Rochester, MN UCC - Learning from the Ethiopian Eunuch - Acts 8:26-40
The story of Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch, told in the 8th Chapter of Acts, is remarkably relevant when we consider the present debate over welcoming LGBTQ+ people into the church. In this story, a eunuch from the court of the Ethiopian Queen is returning from a visit to Jerusalem. For centuries, the people of Israel had excluded eunuchs from the covenant with God. In later years however, Isaiah prophesied that one day God would welcome all the eunuchs into the covenant, into the kingdom. As this particular eunuch is passing by, the Holy Spirit commands Philip to pursue him. Philip and the eunuch read the prophet Isaiah together and Philip helps him to see the good news of Jesus Christ contained within. After learning of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and the promises of baptism, the eunuch, upon seeing a small body of water, asks Philip, “What is to prevent me from being baptized?” Presumably the answer is nothing, because Philip baptizes the eunuch then and there and he receives the Holy Spirit. A group of people long stigmatized and marginalized by the people of God are welcomed into the new covenant and receive the Holy Spirit.
In the last few decades, a new thing has appeared in the life of the church. This new thing is that gay and lesbian and transgender people openly living in loving committed relationships have sought to become servants of Jesus Christ and members of the church. For centuries, such relationships were prohibited by the church, and almost always existed in stigmatized secrecy either within or without the church. Yet now these people are bravely and honestly proclaiming their love for one another and their desire to serve the church. For those of us who believe that one only proclaims Christ as Lord through the power of the Holy Spirit, their desire to be in the church is evidence of the Holy Spirit pursuing them, desiring their presence within Christ’s Church. Much like the Ethiopian Eunuch these people are bringing before the Church the question, “What is to prevent me from being baptized?”
To this question, the story of the Ethiopian Eunuch may serve as guidance. Just as Philip was called to welcome those that the Holy Spirit pursued, so too are we to welcome all those who seek to know and serve Jesus Christ, all those who wish to be baptized. We welcome LGBTQ+ Christians into the church not out of a spirit of innovation and schism, but out of fidelity to our tradition as expressed in this story from Acts. The new covenant in Jesus Christ broke down barriers of difference and welcomed all who would accept the grace and love of Jesus Christ- Male and female, Jew and Gentile, slave and free, eunuch and non-eunuch. When people who have been marginalized by similar barriers of difference genuinely seek to live lives of loving service to Jesus Christ, who are we to prevent them from being baptized? The extension of the covenant to include all the nations of the earth was a cause for celebration in the early days of the church, as was the inclusion of this Ethiopian Eunuch. So too ought we today to celebrate the extension of the covenant to include our LGBTQ+ siblings whom Jesus has called and the Holy Spirit has pursued. Join us this Sunday, as we celebrate this awesome movement of God!
Pastor Andrew Greenhaw