Right Place, Right Time, Right Word

May 14, 2006

Scripture: Acts 8:26-40

Background to the passage.

He wasn't an apostle- in fact he had been elected a 'steward,' a table waiter. There aren't many lines in the Book of Acts dedicated to his biography, but what a great man of God was this man Philip! In the first persecution that scattered the church in all directions from Jerusalem, except for the apostles who no doubt went underground (see Acts 8:2), Philip ended up in Samaria. He preached Christ to the Samaritans, and such a great many people responded that when the word got back to headquarters in Jerusalem the church leaders thought it best to send Peter and John to take charge. A lesser sort of man with an ego problem might have felt a twinge of possessiveness. In the middle of revival excitement God spoke to Philip. He had a place, a time, and a word in mind for this man of God.

The Right Place

8:26 "...the Lord spoke to Philip saying, Arise, and go ..."

It seems like half the stories in the Bible are about God getting people from one place to another. Sometimes He tells them where to go. Other times He says, "I'll show you in good time." There is absolutely nothing else in all the world as satisfying as being exactly where God wants you to be. Often it takes a deep breath and a lot of faith to simply step out and be obedient.

Where God was asking Philip to go would hardly seem the "right place" for ministry. It was desert. Philip was a powerful preacher. The 'Samaritan Pentecost' began under Philip's ministry, and right then Samaria was an exciting place to be. Many were coming to salvation. (see 8:10). But Peter and John had come to Samaria from Jerusalem to take the leadership there. Philip got the desert assignment. Philip arose and went south as he was told. There he met one man.

From the right place in witnessing to many, Philip was led to the right place to meet one hungry soul. As he approached Gaza he saw ahead of him an obviously important person in an impressive set of wheels. God said, "Catch up with that chariot!" So Philip ran and came alongside.

Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch had a quiet conversation. It was quite a contrast with the excitement of multitudes coming to hear the Gospel. But when that one man was saved, he became the first member of a flourishing church in Ethiopia.

The Right Time

The timing in this new assignment had to be exquisite. After days of foot travel, he met one specific chariot making its way along the road to Egypt and beyond. An hour later and he may have missed altogether. Sheer coincidence? Every seasoned Christian can recall those kinds of "coincidences"! God has ways of bringing His people into situations where they can represent Him if they will.

The "coincidence" of timing continued. The man in the chariot was reading as he rolled along. Evidently a devout Ethiopian Jew who had been to Jerusalem on holy pilgrimage, he was reading the scroll of the Prophet Isaiah. But not just any place in that magnificent book, for as Philip came near the chariot he recognized the 'Servant Song' of the familiar words of Isaiah 53. God had this meeting timed to the very minute!

"He was led as a lamb to the slaughter," the man in the chariot read aloud. Philip knew the words by heart. He had the audacity to engage a VIP in conversation: "Do you understand what you are reading?"

"Come up here and explain it to me," was the reply. Philip gladly obliged.

The Right Word

The "word" Philip used that day in the desert was the same "word" he used in the crowded streets of Samaria. He told the Ethiopian about Jesus. "Jesus" is the right word. "Jesus" is a living word, and it comes with saving power when it is spoken at the right time and in the right place by the right person.

What Philip did there in the desert to bring a hungry soul to faith is almost exactly the approach of the risen Jesus Himself! On the Road to Emmaus (see Luke 24:27) Jesus began with Moses and the prophets and showed two heartbroken disciples how He is the fulfillment of all the hope of the scriptures. And on the Gaza strip, when the eunuch asked whom Isaiah was describing, Philip was ready. He couldn't have asked for a better set-up. Philip told this important man about Jesus in words he could understand, backed up with the Scripture.

Faith was stirred in the heart of this devout seeker. "What is preventing me from being baptized?" he asked. They were passing an irrigation pool. Philip was encouraging: "If you believe with all your heart you are a candidate for baptism!"

The eunuch gave a clear and ringing confession of faith: "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God!"

He gave the command; the chariot stopped. The two men went into the water, and a new life in Christ began. The Ethiopian eunuch went on his way southward absolutely in transports of joy.

Philip apparently got a mysterious transport to Azotus. (See 8:39,40) He then made his way north, preaching in towns and hamlets, until he came to the magnificent marble Roman-built city of Caesarea on the shore of the Mediterranean. There Philip made his home and raised a fine family.

Echoes of John 15:8

Philip was tremendously fruitful in his life, in different kinds of situations; in large movements of the Spirit, in itinerant ministry, in one-on-one witness, as well as in his own family relationships. (See Postscript on Philip)

One of my life verses is John 15:8: " Herein is my Father glorified: that ye bear MUCH fruit" (KJV) As we abide in Christ, and his words abide in us, the promise is that we can bear MUCH fruit. Only God finally defines what "MUCH" may be in each of our lives. John 15:8 had not yet been written, but Philip was already proving it. Only God knew that day how Philip's faithfulness would play out in glorifying the Father. Only God finally defines "MUCH."

In Samaria Philip had been faithful, and many people sought the Lord. A town, a local region was blessed. In the desert Philip was faithful to one man. One man had been saved. No doubt Philip won many others to Christ during his lifetime. Although he was not an apostle, he was deserving of the title "evangelist." But however many Philip may have led to follow Jesus, he never had a better day than when he went to a desert place and met one man who was ripe for salvation. Through that one man a reigning queen, and an entire nation was touched with the Good News.

Postscript on Philip

A number of years after Philip witnessed to the Ethiopian, he hosted Paul the Apostle and Luke in his home. Luke wrote of coming with Paul to Caesarea on Paul's last journey back to Jerusalem. They stayed, Luke said, in the house of the evangelist Philip. Luke also mentioned that Philip had four grown daughters, and every one of his grown daughters was a preacher! MUCH fruit! Paul and Luke and their party so enjoyed Philip's hospitality in that beautiful seaside city that they stayed many days! (See Acts 21:8-10.) For them it was the right place, and the right time. That was nothing new for Philip! I'm sure he had the right words, too!