Acts 8:21-40  How Can I Understand Except Some Man Should Guide Me

[Study Aired February 19, 2023]

Act 8:21  Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.
Act 8:22  Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.
Act 8:23  For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.
Act 8:24  Then answered Simon, and said, Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me.
Act 8:25  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.
Act 8:26  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.
Act 8:27  And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship,
Act 8:28  Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet.
Act 8:29  Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot.
Act 8:30  And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest?
Act 8:31  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.
Act 8:32  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:
Act 8:33  In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.
Act 8:34  And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man?
Act 8:35  Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.
Act 8:36  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?
Act 8:37  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.
Act 8:38  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.
Act 8:39  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.
Act 8:40  But Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Caesarea.

We stopped our last study in the middle of Peter’s rebuke of Simon, the sorcerer of Samaria, for asking Peter and John to sell him the ability to give the holy spirit to those on whom he laid his hands:

Act 8:18  And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money,
Act 8:19  Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost.
Act 8:20  But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.

Like Peter we must never let money even appear to have anything to do with the giving of the word of God to others.

This study begins with Peter continuing his rebuke of Simon:

Act 8:21  Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.
Act 8:22  Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.
Act 8:23  For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.

The holy spirit in Peter discerned that Simon was “in the gall of bitterness”. He had been the man who was most admired and who had put himself forth as “some great one”, and the people had all said, “This man is the great power of God.”

Act 8:9  But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one:
Act 8:10  To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God.
Act 8:11  And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries.

Peter is speaking with the same authority the Lord used in dealing with false doctrines, hypocrisy, presumptuousness, greed or any other false and lying spirit. Look at the contrast between a person whose every word is backed up by scripture versus anyone who ‘gives out that [he] himself [is] some great one.

Mat 7:24  Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
Mat 7:25  And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
Mat 7:26  And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
Mat 7:27  And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
Mat 7:28  And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine:
Mat 7:29  For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

Peter perceived the bitterness in Simon, who had lost all the honor to which he was accustomed, and he is rebuking Simon “as one having authority” for thinking the gift of God could be purchased with money. This event is not recorded simply as history. It happened and is written for our admonition because “the pride of life” displayed by Simon the sorcerer is within the flesh of every man, and the fiery words of scripture are designed to rebuke and burn out that spirit in all of us:

2Ti 4:1  I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;
2Ti 4:2  Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; [meaning] reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.
2Ti 4:3  For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;
2Ti 4:4  And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

1Jn 2:16  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

Living by these words is not an easy thing to do. It requires constant diligence and vigilance. “Reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine” also means that we are to “bear with the weak” (Rom 15:1). At the same time we are to lead the weak while not permitting “doubtful disputations” being put forth by those who are “weak in the faith” and unable at first to eat “strong meat… eat all things [and] esteem  every day alike”:

Rom 14:1  Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful [G1261: ‘dialogismos’, discussing] disputations [G1253: ‘diakrisis’, judgments, discernments].
Rom 14:2  For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs.
Rom 14:3  Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him.
Rom 14:4  Who art thou [“him which eateth not… judging him that eateth”] that judgest another man’s servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he [that “believes that he may eat all things”] shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.
Rom 14:5  One man [“who is weak (and) eateth herbs] esteemeth one day above another [and fits right in with the whole world]: another [who is strong in the faith and eats all things] esteemeth every day alike [and is “hated of all men” for breaking the sabbath, and following Christ’s example of ignoring days, months, times and years]. Let every man [even the “weak in the faith”] be fully persuaded in his own mind.

Joh 5:18  Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.

Rom 14:6  He that regardeth the day [unlike Christ], regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day [as the Lord], to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks [“touch not, taste not, handle not” (Col 2:21)].
Rom 14:7  For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.
Rom 14:8  For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.
Rom 14:9  For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.
Rom 14:10  But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.

Peter did not ‘set [Simon] at nought’ but neither did he ‘accept him to doubtful disputations.’ Those who are strong in the faith have a very narrow path to follow.  Peter did as the scriptures require of those who are strong in the faith, and He rebuked him and told him that his heart was not right with God. Then Peter mercifully admonished Simon to repent and pray to the Lord for forgiveness.

