Read Part One HERE
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A WALK THROUGH THE BOOK OF ACTS
PART XVII - IV
"I, Paul, have been preaching in Athens ever since I arrived here a few days ago... Today, I was invited to speak at a meeting of the Areopagus.... They are the leading men in the city of Athens... I believe it is God who has opened the door for me to preach to these men.... For they too need to hear the Good News that the Lord Jesus came to earth for them... And that He died on the Cross so they may have eternal life... I used the fact that they have an altar to an unknown God as my introduction to the God of heaven and earth....There was a mixed response to my message... However, I am very thankful that some people have become believers... One of them is a man named Dionysius.... He is one of the members of the Areopagus....And a woman named Damaris has responded to the Gospel as well... For God is not a respector of persons.. He reaches out to all people regardless of nationality, status in life, or gender.... Praise God that we now have a small congregation right here in the heart of Athens... They will begin meeting at the home of these new believers."....Please read the typed out attachment when you will learn of the conversions of some people in Athens....
ATTACHMENT A WALK THROUGH THE BOOK OF ACTS
PART XVII - IV
There is a mixed response to Paul's message he preached to the members of the Areopagus as you can know from Acts 17:32
When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, "We want to hear you again on this subject."
However, some people did accept his Gospel message as you can read in Acts 17:34
A few men became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others.
The Holy Spirit has been at work during Paul's preaching by stirring up what is in the heart of each person, thereby causing some of them to sneer at his words, others to continue to want to hear more and yet others to accept his message. Paul's role was to preach the Good News of the Lord Jesus Christ so that the Holy Spirit could do His work in the hearts and lives of men and women through the message he proclaimed.
The Holy Spirit has not changed His method for He still uses that same Gospel message to touch the hearts of people. Of course, Paul is no longer here to preach that message. It is now up to us to preach that same message that he preached for it is as powerful and effective as it was in his days as you can know from Romans 1:16 where Paul wrote
"I am not ashamed of the Gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes; first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.
The question is, do we have the same reaction that Paul had, when we see temples, for instance, in India, Thailand or Myanmar, or do we consider them nothing more than tourist attractions? And do we then take opportunity to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with the people who worship these idols because we recognise that they worship false gods and are, therefore, a lost people, who are on their way to hell unless we, like Paul, tell them about the one true God who sent His Son to die on the Cross for mankind.
Perhaps you think, "I have never been to these places and I have no plan to go there so these words do not apply to me." In that case I would like to say, "People can worship other kinds of idols, such as a career, money, or even family. For an idol is anything that takes first place in someone's heart." So there may well be people that you and I know who worship something, but that something is not the true God, and they too are, therefore, a lost people who are on their way to hell unless we tell them about the one true God who sent His Son to die on the Cross for them. And we can rely on the Holy Spirit to use our words to touch their hearts. Our responsibility is to share the Good news with them. It is the Holy Spirit's responsibility to use the words we have shared to touch their hearts.
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