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Well, please turn with me in 
your Bibles to the book of Acts, specifically Acts chapter 8. 
Acts chapter 8, our focus this morning 
will be on the conversion and the baptism of the Ethiopian 
eunuch. Hopefully as we move through 
our exposition, our explanation, you'll begin to understand those 
particular terms. Conversion is what is referred 
to generally in the sense where God saves a sinner. That sinner, 
by the grace of God, believes the gospel and repents from his 
or her sin. That is man's response to the 
grace of God by the grace of God, conversion. After conversion, 
persons then obey the Lord Jesus Christ and follow him in this 
ordinance of baptism. And it's a blessing for us to 
be able to gather together today to witness and to see those who 
have been converted, those who have by God's grace come to know 
Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, now taking that step of obedience 
and coming under the waters of baptism. So I'll just pick up 
reading in Acts chapter 8 beginning in verse 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. 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, was returning. And sitting 
in his chariot, he was reading Isaiah the prophet. Then the 
spirit said to Philip, go near and overtake his chariot. So 
Philip ran to him and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah and 
said, do you understand what you are reading? And he said, 
how can I unless someone guides me? And he asked Philip to come 
up and sit with him. The place in the scripture which 
he read was this. He was led as a sheep to the 
slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearers is silent, so he 
opened not his mouth. In his humiliation, his justice 
was taken away. And who will declare his generation? For his life is taken from the 
earth. So the eunuch answered Philip and said, I ask you, of 
whom does the prophet say this? Of himself or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth 
and beginning at this scripture preached Jesus to him. 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? Then Philip said, If you believe 
with all your heart, you may. And he answered and said, I believe 
that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. So he commanded the chariot 
to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch 
went down into the water, and he baptized him. Now when they 
came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip 
away, so that the eunuchs saw him no more. And he went on his 
way rejoicing. But Philip was found at Azotus, 
and passing through, he preached in all the cities till he came 
to Caesarea." Amen. Well, let us pray and ask the 
Lord's blessing upon our study. Our Father in heaven, we gather 
together on this happy occasion, specifically the Lord's Day. 
We thank you for this opportunity and privilege to come in out 
of the world and to meet with you first and foremost. We pray 
that you would be worshiped and glorified. We pray that you would 
be honored and adored, for certainly you are worthy. You are the God 
who made this world and everything in it. You are the God who governs 
this world. and You are the God who has saved 
His people from their sins. As well, Father, we thank You 
for this opportunity to witness baptism. We just pray that You 
would be glorified in this as well. We ask that You would fill 
each and every one of us with Your Holy Spirit, that You would 
guide our thoughts as we consider the Scripture, that You would 
speak to each one of us. Lord, we pray that You would 
forgive us for all of our sins as we come to the Word, as we 
come to study, the scriptures of the Old and New Testaments. 
We are mindful of our own sinfulness and the darkening influence that 
it casts on our minds. We pray that you would wash us 
and purify us in the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. And for 
any and all who have come here this morning outside of Christ, 
we pray that today would be the day of salvation, that they would 
hear of Jesus, that they would hear of this one in whom there 
is salvation, this one in whom there is forgiveness, even redemption 
from sin. We just thank you for the glory 
of Christ, and we pray that it would be manifest in this time 
together. We ask in Jesus' blessed name, Amen. As I said, we're 
going to consider verses 26 to 40, and notice that this Ethiopian 
eunuch is converted to the Lord Christ, and then he is baptized. 
And the section breaks down to three primary areas. First, the 
Holy Spirit directs Philip specifically to contact this particular man 
in verses 26 to 30. Secondly, the Ethiopian himself 
is pointed to Christ in verses 31 to 35, and then the last section 
deals with the Ethiopian converted and baptized in verses 36 to 
40. Now it might be helpful for me 
to point out that that passage that Pastor Cam read at the outset 
of worship. I hope that you are paying attention. 
That was from the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah chapter 53 specifically, 
which focuses upon the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. The person 
of the Lord Jesus Christ, of course, but his work as well. 
