The Acts of the Apostles 78

Subtitle: Farewell to the Ephesian Elders II

Acts 20:25-38.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on September 1, 2024.

We are picking up in the middle of Paul’s farewell to the elders of the Ephesian church while he is in Miletus.  These are clearly Paul’s last words to them.  He does not expect to come back.

In the previous verses, Paul has reminded them of the example of his life while he was among them.  He then spoke about his present example of steadfastly and boldly going towards persecution in Jerusalem.

At verse 25, Paul begins to speak to the future ahead of them in which he will no longer be with them or able to visit.  He isn’t dying, but the message that he is giving does have that feel to it.  In short, the Apostle Paul does not want to leave any important thing unsaid.  He does not expect to have another chance.

Let’s look at our passage.

Paul exhorts them about the future (v. 25-31)

Paul explains that he knows they will not see him again.  He then speaks about the nature of his leaving.  He has been faithful to preach the Kingdom of God to them.  This Kingdom has both present and future aspects to it.

Yes, Christians are a family, and salvation is being brought into God’s family through Jesus.  However, the Kingdom references have deep roots into the Old Testament with the promised Anointed Son of David who would rule over God’s Kingdom.  Of course, Jesus is no normal king.  He is seated at the right hand of God the Father, having all authority and power over the heavens and the earth.  Paul had preached to them the open door for all to become citizens of this Kingdom of Messiah Jesus.  Those who enter the Kingdom of God receive the life of Christ flowing into and through them by the Holy Spirit.  Christians are to be a kind of preview of the future Kingdom Age when Jesus will return physically and rule from this earth.

Paul also speaks of being innocent of the blood of all men.  Essentially, he is saying that it will not be his fault if any of them fail to survive the judgment of Jesus at the end of their lives.  He had declared to them the whole counsel of God.  They were not missing any critical information for which they had to wait.  They had everything needed for living their lives in godliness, in short, how to please God.

They had heard the truth, and to hear the truth is to be responsible for it before God.  He was leaving and their eternity would be between them and God.

Of course, it had always been between them and God.  No one can repent for you and have faith in Jesus for you.  However, the Lord Jesus had sent Paul into the lives of these Ephesians (just as He sends you to others) to share the good news of salvation in him.  Thus, God can use Paul today to assist them, and then use others tomorrow.  Ultimately, our spiritual walk is dependent upon our relationship with Jesus. They will not be able to point to Paul and say that he had failed to warn them.

In verse 28, Paul exhorts them to pay attention to themselves and the flock of God that they were in.  Since Paul will no longer see them, the whole burden that Paul had helped them with was now coming upon them.  They would first need to pay close attention to their own lives so that they could then pay close attention to the flock of God in which they had been placed.  They would work together to care for the Ephesian believers.  Notice that this follows the pattern that Jesus gave in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 7.  Before we make judgments in the lives of others, we must first exercise judgment in our own life.  Of course, we do not judge with our own thoughts, but by the truth of the Word and by the Spirit of God.  Those who live a life of watching over their own souls will be able to be a help to others in the same endeavor.

We should also see that Paul emphasizes how they had come to this authority of elder and watching over the flock.  It was the Holy Spirit that had made them “overseers,” which comes from the Greek word “episkopos.”  This is where we get the word Episcopal.  It is also the root for the English word “bishop.”  Episkopos was borrowed into Latin as episcopus.   Latin was spoken by Christians for over a thousand years before English became a thing.  It was common for the sound of /p/ to devolve into a /b/.  Thus, the sound would be more like ebiscopus.  English doesn’t use endings and the initial “e” was dropped creating the English word biscop, and then bishop. 

Episcopalians is a term used for a church that highlights the rule of bishops over the Church with one bishop over each church- as opposed to congregational, which believe that the people of the church are to rule themselves.  Another word used in this issue is the term presbyterian.  A presbyter is an elder.  This emphasizes the rule of elders over a church.

Regardless of all these different views on Church polity, the terms overseer (bishop) and shepherd (pastor) are not about a title.  Jesus didn’t die so that men could have titles of authority over one another.  These are functions that are intended to assist, to help, the body of Christ.  Their essential purpose is not about elevating one person over another, but about letting the Holy Spirit use us to come alongside of others in their relationship with the Lord Jesus.  We must not lose sight of this purpose.

An overseer is just another way of speaking about a shepherd, or pastor.  The Greek word has at its root the concept of one who feeds.  The pastor term essentially emphasizes assisting in the care of all that a sheep (believer) needs.  Of course, pastors must also recognize that they too are a sheep doing a work for the Good Shepherd, who is the true head of the Church.  The feeding here is spiritual nutrition, which we obtain from the Word of God.  Shepherds are to give the church words of care rather than control.  Wise sheep will learn to hear the voice of Christ through the care of godly overseers and shepherd.

I like to used Psalm 23 to see all the things that a sheep needs, and consequently, all the things that pastors are to focus their ministry upon.  Sheep need “green pastures,” which is the spiritual food of God’s Word.  Sheep also need “peaceful waters,” which is both the Word of God and the ministry of the Holy Spirit.  They also need protection in “the valley of the shadow of death.”  Pastors are only one of the ways that the rod and staff of Christ is used to comfort His people.  Lastly, we can see that the psalmist’s head is anointed with oil.  This can be about the blessing of the Holy Spirit, but with sheep, anointing had more to do with medical care, whether preventative or for healing after an injury.  Believers need help in healing from the wounds of life, and preventatively avoiding some wounds of life.

In verse 29, Paul points to two particular threats that these overseers and pastors should deal with.  The first has to do with “savage wolves” that will com from outside the church.  They are not Christians, though they may pretend such.  Even the metaphorical use of wolf harkens back to the beast kingdoms of Daniel, of which Rome represented one.  These wolves are merely little beastly chips off of the beast block.  These wolves only come for one thing.  They see the sheep as a meal.  Of course, this is not literal, but metaphorical.  They consume people spiritually for financial gain and for their own pride.  Their actions are as destructive as a wolf among sheep.  They destroy the believers by destroying their faith in Christ and robbing them of their eternal inheritance.

The second threat comes from perverse men that will rise up from within the church.  These are believers who have become twisted in their doctrine and thereby also in their actions.  They are on a journey of becoming less and less like the Lord Jesus, whom they claim to serve.  Now, all of us fall short of Jesus.  So, we should be careful in nitpicking each other’s lives in order to label them as perverse men.  Yet, people can become dangerously off course, whether through pride, or through wounds.

What do these perverse men see in the sheep?  We are told that they desire to draw the disciples away to themselves.  They are fixated on “their” ministry, their kingdom, and their glory.  They are too infatuated with being a leader of men rather than being a follower of Jesus.

