Philip and the Ethiopian

Watch the Story with Ms Stephanie

Learn the Big Idea:

The Old Testament revealed Jesus

Read the Passage: Acts 8:26–40

[26] Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place. [27] And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship [28] and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. [29] And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” [30] So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” [31] And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. [32] Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this:

“Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter

and like a lamb before its shearer is silent,

so he opens not his mouth.

[33] In his humiliation justice was denied him.

Who can describe his generation?

For his life is taken away from the earth.” (Isaiah 53:7-8)

[34] And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” [35] Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. [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. [40] But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he preached the gospel to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

Watch the Video:

Tell the Story: CLICK HERE to view the story slides

NOTE: If you click on the first slide it will go full screen and a script will be on the bottom of the screen.

Discuss the Questions:

Who told Philip to go join the Ethiopian? (An angel of the Lord)
What book of the Bible did Philip hear the Ethiopian man reading? (Isaiah)
What did Philip ask the Ethiopian? (Do you understand what you’re reading?)
What question did the Ethiopian ask Philip about what he was reading? (Is Isaiah talking about himself or someone else)
Who did Philip tell the Ethiopian Isaiah was talking about? (Jesus)
What did the Ethiopian want to do when he heard about Jesus?) (Get baptized)
Did baptism save the Ethiopian? (No, he believed in Jesus so he wanted to be baptized to show that he had a Savior)
What do we learn from this passage? (Talk about this awhile. 1) the OT reveals the coming of Jesus and His sacrifice. 2) It’s our job to tell people about Jesus and what He’s done – just like Phillip did)

Have some Fun: