TWO GREAT EVANGELISTS SPEND SOME TIME TOGETHER
After Paul’s third missionary journey, he and his companions sailed homeward, arriving at Caesarea Martima. This is where Herod the Great had built an amazing manmade harbor and named the city after his patron, Caesar Augustus. Paul’s traveling companions included Luke the physician, who kept a faithful diary, noting their stay at the house of Philip the evangelist. He also noted that this Philip was the same one appointed as one of the original seven deacons (Acts 6:5). Not to be confused with Philip the apostle, who was one of the Twelve.
What a difference the gospel and twenty years makes! For twenty years earlier, a younger Paul (then called “Saul”) had begun his persecution of the church with the stoning of Stephen, the first of the seven deacons. The persecution resulted in the scattering of the Jerusalem believers, so that Philip the deacon became Philip the evangelist, carrying the gospel to Samaria (Acts 8:4-12), to an Ethiopian eunuch on the Gaza road (Acts 8:26-39), and on to Azotus and Caesarea, where he made his home for a time. The church in Ethiopia still traces its roots to the eunuch whom Philip led to faith and baptized.
During these same years, Saul the persecutor had become Paul the planter of churches after his encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus. Now, Paul is staying at Philip’s home, no doubt discussing the amazing grace of God that would bring the two of them together.
I wish I could’ve been there listening to them share stories of God’s goodness and gospel sharing. For Paul and his companions stayed there several days before moving on. I wonder whether they discussed the martyrdom of Stephen and how the gospel had reconciled them to God and to one another. We have no record that these two great evangelists ever crossed paths again. But this must have been a wonderful time they had together!
PRAYER: Dear Father, we are amazed at how Your gospel can bring enemies together as friends and even more, as brothers and sisters. We ask that You help us boldly share the gospel in our world today, so that people are reconciled to You and to one another. Strengthen us to the work of an evangelist. In Jesus’ name, amen.