We are to guard against and recognize the wolves who come in, and we are to guard against the twisting of doctrine and the twisting of living out godliness.  This is actually the duty of all Christians who claim to love the Lord who bought them with His blood.  However, those in leadership bear a greater responsibility, a more severe judgment if they fail to pay attention.  Paul mentions that this was so important to him that he had warned them night and day with tears when he was with them. 

You may not be an official overseer in your church, but when you spend time in the Word of God, and spend time talking with God in prayer, then the Holy Spirit will cause you to see any dangers that come into your life, and into your local church.

Notice that these break down into external and internal threats.  This isn’t just true of the church as a group.  It is also true of us as an individual.  What am I watching out for as I pay close attention to my own life?  I am looking for those ways that the devil brings from the outside into my heart, i.e., temptations from situations and people, but I am also looking for those internal threats that come from my own heart and mind.  Arrogance, pride, lusts, and desires, if not pruned, will grow a thicket of weeds within even the best of overseers, thus destroying their souls.  Be watchful over your life and take possession of your soul by faith in Christ.

Paul entrusts them to God (v. 32-38)

Verse 32 begins with the conclusion to this farewell.  He was a spiritual father to this church and these men.  He had founded it, and he was a vital part of its spiritual success.  However, all spiritual parents, just as natural parents, will hit points along the road when we must entrust our kids to their Heavenly Father.  Of course, they are always in His care, but this is about ways in which we are bowing out of their life.

This happens when they reach maturity and move out into life on their own.  You may still have influence through letters, emails, phone calls, etc.  But, they are no longer in your house as little kids.  The relationship changes.  This is also true as one approaches death.  A parent knows that they will no longer be able to do anything after death.  This one that I have cared for throughout all of their (spiritual) life is now cast upon the Lord.   At particular stages of their life, God used you for their good and in different ways.  Now you are bowing out of that role.   Of course, God can use others, but there is also the fact that children grow up to become parents themselves.  Spiritual maturity comes through the tough decisions where we step up in Christ in ways that others stepped up for us.

In verse 32, Paul also points out that God and His Word can build them up.  God through His Holy Spirit, with His Holy Word, and in the community of holy believers builds us up.  This is the same language of Ephesians 4:13, where we are being built up in order to be more like Christ.  This is both individually and corporately.  A spiritual building must have a good spiritual foundation, and that foundation is Jesus.  God has started this building when we put our faith in Jesus, and He will finish this building when we are resurrected and stand in His presence.

Part of our discipleship is learning to cooperate with this work of God among those who have been sanctified, i.e., set apart for God’s holy purpose, of being conformed into the image of Jesus.

Paul refers to an inheritance that is ours in Christ.  This inheritance is definitely an eternal inheritance as an adult son of God.  In this sense, we inherit all things with Christ! 

Yet, this inheritance does have some downpayments within this life.  We inherit a place among God’s people, shining the light of Jesus to the world around us.  We inherit the glory of being a witness of Jesus to a lost and dying world.  We inherit the joy of being used of God to bring some to salvation, and to be persecuted as he was by others.  We are entering into our eternal inheritance even now in our mortal flesh.

Through a series of statements, Paul emphasizes that they follow his example of using strength to care for the weak.  The weak in this context is the Ephesians themselves.  When Paul was among them, he did not have them financially care for him.  Instead, he worked in his tent-making trade in order to supply his needs and the needs of the men with him.  He also did this with the Corinthian church.  In fact, he pointed out to them that other churches sent him money while he was in Corinth so that he could continue to minister to them.

Instead of despising those who are financially weak, or spiritually weak, etc., Paul used his strengths to cover for their weakness, and to help them to become stronger.  He even taught them to care for the Judean church when they were hurting from famine.  Here is the thing.  If we do not use our strengths to help the weak, then we will begin to become weak ourselves.  We will begin to become twisted and not like our Lord.  Jesus laid his life down for us while we were yet sinners (very weak).

Paul wasn’t trying to make money (silver or gold) from them, nor was he looking to have nice clothes.  He was not ministering for material gain.  Instead, he modeled the words of the Lord Jesus.  “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

In many places, Jesus challenged his followers to be givers.  The sermon on the mount speaks to this and the blessing that comes from it.  However, these words are not recorded in the Gospels in this form.  Is this a mistaken quote by Paul?

I believe that this falls into the category that the Apostle John identified in John 21:25.  Jesus said many things and they were not all recorded in the Gospels.  Also, Paul had several visions where the Lord Jesus spoke directly to him.  These are the words of Christ, even if you cannot find them in the Gospels.

There are a lot of people ministering today under the banner of Jesus Christ who pride themselves in their clothing, in the expensive vehicles they drive, as if these are proof that they are a great apostle.  Jesus’ proof of His Apostleship was dying on the cross for us.  The Apostle Paul followed in the footsteps of his Lord.  He wasn’t looking to get anything in the flesh.  He was among them to give.  This is the true mark of an apostle.

Finished with his message, Paul prays with the elders.  He is doing more than setting an example here.  He knows that they will need God’s help to succeed in all that he has put in front of them.  He wants them to overcome, and thus, he prays for them God’s help.  God is ultimately our source and the only way that we will overcome this world by faith.

We then have a great show of emotion in tears and kissing.  This is not a lack of faith, but a recognition of the will of God.  Sometimes God’s will takes away from us.  We are never happy about the leaving of a loved one, nor their death.  Even if they are in a better place, such as heaven, we miss having their fellowship and strength in our lives.  It is only right to grieve the passing of a godly person.

However, this is a godly sorrow and godly tears.  It is full of thanksgiving and gratitude to God for His many gifts into our lives.  In fact, Jesus himself was full acquainted with tears and sorrow.  He wept over Jerusalem and its coming betrayal of him.  Serving Jesus will have times of laughter and times of tears.  In all of it, we have the assurance that God the Father is working all things to the good. 

The scene ends with them seeing Paul and company off at the ship, which is a metaphor for many things in life.  Yet, the God of all comfort stays with them, even as He goes with Paul.  Let us hold fast to this wonderful truth!

Farewell II audio

The Acts of the Apostles 77

Subtitle: Farewell to the Ephesian Elders I

Acts 20:13-24.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on August 25, 2024.

Paul is on a ship traveling from Macedonia to Jerusalem by ship along the coast.  It is on this trip that Luke gives us several fore-warnings that Paul is to be taken prisoner at Jerusalem.  Of course, this should be expected at some point because of what the Lord tells Ananias about Paul in Acts 9:16.  “I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.”

Back in Acts 19:21, we were told that “Paul purposed in the Spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, ‘After I have been there, I must also see Rome.’”  Added to this resolve that Paul has to go to Jerusalem, will be this farewell speech to the Ephesian elders.  Paul spells out that persecution and tribulations await him in Jerusalem.  Thus, he may never make it back to see them.

