Greg Laurie daily devotion - Aug. 30, 2011

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Rejoicing on Our Way

Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing. —Acts 8:39

The Bible tells the story of a man from Ethiopia who came to Jerusalem, searching for God. This man was in a high cabinet possession in which he served the queen. He no doubt traveled with an entourage, because he was a man of importance. He had heard about the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and the faith of the Jewish people. So he went to Jerusalem to look for God, but he didn’t find him.

Yet he did obtain something of great value: a scroll of Isaiah, which he happened to be reading as he made his journey back home. It just so happened that as he was reading from Isaiah 53 and cruising along in his chariot, Philip came along. God had told him to go to the desert, but he didn’t know why. He was just standing around in the middle of nowhere, waiting. Then this entourage came by, and Philip looked up and heard this dignitary reading from Isaiah 53. So Philip approached him and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?” (Acts 8:30).

The dignitary answered, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” (verse 31). Then he invited Philip to join him. So Philip climbed into the chariot, explained Isaiah 53, and told him that it was speaking of the Messiah. Jesus is the one who fulfilled that Scripture, who died on the cross, and who rose again from the dead. Wanting to believe, the man said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?” (verse 36). So Philip told him that nothing hindered him if he believed with his whole heart. The story ends with the dignitary going on his way, rejoicing.

And so it is for everyone who comes to faith in Christ: we go on our way, rejoicing.

Summary sentence: Rejoicing is a by-product of one’s conversion.

Tags: Salvation, faith, joy

For more relevant and biblical teaching from Pastor Greg Laurie, go to www.harvest.org
and
Listen to Greg Laurie's daily broadcast on OnePlace.com.

Watch Greg Laurie's weekly television broadcast on LightSource.com.

SPECIAL OFFER

“To God Be the Glory”

Lost Boy: The Next Chapter has not only won awards at film festivals around the world, but—more importantly—has won hearts and lives for Christ. To share this story with an even wider audience, it is being released as an audio edition, including the documentary film, as a special ministry package. Lost Boy: The Next Chapter – Audio Edition and DVD is our gift to listeners for their donation of any amount.

You may have read Lost Boy, the book, when it first came out, but I think you will be blessed in an even deeper way by the rest of the story.”

—Greg