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<v Speaker 1>We're going to pick up our series in the book of the Acts of the Apostles today.

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<v Speaker 1>Some time ago we left off right in the middle of Acts, chapter 8.

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<v Speaker 1>Now there's a sermon outline available if you'd like to have one.

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<v Speaker 1>The ushers would be happy to hand you one now if you'd just raise your hand.

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<v Speaker 1>And if you have a Bible, you may want to turn to Acts, chapter 8.

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<v Speaker 1>The book of Acts is very exciting.

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<v Speaker 1>There's so much here.

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<v Speaker 1>The book of Acts is really about the earliest Christianity and how it spread rapidly and powerfully, and the way it spread was through conversions to Christ.

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<v Speaker 1>People heard the gospel of Jesus, they believed it and were transformed, and the book of Acts gives us what I call several case studies of some of the people who were converted and how that happened.

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<v Speaker 1>That's what we'll be looking at throughout the rest of the book of Acts.

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<v Speaker 1>By definition, to be converted means to experience a radical change in your life.

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<v Speaker 1>You believed this, now you believe this.

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<v Speaker 1>You were this, now you're that.

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<v Speaker 1>You did this, but now you do that Change radically.

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<v Speaker 1>The case studies of conversions in the book of Acts that Ruth writes about tell us a lot about several things we need to be learning about the nature of witnessing to others, the nature of the gospel and the nature of Christianity itself.

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<v Speaker 1>That's what Luke unfolds for his friend Theophilus he's writing to.

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<v Speaker 1>How do you explain this movement?

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<v Speaker 1>How do you explain what's going on?

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<v Speaker 1>What does it mean to be a Christian?

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<v Speaker 1>How does someone become a Christian?

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<v Speaker 1>What does conversion look like?

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<v Speaker 1>What are the radical changes that happen in a person's life?

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<v Speaker 1>That's what he's unfolding in these stories that he selects to give us in this early part of Christianity.

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<v Speaker 1>So last time, in Acts, chapter 8, we began to follow the story of Philip, a disciple of Jesus, a believer, who fled to Samaria after the persecution started in Jerusalem.

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<v Speaker 1>And Philip went into the cities of Samaria and it says he proclaimed Jesus and preached the gospel.

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<v Speaker 1>He didn't know anybody, but he knew God had given him a passion, a heart to share about Jesus, what Jesus has done for him.

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<v Speaker 1>As a result of Philip's ministry, we read that many Samaritans believed in Jesus and were baptized.

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<v Speaker 1>And today we're going to continue to follow Philip's ministry as we pick up the story in Acts 8, verse 25.

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<v Speaker 1>So when they had solemnly testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they started back to Jerusalem and were preaching the gospel to many villages of the Samaritans.

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<v Speaker 1>But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip saying Get up, go south, opposite direction to the road that descends from Jerusalem to Gaza.

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<v Speaker 1>This is a desert road.

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<v Speaker 1>So he got up and went and there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure and he had come to Jerusalem to worship and he was returning and sitting in his chariot and was reading the prophet Isaiah.

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<v Speaker 1>Then the spirit said to Philip go up and join this chariot.

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<v Speaker 1>Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah, the prophet, and said do you understand what you're reading?

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<v Speaker 1>And he said well, how could I, unless someone guides me?

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<v Speaker 1>And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

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<v Speaker 1>Now the passage of scripture which he was reading was this from Isaiah 53.

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<v Speaker 1>He was led as a sheep to slaughter and as a lamb before its shearers is silenced.

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<v Speaker 1>So he does not open his mouth In humiliation.

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<v Speaker 1>His judgment was taken away.

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<v Speaker 1>Who will relate to his generation, for his life is removed from the earth?

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<v Speaker 1>The eunuch answered Philip and said Please tell me of whom does the prophet say this?

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<v Speaker 1>Of himself or someone else?

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<v Speaker 1>And then Philip opened his mouth and he began from this scripture.

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<v Speaker 1>He preached Jesus to him.

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<v Speaker 1>And as they went along the road they came to some water and the eunuch said hey, look water.

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<v Speaker 1>What prevents me from being baptized?

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<v Speaker 1>And Philip said if you believe with all your heart, you may.

