Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch.
Acts 6:3-5 ESV
For some reason, Philip, the deacon turned evangelist, has been on my mind lately. His story is an inspiration. We don’t know exactly how and when he became a believer, but we do know a lot about his life afterward. Think about this man’s journey! Look at these changes:
- He became one of the original deacons in Jerusalem, willing to serve tables so that the apostles could pray and study. We know that he was full of the Spirit, full of faith, and had a good reputation. Acts 6:1-7
- He left Jerusalem fleeing from the persecution under Saul of Tarsus. Acts 8:1-5
- He came to Samaria where he preached Christ and saw many miracles and conversions. Acts 8:5-13
- He had a visitation from an angel who told him to leave and go to the road to Gaza. He obeyed. On the way, the Spirit of God spoke to him to approach an African official on his way home. He did so and led that man to the Lord. Acts 8:26-38
- After baptizing the Ethiopian, he was translated miles away to Azotus. From there he preached his way north to Caesarea. Acts 8:38-40
- In Caesarea, he apparently raised a family and became known as Philip the Evangelist. He had 4 daughters who were gifted in prophecy. Acts 21:8-9
- He hosted the Apostle Paul and the team as they returned from Ephesus on their third missionary journey. During this stay, he was apparently among those who tried to dissuade Paul from going to Jerusalem because of the prophecies of danger that had been spoken about him.. Acts 21:9-14.
A great story about an interesting man. Through his influence, the vision to reach Samaria was fulfilled. The Ethiopian took the gospel home and is credited with starting the church in Africa. Whether by irony or grace, the man whose persecutions caused him to flee Jerusalem ended up staying under his roof as an apostle to the Gentiles.
Here’s the point: This was a regular guy. He simply agreed to help when asked. His qualifications for greatness were a good reputation, a solid faith, a heart to serve, and the ability and willingness to follow the leading of the Spirit along the way. These same qualifications will allow any of us to go from being churchgoers to being world changers. Are you ready?
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