April 28, 2024 homily on Acts 8:26-40 and John 15:5,7-8 by Pastor Galen
In John 15 verse 5, Jesus said, “I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing.”
Jesus’s disciples would have all been quite familiar with vines and branches. Even though they were fishermen, tax collectors, and occupations other than farmers, they probably had friends or neighbors who grew grapes. And they would have walked through many vineyards during the three years they followed Jesus throughout Galilee and Judea. Back then there wasn’t a clear separation between urban and rural dwellers, since many people who lived in towns and villages farmed fields outside the city gates. And so the imagery of vines and branches would have connected deeply with Jesus’s followers.
If Jesus were talking with us today, he might talk about cell phone or internet service. Perhaps he would say, “I am the internet, and you are electronic devices. If you stay connected to me you can do great things, but apart from me, you can do nothing!”
The point is that if we’re connected to Jesus we can do great things. We have infinite resources at our fingertips. But if we are not connected to Jesus, then there’s not much we can do except play Minesweeper (or whatever other games we have downloaded on our phones or electronic devices.)
If you’ve spent a significant amount of time in church, you’ve probably heard quite a few sermons about the Vine and the Branches, and what it means to “abide in Christ.” You know the importance of having a regular time of prayer and Scripture reading, or “devotional time” with God. You know it’s important to listen to God, and not just talk to God. And so rather than giving a 10-point sermon about what it means to Abide in Christ, I’d like to invite us to turn to the Book of Acts for a real-life historical example of someone by the name of Philip who was connected to Jesus. And I’d like us to see the fruit that was born from this connection.
Philip the Evangelist
Starting in Acts chapter 8 verse 26, we read that “an angel of the Lord said to Philip, ‘Get up and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.’ (This is a wilderness road.)” And the next verse says, “So he got up and went” (Acts 8:27a).
Talk about being connected to the “vine”! An angel of the Lord told Philip to go. Philip heard the call, and he got up and went!
Now, for some historical context, this Philip is not the same Philip who was one of Jesus’s earliest disciples. Rather, this Philip was chosen to serve as one of the first deacons in the church in Jerusalem–a story we can read about a few chapters earlier, in Acts 6. During that time, it became known that the Greek-speaking widows had been left out of the food distribution system that the church had set up, and so, after prayerful discernment, the leaders of the church appointed seven Greek-speaking men to serve as deacons in the church to oversee the food distribution system and to ensure that no one was left out. In the language of today, we might say that Philip was a “Diversity and Inclusion” officer in the early church.
A few chapters later, we see that persecution broke out against the Christians in Jerusalem, and many, including Philip, were forced to flee. Philip fled to Samaria, which was a wonderful hiding spot, since Jewish people typically avoided Samaria as much as possible! But while Philip was hiding out there, he couldn’t help but share with the Samaritans the Good News about Jesus’s resurrection, and many converted to Christianity.
Now, in Acts 8:26 and following, Philip is instructed by an angel of the Lord to go to the wilderness road leading from Jerusalem to Gaza. Philip was connected to the “internet” and heard the message loud and clear, so he picked up and went.
The Ethiopian Official
On the road, he sees a chariot carrying an Ethiopian official who happens to be in charge of the Queen’s entire treasury. Notice that this chariot is heading away from Jerusalem. The Ethiopian official had come to Jerusalem to worship, and was now returning home. And as he is returning home, he’s reading from the book of Isaiah.
Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over to this chariot and join it.” So Philip ran up to it and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah. He asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” He replied, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to get in and sit beside him. (Acts 8:29-31)
So to summarize, Philip runs up to the chariot and hears the official reading from the Bible (back then people used to read out loud). Philip asks the official, “Do you understand what you’re reading?” The Ethiopian official says, “No, I need some explanation,” and he invites Philip to join him in the chariot. Notice that during that whole interaction, Philip had been running next to the chariot! (The official may have instructed his driver to drive slowly so that he could read, making it easier for Philip to catch up, but it’s still pretty impressive that Philip could have that whole conversation while running next to the chariot.)
Anyway, Philip gets into the chariot, and then they proceed to have a Bible study, during which Philip tells the official that the passage he had been reading in Isaiah was a prophecy about Jesus. After they have been riding along in the chariot and talking for quite some time, they see a body of water, and the Ethiopian official says, “’Look, here is water! What is to prevent me from being baptized?’”
