Every Christian an Evangelist

Are you sensitive to the Holy Welcome to Love Worth Finding featuring profound messages and practical insights from Adrian Rogers. If you have your Bible turned to Acts chapter 8, we'll begin in verse 26. As Adrian Rogers begins, every Christian is an evangelist. And Philip was preaching the gospel and multitudes were being saved. God was doing incredible things.

It was a great, great campaign. Though he was a deacon, he was practicing what I say today that every Christian is an evangelist and he was an evangelist. And he was being used of God mightily in a crusade and the Spirit of God came to him. The Bible says an angel. The word angel means a messenger.

I don't know what, how God brought this message, whether it was a literal angel or whether God the Holy Spirit spoke through some individual. But a messenger came to him and said, Hey, Phil, I know we're having a great revival here in Samaria, but I want you to go down to Gaza, down to the desert. And you'll find out why. Now we have here a story, but we have more than a story. We have a pattern to show you how God can use you.

And listen to me. God never leaves a fully surrendered and cleansed vessel unused. God never leaves a fully surrendered, cleansed vessel unused. You want to be used? Would you like to be a witness? Would you like to be an evangelist? Would you like to meet the Lord Jesus Christ bringing your sheaves with you? Would you like to rejoice in this life and in the world to come? Would you? I know you would. So let me lay several things on your heart that will help you if you would do this.

And they're going to come right out of this story. Number one, be sensitive to the direction of the Spirit. Be sensitive to the direction of the Spirit. We've been talking today about following Christ. Now, if Christ is leading and you're not listening, then you're in difficulty. You see, from a human viewpoint, what the Holy Spirit told Philip to do did not really make a lot of sense.

He's in this incredibly wonderful revival in Samaria and God tells him to leave Samaria and go to Gaza. You need to understand that God's ways are often unexplained. I mean, God did not say, Now, Philip, I want you to go down there.

There's an opportunity on wheels. There's a man of great importance that I want you to meet down there. God did not say that to him.

He just said, Go. And it's as if Philip went under sealed orders. God's ways are often unexplained and God's ways are often unforeseen. Philip had no idea of knowing what God had for him when he went down there. He did not know what God had for him to do to lead this man, this incredibly important man, to the Lord Jesus Christ. And who knows?

Listen. Who knows what tremendous opportunities God may have for you in the future? And who knows that next individual you lead to Jesus Christ, who that will be? God says to Philip, Philip, leave Samaria.

Go down here to the desert. There was the man that's going to open up all North Africa to the gospel of Jesus Christ. And so what is this telling us? This is telling us that we need to be sensitive to the direction of the Spirit. We need to be sensitive to the direction of the Spirit. Let God's Holy Spirit lead us. Let me tell you how the Spirit of God operates.

First of all, God's Spirit finds a man whose heart is open, or a woman whose heart is open to the gospel of Jesus Christ, somebody who is ready for Jesus. Was this man ready? You better believe he was ready. The Ethiopian had been to Jerusalem, the Bible says, to worship. He was seeking God. He had been to the most religious city on the face of the earth, but the wells of religion were dry. And he's coming away, religious but lost. He's even gotten a copy of the Old Testament. He even has the most remarkable book in the Old Testament in his lap. He is reading from Isaiah, the 53rd chapter, what I call the gospel according to Isaiah.

I mean, could it be a more ripe time? Not only is he reading Isaiah chapter 53, but he has come to the crux, the kernel of Isaiah chapter 53 that speaks of the crucifixion of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a lamb he opens not his mouth. At that precise moment is when Philip found him.

Do you think that was accidental? God works on the sinner, and God works on the soul winner. And when we're sensitive to the direction of the Spirit, God gets us together. Jesus said, I must needs go through Samaria. Why, when Jesus was on his journey, did he must needs go through Samaria?

Because of the woman at the well. There was a divine appointment. And if you don't know Bible history, Jesus met a woman at the well when he was on a trip. He went the way that most people would not go, met that woman, led her to Christ.

Cornelius and Simon Peter. God worked on Simon Peter and said, Simon, you get rid of your racial prejudice. There's a Gentile you need to go witness to. God worked on a Gentile named Cornelius and said, I am going to send somebody to tell you how to get saved. And then by divine alchemy, God gets the two together.

