When we see Him, we can ask Him
Acts 8:14-25

Intro:
Good morning. I have an active imagination and as I study this frequently leads me down paths which take me to a topic for a lesson. If I step on any toes when I give a lesson please be assured that mine have been stepped on as well.
I’m going to break from talking about the churches in Revelation 2 for a bit and talk about something else.
But before we get into our text today let me share with you a story about a woman went to the police station with her next-door neighbor to report that her husband was missing. The police officer asked for a description. She said, "He's thirty-five years old, six foot
two, has dark eyes, dark wavy hair, an athletic build, weighs 140 pounds, is soft-spoken, and is good to the children." Her friend, the next-door neighbor protested, "Wait a minute! Your husband is five foot four, chubby, bald, has a big mouth, and is mean to your children." The wife replied, "Sure, but who wants him back?"

You see we all have our own ideas about people. The people we want to be around and even I fear about who should and who should not be accepted into God’s kingdom. This was true of the early Christians as well. We see in scripture that those who have been Jews had to learn to accept the Samaritans into God’s kingdom because God has no favorites amongst races.

I. In Acts 8:5 we see that Philip went preaching the good news about Jesus to the Samaritans. And in Samaria he was met by a magician named Simon who was a very popular figure among the high and the low in society. When Philip preached Jesus and His words were confirmed by the miracles he performed, many Samaritans including Simon were baptized into Christ for the forgiveness of their sins.
a. What Luke shares with us today is that not everyone comes to Christ for the right reasons. Acts 8:14-17- “ Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John: Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost: (For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.) Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost.”
i. It saddens us today when we hear about bad news within the Lord’s church. When we hear that this or that person has fallen away, or this church is forcing certain things upon its members. It saddens us because bad news seems to spread really quickly but when a church is doing something great for the Lord we hardly ever hear about it unless it’s been written about in some church magazine and even those are often full of the negative.
ii. When I stop to think about it this bad news compounds itself by being a discouragement to the faithful.
b. When the good news about what was happening in Samaria got to the ears of the apostles who were still in Jerusalem, Luke tells us they sent Peter and John to the city. What we see happening is the power of Jesus changing lives and people’s attitudes towards others. It wasn’t all that long ago when John and his brother, James, asked Jesus to destroy a Samarian city by the way.
i. Luke 9:51-56- “ And it came to pass, when the time was come that he should be received up, he steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem, And sent messengers before his face: and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him. And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem. And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.”
ii. Previously the Jewish John wanted to call down fire from heaven to destroy the Samaritan city that refused to receive Jesus. But now the new Christian John is praying for them according to Acts 8:15-.
iii. Not only did he pray for them but he and Peter laid their hands on them that they might receive the miraculous gift of the Holy Spirit. It is here that we discover the real reason why Simon wanted to become a Christian.
iv. Acts 8:18-25- “And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost. But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God. Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee. For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity. Then answered Simon, and said, Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me. And they, when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, returned to Jerusalem, and preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans.”
c. Now before we look at Simon’s sin let me point out a couple of important truths revealed here in this text. Clear evidence of a person receiving the miraculous gifts must have been present, because Simon was able to see this being accomplished through the laying on of the apostles' hands.
i. Remember that Philip was numbered among the seven in Acts 6:5-6, (appointed to care for the Grecian widows) and he was one of the men whom the apostle’s had laid their hands upon to bestow miraculous gifts of the Spirit.
ii. I’ve made this particular point before recently but it bears repeating. Ask this question, why didn’t Philip pass on the miraculous gifts to those who were baptized in Samaria?
iii. The answer is, he couldn’t because he did not have the ability to bestow miraculous gifts on anyone. That’s why Peter and John came to do it.
iv. It was only the apostles who had the ability to pass on these miraculous gifts. If you were around then and they bestowed these gifts upon you then you like Philip might perform miracles but you could not pass those abilities on to someone else.
v. I pray that some of our charismatic friends would try to understand these texts. When the apostles died, no one was left to pass on these miraculous gifts. When those who had these gifts bestowed upon them by the apostles died all miraculous gifts died with them.
vi. Just like Philip, those who had the gifts bestowed on them by the apostles could not pass these gifts on. Religious groups who teach that you’re not a Christian or you don’t posses God’s Spirit until you have a miraculous gift from God need to seriously rethink what they preaching. That kind of thinking has absolutely no Biblical support whatsoever.
d. Simon had believed and had been baptized, so there is no doubt he had been saved from his former sins. Jesus tells us in Mark 16:16- “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” Yet, and this is important, when Simon was confronted with a power potentially so useful for dominating the city in Samaria, he reverted to a materialistic approach… and tried to purchase the power from Peter and John.
e. Not all Christians received miraculous gifts and Simon is one of those people. Simon's attempt to purchase this power with money led Peter to tell Simon he and his money would perish together if his heart was not changed. He could have no part in matters eternal so long as his heart was not right with God. But that tells Simon he could repent.
f. Now that was not the case in Acts 5 which we just studied in class. Let me tell you another story… An elder was preaching to a large audience using as his text the story of Ananias and Sapphira, who lied to God and were struck dead. The old bishop roared: "God doesn't strike people dead for lying like he used to. If he did, where would I be?" This got a laugh from his audience, but then he retorted, "I tell you where I would be. I would be right here preaching to an empty house!"
II. Every single Christian is tempted in many different ways. Simon’s temptation to be even more popular was so great; he was even willing to pay. There nothing wrong with wanting to be great in God’s kingdom provided you’re willing to do it the right way.