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<v Speaker 1>And he answered and said I believe that Jesus is the son of God.

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<v Speaker 1>And he ordered the chariot to stop and they both went down into the water, philip as well as the eunuch, and he baptized him.

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<v Speaker 1>And when they came up out of the water, the spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away and the eunuch no longer saw him but went on his way rejoicing.

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<v Speaker 1>But Philip found himself in Azotus and he passed through, kept preaching the gospel to all the cities until he came to Caesarea.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, it's a pretty lengthy passage.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm going to look at it this week and next to probe some very important things about what we learn, about how people are converted to Christianity, to Christ.

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<v Speaker 1>Today we're going to see three subjects that are part of every single conversion to Christ God, the witness sharing and the person converted.

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<v Speaker 1>Three subjects all acting in conjunction to bring a person to faith in Jesus.

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<v Speaker 1>First, we're going to look at God's actions in this whole thing.

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<v Speaker 1>God is the one, if you listen, providentially working and leading the circumstances of life to bring people the good news of Jesus.

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<v Speaker 1>It's pretty clear that God was working behind the scenes to bring the good news of the gospel to the Ethiopian eunuch.

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<v Speaker 1>First, god leads Philip to change his plans.

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<v Speaker 1>He was on his way back to Jerusalem, meet with his friends, with other disciples, but, as I mentioned earlier, on Pentecost, when Philip experienced the filling of the Spirit, the Spirit gave Philip a joyful desire to tell people about Jesus, the change that had happened in his life and the unbelievable grace he had experienced in him, and so he did expect God to show him opportunity to share this news, this good news.

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<v Speaker 1>Philip doesn't know why at first God asked him to go south instead of north.

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<v Speaker 1>He just goes ahead and trusts Changed direction.

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<v Speaker 1>Well then the Holy Spirit told Philip to join the chariot up ahead.

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<v Speaker 1>That's it.

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<v Speaker 1>Just join the chariot.

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<v Speaker 1>Join the chariot, go sit next to this person.

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<v Speaker 1>That's it 's it spirit's leading.

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<v Speaker 1>Just go up to the chariot and listen.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, the Holy Spirit of God is the agent behind every single conversion.

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<v Speaker 1>In fact, as you see God working to bring the gospel to people in the book of Acts.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm amazed.

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<v Speaker 1>At times it's almost like God has to force the disciples to cross social and ethnic barriers that existed to bring the gospel to them.

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<v Speaker 1>That is the leading of the Holy Spirit.

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<v Speaker 1>He wants to break through people barriers, the culture set up to bring the good news of the gospel to people.

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<v Speaker 1>Now the Holy Spirit told Philip to run up to this chariot.

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<v Speaker 1>The Holy Spirit didn't tell him who was at this chariot.

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<v Speaker 1>Philip may not have been so ready to go up to that chariot if he'd have known who it was.

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<v Speaker 1>First, the man in the chariot was a foreigner which Jews had nothing to do with, a foreigner from Ethiopia, almost from the ends of the earth that day.

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<v Speaker 1>Second, the man in the chariot was a eunuch.

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<v Speaker 1>A eunuch was a male who had been castrated.

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<v Speaker 1>He was willingly castrated so he could have the honor of serving in the royal administration in Ethiopia next to the queen.

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<v Speaker 1>That sacrifice meant the royal household completely took care of him.

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<v Speaker 1>He had no needs.

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<v Speaker 1>He had the kingdom chariot to drive.

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<v Speaker 1>He had the kingdom platinum credit card he did.

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<v Speaker 1>He could buy anything he wanted.

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<v Speaker 1>He had the best medical insurance coverage available, no co-pays, no premiums.

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<v Speaker 1>He was completely taken care of for life.

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<v Speaker 1>So let me ask you what would you do to get a promotion with lifetime benefits?

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<v Speaker 1>That's what this guy did Willingly be castrated so he could be taken care of for life.

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<v Speaker 1>The spirit told Phil to run up to this chariot.

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<v Speaker 1>Why?

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<v Speaker 1>Because it was moving.

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<v Speaker 1>The spirit says do you see that sexually altered black African that normally you would have nothing to do with?

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<v Speaker 1>Run up and talk to him.

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<v Speaker 1>This account shows us, I think, very clearly.

