Songs burst from his lips and tears of gladness ran freely down his face! His caravan, having obtained the supplies needed to begin the arduous 1,000 mile trip back to his native land, started out. As the Sun appeared to plunge face-first into the clear-blue water of the Mediterranean Sea, a light, much-welcomed breeze began to blow across his brow. It reminded him of the fresh wind that was blowing through his soul and made his smile brighten. His ivory-white teeth glistened in contrast to the rich darkness of his face.

He tightly clutched the scroll that was now more precious than ever before. He looked down with tenderness at its rolled form. Ever since converting to Judaism, he had loved the writings of Isaiah. At great difficulty and enormous expense he had obtained a personal copy of the prophet’s writings. Every chance he got, he poured over them and memorized passages that gave him hope and encouragement. Trips like this one were good for that. His Queen granted him leave 3 times a year so he could travel to Jerusalem to keep the obligatory feasts. Often he would recite the prophet’s words: "Let not the eunuch complain, I am only a dry tree. For this is what the LORD says: To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose what pleases me and hold fast to my covenant— to them I will give within my temple and its walls a memorial and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that will not be cut off" (Isaiah 56:3).

He had clung tenaciously to that promise. In younger years, his political career had been all that mattered. In those days it was easy to convince himself that castration was a small price to pay for his political ambitions. And, he had done well for himself; few of his contemporaries would ever know the prestige and wealth he had as the Queen’s treasurer.

When he first heard about the God of the Jews and of their history and faith he was curious. After intense study and introspection, he became convinced it was the true religion, and converted to Judaism. So strong were his convictions that its rigorous moral code and high financial requirements came easy to him. What didn’t come easy, though, was the Law’s prohibition against his participation in public worship. But Moses’ pronouncement was unequivocal: "He who is emasculated by crushing or mutilation shall not enter the assembly of the LORD" (Deuteronomy 23:1). Those words stung whenever he thought about them. But that’s what the Law said, so he accepted it.

He was grateful that at the Jerusalem Temple there was a court for Gentiles and for people like him. At least he could get close to the services, even if he couldn’t join in fully.

Every time he approached the opulent Temple with its golden accents He longed for the day when the words of the prophet that he loved so much would finally become reality.

But, an encounter he had had earlier that day changed everything! His heart was now so full of joy that his mind was split equally between thoughts of sharing the great news with others and thanking God out loud for his newfound faith. "Thank you, Father! Thank you so much!" He exclaimed, looking up into the darkening sky.

Up ‘til a few hours ago, it had been a typical trip for him. He traveled by chariot all the way from Ethiopia, South of Egypt. He had attended all the services he was allowed to attend and had taken care of his Queen’s business in Jerusalem. After that, he started for home.

Always, these trips provided a mixed bag of emotions for him. The discomforts of the long, dusty journey were balanced by the break from the pressures of his work back home. But, too, the excitement of seeing Jerusalem and its Temple was tarnished by the prejudiced treatment he received from the lighter-skinned natives of Palestine. The joy of being in the Temple was commingled with sorrow over being excluded from the full worship experience.

On the whole, though, the trips seemed worth the effort. He generally felt closer to God, and more convinced of the rightness of his faith as a result. But today, as his chariot made its familiar trek from Jerusalem through the deserted landscape that led to the supply city of Gaza, he had an encounter that changed his whole life!

He was riding along reading aloud from his Isaiah scroll when a man jogged up along side and asked a surprising question: "Do you understand what you are reading?" the stranger asked.

Startled briefly, he responded: "How can I unless someone explains it to me?" Not having had the benefit of growing up in a Jewish home, he was always a bit cautious of his own conclusions and eager to be taught by those who had studied more than he. So he invited the man, Philip was his name, to join him in the chariot.

The eunuch had been reading from the passage that said: "He was led like a sheep to the slaughter; And as a lamb before the 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." (Acts 8:32-33 cf. Isaiah 53:7-8)

Then the eunuch asked his new traveling companion: "Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?" He knew there was controversy about the application of those words. He had heard some people apply the passage to the Jewish nation because of all the suffering it had endured; others had argued that Isaiah was speaking from the depths of his own painful experiences of persecution. The eunuch didn’t know how to decide. So, he asked Philip, hoping he would have a plausible explanation.

With obvious excitement and enthusiasm, Philip began with that very Scripture and shared with the eunuch the good news about Jesus. The sacred historian, Luke, leaves it to our imagination to guess at the specifics of Philip’s impromptu sermon. Wouldn’t you love to know what Philip said?