It's also important to remember that the prophet Isaiah wrote 
his prophecy about 700 years prior to the coming of the Lord 
Jesus Christ. It gives a very vivid and detailed 
explanation of what the Messiah or the Christ or the Lord Jesus 
himself would come to do in Israel. And it's that particular passage 
that this particular eunuch is reading, as we read here in Acts 
chapter 8. But not long after Isaiah 53 
is Isaiah 56. Now have that for some learning 
this morning. Not just numerically, but this 
particular unit was probably conscious of Isaiah 56 as well. You say, what's important about 
Isaiah 56? It speaks about units. Now, this man is identified as 
an Ethiopian eunuch, but four times in the narrative it highlights 
the fact that he's a eunuch. The emphasis does not fall upon 
the fact that he's an Ethiopian, but the emphasis falls upon the 
fact that he's a eunuch. Now a eunuch is somebody that 
was either born that way or made that way and then employed by 
royalty for particular service. That's this man's function. He 
served under Candace. They were given responsibility, 
they were trusted with many things. But in the prophet Isaiah, the 
prophet foretold a time when the eunuchs would be able to 
approach the God of Israel. Now prior to that, back in the 
book of Deuteronomy, this predates Isaiah several hundred years, 
in the book of Deuteronomy, eunuchs were prohibited from coming into 
the assembly of the Lord. Now, there's various reasons 
why. If you're interested, we can talk over lunch, if you'd 
like. But just suffice it to say that 
this eunuch understood this. He was a worshipper of the God 
of Israel. He was coming back from Jerusalem, 
because he had been there for a particular feast. He knew this 
doctrinally. He knew that because of the fact 
that he was a eunuch, he was barred from the assembly of the 
Lord, but he also knew that Isaiah was talking about a time when 
these eunuchs would be brought near, that they would be accepted, 
that they would be made able to come to the God of heaven 
and earth. And that's what's going on here in this particular 
passage. I suspect that this eunuch has 
understood Isaiah 56, and now he's looking at Isaiah 53, and 
he really wants to know the identity of the man that the prophet is 
speaking about. And that's the whole point of 
the passage. It's about the Lord Jesus Christ. It's because of what Christ has 
done. It's because of what he lived, 
he suffered, he died, and he rose again. that anybody, whether 
eunuch or non, can be brought to the living God. So now let's 
look at this particular passage with at least that bit of information 
in our minds. Notice first that the Holy Spirit 
calls for His people. He directs Philip very specifically 
in verse 26. Now an angel of the Lord spoke 
to Philip saying, Arise and go down toward the south along the 
road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza. This is desert. Notice that the author, Luke, 
the man who wrote this particular book of the Bible, is very detailed 
and very specific. These are places that you can 
find on a map. These are places that you can 
see with your own eyes. Places that your feet can traverse 
upon. This isn't myth, it's not fable, 
it's not cunningly devised. It's not something just out there 
that tries to promote a bit of feeling, but rather what happens 
is historical in nature. And so Luke wants us to understand 
that. This Philip was already sent 
to Samaria according to chapter 8 verses 5 to 25. Now he's directed 
from Jerusalem to Gaza which is particularly desert. 
So I've already mentioned he identifies this eunuch. Verse 
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, was returning. So as I said, he's a eunuch of 
great authority. A commentator says it was common. 
until recent times for civil service and household duties 
under the monarchies of the Middle East to be largely delegated 
to a class of castrati deliberately groomed for these purposes. This 
man has got a particular role, but it also indicates a spiritual 
condition. It says that he had come to Jerusalem 
to worship. It says that he has the prophet 
Isaiah. The scroll of the prophet is 
with him and he's giving himself to a study of these particular 
things. And I think just by way of a 
very sideline application, this speaks to something absent in 
our day. It is very difficult to find 
people interested in spiritual things. It's very difficult to 
find people that are concerned with things beyond what they're 
going to have for lunch, beyond what they're going to do at work 
this week, beyond what their 401k is going to yield, beyond 
what the next federal election holds. We see often times in 
the biblical account, and I hear it still like this in the Middle 
East, people have an interest in these sorts of things. And 
this man is to be commended for this. Not because he's a godly 
man or a righteous man, but he's an interested man. And I dare 
say if you're here this morning, that's a good sign there's some 
degree of interest. And may I suggest that you pursue 
that interest. Be like this particular unit. 
He has the prophecy of Isaiah. He sees that it's speaking of 
the death of a particular man. And he questions, who is the 
prophet speaking of? He understands that somehow what's 
going on in 53 affects what is told in 56. It is because of 
the work of this man in Isaiah 53, that makes it possible for 
the eunuch to draw nigh unto the living God. And if you're 
not a eunuch, the same desire ought to be in your heart. How 
do I, a sinful man, a sinful boy, a sinful girl, a sinful 
woman, draw nigh to the living and true God? It is because of 
the selfsame Jesus that Philip preaches to him from this particular 
text. On his journey back to Ethiopia, 
probably someone else was driving the chariot, the Ethiopian eunuch 
is reading his scroll. Do not text and drive. Do not 
read Isaiah 53 on your Bible app when you're driving. Do not 
say, well, I heard in church on Sunday morning, officer, that 
this man was in his chariot. Doesn't mean he was driving his 
chariot. Have your wife, have your husband, 
have your friend drive, and you sit in the passenger seat, and 
you study Isaiah 53 all you want. You see, this is what this man 
is interested in. He has a desire. There is something 
there. He knows there is a problem. 