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<v Speaker 1>The Holy Spirit will sometimes send us his witnesses to people who are very different from us.

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<v Speaker 1>We're going to cross some barriers, and I would just say, if there are people in your life right now that you disdain or despise, you are resisting the Holy Spirit of God, quenching the Spirit, because the Spirit, the agent of conversion, says Go, cross the barrier, speak the gospel that's what's happening here.

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<v Speaker 1>Get to know them.

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<v Speaker 1>Speak the gospel that's what's happening here.

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<v Speaker 1>Get to know them.

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<v Speaker 1>Have you ever had an impression that God was leading you to talk to somebody about Jesus?

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<v Speaker 1>Witness to somebody.

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<v Speaker 1>I have had many times where that's happened.

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<v Speaker 1>I think the first time it ever happened, though, was probably the one that will stay with me the longest.

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<v Speaker 1>Some of you have heard this story before, but I've got to tell it today because it's so appropriate.

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<v Speaker 1>I'd been a newborn Christian radically changed for about a year.

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<v Speaker 1>I was growing in my faith, witnessing to others on the Michigan State campus.

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<v Speaker 1>God had given me a real passion to share Christ with others.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, it just happened.

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<v Speaker 1>I couldn't believe what God had done in my life.

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<v Speaker 1>But in the spring I went to a Christian men's conference in Adrian, michigan, and the first night the speaker gave a very powerful presentation on the lordship of Jesus Christ, challenging us all to surrender our life completely to him, no matter what he would want.

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<v Speaker 1>And I was struck.

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<v Speaker 1>I don't know that I've ever really said to Jesus I've given you everything.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, after the session I asked a friend of mine who was with me if he'd like to go out for a walk afterwards and pray together about what we just heard, and he agreed.

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<v Speaker 1>We were several minutes into our walk in this neighborhood in Adrian Michigan praying when I sensed a very powerful desire to share Jesus with somebody.

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<v Speaker 1>It's 10 o'clock at night.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean it's dark.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm thinking, wow, okay.

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<v Speaker 1>So I stopped and I looked at my friend and I said I think the Lord wants us to share Christ with somebody and he looked at me incredulously and said who?

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<v Speaker 1>It's 10 pm and we had stopped right in front of this house and the lights were on and I said, well, how about?

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<v Speaker 1>Right there?

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<v Speaker 1>He said, okay, walk up to the door.

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<v Speaker 1>Guy came to the door and I said hey, we're just going around the neighborhood talking to people about Christ.

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<v Speaker 1>Do you have a few minutes?

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<v Speaker 1>He said just a minute, went back inside and he invited us then to come into their living room where 10 or 15 teenagers were seated, then to come into their living room where 10 or 15 teenagers were seated, and he pulled me aside and said this house was kind of a halfway house for troubled teens struggling.

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<v Speaker 1>So I walked in and sat down.

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<v Speaker 1>Nice circle.

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<v Speaker 1>The leader says these guys have something to share with you.

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<v Speaker 1>I'll finish my story in a minute.

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<v Speaker 1>Don't be afraid to be Jesus' witness.

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<v Speaker 1>Don't be ashamed of the gospel.

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<v Speaker 1>It's the power of God for salvation.

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<v Speaker 1>Not only was God leading Philip to the Ethiopian eunuch, it's also clear.

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<v Speaker 1>God has providentially been preparing the Ethiopian eunuch to hear the gospel.

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<v Speaker 1>The Ethiopian had just come from the worship festival in Jerusalem.

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<v Speaker 1>He was reading the Bible.

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<v Speaker 1>He was reading Isaiah 53.

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<v Speaker 1>Coincidence, wow, no, not a coincidence Preparation.

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<v Speaker 1>And when I was in Adrian, michigan, god was preparing those young people inside to hear the gospel that night and I started out sharing my testimony how God had changed my life, saving me from a life of drugs and alcohol and partying.

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<v Speaker 1>When Jesus came into me, radically changed me, and I shared the verse that God used to convert me, which you've heard many times.

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<v Speaker 1>This is the testimony that God gave us eternal life.

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<v Speaker 1>This life is in his Son.

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<v Speaker 1>He who has the Son has the life.

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<v Speaker 1>He who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.

