Pastor Mac v.5 :"this Word is for Me!: Acts 8:29-35

words of encouragement and inspiration

"A Few Minutes with Pastor Mac"
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Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:12

Whatever you need. Whatever you need. Whatever is broke.

SPEAKER_01 0:34

Hello and good morning. Thank you for tuning in to another podcast of a few minutes with Pastor Matt. We hope God is blessing you thus well on this Sunday morning. And we hope God's power favors be upon you for this new week. That is upon us. If you can't make service, don't forget it. We have to give the five app that you can give your donations and fresh fruits and praise giving the right app. And um, if you can't make it to service, so don't forget about that. We always want to make sure we give opportunity to uh so season to God's ministry. And if you can't make it again, our website as well, uh Give the website and on our app, uh Gibbilify.

SPEAKER_00 1:18

We thank you again for having taken the time for a few minutes to pass the Mac Podcast. We thank God for coming on this second full week of June time so as halfway point of the year. Among us we thank the Lord, bless his name for all he's done and what he's doing. We're hoping he's keeping you and providing for you as he always does as his residence. Thank God for another day. Let's pray. Oh God, we thank you for another chance, another broadcast, podcast, or hope something is said to be a blessing to someone under the sound of my voice.

SPEAKER_01 1:59

But we thank you for what you've done, what you're going to do. We don't want the enemy to sell our enemy to steal our joy, our praise, our choke, our worship, Lord. We want to give you the adoration you deserve and everything that's come to you.

SPEAKER_00 2:12

We bless your name, Lord, your character, Lord is God, and we don't thank you just for what you do, but who you are and how you do what you do.

SPEAKER_01 2:21

Only our God to do what you do, Lord. You helped us to wake up this morning, bless us with a new day. We'll thank you for that, oh God. Thank you for the things you do. But if you don't do anything, you've already died.

SPEAKER_00 2:34

You know, we love you, we thank you, thank you for your protection and provision. God bless us before you will serve that I am, Lord. Amen. Let something be said to be a blessing to someone under the side under my voice. Not as words, let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be accepted in that sight, oh my Savior, my righteousness. In Jesus the Christ's name, we pray at all. Amen. Amen. Last week I gave you the text of Acts eight through twenty-nine through thirty-five. Uh as my grandmother was saying to cheering. Next week, Lord says the same Acts nine, one through six. Talking about Saul before he became Paul, as he became Paul on the road to the last. So next week, Acts nine, one through six. Today, eight twenty-nine through thirty-five as we continue the series, and the church went out for the year, the first time of uh year or six keep on pressing on toward the end of this finished line of acts. 29, I'm reading the Ample Translation.

SPEAKER_01 3:51

We ask you to follow along with advice as well. Then the Holy Spirit said to Philip, Go up and join this chariot. And Philip ran up and heard the man reading the prophet Isaiah and asked, Do you understand what you are reading? And he said, Well, how could I understand unless someone guides me correctly? And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. Now, this was the passage of scripture which he was reading. Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter, and as a lamb before his shear is silent, so he does not open his mouth. In humiliation, his judgment was taken away. Justice was denied him. Who would describe his generation? For his life was taken from the earth. The eunuch replied to Philip, Please tell me, about whom does the prophet say this? About himself or about someone else? Then Philip spoke and beginning with this scripture, he preached Jesus to him, explaining that he is the promised Messiah and the source of salvation.

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The word of God for the people of God, for the edified of God. I just want to tag this human Pastor Mac this morning when it's Sunday morning. This word was for me. This word was for me.

