Philip’s Message “Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.” (Acts 8:35) Our verse reports an incident which took place between Jerusalem and Gaza. The location of Gaza is near the Mediterranean Sea and is known today as the Gaza strip. This location is often in the news today, but none of the events of today compare to the event which took place as recorded in our verse. For this event involved the conversion of a high government official from Ethiopia. Philip, the evangelist, had been ordered by God to go to this area. When he arrived, he spotted the government official and went to him and told him about Christ and won him to the Lord. We note four things about Philip’s message to the Ethiopian official. First, the fearlessness in the message. “Philip opened his mouth.” Philip was not afraid to speak out for Christ. While persecution was prominent at this time for those loyal to Christ, it did not stop Philip in speaking about Christ. Second, the foundation of the message. “Began at the same scripture.” Philip’s message was founded on the Scripture. If our messages are not founded on the Word of God, we have the wrong message. Preachers need to be more earnest in their study of the Scriptures so that their messages are more Scripturally-based. Too many messages are nothing but story telling or psychology. If the message is not founded on the Scriptures, it is not trustworthy. Third, the focus of the message. “Preached unto him Jesus.” Though Philip was speaking to a government official, he did not talk politics or political correctness. Rather, he preached Jesus. That is the right focus. The world needs Christ preached to it. We get a lot of things preached to us which will not do us much good. What will do the world more good than anything else is Jesus Christ. So preach Him! Fourth, the faithfulness of the message. Philip had been preaching Christ in Samaria to the common people. When he came to this high government official, he did not change his message. So many change their message when they get around people of influence and affluence; but not Philip. John G. Butler
Posted on: Sat, 15 Nov 2014 12:19:32 +0000
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