The Bible tells of salvation that is full and free. It’s full, meaning God fills us of many things. When we read the Bible, we see a beautiful story unfold. It talks about the growth of a nation, growth against all kinds of difficulties and struggles. Struggles against themselves, weaknesses, crisis, brothers fighting against brothers, one whole tribe almost gone and struggles against enemies. We also look into how Israel was taken into captivity. Why must God write all these things in the Bible if the gospel is just “raise your hand and you’ll be saved!”? Today the speaker wants to share how an evangelist in the Bible preached Jesus.

Philip was known as Phillip the evangelist. He even went to the wilderness to preach the gospel. He became a high official in the kingdom of Ethiopia. When Philip preached the gospel, he didn’t take any flights to distant places. Sometimes he had to walk. Sometimes the Holy Spirit would lift him up and he would go to another place (better than business class airplanes!). He was an evangelist God used to preach the gospel. We look at Acts. Acts 8 shows him preaching to an Ethiopian eunuch, equivalent to a finance minister in the kingdom at that time. Philip was specially told by an angel to preach and there was one man God wanted to hear the gospel. We read Acts 8:26-31;

26 ‘Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, “Arise and go toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is desert.
27 So he arose and went. And behold, a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace the queen of the Ethiopians, who had charge of all her treasury, and had come to Jerusalem to worship,
28 was returning. And sitting in his chariot, he was reading Isaiah the prophet.
29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go near and overtake this chariot.”
30 So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?”
31 And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him. ‘

Acts 8:26 talks about a eunuch of authority in a chariot. V28 says that he was reading Isaiah the prophet. Philip heard him reading aloud and he asked, “Do you understand what you’re reading?” The Ethiopian eunuch humbly replied in v31 saying, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” He invited Philip to sit by him and Philip started preaching. We read v35-36;

35 ‘Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him.
36 Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?”’

Because of the economy, the Bible can not record in detail everything so in v35 it simply says “Philip preached Jesus.” Immediately in the next verse, the Ethiopian saw water and was very excited and said, “What can hinder me from being baptised? There’s water here!” All the time he was earnestly thinking in his heart to be baptised but was travelling in the wilderness because there’s no water. So here he says there’s no hindrance here because there’s water. But there’s no mention of it in v35-36.

What exactly did Philip preach? The Bible didn’t say that he talked about baptism, but that he preached Jesus. If you’re a Christian and you share about Jesus, how do you speak? Today in mass evangelism and rallies when you preach Jesus, do all these preaching conform to the same biblical patterns that when you preach Jesus, people will earnestly want to get baptised? Is it really the same gospel being preached today? This afternoon there will be two points.

V35 says that when Phillip opened his mouth, he began with a certain scripture to preach Jesus. What scripture is that? Earlier we noted that the Ethiopian eunuch was reading the prophet Isaiah in v32-33. From the content we know that it is Isaiah 53. Would you be able to preach Jesus from this? The name of Jesus is not mentioned, nothing is spoken about the crucifiction. Would you be able to get someone to be baptised using these scriptures? But Phillip began with these scriptures and preached Jesus. What did he do? We realise that the preaching during the apostolic times was using the available Bible scriptures, which is the Old Testament. The New Testament wasn’t in writing yet. We read Acts 17:2-3;

2 ‘Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures,
3 explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ.” ‘

Scriptures here would mean the Old Testament and the Old Testament is sufficient to prove that Jesus is the Christ. V3 says that he explained Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead because at that time Jesus was crucified not long and His death on the cross and resurrection was a fact. it was irrefutable because it wasn’t a myth created hundreds of years later. It was a truth that started to be preached on the third day. If it wasn’t true, it could be easily disproved, just bring out His body. There’s no way they could disprove His resurrection but the people of God needed to understand what His resurrection meant so the apostles used the scriptures to explain this fact. This is the message of the cross from the Old Testament. We read 1 Corinthians 15:1-4;

1 ‘Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand,
2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.
3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures,
4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, ‘

Here you see “according to scriptures” repeatedly. The message of the cross according to the scriptures. How He was crucified on the cross, buried and resurrected on the third day, according to the scriptures. The Old Testament talks about the message of the cross. Jesus Himself also uses the Old Testament to talk about His death and resurrection.