Act 8:24  Then answered Simon, and said, Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me.
Act 8:25  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.

The apostles were still of the mind that they needed to remain in the physical city of Jerusalem. The Lord could have opened their eyes to see the immaturity of that mindset, that spirit, but He had decided that the attachment of His apostles to the physical things of this world and the attachment they had to being the physical descendants of Abraham and to the “carnal commandments” the Lord had given to Moses would serve to demonstrate the patience with which He deals with us as He slowly and patiently drags us out of Babylon the great, the “mother of harlots and abominations of the earth.”

Rev 17:1  And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
Rev 17:2  With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
Rev 17:3  So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
Rev 17:4  And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication:
Rev 17:5  And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
Rev 17:6  And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.
Rev 17:7  And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.

We are blessed beyond measure to be “carried away in the spirit” with John to see who this great harlot is. At this time in the reformation of Christ, the time encompassed in the book of Acts, the apostles had not yet been granted to see what we see, and they still thought of physical Israel as the Lord’s chosen nation through whom He would rule the nations of this world. They have been brought to accept that the holy spirit is working with Samaritans even after being told by the Lord:

Mat 10:5  These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not:
Mat 10:6  But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
Mat 10:7  And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Like most Christians, the apostles had not yet learned that what is true in one dispensation is sometimes not true in the next dispensation. The apostles knew the Lord had told them that he had many things to tell them which they could not yet bear:

Joh 16:12  I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.
Joh 16:13  Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.

At this juncture, the holy spirit is using the Samaritans as a steppingstone toward sending Peter to the house of the Gentile Roman Centurion which we will read about in chapter ten. For now, the apostles “when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, [to the Samaritans] returned to Jerusalem.”

Philip is now sent to minister to an Ethiopian eunuch whom the holy spirit has strategically placed in the service of “Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasures”:

Act 8:26  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.
Act 8:27  And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship,
Act 8:28  Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet.
Act 8:29  Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot.
Act 8:30  And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest?
Act 8:31  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.

This is the humble spirit of a little child to which the Lord referred when He told us:

Mat 18:1  At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?
Mat 18:2  And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them,
Mat 18:3  And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
Mat 18:4  Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

The child-like quality the Lord is extolling is humility. It is not the gullibility or the naivety of ‘this little child’. If we think, as so many do, that the holy spirit does not use men to teach us, then we will fail to learn as the Lord intends for us to learn “by [Greek: ‘dia’, through] the church” and through the teachers whom “God has set… in the church”:

1Co 12:27  Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular.
1Co 12:28  And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.

Eph 3:9  And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:
Eph 3:10  To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by [Greek: ‘dia’, through] the church the manifold wisdom of God,

Act 8:32  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:
Act 8:33  In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.
Act 8:34  And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man?
Act 8:35  Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.

This Eunuch is a literal type of a spiritual eunuch such as the Lord Himself and the apostle Paul, both of whom were not married and yet were anything but “a dry tree” spiritually.

Mat 19:11  But he said unto them, All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given.
Mat 19:12  For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother’s womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it.

Christ is not speaking of physical castration. He is referring to a very few who are granted, as He was, to live a Godly life without the benefit of physical marriage. Both Christ and Paul were given “a place and a name better than of sons and daughters.” Both have been “given everlasting names that shall not be cut off” as the Lord said through the prophet Isaiah.

Isa 56:1  Thus saith the LORD, Keep ye judgment, and do justice: for my salvation is near to come, and my righteousness to be revealed.
Isa 56:2  Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil.
Isa 56:3  Neither let the son of the stranger, that hath joined himself to the LORD, speak, saying, The LORD hath utterly separated me from his people: neither let the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree.
Isa 56:4  For thus saith the LORD unto the eunuchs that keep my sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant;
Isa 56:5  Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off.

If any of us place obedience to our Lord ahead of brothers, sisters, fathers and mothers, wives, and husbands, and before all men, then we are all “in a figure… eunuchs for the kingdom of heavens sake” and will “inherit all things”:

Rev 21:7  He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.