SPEAKER_01 5:06

Some words pass over you, some words speak around. But every now and then God sends a word that finds you. Every now, and then God will let you hear a word that feels like it was your name, has your name written all over you. You were not the only one present. You were not the only one listening. You were not the only one sitting under the sound of the word. But somehow, while the word was being read, preached, taught, or explained, something down in your spirit said, That was for me. It may not have called your name out loud, but it found your situation. May not have mentioned your address, but it walked down your street. May not have described every detail, but it touched the place where you've been wrestling with. And before you could explain it to anybody else, you already knew God was talking to me. That is one of the mysteries and mercies of the word of God. The Bible is ancient, but is never outdated. It was written in another time, but it can speak right into this time. It was given through prophets, apostles, servants, and witnesses, but at by the power of the Holy Ghost, it can still reach a heart, correct the path, comfort a soul, and point a sinner to the Savior. And that is what we see here in Acts chapter 8. There is a man riding down the road from Jerusalem toward Ethiopia. He is a man of status, he is a man of influence. He serves under Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. He is in charge of her treasury. In other words, he has responsibility, he has access, he has education, he has position, he is not broke, he is not powerless, and he is not insignificant. But even with all that he has, there's still something he does not have. He has a title, but he still needs the truth. He has position, but he still needs peace. He has influence, but he still needs insight. He has a scroll in his hand, but he needs revelation in his heart. The text tells us that he had gone to Jerusalem to worship. That means he is not uninterested in God. He doesn't he is not careless about spiritual things. He is not mocking the scriptures. He is not running away from the worship. He is leaning toward God the best way he knows how. But here is the tension. He has been to worship and he is still wandering. He has been near the temple, but he is still unclear. He has the prophet Isaiah open before him and he's still asking, What does this mean? What ought to encourage somebody right now, because sometimes people assume that if you are confused, you must not care. But this man cared enough to travel, he cared enough to worship, he cared enough to read, he cared enough to ask questions, yet he still needed someone to help him understand. That is a word all by itself. You can be sincere and still need guidance. You can be religious and still need revelation. You can be successful and still be searching. You can have the Bible open and still need God to open your understanding. And before we judge him too quickly, we ought to admit that many of us in this room have been have been there. We have read scripture and wondered, Lord, what are you saying? We have sat in worship and wondered, Lord, where do I fit in this? We have heard sermons and wondered, Lord, how does this apply to my life? We have carried questions that our titles could not answer, questions that our money could not answer, questions that our experience could not answer. And uh we we sat wondering, Lord, how am I going to get this clear in my heart? Um, because we all need the spirit to guide us. This word for the man who is on his way home but still needs to meet Jesus. If we honest, this word is for us too. We all need the scripture to speak to us, we all need the savior to save us. And that's what we lead in number one. The spirit knows where to send you. Verse 29, the spirit said to Philip, Go over and join this chariot. Um the first thing we see is that the Holy Spirit is actively leading Philip. Philip does not choose his assignment on his own, the spirit sends him. That matters because Acts is not just a story about human effort, it's a story about the risen Jesus continuing his work through his spirit-filled church. The Holy Spirit all ready empowered the church in Acts 2. The Spirit gave boldness in Act 4. Now the Spirit gives direction in Acts chapter 8. This teaches us something important. Now don't miss this. The Spirit does not only give power to preach, he also gives direction where to go. Philip had been preaching in Samaria where crowds were responding in Acts 8, 5 through 8. But now the Spirit sends them to one man on the road. That's a preaching moment, right? That's a teaching moment. God can care about a city and still care about one soul. God can bless a crowd and still send help to one person. God can move in a revival and still interrupt the preacher for somebody riding along. The Ethiopian, this brother did not know Philip was coming, but God did. He did not know help was on the way, but God did. He did not know the spirit had arranged the meeting, but God did. And can I interject this right quick for somebody out there? You don't know God has already answered your prayer. He knows, but you need to keep staying in the word and praying and being devoted to what he's already told you. Because before the brother understood the word, God had already sent somebody to help him with the word. God already got a blessing for you. That is why you can preach this. This word was for me. You can tell yourself because God knew where he was, God knew what he was reading, God knew what he did not understand, and God sent help right to his chariot. Trinitarian scholars often highlight that