There is a time for farewells.  Even when they are for God’s purpose, they are never easy.  Realizing that you may not see loved ones again has a sobering effect, and leads people to focus on what is important to say and do.  We don’t always know when our last time with someone will be, and so wisdom teaches us to treat every interaction with others as extremely important.  We should be better at not leaving things unsaid until it is too late.  Farewells happen for a variety of reasons, but the Christian never needs to fear them.  God will never separate from us all.

Let’s look at our passage.

Paul travels from Troas to Miletus (v. 13-16)

These first four verses simply lay out Paul’s itinerary from Troas to a town called Miletus.  If you look at a map from the first century of the coastal area of Asia Minor, you will see that their ship travels along the coast and inside of the shelter of various islands.  Miletus was a town on the southwest coast of the province of Asia.

We are also told that Paul is hurrying to get to Jerusalem by the feast of Pentecost.  Previously he had left Philippi after the feasts of Passover and Unleavened bread.  There are 50 days between those spring feasts and Pentecost.  Paul had used 12 days getting to Troas and staying there for 7 days.  Thus, he only had 38 days left when he left Troas.  This leads to Paul calling for the Ephesian Elders to come to him at Miletus, so that he can say goodbye.

Paul exhorts the elders of Ephesus (v. 17-24)

When they had gathered, Paul addresses them by first reminding them of his past example before them, especially “what manner I always lived among you.”  Paul did not act in a variety of ways, as if he was not sure about the Lord Jesus Christ.  He did not have a compartmentalized life, nor was he manic in his devotion to Christ.  He was an example of faithfulness to the Lord Jesus in his manner of living.  He lived the way that Christ had commanded his disciples to do.  His manner always pointed back to Jesus. 

Now, it is one thing to be faithful.  Some people are faithfully selfish.  But, it is quite another thing to be faithful in the good thing of living out the commands of Jesus.

Paul had not come to Ephesus to increase his ministry, to make it global.  He was not trying to increase the number of churches sending money to him every month.  In fact, the Holy Spirit had forbade Paul to go into that area when he first tried to go there.  He went around the area and only came back when the Holy Spirit gave him leave to do so.  Paul wants these elders to remember that all that he did  was about doing the work of Christ, in the way that Christ desired.  He honored Jesus in everything.

In verse 19, he fleshes out what that example was exactly.  He had been among them as a servant of the Lord Jesus.  We are not called to serve our own interests, but to serve the interests of Jesus. When we serve others for the purpose of Christ, it makes us better husbands, wives, sons, daughters, church members, employers, employees, and every relationship.

Paul particularly served Christ with all humility.  This word emphasizes an attitude of mind that then impacts the way one lives among others.  He was lowly of mind.  This doesn’t mean that Paul saw himself as the worst worm in the room, but that he knew how badly he had messed up in his own flesh.  He knew how much he needed Jesus every hour and every day.  Jesus had saved him from the grotesque depths of sinfulness.  Jesus had then given him a job.  Paul did not see himself as the great apostles, but as a person who owed Christ everything.  He would faithfully complete the task that Jesus had given him because Jesus was worthy of Paul’s whole life.

Paul was not ministering for reputation or material gain.  He was seeking the approval of Christ.  To serve Jesus is to serve others.  Like Christ going to the cross, the apostle Paul suffered things so that others could receive a good hearing of the Gospel.  Yes, there will be a day of judgment for all people, but until then, our job is to serve people with the good news of Jesus.

Paul also served the Lord Jesus with many tears and trials.  These trials are various in nature.  There were trials of difficult travels and the dangers that went with that.  There was the trial of facing wicked people with ulterior motives.  There were arrests, imprisonments, beatings, public shame, and shipwrecks.  Each one of these tested Paul’s endurance.  “Will you keep going now?  Or, will you now quit.”

These difficulties not only tested Paul’s endurance, but they also brought tears to the apostle.  Yes, he knew they were tests, but that doesn’t make it any easier when someone you have ministered to begins to persecute you.  Imagine Jesus Christ looking over Jerusalem and weeping because he knew that they would ultimately reject him.  The question that is asked in these times is this.  Are  you going to remain faithful to the hard work that God has given you to do? 

That same question should be answered every day, even if you aren’t the apostle Paul.  Grandparents and parents have to answer that question.  Believers in a local church have to answer that question.  Christians who are to be the light of their culture and generation have to answer this question.  All of the difficulties that you face in following Christ are testing you.  Yet, your tears are precious to the Lord.  Just as he knows the number of hairs on your head, he knows the number of tears that you have shed.

Thus, we see Jesus asking his disciples in John 6:67, “Do you also want to go away?”  Yet, Peter answers that this world had nothing for them.  The world was empty, but Jesus was full of life.  They would carry the burden of the heavy things, the burden of sorrowful things, in order to remain with the one who was life itself. 

Thus, our tests and trials bond us to the Lord Jesus.  He too shed tears.  When you feel like quitting, let the fact that the Lord didn’t quit on you give you strength to continue on.  Turn to him in prayer and ask for strength to crucify your fleshly desire to avoid suffering, and then strength to carry out God’s will.

The response of our flesh, whether tears or fears, is generally not a chosen thing.  Like a gag-reflex, it comes rushing to the surface in the moment.  Yet, we can then take those emotions and those fears and put them at the feet of Jesus, on the altar.  “Lord, I am going to keep serving you even though this difficulty is in my way.”

All of us need to get to the broken place where it is tough to follow Jesus, and yet, we know that this world has nothing for us.  Each test is a way for us to say to the Lord, “Even this, I will go through for your sake, in order to remain faithful to the work that you have given me to do!”

Paul also mentions that he had proclaimed to them everything that would be helpful, or beneficial, to them.  They were not in need of something better from some charlatan that would come along later.  There were many itinerant teachers looking for itching ears in those days.  We can become weary of doing the good thing that God gives us to do.  Then, we become susceptible to the misdirection of the enemy of our souls, the devil.  He will seek to pull you off the course that Christ has given you to walk.

Paul had given the Ephesian Christians everything they needed for life and godliness, to live a life that was faithful to the Lord Jesus Christ.  In verse 21, Paul explains the greatest good thing that he had given them.  The most beneficial thing we can gain from the Scriptures is the call to have repentance towards God and to have faith towards Jesus.  Many of the Jews had given up on waiting for Messiah.  Repentance called them to turn back to Yahweh with a whole heart and believe upon Jesus whom He had sent.

Of course, not everything we say or do is beneficial to one another.  May we become quick to change course, quick to repent, quick to forgive one another, so that the Lord will be pleased with this assembly.  If you think you are missing something, the truth is that you are only missing it because you haven’t opened up your Bible and taken it seriously.

In verses 22 to 24, Paul speaks to them about his present example to them.  He is a man who is “bound in the Spirit.”  Through prayer and communion with Christ, through the help of the Holy Spirit, Paul has committed himself, tied himself, to a difficult work that Christ wanted him to do.  We too often give up on difficult works that Christ has for us to do because we don’t spend the time in prayer to gain his vision for it, and then commit ourselves to it in faith.

