Interruptions and Guidance

I was continuing my reading of the Acts of the Apostles this morning. I have always been intrigued by this story of Philip, and his supernatural experiences. Here are the verses - Acts 8:26-31, 34-40 NIV:

[26] "Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road---the desert road---that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” [27] 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, [28] and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet. [29] The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.”

[30] Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked.

[31] “How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

[34] The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?” [35] Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.

[36] As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptized?” [37]* And Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he replied, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”* [38] And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him. [39] When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing.

[40] Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea."

There are a few very interesting things about this story, the first of which is the supernatural interactions that Philip has, first with an angel telling him where to go, followed by verse 40, where the Holy Spirit transports Philip some distance to a new town (the distance could be as far as 40 miles). I am reminded of Jesus comments about what is impossible to man is possible for God (Luke 18:27). For Star-Trek fans, this is an example of being teleported, but by the Spirit of God. My son and I were just talking about how awesome it would be if that were real, and then this morning I am reading about this very thing. It is clear the there are things that God is capable of doing that we haven't seen or heard of yet, and this is one of those events in that category. In the Catholic tradition of Saints, there are few Saints who have experienced similar things, so church history does bear witness to this event in Philip's life.

Secondly, this in only mention of Ethiopia in the NT, and it is believed that this Eunuch was responsible for the early evangelism of Ethiopia. The church there is one of the oldest Christian churches, and from what I understand they trace themselves back to this event, which would have happened roughly three years after Pentecost. I am encouraged by the moving and guiding of the Holy Spirit in encouraging Philip to meet this Eunuch, for clearly there was a plan in place by the Holy Spirit to spread the Good News to Ethiopia, and He caused this to occur by interrupting Philip and having him meet the man. These types of events could be classified as divine encounters, where two people are brought together unknowingly for the purposes of God. I have had several times where it was clear the Lord had me meet someone, completely unknown to me, that significantly changed my life or theirs. I like the fact that the Lord can intervene, and through one purposeful, but seemingly chance meeting affect the lives of a whole nation.

Finally, not losing sight of the fact that the Lord specifically intercepted the Ethiopian just as He was most open to the Gospel. I believe that even if the man had not been a vehicle of the evangelism of Ethiopia, the Lord still would have directed Philip to visit with him, as the Lord cares for each of us, and is intimately aware of our heart condition, and circumstances. This is one thing I know for sure, the Lord knows exactly what I am thinking and where I am and He can touch my life at exactly that spot. In this case the Ethiopian was reading from Is 53 the exact verses that prophetically spoke of Jesus, and it was at that exact moment that Philip ran up. This is just a beautiful example of how the Lord choreographs circumstances to His purposes. He is the God of perfect timing. There are many times I would like to know ahead of time about His perfect timing that He has planned, but invariably He is right on time, with exactly what is needed. I am so grateful for His faithfulness.

So today I am encouraged to be on the lookout for the guidance of the Lord in my life. I look to Him to arrange divine encounters, even to the point of interrupting my life and causing me to go somewhere I hadn't planned. The Lord cares for us all and He has the perfect interruption(s) planned for us all.

Amen!