I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on Acts 7-8.

    When Stephen was arrested and put on trial he recounted the history of the Jewish people. He pointed out how God had selected them as the descendants of Abraham, but that they had again and again rejected God’s commands. He infuriated them by telling them that they were just like their ancestors who had persecuted and killed the prophets sent by God. Their response to Stephen was to prove him right by killing him. Despite the terribly painful method by which they killed him Stephen begged God to forgive them of this sin. There are those today who would accuse Stephen of hate speech for what he said, but it was those who stoned him to death who demonstrated true hate. While Stephen called those he spoke to out for their sin, he did not hate them. Rather he hoped that they would repent and turn from their sin. Let us seek to model Stephen’s love.

    I have always had a special place in my heart for the stories of Philip’s ministry told here. After the death of Stephen, and the persecution which followed, Philip went to Samaria and preached there. Many believed the message which Philip preached because of the miracles he performed. One of those who came to Christ because of Philip was the man tradition names Simon the Sorcerer. Apocryphal tales tell us that he fell away from the faith after his confrontation with Peter, but I believe that a careful reading of Luke’s account here suggests otherwise. The way I read this passage, Simon was a con-man who used magician’s tricks to make people think that he had supernatural powers. Simon followed Philip around and became a believer when he realized that Philip was not using tricks the way that he did. When he saw people receiving the Holy Spirit when Peter laid his hands on them he became so excited that he attempted to buy the power to do the same. I believe that when Peter rebuked him for this, Simon realized his error and truly repented. Part of Simon’s attempt to purchase this power was a desire for the prestige which would come from being able to do so. But part of it was a genuine desire to see more people receive the Holy Spirit.

    Then we have the story of Philip speaking with the Ethiopian eunuch. When Philip overheard him reading the prophet Isaiah, he approached him and asked if he understood what he was reading. I have long pictured the eunuch reading the passage silently, then repeating it out loud to try to make sense of it. In any case, when Philip approached him he invited Philip to explain what he was reading. Philip took this opportunity to show how the Old Testament prophets pointed to Jesus as the Messiah. Once the eunuch understood Philip’s message about Christ, he asked to be baptized. Philip did so immediately. I think that all too often today we squelch the enthusiasm of new believers by delaying baptism until they have gone through classes or other delays for us to be sure that their faith is genuine. In this story, immediately after Philip baptized the eunuch The Holy Spirit took Philip elsewhere and the eunuch never saw him again. Yet tradition says that this eunuch founded the Church in Ethiopia (a tradition which I am inclined to believe).