God will not force you to do anything.  He wants you to catch His vision and volunteer for it, to say Yes to it.  Prayer is that place where His burden switches to ours, where His vision becomes ours.  Part of you may be saying that you can’t do it.  Yes, in your flesh, you can’t do it.  However, in Christ, you can do all things because Christ will strengthen you (Philippians 4:13).

Paul doesn’t know exactly what awaits him, but he does know that it will be difficult.   Verses 22 and 23 tell us that the Spirit of God testified in every city where Paul was going that trials and tribulations awaited him.  Notice first that it is the Spirit who was testifying.  This happened in Paul’s personal times of prayer, but it also happened through others such as prophets within the church gatherings.  We will see an example of this in Acts 21.

This raises the question.  If God warns us about persecutions ahead, does it mean that He wants us to avoid them?  Perhaps, there are times when this is so.  However, Paul knew he needed to march into those trials, at least this time.  Such a resolve can only be determined in prayer before God, seeking His will.

Luke has not described these warnings “in every city.”  However, this helps us to understand why Paul would preach past midnight and into the rise of morning.  He knew that he would most likely not be coming back.

What would you do if you were continually told by the Spirit, and by other people, that the path ahead was full of tribulations?  In general, Jesus has told us exactly this.  In 2 Timothy 3:12, we are told that “all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.”  Are we blessed in these United States of America, or are we spoiled?

Sometimes God warns us of pain ahead because He wants to know if we are ready to be like Jesus.  He is preparing us and testing us to see if we will keep going out of love and devotion to Him.

In verse 24, Paul states that this revelation of the Spirit doesn’t move him.  He doesn’t mean emotionally.  He is talking about the path, or course, that he is on in going to Jerusalem to suffer.  Paul is doing something difficult for the lord, and it would be easy to stop, turn back, and to avoid it.  However, none of these things have changed Paul’s mind and his resolve to go to Jerusalem.

Do you realize that the devil often uses resistance and difficulty to get us discouraged from God’s path for us?  He is doing all he can to change your mind, as he did with Eve in the Garden.  He was successful to get her off of the course that God had given to her, at least for a little while.  You can choose to follow Jesus at a point in time, but you will need to keep choosing Jesus over the top of difficulties in order to actually do it.

In fact, Paul states that he doesn’t count his life as precious to himself.  It is not that our lives are not precious, but that they are precious to God and for His purposes.  If God asks me to suffer, even as a martyr, then it has great value to Him.  However, I will have to lay my life down to do it.  My life cannot mean more to me than glorifying the Savior who died for me.  This is one of the major sins of life.  We take our lives that are precious to God, and made for His purposes, and we ignore Him.  We take what was intended for holy purposes and use them for common purposes, and sometimes even for profane purposes.

Paul is reiterating what Jesus was talking about in Luke 14:26-27.  “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.  And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.” 

Why do people not pick up crosses to follow Jesus?  Sometimes it is because we are afraid of losing relationships with the people and things around us.  We can refuse to carry a cross in trying to keep from hurting our family, but the best thing you can do for your family is to carry the cross that God gives you.  You will do the most damage to them by refusing to pick it up.

It is not that He wants us to hate anyone, even ourselves.  Rather, when it comes to choosing between Jesus, his work, and my selfish desires, we would choose him every time!  If my life is to end early in Jerusalem or Rome, then so be it.  Jesus is worthy of such a sacrifice of love!

Paul refers to the path ahead as a “race” in the NKJV.  It is probably better thought of as a course, a particular path that he must travel full of hardships and obstacles.  A person is not given all the details of their personal course, but we can walk forward in faith by His daily help.  He leads, corrects, comforts, encourages, and does many other things to help us along our course.

Paul knew that he had a duty to walk out this course before him.  Yet, all duties can be done as a mere hardship that a person resents, but does anyways.  Duty can be a drudgery, and all parents know this.  There is something powerful in learning that there are duties that we should do in this Christian walk.  Duties that are for Christ and towards other people.  Yet, it is even better to find the joy that God has for you in doing them.  Paul doesn’t just want to finish his chores.  He wants to do them with joy!  Why did Jesus go to the cross?  Not just because he had a duty to do it.  He did so for the joy that was awaiting him on the other side, relationship with the Father and those who would believe upon Jesus for eternity!

Wrestling in prayer, the Holy Spirit will help you to find the joy of fighting the devil and being used of God to impact the lives of others eternally.  To be in the presence of God is peace eternally, but we can tap into that peace even today.  In the midst of the trial, the joy of the Lord can fill your heart and strengthen you far more than the knowledge of any duty can.  May the Lord help us to serve Him with all our hearts!

Farewell I audio

The Acts of the Apostles 44

Subtitle: Peter Preaches to the Gentiles

Acts 10:34-43.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on June 11, 2023.

Today we are going to see the emphasis that God will save "whosoever" will come to Him and believe on Jesus as Lord and Savior.

This idea, that God wanted Gentiles to come directly to Jesus for salvation without first becoming a Jew, and that He would make no distinction between them as Gentiles or Jews, is historically an unthinkable thing for most Jews of that day.  To them, everything in the Old Testament pointed towards the Gentiles need to come under the Law of Moses and then be joined to Israel.

Lest we treat this as some kind of special Jewish prejudice, we should recognize that all nations think and speak of themselves in terms that can be boiled down to this.  We are "The People" and all other nations are something less.  We should not be so quick to accept that this is what the Jewish Scriptures were promoting.

We also have a tendency to promote that all ethnic groups are good and it is wrong to critique them.  However, this is simply refusing to face the truth of history.  Even by modern man's ever changing definition of what is good, there is a tendency to cherry pick certain ethnic groups for castigation, and turn a blind eye to other groups. It is the result of the mentality that the end justifies the means.

We will talk more about this, but for today, we see that God's heart was never operating out of favoritism.  He is going to save and fill with His Holy Spirit a group of Gentiles without making them fulfill the Law of Moses.

Let's look at our passage.

God shows no partiality (v. 34-35)

As Peter walks into the living space of Cornelius' quarters, there is a whole group of Gentiles gathered to hear him.  These are the friends and family of Cornelius.  It is here that Peter makes a powerful statement up front.  God shows no partiality, or favoritism.  This phrase is also translated as "no respecter of persons."  The underlying meaning comes from a word that literally states that He does not receive the face.  God is not looking at the face of the person and accepting them for external reasons.  God looks at the heart (1 Samuel 16:7).

Humans easily fall into this pattern and are sometimes blind to how much we do it.  However, God's judgments are not based upon superficial things.  He does not have a grid of things like: ethnic group, skin color, pedigree, gender, etc., by which He filters out people that He will receive.

