Helping People Come to Faith in Jesus: The Great Commission of Jesus, given to his disciples after Jesus rose from the dead, means that every Christian has a mission. To do what exactly? To help people come to faith and grow in their faith! The story of Philip and the Ethiopian official is a great case study for how to help people come to faith in Jesus. Recorded on Aug 31, 2025, on Acts 8:26-40 by Pastor David Parks.
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Helping People is a two-part mini-series focused on the Great Commission of Jesus Christ. The Great Commission includes both helping people come to faith in Jesus and grow in their faith in Jesus.
Sermon Transcript
For the next two weeks, we’ll be doing a little two-part mini-series called Helping People. And the point of this series is to remind ourselves of the basics of our mission as individual Christian people and together as a church: helping people come to faith in Jesus and grow in their faith in Jesus. This is why we started as a church, and this is what we’re all about to this day as a church. Our ministry year roughly follows the school year, so as we approach a new year, with a lot of new groups, teams, events, and ministry opportunities, it’s a great time to come back to the core of who we are and what we are called to do. And where do we see this in Scripture? The classic passage is found after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. For forty days, Jesus appeared to hundreds of eyewitnesses, proving he was alive and teaching about the kingdom of God. But before ascending back into heaven, Jesus commissioned his disciples, meaning he gave them a job to do. We see this in Matthew 28:18–20 (NIV), “18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” So Jesus sent his disciples out with his gospel message and a mission to make disciples of all nations. But if you notice, Jesus gives two different activities associated with making disciples: baptizing and teaching. Baptism represents when people come to faith in Jesus, while teaching (or really learning to obey) everything Jesus commanded represents the whole rest of the Christian life. A life of repentance, learning, and growth. This week, we’ll consider helping people come to faith in Jesus in the story of Philip and the Ethiopian. Next week, we’ll consider helping people grow in their faith in the very call of Jesus to follow him. So, if you have your Bible/app, please open it to Acts 8:26. We’ll read through this story and unpack it as we go.
Acts 8:26–31 (NIV), “26 Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” 27 So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake (which means “queen of the Ethiopians”). This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, 28 and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet. 29 The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.” 30 Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked. 31 “How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.” Ok, so first of all, what are we reading? The book of Acts was written by a man named Luke, who was a medical doctor who became a Christian through the ministry of the Apostle Paul. After becoming a Christian, Luke took it upon himself to investigate the person and work of Jesus, interviewing eyewitnesses who were still alive, and then wrote it all down in a two-part series, of which Acts is part two. But this story is from very early on in the life of the church. The gospel had barely left the city of Jerusalem when persecution started, and the believers were scattered. The bad news was that I’m sure this time was really difficult for the Christians in Jerusalem, having to run away from friends/family, jobs/homes. No one would’ve been happy about that. But the good news was that Luke says, “Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.” (Ac 8:4). As believers like Philip were scattered, they started accomplishing the Great Commission to make disciples of all nations. And Philip had had some success in sharing the gospel in a city in Samaria, the region next to Judah, when an angel of the Lord gave him a message. Incidentally, that’s what the word angel means: a messenger. But God told Philip to “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” Can you imagine if God gave you directions to follow like this? (“David, I want you to head south on Hwy 41 toward Oshkosh…”) But look at how Philip responded! v. 27, “So he started out…” meaning he listened and he obeyed God’s word. We should never fail to recognize this when we see it in the Bible. Even if it seems strange, even if no one else is doing it, always do what God tells you to do. And look what happened when Philip was obedient. He just so happened to meet an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury for the Queen of the Ethiopians. This would’ve been the African nation to the south of the Nile River that is also called Cush in the Bible. What would it have been like to come across this important foreign official? It was probably fairly intimidating! I’m sure this man had an entourage of diplomats, servants, probably security, and such. He was from a very different culture from Philip and probably spoke and dressed very differently. As far as we know, Philip was a pretty normal guy. He didn’t have an entourage. Philip didn’t have a chariot. I bet Philip couldn’t come up with 1,000 excuses why he could avoid interacting with this man. Until God spoke to him again. v. 29, The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.” Then Philip ran. Again, Philip obeyed the word of God, but I love that he ran to do it. He didn’t walk; when God told him to go, he ran. But when he got near enough to hear what was happening, he realized that this Ethiopian man was reading the Bible. Actually, he had a copy of the scroll of Isaiah, a very costly possession at the time, and was reading it. Luke tells us that he was coming from Jerusalem because he had come to worship with the Jewish people. It’s possible that he had been in Jerusalem for the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread, or possibly a different festival, but either way, and with him reading from Isaiah, it’s clear that this man is very interested in the God of the Hebrews, the Lord God Almighty. When Philip hears what the man was reading, he asks a great discipleship question: Do you understand what you are reading? Are you tracking with this or not? And the man invites Philip to help him understand. He doesn’t understand, but he wants to understand. That’s important. Let’s keep going.