a. In Matthew 20 when the mother of James and John asked Jesus to place her sons in positions of high authority, Jesus rebuked them and said in Matthew 20:25-28- "… Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great, exercise authority upon them… it shall not be so among you:… whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister; And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant: Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many."
b. We live in a society where everything is fast tracked. People will do anything to get up their professional ladder as fast as they can. You cannot fast track greatness in God’s kingdom. Jesus tells us Matthew 20, “Not so with you.”
c. You don’t become great in God’s kingdom by becoming a dictator, you became great by serving. When you serve and become a slave for Christ and your brothers and sisters in Christ first, then you become great. Christianity is not a popularity contest; Christianity is a group of slaves who are willing to serve from the bottom up.
i. The apostle Paul preaches what I’m talking about better than I do in Philippians 2:5-11- 5. “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
ii. You want to be great in His kingdom? Then do what Jesus did and start at the bottom and wash feet. In other words, don’t tell people what to do, show them. If you find yourself wanting to become great by any means other than serving, then do what Peter instructed Simon to do, pray that God would forgive you.
iii. Simon who became a Christian and was freed from sin yet the power of sin allowed his heart to be bound by sin once again. Simon acknowledged to the apostles that he had sin in his heart by asking the apostles to pray for him.
d. There are times when Christians need to practice what James tells us in James 5:16- “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
i. Now please don’t misunderstand me here, I’m not saying we all get together in nice little groups and start to confess all of our sins to each other. What I am saying is that if you have a sin that’s ruling your life and you’re struggling with it, and then talk to someone about it in confidence.
ii. When you talk to someone about it, you can pray together about it and then through the power of prayer, God will give you the strength to overcome that sin problem. The very fact that you took the time and courage to speak to someone about your struggle, says that you’re looking for help and you don’t want to struggle anymore.
III. Luke tells us after Simon’s request, that when Peter and John finished preaching the word of God in this town, they returned to Jerusalem, preaching in all the cities of Samaria along the way. It’s at this point that Luke tells Theophilus that Philip was directed by an angel of the Lord to go south to a place along the Jerusalem to Gaza desert road.
a. Let’s read about that in; Acts 8:26-35- “And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace [KAN duh see] queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.”
b. We might note that the Jews didn’t have copies of the Old Testament as readily available as we do today. There were scribes whose job it was to copy the Old Testament scriptures for Synagogues and for those who could afford to have one copied. The Ethiopian Eunuch certainly had an important job and was able to have such a copy.
i. In fact Luke tells us that he served under Candace [KAN duh see] the great Queen of the Ethiopians and his job was treasurer for her. The Eunuch was obviously a Jew or converted Jew because not only did he have a copy of Isaiah’s prophecy but he was on his way home after worship in Jerusalem.
ii. However he was struggling to understand what Isaiah meant when he wrote in Isaiah 53:7-8- paraphrased; “He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. By oppression and judgment, he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken”.
c. Philip ran alongside the chariot, and asked the Eunuch, "Do you understand what you are reading?" Unlike the Jews who were listening to Stephen’s sermon, the Eunuch had an open heart, and I know he had an open heart because of his response to Philip. He replies to Philip, "How can I, unless someone explains it to me?"
i. Folks an open heart is a searching heart and a searching heart is always going to strive to understand better. When Philip accepted his invitation to sit with him in the chariot, the Eunuch asked the most important question of all, "I ask you, of who does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?"
ii. When you study the Bible with people, you can get to a point where you can almost know who is going to grow in Christ quickly and who are going to grow slowly. I don’t mean that disrespectfully but I believe that all Christians will have questions which need to be answered.
iii. Some Christians have many questions that they want answered and I believe that those Christians are the ones who will grow quicker. Please don’t misunderstand me here, I’m not saying if you don’t ask questions, you’re not growing. What I’m saying is that some Christians have hearts which search more. That’s the kind of heart that the Eunuch has and so Philip did what every one of us should do when we begin a study with someone.
d. You begin from where they are in their understanding. If a non-Christian asks you a question about gambling, you don’t give them a lesson on marriage and divorce. If a non-Christian asks you a question about homosexuality, you don’t give them a lesson on church leadership.
i. No, you do what Philip did; you begin from where they are and then go on to tell them about the power of the gospel of Christ.
ii. Lets continue in; Acts 8:36-40- “36. And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing. But Philip was found at Azotus <ah-zo-tus>: and passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Caesarea.” <ces-a-re-a>
e. This is another good example of the gospel being preached but notice the text doesn’t say anything about Philip preaching baptism to the Eunuch. Common sense again tells us that when a person is preaching about Jesus they have to include baptism into that preaching.
i. And Philip must have preached baptism; or why would the Ethiopian ask Philip, "Look, here is water. What’s stopping me from being baptized?"
ii. Then in Acts 8:37 Philip replied, “If you believe with all your heart. The Eunuch answered, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”
f. Now I am fully aware that verse 37 is omitted from some translations because it is not found in the oldest and best documents and shows up first around the year 500. However, it is obvious from other scriptures that one desiring the Lord, to confess His Name before the Father, will confess Jesus before men.
i. Jesus says in; Matthew 10:32-33- “Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.”
ii. Then in; Romans 10:9-10- we read; “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
g. The Eunuch confessed Jesus as the Son of God in front of Philip and then ordered the chariot to stand still. It’s then that Luke tells us that both Philip and the Ethiopian went down into the water and Philip baptized him for the forgiveness of his sins. So the Eunuch became a Christian in the same way that all others became Christians in the first century church. Indeed in the same way that we all became Christians, by being baptized into Christ for the forgiveness of our sins.
h. The outcome of such obedience is always the same. Rejoicing in the Lord for what He has done for us. Immediately following their coming up out of the water, the Spirit caused Philip to be gone from the presence of the eunuch. On his journey back to Caesarea, Philip preached in the coastal cities like Azotus <ah-zo-tus> along the way.

