Articles
“Philip the Evangelist”
There are several Philips in the New Testament, such as the apostle and the tetrarch, but let’s focus on Philip the evangelist. Luke gives us three abbreviated portraits of Philip, all contained within Acts, that reveal three aspects of his character we should emulate.
First, we meet Philip the humble servant in Acts 6:1-7. In the early days of the church, Greek-speaking Christians criticized the arrangement for the care of poor widows in which Hellenistic widows were being overlooked. The Twelve, who were overseeing these things (4:35), realized their burden was too great and this task was distracting them from their primary focus. So seven spiritually mature men were appointed to take charge of this work and Philip was one of them. Philip had a “good reputation” among the brethren and possessed the “wisdom” which comes from God’s Spirit, the ability to apply knowledge in real-life situations with sensitivity, tact and faithfulness. Add to this Philip’s Hellenistic background, as his Greek name implies, and he was a perfect fit for “serving tables” (i.e. distributing food to the poor widows). The plan worked and what could have been a disaster that divided the church resulted in an increase in the proclamation of the gospel and the growth of the church.
Next, we meet Philip the faithful evangelist in Acts 8:4-40. Philip was instrumental in bringing the gospel to Samaria (4-25). His preaching was accompanied by the same kinds of miracles and signs that Jesus and his apostles demonstrated. As he “proclaimed Christ to them” (5) there was a very positive response to the call to be baptized (13). This is all the more remarkable because the people of Samaria were previously under the spell of a religious charlatan named Simon who himself dropped the act and converted. Philip’s success in Samaria illustrates the power of truth in contrast to Simon’s lies but it also highlights the Samaritans' readiness to receive the gospel and Philip’s willingness to reach those who many considered enemies.
Whereas Philip’s preaching in Samaria led to a mass movement, his next evangelistic endeavor (Acts 4:26-40) tells the story of a single convert who comes from far south in Ethiopia. There was no (revealed) special direct divine guidance for Philip’s evangelistic efforts in Samaria. But here the Spirit of God was directly involved orchestrating events. Ironically, the Ethiopian’s single conversion could have had just as big or bigger an impact, ultimately, as the Samaritans’.
The Ethiopian had come to Jerusalem to worship. He was at least a God-fearing Gentile if not a proselyte of Judaism. His conversion illustrates the continued gradual progress of the church toward Gentiles which finds its climax in Acts 10 and the spread of gospel “to the ends of the earth” (1:8). Philip helped the Ethiopian see that the prophetic Scriptures he was reading in Isaiah are fulfilled in Jesus Christ. After the Ethiopian was baptized, Philip was whisked away by the Spirit and “found himself at Azotus.” He continued preaching all the way home (40). Both of these stories show Philip’s eagerness to obey God’s commands, his readiness to preach wherever he “found” himself and to whoever would listen whether many (Samaritans) or few (one man in a chariot). It is the picture of a faithful evangelist.
Last, we meet Philip the gracious host in Acts 21:8-10. Several years have passed since those early days. The next and last time we see Philip in the Scriptures he is living in Caesarea with his four daughters. Paul, Luke and their companions were on their way to Jerusalem to deliver aid to the needy saints there and they stayed with Philip “many days” (10). This texts reveals several things about Philip. First, he had a house large enough to accommodate several guests in addition to his own family. Philip’s hospitality toward these traveling preachers is not surprising given what we know about his passion to spread the gospel. He would have had plenty to talk about with this group! Hospitality, particularly hosting traveling preachers, was an important expression of Christian love in the first century when traveling was dangerous and inns were immoral, unsafe and dirty places (3 Jn. 5-8). Luke adds the detail that his four daughters were unmarried and prophesied. Their virgin status could be associated with their prophetic gift (Joel 2:28-29), allowing them to devote their whole time to the service of the church and prophecy. If this was the case it suggests that Philip was a strong spiritual leader in his family.
We all need to learn to be more like Philip. He was a humble servant with a good reputation and spiritual wisdom, a faithful evangelist eager to preach the word to whomever and wherever he was and a gracious host to his Christian friends in need.
