Acts 17:25

Acts 7:25 says, Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things;  Paul said they could not worship God with anything made by hand, since He is the Creator of everything.  All that we can offer God is ourself.  Verse twenty-six continues, And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; Next, Paul said God made one blood of all nations of men that dwell on the face of the earth. He has determined the times and boundaries of their habitation.  When we start to feel that we are better than other people or other nations, remember that God made one blood of all nations.  We make a lot of borders.  North and South Carolina redrew theirs in 2017, moving some families from one state to the other.  These families have to legally redefine who they are because of an invisible line.  When those borders make us feel superior to others, remember that God made us all one blood.  Verse twenty-seven concludes, That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:  God did all these things that we might seek after Him.  Paul told the Epicureans that they should seek God.  He told them that He is never far away, even in places that do their best to not only deny Him but to try to eradicate Him.  There is even better news.  God is actively seeking all the lost people and calling them to Him.  Verse twenty-eight says, For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.  Paul said, we live, and move, and have our being; which certain of their own poets had said when they stated, For we are also his offspring.  Again, we should always look for areas of common understanding even when we present the gospel, which is an uncommon truth.  Verse twenty-nine adds, Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.  Paul said since we are the offspring of God, we shouldn't think the Godhead could be contained in gold, or silver, or stone fashioned by men.  He is a living God Who dwells in His followers.  We, as His people, can never worship the things of this world and worship God at the same time. 

 

 

 

Acts 17:22

Acts 17:22 says, Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious.  Remember the Epicureans and Stoics didn't believe in superstition, so the first thing Paul said to them was that he saw that they were a superstitious bunch.  Paul said he understood that in all things they were too superstitious.  Verse twenty-three adds, For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, To The Unknown God. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.  He saw a statue inscribed To The Unknown God.  They were trying to cover their bases.  I once saw a cross hanging over a statue of Buddha, and the person who set it up said they weren't sure who was right, but they wanted to be safe either way, but they weren’t. People were searching for the God then, and they are searching now.  Paul told them he had good news for them.  The One they ignorantly worshipped; Paul declared unto them.  Verse twenty-four continues, God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;  He started by declaring God to be the Creator of all things.  Even those who profess themselves to be atheists cannot, I believe, really deny some power had to be behind creation.  The more vocal they are about their belief, I think, the more they know they are wrong. Why be concerned about something that doesn't exist?  Next, Paul said God was the Lord of all the heavens and the earth and did not dwell in temples made with hands. When we build ornate houses of worship, we say that God deserves the best, but usually there is a lot of comfort built into it for us.  We seem to be moving Christianity more and more into the confines of the church walls.  We once baptized in creeks and ponds for all the world to see, now we baptize in the church building for Christians to see.  We once had dinner on the grounds for the world to see, and now we have dinner in the building for us to see.  We are not called to be builders of great buildings for God, because as Paul told the Athenians, God does not dwell in buildings made by hands, because everything is His already. We are called to be fishers of men.  Really, it would seem that if we wanted to help build a building or go fishing, if we were honest, most of us would go fishing, so we need to be spending more time fishing for men.  I am not saying the building, the meeting place of God's people, identified as such in the community, is to be neglected, only that if we are spending more on it than on outreach, then our priorities may be wrong. All the buildings will one day be left behind, but the soul of every person will last for eternity, so that is our mandate: to reach the lost before it is to late.  As Paul continued to preach to the people at Mars Hill, his third statement was that God is not worshipped by men's hands, since we can give Him nothing that is not already His.  God not only expects a tithe on everything He has blessed us with, but He also expects us to realize that the other ninety percent is His also.  We can give Him nothing that is not already His, but He blesses us with all that we have.  