You may remember seeing an image or picture of Lady Justice holding scales in her hand and wearing a blindfold.  The idea is that justice should be meted out purely upon the facts of a case and not upon whom is coming before us.   This is a good reminder for us as humans because we generally have to be blindfolded in order to make a just decision.  I wonder how different our halls of injustice would be if our judges and juries were actually "blind" to the superficial identities of the defendant and the plaintiff.  However, even this would not fix everything.

Yet, God does not need a blindfold.  We are all His creation.  He is not a part of our group.  He was not a god created by the Israelites to reflect themselves as the ideal back to themselves.  He holds them accountable to Truth.

The closest thing we have to this in our world is when two children cannot get along and seek a judgment from their parents.  Yes, parents can have a favorite, but a good parent will recognize that both kids generally need to grow up and that both generally need to be disciplined.

God is not just better than parents.  He is perfect in His judgments.  He created us all and is not willing for any of us to perish, but that all should come to repentance.  Yet, some will still refuse to repent.

Lest you think I am making the Old Testament sound better than it is, you should look at Deuteronomy 10 (particularly verse 17) [also 2 Chronicles 19:7].  Moses reminds Israel that God's choice of them was not an act of favoritism.  They were not His pet nation.  No, He called Abram before He was a nation, and not because He foresaw that a perfect nation would come from his offspring.  In fact, the existence of different ethnic groups, nations, is directly connected to a judgment from God against a global rebellion against Him.

God does not call Israel to take their place, but to be a blessing to all the nations (Genesis 12:3).  In the Deuteronomy 10 chapter, we also see God warning them to love the "stranger" in their midst.  There judgments were supposed to render "the judgment of the Lord."  Don't read that as God will stamp His approval on your judgments.  Rather, when we give a judgment, we are certifying that we believe this is what God's judgment is in heaven.  If we can't say that, then we should not make the judgment.

If you are still not convinced, then read Deuteronomy 32.  This chapter lays out that God knew they would be an obstinate and rebellious people (overall).  Of course, this would be true of any human people that He could have chosen.  An honest reading of the Old Testament will come to the conclusion that Israel was not treated with favoritism.  Rather, God was teaching them and doing a work through them that would help all nations (who were all in rebellion against Him by the way).

Peter also states that he "perceives" that God shows no partiality.  This word can be the result of my effort to look into something like a scientist.  I might perceive something, i.e., the light bulb of understanding turns on in my mind.  However, it can also be the result of a process where I am the student and another is teaching me, be it simply life, or God.  Peter is experiencing this second aspect.  God has been teaching and showing him that He is not showing favoritism with Israel simply because the Messiah was from their nation, and his apostles are from Israel.

This is a theme in the Old Testament.  God is a teacher, but humans generally hear Him, and yet, do not hear Him; they see and don't see.  Only the Holy Spirit of God can help us to hear and see what God is trying to teach us.  Even then, the Spirit of God will not override our choices.  The resistant and rebellious will go on over the top of God's teaching and be deaf and blind to it.

By the time we finally "perceive" what He is saying, God has been knocking on our door for a long time (at least when it comes to issues of repentance).  We must be careful as Christians (like Peter) that we do not harden our heart to what His Spirit is trying to teach us.

Have you ever taken any heat for doing what God put on your heart to do?  If not, then get ready.  If you follow Him, there will be plenty of people who will line up and take pop shots at your decision.  It is important for you to have done the hard work in prayer and in studying the Scriptures, so that you can have confidence that God is leading you.

In verse 35, Peter restates the point that God shows no partiality.  They are "accepted by Him."  There is a direct access to Jesus, or better yet, to God the Father through Jesus the Son.  It doesn't matter how much idolatry the person is coming out of, or how wicked their society has been.  A person from any nation can approach Jesus for salvation.

We should praise God for people who are hungry to hear the Word of God.  Some are like pouring water on a duck's back, whereas others soak it up.  However, we must not adopt the attitude that we only speak to "receptive people."  Jeremiah would have never spoke in obedience to God, if he had adopted that attitude.  We might be a voice crying in the wilderness, but we are a voice that belongs to God and is pleasing Him.  There are many people who have turned to the Lord after the deaths of their godly parents.  The parents did not get to see the fruit of their labor in this life, but they will in the life to come.

Peter mentions two things that are the hallmarks of a blameless man in the Old Testament.  The first is a person who fears God.  It is our tendency today to shrink away from this phrase, but in the battle with sin, it is an important, necessary issue.  Instead of ignoring God and His decrees, instead of pushing the teaching of the Holy Spirit away, this person halts and takes God seriously.  Something within them warns them that they had better not rush on and ignore this warning.  They pay attention to God and come after Him with a heart of loyal obedience (don't read that as perfection).  They do this while others ignore, mock, scoff, and continue on in sin.

It is not that God wants us to be afraid of Him all the time, as if He is going to smash us at any time everyday.  The fear of the Lord is that warning signal that rises up in our heart when we are tempted to sin, or stepping off the path of righteousness.  It is a warning that reminds us that we are in danger of making ourselves an enemy of God, the good and just God in Whom there is no partiality.

Peter also adds to this a person who works righteousness.  They do what is righteous, not in their own opinion, but as directed (defined) by God.  Peter is not saying that Gentiles can be saved by their own righteousness.  This is clear by what is said next, "accepted by Him."  This is about being locked out of approaching God's throne and asking for grace.

The Church must never teach a self-righteousness for acceptance and salvation before God.  We are acceptable and forgiven on the foundation of the righteousness of Jesus.  However, one who accepts the righteousness of Jesus will go after him and live out the righteousness of Jesus by the help of the Holy Spirit.  We can end up in the opposite ditch by steering too hard out of the ditch we are in.

The movie Jesus Revolution depicted the clash that occurred when hippies of the late 60's and early 70's tried to come to church.  They didn't have a suit on, a tie, or even shoes sometimes.  Yet, where in the Bible does it say such a person cannot approach God with the rest of us?  Anyone who comes to Jesus for salvation has only just begun to be cleaned up by his teaching and the help of his Holy Spirit.  Cleaning fish is dirty business, but God gets down in the muck and the mire with us, and by His Holy Spirit, He gets His hands dirty.  Will you join Him in that work?

What He wants from you is patient faith.  By your patient faith in His work, you will take possession of your soul and then make a difference in your part of the world.

Peter breaks down the Gospel (v. 36-43)

Peter then tells them exactly what he told the people of Israel on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2) and ever since.  Gospel simply means good news.  So, what is the Good News?  It all centers on Jesus.  He is the good news:  who he is, what he did on this earth, his death and resurrection, God the Father's decision, and now our opportunity to have peace with Him.

Another way of thinking about the Gospel is to look at the action and reaction.  God the Father sent Jesus to be the Anointed King.  Israel rejected him and put him to death (with Roman help of course).  God responded by resurrecting Jesus from the dead in a heavenly, glorified body.  He also makes him to be the king of heaven and earth.  God's wrath will be poured out on humanity, but first He allows all men everywhere to believe on Jesus (his work and position) and have peace with Him.  So, God has put the "ball" of choice in your court.  What are you going to do?