1Co 7:29  But this I say, brethren, the time is short: it remaineth, that both they that have wives be as though they had none;
1Co 7:30  And they that weep, as though they wept not; and they that rejoice, as though they rejoiced not; and they that buy, as though they possessed not;

Heb 11:17  By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son,
Heb 11:18  Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called:
Heb 11:19  Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure.

If in the spirit “they that have wives [can be] as though they had none” then “eunuchs for the kingdom” can also be like the barren wife who “has many more children than she that hath an husband.”

Gal 4:26  But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.
Gal 4:27  For it is written, Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not: for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband.

Act 8:36  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?
Act 8:37  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.
Act 8:38  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.

All this eunuch had to do to be baptized was to declare that he believed in his heart that Christ was the Messiah, the Son of God. There is no requirement for good works proven over many years to be initially baptized and received as a member of the body of Christ. Philip had also baptized Simon of Samaria to whom Peter said:

Act 8:21  Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.

Peter’s words in no way reflect badly on Philip having baptized Simon. Philip was doing what the apostle Paul was inspired to tell all of us to do:

Rom 14:1  Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations.

Rom 15:1  We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves.

Peter, Philip and Paul were obviously capable of discerning who is weak and who is strong. You cannot make statements like “Him that is weak… We… that are strong” if you do not see yourself as being strong in the faith. Being given strength of faith comes only through fiery trials and much tribulation:

Act 14:22  Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.

Jas 1:2  My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;
Jas 1:3  Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
Jas 1:4  But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. [“Strong in the faith”]

1Pe 4:12  Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:
1Pe 4:13  But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings [“Strong in the faith”]; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.

Having endured the fiery trials that come with obedience to the Lord, and then being “set… in the church” by God Himself as a teacher, does not mean such a person has “raised himself up above the congregation of the Lord”, as Korah fatally accused Moses:

Num 16:1  Now Korah, the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On, the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men:
Num 16:2  And they rose up before Moses, with certain of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of the assembly, famous in the congregation, men of renown:
Num 16:3  And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them: wherefore then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the LORD?

We all know what became of Korah and company as the rest of Numbers 16 reveals. The Lord caused the earth itself to open and swallow Korah and his associates as a warning to us against falsely accusing the Lord’s leaders of taking “too much upon you”.

We are told that Christ’s apostles baptized more disciples than John the Baptist:

Joh 4:1  When therefore the Lord knew how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John,
Joh 4:2  (Though Jesus himself baptized not, but his disciples,)

There can be no doubt the apostles baptized only those who professed their faith in Christ as the Son of God.

We are also told that many of those who believed on Christ wanted to kill Him:

Joh 8:30  As he spake these words, many believed on him.
Joh 8:31  Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
Joh 8:32  And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
Joh 8:33  They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?
Joh 8:34  Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.
Joh 8:35  And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.
Joh 8:36  If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
Joh 8:37  I know that ye are Abraham’s seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you.
Joh 8:38  I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and ye do that which ye have seen with your father.
Joh 8:39  They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham’s children, ye would do the works of Abraham.
Joh 8:40  But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham.

These “Jews that believed on [Christ]” wanted [Him dead], and there is no reason to doubt that Peter himself had probably baptized many of those who “want[ed] to kill [our Lord].”

Act 8:39  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.

They had no more than gotten out of the water before “the spirit of the Lord caught away Philip.” That was a very confirming sign of whom this Eunuch had been with. The Lord in doing this was sending the gospel into Ethiopia and was taking one more step toward opening the eyes of His apostles to the fact that physical attributes really are of no consequence when it comes to who is accepted of the Lord.

This is how the angel of the Lord had confirmed Himself to the parents of Samson:

Jdg 13:20  For it came to pass, when the flame went up toward heaven from off the altar, that the angel of the LORD ascended in the flame of the altar. And Manoah and his wife looked on it, and fell on their faces to the ground.
Jdg 13:21  But the angel of the LORD did no more appear to Manoah and to his wife. Then Manoah knew that he was an angel of the LORD.

Philip was “an angel of the Lord” to this Ethiopian eunuch.

This same experience happened to the apostles themselves when the Lord appeared to them by walking on the water in the midst “of a great wind that blew.”

