
from thriving ministry opportunities in Samaria to meet one man on his way back
home? Philip had a mission to preach the gospel wherever God
called, and he simply obeyed God’s call. Wherever, whenever, to whomever
– one or many, the number didn’t matter, nor did the results.
Last week I wrote about some of the challenges I anticipate as Jim
thinks about retirement. One of those challenges for me is, “Is
the Lord going to move us to some other place so that I’m going to have to
“give up” the current ministries in which I’m involved?” (Not nearly
as significant and powerful as the one Philip had in Samaria!)
Funny you should ask, the Lord said, when I opened up Oswald
Chambers today. Here’s what he had to say:
“Suppose God tells you to do something that is an enormous test of
your common sense, totally going against it (like leaving Samaria – or retiring and maybe leaving your
current ministry opportunities). What will you do? Will you hold
back?
If you get into the habit of doing something physically (like swearing when you're angry, or
eating chocolate chip cookies when you're on a diet), you will do it every
time you are tested until you break the habit through sheer
determination. And the same is true spiritually. Again and again
you will come right up to what Jesus wants, but every time you will turn back
at the true point of testing, until you are determined to abandon yourself to
God in total surrender (the way Philip did).
Yet we tend to say, ‘Yes, but – suppose I do obey God in this
matter, what
about. . . . ” Or we say, ‘Yes, I will obey God if what He
asks of me doesn’t go against my common sense, but don’t ask me to take a step
in the dark (the way
Philip did on the road to Gaza).’
Jesus Christ demands the same unrestrained, adventurous spirit in
those who have placed their trust in Him that the natural man exhibits.
If a person is ever going to do anything worthwhile, there will be times when
he must risk everything by his leap in the dark.
In the spiritual realm, Jesus Christ demands that you risk
everything you hold onto or believe through common sense, and leap by faith
into what He says. Once you obey, you will immediately find that what He
says is as solidly consistent as common sense.
Trust completely in God, and when He brings you to a new
opportunity of adventure, offering it to you, see that you take it.”
In 2016 the Lord presented me with an opportunity to donate a
kidney. I talked about it with Him often, weighed pros and cons, but His call
was so clear that I didn’t doubt it was His doing that it came across my path. Although
to some, it did not make sense, I was so sure the Lord was in it, that I saw it
as an opportunity, and said yes. And what a blessing it was!
Retirement may be a “leap in the dark” from where I stand
now. But, since God HAS given me a mission, different from
Philip’s, but a mission nonetheless, I can trust that if I’m willing to take
the leap (abandon what I want and surrender to what He wants), He’ll be there.
How about you? Are you ready to abandon what YOU want
and obey God even if doing so seems to go against your common
sense? You can be on God’s mission for you wherever, and with
whomever, He calls you. Don’t spend too long contemplating the “What
ifs”. Don’t think about what you’ll have
to give up to follow Him. Don’t dwell on
the results or lack thereof. Just say
yes and follow where He leads. You can
trust Him to catch you when you take the leap!
