Angel Driven

Our story from Acts is one that most of us are familiar with. It is the story of the conversion of the Ethiopian eunuch by Phillip. It is a different example of conversion than we heard two Sundays ago. There Peter and John healed a lame man and then were able to preach about Jesus in whose name the man was healed, and 5,000 were converted. We note that they were still in Jerusalem, were going about their normal routine, and were the ones who took the initiative. In today’s story an angel of the Lord tells Phillip to get up and go. Phillip does without knowing why until the Spirit tells him to approach the Ethiopian who is reading the scriptures (the Old Testament – the New Testament has not yet been written) and asks if he understands what he is reading. This then becomes a teaching moment and after Phillip has expounded upon the text it is the Ethiopian who asks to be baptized. Only one is converted by Phillip not thousands. After the baptism of the Ethiopian Phillip is snatched up by the Spirit and finds himself in another place where he continues to proclaim the good news about Jesus. 

This is one of the major themes of Acts – the conversion of people to be followers of Jesus. That conversion is not of one type. Luke wants to emphasize this. The early apostles did not require everyone who wished to be baptized to follow the same path (no inquirer’s class, no specific number of times required to attend worship, no accepting of Jesus as their personal savior). There is even  confusion over the Holy Spirit. Some received the Spirit before baptism some after. How the conversion happened did not matter. What mattered to the apostles is that the people heard about Jesus and those who desired baptism were baptized. We also note here that Luke does organize the stories of the people who became Christian. He starts with Jews who were converted and expands the mission to others until all people are invited in. Although in chapter six Luke tells us of conflict between the Jews and the Greeks which seems to indicate that both Jews and non Jews were part of the church from the very beginning. 

Luke tells us these varied conversion stories to remind us that they still occur. Those who tell the story of Jesus are us. It does not matter where you find yourself or what you are doing you are called to name Jesus and tell the good news. That it was the early church did. That is what we do. In all walks of life at every opportunity we share the good news of Jesus with word and deed. If you think that you cannot proclaim the good news, look to those first Christians: uneducated men and women, who allowed the Spirit to lead them into new situations and opportunities and changed the lives of others.