Today's Devotion

Today's Scripture Summary Philip travels the wilderness road down to Gaza as the messenger of the Lord has commanded. There he meets a eunuch in charge of the Ethiopian queen's treasury, who reads from the book of Isaiah but doesn't realize it. Philip starts with that passage and preaches the gospel. He baptizes the eunuch, and as he comes up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord leads him. 1. Philip's encounter with the Ethiopian eunuch (8:26-31) Philip is an evangelist who hears and obeys the voice of the Holy Spirit. Philip obeys the angel's instructions and travels to Gaza. Gaza is located on the Mediterranean coast west of Jerusalem and on the wilderness road to Egypt. There, Philip meets an Ethiopian eunuch, a high official in charge of the country's finances. The "Ethiopia" in the text is the Nubian kingdom to the south of Egypt, which corresponds to the area of northern Sudan today. In Old Testament times, it was called "Goeth." &q

Today's Scripture Summary The religious leaders are unable to condemn the apostles because of the healing. They warn them not to speak in the name of Jesus lest rumors of the signs spread further. But the apostles reply that they cannot help but speak of what they have seen and heard. Fearing for the people, the officials release the apostles after only threatening them. 1. Council members wary of the apostles (4:13-17) The apostles boldly preach the gospel with the power and wisdom of the Holy Spirit. The council members are surprised to see Peter and John speak so boldly. "Unlearned men" (v. 13) refers to those who are not professionally trained in knowledge, here referring to their lack of rabbinical training. Because they spoke in the power of the Holy Spirit, the supreme wisdom, their words were coherent and logical, and they were able to be bold in the presence of the highest authorities. The fact that a transfiguration has taken place is so obvious that the public