Acts presents the mission of God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit working together. The risen Christ gives the mission in Acts 1. The Holy Ghost empowers in Acts 2 and Acts 8. And the message being preached is the good news of Jesus here in Acts chapter 8. So this is not random evangelism. This is God Himself moving the gospel message forward. Well, number two, the scripture knows who it is talking about. If you read verse uh number 30, so Philip ran to him, heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and asked, Do you understand what you are reading? I can hear the Ethiopian reading the scripture, but it does not understand what the scripture is talking about. This is important because you can open the word and still need God to open your understanding. Uh uh Esau Macaulay's work, this book, Reading While Black, calls the church to a serious theological engagement with scripture that listens from one's own social location while remaining in conversation with the wider church, meaning that God did not make him leave his road to get revelation. God sent revelation to the road he was already on. That's the indictment. That's why my series for the years and the church went out. Because the church is not here just to come sit, the church is out to go over to the roads and evangelize and tell the world about Jesus. Now, this don't mean the scripture is weak, it means our understanding needs help. The brother is not careless. He is reading, he is seeking, he is interested, but he needs God. That's what our job is. Go a whole lot of folk done heard a lot of mess. See that that connects with Luke 24.27, where Jesus explained to the disciples how Moses and the prophets pointed to him. It also points to Luke 24.45, where Jesus opened their minds to understand the scriptures. The brother asked the key question, about whom I ask you, does the prophet say this about himself or about someone else? That question is the doorway to the sermon this morning. He is asking, Who is this suffering? Who is this lamb? Who is this rejected one? Who is this silent sufferer? And the answer is Jesus. Isaiah 53 talks about the suffering servant, the serpent, the servant who is wounded, rejected, silent before his accusers, and bears the sins of others. Look at this larger scope of Isaiah. He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities. The Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He bore the sin of many. The New Testament connects this kind of suffering directly to Jesus. Jesus was silent before his accusers in Matthew 27. He was crucified in Luke 23. He bore our sins in 1 Peter 2. He gave his life as a ransom in Mark 10, and he died for our sins according to the scriptures in 1 Corinthians 15. So when the brother asks, Who is Isaiah talking about? Philip does not have to guess. The scripture knows who it is talking about. He's talking about Jesus. The brother thought he was reading about somebody else's suffering, but Philip showed him he was reading about the Savior who suffered for him. This is where my title land. This word was for me, not just for Israel, not just for Isaiah's generation, not just for the apostles, not just for Jerusalem, but this Ethiopian man, this brother, was really riding home with questions in his heart. The word found him on the road. And that's where some of us can, and as I move to the last point, that's where some of us could relate, remember, and recount that the word found us. Well we were. We were in the pig pen. You out doing something, some should have your sha nah nah nah, somewhere you weren't supposed to be. And the word found you. And you keep hearing the gospel message time after time. You keep coming to church. I tell sisters, keep coming to church. Don't matter if you smell like some booze, don't matter, no matter if you smell like some weed, keep on coming to church. Because my job is not to clean you, but the Holy Ghost to get you fixed up. You keep hearing the gospel meant that Jesus died for your sins and that He loves you. Matter of fact, He's in love with you. You keep hearing that. You don't want to be the same person because you're going to make some changes in your heart and your life. But keep on the word found him on the road. And that's what Jesus found. Some of you wasn't in church when you got saved. You some of you have been coming to church, but you weren't in church when the Holy Spirit hit you. Oh, you've been coming to church all that. You said some people sit in church, don't feel a thing. But you be out in the used to be out in the club and you felt convicted. Well, well, well, for first, the spirit knows where to find you. Secondly, the scripture knows who it is talking about. And and and and and thirdly and lastly, the Savior is the good news. At verse 35, Philip opened his mouth and beginning with this scripture. He told him the good news about Jesus. This part matters because the Ethiopian was likely a genteel eunuch in the Old Testament law. Eunuchs had certain restrictions connected to full participation in the assembly in Deuteronomy 23. But as Isaiah also promised a day when eunuchs who had held fast to God's covenant would receive a name and place in God's house. So to the eunuchs who kept my Sabbath, I would give in my house and within my walls a monument and a name better than sons and daughters, Isaiah 56, 4 through 5. So when this brother, this eunuch hears the gospel, the story is not just about personal salvation. It is also about God keeping his promise to keep the outsider through Christ. And this is the focus verse, right? Right. Then Philip 35. Then Philip opened his mouth