Blessing from Obedience
A test of your hearing:
Raise your hand if you hear this
Raise your hand if you hear this
Raise your hand if you hear this
Blessing from Obedience
As our physical hearing can dull
over time so also our spiritual
hearing can also grow dull.
We need listen attentively to the
guidance of the Spirit because God
uses obedient people as a channel
for His blessings.
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Location
A desert place
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
Ethiopian Eunuch
Race
Status
Faith
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
Why this person?
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
Beginning of going “to
the ends of the earth” but
is still broadly part of
Israel – a God Fearer
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
Luke’s Geographical
Horizon - James Scott
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
To understand the Jewish world we
must turn to the table of nations in
Genesis 10 the fundamental passage
which supplies basis for world
geography and ethnography both in the
Old Testament and later Jewish writings
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
These are the generations of the
sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and
Japheth. Sons were born to them
after the flood. Genesis 10:1
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
Japheth – North and
West including Europe
and Asia Minor
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
Ham – South to Egypt
and Africa
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
Shem – in Mesopotamia
and Arabia
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
Jews come from Shem’s
line
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
Acts 1-8:25 is the
mission to Shem
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
Cush is Ham’s First Son
Cush is referred to in
Greek as Ethiopia
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
Acts 8:26-39 is the
mission to Ham
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
The balance of the Greek
world would be traced
Japheth
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
Acts 9:1 – 28:31 is the
mission to Japheth
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Spirit of God Directs
Direction to a Person
Underscores that the
Gospel is for all the
nations
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Servant of God Obeys
Leaves a prosperous
ministry for a “desert place”
and a single individual
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Servant of God Obeys
Was willing cross multiple
boundaries to share the
gospel
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Word of God is Proclaimed
Message was grounded in
scripture
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Word of God is Proclaimed
An effective presentation of the gospel must be
based solidly on Scripture. The use of personal
testimony, stories, tracts, and other tools is no
substitute. For Scripture alone is “the power of God
for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew
first and also to the Greek” (Rom. 1:16). The power
is in the Word. – John MacArthur
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Gift of God is Received
Upon hearing the gospel
from Philip the eunuch
believes and is baptized
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Gift of God is Received
Is something missing here?
Many translations do not
include verse 37
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Gift of God is Received
This is not “proof” of the
Bible’s inaccuracy
Inerrancy and infallibility
extend only to the originals
not the copies
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Gift of God is Received
All we have are copies
The oldest copies disagree
about the inclusion of this
verse
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
This verse is not found in ancient NT
manuscripts before the 500s AD. However, the
tradition of the eunuch’s confession is as old
as Irenaeus’ writings from the second century.
The common assumption is Philip and the
eunuch’s extra conversation here, an
apparent question and confession rite
common very early in Christian baptism,
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
was added to an ancient manuscript’s margin
as commentary or a notation, and a
subsequent scribe, knowing the tradition and
the rite, added the marginal notation into the
main text of his manuscript, assuming it was
a correction. From there the addition got
repeated into the repeatedly copied
manuscript family behind the KJV. F.F Bruce
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Gift of God is Received
Excluding it does eliminate
any teaching that is not
clearly defined elsewhere in
the New Testament
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Gift of God is Received
Including does not contradict
any other teaching of
scripture
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Gift of God is Received
Baptism is the testimony of
the gift that was received
Blessing from Obedience
God uses obedient people as a
channel for His blessings.
The Gift of God is Received
Baptism is the public confession of
faith expected of all believers. The
eunuch not only confessed his faith
personally to Philip but openly in front of
his entire entourage - MacArthur
Blessing from Obedience
Principles for Sharing Christ
1. Witness is about obedience
not boldness
2. God prepares hearts for our
witness
3. Witness must be based upon
scripture
Blessing from Obedience
Principles for Sharing Christ
4. Witness does more than
answer questions to calls for a
response
5. Witness crosses cultural
boundaries