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<v Speaker 1>He who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.

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<v Speaker 1>The leader caught my attention.

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<v Speaker 1>I said listen, guys, that was the verse that God used in my life.

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<v Speaker 1>But I wish you all had a Bible so we could look at some scripture and you could see for yourself what Jesus has done.

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<v Speaker 1>And the guy caught my attention and he said well, somebody just delivered a whole box of Bibles yesterday.

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<v Speaker 1>They're in the box right next to you.

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<v Speaker 1>And I'm going what?

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, I was awestruck and excited why God was preparing all of this.

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<v Speaker 1>So for the next two hours reading, talking about the Bible, I invited anyone who wanted to pray and call on Jesus to save them to do so, and several of them believed in Jesus, prayed and were converted.

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<v Speaker 1>This is the Bible I used, and I had them write their names and addresses in the back of my Bible so I could pray for them, remember them.

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<v Speaker 1>When we saw what God did, we were overwhelmed, literally overwhelmed with joy in the Lord.

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<v Speaker 1>We couldn't contain ourselves, we couldn't sleep, we couldn't do it, we just were marveling.

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<v Speaker 1>We thought we were in the book of Acts.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, that's where God wants us, in the book of Acts, because he's continuing the work of the gospel in marvelous ways, not coincidences, divinely orchestrated plans to bring people news of the gospel through people who know him and preparing their hearts to receive it.

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<v Speaker 1>God's Spirit is working in people all around us to prepare them to hear the good news of the gospel.

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<v Speaker 1>And that brings us to the second subject in every conversion the witness.

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<v Speaker 1>Praise God that Philip just looked at himself as a messenger, as a vehicle to share Christ, what Christ has done in his life with others.

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<v Speaker 1>As we follow Philip's witness, the first thing we see a witness does is speak.

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<v Speaker 1>Don't miss the first fundamental character of being a witness for Jesus, acts 8.35,.

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<v Speaker 1>He opened his mouth.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, that's the first step.

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<v Speaker 1>You get the courage to do that.

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<v Speaker 1>The rest is kind of easy somewhat.

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<v Speaker 1>Philip opened his mouth verse 30, and asked him a question Do you understand what you're reading?

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<v Speaker 1>It's a non-threatening question.

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<v Speaker 1>He didn't say you don't want to go to hell, do you?

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<v Speaker 1>No, he didn't say that.

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<v Speaker 1>He just said do you understand what you're reading?

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<v Speaker 1>One of the first people that shared the gospel with me before I came to Christ asked me that question you don't want to go to hell, do you?

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<v Speaker 1>Well, what?

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<v Speaker 1>How dare you say I'm going to hell?

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<v Speaker 1>Not a good way to reach people?

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<v Speaker 1>Asking people, non-threatening, simple questions can lead to other spiritual things.

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<v Speaker 1>What are you reading?

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<v Speaker 1>Do you belong to a church?

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<v Speaker 1>Have you ever read any of the Bible?

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<v Speaker 1>Do you believe in God?

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<v Speaker 1>What do you think of Jesus?

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, it's just open mouth, ask questions, that's it.

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<v Speaker 1>Last time, in the first part of Acts 8, we also learned a second thing from Philip about what being a witness is.

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<v Speaker 1>He didn't just witness in words, but in deeds.

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<v Speaker 1>He didn't just preach to them.

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<v Speaker 1>He gained a hearing by helping them in their needs.

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<v Speaker 1>And here we see Philip offered to help the Ethiopian eunuch understand the Bible as his private tutor.

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<v Speaker 1>It was a very unusual, unique situation for this Ethiopian eunuch in the royal household to invite Philip into his chariot.

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<v Speaker 1>He's giving him permission to talk to him.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, the third thing we need to know to be a witness of the gospel is we have to know the gospel.

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<v Speaker 1>We have to know it backwards and forwards in order to share it, which Philip does very well.

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<v Speaker 1>When Philip came to witness to the Samaritans, he went right to the point.

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<v Speaker 1>Acts 8.5 says he proclaimed Christ.

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<v Speaker 1>What does that mean?

00:20:50.289 --> 00:20:51.313
<v Speaker 1>He's the Messiah.

