The seat of wisdom of every person is his mind. His belief dictates his actions. His mind-set was formed by what his culture and experience taught him. But what if a man hears that God is the real source of wisdom – the kind of ‘wisdom’ that is infallible, pure and absolutely true? How would he react? Read on a story the Athenians encounter with Paul, the Apostle of Jesus Christ. What points can we learn from a conversation that happened around AD 33?
Word Meanings:
Athens – Greece’s state capital; popular for the birth of philosophical beliefs like Epicureanism and Stoicism
Areopagus – a council in Athens that give foreign lecturers a license to teach their ideas to the public
Epicureans - atomic materialists, viewed reality as an endless chance combining and dispersion of atoms; they could not accept that a dead body can resurrect or brought back to life
Stoics – materialist pantheists, identified the divine as the principle of reason pervading all and, in the form of fate, governing all.
religious - a human character, doing a set of routine to please a certain god or to gain his favor
Reference: Acts 17:16-34
In Athens
16 While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. 17 So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. 18 A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, "What is this babbler trying to say?" Others remarked, "He seems to be advocating foreign gods." They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. 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? 20 You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we want to know what they mean." 21 (All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.)
22 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. 23 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. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you.
24 "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. 25 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. 26 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. 27 God did 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. 28 'For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.'
29 "Therefore since we are God's offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by man's design and skill. 30 In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. 31 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."
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." 33 At that, Paul left the Council. 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.
What the passage says about God:
1. He made everything. (verse 24)
2. He does not live in temples made by human hands. (v. 24)
3. He does not need people’s service, for He is the source of service. (v. 25)
4. He gives all men life and breath and everything else. (v. 25)
5. He made the first man and all men that populate the earth. (v. 26)
6. He determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. (v. 26)
7. He desires people to know him. (v. 27)
8. In him we live and move and have our being. (v. 28)
9. He is patient with people’s ignorance about His deity. (v.30)
10. He commands all people to repent to Him. (v. 30)
11. He sets a time when to judge people. (v.31)
12. He enthrones Jesus to be mankind’s ultimate judge. (v.31)
What the passage says about people:
1. People have different ideas about God. Some carved idols and erect temples, some worship him in spirit. (v. 16-18)
2. Not all people have a clear understanding on who God is so their responses are different. (v. 32-34)
3. Not all people who have heard the truths about God and His love for them immediately believe in Him. (v. 32)
Questions to Ponder:
1. Now that I know that God made everything and everyone, how often do I thank Him for what I have?
2. After learning that God desires me to know Him, which of these is my response – ignore Him or seek Him and repent from my sins?
3. As I read that Jesus will judge me one day, am I ready to face him?
Chat with God! ^_^
Dear God,
Now that I know that it’s Your desire for me to know You, so that I would repent and worship You, I am thankful. May I cling unto this truth. You are indeed the great designer of my life. Thank You for Your patience and love for me. You don’t need my service, yet, You are willing to show me the way to have that privilege to be with You.
It is through believing in your Son Jesus Christ, who resurrected from the dead, that could bring me to You. May I remain close to You. May I appreciate every decision that You make. For you determined the times set for me and the exact places where I should live. Situations may get scary at times and challenges may seem too big for me to handle so I would keep on trusting You. In You I live and move and have my being, so I won’t be afraid.
Inspire me with Your truth so that I would be ready and excited to see you one day. In Jesus’ most holy name I pray, Amen.
Related Link:
http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/commentaries/IVP-NT/Acts/Witness-Athens
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