Read Part One HERE
A WALK THROUGH THE BOOK OF ACTS
PART XVII - III
Yesterday, I, Paul arrived in Athens... I had a good walk through the city.... It was very distressing for me to see so many temples.... So I decided that I should start preaching the Good News of the Lord Jesus Christ right away.... As is my usual custom, I went to the synagogue first of all.... I met Jewish people as well as God-fearing Greek people there.... They all listened very carefully to what I had to say....However, I know too that Athens is full of philosophers... But they are not found in synagogues... They are found in market places... That is why I made my way to the market place after my visit to the synagogue...I talked to various groups of philosophers....Some of them invited me to a special meeting.... I went to it earlier today... There too I preached the Gospel... Knowing that I had a different audience than when speaking in a synogogue I used a different approach..... Nevertheless, I ended up my talk with a call for the people to repent... For that is necessary for anyone regardless who they may be."... Please read the typed out attachment when you will learn of Pauls's invitation to speak at a meeting of the Areopagus....
ATTACHMENT A WALK THROUGH THE BOOK OF ACTS
PART XVII - III
Some of the philosophers Paul had met invited him to a special meeting as you can know from Acts 17:19
Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, "May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?"
These men are simply curios to know what exactly Paul has been saying since they enjoy nothing better than listening to the latest ideas. However, Paul used this opportunity to once again share the Good News of the Lord Jesus Christ with them. But he used a different method than when preaching in the Jewish synagogue, for in any synagoge he would reason from the Scriptures. But in this meeting he is dealing with pagan Greeks who do not know the Hebrew Scriptures. So he has a different approach as you can know from Acts 27:22-23a
Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said, "Men of Athens" I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: To an unknown God."
We know that Paul was distressed about all the idols in the city but he did not tell them off for worshipping these false idols since he knew the reason they were worshipping these idols is because they have not yet learned of the true God; they were a religious people but they did not yet know who they should worship. They had even included an altar to an unknown God in case they had overlooked a particular god, who, consequently, may be angry with them for not worshipping him and, therefore, in his anger may cause problems for them.
And Paul used their belief that there might be an unknown god out there by telling them that, in fact, they were right for there is a God they did not yet know. But they did not need to remain in the dark about this God any longer for he, Paul, was going to proclaim who this God is. And he did it by taking his listeners as far back as the Creation story before declaring to them that this God, who cannot be contained in human temples, gives life and breath to all people and longs for anyone to reach out to Him as you can know from Acts 17:23b - 28a
"Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you. The God who made the world and everything in it it the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And He is not served by human hands, as if He needed anything, because He Himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man He made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God di this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us. For in Him we live and move and have our being.
Paul made use of their own culture before ending his talk with a call for the people to repent as you can know from Acts 17:28b - 31
"As some of your own poets have said, "We are his offspring." Therefore, since we are God's offspring, we should not think that the Divine Being is like silver or gold or stone - an image made by man's design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now He commands all people everywhere to repent. For He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the Man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising Him from the dead."
Paul made it very clear here that temples with statues of gold, or silver, or stone, do not honour God but are men's ideas for God is beyond such designs. And, though He may have overlooked such ignorance in the past, He is no longer willing to do so but wants all people to repent of their sins and to turn towards Him since one day the world will be judged by the Lord Jesus Christ as you can know from Revelation 20:11-12
"Then I saw a great white throne and Him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from His Presence, and there was no place for them. And I (John) saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books.
Paul referred here to the event that will take place as described in Revelation. It has not as yet happened but it will happen in the future.
Read Part Four HERE
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