And as we move through the passage, as we look at the book of Acts, 
as we survey the entirety of the Scripture, his problem is 
far more difficult and far more severe than simply being a eunuch. There is a problem far more severe 
than simply being barred from the physical assembly of the 
Lord. His problem was one of sin. And only the Lord Jesus 
Christ can deal with that particular malady. And that's what this 
man is learning. The Spirit commands Philip, Philip 
overtakes the chariot, as the Spirit sovereignly brings these 
men together. And that brings us to verse 30. Notice, so Philip ran to him 
and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, do you understand 
what you are reading? He didn't assume. How often do 
we assume that everybody knows who Jesus is? How often do we 
talk to people assuming our confession of faith? No, I believe that 
confession of faith is a blessed foundation for the life and the 
practice of the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. But we mustn't 
assume that everybody to whom we come into contact already 
has that foundation. We need to ask them, do you understand 
who Christ is? Do you understand who the servant 
of the Lord in Isaiah 53 is? Do you understand what atonement 
means? Do you understand what the gospel 
means? How many people today who go 
to church regularly don't even know what the word gospel means? 
Philip in Acts 21 is called an evangelist. Do you know what 
an evangelist is? An evangelist is somebody who 
goes around telling people the evangel. The evangel is the gospel, 
the good news concerning the Lord Jesus Christ. It's not the 
good news concerning my life, my happiness, and my religious 
experience. That's not the gospel. The gospel 
isn't the effect that it has on my life. The gospel is the 
message concerning Jesus. specifically his life, his death, 
and his resurrection. Well, Philip's job or task as 
an evangelist was to meet people and tell them this particular 
message. How many people just assume, 
how many times do we just assume that everybody has the same degree 
of understanding? There ought not to be any shame 
with us to say, do you understand that? If the person's offended, 
so be it. I'd rather them be offended than 
not understand the basic truth that Christ died for sinners. 
And notice this Ethiopian's response. He has a humble honesty. This is something else that we 
don't often meet with. It's not wrong to say, I just 
don't know. It's not wrong to admit ignorance. It's wrong to pretend knowledge 
when you don't have it, but it's not wrong to say, how can I unless 
somebody explains it to me? Again, another commendable trait 
in this particular man. He has an interest in spiritual 
things, he's reading the prophet Isaiah on his way back from Jerusalem, 
and here he doesn't understand who the primary character is 
in Isaiah 53. Philip says, do you understand 
what you're reading? And this man says, how can I 
unless someone guides me? Praise God. Praise the Lord. What do we need with today? Well, 
what do I need the church for? Well, what do I need those preachers 
for? Well, what do I need those teachers 
for? Well, what do I need those books for? What do I need that 
sermonaudio.com for? I know it all. No, you don't. You really don't. There's an 
arrogance absent in this particular man. And he has a desire to know. He says, and he asked Philip 
to come up and sit with him. If you're not a Christian this 
morning, may I say to you that this eunuch is a great example. You're in a place where hopefully 
you're going to hear about Jesus. You may not understand everything. 
Ask questions. Search till you find, because 
these are weighty and most important issues, be open to the truth 
of God's Holy Word. Calvin makes this observation. He contrasts the Ethiopian's 
modesty in that he acknowledges his ignorance freely and frankly. I think the most difficult people 
to witness to or to talk to if they profess Christ are those 
who know it all. It's like that time when a young 
man applied for the pastor's college in London, England in 
the 1800s. Pastor Charles Haddon Spurgeon 
had the particular task of interviewing young potential candidates. And 
this young man presented himself to Pastor Spurgeon. And he basically 
recited his entire religious resume. He basically rehearsed 
how he had been used in witnessing, how he had studied the classics, 
how he had understood the system of theology, how he knew his 
Bible front to back. And after the interview was over, 
C.H. Spurgeon says, well, we have 
no place in our college for you. The young man's surprised. He 
thought he was so fit, a candidate for ministerial training. And 
the young man asks him. He questions him. He says, but 
Mr. Spurgeon, why is it the case? 
He says, well, after hearing of your accomplishments, I don't 
think that our college can do you any good. That's how people 
are today. They think they know everything. Especially internet theologians. 
Man, you spend 20 minutes Google.com and you know it all. You see 
these Facebook discussions where young men sitting in their mother's 
basements, and probably not all of them are, but some of them 
are, eating cheese puffs, licking cheese dust off their fingers, 
getting nasty and arrogant with pastors and doctors in the church. 
What's happened to us? Our natural proclivity and tendency 
to pride. We're not like this man. How 
can I? Unless somebody explains it. Calvin says he acknowledges his 
ignorance freely and frankly. He contrasts this with a person 
who is swollen at it with confidence in his own abilities. Calvin 
goes on to say, that is why the reading of scriptures bears fruit 
with such a few people today, because scarcely one in a hundred 
is to be found who gladly submits himself to teaching. And then 
notice what we find in verse 31. How can I, unless someone 
guides me?" And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him. 
The place in the scripture which he read was this. Now, there 
couldn't have been a better text for Philip. There couldn't have been a more 
appropriate passage for Philip. This was the fastball right down 
the pipe. This was the beautiful one. This 
was the one where all Philip had to do was fall down and he 
would be able to hit it. reading from the prophet Isaiah, 
Isaiah 53. As I mentioned, that prophet 
wrote 700 years prior to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
And in four places, in Isaiah's long prophecy of 66 chapters, 
there are four, what men have called, songs concerning the 
Lord Christ. They are in Isaiah 42, Isaiah 
49, Isaiah 50, and as Pastor Cam read this morning, Isaiah 
52 and 53. They all give us various aspects 
concerning the Lord Jesus Christ. It wasn't an accident that Christ 
was born in Bethlehem on that happy morn. It wasn't just an 
accident that Jesus came and lived and died and rose again. 
