Monday, May 4, 2026
The Holy Spirit said to Philip, "Go over and walk along beside the carriage [of the treasurer of Ethiopia]."
Philip ran over and heard the man reading from the prophet Isaiah. Philip asked, "Do you understand what you are reading?"
The man replied, "How can I, unless someone instructs me?" And he urged Philip to come up into the carriage and sit with him.
The passage of Scripture he had been reading was this:
He was led like a sheep to the slaughter.
And as a lamb is silent before the shearers,
he did not open his mouth.
He was humiliated and received no justice.
Who can speak of his descendants?
For his life was taken from the earth.
[The Word, Jesus,] came into the very world he created, but the world didn't recognize him. He came to his own people, and even they rejected him (John 1:10-11).
Jesus gave up his heavenly place as God, knowing his creations would cruelly reject him. As the "Suffering Servant,"* he knew what lay ahead of him as the Messiah. Isaiah had spelled out that the Lord's Servant, the Messiah, would not conquer militarily, but would serve sacrificially to bring salvation to God's people and reach the nations. In other words, Jesus knew his roadmap as the Messiah was to suffer and die to free people from their bondage to sin, death, and hell. Jesus came to earth willingly, to be our sacrifice and heal our brokenness. Such love takes my breath away.
* The "Servant Songs" are usually identified as Isaiah 42:1-4, 49:1-6, 50:4-7, 52:13-53:12, and Isaiah 61:1-3. These servant poems of God's chosen "Suffering Servant" prophesied about God's coming servant-Messiah. Jesus used Isaiah's prophecies to explain the path of suffering his ministry followed. {Even though Jesus applied Isaiah 61:1-3 to himself in different situations (Luke 4:16-21, 7:20-23), it sometimes isn't included in the "Servant Songs" since the word "servant" is not used. Nevertheless, this passage describes a servant.}
![Illustration of Acts 8:29-33 NLT — The Holy Spirit said to Philip, "Go over and walk along beside the carriage [of the treasurer of Ethiopia]."
Philip ran over and heard the man reading from the prophet Isaiah. Philip asked, "Do you understand what you are reading?"
The man replied, "How can I, unless someone instructs me?" And he urged Philip to come up into the carriage and sit with him.
The passage of Scripture he had been reading was this:
He was led like a sheep to the slaughter.And as a lamb is silent before the shearers,he did not open his mouth.He was humiliated and received no justice.Who can speak of his descendants?For his life was taken from the earth.](https://img.heartlight.org/overlazy/creations/24705.jpg "Illustration of Acts 8:29-33 NLT — The Holy Spirit said to Philip, \"Go over and walk along beside the carriage [of the treasurer of Ethiopia].\"
Philip ran over and heard the man reading from the prophet Isaiah. Philip asked, \"Do you understand what you are reading?\"
The man replied, \"How can I, unless someone instructs me?\" And he urged Philip to come up into the carriage and sit with him.
The passage of Scripture he had been reading was this:
He was led like a sheep to the slaughter.And as a lamb is silent before the shearers,he did not open his mouth.He was humiliated and received no justice.Who can speak of his descendants?For his life was taken from the earth.")
Unstoppable! is a one-year devotional guide through the book of Acts. Each devotional consists of a scripture passage, a reflection and a prayer. The reflection opens up the day's scripture and shows how it challenges one to live for Jesus.
Unstoppable! is written by Phil Ware.
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
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