and beginning with the scripture. He told him the good news about Jesus. Philip begins with the scripture, the man is reading, but it does not stop with the text as information. He preaches Jesus as the fulfillment of that text. Because the Old Testament conceals, the New Testament reveals, the Old Testament hints, the New Testament highlights, the Old Testament predicts, the New Testament produces, the Old Testament points, the New Testament proves, the Old Testament expects, the New Testament explains, the Old Testament begins, the New Testament brings, the Old Testament plants the promise. But the New Testament presents the person. And that person is Jesus Christ. Hidden in the shadows, promised through the prophets and revealed in the fullness of time. That is the responsibility of Christian preaching. Start with the Bible and point people to Jesus. Because a sermon is not a sermon without Jesus. And much like a sandwich is not a sandwich without miracle. And often attributed, George Charles Spurs would say, I take my text and then I make a beeline to the cross. Because gospel preaching must eventually bring us to Christ. Gardner C. Taylor wrote that Christ is all, all our hope, all our strength, all our light, all our life, and he's all our help. And Philip did not preach himself. He did not preach his own greatness. He did not preach church tradition. He did not preach political power. He did not preach a motivational sermon or speech. He preached Jesus. And not just any Jesus. He preached Jesus as the suffering, crucified, risen Savior. And the Bible says Philip told him the good news about this man called Jesus. The good news is that Jesus suffered for us. Good news is that Jesus rejected for us. The good news is that Jesus was silent before his accusers for us. And the good news that everybody can get to Jesus. So when this brother eunuch hears the gospel, yeah, the story is not just about personal salvation. Yeah, everybody can get to Jesus. No, it's not just about personal salvation. It's also about God keeping his promise to welcome the outsider through Christ. And that connects us to Ephesians 2.13. We're going to be there. But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. And that is good news for all of us today. He was reading about a lamb, and but Philip preached the lamb of God. He was reading about rejection, but Philip preached the one who rejected for us. He was reading about suffering. But Philip preached the one who suffered for our sins. He was reading about humiliation, but Philip preached the one God, highly exalted. He was reading about Isaiah, but Philip preached Jesus. And that is why I can shout right now this word was for me. You don't mind if I talk about him born in Bethlehem, raised in Nazareth, baptized in the Jordan, walked the streets of Jerusalem, healing the sick, raising the dead. One Friday he died for my sins, died for my shame, suffered for my righteousness, died for my transgressions, died for my selfishness, died for my broken heart, died for my messed up mind, died for dead relationships, died for the iniquity of many Sunday morning he got up and all power in his hands. For my soul he rose, for my future he lives, and all I have he blessed me with. All I know he taught me, all I am he made me and if anybody asks me what happened, I'll just tell them I met a man named Jesus. He changed my life, made me brand new, broke my chain, gave me deliverance, gave me joy, gave me power. Do you know that man called Jesus and all? He's done for you. Go ahead and tell him I thank you. Thank you, Lord, for blessing me. And every time I open up my mouth, I try to give him praise because not of what he's done, but for who he is. He deserves it all praise. So won't you open up your mouth and give him glory for all he's done? I can't help myself. Every time I think about all he's done for me, I can't help myself. My feet start to move. My hands start to clapping. My hands starts to wagging. And I'd open up my mouth and say, thank you for giving me the word. This word was for me. A long time ago. I could have still been on my way to hell. But the word of God came into my life. So tell all the sinners, keep on coming. The word will get you. Keep on hanging around the church. Invitation is extended now. If you don't know Jesus and the pardon of your sins, if you would like to get to know him better and get saved, allow him to come into your life. Simply say this prayer. Jesus, I need you in my life. I believe you died and rose again on the third day. I trust you to control my life and to enhance my future. If you said that prayer, uh it's as simple as A B C accept, believe, and commit. If you did that, we would love to hear from you. You may contact us through email, get praise on at house of praisep.org. Or you may go simply to our website, www.house of praisep.org. Contact us, and someone from our discipleship team will get back with you with other information you need in order to begin this new life in Christ. We love you to life. We look forward to hearing from you. Thank you again for listening to our podcast. We hope something was said to be a blessing for you, and be a blessing for you this week. We know that we are still in the hands of God, and we will trust Him to keep and deliver us. Bless you, God bless you. County Line, we love you to life, and you can't do anything about it. Look forward to next week. The Lord says the same. We hope that you are praying and reading your word and staying true and standing on the promises of the Lord. God bless you, and we'll see you next week, Pastor Mac.

SPEAKER_02 25:03

I need to be a hand on me.