This was orchestrated by God Most High from before the foundation 
of the world. The Father gives to the Son a 
people to redeem. The Son willingly undertakes 
to go into this world to die on their behalf. The first promise 
is given in Genesis 3.15, and then it's opened up and developed 
and fully blossoms throughout the Old Testament and comes to 
full fruition in the New Testament Scriptures. But in Isaiah 53, 
one of those high places, one of those blessed vistas of biblical 
revelation, it speaks of the Lord Jesus Christ. Bruce says, 
at a time when not one line of any New Testament document had 
been written, what scripture could any evangelist have used 
more fittingly as the starting point for presenting the story 
of Jesus to one who did not know Him? This would be akin to somebody 
saying, what must I do to be saved? It happens. We see it 
in the book of Acts, chapter 16. Does it happen a lot in your 
day-to-day lives? No. More often than not, you 
meet somebody at work who saw something on the Discovery Channel, 
or A&E, or History, that has debunked the Bible. And they 
confront you at work and they say, well, what about this? They 
don't sit there humbly reading the prophet Isaiah chapter 53 
and say, of whom does the prophet speak? That generally and typically 
doesn't happen. And so in this particular instance, 
as Bruce says, what passage, more fittingly, could be given 
to an evangelist? Let's look at it. The place in 
the scripture which he read was this. He was led as a sheep to 
the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is silent. 
So he opened not his mouth. In his humiliation his justice 
was taken away. And who will declare his generation? For his life is taken from the 
earth. The song itself, Isaiah 53, specifically 
what Pastor Cam read, verses 1-3 deals with the humiliation 
of Christ, 4-6 is the suffering of Christ, verses 7-9 the death 
of Christ, and 10-12 is the triumph of Christ. Now if you ask the 
question, with this particular man, well why? Why did he have 
to do this? Why is this one who was promised 
700 years prior to his coming, why is he purposed to die? Again, you go back a little bit 
in the Old Testament. There was a system set in place 
by God for the people of Israel in how they were to worship Him. 
How were they to worship Him? They were to come to the tabernacle, 
or they were to come to the temple. But when they came to tabernacle 
or temple, they did not come empty-handed. They came with 
an animal. And they came with that animal 
so that the throat of the animal could be cut, and so that the 
animal itself could be sacrificed to the Lord God Most High. And 
the reason for this is this. God is holy. God is righteous. God is majestic. The scripture 
says that God's eye is too pure to approve of any evil. See, I don't think we've begun 
to imagine how holy our God is. I don't think we've begun to 
imagine that scene that we're confronted with earlier in Isaiah 
chapter 6, when the prophet is rehearsing his call to the ministry, 
and he says that he saw the Lord, he saw Jesus Christ high and 
lofty, exalted, and he's attended by angels. You know anything 
about the Bible? The Bible says that angels are 
holy. And these angels had six wings. With six wings they flew, 
I'm sorry, two wings they flew, two wings they covered their 
feet, and with two wings they covered their faces. Why? Because a holy angel cannot look 
upon the glory of God and live. God's holy. So for a sinful man 
to come to a holy God, he demands the shedding of blood. There 
has to be blood. There has to be remission. There 
has to be forgiveness. Do you see those Old Testament 
sacrifices simply pointed forward to this servant of the Lord? 
When we ask the question, why did Jesus die? It wasn't so He 
could be an example. It wasn't so He could fill our 
hearts with love. It wasn't so He could melt us 
under a sappy story. It was so that he could bring 
us to God. That's what it's about. That's what the prophet is saying. That's why the language, notice, 
He was led as a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before 
its shearer is silenced, so He opened not His mouth. Isn't that 
what we find in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John? In the latter 
chapters of each of those Gospel accounts, when Jesus is hauled 
before the civil tribunal, does He testify? Does He declare? 
Does He say, I'm not guilty, I've been framed, I've been, 
you know, they set me up? He doesn't do that. He's like 
a lamb being led to the slaughter. He knows the purpose for which 
He has come. He is not going to shrink back. 
He is not going to turn away. He is going to drink the cup 
of God's wrath that has been given unto Him. You see, the 
eunuch understood something about this servant in Isaiah 53. He didn't understand who the 
prophet was speaking about, but he knew that this man of 53 was 
the reason for 56, that this eunuch could be brought 9. And 
this is what we find in verse 34. So the eunuch answered Philip 
and said, I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this? Of 
himself or of some other man? Again, as we read this particular 
text, perhaps it's difficult for us to really enter in. This man is coming back from 
Jerusalem. He's gone to the temple to worship. 