00:20:51.313 --> 00:20:58.189
<v Speaker 1>And when Philip was speaking to the Ethiopian eunuch, he went right to the main point Acts 8.35.

00:20:58.189 --> 00:21:00.387
<v Speaker 1>He preached Jesus to him.

00:21:00.387 --> 00:21:04.125
<v Speaker 1>Very simple.

00:21:04.125 --> 00:21:13.567
<v Speaker 1>The main point in witnessing is to help people find, lead them to faith in Jesus.

00:21:13.567 --> 00:21:14.410
<v Speaker 1>That's it.

00:21:14.410 --> 00:21:17.808
<v Speaker 1>He's the Christ, the Messiah.

00:21:17.808 --> 00:21:21.082
<v Speaker 1>He's the one promised in Scripture to be our Savior.

00:21:21.082 --> 00:21:25.432
<v Speaker 1>He is the one who died in our place as a sacrifice for our sins.

00:21:25.432 --> 00:21:33.344
<v Speaker 1>And that leads us to the third subject in every conversion the person who's converted the Ethiopian eunuch.

00:21:33.344 --> 00:21:41.309
<v Speaker 1>And from this Ethiopian eunuch we can kind of see the process of his conversion.

00:21:41.309 --> 00:21:46.440
<v Speaker 1>We learn some of the elements of conversion from this Ethiopian eunuch.

00:21:46.440 --> 00:21:54.384
<v Speaker 1>That usually is part of everyone's conversion in some way or another, and it begins with this.

00:21:54.384 --> 00:22:04.348
<v Speaker 1>The first element of conversion begins when a person recognizes that something is missing in their life.

00:22:04.348 --> 00:22:06.814
<v Speaker 1>There's a hole.

00:22:06.814 --> 00:22:12.451
<v Speaker 1>There's a hole in their soul they can't fill.

00:22:12.451 --> 00:22:15.182
<v Speaker 1>There are questions in their mind they don't have answers to.

00:22:15.182 --> 00:22:18.592
<v Speaker 1>There are longings in their heart that remain empty.

00:22:18.592 --> 00:22:21.345
<v Speaker 1>That's where it starts.

00:22:21.345 --> 00:22:27.852
<v Speaker 1>We know that the Ethiopian eunuch was not happy or fulfilled in his life.

00:22:27.852 --> 00:22:36.486
<v Speaker 1>He was rich beyond his wildest dreams, he had everything he could ever want taken care of for life, but he was not happy or fulfilled.

00:22:36.486 --> 00:22:39.271
<v Speaker 1>How can we say that?

00:22:39.271 --> 00:22:49.105
<v Speaker 1>Well, look at who he is and then look at where he is.

00:22:49.105 --> 00:22:50.431
<v Speaker 1>He is the chief financial officer in the nation of Ethiopia.

00:22:50.431 --> 00:22:51.275
<v Speaker 1>He's a man of great power and wealth.

00:22:51.275 --> 00:22:51.897
<v Speaker 1>He's very successful.

00:22:51.897 --> 00:23:01.694
<v Speaker 1>He's honored and respected in the royal court of Queen Candace and he paid the ultimate price to be there to get his wealth and success.

00:23:01.694 --> 00:23:10.386
<v Speaker 1>The Greek word actually for eunuch is the same Greek word for high court official In the Mediterranean world at the time.

00:23:10.386 --> 00:23:10.669
<v Speaker 1>Why?

00:23:10.669 --> 00:23:20.461
<v Speaker 1>Because if you were a commoner and you wanted to advance yourself and do good, trying to make it to the top of a royal court.

00:23:20.461 --> 00:23:28.883
<v Speaker 1>The male royals did not trust any commoner to work close quarters with a female royal unless they were castrated.

00:23:28.883 --> 00:23:30.127
<v Speaker 1>That was the cost.

00:23:30.127 --> 00:23:32.263
<v Speaker 1>You want to succeed?

00:23:32.263 --> 00:23:35.742
<v Speaker 1>Be rich, taken care of, just be castrated.

00:23:35.742 --> 00:23:36.200
<v Speaker 1>Be rich, taken care of, just be castrated.

00:23:36.200 --> 00:23:42.313
<v Speaker 1>He's not happy.

