102 Acts 17:22-31 PAUL ON MARS HILL Introduction: The Apostle Paul had arrived at the city of Athens, Greece. He had sent a message to Silas and Timothy asking them to join him there. While he waited for them to arrive he took a tour of the city and found it to be filled with temples, shrines and altars to idol gods. On the sabbath day he attended a Jewish synagogue and disputed with the Jewish brethren seeking to persuade them that Jesus is the Christ. Then on the week days he went to the market place and disputed with the Epicureans and Stoicks and anybody else that would listen to him also seeking to persuade the Gentiles that there is but one true God and that the man Jesus Christ is the Savior that God has sent to this world. It was at this point that an altogether unexpected thing happened. The Gentiles invited Paul to go with them to the Areopagus to tell them more about Jesus. In our text today the Areopagus is called “Mars’ Hill.” The Areopagus was a large flat rock which was elevated above the surrounding area. The city officials held their sessions seated on this platform and the citizens of the city gathered around the rock to listen to them discuss city business. Apparently the city fathers were not in session right now and the people who heard Paul at the market place wanted to use the elevated platform of the Areopagus so that larger numbers of people could gather around the rock and hear him speak. They would spread the news and invite everybody to come and hear this man who would tell them about Jesus. It was a tremendous opportunity for Paul. It would be somewhat like having some of the citizens of Tyler to rent the sportatorium out on highway 64 and then spread the news to all of Tyler to come and hear Bro. Brittain or myself or, one of God’s Missionary Baptist preachers speak about Jesus Christ, the Savior of men. When Paul began his speech on Mar’s Hill, he could look about him and see a large sea of anxious faces out before him. I. The opening statement of Paul’s speech V. 22, “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.” In the King James translation, we hear the Apostle Paul tell his congregation, “...ye are too superstitous...” This statement in our English translation seems quite harsh. However, Paul’s statement in the Greek language, in which it was originally written, was not quite so harsh. In the Greek language it carries the idea, “I am aware that you are very religious people.” In verse 23 he explained. V. 23, “For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions...” This statement reflects back upon verse. Paul had toured the whole city and had found temples, shrines and altars all over the city. The city was filled with signs of religious worship. There was some sign of worship of every god that they knew anything about. The temples were fabulous structures. They were expensively and artistically adorned. This is what Paul meant by the word “devotions.” He was talking about all of the expensive items which they had built as a token of their religious devotion to the many gods. There was no doubt that these people were religious. They were very religious. II. The altar to an unknown God Paul had even observed an altar that had been erected to an unknown God. (V. 23), “...I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD...” Let me remind you that idol worshipers did not limit their worship to just one idol god. A man may call upon one idol god to help him have good health, a different god to help him have a good crop, a different god to help him have a large family and still a different god to help him in war. An Athens family worshipped them all. They worshipped every god that they knew about. Indirectly they even worshipped the True and Living God. They worshipped Jehovah God. They worshipped the Creator God. The problem is that they knew nothing about Him and they considered Him to be just one of the many gods. But they did have enough judgment to know that there might be some other god whom they knew nothing about and so they had erected an altar to him or to them. Some historians say that the actual reading on the altar read “TO THE UNKNOWN GODS (plural.) This sounds likely because they would likely think that many other gods may exist of whom they knew nothing about. So it is likely that the wording on the altar allowed for the possibility that many gods exist which the Athenians knew nothing about. But Paul’s wording did not allow that many other gods exist. Paul’s words acknowledged that only one other God exists --- the True and Living God --- the only God who exists. Paul sought to inform the people of Athens about this God. (V. 23), “...Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.” They were already worshipping the true God, but they were not worshipping Him in an acceptable way. Jesus said in John 4:24, “...they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” The people of Athens were worshipping God ignorantly. They were not worshipping Him in spirit and in truth. They though that He was nothing more than one of the many other false gods whom they worshipped. III. The truth about the True God Paul declared that the true God is the Creator of all things that exist. V. 24, “God that made the world and all things therein...” Contrary to what the Epicureans in his audience believed, Paul declared that the God whom he worshipped is the Creator of all that is. The Epicureans believed that the gods had nothing to do with the creation of the world or the creation of man. Therefore, they did not believe that man is responsible to any god nor that man can rely on any of the gods for help. Paul said that God did create the heavens. God did create the earth. God did create all plant life and all animal life God did create man. Paul declared that God is the Supreme Ruler of all things that exist. (V. 24), “...seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth...” Since God is the Creator of all things, then God is the owner and ruler of all things. He is Lord or Ruler of all heaven and earth and all things