Passages Devotional: Divine Appointments
“Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. ‘Do you understand what you are reading?’ Philip asked. ‘How can I,' he said, ‘unless someone explains it to me?’ So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him”Acts 8:30-31
There are people at the threshold of faith, ready to believe in Jesus if someone will simply explain how. Why do we fail to recognize this? It might be that we’ve gotten used to looking at people based on external appearances rather than internal realities. We think, “She looks like she has got life under control.” Or “I don’t think that person would want to talk about Jesus.” Yet, God may have prepared them to hear the good news about Jesus, the same good news Philip shared with this man.
Philip probed a bit, didn’t he? He asked a question to gauge what the man understood. His efforts were rewarded with genuine spiritual interest.
Thought
The desire to understand reveals spiritual openness.
Take a Step
What prevents you from initiating a spiritual conversation with someone you just met (a divine appointment)?
What does it look like for you to trust God is preparing people’s hearts to hear and understand the good news of the gospel?
Bonus
READ: Acts 8:26-40 >>
Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place. And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this:“Like a sheep he was led to the slaughterand like a lamb before its shearer is silent,so he opens not his mouth.In his humiliation justice was denied him.Who can describe his generation?For his life is taken away from the earth.”And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?” And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he preached the gospel to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.EXPLORE: EveryStudent.com >>
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