If you ask many people about the apostle Philip, you are likely to get an answer that goes something like this: "Philip the apostle? Oh, yes, I remember him. He's the one who baptized the Ethiopian eunuch on the road to Gaza and preached to the Samaritans. Right?"

Wrong! There are two Philips in the New Testament: Philip the apostle and Philip the evangelist (or deacon). The problem is that we know more about Philip the evangelist (or deacon) than we do about Philip the apostle. Philip the evangelist was the Philip of Acts 6:5 who was one of the seven chosen to minister to the needs of the Hellenist widows in Jerusalem. He went to Samaria and preached the gospel (Acts 8:4-13) and was led by the Spirit to the Ethiopian eunuch (vv. 26-40). He hosted Paul in Caesarea, and his unmarried daughters prophesied (Acts 21:7-9), but he was not the apostle Philip! Yet, Philip the apostle and Philip the evangelist have been confusedsince the second century when the church father Tertullian wrote about theapostle Philip being snatched away from the Ethiopian eunuch. That this confusion continues is not surprising. Our attention is focused on the apostle Philip. Just what do we know about this early disciple of Jesus?

According to John 1:43, Philip was from Bethsaida, the home of Peter and Andrew. Bethsaida, which means "fish house," was a busy, thriving community located on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. Herod Philip, one of the sons of Herod the Great who ruled the territory east and northeast of the Sea of Galilee from 4 B.C.E. until 34 C.E., had raised it to the status of a city, increased its population, and made it his capital city. Possibly Philip was named for this respected ruler who brought economic prosperity to his hometown and was known as one who administered justice fairly. At any rate, Philip bore a Greek name that means "lover of horses."

Beyond the pages of the New Testament are many traditions about Philip. While some traditions associate him with Carthage, Gaul, Lydia, and Parthia, the strongest tradition associates him with Asia Minor. Polycrates of Ephesus,writing about 190 C.E., describes Philip as one of the "great lights"of Asia Minor. One of the strongest traditions says that Philip went to Hieropolis, a city in Asia Minor near Colossae and Laodicea, where he was martyred because he refused to deny Christ. He was stripped naked, hung on a hook upside down by his feet, and his ankles were pierced so that he would bleed to death slowly. He had only one request: that his body be wrapped in papyrus rather than linen, for he felt that his body should not be treated as the body of his Lord.

While Philip only appears in the lists of the twelve apostles in Matthew, Mark, and Luke, he figures prominently in four significant scenes in the Gospel of John. Each of these scenes reveals something about Philip and the meaning of discipleship.

While the story of Philip's first meeting with Jesus is very brief, it is a marvelous presentation of the most basic truths of Christianity. First, it demonstrates the essence of the gospel. Notice that Jesus found Philip (John 1:43). The story becomes a parable of the Good News that in Jesus Christ, God has come for us. So the apostle Paul wrote that "in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself" (2 Cor 5:19). This messaged distinguishes Christianity from the other religions of the world. In other religions humanity seeks to find God, but the Christian gospel proclaims that God has come to find us and has also provided a way by which we might live once again in that fellowship with God for which we were created. God has taken the initiative on our behalf. "While we were still sinners Christ died for us. . . . While we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his son" (Rom 5:8, 10). This is the Good News! Jesus came to find us just as he found Philip. This is the essence of the gospel.

Second, this story presents the essence of discipleship. Jesus' call to Philip was clear and succinct: "Follow me!" Accding to Mark's Gospel, it is the same call that Jesus addressed to Peter and Andrew (1:17). It is, in fact, the basic definition of discipleship given in the Gospel narratives. Discipleship means following Jesus. To be a disciple means more than giving mental assent to a certain set of propositions or just having a certain kind of emotional response. To be a disciple of Jesus means to follow Jesus wherever he may call us to go. Remember Jesus' words to his disciples as he made his way to Jerusalem: "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me"(Mark 8:34). Jesus made it clear to Philip from the very beginning: the essence of discipleship is following him. His call has not changed.

Notice Philip's response to this meeting with Jesus. The moment he found Christ he was determined to share Christ with others. He went immediately to find his friend Nathanael. In our study of Nathanael we suggested the possibility that Philip and Nathanael had studied the Scriptures together and waited together for the coming of the promised Messiah. Imagine the thrill Philip must have experienced when the opportunity came to share with his friend the news that this Messiah had come at last.

Clearly Philip had a missionary heart-his first inclination was to share the Good News with others, and he thought first of his friends! What a marvelous example he provided for disciples of every age. Philip was the pioneer of "friendship evangelism." It has been said that friendship provides the most fertile soil for evangelism, for within friendships the reality of Christ is introduced into a relationship of love that is already established. But do we share the Good News with our unsaved friends?

We must share the gospel both with those we know and those we do not know, but is it not reasonable to suggest that those we know should be at the top of our list of concern? Should we not be concerned to share the Good News with those people we already care about? Philip was! Are we? Perhaps our problem is that we do not know many unsaved people. Ask yourself this question. "How many unsaved friends do I have?"

A former director of evangelism for a Baptist state convention once suggested that most church members could count the number of unsaved friends they had on the fingers of one hand! Could he possibly have been right? If genuine evangelism is born out of relationships with others, should we not be seeking to know and care for those around us who need to find Christ? Philip was concerned to share Christ with others. What is the level of our concern?

In his book The Church and the New Order, William Paton tells the following story:

Paton concluded the following:

Could Paton be right? Do we really believe this Good News? If we did, would we not go to any length to share it with others? Philip believed and shared the Good News, and because he did others also came to believe.