by R. Herbert | Apr 30, 2015 | Great Commission, Updates
The New Testament Book of Acts contains many fascinating stories of the growth of early Christianity. One of those stories tells of the conversion of an African man from Ethiopia whose coming to belief had great significance for early Christianity – more than we might realize …
“Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road – the desert road – that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake (which means “queen of the Ethiopians”). This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet. 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 8:26-31).
Reading the story of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch it is hard for us, as modern readers, to grasp the way in which the story would have been perceived by its original hearers in the early Church.
In the ancient world Ethiopia epitomized the idea of remoteness. The Greek poet Homer spoke of the inhabitants of Ethiopia as the “farthest of men” – the most remote known peoples (Odyssey 1.23), and the term Ethiopia was often used by classical writers to mean all of unknown sub-Saharan Africa – to “the ends of the earth.”
This sense of the exotic and distant land from which the eunuch came was heightened by other details of the story – the fact that the inhabitants of Ethiopia were dark-skinned was exotic in itself. The fact that the man was a eunuch also placed him in a small minority of Jews or Gentile proselytes to the Jewish faith. Even more exceptional was the nature of the eunuch’s position as an important official in a distant land perceived to be “ruled by women” (a number of the Kandake queens ruled Ethiopia during that era). All these factors would have come together in the minds of early Christians to form a very vivid image of a man from the ends of the earth.
We see how these facts would have been perceived when we apply them to the wording of the great commission given by Christ to his disciples before his ascension: “…you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8B). Acts records that commission being fulfilled in Jerusalem (Acts 6:8-8:3), in Judea and Samaria (Acts 8:4-25) and, in the story of the Ethiopian eunuch, to “the ends of the earth” (Acts 8:26-40). That is doubtless why, out of all the thousands of people that were converted at that time (Acts 4:4, etc.), the story of the Ethiopian eunuch was selected to be told in detail. The commission certainly was to take the Gospel to all the Gentile world, not just to Ethiopia, but the early readers of Acts would have immediately recognized in that account how God was working out His purpose and beginning to fulfill His intentions.
There are many exemplary lessons we can see in the story of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch: the willingness of Philip to follow the Spirit’s prompting to do the work of God, the devotion of the Ethiopian to travel the huge distance to Jerusalem to worship, the humility of the powerful man in the way he asked Philip’s help to understand God’s word, and many more. But a lesson we should not forget is that if we keep in mind the plan and purposes of God, we will see them being fulfilled in and around us if we are observant. If we look for them, we will see the signs of God’s work being done and be strengthened by them, as the word continues to go out to “the ends of the earth.”
by R. Herbert | Apr 19, 2015 | Difficult Scriptures, Service, Updates
“Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ … for each one should carry their own load” (Galatians 6:2-5).On the surface, these two statements of the apostle Paul – only a few words from each other – certainly seem contradictory, but are they?
First, we should recognize that ancient literature often compares and contrasts opposite situations – just as in the biblical proverbs that say “Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him” (Proverbs 26:4) and “Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes” (Proverbs 26:5). The two thoughts are complementary, each giving part of the story. Paul frequently uses this same technique of contrasting opposites in his epistles (for example, Philippians 2:12-13, 2 Corinthians 6:8-10, 2 Corinthians 7:10, 2 Corinthians 12:10), and what Paul states in Galatians 6 is complementary in the same way.
When Paul tells us we should carry each other’s burdens then that we must carry our own loads, he uses two slightly different words. The first word, translated “burdens” in verse 2 (Greek baré), always connotes the weight of the burdens and stresses the “burdensome” nature of what is carried. The word translated “load” in verse 5 (phortion) was often applied to the pack carried by a soldier on the march. It can connote something heavy or light, whatever has been assigned to the individual. It is the word Christ used when he said “My yoke is easy, and my load is light” (Matthew 11:30) and when he spoke of the heavy loads the Pharisees placed on their followers (Matthew 23:4).
We see what Paul had in mind regarding the load each one must carry when we look at the immediately preceding verse: “Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else” (Galatians 6:4). Paul shows here that rather than comparing ourselves unwisely with others, we should look at our own situations and “test” or check our own standing, because we all stand alone before God in terms of His assessment. Paul is stressing – as he states next – that each person has individual responsibilities that no one else can carry. We must prove own standing before God, as no one can perform our religion or fulfill our beliefs for us. That is the “pack” assigned to us for our march. On the other hand, life has many difficulties and problems that weigh us down, and Paul reminds us that these are burdens we can help each other with.
So, Paul’s meaning is clear. We are all given the responsibilities of our faith to bear in life and these are things we must shoulder and bear willingly as good soldiers on the route march to which we have been called. Yet, if we are walking with God and not entirely by our own strength, as Christ showed, those loads need not be oppressive or heavy. On the other hand, every one of us carries the weight of personal problems and difficulties which are just part of life. We can certainly look to God for extra help in times when those burdens become oppressive – and one of the ways He answers that prayer is through help given us by fellow believers.