We may not feel comfortable with being put in the pinch, but the truth was that we were already enemies of God.  We were already living for sin and not for righteousness.  It is not easy to be set free from sin, and to be clear, it is not "fun" for our flesh to be freed from sins, but it is a joy for our spirit and soul.  There are some things that you may not want to let go of.  Sometimes we can become very hard to the nudging and correction of the Holy Spirit.

I see this when we deal with one another.  We can be in an argument or debate with people and find ourselves playing this game where we are not wanting the truth.  We are only trying to win.  We become nit-picky towards every little thing that is said and ignore any overall truth that is not dependent upon nit-picking grammar, and other irrelevant details.  There are too many people "winning" arguments in this world (in their mind at least).  Two people walk away from a debate and are completely convinced that they won. 

In fact, we are getting to the place where we define winning as not even listening to an argument that is not congruent with our thoughts.  We cancel the other side and call it a win.  We stick our fingers in our ears and refuse to talk with one another because we have become so afraid.  Do you know what we are afraid of?  We are afraid of the Truth.  We are afraid of God breaking through that shell and into our hearts.  We are afraid of finding out that we fall short.  But, please hear me.  The day on which you realize the truth that you completely fall short is a wonderful day.  It is a wonderful day because now you can find Jesus and He will become your foundation of righteousness. 

I tell you.  Every good thing that I have done in my life is really worthless in the end, if it wasn't for Jesus helping me to do it.  Preaching the Gospel is good, but if you are doing it to get the approval of parents and grandparents, if you are doing it to become famous and influential, if you are doing it for any reason other than Jesus has told you to do it, then it is as if it were filthy rags. 

God in His mercy sent Jesus because He knew we could not do it alone.  Take His hand and live!

When you think about the Gospel, it is mind boggling that God offers peace right after they have executed His Son.  It is not what you would expect.  This does not mean God was pleased with what they did.  In fact, they could not have crucified Jesus without His cooperation.  Jesus laid down His own life.  He knew that His willing sacrifice would open the door for Israel and the Gentiles to have terms of peace with God.

Let us be clear.  Peace with God is only available through putting your faith in His solution, which is Jesus.  Christians are those who have entered peace with God through Jesus, and then have become ambassadors to others on how they can have peace with God too.

Cornelius is a God-fearer, but he needed to learn about the Messiah and put his faith in him, just like the Jews of Jerusalem needed to do.

We can compare this to Noah's family in the ark.  As long as they remained in the ark, they would be safe.  It was God's designated place of protection.  If they jumped off the ark in the midst of the flood, their fate would be the same as those who never entered in the first place.  Jesus is our ark, and we enter him by putting our faith in him and following him.  We have a safe place to fight sin and become like Jesus.

In verse 36, the interjection, "Jesus is Lord of all," might sound like an abrupt insertion.  However, it is key to the point.  God in Deuteronomy 10:17 is described as, "the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome."

This highlights that Jesus has received a position that is higher than all authorities, like that of God the Father. He is not confusing them, but recognizing that the Father has put Jesus over all things.  Yes, it is a statement of divinity, but it is also a statement that helps us understand why his death brings Gentiles, all people, to the table.  Even in the Old Testament, God made it clear to Israel that He had not abdicated His throne over all powers in heaven or on earth.  Similarly, Jesus is not only receiving authority over Jews, or Europeans, or light-brown skinned people of the Near East.  He is lord of all, and so his terms of peace are to go out to all peoples.

In verse 37, Peter relates that they are quite aware of what Jesus had done, and how he had been executed.  Such a story would have affected anyone in the area, and especially those tasked with "keeping the Roman peace" in Judea and its surrounds.  Yet, Peter mentions the important points of what had happened.  Starting from the beginning of the ministry of Jesus, he points out that: Jesus was baptized by John, Anointed by the Holy Spirit at that time (i.e., began his Messianic ministry), and He did good and healed those oppressed by the devil.  Yet, "they" killed him by hanging him on a tree (crucifixion).  Yet, God raised Jesus up on the third day, and showed him openly to the disciples.

Thus, Peter points out in verse 39 and 41 that he and the disciples were witnesses of all of this, especially the resurrection.  Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 15:6 that over 500 people saw the resurrected Jesus and many were still alive decades later.

Peter is recognizing that the message is first for the Jewish people.  They were the ones among whom God had done this work, so they should hear the truth of it first.  However, it is also for Gentiles who also had rebelled against God in Genesis 11 at the Tower of Babel.  Paul teaches the same thing in Romans 1:16:17.

"I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.  For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, "The just shall live by faith." (NKJV)

The point is not one of partiality, but one of God's call and purpose.  Even in its disobedience, God would save the remnant of Israel and use them to send the Gospel to the Gentiles.  God's calling is without repentance because He called them knowing full well how they would act and what they would do.

Today a person can step into that place where they hear the truth and respond to the Spirit of God that is within the words of the Gospel.  We become witnesses of those who received the message from witnesses all the way back to the eye-witnesses.

They ultimately testify that God has made Jesus the judge of all humanity (the dead and the living, past and present, Jew and Gentile).  You can't bribe him, nor can you ignore him.  Hebrews 9:27 says, "it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment."  This means that you will come before him to receive judgment.

At that point, you will not be accepted or rejected based on your genealogy, church attendance record, etc.  He will simply judge you in righteousness, according to the truth. 

This would be devastating news if the second part of Peter's statement were not present.  Those who believe in him will receive "remission of sins," that is forgiveness.  This means that your sins will be removed from you legally and immediately upon faith in Jesus.  From that point on, your faith in Jesus and obedience to the Holy Spirit will practically remove sin from your life in a process that is lifelong.  We should not use this as an excuse to be lazy because God knows our heart.  Sometimes laziness is an excuse for despising the chores given to you by the one in authority, and that is equivalent to despising the authority.  Jesus is able to discern the truth behind such matters in our life.

It is sad that barriers  have been continually lifted up by Christians that God does not intend to be a barrier.  Our love of sin is a big enough barrier.  Our pride is a big enough barrier, that we do not need to add more.  Jesus laid down his life to remove the barriers to people coming to him.  At least, we can say that he did everything for us, but repent in faith over the top of our protesting flesh.

I will never "finish" myself in becoming like Jesus.  It is God who completes the work.  It is best to see yourself working with Him in your heart and mind.  You do what you can, and He does what you can't.  Jesus has an immortal body, so none of us will be in his image until we too are in resurrected bodies.  You cannot do that in yourself.  God must do this for you.  He has promised to do this for all who have put their faith in Jesus Christ.

Our problem today is not the Jew versus Gentile issue.  I will admit that there are some that have reversed this and despise the Jewish people.  This is sin, of course.  In the 1970s of the United States of America, the problem was those hippies.  Further back, it would have been those black people, those Indians, etc.  God helps us to see that we are all simply sinners in need of the grace of Jesus.  We should bar no one who wants to do so from coming to Jesus in repentance.  If we do so, we may find that the Lord's judgment of us in the coming day is not as favorable as we thought.

