You've Got to Get in the Chariot: Reaching People Where They Are
Philip was in the middle of a revival. People were being healed, demons were being cast out, and lives were being transformed. Then God told Him to leave it all and walk down a desert road. What happened next is one of the most powerful examples of what it truly means to reach people for Jesus.
What Does It Mean to Be an Unstoppable Church?
The early church in the book of Acts started with just 120 believers gathered in an upper room. By the end of Acts, the gospel had spread across Europe, Asia, and the entire known world. The enemy tried everything to stop them, but nothing worked.
Jesus made a promise about His church: "Upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it." That promise still stands today. No matter what the world looks like, the church cannot be defeated because Christ built it.
What Happened When the Early Church Was Scattered?
After Stephen was martyred, persecution hit the church hard and believers were scattered. But they did not run in fear. Acts 8:4 says, "The believers who were scattered preached the good news about Jesus wherever they went."
They ran with purpose. One of those believers was Philip, a deacon, not even an apostle. He went to Samaria and preached the Messiah. Crowds gathered, evil spirits were cast out, the paralyzed were healed, and Acts 8:8 records that "there was great joy in the city."
Philip was experiencing what every minister dreams about. God was moving mightily and lives were being changed.
Why Would God Pull You Away From Something That Is Working?
Right in the middle of this revival, an angel of the Lord told Philip to leave and go south down a desert road between Jerusalem and Gaza. No explanation. No details. Just go.
Philip went. He did not form a committee. He did not make a pros and cons list. He did not ask God for three signs of confirmation. He simply obeyed.
Here is the truth that is easy to miss: God cares just as much about the one as He does the crowd. While Philip saw a desert road, God saw a divine appointment already in motion.
Does God Always Give Us the Full Plan?
God did not tell Philip about the Ethiopian official who would be coming down that road. He did not tell him about the miraculous moment that was about to unfold. He simply said go.
This is how God often works. When He called Abraham, He said, "Leave your homeland and go to a place that I will show you." He did not give Abraham a map. He just said start walking.
God hardly ever gives us the whole plan. He gives us the next turn. And obedience does not require understanding. Some of the greatest moments of your life will happen because you obeyed God before you ever understood what He was doing.
What If Your Detour Is Actually an Assignment?
Standing on a desert road in the middle of nowhere, Philip may have wondered if he had made a mistake. Maybe he thought about what was happening back in Samaria. Maybe he questioned why God would move Him away from something so fruitful.
But what Philip called a detour, God called an assignment.
Sometimes God closes a door not to punish you but to position you. The interruption you are experiencing right now may not be a setback. It may be exactly where God needs you to be.
How Does God Work on Both Sides of an Encounter?
At the same time God was nudging Philip down that road, He was working on the heart of an Ethiopian official, the treasurer of the queen of Ethiopia. This man had traveled to Jerusalem to worship and was now on his way home, reading from Isaiah 53 in his chariot.
Philip did not know this man. The man did not know Philip. But God knew them both and arranged the meeting.
As one man had a question, the other man had an answer. This is what happens when you respond to the nudging of the Holy Spirit. You do not always know what God is doing on the other side. You just feel the nudge to call someone, invite a coworker, or pray for a person. What you do not see is that God may already be working on that person's heart, preparing them for exactly that moment.
Do not ignore the nudge. You do not know what God is arranging on the other side of your obedience.
Why You Cannot Reach People From a Safe Distance
When Philip spotted the chariot, the Holy Spirit told Him in Acts 8:29, "Go over and walk alongside the carriage." In other words, get closer.
It is easy to talk about people from a distance. You can criticize from a distance. You can judge from a distance. You can make assumptions from a distance. But you cannot know someone's story from a distance, and you cannot love people from a safe distance.
When working with youth, a rule was established that no sponsor could correct a student unless they at least knew that student's name. Because if you do not know their name, you do not know their story. You do not know why they act the way they do. You do not know what they are carrying at home. Knowing the story changes everything.
Philip ran to the chariot. He did not wait for the man to notice him. He did not put up a sign and hope someone would come ask. He ran toward the person who needed help.
What Did Jesus Model About Getting Close to People?
Jesus was known for eating with sinners. He touched lepers that everyone else avoided. He stopped to talk with the Samaritan woman at the well who was trying to avoid everyone else. He went to where hurting people were.
Jesus did not wait for people to clean themselves up before He got near them. He got close. He asked questions. He met people where they were.
For too long, the church has operated with the mindset that if people want Jesus, they know where to find us. But Jesus never said wait for them to come. He said go. Go into all the world. Go into the highways and byways. Go to the hurting, the broken, the person everyone else avoids.
Why Asking Questions Is More Powerful Than Giving Answers
When Philip reached the chariot, he did not start preaching. He asked a question: "Do you understand what you are reading?"
The man replied, "How can I understand it unless someone instructs me?" And he invited Philip to come sit with him.
That door opened because of a question. Philip did not kick the door down. He did not argue or condemn. He simply asked where the man was, and the man invited him closer.
Evangelism is not about winning arguments. It is about helping people find Jesus. Sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do is ask a simple question. How are you really doing? What is going on in your life? Can I pray for you? You may discover that God was already working before you ever arrived.
What Does "Getting in the Chariot" Actually Look Like?
When the Ethiopian man invited Philip into the carriage, Philip got in. He sat beside him. He entered his world. He started with the scripture the man was already reading, Isaiah 53, and led him from there to the good news about Jesus.
He did not make it complicated. He did not require the man to jump through religious hoops. When the man saw water and asked what was stopping him from being baptized, Philip baptized him right there on the desert road.
You see relationship, not religion. You see someone meeting a person exactly where they are and walking with them toward Jesus.
Getting in the chariot means getting into someone's workplace, their living room, sitting across from them at lunch, and having real conversations. Ministry does not only happen in front of crowds. It happens one person at a time, close enough to hear the questions they are actually asking.
You Do Not Have to Be There for Every Stage
After Philip baptized the Ethiopian official, the Spirit of the Lord took Philip away. The man never saw him again. But Acts 8:39 says he "went on his way rejoicing."
Philip did not need to be there for every chapter of that man's story. He was faithful to the moment God placed Him in, and that was enough. God will use you if it is just for a season, just for a conversation, just for one moment of obedience. You do not have to do everything. You just have to be faithful to what God is asking you to do right now.
Life Application
This week, identify one person in your life who is on a desert road of their own. Maybe it is a coworker, a neighbor, a family member, or someone you have been keeping at a comfortable distance. Your challenge is to get closer. Do not shout answers from the sideline. Do not post a comment. Get in the chariot. Reach out, sit with them, and ask a genuine question about how they are really doing. Then listen.
Ask yourself these questions as you go into this week:
- Is there a nudge from the Holy Spirit that I have been ignoring because it does not make sense to me right now?
- Who in my life am I keeping at a safe distance instead of getting close enough to know their story?
- Am I more focused on giving answers than asking the right questions?
- What detour in my life might actually be a divine assignment I have not recognized yet?
God is working on both sides of every encounter. Your job is simply to go, get close, and trust Him with the rest.