Conclusion:
I would like us to use our imaginations for a moment. I understand that the Bible doesn’t tell us about what happened to the Eunuch when he got back home and I for one find that frustrating. I also understand the reason we are not told because it’s not that important for us to know. But wouldn’t you love to know the rest of that story? Perhaps I had too much Paul Harvey in my youth.

Let me tell you a quick story. I heard a story about this man who once stood before God in prayer, his heart breaking from the pain and injustice in the world. "Dear God," he cried out, "look at all the suffering, the anguish and distress in this world. Why don't you send help?" God responded, "I did send help. I sent you."

You see folks, the Eunuch went back to Ethiopia rejoicing as it says in verse 39. And it reminds me of how the Samaritan woman who Jesus spoke with at the well went back to the city rejoicing and told others the story of Jesus. I can imagine the Eunuch doing the same thing. I can imagine his friends and maybe even the queen asking, “Well how was your trip,” or “How was worship this time?”

I can imagine, though I don’t know, he just couldn’t contain his joy as he shared the whole story about trying to understand Isaiah’s words and Philip appearing. Maybe he shared with them that Isaiah was speaking about Jesus and then went on to tell them we need to be baptized into Christ to enter a relationship with him.

We don’t know what he did, we don’t know if he remained faithful all the days of his life. Maybe one day when we get to heaven and we see him, we can ask him what happened when he got home. Because I’m telling you folks, he will never forget that day, even in death.

When we see Jesus, we can ask Him all the questions we ever wanted answered. But for now, while we are still living on this earth, whenever we are feeling down, whenever we are feeling lost or feel that God isn’t there or doesn’t care anymore, we need to just remember the day we were born again, or remember when it finally dawned on us what Christ has done for us and continues to do for us.

When we honesty look back at all the ungodly sins we committed and know that God forgave us of all of them and continues to forgive us for every sin committed since. Then maybe then, our hearts can begin to rejoice in the Lord all over again.

Just like the Psalmist says in Psalm 13:5-6, “But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me”.

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We learn from the New Testament how to be saved. We need to hear the word; believe in Jesus; repent of our sins; we must confess our belief that Jesus is the Son of God; and be baptized for the remission of our sins… If we follow these steps, the Lord adds us to His church.
Perhaps you are in the assembly today and your need is to be buried with Christ in baptism. If you have never done these things, we urge you to do so today. If anyone has this need or desires the prayers of faithful Christians on their behalf, we encourage them to come forward while we stand and sing.