In the gospel of Luke, Jesus used the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms. We read Luke 24:44-47;

44 ‘Then He said to them, “These are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms concerning Me.”
45 And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures.
46 Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day,
47 and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. ‘

Where is it written that it’s necessary for Christ to suffer and resurrect on the third day? Where in the Old Testament? Where in the Old Testament did it say that you have to repent and be baptised in His name? Where did it say it has to begin in Jerusalem? All in the Old Testament. Here says, “the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms”. The Old Testament is a book Christians should read and understand. Jesus says in the Old Testament is eternal life and it’s the Old Testament scriptures that bear testimony to Christians. The Old Testament is not just for the Jews because here says it has to preach to all nations. From where? The book of Luke, John, Acts? No. From the Law of Moses, the prophets and the Psalms. The message of Jesus has to be preached from these books to all the nations.

Imagine yourself living in the time of Paul, or the time of the apostles and someone tells you, “Jesus is the Messiah!” Would you believe? If a person believes simply because someone tells you a grand story, then we are no better in people in the market place who are willing to spend money on fake diamonds. If a Jew believes that Jesus is the saviour simply because someone says so, his faith is not true. His faith is based on the eloquence of the person telling the story. But if he reads the scriptures and is convinced that Jesus is indeed the saviour and sent by God, that He indeed shed His blood and died for our sins, ACCORDING TO THE SCRIPTURES, his faith is true.

Although we’re not Jews, we have a responsibility to understand. Starting from Isaiah the prophet, Phillip the evangelist preached Jesus to the Ethiopian eunuch. All the things mentioned earlier, how Paul and Jesus preached according to the scriptures, let’s link to Isaiah. We say that it’s from Isaiah 53 that Phillip preached Jesus. What’s Isaiah 53 all about? Why does it talk about a man like a sheep led to slaughter? A man whose life is taken away from the earth? We read Isaiah 52 first.

Isaiah 52:7;

‘How beautiful upon the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who proclaims peace, Who brings glad tidings of good things, Who proclaims salvation, Who says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”’

“Good news,” “glad tidings of good things”. Here’s how we got the word “gospel”. What’s the content of good news? Salvation. What is salvation? It says “Your God reigns!” This is salvation and good news. At that time, the people of God were suffering under bondage.

Brothers and sisters, what is God going to save us from? The shortcut answer is hell. The longer answer is that God is going to save us from this evil world. God is delivering us from all the evil people from influencing us. Many many things rule our lives today. You don’t have to live under Saddam Hussein to say that you’re living under oppression. We’re all under oppression. We don’t have to be under political oppression, we’re all under social and psychological oppression. We have no time to breathe and we cannot live the life we want. When Jesus comes to deliver us, He proclaims the kingdom of God. When Jesus came into the world He said, “Relent for the kingdom of God is coming soon.”

When you allow God to rule over you, He frees us from all kinds of bondage - seen and unseen. The most frightening things of bondage are things that cannot be seen. If we submit to God’s rule, peace will reign over us. This is the meaning of the gospel and salvation. When God rules over us, we become the subject of God’s kingdom. We read Isaiah 52:13-15;

13 ‘Behold, My Servant shall deal prudently; He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high.
14 Just as many were astonished at you, So His visage was marred more than any man, And His form more than the sons of men;
15 So shall He sprinkle many nations. Kings shall shut their mouths at Him; For what had not been told them they shall see, And what they had not heard they shall consider.’

This is the beginning of men identifying as Jesus. He is going to astonish man, sprinkle many nations and kings will shut their mouths because of Him. God’s rule is going to come over all nations. Today wherever the gospel is preached, God takes control of lives in any nations. And then we come to Isaiah 53:7-8 which is what Philip used to preach to the eunuch;

7 ‘He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth.
8 He was taken from prison and from judgment, And who will declare His generation? For He was cut off from the land of the living; For the transgressions of My people He was stricken.’

In order for God to reign over us, in order for God to reign over nation, this person must die. His life must be taken over the earth and must be cut from the living. Then we move on to Isaiah 55:3;

‘Incline your ear, and come to Me. Hear, and your soul shall live; And I will make an everlasting covenant with you— The sure mercies of David.’