Acts 8:32–35 (NIV), “32 This is the passage of Scripture the eunuch was reading: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth. 33 In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth.” 34 The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?” 35 Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.” I love this so much! What Philip does here is what I try to do here every week. He starts with a Biblical passage, in this case the famous Suffering Servant passage from Isaiah 53 (a passage we often read for Good Friday), he teaches the passage, and then shows how it points to Christ and the gospel. And Isaiah 53 is an especially easy passage to connect to Christ. In it, the prophet says that at some future time, there would be a righteous man who would be pierced for our transgressions, that he would give his life, die, and be buried, but after he has suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied, having saved many sinners. Let’s see, can anyone think of who Isaiah might be describing here? Even if you never preach a sermon in your life, I would hope everyone here (including you kids!) could make the connection from Isaiah 53 to Christ if you ever happen upon an Ethiopian official by the side of the road. Who is the man who died and rose from the dead to save people from sin and death? Well, that’s Jesus! But in case you think that Philip didn’t do justice to his explanation of Isa 53, perhaps by forcing a gospel connection, this is exactly how Jesus taught his disciples to interpret OT Scripture. Jesus said, “Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.” (Lk 24:44). Then Jesus “opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.” (Lk 24:45). The Scriptures in that day are what we call the OT in our Bibles. And what this means is that the whole Bible, from start to finish, is about Jesus. In a sermon called, The Soul Winner, Charles Spurgeon said, “…do you not know that from every little town and village and tiny hamlet in England there is a road leading to London? Whenever I get hold of a text, I say to myself, ‘There is a road from here to Jesus Christ, and I mean to keep on His track till I get to Him.’” This is exactly right. We cannot rush too quickly to Christ, of course, and miss the original point of a text. But we best not spend so much time on what some particular text is teaching that we miss Christ! But Philip knew that, though he was probably about as different from Philip as you could be, this man needed to hear the gospel as much as anyone. So he took this Spirit-led opportunity and told the man about Jesus. How would he respond? Have you ever put yourself out there like this before? Maybe with someone you didn’t know very well, and the seconds feel like lifetimes while you wait to see how they respond? Would he believe it? Would he reject it? Would he laugh in his face? Let’s find out.
Acts 8:36-40 (NIV), “36 As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptized?” 37 38 And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him. 39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. 40 Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.” This is God’s word. How cool is that?!? I really want to have this happen to me at some point. Like some random guy asks me to help them understand a passage in Isaiah and I’m able to share the gospel with them and they believe and get baptized and then God Holy-Spirits me on down the road. Wouldn’t that be amazing? Well, you might’ve noticed that v 37 is missing from this passage. The NIV says in a footnote that some manuscripts include here Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” The eunuch answered, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” Now, that isn’t wrong. If you believe that Jesus is the Christ and the Son of God, then you should get baptized. The only problem is that the earliest manuscripts do not have this verse. It was probably added later as something of a baptismal profession of faith. This would be similar to how we ask four questions of every baptismal candidate today. Nevertheless, it probably shouldn’t be included as original. Well, so there was an Ethiopian official who needed some help understanding the Bible, so God brought Philip, who could not only explain Isaiah, but could point him to Christ. So this African man went home rejoicing, having met Jesus and become a Christian. What do you think happened to that man after this encounter? Do you think he told anyone else about Jesus? I’m sure he did. From history, we know that from the very early days of Christianity on, there were many African Christians in different countries and communities. Probably some of whom can trace their spiritual lineage to this influential man. Now, some people have the false idea that Christianity is the product of Western culture. Christianity certainly shaped Western culture, but it is far bigger than Western culture. Jesus isn’t the Lord of the West; he is the Lord of heaven and earth. And Jesus said he wanted disciples of all nations — including Jews and Gentiles. From the beginning, God said that all nations would be blessed through the Jewish people. In the end, there will be an assembly of the saints who will be from every nation, tribe, people, and language. God has a truly global vision for his people, for his family. The story of Philip and the Ethiopian would be repeated again and again down through the generations as the gospel would continue to radiate out from Jerusalem in Judah to Samaria, and even to the ends of the earth. It wasn’t long before there were Christians in India and China, as well as throughout Europe and Africa. Today, there are more Christians in the global south (Africa and South America) than in the north. Within a generation or two, there will be more Christians in China than there are people in the US. The cross and the empty tomb marked a new age in salvation history. The battles are still being fought, but the war is won. Christ has won the ultimate victory over Satan, sin, death, and hell, and the news/announcement of this victory is what the gospel or good news of Jesus is. But this means that, like Philip, every Christian today has a job to do. Every Christian has a mission. And this is something that is true whether you’re young or old, rich or poor, whether you’re here in Appleton or somewhere else in the world. Every Christian has a mission. Every Christian must be led by the Spirit of God to the people that God places in our path who need help. Help with what? Food? Clothes? Helping finding a job or a place to live? Certainly! But ultimately, helping people come to faith in Jesus and grow in their faith in Jesus. And these people might be in your home. Kids need the ministry of the gospel. They might be at your workplace or school. They might be someone you haven’t even met yet — they’re going to be in your path! But from this story, we learn several principles about this. First, we must remember that the work of the gospel didn’t start when Philip arrived. God was at work in this Ethiopian man’s life already. So when we join God in this work, we are joining him in the work he is already doing, and has been doing, but he wants us to do this with him. Could God have revealed himself to that Ethiopian man like the Apostle Paul experienced on the road? Sure! Of course, he could have. But God wanted Philip involved, so he sent Philip. Why? That’s not up to us. But according to the Lord’s wisdom, he uses his people. So, when God calls you (not if, but when), he will be sending you to people he’s already been working among. Secondly, Philip obeyed! When God sent him, he ran to do it. That is exactly the right attitude for the mission of God. A mission that is appealing to people who are lost without Christ to have life and to be reconciled to God and to have the joy and the love and the peace of God for the rest of their lives eternally! What a message! There’s no greater message here than the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Friends, this is why our mission as a church is “sharing good news.” And this is what we will be about if God so allows for the rest of our days. Every group in this church needs to be about helping people come to faith in Jesus. Every class needs to be about helping people grow in their faith in Jesus. Every opportunity to gather together for worship needs to be about making disciples. Every single program that we do, in every setting, needs to be about this. Because this is what God is doing until Jesus returns, so we need to be about this as well. Let us pray.