Acts 17:19

Acts 17:19 says, And they took him, and brought him unto Areopagus, saying, May we know what this new doctrine, whereof thou speakest, is?  Even though they called Paul a babbler, he met them where they were.  We are told they took him and brought him to Aeropagus, and asked him, "May we know what this new doctrine whereof thou speakest, is?" Verse twenty adds, For thou bringest certain strange things to our ears: we would know therefore what these things mean.  They said Paul brought certain strange things to our ears: they would like to understand what these things meant.  In order to reach people with the gospel today, we must first get them interested in it.  Verse twenty-one continues, (For all the Athenians and strangers which were there spent their time in nothing else, but either to tell, or to hear some new thing.)  Athenians and strangers spent their time in nothing else, but to tell or hear something new, and they heard Paul, even though they called him a babbler, had something new to tell them.  Many people today want nothing more than to hear the latest idea to improve their life.  They spend most of their time, and often a lot of their money, trying to find something that will bring happiness and purpose into their life.  When that fails and someone tells them of some great new plan, they jump on board, only to be disappointed once again.  If we attempt to share the gospel with them, they may call us babblers, or worse, but we, like Paul, must try to meet them where they are.  We must look for a way to make the gospel understandable for them.  Even though the gospel message is very simple, until a person accepts it through a God given faith, it is just babbling.  Paul did not take offence at their actions toward him, and neither can we.  He looked at who they were and for the best way to reach them, and God gave him a way.  We must never be upset if people call us names because we are Christians but must rely on God to provide us a way to witness to them. 

Acts !7:16

Acts 17:16 says, Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw the city wholly given to idolatry. Paul waited in Athens, his spirit was stirred in him, when he saw a whole city given to idolatry.  He was not stirred to anger, but to compassion. When we see the world today given to idolatry, we need to be stirred in our spirit with compassion.  Verse seventeen adds, Therefore, disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews, and with the devout persons, and in the market daily with them that met with him.  Paul disputed in the synagogue with the Jews, and with devout people, and in the marketplace daily with those he encountered. It is not enough to only witness in the church.  We need to witness daily in the world.  Paul had already been beaten more than once, thrown into prison, and threatened everywhere he had been recently, but he was preaching in the marketplace.  We often hear someone say that they are a Christian, but they aren't a religious fanatic.  It is time we become Christian fanatics.  I think we can safely say that Paul was one.  When he saw a city lost in idolatry, he was moved with compassion to share the gospel with them.  Now, we may say that we don't share the gospel more often because we don't want to look like a nut by being too vocal about our faith.  Look how Paul fared. Verse eighteen continues, Then certain philosophers of the Epicureans, and of the Stoicks, encountered him. And some said, What will this babbler say? other some, He seemeth to be a setter forth of strange gods: because he preached unto them Jesus, and the resurrection.  Certain Epicurean and Stoic philosophers he encountered said "What will this babbler say," and others said, "He seemeth a setter forth of strange God's," because he preached Jesus, and the resurrection. Basically, they were saying that they wanted to see what this nut had to say.  To them, he was babbling foolishness, but at least they came to hear.  The lost in the world will never hear the gospel if Christians don't proclaim it in the world.  We need to worry less about where we cannot share the gospel and spend more time sharing it where we know we can.  The Epicureans believed in humanism and the denial of all religious superstition and divine intervention.  They believed that pleasure and the absence of pain were the highest goals.  The Stoics believed in denying all emotional feelings, that everything was based on logic, and would have classified religious feelings as false.  So their understanding of Paul would have been that he was a babbler. Humanism and logic are nothing new, but we need not fear nor surrender to them. 