Joh 6:16  And when even was now come, his disciples went down unto the sea,
Joh 6:17  And entered into a ship, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was now dark, and Jesus was not come to them.
Joh 6:18  And the sea arose by reason of a great wind that blew.
Joh 6:19  So when they had rowed about five and twenty or thirty furlongs, they see Jesus walking on the sea, and drawing nigh unto the ship: and they were afraid.
Joh 6:20  But he saith unto them, It is I; be not afraid.
Joh 6:21  Then they willingly received him into the ship: and immediately the ship was at the land whither they went.

Philip also had experienced being moved and found himself in Azotus where he preached the gospel from there to Caesarea:

Act 8:40  But Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Caesarea.

This Ethiopian eunuch was a proselyte to Judaism. In that sense, Philip was not yet sent to the Gentiles, and no doubt there was a synagogue in Azotus, which is just another name for the Philistine city of Ashdod, the city to which the ark had been taken when the Philistines took it from King Saul:

1Sa 5:1  And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Ebenezer unto Ashdod.
1Sa 5:2  When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon.
1Sa 5:3  And when they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of the LORD. And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again.
1Sa 5:4  And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands were cut off upon the threshold; only the stump of Dagon was left to him.
1Sa 5:5  Therefore neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon’s house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod unto this day.
1Sa 5:6  But the hand of the LORD was heavy upon them of Ashdod, and he destroyed them, and smote them with emerods [hemorrhoids], even Ashdod and the coasts thereof.
1Sa 5:7  And when the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said, The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us: for his hand is sore upon us, and upon Dagon our god.

The Lord has a thousand ways of getting our attention. He is very patient even in dealing with His enemies when He is in their midst. One might logically think that the Philistines would conclude that the God of Israel was more powerful than Dagon. However, these Philistines typify our rebellious old man, and as we resist His work in our lives, He increases the pressure. At first, He simply has Dagon bow down to Him. When we insist on worshiping the idols of our heart, He decapitates and cuts off the hands of our idols. When we continue to resist, we are physically afflicted to the point that we either convert or cast Him completely out of our lives as these Philistines did… “the ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us”.

Like the Jews who believed on Christ, and yet wanted to kill Him, these Philistines were not yet ready to have Christ abiding with them. It is all a revelation of our own rebellious flesh.

We are not told what city Philip is from as we are told with many in the New Testament. Christ was “of Nazareth”, Mary, Martha and Lazarus were “of Bethany”, Simon the sorcerer was “of Samaria”, and “Saul [was] of Tarsus”, but they were all ‘of Israel’, and Philip is also a Jew. We just are not told from which city. We are later told that this took place many years later:

Act 21:8  And the next day we that were of Paul’s company departed, and came unto Caesarea: and we entered into the house of Philip the evangelist, which was one of the seven; and abode with him.

Philip and Paul had a lot of Christ in common. Both were evangelists and both had been given to experience the miraculous power of the Lord and were faithful to His every word. If we also tremble at His Words we, too, can be “carried away in the spirit” and be brought to see both the fallen harlot wife of Christ, out of whom we all must first come, to then be “carried away in the spirit” again and come to be His true and faithful bride:

Rev 17:1  And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:
Rev 17:2  With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication.
Rev 17:3  So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.

Rev 21:9  And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife.
Rev 21:10  And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,

Both Paul and Christ tell us that if we are given to be overcomers in this present time, then we are this bride, the Lamb’s wife:

2Co 11:2  For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.

Rev 3:12  Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.

We live in perilous times. For the first time in my seventy-six years the threat of an imminent world war three is being discussed every day in the news, but every event that happens points to the truth of these words:

Heb 10:35  Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward.
Heb 10:36  For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.
Heb 10:37  For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry.
Heb 10:38  Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
Heb 10:39  But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

The body of Christ has nothing to fear because we know who is working all things after the counsel of His own will (Eph 1:11), and that He is working it all for our good (Rom 8:28).

Next week we will read about the conversion of the enemy of Christ, Saul of Tarsus, and we will see just how easy it is for the Lord to change the mind of “the chief of sinners”, the most stubborn among us, our own deceitful, stubborn, self-righteous old man, typified by Saul of Tarsus. We will also see that for the first time the Lord states expressly that He will send Saul of Tarsus to the Gentiles.