00:23:42.313 --> 00:23:44.646
<v Speaker 1>He'll never have children.

00:23:44.646 --> 00:23:57.678
<v Speaker 1>His life consists of counting money, got more and more of it to count, and we know.

00:23:57.678 --> 00:24:05.862
<v Speaker 1>See also, the Ethiopian eunuch is spiritually empty and is seeking answers from God.

00:24:05.862 --> 00:24:07.601
<v Speaker 1>Look at where he came from.

00:24:07.601 --> 00:24:10.921
<v Speaker 1>Where's my pointer?

00:24:10.921 --> 00:24:12.317
<v Speaker 1>Okay, see where the red is.

00:24:12.317 --> 00:24:23.220
<v Speaker 1>That's where Ethiopia is and Jerusalem's way up there above the Red Sea.

00:24:23.220 --> 00:24:23.759
<v Speaker 1>You can see it.

00:24:23.759 --> 00:24:29.125
<v Speaker 1>He has traveled a very, very long way.

00:24:29.125 --> 00:24:30.026
<v Speaker 1>Why?

00:24:30.026 --> 00:24:41.047
<v Speaker 1>Somehow he sees something in the Jews' religion that seemed to offer some meaning and some fulfillment.

00:24:41.047 --> 00:24:44.263
<v Speaker 1>So we'll talk about this again next time.

00:24:44.263 --> 00:24:57.703
<v Speaker 1>So he goes all the way to Jerusalem to worship at the festival, but he's not even allowed in the temple because he's a foreigner and he's a eunuch, and so he turns around and heads back.

00:24:57.703 --> 00:25:07.419
<v Speaker 1>What would you make of a man like that?

00:25:07.419 --> 00:25:13.910
<v Speaker 1>I'll tell you what he is in serious spiritual search mode.

00:25:13.910 --> 00:25:27.375
<v Speaker 1>Though he made it to the top, great sacrifice, he's still looking for something beyond money, power, position.

00:25:27.375 --> 00:25:28.641
<v Speaker 1>He's not happy.

00:25:28.641 --> 00:25:51.084
<v Speaker 1>Every person, honestly, every person that I have led to Christ I've looked back over, thought back over has been willing to listen to me, to listen to the gospel explained because deep down, they were having some sort of existential crisis.

00:25:51.084 --> 00:26:04.321
<v Speaker 1>Answers weren't coming, longings not fulfilled, questions, something I mean I could tell you story after story.

00:26:04.321 --> 00:26:12.701
<v Speaker 1>I had one person come in and I was like so what on earth is all this all about?

00:26:12.701 --> 00:26:17.407
<v Speaker 1>Why don't I feel fulfilled or happy?

00:26:17.407 --> 00:26:40.719
<v Speaker 1>I've I've heard this over and I think one of the reasons we don't have more people in serious spiritual search mode today is because many of them are still working to get to the top, thinking when I get there, then I'll have it, I'll get it.

00:26:40.719 --> 00:26:48.323
<v Speaker 1>Unfortunately, the illusion is almost always shattered for the few who make it to the top.

00:26:48.323 --> 00:27:00.208
<v Speaker 1>And the first element in conversion, when a person realizes they are missing something, they're not happy, they're empty, they don't know why.

00:27:00.208 --> 00:27:11.779
<v Speaker 1>The second element of conversion we see here is that the person must hear and understand the gospel, which begins with Jesus, who he is and what he did.

00:27:11.779 --> 00:27:15.503
<v Speaker 1>This is what we see in Acts 8, 32-35.

00:27:15.503 --> 00:27:16.385
<v Speaker 1>This is the passage.

00:27:16.385 --> 00:27:19.589
<v Speaker 1>He was like a sheep to the slaughter and his humiliation.

00:27:19.589 --> 00:27:20.651
<v Speaker 1>He was deprived of justice.

00:27:20.651 --> 00:27:24.760
<v Speaker 1>Who can speak of his sins?

00:27:24.760 --> 00:27:27.528
<v Speaker 1>He asked Philip who's the prophet talking about?

00:27:27.528 --> 00:27:32.080
<v Speaker 1>Philip opened his mouth, beginning here.

00:27:32.080 --> 00:27:34.084
<v Speaker 1>I don't think he stopped here.