Perhaps he explained that we have all sinned and because of our sins, there is a great divide between us and God. No matter what we might try, or come up with, we are totally incapable of crossing that gulf by our own power, wisdom, or goodness.

But thanks to God’s great love for us, His own Son Jesus Christ fulfilled the words of Isaiah’s prophecy by dying on a cross for the sins of the whole world. Now there’s a Cross to bridge the great divide.

While we don’t know the exact words, Luke leaves no doubt about the central theme and persuasive thrust of Philip’s message. It was all about Jesus’ finished work on the cross and the access to God that is available through that Cross! He preached the way of salvation made possible by Jesus.

Philip further explained how people who desire that salvation respond in belief and baptism. Again, we can’t help wondering what he said about baptism. Did he tie it with repentance for those seeking release from the guilt of sin, as Peter did in Acts 2:38? Did he portray it as an act of "calling on the name of the Lord" that promises washing from sins, as Annais did in Acts 22:16? Did he suggest that it is inextricably linked to the kind of belief that saves as Jesus did in Mark 16:16? Or, did he, as 1 Peter 3:21 does, suggests that baptism pictures a washing like Noah's flood? Did he tell the eunuch that baptism pictures a clothing of one's self with Christ as Paul says in Galatians 3:27? Or did he tell him that baptism portrays our death to the sinful nature and resurrection to a spirit-led life, as in Romans 6? Or did he, perhaps suggests, as in Colossians 2:11-12, that baptism is like circumcision, which is a sign of our covenantal relationship with God? He could have said any or all of these things.

But, whatever he said, we can be sure the eunuch hung on his every word. For suddenly, he interrupted Philip’s sermon. And in words that sound like a test, he asked: "Look, water! What prevents me from being baptized?" Maybe he was thinking, "O.K., this all sounds great, but surely there’s a catch. Surely, I’ll not measure up in some way. Maybe this preacher doesn’t realize I’m a eunuch; maybe his message has certain qualifications that exclude people like me."

We can relate, can't we? How does the saying go? "Whenever something sounds too good to be true—what?—it probably is!" right? Isn’t that the ways things usually go? You get a post card with a beautiful island pictured on the front and the back tells you you’ve won an all-expense-paid-trip to the Caribbean; all you have to do is call the 800 number to claim your prize. But, after having your ear bent for 15 minutes with a very confusing spiel, you instead find out your free trip will cost you $300 a year for the next three years. All you have to do is join some high-priced travel club. Am I right? Too good to be true? Of course it is! And that’s how God’s grace sounds. But it’s the only offer I know of that actually delivers what it promises!

The eunuch was used to being prevented from full participation, he knew what it was like to feel like a second-class citizen in his religious community. "Surely", he must have been thinking, "Surely there’s a catch here."

But to his complete delight, Philip indicated that nothing stood in his way. And with that, the eunuch ordered his chariot to stop; he and the preacher went down immediately into the water. Philip plunged the eunuch under, and pulled him up out of, the water. A smile broke out all over both of their faces!

As the eunuch thought back on that moment, now hours in the past, he felt an echo of those emotions sweep over him. He had never felt so clean, so alive, so accepted by God as he did on that occasion! He remembered, too, how that no sooner had they walked back onto dry land that Philip vanished! The eunuch looked around, but it was no use, the preacher was nowhere to be found. As he climbed back up into the chariot, he couldn’t help laughing to himself, "Isn’t that just like God?"

He thought again about his favorite verses and how that in Christ, the promises of the prophet were made a reality.

As the eunuch replayed the events of the day over and over through his mind, he wondered about Philip and about the other people to whom God was wanting to share the message of Christ. He thought, too, about how exciting it was going to be to get home and tell all his friends how that nothing, not one thing, stands in the way of their receiving salvation!

With night now fully blanketing the caravan, the eunuch drifted off to sleep, feeling the joy of salvation in every fiber of his being.

Have you experienced that joy of salvation? If you haven’t, if you’ve never become a Christian, I'm glad you’re reading this. Why not come to Jesus? If you believe the unbelievably Good News that Jesus died in your place so that you can live forever with God, then you need to know there’s nothing standing between you and salvation.

You can begin a new life as a Christian immediately. You can be baptized into Christ, just like the Ethiopian eunuch was. You can go on your way rejoicing, just as he did.

All things are ready. There’s nothing to stand in the way.

Want to know more? Drop me a note.