Read
Acts 8:26-40
Consider
Think back through the different testimonies you have heard in your life. There is always an interplay between God working through his people and also preparing the hearts of the people who do not yet know Him. In this week’s text, we see how God’s Spirit worked through Philip and also prepared the heart of the Ethiopian Eunuch so that He would respond to the Good News.
Our hope on Sunday is that we will see God’s grand plan for humanity, while grasping how He can use us to draw others to Himself. We also hope to share the vision for where God is calling us as an English ministry and how we all can play a part in what He is already doing.
Pastor Tim Sreedharan
Pray
Father, we praise you for sending your Son & for what was accomplished on the cross. We echo the words of Isaiah 53:4-6 in celebration of your Son’s coming to earth and our salvation.
4 Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
Diving Deeper
Download the complete Acts sermon series Fall study guide HERE.
Reread Acts 1:8 (the purpose of the book) and see how it connects with Acts 8 (v.1, 4-5) as we see the gospel moving out into Samaria. There is an interplay between God preparing people (the Eunuch reading Isaiah) and human responsibility in sharing (Philip explaining the text).
Why are both important in sharing Jesus with our friends, neighbors, co-workers and family? How have you seen that play out in your life?
Read the text the Eunuch was reading (all of Isaiah 53, specifically v7-8). How does this prophecy written hundreds of years before (referred to as the Suffering Servant) connect with the Gospel?
Throughout Acts, we see baptism right after conversion. Do you think we should baptize people immediately after they confess Jesus?
Read a short summary HERE if you want to discuss this topic.
How well would you be able to share the Good News with someone if they approached you? Spend time sharing and praying for those close to you whom you desire to know Christ.