00:27:34.084 --> 00:27:43.734
<v Speaker 1>We're in Isaiah 53, folks.

00:27:43.734 --> 00:27:44.317
<v Speaker 1>He preached Jesus to him.

00:27:44.317 --> 00:27:47.604
<v Speaker 1>Notice that when Philip opened his mouth, he preached Jesus, that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, who would save us from our sins.

00:27:47.604 --> 00:27:56.778
<v Speaker 1>Because he's in Isaiah 53, sins, because he's in Isaiah 53.

00:27:56.778 --> 00:27:57.380
<v Speaker 1>All you got to do is jump to.

00:27:57.380 --> 00:27:58.483
<v Speaker 1>But he was pierced through for our transgressions.

00:27:58.483 --> 00:27:59.288
<v Speaker 1>He was crushed for our iniquities.

00:27:59.288 --> 00:28:05.945
<v Speaker 1>The chastening for our well-being fell upon him and by his scourging we are healed and all of us, like sheep, have gone astray.

00:28:05.945 --> 00:28:13.405
<v Speaker 1>Each of us has turned to his own way, but the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on him his own way.

00:28:13.405 --> 00:28:15.575
<v Speaker 1>But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on him.

00:28:15.575 --> 00:28:26.228
<v Speaker 1>He preached the good news that Jesus came to be a sacrifice to take the divine penalty for our sins that we deserved when he died on the cross and rose from the dead.

00:28:26.228 --> 00:28:29.403
<v Speaker 1>So that brings us to the third element of conversion.

00:28:29.403 --> 00:28:33.583
<v Speaker 1>Something is usually missing in their life.

00:28:33.583 --> 00:28:41.394
<v Speaker 1>Secondly, they're told Jesus can bring abundant life to them through the message of the gospel.

00:28:41.394 --> 00:28:46.567
<v Speaker 1>And third, they must believe in Jesus, the Messiah, to be saved.

00:28:46.567 --> 00:28:49.478
<v Speaker 1>How do we know?

00:28:49.478 --> 00:28:51.846
<v Speaker 1>The Ethiopian eunuch believed in Jesus.

00:28:51.846 --> 00:28:53.864
<v Speaker 1>Well, he asked to be baptized.

00:28:53.864 --> 00:28:58.001
<v Speaker 1>He was all over it.

00:28:58.001 --> 00:28:59.579
<v Speaker 1>He said man, oh man.

00:28:59.579 --> 00:29:05.066
<v Speaker 1>Now some Greek manuscripts don't include verse 37 of Acts 8.

00:29:05.066 --> 00:29:08.242
<v Speaker 1>Honestly, I think I don't know.

00:29:08.242 --> 00:29:12.343
<v Speaker 1>It could go either way, but if it's included it makes perfect sense.

00:29:12.343 --> 00:29:16.826
<v Speaker 1>Philip says to him if you believe with all your heart, you may be baptized.

00:29:16.826 --> 00:29:22.220
<v Speaker 1>And he answered I believe Jesus is the Christ.

00:29:22.220 --> 00:29:29.284
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, it's the same thing Martha said to Jesus I believe you are the Christ, the Son of God.

00:29:29.284 --> 00:29:33.941
<v Speaker 1>That's what you have to believe.

00:29:33.941 --> 00:29:38.164
<v Speaker 1>And baptism, you see here is a sign of conversion.

00:29:38.164 --> 00:29:43.923
<v Speaker 1>Baptism always follows, conversion follows belief in Jesus.

00:29:43.923 --> 00:29:57.765
<v Speaker 1>It's a sign of your and my identification with Jesus Christ, meaning we're identifying ourselves with his death for our sins and identifying ourselves with his life that he's given us in the Holy Spirit.

00:29:57.765 --> 00:30:03.165
<v Speaker 1>It's our public testimony of our conversion to Christ.

00:30:03.165 --> 00:30:23.605
<v Speaker 1>You were just once a searching, unhappy Ethiopian eunuch, but when you believed in Jesus, you died with him, you were raised with him to new life in the Holy Spirit, and now you're born again as a child of God, a brother in Christ, you're a new creation.

00:30:23.605 --> 00:30:25.914
<v Speaker 1>All things have passed away, new things have come.

