The qualities of the witness

"Come close to this chariot and join him ... Philippe ran and heard [the high official of the Queen of Ethiopia] who was reading the prophet Isaiah ; He said : But do you understand what you are reading ?" Acts 8. 29, 30

An angel of the Lord commanded Philip to leave Samaria, where the people were attentive to the Gospel and to go to a desert road linking Jerusalem to Gaza. At the time, two roads connected the two cities. The Spirit commands Philip to borrow the least frequented. This call seems strange, but it does not disturb Philippe : "He got up and went away". It obeys : first lesson, even if such a place seems hardly to be an ideal field of activity for an evangelist !

Here he is on the road Jerusalem-Gaza ... there is nobody ! Suddenly an imposing chariot appears. Its occupant is the Minister of Finance of Candace, Queen of Ethiopia (a kingdom in southern Egypt). The instructions are precise : "Come closer ... join him". After obeying the call, here is a second lesson: personal evangelism is a matter of closeness.

What does Philippe do ? He catches the tank, he strains his ear. Hearing this dignitary read aloud a scroll of the prophet Isaiah, Philip realizes that he does not understand what he reads ; Was his reading hesitant ? Did silences show that he was stumbling over difficulties ? This listening time, the third lesson, leads Philippe to boldly ask the question that hits home : "Do you understand what you are reading ?" The dignitary responds with a call for help in the form of a question : "How could the I, if no one guides me ?" The verb he uses is the same that is used to describe the action of the Holy Spirit who "leads" into the truth (John 16:13) !

The Spirit who guided Philip to listen is the same one who inspires today who wants to be a witness for Christ. It is still necessary to approach, to listen, but without ever forgetting the goal. Philip knew how to accompany this man to the end in search: he brought him to Christ.

Philippe obeyed. The Spirit used it for a purpose of a dimension he could not imagine : the introduction of the Gospel to the African continent according to David's prophecy : "Great ones will come from Egypt ; Cush (Ethiopia) will hasten to extend his hands to God" (Ps 68, 31).

Source (Pleasing the Lord)