Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus. Acts 8:35
The email was short but urgent. “Request salvation. I would like to know Jesus.” What an astonishing request. Unlike reluctant friends and family who hadn’t yet received Christ, this person didn’t need convincing. My task was to quiet my self-doubt about evangelizing and simply share key concepts, Scriptures, and trusted resources that addressed this man’s plea. From there, by faith, God would lead his journey.
Philip demonstrated such simple evangelism when on a desert road he met the treasurer of Ethiopia who was reading aloud from the book of Isaiah. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked (Acts 8:30). “How can I,” the man answered, “unless someone explains it to me” (v. 31). Invited to clarify, “Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus” (v. 35).
Starting where people are and keeping evangelism simple, as Philip showed, can be an effective way to share Christ. In fact, as the two traveled along, the man said, “Look, here is water” and asked to be baptized (v. 36). Philip complied, and the man “went on his way rejoicing” (v. 39). I rejoiced when the email writer replied that he had repented of sin, confessed Christ, found a church, and believed he was born again. What a beautiful start! Now, may God take him higher!
Philip and the Ethiopian
26 Now an angelr of the Lord said to Philip,s “Go south to the road—the desert road—
that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.”
27 So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopiana t eunuch,u
an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake
(which means “queen of the Ethiopians”). This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship,v
28 and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet.
29 The Spirit toldw Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.”
30 Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet.
“Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked.
31 “How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?”
So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
32 This is the passage of Scripture the eunuch was reading:
“He was led like a sheep to the slaughter,
and as a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.
33 In his humiliation he was deprived of justice.
Who can speak of his descendants?
For his life was taken from the earth.”b x
34 The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, please, who is the prophet
talking about, himself or someone else?”
35 Then Philip begany with that very passage of Scripturez and
told him the good newsa about Jesus.
INSIGHT
- How do you respond to opportunities to share your faith?
- What simple answers could you have on hand for someone who wants to know Jesus?
Eunuchs were men—usually castrated—who served as officials in a royal court. Both Greeks and Jews often looked down on eunuchs; Greeks sometimes mocked them as “half-men,” while Jews might disdain them for their inability to produce heirs and because the law of Moses excluded them from entering “the assembly of the Lord” (Deuteronomy 23:1). However, the prophet Isaiah spoke of God’s full acceptance of eunuchs and foreigners who sincerely worshiped and sought Him (Isaiah 56:3–8). In baptizing the eunuch in Acts 8:26–40, Philip affirmed that this man was fully included and embraced in the family of God.
PRAYER
I’m not an expert at evangelizing, heavenly Father, so show me simple, effective ways to share the good news about Christ. In Jesus name, I pray. Amen!!
Read: Acts 8:26-35 (NIV) | Bible in a Year: Joshua 10-12; Luke 1:39-56
