Opening a Conversation

Acts 8:30
    “So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said ‘do you understand what you are reading?’’ NKJV
   
    So Philip obeyed God’s word immediately and caught up with the chariot. When he heard the man reading from Isaiah, he opened up a conversation about it, asking if the man understood what he was reading.
    Philip not only did what the Holy Spirit told him directly, but also acted in a way he knew from experience that God would approve of. No doubt, Philip had practice looking for opportunities to preach Jesus, and a man just happening to be reading a prophecy about Him must have been determined by God.
    Notice, too, that Philip begins the conversation with a question. He doesn’t just go off on a rant that that scripture is about Jesus, and he should repent. He brought the other person into a discussion. Obviously, the man was curious about the subject, or else he would not have been reading the scriptures.
    Asking a non-rhetorical question means two things. First, Philip would have to listen to his response, and the man would have to engage enough to give a response.
    He talked to the man, not at him, especially in the beginning.
    There are a few things that I can learn from this.
    First, I need to keep my eyes open when going where God tells me. Especially if I don’t know the reason yet, I need to pay attention and be open to the opportunities that arise.
    Also, when sharing the gospel I need to open a conversation before simply trying to force my beliefs off onto them.