Now, what does that mean? When you're sensitive to the direction of the Spirit, I'm telling you, God's going to lead you to somebody who is Jesus. Those of you who are students, tomorrow you're going to find some student. If you'll be sensitive, perhaps God is preparing some student for you to witness to. Those of you who are businessmen, if you're sensitive, God's going to lead you to somebody. Maybe not tomorrow, but in his timing, God's going to lead you. If you're sensitive, God is going to be working on an individual. Perhaps tomorrow, student, there's somebody who went to church Sunday, went to the wells of religion, came away dry. Maybe they know the Bible. They don't know how to be saved. And if you are sensitive, what I'm trying to say to you is this. You say, well, God never brings anybody to me that I can witness to.

Oh, could it be that you're not listening? Manly Beasley, who preached from this pulpit, used to say, you get right with God, listen, you get right with God, and you'll have to backslide to keep from winning souls. I mean, when you get in the stream of the Spirit, when God is working in the unsaved heart, and God is working in the heart of the soul winner, God will get them together.

So are you leadable? Oh, we're talking about following the Lord. Are you a follower of the Lord?

God has a plan for you. Now, here's the second thing I want to say. Number one, be sensitive to the direction of the Spirit.

Number two, be swift for the demands of the Spirit. Now, look, if you will, in verses 29 through 30. Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near and join thyself to this chariot.

Now, watch this. And Philip ran. He ran thither to him and heard him read the prophet and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? Now, had he not run, he would have missed this opportunity on wheels. He had to run to catch this Ethiopian. And he could have had plenty of excuses.

I know there are times when God has prompted my heart to witness, and I didn't do it. And the opportunity went past. You know, you always find some reason not to do it. If Philip had used these excuses, he could have rationalized why not to do it. He could have said, Well, he's rich.

He's important. I can't approach him. Or he could have said, He's reading, and I don't want to interrupt him. Or he could have said, He's of another race.

It wouldn't be appropriate for me to speak to him. But Philip ran because, listen, the time was ripe, but the time was short. We miss a lot of golden opportunities because we're not swift. We're not swift to the demands of the Spirit, and they slip through our fingers. And God is teaching me this.

I sometimes argue or sometimes stonewall God or sometimes just walk away, and I miss opportunities. Be swift, my soul, to answer him. Be jubilant, my feet. Our God is marching on.

Somewhere I read of a barrel of fish packed in ice, and on the side of the barrel of fish it said, If not delivered in three days, never mind. Never mind. Opportunities are passing through our fingers. I'm so grateful that not only was he sensitive, he was swift. Number three, be steadfast in the desire of the Spirit. Now, what is the desire of the Spirit of God?

Well, would you let the desire of the Spirit of God be your desire? What is the desire of the Spirit of God? Well, listen, John 15, verses 26 and 27, When the comforters come, that's another word for the Holy Spirit, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father. He shall testify of me, and ye also shall bear witness. When the Holy Spirit is come, he will testify of me, Jesus said, and you will bear witness. Remember when we began this study of the book of Acts? We studied Acts 1-8, where Jesus said, Ye shall be witnesses unto me. Ye shall receive power after that, the Holy Ghost has come upon you. What is the desire of the Spirit?

That you share Jesus. Now, look at chapter 8, verse 30, And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Isaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me?

And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. And the place of the scripture which he read was this. He was led as a sheep to the slaughter, and like a lamb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth. In his humiliation his judgment was taken away, and who shall declare his generation? For his life is taken from the earth. And the eunuch answered Philip and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this, of himself or some other man?

Now, here's the key I told you already. Verse 35, Then Philip opened his mouth and preached unto him Jesus. What is the desire of the Spirit?

What is the office work of the Spirit? That we share Jesus. What did Philip talk to this man about? He didn't talk to him about denomination. He didn't talk to him about race relations.

He didn't talk to him about politics in Ethiopia or in Jerusalem. He talked with him about Jesus. That's the message that we need today is the Lord Jesus Christ.

We have a lot of people today who are doing a lot of wonderful things, but they're leaving Jesus out. Now, here he had the desire of the Spirit. What is the desire of the Spirit? It is that we share the Lord Jesus.

Why should we have the direction of the Spirit and then not have the desire of the Spirit? No, that we share the Lord Jesus Christ. And find out how Philip shared the Lord Jesus Christ.

