https://odb.org/2024/07/09/do-i-belong
In Acts 8:29-39, there is this account of Philip sharing Christ with an Ethiopian eunuch of great authority who was in charge of the treasury of the Ethiopian Queen Candace, which I have read before but didn’t see its significance until today.
The reason the story was significant is because eunuchs are looked down upon by both Jews and Greeks, and most crucially, they are banned from the inner courts even if they are Jews – see Deuteronomy 23:1. The law prohibited those whose testicles are crushed or whose penises are cut off to be admitted into the assembly of the LORD. This is unfortunate as most eunuchs are not eunuchs by choice. They are usually prisoners or spoils of war caught when young and castrated to be slaves or to serve the royal households where the women of the monarch are segregated from the general populace. Those who survived the often fatal and very painful procedure ended up as servants for the king, and some like Admiral Zheng He (Cheng Ho) rose to high positions of power.
However, in Isaiah 56:3-5: it is written:
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.”
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—
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.
Thus, the encounter by Philip of the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts 8 was the fulfilment of the prophesy in Isaiah 56:3-5. In Jesus Christ, all are accepted into the Kingdom of Heaven, including eunuchs.
Notwithstanding that the eunuch is regarded as a foreigner in Israel, God provided for them like He did for the widows and orphans through the law requiring harvesters to leave some behind for the poor and disadvantaged. God’s heart has thus always been compassionate and thoughtful despite the ancient religious laws.
The message today is that if we somehow believe that we are not accepted by God because of our past – heritage or misdeeds, God is actually compassionate, and in Jesus Christ, all are accepted and will have the same access to spiritual gifts and authority as anyone else who believe. All are children of God in Christ. The blessings and protection of God are open to all, regardless of our background or past. We have equal rights to have our names written in the Book of Life by our faith in Jesus, in the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit.
Ronnie's Thoughts 