What Doth Hinder Me To Be Baptized?

“And as they went on the way, they came unto a certain water; and the eunuch saith, Behold, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?  And Philip said, If thou believest with all thy heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of ¹God. And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they both went down into the water, both Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him.”-Acts 8:36-38 (ASV 1901)

This is one of the most repeated passages in the New Testament.  If you have never heard the “Why Stop The Chariot” sermon by either Johny Edwards or Robert Jackson, you would do yourself a favor to find and listen to it.  For today’s teaching article, we will simply look at the question the Eunuch asks of Philip in verse 36.

Philip had been “preaching to him Jesus”-v35.  Up until this point, the word baptism is not included in the events that begin in verse 26.  Philip is using an Old Testament prophecy of Jesus to teach this official of the court of Ethiopia about the suffering Savior.

The prophet of Isaiah 53:7-8 is clearly referring to Jesus.  It is also easy to understand that somewhere in this discussion Philip had mentioned baptism.  The other aspect of what is means to “teach Jesus” has to do with the urgency of the matter.  While a person is outside of Christ they are not in a saved state.  The Eunuch not only realized this but stopped the chariot at the first sight of water suitable for his immersion.

His question, “what doth hinder me to be baptized?”-v37, really belongs to the past.  The Eunuch had made his decision and would not pass the first opportunity to have his sins washed away and enter the grace of the saved state (Acts 2:38; Romans 5:1-2; I Peter 3:16-17).  What about the reader of this article?  Have you been buried into Christ in baptism?  Are you walking in newness of life (Romans 6:1-4; Galatians 3:27)?

What is keeping you from a home in heaven.  Is it a family that prevents you from acting on what you know to be true?  Is it a fear of the unknown?  What will my life be like if I confess Jesus as Lord?  Are you embarrassed to make a public confession of faith in God that he raised Jesus from the dead?  Hare you ever studied enough in your Bible to have life-changing faith that will overcome any obstacle to gain Christ?

Here in middle Tennessee, we are blessed with a fantastic water supply.  In the wester part of our country, long droughts are common.  There could literally be a time when there might not be enough water to baptize someone in a dried up creek.  But those who know their own hearts and the urgency of baptism will make away.  Even if they don’t have a change of clothes.  Even if they must stop the chariot.  Even if all they have is a 50-gallon barrel of  water. The power of the blood of Jesus Christ is the same today as on that road to Ethiopia in Acts chapter eight.

Don’t let anything hinder you. Be baptized.  Stop the chariot, walk down to the front, confess your faith in and allegiance to Christ as Son of God, Messiah, and King.  Be baptized this hour!  What is between you and heaven?  Only an unbelieving heart.

 

¹  Acts 8:37 does not appear in the earliest texts of the New Testament.  The italics are put there by the translators to indicate these words were supplied for clarity.