He told him some basic things. First of all, he told this Ethiopian that he was a sinner. Isaiah chapter 53, that was his text. And Isaiah chapter 53 says, All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his own way, and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. I had the joy of taking this same passage, Isaiah chapter 53, and leading a young Jewish businessman to Jesus Christ.

And I read this verse, All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned everyone to his own way, and laid on him, on Jesus, the iniquity of us all. We need to understand. We need to teach people today, just as Philip taught this Ethiopian that he could be saved, but he needed to be saved, and that none so good they need not be saved, and none so bad they cannot be saved. So the man said, How can I, except someone, teach me?

Philip said, Do you understand? If you want people to be saved, they have to understand. They have to understand that they are a sinner. They have to understand that Christ died for them. He took this text and showed how Jesus, the Lamb of God, like a lamb for the slaughter, died upon the cross, took our place on the cross as a substitute. You see, a holy God cannot overlook sin.

That sin must be paid for. I read somewhere of a housekeeper got saved, and a man who wanted to ridicule her religion said to her, Well, how does it feel to be a saint? She said, I'm not sure. I know what a saint is.

But she said, I know this much. I'm saved by grace, and I'm looking forward to heaven. Oh, he said, You've been saved, have you? Well, what's it like to be saved? She said, I probably cannot explain where you could understand it.

But she said, I'll tell you what it feels like to me. It feels like I'm standing in Jesus' shoes, and He's standing in mine. I want to tell you, a theologian could not have said it better. Oh, we like sheep have gone astray. We've turned everyone to his own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He takes our place that we might take his. What do you need to understand in order to be saved? What is the desire of the Spirit? We're sinners, and we need to be saved.

We like sheep gone astray. Jesus, the Lamb of God, led to the slaughter for us. And secondly, that salvation is by faith.

It's not a works of any kind. It is the gift of God. How do I know He preached this? Well, in Acts chapter 8, look in verse 36, and as they went on their way, they came to a certain water.

And the eunuch said, See, here's water, what doth enter me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believeth, with all thine heart, thou mayest. You've got to have believer's baptism, not baptism before you believe, believer's baptism.

It is not that baptism saves you, but baptism, as I'm going to show you in a moment, is an illustration and demonstration of your salvation. But notice what he said. He said, Mr. Treasurer, you must believe with all your heart, and then you will be saved.

Listen, none of it depends upon you. It is all God. Do you understand that? That's grace. Romans 11, 6, And if by grace it's no more of works, otherwise work is no more work. And if by work it's no more of grace, otherwise grace is no more grace. That makes sense if you read it.

What he's saying is this. It's either grace or works, not grace and works. If you were hanging over a precipice 2,000 feet below or jagged rocks and there's a chain of 100 links, 99 of them made of forged steel, one of them made of crepe paper, how safe for you. As safe as that one link. Now, friend, if any part of your salvation depends upon you, you're not going to make it.

You're not going to make it. It is by grace. What did this man preach to him? He preached to him that he's a sinner, that Christ died for him.

If he will put his faith where God has put his sins, that he will be saved. Now, you know the sign that he really believed that is that he was willing to be baptized. Look, if you will, in Acts 8 now. Look in verses 38 and 39. And he, that is the Ethiopian, commanded the chariot to stand still. And they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more.

And he went on his way rejoicing. What is the motive for this baptism? Number one, obedience. Have you been baptized?

Have you? Jesus commanded baptism. He gave the great commission, go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe all things. Whatsoever I have commanded you, and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. You want Jesus to be with you? Obey his commandments.

Teach his commandments. Baptism is one of them. Baptism is not necessary to salvation, but it is necessary to obedience. And obedience is necessary to joy. He went on his way rejoicing.

It's also, baptism is a form of confirmation. I mean, it's making real to this man what happened to him. Here he is, a man of great authority in the chariot riding along. He gets saved. He says, see, here's water. What does it mean to be baptized? Philip said, if you believe with all your heart, you may. He said, all right, stop the chariot.

Get out. Now what do I do? He says, you stand here. Fold your hands like this. I don't know how they did it, but he said, you fold your arms like this. I don't know exactly what he did, but it was enough water for him to be baptized. He didn't sprinkle water on him. They went down both into the water, and he baptized him. The Greek word is, he immersed him, baptizo, which means to immerse. He immersed him. Why did he do that? Well, I'll tell you one thing. He was demonstrating the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

We're buried with him by baptism, that like as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so, we also should walk in newness of life. And he was demonstrating to all his entourage. He's not traveling alone. This is, I mean, this man is a governmental official.