Has he got to enter in? He's a eunuch. He's kept outside. As much as he's drawn to the 
God of Israel, he realizes there's a barrier. He realizes there's 
a problem. He realizes there is a lack of 
access for him. And so when he's reading this 
and he's connecting with chapter 56, his heart's probably earnest. He's probably anxious. He's probably 
genuinely searching. He actually wants to know, of 
whom does Isaiah speak? I don't like being outside. I 
don't like being barricaded. I don't like being without. I've 
heard of the God of Israel. I've heard of His love. I've 
heard of His mercy. I've heard of His kindness. I've heard of 
His goodness. I've heard of His power. I've heard of His sovereignty 
and His majesty. And I want Him. I want to draw 
nigh. So who does the prophet speak 
of here? And then notice, verse 35, then 
Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at the scripture, he 
preached Jesus to him. He preached Jesus Christ, the 
unique link between God and man. Jesus Christ, the one who came 
in the fullness of the time, sent by his Father, born of a 
woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law. Probably 
Philip went all throughout the prophet Isaiah. He went to 7.14 
and said that this Jesus would be born of a virgin. He went 
to chapter 9 verses 6 and 7 and said, He would be mighty God. He would be everlasting Father. 
He would be Prince of Peace. He would be wonderful counselor 
of the increase of His government and peace. There will be no end. 
He would go to chapter 11 in the prophet Isaiah and say, the 
fullness of the Spirit was upon this Jesus. He would go, of course, 
to these servant songs in 42, and in 49, and 50, and here in 
53. He would explain the significance 
of the life, and the death, and the resurrection to this unit. He would tell the eunuch, you're 
a sinner. It's not just that you're a eunuch 
that keeps you from God. That's just a picture or a symbol 
of your bigger problem. The problem is that man is estranged 
by his sin and he cannot come to God because of that. But herein 
is the glory of the good news. Herein is what Christ did. In 
His life, He obeys His Father. In his death, he cleanses his 
people. And in his resurrection, he brings 
them justification. Philip preached Jesus to this 
particular unit. And we see in the book of Acts, 
it doesn't say it specifically here, but an emphasis that we 
find is on forgiveness. See, if you look in this passage 
this morning, you say, well, I'm not a eunuch and I'm not 
from Ethiopia, so it really has nothing to do with me. I don't know if I could find 
Ethiopia on a map. I don't know if I could explain 
what Kastrati means. I don't think I even understand 
the whole idea of monarchy. So, this passage has nothing 
to do with me. It has everything to do with 
you. Because each and every one of us, each and every person 
here, each and every person out there has this in common. We 
have sinned against God. And one of the things that the 
Bible, specifically the book of Acts, sets forth is forgiveness 
of sin. I often say, at least in my own 
experience, and I think I speak for some in this congregation, 
that one of the chief boons, the chief perks, the chief blessings 
of being a Christian is being forgiven. We sing a song in our 
hymn book and it says this, My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious 
thought. My sin, not in part, but the 
whole, is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more. Praise 
the Lord. Praise the Lord. You see, that's 
the biggest problem anybody ever has. There was recently a debate by 
Ken Ham and Bill Nye. And Bill Nye has all of his scientific 
excuses as to why he won't believe in Ken Ham's version of the Bible, 
which was all propaganda. He has all of his reasoned arguments 
as to why he won't subscribe to the system revealed in the 
Scripture. One thing you probably won't hear him admit is because 
I'm a sinner and the thought of a holy God terrifies me. Be honest, Bill Nye. Admit it. If the God of the Bible is there, 
if the God of the Bible did create, if the God of the Bible does 
govern, and if the God of the Bible is going to judge, that's 
terrifying, isn't it? That's frightful. John Owen, 
the Puritan, made a statement. I can't cite it verbatim, but 
he says something to the effect that when men are under tempests, 
or when they hear lightnings, or see lightnings, and they hear 
the thunder, and they see the storm all about them, they are 
afraid. Not so much in the natural phenomena 
itself, but in the stark reality that if God is there, He is a 
consuming fire. Sin is our problem. You see, 
Fraser and Brad and Katie do not go into that water today 
because they deserve it, because they've earned it, because they're 
good people. That water tells us just the 
opposite. They go into that water because 
they don't deserve mercy. They don't deserve favor from 
God. But because God in His grace 
sent His Son to die. God in His grace has been merciful. That water does not ascribe to 
the glory of Fraser, Brad, or Katie, but to the glory of our 
great God in the sending of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to 
die for His people and to rise again. You know, sometimes, after a 
baptism, a brother, a sister may come up out of the water, 
and I don't know where this started, but we start applauding. Got 
to ask ourselves, what are we applauding for? Perhaps that doxological response 
when the baptism waters have settled, when the brethren have 
emerged, and we sing hymn number, Roman numeral 16. That is our 
applause. Praise God from whom all blessings 
flow. You see, that tank exists to 
glorify the saving work of Jesus Christ. Just a couple of passages in 
the book of Acts that highlight this emphasis on forgiveness. Acts 2, the day of Pentecost, 
Peter says in verse 38, Then Peter said to them, Repent, and 
let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for 
the remission of sins, for the forgiveness of sins, and you 
shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Acts 3.19, repent 
therefore and be converted, that your sins, I love the language 
here, may be blotted out! Blotted out! Removed! Eradicated! Taken away! I think the prophet Isaiah is behind 
this as well! Where Jehovah says, I am God 