We all have a burden we are expected to carry, but the more closely we walk with God the lighter it seems – and the more we are able to help those who need help with their own burdens.
by R. Herbert | Apr 15, 2015 | Updates, Warriors of the Way
Scripture: “The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord.” Proverbs 21:31.
Something to think about: As with so many biblical proverbs, we can see a number of aspects to this saying as we turn it in our minds. First, the verse clearly reminds us that regarding many things in life, whatever preparations we may make, ”the race is not always to the swift,” and the final outcome is, of course, in God’s hands. But the verse also reminds us that we have to do our part to “prepare for battle.” These are the same two principles we see in Nehemiah 4:9 “…we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat.” Preparing for any difficulty means we do what we can do physically as well as asking God’s help. It’s a basic but important principle to remember – whatever the problem, we need to do our part as well as asking God to help.
by R. Herbert | Apr 4, 2015 | Updates, Women of Strength
Even in this age of the near-instant spread of news on social media, it still matters to journalists to report news first – especially if the news has long term significance. “Scooping” a big news event is still vital for newspapers and news networks, and a big scoop can bestow great prestige on the reporter.
Being first with the news conveys the fact that the news bearer knows what is going on and is a trusted source of news. That has always been the case, and it can be seen as far back as some 2,000 years ago, when a woman who would soon become one of the world’s most famous reporters was first to break an incredible story:
“Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb… she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her… “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”—and that he had said these things to her” (John 20:1-18).
And so it was that Mary Magdalene broke the news to the assembled disciples and was the first person to report one of the most important events in biblical history. The amazing thing is that given the social strictures of Jewish society at that time, the person entrusted with carrying this news was, incredibly, a woman. And not only a woman, but viewed from the religious perspective of the day, a woman with a highly questionable past (Mark 16:9). Yet despite the perspective of that age, God clearly knew what He was doing in giving the story to a woman – even this woman.
It is surely significant that in releasing the world-changing news of the resurrection, “God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong” (1 Corinthians 1:27). In choosing someone viewed as an insignificant member of society, God turned human society upside down. In choosing a person with a questionable spiritual background to report His story of redemption, He also turned human religion upside down. News was made in more ways than we might immediately realize, yet the implications of the story and its reporter were doubtless not lost on the disciples.
This had been, after all, the stress of Jesus’ work throughout his ministry – to bring the good news of God’s working with humanity to the weak and the broken (Luke 4:18) – so it should not be surprising that one of those same people was chosen to deliver the first report of what had been accomplished. The news Mary Magdalene announced was not only that of the resurrection – amazing as that story was – but also that she herself, as the reporter, was proof of a new structuring of the world that God was effecting. It was proof that previously denigrated individuals such as women and the socially undesirable were on an even footing with the powerful and socially favored (Galatians 3:28).
Mary Magdalene, as reporter, broke the news that was not only of unparalleled spiritual importance for all humanity, but also – as the one chosen to deliver the message – a message of special significance for the downtrodden and spiritually broken who would eventually hear the news and be transformed by it.
by Staff | Feb 1, 2015 | Updates
Pastor and writer Brad C. Shockley is one of our favorite newer Christian bloggers. His new
blog hasn’t been active very long, but he is already putting up some fine material.
We especially like a couple of Brad’s latest posts and he has kindly given permission for us to reproduce them on our sites. Today we have uploaded “The six word memoir of Jesus Christ” which he published on January 28, and we are also running another of Brad’s posts on our sister site today at
LivingWithFaith.org. We think you will like them.
by Staff | Jan 27, 2015 | Bible Study, The Life of Jesus, Updates
Do you particularly enjoy the parables of Jesus – or do you wish you understood them better? Either way our new book is for you!
This new book is a practical but carefully researched commentary on all the parables. It gives many insights into the stories and their meanings through historical facts and other information that can enrich and transform your understanding of them. But this book is not just a commentary – it focuses on the living lessons of the parables themselves.
The City on a Hill is available on our sister-site in different formats (including PDF so you can read it on any electronic device).
The book is written from a nondenominational perspective, is completely free and free of advertising. You do not need to give an email address or any other information to download the book (just click on the download link on the LivingWithFaith.org “Downloads” page and enjoy). And if you enjoy the book and find it profitable, please feel free to make a copy of the file and pass it, or the URL, along to your friends and others you know who may find the book helpful.
The City on A Hill: Lessons from the Parables of Jesus is the first of a series of free e-Books we hope to produce this year – enjoy this one and look out for new titles as we go through 2015!
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