Scandalous (Acts 8:26-40)

In Acts 8 a little known disciple named Philip is told to take a southern dessert road down to the city of Gaza.  Gaza, at this time, was a city that had been destroyed 100 years earlier and would not be rebuilt for another 30 years after this moment. This means that Philip was sent to a city that did not exist. Gaza was a ghost town. It was also about 50 miles southwest of Jerusalem which equals about a solid two day walk.

It is fascinating to look at this story and see that this is sometimes how God works. Sometimes he will plant in us some vision, direction or hunch. A hunch that we are to go someplace and do something that does not always come across as the best strategy. Philip is being sent to a ghost town which does not sound like the best strategy. As Philip journeys to Gaza he discovers that the real goal was not Gaza but who he meets on the road. Along the route to Gaza Philip meets an Ethiopian, shares the good news, performs a baptism and then seems to vanish. The really interesting thing is that this is the least interesting thing that God does in Acts 8.

The person that Philip encounters we are told is an Ethiopian eunuch who serves as the treasurer for the Queen of Ethiopia. It is also possible that this Ethiopian would have been considered a God-fearer. A God-fearer is someone who is not Jewish yet finds the Jewish description of God appealing. This Ethiopian is obvious not Jewish and we read that he has recently been to Jerusalem to participate in some kind of worship.  He has also acquired one of the scrolls of Isaiah which he has been reading aloud while riding in his chariot.

Acts 8 also tells us that this Ethiopian is a eunuch. There is no real delicate way to describe what a eunuch is other than to simply say he has been castrated. Eunuchs in the ancient world were often voluntarily castrated and were even known to castrate themselves. Why such a gruesome act? Since this Ethiopian is in the service to the Queen of Ethiopia there is a good reason for him to be a eunuch. Ethiopia at this time in history were ruled by Nubian Kings. These Kings had grown powerful through their connection with the real superpower to the north Egypt. They fancied themselves as Pharaohs and where considered the off spring of the sun god. Since they were the off spring of the sun god it meant that they were too holy to do actual work. The actual work of ruling and administration of governmental affairs fell to the Queen. If you were going to be welcomed into the service of the Queen and you were a man then you would be castrated so that you were not a threat to her power.

Since your body not only lost certain body parts in castration it also lost certain male hormones. It was not uncommon then for eunuchs to look and act more feminine. In our modern day language we would probably refer to them as transgender or transvestites. As a consequence eunuchs do not fit social categories and were not highly regarded then or now. When you can’t fit into a category and nobody knows where to place you then you often get sent to the margins of society. Thus the interaction that Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch have is particularly interesting.

 In Deuteronomy 23:1 it specifically says “No one who has been emasculated by crushing or cutting may enter the assembly of the Lord.” In other words, eunuchs will not be accepted into the assembly of God. You have violated God’s creative work. In Genesis God gives men and women the ability to be co-creators with God in that they can create new life. When you remove that part of yourself used for creating life then you have become like a dead tree and God does not want you in the assembly. So with a strict prohibition that says eunuchs will not be allowed in the assembly it is stunning that Philip baptizes this eunuch. The eunuch asks (v.36) “Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptized?” The answer is simple. You are a eunuch and you don’t get to be baptized. You should have considered your actions more carefully. This is not the answer that Philip gives. What can stand in my way of being baptized? Not a thing. You want to be baptized then here you go.

 Can you imagine if Facebook, Twitter or Bloggers existed back in this time? Can you imagine how upset people would have been? This is scandalous stuff. Philip you went and baptized an Ethiopian! Which means you welcomed him into the Kingdom of God! That is not okay! You did not ask him to change who he was! You just let him in! Philip you are a Jew and certainly you know what law says. Did you miss the memo?

 Not only did this eunuch receive the grace of God, accept the good news and was baptized something even more improbable occurred. Currently about 65% of Ethiopia is Christian. The majority of that 65% are native people that grew up in a Christian church. Not western transplants, nor missionaries that moved in from other countries. The Church in Ethiopia can trace their origin back to this very eunuch in Acts 8. Not only did God send Philip to some random place to interact with this eunuch this eunuch also became the carrier and the catalyst that gave birth to an entire new world of Christians. That is stunning.

Acts 8 only records a portion of what the Ethiopian was reading in Isaiah. We don’t know how much of the book of Isaiah was contained in the scroll. It would be interesting to know if he read Isaiah 56:3-5 which states “And let no eunuch complain, “I am only a dry tree.”For this is what the Lord says:“To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose what pleases me and hold fast to my covenant—to them I will give within my temple and its wall a memorial and a name better than sons and daughters; “ All the way back in the book of Isaiah God is expanding the range of the convent. Jesus says in Acts 1 that his Kingdom of God message will reach to the ends of the earth. In other words the good news is for everyone not just for those considered worthy. What happens is Philip basically says if you are thirsty then here drink. He does not ask if requirements have been meet. He does not ask the eunuch to change. He does not ask for a statement of theology or recount the history of Israel. This is a fascinating and astonishing story. A story that tells us just how far “the ends of the earth” means.  

Where are the boundary lines drawn? Who can or can’t get into the Kingdom of God? This is a story about God reaching beyond all the barriers and boundaries. God reached beyond areas considered appropriate and categories that make sense. God seems to be saying that all of the stuff that others might be worked up over he is not. God simply accepts you for you. God seems to be saying that I am not asking you to be something different. I will start right where you are. Which leads to a tough question – What do we demand of people that God doesn’t demand? Do we demand things of others that God actually does not demand? Maybe we think he demands but he really doesn’t. The truth of this passage is that it teaches us this other truth – that God extends water to all who are thirsty not just those who are worthy.

What is the only qualification required of this eunuch?  The only thing he did was ask – Can I please be baptized? And there was nothing else asked of him. This seedless man became a seed that grew an entire nation of Christians. What an extraordinary impossibility! This is how expansive the love of God continues to be.

Are there things you have done that you are ashamed of? Maybe there is a secret that you desperately keep to yourself because if anybody finds out then you fear how you would be regarded. This passage shows us that God is not angered by, nor surprised, nor shocked by the skeletons in our closet. This is what the radical acceptance and grace of God means. Even the things that you are most ashamed of, God is not that worked up about. This story suggests that God is more interested in you then your skeletons.

There will always be folks that are uncomfortable with God’s radical acceptance. Partly because there are a lot of people in the world that they don’t like and partly because they secretly are not sure they are acceptable to God. Perhaps God should demand more. Yet that is not what this story says. In this story God seems to place belonging before behaving. The courage to accept this kind of love is to change radically not just our own hearts but also how we relate to and accept others. One of the reasons why we don’t accept others is because we struggle with feeling acceptable ourselves. Then consider the eunuch who had no business whatsoever becoming a part of the Kingdom of God.