who blots out all your transgressions. Notice in Acts chapter 3 at verse 
26, To you first God, having raised up His servant Jesus, 
sent Him to bless you in turning away every one of you from your 
iniquities. And while 4.12 doesn't mention 
specifically forgiveness or remission, we can't survey the book of Acts 
without including this. nor is there salvation in any 
other. For there is no other name under 
heaven given among men by which we must be saved." Acts chapter 
10 verse 43, Peter preaching to the household of Cornelius 
as he brings his sermon to a close. It is on this crescendo, it is 
on this high note, it is on this boon of gospel blessing to him, 
all the prophets witness that through his name, whoever believes 
in him will receive remission of sins. You see the promise? You see what's offered? You see 
what's available? You see why it's good news? We 
are sinners. We've offended God. We deserve 
His punishment. We are liable to His wrath. And yet through the gospel, through 
the good news, because of what Christ the servant has done, 
there is given to us forgiveness. Notice in chapter 13, verse 38, 
as the Apostle Paul himself is preaching in a synagogue in Pisidian 
Antioch. He makes this statement in verse 
36, is preach to you the forgiveness 
of sins. And by Him, everyone who believes 
is justified from all things from which you could not be justified 
by the law of Moses. As difficult as it may be for 
my sensitive-minded brethren, we must wrap our minds around 
the forgiveness of sin. It brings glory to the forgiver 
when we believe this. Acts 26.18. Acts 26.18. The Apostle Paul, again, before 
Agrippa, says what Jesus told him to do. Verse 17 of 26, "...I 
will deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, 
to whom I now send you." Notice, "...to open their eyes, in order 
to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of 
Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and an inheritance 
among those who are sanctified by faith in Me." My sin, oh, 
the bliss of this glorious thought. My sin, not in part, but the 
whole, is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more. Praise 
the Lord. Praise the Lord. You see why 
I say there couldn't have been a better text that the eunuch 
was reading on that day and asks Philip, an evangelist, of whom 
is the prophet speaking? Now notice thirdly and finally, 
the Ethiopian converted and baptized. It's a bit of a textual variant 
in verse 37. If you're using other than the 
King James or the New King James, it'll either not be there or 
it will be in the margin. For the sake of argument this 
morning, we're going to assume its presence in verse 37. Notice 
in verse 36, And the eunuch said, back to 
the beginning, 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? Now we must assume that Philip 
spoke about this. When he preached Jesus to him, 
we do not know how long he did this. We don't know how much 
of the prophet Isaiah he spoke of. We don't know how much of 
the life and ministry and resurrection of Jesus he spoke of. We don't 
know how much of church life and polity and ecclesiastics 
and all that sort of thing he spoke of. But we can assume, 
for the sake of argument, that at some point in the discussion, 
Philip mentioned baptism. And so when the eunuch sees this 
water, he says, what hinders me? It's a good thing. It's a good sign. You see, people 
generally want to be baptized because they've been converted. 
There is an assumption, there is an implication here, however. 
There are things that do hinder baptism. If the eunuch says, 
what hinders me, can't we conclude there are things that would hinder 
you? Things like unbelief hinders baptism. You shouldn't be baptized 
if you're not a believer. You should not be baptized if 
you're not a Christian. If you are not following the 
Lord of glory, you shouldn't be baptized. But in this instance, 
Philip says to him a particular condition, and that's verse 37. If you believe with all your 
heart, you may. If you believe with all your 
heart, you may. Again, the implication is clear. 
If you don't believe with all your heart, then you may not. 
Just like the Lord's Supper. You don't partake of the Lord's 
Supper if you're not a Christian. You don't come to the supper 
and you don't come to baptism if you're not a believer. It 
is for believers. This has a covenantal context. In the prophet Jeremiah, 31 to 
34, Jeremiah, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, defines for 
us what the New Covenant community will look like. The New Covenant 
community will be those who know the Lord. The New Covenant community 
will be those whose sins are forgiven. The New Covenant community 
will be those who have the law of God internalized in their 
hearts and in their minds. And when we get to the book of 
Acts, who gets baptized? The New Covenant community! It's 
a beautiful thing. It's very simple. It's very glorious. So Philip tells him, if you believe 
with all your heart, you may. And then notice what the eunuch 
says. He answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the son 
of God. So when Philip preached Jesus 
to him, By the power and the operation of the Holy Spirit, 
the eunuch now lays hold of this. He may not know the entire system 
of revealed, propositional Christianity, but this much he knows. I was 
lost, and now I'm found. I was dead, but now I'm alive. I was blind, but now I see. This is the common confession 
of God's people. This is what Jesus commends God 
for when Peter himself speaks it in Matthew 16. When Jesus 
says, Who do men say that I, the Son of Man am? Peter says, 
Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus 
says to him, Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and 
blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father who is in 
heaven. This man makes the good confession. This man has passed from death 
unto life in this roadway from Jerusalem to Gaza, which is desert. Maybe there's a contrast set 
up. Nothing grows, nothing lives, nothing is moving and vibrant 
in the desert except God's Spirit. There may be allusions here to 
the prophets as well. I think in the book of Acts what 
we're seeing is all the prophets coming into fulfillment and into 
fruition. It's really a beautiful thing. 
