First some background: I discovered again how difficult these missionary journeys had been for Paul and his travel companions. The second trip was conceived after the important Church Council resolution in Jerusalem, which essentially eliminated the need for circumcision for Gentiles to become Christians. The church sent Silas, among others to accompany Paul and Barnabas back to Antioch to "authenticate" the resolution to the believers there (Acts 15:22-35). After some time Paul and Barnabas decided to make the second missionary trip to the places they visited in the first trip to find out how the believers were doing, and no doubt to update them with the new resolution and to encourage them in their faith. However, Paul and Barnabas had "sharp" disagreement over whether to take along John, also called Mark, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia during the previous journey. Barnabas, true to his name which means "the encourager", took Mark and Paul brought Silas and they took off in different directions. Early in the trip, after some success in Lystra, where on the previous trip Paul was nearly stoned to death(!), and where Timothy joined them in this journey, there was a change of plan. They were "kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia"and when they tried to enter Bithynia "the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to". And after receiving a "vision" where a man from Macedonia begged Paul to come, Paul concluded that instead of revisiting the places he had been, God had called him to preach the gospel in Macedonia (Acts 16:6-10).
However, this trip once again was marked with many successes and hardship. In Philippi, a Roman colony and the leading city of that district of Macedonia, they were stripped and beaten and thrown into prison, where they were released miraculously (by a violent earthquake) and where the jailor and his family were saved (this is where you find the famous Bible promise “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.” Acts 16:31). In Thessalonica they caused a riot (Acts 17:1-8) and had to be sneaked out of town. Further persecution in Berea by the Thessalonica mob eventually took them to Athens.
So it hadn't exactly been a Mediterranean cruise! Paul was single minded on these journeys to preach the gospel of Christ. He listened to the inner Spirit and followed faithfully where God had been leading him. He witnessed God's working in His mysterious ways - sometimes full of joy and wonders as he saw people turning to Christ, other times he saw the evilness of those who refused to believe and the extent of hatred that nearly caused him his life. But God was never far away. It prompted him to say these words:
"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." (1 Corinthians 1:18)
"For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile." (Romans 1:16)
So when he arrived in Athens you can imagine how he felt when he saw all the idols there. But there were more than physical hand-made idols. There were philosophical idols as well, among them the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers, who were interested in a debate with Paul, and to take place in the great Areopagus - the "Rock of Ares" which functioned as the high Court of Appeal (Acts 17:16-21)! So Paul was facing an intellectual crowd who were not exactly seeking to know a living Saviour, but a new philosophy in life. This is probably not dissimilar to the people we meet today. There is a definite rise in interest in spirituality. But when we tell people about Jesus, they think we are just "babbling"; they have heard it before. So what can I learn from Paul's speech (Acts 17:24-31) in this context:
- If you look at nature, you have to believe in the existence of God (verses 24,25)
- He is omnipotent and omnipresent (verses 26, 27)
- We find meaning of life in him (verse 28)
- We cannot replace him with man-made idols (verse 29)
- God is calling us to repent - to turn back to him (verse 30)
- He has sent his son Jesus to die on the cross to save us from our sins. He has authenticated his authority by raising him from the dead. We are to choose to believe in him or to reject him. There will be a day of judgement (verse 31 - yes this verse is loaded!)
So this is not a man-made philosophy. It is based on observation of this universe and the historical existence of Jesus. It addresses the nature of man and our propensity to sin and our need for salvation, which Jesus has freely given us. As in Paul's days, there will be some who would be saved and others who won't. But at least a few will be stimulated to think and may show interests to hear more (verses 32-34).
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