Fishing with the Master
Waiting to Set the Hook
Acts 8:36-39
(Advance Slide #1)
Introduction
(Advance Slide #2)
“Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.”
- This has been the jumping off point for a series of lessons I have titled, “Fishing with the Master."
- This is the last lesson in this series, and I hope that you have been blessed by them.
- More importantly I hope and pray for 2 things:
- That you have seen the importance of personal work.
- That you have seen how you can conduct personal work.
If you have not been with us during these lessons let me recap:
(Advance Slide #3)
- We have used the text from Acts 8 where Philip met, studied, and baptized the Ethiopian man.
- The first lesson was about going to the water…can’t fish if you are not near the water.
- Philip, was led by the Spirit of God into the desert and went to this man.
- The second lesson was about using the right bait…there is a right and wrong bait.
- Philip, heard the man reading and baited him with this, “Do you understand what you are reading?”
- He was invited into the chariot to study with the man.
- The third lesson was about casting your line/bait into the water.
- Philip sated the line by meeting him where he was (Isaiah 53) and taught him Jesus.
One of the hardest parts of fishing is waiting…being patient.
(Advance Slide #4)
- Once you are at the water, have chosen the right bait, have cast you line into the water you have to wait.
- You have to wait until the right moment to set your hook.
- Will the fish bite, or will they pass up on the bait?
- If you try to speed things along you won’t catch anything, if you do not pay attention you will miss out too.
Back to Acts 8:
- Philip has cast the line/bait into the water…he is studying with the Ethiopian…he now waits for the right moment.
- What you will notice is that Philip does not force this process.
- What he does is leads the Ethiopian man, answers his questions, and the end result speaks for itself.
(Advance Slide #5)
Text
36 And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?” 38 And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. 39 And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. Acts 8:36-39
The passage that Philip and the man were studying was extremely meaningful.
- It wasn’t just looking through a long-rage prophetic telescope.
- It was describing the promises and purposes of God.
- A picture begins to take shape.
(Advance Slide #6)
The Suffering Servant:
- Will bring to completion Israel’s task.
- Will come to where they are.
- To do what Israel and the rest of the world could not do for themselves.
- To bear the shame & reproach of the whole world.
- To die under the weight of the world’s wickedness.
(Advance Slide #7)
A new covenant eve for the outsiders & foreigners…even eunuchs.
- Jesus fulfilled the OT prophecies and brought redemption for the whole world.
- No wonder the Ethiopian was so excited.
- No wonder he wanted to share in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus by baptism.
- The story of becomes his own personal story!
(Advance Slide #8)
"So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” Rom. 10:17
- So real was this story and his experience that he ordered the chariot stopped.
- He asked another question, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?” - vs. 36
- He wanted to be baptized IMMEDIATELY!
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Lesson
Philip answered/taught this man, and waited for him to realize that he needed to be baptized
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How do we know that believers are to be baptized?
- We know that Philip began at the Isaiah 53 passage and taught him the "good news about Jesus.”
- What is the “good news of Jesus?”
- It is that Jesus came as the perfect sacrifice, to die or us, and atone for our sins through his blood that was shed.
- How do we take on his death?
- It is through baptism.
- As Philip was teaching the Ethiopian, we can logically infer, that he taught him these things.
- Perhaps though, he saw someone baptized while he was in Jerusalem.
Throughout the book of Acts baptism is an important part.
- It is an important part of the believers commitment, and witness for Christ.
(Advance Slide #13)
The "good confession”
- In the baptism accounts that we have converts are not baptized until they have given a testimony of their faith.
- In his announcement of his desire to be baptized he was confessing his faith.
- Not only to Philip, but also to those who were traveling with him.
(Advance Slide #14)
He “went on his way rejoicing.”
- We do not have anymore about him in scripture.
- Irenaeus, in the second century wrote of this Ethiopian man as a missionary in Ethiopia.
- We do know that his salvation filled him with…JOY…REJOICING!
- It comes from the Greek word chairo that means “a state of happiness and well being”
- His life was one of happiness, joy, gladness, and rejoicing!
- Ours can be too!
(Advance Slide #15)
Action Step
"6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth." 1 Cor. 3:6-7
Have the patience it that is needed to wait.
- We can not rush someone along this journey.
- We can be sured of this:
- If there is an honest searching heart.
- If you go to that person and give them the truth in the gospel of Christ…baptism will follow.
- God will be glorified!
(Advance Slide #16)
Conclusion
If you follow Christ you are a Christian, but you are also a fishermen.
- That is, a fisher of men and women.
- Jesus came and died so that our sin can be reconciled and that we can have a relationship with the Father.
- This series of lesson has been about how we can lead people to Him.
I shared with you John 14:6 last week…it’s Jesus’ own words:
(Advance Slide #17)
- "I am the way and the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me.”
- Being "fishers of men” mean leading people to the way, to the truth, so that they can have the life.
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