00:30:25.914 --> 00:30:28.618
<v Speaker 1>I imagine he couldn't wait to get back home.

00:30:28.618 --> 00:30:32.164
<v Speaker 1>Continue to spread that news.

00:30:32.164 --> 00:30:35.349
<v Speaker 1>You see, baptism doesn't make you a Christian.

00:30:35.349 --> 00:30:41.852
<v Speaker 1>Baptism is simply an outward sign that you've believed in Jesus and want to follow him.

00:30:41.852 --> 00:30:53.748
<v Speaker 1>Jesus told us really several times, especially in the Gospel of John, how the gospel works to bring us to faith in him, to bring the good news to a reality in our hearts and lives.

00:30:53.748 --> 00:30:58.747
<v Speaker 1>One place I really love is it's just so simple and direct.

00:30:58.747 --> 00:31:01.719
<v Speaker 1>We complicate the gospel.

00:31:01.719 --> 00:31:06.107
<v Speaker 1>Jesus never did Just come to me.

00:31:06.107 --> 00:31:08.979
<v Speaker 1>John 6, 40,.

00:31:08.979 --> 00:31:20.222
<v Speaker 1>Jesus said, for this is the will of my Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in him will have eternal life, and I myself will raise him up on the last day.

00:31:20.222 --> 00:31:25.141
<v Speaker 1>Notice two things Behold the Son and then believe in him.

00:31:25.141 --> 00:31:27.626
<v Speaker 1>Two things Do you see him?

00:31:27.626 --> 00:31:29.880
<v Speaker 1>Can you see him?

00:31:29.880 --> 00:31:40.096
<v Speaker 1>Behold means to see.

00:31:40.096 --> 00:31:41.259
<v Speaker 1>We must see him, jesus, as Messiah and Savior.

00:31:41.259 --> 00:31:43.064
<v Speaker 1>Only then will we believe in him and be saved.

00:31:43.064 --> 00:31:48.036
<v Speaker 1>Showing us Jesus, by the way, is a work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts.

00:31:48.036 --> 00:31:54.949
<v Speaker 1>It's the result of two things about Jesus that he's showing us First who he is.

00:31:54.949 --> 00:31:56.817
<v Speaker 1>Do you see him?

00:31:56.817 --> 00:32:10.479
<v Speaker 1>He's the Messiah promised to be our Savior, and it's also the Spirit's job to show us what he did for us, who he is, what he did, who he is, what he did.

00:32:10.479 --> 00:32:32.006
<v Speaker 1>He took our place, as Philip explained to the Ethiopian, to suffer and die the divine judgment for all our sins, and if we believe in him, he'll give us eternal life, because he's already done it all for us.

00:32:32.006 --> 00:32:34.902
<v Speaker 1>That's good news.

00:32:34.902 --> 00:32:40.680
<v Speaker 1>May the Holy Spirit open our eyes to see Jesus, even those of us who have.

00:32:40.680 --> 00:32:49.083
<v Speaker 1>We need to see him, because I think that's one thing that propelled Philip as a witness.

00:32:49.083 --> 00:32:53.142
<v Speaker 1>He never stopped seeing him, what he did, who he is.

00:32:53.142 --> 00:32:55.721
<v Speaker 1>He couldn't stop sharing about it.

00:32:55.721 --> 00:33:05.028
<v Speaker 1>May the Holy Spirit open our eyes to see Jesus, our Savior and Lord, in order to receive forgiveness of our sins and the gift of eternal life by his grace.

00:33:05.028 --> 00:33:08.984
<v Speaker 1>So let's pray today and then we'll continue next time.

00:33:08.984 --> 00:33:16.282
<v Speaker 1>Thank you, father, for Jesus, our sin bearer, who rescued us from the penalty of sin by taking the penalty on himself.

00:33:16.282 --> 00:33:29.784
<v Speaker 1>Would you help us to trust you, to lead us to people so we can be your witnesses, so we can magnify Jesus?

00:33:29.784 --> 00:33:37.260
<v Speaker 1>Talk about him, help us to live in joyful surrender to Jesus, walking in step with your Holy Spirit.

00:33:37.260 --> 00:33:39.907
<v Speaker 1>I pray in Jesus' name, amen.