The Jews know about David. David was a king that God set over His chosen people. God told David, “After you die, there’ll be a descendant who will sit on your throne and be king forever.” Today it’s very easy for Christians to understand that this is Jesus. But how does Jesus become king? V5 says;

‘Surely you shall call a nation you do not know, And nations who do not know you shall run to you, Because of the Lord your God, And the Holy One of Israel; For He has glorified you.”’

How is Jesus glorified? If we know the story of Jesus, before He went to the cross, He said that it was time for Him to be glorified - His death is His glorification. We read the prophets. This message is also in the Psalms, that there’ll be a king that comes from David’s descendants and nations will submit to Him. Let’s read Psalms 2:1-7;

1 ‘Why do the nations rage, And the people plot a vain thing?
2 The kings of the earth set themselves, And the rulers take counsel together, Against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying,
3 “Let us break Their bonds in pieces And cast away Their cords from us.”
4 He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision.
5 Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, And distress them in His deep displeasure:
6 “Yet I have set My King On My holy hill of Zion.”
7 “I will declare the decree: The Lord has said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.’

Here the Bible explains in further that the descendants of David is the Lord’s anointed. We often mention the term “Christ” or “Messiah”. What does it mean? “Christ” means the anointed one and “Messiah” has the same meaning in Hebrew.

The whole world is against God and His anointed one but the whole world is what God wants to save. What does God do then? He says, “I’m going to make the Messiah king,” and so the Messiah also echoes, “The Lord has declared the decree to me. You are My Son, today I have begotten You.” God tells the whole world to repent.

Brothers and sisters, preaching the gospel is not begging people to believe, but to tell people to surrender to God. The whole world is rebelling against God. “My kingdom is in the holy hill of Zion. I have put my king there, surrender to Him, otherwise you perish.” Phillip was sent to preach to a high official, to the minister of finance. Who has more authority? The minister of finance or Philip the evangelist? The answer is Phillip! He is the ambassador of the heavenly kingdom! Phillip would have ended up telling that He is king, and you must submit to Him by being baptised. In the end, the high official, fully clothed, was pressed into the water by Phillip. Phillip doesn’t even need to say goodbye, and he went. That’s the authority that God gives us.

We are the preachers and evangelists of good news to bring people to repentance. “Repent, He is the Messiah, because the kingdom of God has come.” That’s how Phillip preached the gospel. The New Testament explains this clearly that the world is in rebellion and Christ has become king. How? Exactly what we said just now. Isaiah said that He had to die and then resurrect. We read Acts 13:32-34;

32 ‘And we declare to you glad tidings— that promise which was made to the fathers.
33 God has fulfilled this for us their children, in that He has raised up Jesus. As it is also written in the second Psalm: ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.’
34 And that He raised Him from the dead, no more to return to corruption, He has spoken thus: ‘I will give you the sure mercies of David.’’

What is the gospel here? The resurrection of Jesus. The good news is that Jesus is now king of mount Zion. In v34, “I will give you the sure mercies of David.” This is about His resurrection and because of His resurrection, all nations will come to Him. Not only is He king over Zion but of the whole world. Zion is the capital of the whole world. We know Zion refers to the church of God. The whole world must submit to the king.

In the olden days the king must conquer land then he can become king over those land. What has Jesus conquered? Better than any physical land on earth. When He resurrected, what did He conquer? He conquered DEATH. Death is the greatest enemy and power. He has conquered the whole world and universe. Death must surrender all the souls to Him because He has conquered death, He is king of kings and Lord of Lords. No one on earth and in heaven has greater power than Jesus, because He has conquered death. This is our good news, based on the prophets in the Old Testament.

Today there’s many new religions out there. Many young people like to look for new things, but we’re based on the Old Testament. Anybody can invent new things. Anyone can write a book and say that it’s from heaven, and there’ll be enough fools to believe them. Even so-called educated people will give up their money to support these religions. But the Christian faith is based on 1500 years of recorded revelation. Meaning that when Jesus came, the Old Testament was already completed. 1500 years before Jesus, the Old Testament started to be compiled and then it survived for a further 2000 years. Why? In Hebrews 1:1-3;

1 ‘God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets,
2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds;
3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, ‘

In various times and ways, God spoke to the prophets. Finally Jesus came and speak. That was 2000 years ago. Not only did He speak and explained the Old Testament, He even fulfilled what the Old Testament says, so in v3 says that He purges our sins and sits on the right hand of God. The resurrection of Jesus is IRREFUTABLE.