There's a great entourage. Can you imagine what it meant to them to see this high muckety-muck? Get out of the chariot and go down there and let a man plunge him beneath the water? It was a testimony that something has happened. It was a testimony to others, but a confirmation to himself when he went under the water, he's saying the old Ethiopian is dead and buried.

When he comes up out of the water, it pictures a new person raised to walk in newness of life. Listen to me, folks. Listen. What a privilege God has given to us. We have a privilege that angels don't have. That's bringing souls to Jesus Christ. And we have an opportunity that we will not have in the world to come, and that is to bring souls to Jesus Christ. Now, God is calling you to be an evangelist, every member an evangelist. And you need to be sensitive to the direction of the Spirit. You need to be swift to the demands of the Spirit.

And you need to be, friends, steadfast for the desire of the Spirit, and that is that you lift up the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, if God brought Philip out of Samaria, down to the desert, why? He brought him there because there was somebody there that needed the gospel. I am bold enough to say that you're not here by accident today. God put this message on my heart because I prayed over it, and God brought you here.

You know why? He loves you. He wants you to be saved. You see, God is working in your heart.

Do you find a hunger in your heart? That's the Holy Spirit of God. And I tell you, I promise you on the authority of the Word of God, if you'll trust Jesus, he will save you today instantaneously. He will be with you continually, and he'll keep you eternally if you'll trust him today. I want to lead you in a prayer, and if you're not certain that you're saved, let's get it certain right now.

Pray this prayer, just pray it silently but fervently. Oh, God, I know that you love me, and I know that you want to save me. Jesus, you died to save me, and you promised to save me if I would trust you. I do trust you. I know I'm a sinner.

I know, Jesus, that you died for my sins. I receive you by faith now. I trust you. I don't ask for a feeling.

I don't look for a sign. I trust you. Come into my heart now. Forgive my sin. Cleanse me. Save me. Save me, Jesus. Pray that from your heart. Save me, Jesus.

Did you ask him? Then pray this way. Thank you for doing it, Lord. I receive it by faith. Now give me the courage to make it public. Help me not to be ashamed of you. In your name I pray.

Amen. If you prayed to receive Jesus Christ just now, we would love to celebrate with you and invite you to our Find God's Love page. There at the website, you'll find answers that you may need about your newfound faith. Who is Jesus?

How can I know him? Simply go to lwf.org slash radio and click on the tab at the top that says Find God's Love. Welcome to God's Forever Family.

We can't wait to hear from you. Now if you'd like to order a copy of today's message in its entirety, you can call 1-877-LOVEGOD. Mention the title Every Christian and Evangelist. This message is also part of the insightful series Living Supernaturally. For the complete 13-message collection, call 1-877-LOVEGOD or you can order online at lwf.org slash radio or write us at Love Worth Finding. Box 38600, Memphis, Tennessee 38183. You might not know, you can also purchase our new Bible studies much like this message in our online store.

For more on that, go to the website, lwf.org slash radio. Are you sensitive to the spirit, swift to obey and do you share the desire to bring others to Jesus? Adrian Rogers, you're welcome. Do you share the desire to bring others to Jesus? Adrian Rogers said, God did not save you to be a member of Christians Anonymous. You are to endeavor to bring others to Jesus Christ. We hope you'll join us tomorrow for more timeless truth right here on Love Worth Finding. I wanna share a message we received recently from a listener who wrote, I love listening to Adrian Rogers. He was and still is a big influence on my ministry to see everyone come to know Jesus as Lord and Savior.

Well, that's really what it's all about, isn't it? And we are so encouraged to hear how God has used these messages in your life, as well as the resources that we developed to help you grow in your faith. That's what we wanna give you right now, a copy of a book called, God's Wisdom Is Better Than Gold. It's packed with studies from the book of Proverbs as Adrian Rogers shares the profound yet practical way to health, wealth, and wisdom according to scripture. Request a copy of this resource. The book, God's Wisdom Is Better Than Gold. When you give a gift, call 1-877-LOVEGOD or give online at lwf.org slash radio. And again, thank you for your generous support of love worth finding.