Peter Preaches audio

The Acts of the Apostles 35

Subtitle: The Gospel Goes to Ethiopia?  Part 1

Acts 8:26-33.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on February 12, 2023.

We have seen how God used Philip, Peter, and John to take the Gospel into Samaria, north of Jerusalem.  It appears that the main impetus that made Philip go to Samaria was persecution in Jerusalem.  Of course, we can preach the Gospel in jail, but Philip gets out of town and preaches in Samaria.  Clearly, the Holy Spirit was leading him.

In our passage today, Philip is going to travel southwest of Jerusalem on the road to Gaza in order to help the Gospel on its way to the continent of Africa!  That's right.  It is most likely that the Gospel went into Africa before it ever made it to Europe.

What happened in Jerusalem is now spreading to the ends of the earth.  Hmm...it is interesting that we are here, hearing the Gospel at the ends of the earth.  You are an answer to the Lord's prayer, his purpose, and even prophecy.

Amen.  Let's look at our passage.

God causes a divine appointment (vs. 26-29)

God has a divine appointment for Philip on the road to Gaza with an Ethiopian eunuch. 

You may have heard that phrase before now.  There is a sense where a parent has a divine appointment every day, even every minute, with their children.  God wants you to train them in His Word and in His ways.  However, in a case like this, you know it, and it is on your "appointment calendar."

There are times that God has something out of our normal routine, or schedule.  It is not on our calendar, not on our radar, but it is on God's calendar.

It is important to recognize it when God is bringing us to something that we were not expecting.  When it happens, we need to learn to quickly shift gears, and focus on what God is doing.  A good prayer to pray is, "Help me, Lord, to be used of You in this situation!"

In this case, Philip is told by an angel of the lord some of what he is to do.

The term angel simply means a messenger, and this is what an angel does, but this was a heavenly messenger.  We are not told exactly how this meeting happened.  Was Philip in prayer alone?  Was he back in Jerusalem?  Regardless, Philip has an angelic visitation and now the divine appointment is on his calendar.

In reading the Bible, we may come under the impression that angels should be showing up every day in our lives.  This is not an accurate reading.  Sometimes it was hundreds of years between a clear visitation of an angel in the Bible.  In fact, Hebrews 13:2 tells us that some people have entertained angels without knowing it.  Have you ever had something happen that later you thought to yourself that the person who helped you may have been an angel?

One of the men in our church, Joe Pyott, was driving at night outside of Spokane.  As he was going through a snowy pass, he slid off the road in a remote area.  He was a bit worried because it was late at night, and he did not figure anyone would be driving by for a long time.  However, in short order, three different people showed up and helped him in different ways.  One guy had a shovel and dug out the snow around his vehicle.  Another man had a truck and a chain.  He was able to pull Joe back on the road.  Even better, Joe was able to drive the car all the way home.  Praise the Lord! 

We might wonder if one of those people were an angel, or even all of them.  But, ask yourself this.  Does it really matter if you were pulled out of the ditch by an angel, or by a human being who was quick to do God's will in the situation?

Scripture details increased angelic visits during periods in which God is doing something critical for His plan of salvation.  We see this around the birth of Christ, and then later around the death of Christ, even the beginning of the Church in this passage.  The situation is so critical that God gives heavenly assistance so that the moment is not lost.  Now, notice that this doesn't seem to be how God led Philip to Samaria.  So, why now?

There seems to be something about this man.  He was a critical man, at a critical juncture of God's plan of salvation, with a desire to know God.  He needed to hear the Gospel, and God could see that he would go back to Ethiopia never having heard the Gospel.  That is, unless God did something out of the ordinary.

Just know this.  God can lead us through supernatural methods, but we should not be stuck on only being led by angels.  God is a big God, and creative too.  It is up to Him how we are to be led, and we need to be aware of those ways.

Philip's instructions from the angel are to head down the road from Jerusalem to Gaza through the Judean wilderness, i.e., no one is out there.  There is no indication that Philip is told what will happen.  Of course, since it was an angel, he has a pretty good idea that it has something to do with spreading the Gospel.  Is he going to preach in Gaza?  What will he find?  He doesn't know.

God doesn't always give us all the instructions up front.  He is wanting to see if we will trust Him and step forward.  At the right time, He will give you the next instruction.  Just be faithful.  Thus, we are told that Philip "arose and went."

How important it is for us to be quick to obey when God leads us to do something.  Philip isn't asking why.  He simply gets up and goes.  Better to muse in your mind as you are obeying, then to sit at home wondering what could happen.

Yet, it doesn't have to be just about obedience.  There is a higher level to all that God gives us to do.  Anything that God asks us to do will be a chance to participate in something live changing.  If we really understood that, then we would jump at the chance to do anything for Him.  "Alright, I get to see God do something great!  Let's get started!"  More than that, we get to participate with Him by faith!

Remember that all responsibilities require doing duties, but when we understand the heart of God, we will jump with joy at doing what He wants done.  If God is in it, then we can have joy in it because He transforms lives!

If we look at the story from the Ethiopian's view point, then it is quite different.  God is leading him too, but it is unknowingly.  Of course, we could say that he is not a Christian yet.  True, but he is a believer in Yahweh, a convert to Judaism, a God-worshiper.  Just as God can put something on our heart by His Holy Spirit, or lead us by an angelic visitation, so God can lead us without us even knowing it.  Sometimes God just likes to surprise us with a divine appointment.

So, Philip is traveling along the road, sees the chariot, and the Spirit tells him to overtake the chariot.

The man in the chariot is a eunuch from Ethiopia.  He was a eunuch because that was common practice for palace slaves and palace servants in much of the world throughout history.  It may not seem to be important, but by the end of this sermon, you will see that it is very important that he is a eunuch.

He is also an "Ethiopian."  This term was created by the Greeks to refer to Africans who lived anywhere south of Egypt.  This is a very general term.  However, the reference to the Candace, Queen of Ethiopia, gives us a bead on exactly where he was from.  If you look at a map, you will see Egypt.  As you travel south you will run into the country called Sudan today.  Southeast of Sudan is the modern country of Ethiopia.  Candace is not the name of this Queen.  It was actually a term like "Pharaoh, or Caesar."  In Greek, it is phonetically Cahn-'dah-kay, or better, The Kandake.  These African Queens ruled in what we would call northern Sudan today.  In the Old Testament, this kingdom is always referred to as the kingdom of Cush.

The Kandake ruled in a co-regency with her son as king.  They both had their own armies, treasuries, and palaces.  However, they co-ruled over the Cushites.  In fact, the king's son would not be the next king.  The Kandake's eldest son was king, but the first son of her eldest daughter (who would take her place upon death) would be the next king.