Paul was brought to Athens by those who had gotten him out of Berea.  They also sent word for Silas and Timotheus to join him there.  We have not heard much about Timotheus since they started on their journey, but he was still with them.  When we are doing God's work, people may not know our name as well as others, but that doesn't mean that what we are doing is unimportant.  We know the names of very few of the first century Christians, but we see the results of their work anytime the gospel is proclaimed today.  If not for all the unknown Christians in the first century, and every century since, continuing to spread the gospel, the church would not exist. Outside forces can never destroy the church, but the apathy of the Christians can.  If at any point in time we fail to reach the next generation, there will be no church.  So, our greatest concern should not be what the world may do to us, but instead should be what we are going to do for the world.  Paul and Silas were accused of turning the world upside down for Christ.  We need to be accused of the same thing.  It is not enough to sit back and say the end is near and we will win.  We need to be spreading the gospel so that the lost can win today by accepting the salvation of Christ.  The first century Christians thought Christ would return soon, as has every generation since.  It gave them a sense of urgency to proclaim the gospel so the lost might be saved.  We need the same urgency.  Any time we begin to rejoice at the death of any lost person, no matter how bad they may be or how much they may have hurt us, we have lost sight of who we are as God's people.

Acts 17:9

Acts 17:9 says. And when they had taken security of Jason, and of the other, they let them go.  They took security of Jason, and the other, then let them go.  I guess we would say they were bailed out.  Verse ten adds, And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.  The brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas that night.  Remember, the religious leaders came to Jason's house to arrest Paul and Silas, but they weren't there.  Sometimes, it is better to move on to be able to continue to proclaim the gospel.  I'm sure that everyone prayed about the situation before making the decision.  Whether we stay to confront or move on to another area should always be a decision made after praying to know God's will.  Paul and Silas went to Berea, where they again went to the synagogue.  Verse eleven continues, These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.  The people there were more noble than those at Thessalonica.  They received the word with all readiness of mind and searched the Scriptures to see if they were so.  If someone comes to the church preaching something we are not sure about, then we must search the Scriptures to make sure.  We may want to believe it, but we must make sure the Scriptures support it.  Verse twelve states, Therefore many of them believed; also of honourable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few. Many believed, also honorable women who were Greeks, as well as many men.  When they honestly searched the Scriptures, they found the truth and believed.  Verse thirteen adds, But when the Jews of Thessalonica had knowledge that the word of God was preached of Paul at Berea, they came thither also, and stirred up the people.  The Jews at Thessalonica were not through making trouble. When they heard that Paul and Silas were in Berea preaching Christ and people were believing, they sent people to stir up trouble.  We have lawsuits filed in schools today by people who don't even live in the area to stir up trouble for Christians.  We should not be surprised by things like this.  It has been going on since Christ came and will continue until He comes again.  Verse fourteen continues, And then immediately the brethren sent away Paul to go as it were to the sea: but Silas and Timotheus abode there still,  Paul was again immediately sent away, but Silas and Timothy remained there.  The Jews were more concerned with Paul than the others, possibly because he had been a devout Pharisee.  Some preachers today are still respected or feared more than others. Verse fifteen concludes, And they that conducted Paul brought him unto Athens: and receiving a commandment unto Silas and Timotheus for to come to him with all speed, they departed.  They brought Paul to Athens, and he sent for Silas and Timothy, and they came to him quickly.  If we are needed somewhere else, and we know that it is where God wants us, we need to quickly go there.   

There were always unbelieving Jews, and they were always ready to cause trouble for the early Christians anyway they could.  It is sad that God's chosen people caused as much or more trouble for the early church as did the lost world.  What is really bad is that they would always find other people, in this case certain lewd fellows of a baser sort, to ally with.  Those who were supposed to represent God to the world were instead envious of the Christians and joining with the world to destroy them.  As His followers, we can never afford to be envious of other Christians, and we can certainly never join forces with the world to destroy them.  They went to Jason's house looking for Paul and Silas.  They assaulted the house, but didn't find them.  There is no indication that they were authorized to do so, but that did not stop them.  Since they couldn't find Paul and Silas, they took Jason and certain brethren and dragged them before the magistrates.  What was their charge?  These that have turned the world upside down have come hither also.  Will we ever be changed with doing the same thing?  Then, Jason was accused of receiving them, and that they violated Caesar's decrees by proclaiming another king, Jesus.  May we ever be accused of proclaiming King Jesus.