THE CENTRAL STORY OF ACTS
1. The central message of Acts may be summarized this way: God is at work in the person of Jesus Christ—and especially in his death, burial and resurrection—to bring the message of life and salvation to all mankind through the People of God, the Church.
THE STORY UP TO THIS POINT
2. We noted how the Church began in Jerusalem (Acts 2) just as it was supposed to do. Thousands turned their lives over to the living Lord (2:37-38,41) and the Church grew in Jerusalem and Judea. There was persecution, of course, and Satan tried to destroy the Church from within (Ananias & Saphira) but the disciples of Christ behaved honourably and the Church continued to grow. The death of Stephen and the persecution which flared up at that time sent believers out from Judea and they preached as they went. Philip went down to Samaria and there reaped a rich harvest for Christ (Acts 8). The apostles at Jerusalem sent Peter and John to check things out and they gave the work their approval. So did the Holy Spirit. The apostles preached in villages throughout Samaria as they made their way back to Jerusalem. Acts 1:8 was being fulfilled and enemies were being reconciled in and through Jesus to God and one another!
THE DIPLOMAT FROM ETHIOPIA
3. The story about this man's conversion to Christ is told in Acts 8:26-40. There are a number of things we learn about him from the text. He was a very important official (8:27). He was obviously an intelligent and very responsible person (8:27). He was a deeply religious man (8:27-28). He was a humble man (8:30-31). He was a man who was anxious to give his life to God (8:34-38). He became a thoroughly saved man (8:39). He was a eunuch (8:27,39).
4. Everything about this man was attractive! He was intelligent (or he wouldn't have held such a responsible position) but he was humble. (He wasn't offended by Philip's question and he wasn't too proud to ask his help.) He was deeply religious or he wouldn't have made the trip of more than 1,000 miles to Jerusalem to worship. (The biblical Ethiopia is modern Nubia.) But he wasn't satisfied with just any religious claims because (if he sailed down the Nile) there was plenty of religion sprawled out on the banks of the Nile. Tombs and temples, shrines and pyramids. Egypt had enough religion to choose from to satisfy most people. Not this man! He passed by it all, however ancient, however many people lived by it, however honoured it was by mighty kings. He went to where the Bible was taught and read. But not even Jerusalem satisfied his thirst for God because on his way home he is eagerly reading the Scriptures (8:28).
5. And he was a eunuch! Ancient nobility wanted trusted advisors around them but they didn't trust them with the women of the palace so they very often castrated them. There are many famous eunuchs in ancient history who made it to the top of the diplomatic ladder. But this man had been exploited—however well he had done since, he had been denied human rights! (Is this why he had a real interest in the "suffering servant" he was reading about in Isaiah 53?) The Jewish scriptures excluded a eunuch from the congregation of Israel (Deut 23:1) so there were obstacles to be overcome even in his desire to worship at Jerusalem. He overcame them!