The atheists try to overthrow it and they even go to search it out. Many years ago and also recently, they still do the same thing. Some of us may know Ben Hur who made it into a film. He was an atheist going around trying to disprove Jesus’ resurrection, but he came back believing. He wrote a book. In modern days, there’s someone who went to become a detective and also came back believing. There’s a reason why the Christian faith can survive for 2000 years. If we don’t have the Old Testament, then there’ll no prove of fulfilling the Old Testament. We read Acts 1:3;

‘to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.’

“Infallible proofs”. That was how Phillip preached. If we understand the Christian faith from the same angle, nothing can shake our faith.

Let’s look at the second point in Acts 8:36;

‘Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?”’

After Phillip preached Jesus, the Ethiopian eunuch was so eager to be baptised meaning to say that preaching Jesus you’ll preach baptism. When you preach Jesus you will definitely preach of baptism. We talked about how Phillip, Paul and Jesus preached of the Old Testament. It was about the death and His resurrection. Paul and Jesus Himself preached of His death and resurrection so when you preach Jesus, you preach of His death and resurrection, because that makes Him king. Because we preach of His death and resurrection, you must preach baptism. Because baptism speaks of His death and resurrection. He has become king, how can we submit ourselves to be His subject? By dying, being buried, and raised with Him.

Today we’ll read one of the many passages talking about this in Romans 6:3-8;

3 ‘Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?
4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection,
6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.
7 For he who has died has been freed from sin.
8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, ‘

Why must Jesus die? To identify with us because we all die. When Jesus died, He allows us to join in His death so that we join Him in His resurrection. In Hebrews 6:1-2 tells us that the doctrine of baptism and washing is part and parcel of BASIC UNDERSTANDING of Christ;

1 ‘Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God,
2 of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. ‘

Today when we preach the gospel, when we preach Jesus, do we preach this? The word here “baptism” is in plural because in the Old Testament there are many types of washings. From these washings, we understand about Jesus. When John came, he came with one kind of washing. The Jews didn’t find it strange because it links to the Old Testament. Acts 18:25 to Acts 19:5 tells us that he understood the baptism of John but later on a Christian couple told him that the baptism of John is to point to the baptism of Jesus Christ. Because of this, later on some people in Ephesus came to be baptised into the name of Jesus Christ.

Why is it that baptism is so important? Why must we do something physical to receive something spiritual? We are physical people. If physical action is not important, then why must we insist that Jesus must come in the flesh? We all know that the Bible says that unless you believe that Jesus came in the flesh, you belong to the spirit of the antichrist. We say that Jesus must shed real blood, we insist that He must rise from the dead. We all insist this and if we don’t believe this, we are cultish. Then we say that we don’t need to be baptised? The one who gives us this must go through it physically but we don’t have to do this physical action? If you don’t need to get baptised physically, then it means to say that Jesus doesn’t need to die.

The Old Testament says that blood must be shed and the blood of Jesus must be applied to our hearts. We read Hebrews 10:19-22;

19 ‘Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus,
20 by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh,
21 and having a High Priest over the house of God,
22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. ‘

In the Old Testament when God commanded physical things they had to do it - if you don’t slaughter the sin offerings, the sins won’t be forgiven. If the males don’t be circumcised in the flesh, they’ll be cut out from people. So there’s a temple that they had to erect and in the temple there’s a curtain separating it from the other place. In the holy place, there’s an ark of the covenant and there’s a mercy seat. Blood has to be sprinkled onto the mercy seat then sins will be forgiven.

When Jesus died, a physical thing happened - the curtain torn into two. Hebrews explains to us that that is the opening of the access to God. That curtain is like the flesh of Jesus torn away for us. Now we can follow Jesus into that place. How? His flesh was torn, right? He died. So we die with Him, then we can go to Him. That’s why v22 says that when our bodies are washed with water, we hearts are sprinkled from an evil conscience. Meaning our hearts become the mercy seats and we are forgiven of our sins. Not from the blood of animals but form the heart of Jesus. All these happen when we’re physical baptised.

This is the gospel that is based on the entire Bible. The New Testament builds on the Old Testament. This is how Phillip preached.

What do you want today: the Biblical gospel or the popular gospel?