July, 1936
T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
262
INTERNATIONAL LESSON Commentary Outline and Exposition Blackboard Lesson Children’s Division Golden Text Illustration Object Lesson B y B. B. S utcliffe B y B essie B. B urch B y H elen G ailey B y A lan S. P earce B y E lmer L. W ilder Points and Problems B y A lva J. M c C lain , Dean, Ashland Theological Seminary, Ashland, Ohio
III. P hilip ’ s S uccess (36-40).
AUGUST 2, 1936 PHILIP’S MISSIONARY LABORS A cts 8 :5-40
His mind enlightened concerning the One of whom Isaiah wrote, and his heart brought to understand what Jesus had done and was willing to do, the eunuch lost no time in accepting Jesus as his personal Saviour and in confessing Him as Lord. In order to publicly acknowledge his faith, he wished to be baptized at once; and upon his confession of Jesus Christ as the Son of God, permission was given at once. Immediately after the baptism of the eunuch, Philip was “caught away” from the Ethiopian who “saw him no more.” The eunuch had received salvation in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the presence of Philip was no longer needful for his enlightenment. He had received Philip’s Saviour and Lord and “went on his way rejoicing.” The mystery of Philip’s being “found at Azotus” need not trouble the believing heart. The catching away of Philip was no more impossible to the Lord than the catching away of the church will be on a soon coming day. Let us be like Philip in prompt obedi ence to the Lord, and in faithful adherence to the Word, and our labors, like his, will be blessed to the bringing in of precious souls and to the rejoicing of those who believe. P oints a n d Problem s The entire passage chosen for this week is an instructive treatise on the subject of personal soul-winning. Looking at the les- s6n from this standpoint, notice several things: 1. "Arise, and go toward the south, which is desert” (v. 26). Like Philip, the soul-winner must work under the orders of God and be willing to go where He com mands, even though the prospect, to human sight, may not seem very attractive. To leave the successful work in Samaria for a trip to the desert may not have seemed entirely reasonable. But Philip “arose and went.” 2. "And, behold, a man . . . " (v. 27). The personal worker should realize that in directing him to some certain place, God always has some definite person or persons in mind. When, for example, we find our selves stranded in some out-of-the-way spot, instead of finding fault with divine providence, we should look around for the “man” for whose soul God may have put us there. . 3. "The Spirit said unto Philip, . . . and Philip ran" (vs. 29,30). No personal worker can ever succeed without being sensitive to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Every case is different. We may read numberless books on soul-winning, take courses in the best schools, master all the necessary Biblical texts, and then fail utterly unless we have the constant guidance of the Spirit’s voice. 4. “Heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou . . . ?” (v. 30). In approaching a human soul, there is
have been a trusted employee, permitted to travel in a foreign land. His ability to read the Scriptures indicates that he was a cultured man, for at that time few persons could read their own language, much less a foreign tongue. His possession of a copy of the Scriptures tells us that he was a wealthy man, for only the rich could secure the costly Volume in those days. Further more, he was a humble man, as is revealed by his willingness to be taught by a way farer whom he had never seen before. But in spite of all that he had and was, the eunuch was leaving Jerusalem disap pointed and discouraged. He had not found what he had come to seek. What this man needed was just what every man needs—the presence of a man of God with the Word of God to be’ applied by the Spirit of God to the needy heart. And all that was needed the Lord provided, as He provides for all who have any real desire to know the truth. Philip was told to “go near, and join thyself to this chariot,” and with prompt obedience Philip ran thither. The eunuch was read ing a portion of the prophet Isaiah, and Philip simply asked whether he understood what was written. The place where the eunuch was read ing was Isaiah 53, and beginning “at the same Scripture,” Philip “preached unto him Jesus.” It was a Person of whom Philip preached—not of forms and cere monies, of which the eunuch would have heard at Jerusalem. And it was Jesus as the Sin-Bearer—not merely the Example —who was presented. THat Sin-Bearer was the sufficient Sacrifice for all sins and the acceptable Substitute for all sinners. He was the Way, the Truth, and the Life, the One who alone could meet the eunuch’s need and the need of every man. Surely Philip would not fail to enlighten his dis tinguished listener concerning the resurrec tion of the One who “was led as a sheep to the slaughter,” whose “life is taken from the earth.” The need today is for all Chris tians to be able to begin at “the same Scripture’V—wherever the Bible may be opened—and preach Jesus to sin-sick souls and inquiring minds. BLACKBOARD LESSON
Lesson Text: Acts 8:26-40. Golden Text: “Therefore they that were scattered abroad went everywhere preach ing the word” (Acts 8:4). O utline an d E xposition I. P hilip ’ s F ield (26). M ' l he Lord called Philip to go to the “desert”—to a place where He had J - need of him. Philip expressed no choice of his own, but was ready to leave a great work where many were being saved, in order to go to a solitary place to which the Lord directed. The late James M. Gray has pointed out that Philip was a layman, one of the disciples who were “scattered abroad” (Acts 8 :1, 4) ; and that, moreover, hé was ah obedient layman—tactful, in telligent, and successful—an excellent ex ample for all who would engage in Chris tian work. There was no Hesitancy on Philip’s part when once he was assured that the com mand came from the Lord to “go toward the south.” The New Testament was not yet written, and the ministry of angels in giving guidance to believers had not yet ceased. Today the New Testament, as well as the Old, is in the hands of Christians, and the kind of angelic ministration that Philip enjoyed is not needed. The revela tion of God’s will is in His Word. Philip might have questioned the wisdom of leaving such a work as that in which he was engaged at Samaria. There were many considerations that would point to the necessity of his remaining there. To be told to “go toward the south”—a way which Philip knew led only to the desert—■ was to be confronted with vague uncer tainty. Philip might have asked, “Why?” But without questioning or reasoning, he “arose and went.” He had the plain word of thé Lord, and that was enough for him. If many others of the Lord’s followers would arise and go at the Lord’s command, as Philip did, there would be far greater advance made in the missionary enterprise than is witnessed today. II. P hilip ’ s A udience (27-35) The “man of Ethiopia” whom Philip encountered was seeking the true religion, and he had gone to Jerusalem in the hope of finding it. From the record, we gather that he was a great man, occupying a high position in the government of his country. As treasurer of Queen Candace, he must [These lessons ctre developed from outlines prepared by the Committee on Improved Uniform Lessons of the Inter national Council. The outlines are copy righted, 1934, by the International Council of Religious Education and used by per mission .— E ditor .]
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