Sunday Recap - Sunday 16 August - ANOINTED

August 16th, 2026
by Ps Jonny Kettle

Anointed - Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch Acts Chapter 8:26-40

Message Overview:

As we continue our Anointed series through Acts, Philip has been leading a revival in Samaria. While God was moving powerfully, the Holy Spirit called Philip into the unknown to a desert road. Philip’s obedience reminds us that God’s plans are often bigger than what we can see and that He calls us to trust Him even when His direction doesn’t make sense.

On the desert road, Philip encounters an Ethiopian eunuch, an influential official who had travelled to Jerusalem seeking God. Though he longed to worship, he would have experienced exclusion because of his status as a eunuch. Yet God pursued him personally, demonstrating that His heart is for the individual. Jesus came to make a way for all people to draw near to God, regardless of their background, history, or circumstances.

As the eunuch read from Isaiah, Philip recognised that God had already prepared his heart. Seizing the opportunity, Philip explained how the Scriptures pointed to Jesus and shared the good news of the Gospel. This reminds us that God is constantly at work in people’s lives, and He invites us to partner with Him by sharing the hope of Christ when He opens the door.

The eunuch’s response was immediate. Upon believing in Jesus, he eagerly asked to be baptised, publicly declaring his faith. His example challenges us to respond wholeheartedly to Jesus without delay. The Gospel calls for more than admiration; it calls for surrender, obedience, and a public commitment to follow Christ.

Key Takeaways
•Follow God’s leading even when it doesn’t make sense.
•God cares deeply about every individual and pursues people personally.
•Share the Gospel when God provides opportunities.
•Respond to Jesus with faith and obedience without delay.

Personal Reflection Questions
1. Is there an area of your life where God may be asking you to trust and obey Him, even though His leading doesn’t fully make sense right now?

2. Who is the “one person” God may be placing on your heart to encourage, serve, or share the Gospel with this week?

3. Have you recognised any opportunities recently where God has opened the door for a spiritual conversation? How did you respond, and what might God be teaching you?

4. What might be standing in the way of your next step of obedience to Jesus, and how can you respond with the same urgency and faith as the Ethiopian eunuch?

Key Scriptures:

Acts 8:26-40
Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” 27 So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian[a] eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake (which means “queen of the Ethiopians”). This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, 28 and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet. 29 The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.” Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked. “How can I,” he said, “unless someone explains it to me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. This is the passage of Scripture the eunuch was reading: “He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth. In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth.” The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?” 35 Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus. As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. What can stand in the way of my being baptized?” [37] [c] 38 And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him. 39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. 40 Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.

Acts 8:26-27
Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” 27 So he started out,

Acts 8:27-28
So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian[a] eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of the Kandake (which means “queen of the Ethiopians”). This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, 28 and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the Book of Isaiah the prophet.

Isaiah 56:3-5
Let no foreigner who is bound to the Lord say,
“The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.”
And let no eunuch complain,
“I am only a dry tree.”
4 For this is what the Lord says:

“To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,
who choose what pleases me
and hold fast to my covenant—
5 to them I will give within my temple and its walls
a memorial and a name
better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
that will endure forever.

Isaiah 56:8
The Sovereign Lord declares—
he who gathers the exiles of Israel:
“I will gather still others to them
besides those already gathered.

Isaiah 53:2-8
There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance,
nothing to attract us to him.
3 He was despised and rejected—
a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.
We turned our backs on him and looked the other way.
He was despised, and we did not care.
4 Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;
it was our sorrows[a] that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God,
a punishment for his own sins!
5 But he was pierced for our rebellion,
crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
He was whipped so we could be healed.
6 All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
We have left God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the Lord laid on him
the sins of us all.
7 He was oppressed and treated harshly,
yet he never said a word.
He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.
And as a sheep is silent before the shearers,
he did not open his mouth.
8 Unjustly condemned,
he was led away.[b]
No one cared that he died without descendants,
that his life was cut short in midstream.[c]
But he was struck down
for the rebellion of my people.

Acts 8:35
So beginning with this same Scripture, Philip told him the Good News about Jesus.

Acts 8: 36 – 38 NKJV
Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?” Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him.

Romans 3:23
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God

Romans 5:8
But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us

Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in[a] Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 10:9
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

YouTube Link for Service:

Sunday Service

Group Reflection Questions:

What do you feel God saying to you?
What can you do about it?
What is an actionable plan you can put in place to help yourself respond to God?
Who can keep you accountable?