How had this man heard about the God of Israel?  The capital of the Cushite kingdom was over 1,500 miles from Jerusalem.  Notice that he had gone to Jerusalem to worship.  Perhaps, he heard about Yahweh through a servant.  Regardless, he believed in the God of Israel, and went to worship.

The fact that The Kandake would let him travel that far, either means that she values him very highly, or that she is interested in this religion of his, or both.  God was leading this man, whether he knew it or not.

Whether you know it or not, God is leading you.  That doesn't mean that we never make mistakes.  In fact, we can be resisting God like Saul of Tarsus was doing.  God will always be faithful to lead us into opportunity for repentance.  This man had repented and believed, and so God put him on a path to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ!

A man is puzzled by the Scriptures (vs. 30-33)

As Philip approaches the chariot, he hears the man is reading the prophet Isaiah.  This scroll may be a gift to The Kandake, or it may have been purchased by him.  Philip asks him a clear question that is not insulting, but also opens the door for discussion.  "Do you understand what you are reading?" 

Let's not jump past this simple point.  God wants you to understand the Scriptures, and they have been written in such a way that they can be understood.  Of course, our spiritual state will make a big difference whether or not we can understand the Scriptures.  Only a person who approaches the Word with faith can begin to understand.  Yet, anyone who is really looking for Truth will find it in the Scriptures.

Yes, there are parts of the Scripture that are not as clear to us.  The Bible itself speaks of some parts being "milk" as opposed to other parts that are "meat."    The picture has to do with development.  A baby only digests milk at first.  However, as it grows on that milk, it will be able to digest more and more complex food.  If I read something today, and I don't know what it means, then I should just pray this simple prayer.  "Lord, I love you, and I want to know what this means.  Please help me to understand at the level that I can for now."  In fact, it doesn't matter if you have been a Christian for 70 years.  There is always stuff to learn about God's Word.  He is the God of the universe.  Anything that He has written is bound to keep us busy for a life time of understanding.  However, that is the beauty of God's Word.  You don't have to understand everything in order to understand the most important things.

Believers need to take the Word of God seriously.  He wants you to understand, and understanding will take devotion to reading, studying, and discussing the text with other believers.  We blow a lot of time with entertainments when we could be reading the words of the Creator of the universe!  Don't squander the wealth of Truth and knowledge that God makes available in order to go after the lusts of the flesh, and the pride of life.

Some may feel like studying the Bible is the pastor's job.  Don't rely upon another person for your understanding.  They won't be there on that day that you stand before God and give account.  He has written this Bible to you as much as to anyone else.  If you really love Jesus, then you will take His Words to you seriously.

The Ethiopian eunuch's response lets us know that he was having trouble understanding.  He needed a guide, a teacher.  Self-study is the bedrock of understanding the Bible.  However, on top of this, God provides guides or teachers.  This man was isolated.  How many years would it take for the Gospel to make it to Cush without some assistance from God?  God saw his desire to understand the Scriptures, and He sent him a good guide.

Of course, there are many "guides" in the world today who want to lead you astray.  They are false guides, even anti-guides, false teachers, and false apostles.  Jesus warned that Israel's leaders had become blind guides leading the people into a ditch.

So, how do I protect myself?  You protect yourself by being a person who is devoted to reading the Word, and praying to God for understanding.  You protect yourself by being a person who is committed to being led by the Holy spirit.  Such a person will always find that God provides exactly what they need.  Thus, the Bereans of Acts 17:11 searched the Scriptures daily to see if these things that Paul was preaching were really so.  Such a person will be very hard to deceive.

This brings us to the passage that the man was reading.  You may have recognized the verses.  They come from Isaiah 53.  This is the most important section of Isaiah, which reveals God's suffering servant who would save Israel, and the Gentiles, from their sins.  Of course, it is talking about the Messiah, Jesus.

During those days in Israel, it was acceptable to see this passage as talking about Messiah, but after the cross and Christians preaching Jesus, the rabbis began developing arguments against the passage speaking of Messiah.  Today, the typical rabbi will say that the passage speaks about Israel saving the world through her suffering.  However, this does not make good sense of the flow of God's arguments from Isaiah 40 to 53.

In fact, the argument is precisely that God made Israel to be a servant to the nations, but Israel had become a blind and deaf servant, i.e., useless.  God himself would rise up and bring forth His perfect servant who would not only save Israel, but also save the nations.  Isaiah 53 shows Jesus carrying the sin, and the curse of sin, of the nation of Israel and the Gentiles upon himself.  He would be punished in our place and provide forgiveness through his wisdom.

I don't think the Ethiopian eunuch was reading this by accident, and Philip is not there by accident either.  However, there is one more "accident," or should we say coincidence that we should give our attention.

No doubt, the eunuch not only knows that Isaiah 53 is talking about Jesus, and what Jesus did for him, for all of us, he will keep reading.  Guess what he will find only three chapters later in Isaiah 56:3-8?  Here is the text.  As you read it, you should weep for joy as that eunuch no doubt did when he read it.

3 Do not let the son of the foreigner Who has joined himself to the Lord Speak, saying, “The Lord has utterly separated me from His people”; Nor let the eunuch say, “Here I am, a dry tree.”

4 For thus says the Lord: “To the eunuchs who keep My Sabbaths, And choose what pleases Me, And hold fast My covenant,

5 Even to them I will give in My house And within My walls a place and a name Better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name That shall not be cut off.

 6 “Also the sons of the foreigner Who join themselves to the Lord, to serve Him, And to love the name of the Lord, to be His servants—Everyone who keeps from defiling the Sabbath, And holds fast My covenant—

7 Even them I will bring to My holy mountain, And make them joyful in My house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices Will be accepted on My altar; For My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations.”

8 The Lord God, who gathers the outcasts of Israel, says, “Yet I will gather to him Others besides those who are gathered to him.”

How must that have hit him.  The Lord is essentially telling this man through Isaiah (written 700 years before this), "Don't say that you are a dry tree!"  In the natural, he was a dry tree.  He was never going to have a family to pass on his love and knowledge.  Yet, he now had a treasure within him that was Jesus, the Lord of Life!

He would take this treasure of God's love through Jesus with him back to Cush as an ambassador of the Lord.  We don't know the rest of the story of this man.  How many people did he share the Gospel with throughout his life?  On the day that he would lay his head down in death, he was leaving behind a spiritual heritage that the God of Israel loves Cushites, and whosoever.  He died so that you can be forgiven and live with him eternally.  It didn't matter that he was a foreigner to Israel, or a "dry tree" in the natural.  He would pass on the faith to spiritual offspring by the power of Jesus. 

And, so will you, if you put your faith in Jesus. If you follow the world, you will be a dry tree.  I don't care how many kids you have.  But, in Christ, the Spirit of God will give you life, and that life will overflow you and impact others!

Ethiopian Eunuch audio