Acts 8 - A brief comment on belief

Lots of posts today, I end with this final reading about coming to faith.

You can read the whole chapter on your own, but this is the point I want to emphasize.

Concerning the Ethiopian Enoch, who came to Jerusalem to worship.

Btw...Philip connected to him via a question, and by teaching from the world of God the scriptures.

Act 8:30  And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest?

Act 8:31  And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him.

Act 8:32  The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth:

Act 8:33  In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.

Act 8:34  And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man?

Act 8:35  Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.

So how did he come to faith? God had already drawn this man, as Jesus says repeatedly in John 6.

Joh 6:65  ♥️  And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.

God opened his heart to hear the preaching of His Word! Note it wasn't, the enuch's own action of believing that saved him, it was God opening, drawing him that first sealed this in his heart by the a Spirit opening the message of the Word of God to him, his statement of belief was just affirming this had already occurred.

Act 8:35  Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.

Act 8:36  And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?

Act 8:37  And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

Act 8:38  And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.

Act 8:39  And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing.

If you want you can hear a young woman who writes a blog for women and records some audio talking about this very point listen here. She's not one of the massively popular women teachers, but she does grasp a good deal of traditional reformed doctrine. It's worth a listen even to men, though she does make the effort to direct her teaching just to women, she is not a pastor. Nor a book seller.

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