Baptism of the Man from Ethiopia

Opening Question: Have you ever seen someone get baptized?

Read Acts 8:26-39
26 An angel of the Lord spoke to Philip. "Go south to the desert road," he said. "It's the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza." 27 So Philip started out. On his way he met an Ethiopian official. The man had an important position. He was in charge of all the wealth of Candace. She was the queen of Ethiopia. He had gone to Jerusalem to worship. 28 On his way home he was sitting in his chariot. He was reading the book of Isaiah the prophet. 29 The Holy Spirit told Philip, "Go to that chariot. Stay near it." 30 So Philip ran up to the chariot. He heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. "Do you understand what you're reading?" Philip asked. 31 "How can I?" he said. "I need someone to explain it to me." So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 Here is the part of Scripture the official was reading. It says, "He was led like a sheep to be killed. Just as lambs are silent while their wool is being cut off, he did not open his mouth. 33 When he was treated badly, he was refused a fair trial. Who can say anything about his children? His life was cut off from the earth." 34 The official said to Philip, "Tell me, please. Who is the prophet talking about? Himself, or someone else?" 35 Then Philip began with that same part of Scripture. He told him the good news about Jesus. 36 As they traveled along the road, they came to some water. The official said, "Look! Here is water! Why shouldn't I be baptized?" 37 Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” The official answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” 38 He gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the official went down into the water. Philip baptized him. 39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away. The official did not see him again. He went on his way full of joy.

Word List:
angel –
prophet –
Holy Spirit –
chariot –
Scripture –
cut off –
baptized -

Discussion Questions:
1. How would you re-tell this story in your own words?
2. Do you have any questions about this story?
3. How would you describe Philip and the man from Ethiopia?
4. Who can explain what the man from Ethiopia was reading?
5. Why was important to “believe with all your heart”?
6. What do we have to believe before getting baptized?
7. Why do you think the man from Ethiopia went back to his country “full of joy”?