A Pivotal Question
This may seem like a simple question at first glance. We might say, “Of course, if someone wants to be baptized, they should be baptized!” But that was not the obvious answer in this case, given the circumstances, so it was essential that Philip was plugged into Jesus and that he was receiving the “wireless signal” from the holy Spirit, because many people would have answered the official by saying, “there’s a lot to prevent you from being baptized!”
You see, under the old system, in the law given by Moses, individuals such as this Ethiopian official would have been forbidden from entering the “assembly of the Lord” (see Deuteronomy 23:1) because as a eunuch he didn’t fit the traditional binary gender categories of “male” or “female.” As a eunuch, he was excluded from even entering the temple in Jerusalem. Even if he had been allowed to enter the temple, as a foreigner, he could have only gone into the outer-most courts (the Court of the Gentiles), which is where all of the money changers were set up and where the sacrifices were being sold, making it rather difficult to worship.
So this Ethiopian official is returning from Jerusalem, where he had been turned away from worshiping. He’s returning home disappointed, and with so many unanswered questions. He is avidly searching the Scriptures for any glimpse and glimmer of hope that he might ever be included. No wonder the Holy Spirit sent one of the chief “diversity officers” of the early church to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ to this official! No wonder Philip was sent to proclaim through word and sacrament that God’s grace is indeed available to all, and Christ’s death and resurrection fulfilled all of the requirements of the law, so that no one is excluded, and all may experience God’s grace and salvation.
As you’ve probably surmised, Philip did indeed baptize this Ethiopian official. There was no voice from heaven telling him to do so (at least not that we see in the passage). But given the fact that the angel of the Lord had told him to go to this very road and to this very chariot, and given that Philip had so far seen the circle growing wider and wider, Philip knew what he was being called to do. First Jewish men and women had been filled with the Holy Spirit. Then Greek-speaking Jews such as himself heard and received the good news. Then Samaritans were included. And all of this had led Philip to this very moment, when an Ethiopian eunuch asked him to baptize him. Philip realized then that when Jesus had said, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations” (Matt. 28:19), that “all” means “all.”
Staying Connected to the Vine
This week the 2020 General Conference of the United Methodist Church is being held in Charlotte, North Carolina. (I know it’s 2020, but the conference was postponed for 4 years due to the pandemic.) General Conference is the highest legislative body in The United Methodist Church. It usually convenes once every four years to determine the denomination’s future direction. Between 600 and 1000 delegates are elected by their annual conferences—half clergy and half laity.
The General Conference is deciding on multiple issues during the course of these two weeks, but the topic that is getting the most press is the question of LGBTQ+ inclusion. If you’re been watching or listening to the news, you’ve probably heard headlines such as: “United Methodist Church begins reorganization over LGBTQ+ issues,” and “United Methodists will again debate LGBTQ clergy and same-sex weddings” (NPR). NBC reported: “United Methodist Church grapples with deep divides over LGBTQ issues,” and Fox News declared, “United Methodists to hold first worldwide conference since LGBTQ inclusion spurred schism.” When you hear salacious headlines such as these, I would encourage you to go to the source: UM News https://www.umnews.org/en/ Often other news sources don’t understand the terminology used in the United Methodist Church, so it’s important to read the news directly from the people who are most directly involved.
In many ways, this General Conference is a pivotal moment in the life of our denomination, not unlike the encounter that Philip had with the Ethiopian official on the road to Gaza. Our denomination is wrestling with significant questions, such as whether we will recognize and affirm the gifts and graces of those who have heard and responded to the call to ordained ministry, no matter their gender or orientation. And, will our church bless and support those who desire to enter into monogamous covenantal life-long marriage with someone of the same gender?
While our denomination is wrestling with significant questions such as these, it is so important that every one of us stay “connected” to Christ, and that we as a congregation and denominational pay attention to the movement of the Spirit. We must listen for the voice of Jesus as he calls us to go and make disciples of all nations, and as we seek to create spaces that are welcoming for all.
May we, like Philip, stay connected to Jesus, and may we be willing to go wherever Christ calls us to go, proclaiming the message of hope and salvation. And as we stay connected to Jesus, may we bear much fruit.
Amen!
Galen Zook 