But he says, if you believe, and this man makes the good confession, 
I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Verse 38, so 
he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the 
eunuch went down into the water and he baptized him. Our beloved 
John Calvin says, here we see the rite used among the men of 
old time in baptism, for they put all the body into the water. Now, as you know, he did not 
maintain that as the due way to administer the sacrament. 
But he understands. Page 1320 in the Institutes, 
the Battles edition, he says, the word baptism means to dip, 
immerse, to plunge the body. And then he goes on, of course, 
to say, but we don't need to do it that way. We can sprinkle 
or pour. What? If it means to immerse, if it 
means to dip, get a bigger hole, put more water in it. This was a glad day for the eunuch. 
This was a happy occasion for this man who had been on the 
outside. I've mentioned the prophet Isaiah 
56. Do not let the son of the foreigner 
who has joined himself to the Lord speak saying, the Lord has 
utterly separated me from his people, nor let the eunuch say 
here I am a dry tree. For thus says the Lord to the 
eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths and choose what pleases me. We'll 
give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off. That's been brought to fulfillment 
in the baptism of this man. The prophet Isaiah not only foretold 
the suffering servant of the Lord in Isaiah 53, but he also 
foretold the blessed benefit and effect of that servant's 
mission in Isaiah 56, and now this eunuch has participated 
in it. Now, a couple of thoughts, and 
then we close. First of all, Perhaps I'll save this one for 
another time. First of all, the doctrine of 
baptism. The doctrine of baptism. Notice in this passage, we learn 
something specifically about the simple act of baptism. First, it takes place after conversion. The eunuch confesses that Jesus 
Christ is the Son of God. The eunuch confesses his place 
in God's kingdom by God's grace. Secondly, baptism is conditioned 
upon faith. You see, Philip isn't interested 
in just filling the church rolls. Which, by the way, this does 
not take place in the church. Our confession is very conspicuous 
that speaks of baptism as being an ordinance of the New Testament 
unto the party baptized. The most important elements in 
baptism are the persons baptized. Well, not the most important. 
God's grace, mercy, forgiveness, salvation, gospel blessing, benefit, 
redemption, all of that's the most important. But if none of 
us were here, Fraser, Brad, and Katie could be successfully baptized. We just get to watch. We just 
get to see it. We just get to participate. We 
just get to witness it. But it's unto the party baptized. So it takes place after this 
man's conversion. It takes place conditional upon 
the fact that he has faith. Philip doesn't just say, I want 
to baptize people indiscriminately and add them to the church. That's 
not the point. If you believe in your heart, 
if you've come to the Savior, if you've come to Christ, then 
you may. Thirdly, baptism is the external 
sign of God's internal grace. We had a young man visit our 
church one time when we had a baptism. And this young man comes from 
a different tradition in terms of church background. And for 
them, water was holy. And when we're completed with 
our baptism today, we'll just pull the plug on the water and 
it'll drain in the parking lot. And this particular young man 
said something to the effect of, you're wasting, what are 
you doing with all that holy water? It's going all over the 
parking lot. It's not holy water. There's 
nothing magical in that tank. There's nothing spiritual or 
ethereal that's going to take place in that tank. That tank 
is a visible, tangible, physical element or picture or symbol 
of what God has done inwardly. The real work has been done by 
the Spirit in the hearts of Fraser, Brad, and Katie. He has effected 
that blessed change. He has brought them out of darkness 
into marvelous light. He has given them the gifts of 
faith and repentance. They have believed on the Lord 
Jesus. They have confessed that Jesus is the Son of God. This 
tank simply expresses that in a visible way so that God may 
receive the glory. As I've already mentioned, baptism 
is primarily for the person being baptized. Our confession says 
it is an ordinance of the New Testament, ordained by Jesus 
Christ to be unto the party baptized, a sign of his fellowship with 
him in his death and resurrection, of his being engrafted into him, 
of remission of sins, and of his giving up unto God through 
Jesus Christ to live and walk in newness of life. And then, 
fifthly, it is an occasion of affirmation that you and you 
and you will always be able to look back on and say, I have 
given myself to another. You know, I count my wife and 
I married right now. But there's something about reviewing. 
Maybe not in our particular instance, but in most people's instances, 
there's something about renewing or remembering those vows initially 
made. I had this discussion one time 
with somebody. I won't get into polemics here. 
