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Prayer

For the Lord is a gracious God,
whose mercy is everlasting:
and whose faithfulness endures
from generation to generation.
Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom,
thanksgiving and honour, power and might,
be to our God for ever and ever!
Amen.

New Testament Reading - Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch

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26But as for Philip, an angel of the Lord said to him, “Go over to the road that runs from Jerusalem through the Gaza Desert, arriving around noon.” 27So he did, and who should be coming down the road but the Treasurer of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace the queen. He had gone to Jerusalem to worship 28 and was now returning in his chariot, reading aloud from the book of the prophet Isaiah.

29The Holy Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and walk along beside the chariot.”

30Philip ran over and heard what he was reading and asked, “Do you understand it?”

31“Of course not!” the man replied. “How can I when there is no one to instruct me?” And he begged Philip to come up into the chariot and sit with him.

32The passage of Scripture he had been reading from was this:


“He was led as a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb is silent before the shearers, so he opened not his mouth; 33in his humiliation, justice was denied him; and who can express the wickedness of the people of his generation?a For his life is taken from the earth.”

34The eunuch asked Philip, “Was Isaiah talking about himself or someone else?”

35So Philip began with this same Scripture and then used many others to tell him about Jesus.

36As they rode along, they came to a small body of water, and the eunuch said, “Look! Water! Why can’t I be baptized?”

37b“You can,” Philip answered, “if you believe with all your heart.”

And the eunuch replied, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”

38He stopped the chariot, and they went down into the water and Philip baptized him. 39And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, and the eunuch never saw him again, but went on his way rejoicing. 40Meanwhile, Philip found himself at Azotus! He preached the Good News there and in every city along the way, as he traveled to Caesarea.

. . . . . Acts 8:26-end
  1. Implied; literally, “who can declare his generation?” Alternatively, “who will be able to speak of his posterity?”
  2. Many ancient manuscripts omit v. 37 wholly or in part.

Intercession

Please remember our Prayer Requests

One thing we ask of you, O Lord, one thing we seek:
that we may dwell in your house all the days of our life.
Lord, have mercy. E te Ariki, kia aroha mai.
Let your loving-kindness, O Lord, be upon us,
as we have put our trust in you.
Christ, have mercy. E te Karaiti, kia aroha mai.
Rise up and help us, O God our Saviour,
and save us for the sake of your steadfast love.
Lord, have mercy. E te Ariki, kia aroha mai.
Ride on and conquer in the cause of truth,
and for the sake of justice.
Christ, have mercy. E te Karaiti, kia aroha mai.
Let the heavens declare the rightness of your cause,
and may your praises reach to the world’s end.
Lord, have mercy. E te Ariki, kia aroha mai.
Amen.