therein. Therefore, God is interested in the life of man. God sees every deed. God hears ever word. God knows every thought of the heart and mind. Man will give account to Him for every word, every deed and every thought. Furthermore, God loves all mankind. He knows man’s faults and failures, but He loves every person. God does good for all mankind. He stands ready to hear and to help those who humble themselves before Him and who call upon His Holy name. Paul declared that in spite of all the beauty and splendor of the man-made temples and altars at Athens (or anywhere else) that the true God was not to be found in that kind of worship. The truth is that God does not need man; man needs God. God does not need for man to build God a temple to dwell in. (V. 24), “...dwelleth not in temples made with hands.” God has made heaven and earth and God dwells in all of heaven and earth. This, of course, does not mean that a special manifestation of God’s presence did not dwell within the Old Testament tabernacle and the Old Testament temple. But while a manifestation of God was within them, God did not need them in order to have a dwelling place. His mighty presence fills all heaven and earth. V. 25, “Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things.” The idol worshippers thought that the gods whom they worshipped were dependent on them not only to build them a dwelling place, but they thought that the gods were dependent on them to supply them with food and drink. They thought that the gods actually ate the food and drank the wines which were brought to them in sacrifices at the idol temples. The people thought the gods were dependent on them for sustenance. But the truth is that God’s life does not depend on man. Rather it is the other way around. Man’s life depends on God. It is God who formed the body of man from the dust of the earth and breathed life into that body. It is God who sustains the life of man. The food that goes in his mouth, the clothes that he wears on his back, yea, even the air that he breaths comes from God. When God stops sustaining a man’s life, that man already breathed his last breath. III. God, the God of the nations Each nation in Paul’s day had their own patron god. The people believed in and worshipped many different gods, but each nation had one special god to whom they looked as a patron and protector of that nation. Paul, taught that it was the other way around. Instead of each nation having a different nation god than the other nations, all nations, in reality had only one God, the True and Living God. All nations descended from the man and woman what God created. V. 26, “And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth...” God created Adam from the dust of the earth and God created Eve from his rib. God was the only God that Adam and Eve had. All nations descended from Adam and Even and all nations have the same God. They all have the same God that Adam and Eve had. They might not worship Him. They may worship some false god or gods. But the truth of the matter is that the only God in existence is the God over all nations. To the nation of Greece and to most other nations at that time, the Creator God was an unknown God, but never-the-less, He was still the God of all nations. He was the only real God that they had. God had not only brought into existence the man and woman from whom all nations sprang, but God had set the bounds for all nations. V. 26, “...and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation.” God has determined the rise and fall of each nation. God had determined how long a nation would stand. He has determined how and when each nation would fall. He set the boundary lines as to territory and He set the boundary lines as to time. Contrary to the thinking of the Epicureans, God takes a special interest in the life of each nation and each person. IV. The opportunity of seeking God and getting to know God V. 27, “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.” Had it not been for the sin of Adam, man would not need to seek after God. All mankind would know God and worship God and be loyal and true to God. But Adam did sin and because of his sin, all men have inherited the sin nature of Adam. Therefore, all men must seek God. Only by seeking God and finding God can man find peace in his soul and find eternal bliss and happiness. V. 28, “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.” But God cannot be found by the building of idol temples and making images of silver or gold or stone. V. 28-29, “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.” The nations of Paul’s day could not find the true God through some kind of man-made religion. Neither can a lost soul find God and make his peace with God through some man-made religion. He can only make his peace with God by placing his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ to save his sinful soul. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me,” John 14:6. V. A limited time of opportunity V. 30, “And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent.” Jesus said, “Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish,” Luke 13:3, 5. If one truly repents he will also trust Jesus Christ to be His Savior. In the Bible repentance and faith always go hand-in- hand. Repent first: Acknowledge your sinfulness and your inability to save yourself. Then trust Jesus to do the saving. You cannot save yourself, but Jesus can save you. Trust Him. V. 31, “Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by [that] man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all [men], in that he hath raised him from the dead.” God has appointed a time of judgment. You do not know just when that day of judgment will come. Neither do you know when the day of your death will come. But you do know that the day of your death will come and you know that the day of your judgment will come. You need to take advantage of the opportunity that you have. You need to come today and place your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ to save your soul.