Sometimes people kind of lose their minds a little bit, don't 
they? I'm sure none of you married 
couples have ever had any rough roads. I'm sure that when you 
wake up in the morning, whether it's a cloudy day in Chilliwack, 
the sun shines in your room. Your spouse never has bad breath, 
they never have a blemish, they never raise their voice, they 
never say anything untoward, and you guys just skip around 
the home, kissing and gently nuzzling one another and having 
nothing but joy and pleasure. There's some of us, however, 
that need to be reminded Go to God and to one another. I think 
baptism functions that way. I think that's how Paul employs 
it in Romans 6. When some Christians need to 
be reminded that they're not to let sin reign in their mortal 
members, when they're to put to death the deeds of the body, 
what does Paul remind them in Romans 6, 1-4? You were baptized. You were dead and buried and 
raised with Christ. Do not present your members as 
instruments of unrighteousness. Brad and Fraser and Katie, remember 
that tank and remember this idea contained in our confession. 
It says, and of his or hers giving up unto God through Jesus Christ 
to live and walk in newness of life. The day you first believe 
the gospel has a priority above all days in your lives. But this 
day is the symbolic. This day is the representation. This day is the public affirmation 
of that one. And one that hopefully you'll 
be able to recall. When you start to wander, and 
you start to go untoward, or you start to engage in conduct 
that is not godly, Remember, you died with Christ, you were 
buried with Christ, and you've been raised with Christ. And 
for all of us baptized people, let it have that effect on our 
minds and on our hearts. Shall we live in this world like 
the world when we're baptized? Shall we who have been marked 
by the Spirit of the living God Himself, those who died and buried 
and raised with Christ, go and live like the world? Shall we 
engage in lawlessness and godlessness and wickedness and evil and let 
down our guard day in and day out? Remember your baptism. This is a way I think this tank 
will function as a means of grace for everybody else. Remember 
when you were baptized. Remember your commitment. Remember 
those things that you stated when you made the good confession 
in front of many witnesses. How is that going today? Maybe 
within your own heart of hearts, in your own mind, in your own 
secret place, you need to say, God, forgive me, I've not lived 
consistent with my baptism. I'm not lived as a man who's 
dead and buried and raised with Christ. I'm not lived as a woman 
who's dead and buried and raised with Christ. I've lived like 
the world. I've lived like the devil. I've lived like evil men. 
God, forgive me. Grant me grace. Grant me help. Grant me the Spirit. Grant me, 
not just Fraser, not just Brad, not just Katie, but each and 
every one of us to give up unto God, through Jesus Christ, to 
live and walk in newness of life. That's what we are to be about 
in the church. And then we learn something about 
salvation. Paul the Apostle tells us in 
1 Corinthians that not many wise, not many noble, come to Christ. He's appealing to the reality 
that the gospel, as the world sees it, is foolishness. And 
this is seen in the fact that God has saved Corinthians. And we can stress that, we can 
preach that, we must maintain that and affirm that. But it 
may not be many wise, and it may not be many noble, it may 
not be many wealthy, but some. This Ethiopian eunuch held a 
place of authority. This Ethiopian eunuch looked 
over the treasury of Ethiopia. This Ethiopian eunuch was a man 
of prestige. It's this idea out there that 
we can only preach to one class of sinners. Sinners are sinners. I don't care if they're Ethiopian 
eunuchs or they're not. All men everywhere are dead in 
their trespasses and sins. Our task is to preach the gospel. Notice as well, salvation comes 
to men in crisis and men not in crisis. There's no crisis 
situation with this man in this eunuch. He's riding back from 
Jerusalem, minding his own business, reading the prophet Isaiah. Now 
there's some internal turmoil. He wants to come nigh. He understands 
something about the prophets. He wants to know more about this 
servant in 53. But he's not like this man in 
Acts 16, this jailer that's about to do himself in. It comes at the bidding of a 
sovereign God. It comes according to the good 
pleasure and the mind and the will of Him who has purpose to 
save a great multitude that no man can number. Our task is to 
be a faithful Philip. How do you like that for alliteration? 
Be a faithful Philip and tell sinners about Jesus. That's it. And dare I say it, let God be 
God. Our task as the church is to 
proclaim the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is God's task 
to save to the uttermost all who draw nigh unto Him through 
His Son. And I say it with absolute judgment 
day honesty and certainty and confidence that if you believe 
the gospel, if you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, you shall 
be saved. You will know the forgiveness 
of sins and you will receive a righteousness that will bring 
you to God himself. Let us pray. Our Father in Heaven, 
we thank You so very much for Your Word, and we thank You for 
this account in Acts chapter 8. We pray that You would be 
glorified in the preaching of the Word. We pray that You would 
use it to do our hearts good. I pray for Fraser, for Brad, 
and for Katie, that they would remember this day in a special 
way, that God, they would be affected, and that they would 
certainly want to give themselves up unto God, through Jesus Christ, 
to walk in newness of life. how we thank you for your grace, 
how we thank you for your mercy, how we thank you for forgiveness 
of sin. And we pray now through Christ our Lord. Amen.