Reflection: Speaking of Isaiah
In Acts 8, the Holy Spirit directs Philip the evangelist to go over to a certain chariot in which an Ethiopian court official, a eunuch, is seated and reading aloud from a scroll. What does Philip hear the official reading? It just so happens that he is reading Isaiah.
In reading about this encounter in Acts, the church overhears two important questions. Philip asks “Do you understand what you are reading?” The Ethiopian official replies, “How can I, unless someone guides me?”
At The Kerygma Program, we provide resources that are based on scholarship presented in an accessible reading style, and that engage people in reading these texts that inform our faith. As we release Kerygma’s 40th study, Isaiah: Holy, Holy, Holy, we greatly appreciate the help of one Ethiopian court official in bringing attention to both the importance of the book of Isaiah and our participating together to understand how the words of the prophet Isaiah speak to our world today!
These two questions underscore the importance of understanding the Bible, and of people’s need for assistance in developing understanding. It is no great leap to see why the church places such emphasis on people studying the Bible together.