April 29, 2018 – Acts 8:26-40
Acts 8:26-40
The Eunuch and the Evangelist
Fifth Sunday of Easter – April 29, 2018
First Lutheran Church – Winnipeg, MB
I just love this story in Acts about the powerful eunuch from Ethiopia –
and Phillip who finds himself in a weird situation.
First: some straight talk.
A eunuch was a man whose testicles were removed at an early age so he could serve at court.
He would not be a threat to the king and could be trusted to work closely with the queen.
Apparently this was the custom in Ethiopia.
One problem was that eunuchs often had little say in their fate –
it would be chosen for them by their families.
Another problem was that eunuchs didn’t fit into any known gender categories.
Were they male? Female? Something else? If so, what? They just didn’t belong.
This eunuch is powerful, and rich, and trusted:
he is in charge of the entire treasury of the queen of Ethiopia!
But . . . he doesn’t fully belong anywhere!
A final problem, of course, was that eunuchs, obviously, could not have children:
their life was “cut off” from them.
They could not live on and perpetuate their name through their children,
Which was the biggest of deals in the ancient world.
This particular eunuch, though, has heard of a gracious God who has formed a people to
to do the divine work of justice and mercy, and this sounds pretty good to the eunuch.
He would like to be part of this people.
So he becomes what the Jewish people call a proselyte –
a non-Jewish person who worshipped the God of Israel but who was not a
full member of the Jewish people.
Eunuchs could never become full members of the Jewish community because of
a law in Deuteronomy.
They could never eat with them or share their life.
This doesn’t stop him from going to Jerusalem and worshipping this God anyway –
but of course he would only be allowed so far – he would only be allowed as far as
the outer court at the Temple with the other non-Jews, and no further:
for it says in Deuteronomy that eunuchs were not allowed to participate in
the assemblies of God’s people (Deuteronomy 23:1)
He did not feel fully welcome.
So he watched and he listened and he heard God’s word but he wondered if it was
really for him as he watched it all from the outside.
Maybe it was not for him.
But . . . he takes away with him a scroll from Isaiah – he takes home a little light reading!
A little homework!
And in Isaiah he reads something very different!
He’s cruising along in his chariot, reading away, and he reads something amazing.
He reads something nobody has told him about yet.
And he gets excited.
He’s reading in Isaiah, and this is what he reads:
Do not let the eunuch say, “I am just a dry tree.” For thus says the LORD: to the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, I will give, in my house and within my walls, a monument and a name better than sons or daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off.” (Isaiah 56:3-5)
A name better than sons and daughters?
Full inclusion in the people?
A place to finally belong?
And so he keeps reading.
And all of a sudden – some guy jumps into his chariot!
This is turning out to be a crazy day!
Philip hears him reading from Isaiah – because back in the day silent reading was unknown.
And Philip says, “Whatcha readin’?”
And the eunuch says, “I’m at this part now”:
Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter, and like a lamb silent before its shearer, so he does not open his mouth. 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)
The eunuch asks Philip: who is Isaiah talking about?
This person who was denied justice, whose life was taken away from him against his will?
Who died without having children? Whose life, like mine, was cut off from him?
I really really wanna know because I really really identify with this guy!
And Philip tells him what he believes: that it’s about Jesus.
Who died, whose life was taken from him, who had no children –
but who was raised by God and now has a place with God forever and
given an everlasting name that will not be cut off.
Philip explains to him that in Jesus God comes to identify very closely with
those whose lives had been cut off, with outsiders, with those who don’t fit in –
in order to embrace them and include them within God’s beloved people.
Philip explains Jesus’ ministry in seeking out the lost, giving them God’s grace,
and including them within the circle of God’s love by healing them and
eating with them.
And then Philip likely tells him about the Christian communities springing up all over
that are composed of fits and misfits all eating together, all worshipping with each other,
all sharing with each other, all working with each other –
all continuing the work of Jesus together.
And the gift of baptism is the sign that you belong.
The eunuch looks around – and lo and behold, in his great excitement, he sees some water!
“Look!!!!!” he says to Philip! And you can hear the excitement in his voice –
“Look!!!!!! I see some water right there!!!! Let’s do it now!”
And Philip – maybe a little nervously because
he has already got into trouble for baptizing some Samaritans in Jerusalem –
Philip looks around and thinks “Oh boy – just wait till they hear about this. . .”
And so together – and the together is very very important – together
they get down into the water,
just like Jesus got into the watery depths of our difficult human lives with us,
and Philip baptizes him right into God’s life, into the circle of God’s love,
right into the middle of the embrace of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
And there it is: at that moment, he comes to know he has full membership in the church,
full inclusion into the body of Christ.
And he finds his place: in Christ, in the community, held within the embrace of the triune God,
held within the embrace of the community.
And hopefully he finds his place in the mission of the church,
a huge part of which is to include the excluded – so that all people, all people,
find their home, their place, where they belong.
The church, I think, is rediscovering its ministry of inclusion – and the power of that.
To be accepted for who you are.
I love this story because it is just so contemporary.
It proclaims that no matter who you are, no matter how you identify your gender,
no matter what you have experienced – you have a place here and
you are making this day special by just being you.
And you have a place of meaning and dignity in God’s mission to love heal bless and feed
this whole world and every person in it.
And your job is to just keep on including, keep on building community,
keep on forming relationships.
Keep on expanding the circle of God’s love where people can experience full acceptance and
full inclusion – so that together they can further the mission.
In an age where either “anything goes” on the one hand or people are severely judged for
Deviating from the norm in any way on the other hand, true inclusion is different.
It is so different from
“you do your thing and I’ll do mine as long as your thing doesn’t interfere with mine.”
True inclusion doesn’t just accept the presence of the other – it loves the other,
it asks questions of the other, it listens to the other, it wants to get to know the other.
It wants to know how God is at work in the life of the other.
And it wants to work with the other.
True inclusion, true love, wants to be in relationship with and form community with the other.
It’s what those churches long ago were good at – it’s what they were known for.
And we are discovering the importance of that and the power of that once again –
and we are discovering how important it was to the ministry of Jesus.
You have a place here – no matter who you are and no matter what you have experienced.
You are beloved – and you are a beloved child of God.
Our community is richer and better resourced to fulfill its mission because of you.
Let us give thanks for the Ethiopian eunuch, let us give thanks for Philip, and
let us give thanks for one another.
Let us love another, and let us work together – and together let us say, “Amen.”
Pastor Michael Kurtz
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