Paul in Athens | Pr Matthew Chang

You're listening to a message to go from X church. We hope this message

will light up your day. So turn with me to Acts chapter seventeen.

Okay, X Chapter seventeen, and I actually have a minimap. You have

the slides up. Okay, we actually have a minimap, and we're gonna

come from the east from NTR. We're gonna travel up all the way.

So you see in the middle here Lestra derby Ntriconya, these are all the

places that he previously started the church in his first missionary trip, and all

the way up to troas Neropolis for the pie. Then after they we will

go later on to Berea and eventually down to Athens. Okay, so you

kind of have an idea where we're gonna end up to be. We're gonna

end up at Athens. Okay. Cool. Actually notice the young people are

actually listening. Very very good, very very good. I hope this will

be exciting geography and history for you guys as well. Okay. So ex

Chapter seventeen, it talks about here preaching Christ at Thessalonica. Okay. So

this is also the same time that Paul also wrote the Book of the Thessalonians

as well. Okay. Now verse one, it says here from the NKJV

version. Now, when they had passed through a Fithilis and a Polonia,

they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. Okay,

a synagogue is a temple. And everywhere they went to which is new,

they always go to their synagogue so that they can meet their own fellow

Jews, Okay, so that they can easier for them talk. Then Paul,

as his custom was, went into them, and for three saburbs,

he reasoned with them, from the scriptures. Okay, it's easy to talk

to the Jews because it's a fellow Jew, because their common ground is the

scripture. Okay. And he explained to them and demonstrated to them that the

Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, these

Jesus, whom I preach to you, is the Christ. And some of

them were persuaded, and the great multitude of the devout Greeks, and not

a few of the leading women joined Paul and silence. So it was made

with a pretty good success, not just to the Jews, but the Gentiles,

especially the devout Greeks. Now, okay, these are very religious Greeks,

very highly educated and highly intelligent Greek people who actually were persuaded. So

it was very very successful. Okay, really is not something to be sneered

about. Let's continue in verse five. But the Jews, who were not

persuaded wire you know, all the case, all the time, became becoming

envious, took some of the evil men from the marketplace and gathering a mob,

set all the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason,

and sought to bring them to the people. Now let's stop there for

a while. Now, there's a few things we can learn from here.

First of all, wherever you want to do God to work, you can

almost be certain there always be resistance people. No matter how good you preach,

how good you try to demonstrate, all the things that you do with

your best intention and love, there will be some people who will become either

jealous in this case, or contentious. And the thing is, you must

understand now, they think that they're doing the right thing, you know what

I'm saying. They always think that they are doing the right thing. They

so called people, They are not from God. They always think that they

are doing the right they're actually believe they are righteous for doing it. But

yet you see what they do. It's a very similar pattern on what some

of these people when they try to rebel and they try to what they call

it undo the work of God. What did they do? They took some

of the evil men from the marketplace and gathering a mom If you look into

the world right now, isn't that very very familiar, very familiar, isn't

it? Young people or anyone here, Please be careful of the crowd.

Okay, be very very careful. You know a lot of times in our

lives we like to blend him with the crowd. You know, what is

the hot topic? What is people right now? You following in terms of

supporting in terms of justice movement so called this movement, that movement as well,

this club or this this cause as well. Be very very very very

extremely double extremely careful of crowds because the enemy loves crowds. Enemy loves why

the enemy loves crowds because you cannot find him, but yet you can sense

him. You can sense always in the crowd that someone is steering, something

is happening. There is a narrative that is stirring up the crowd, but

you can never find them one and the crowd for one moment will love you.

But the moment you say something they don't like, they will turn on

you and betray you, and you will even stomp on you. You know

what I'm saying. When they're like you, you will be celebrated very greatly.

But the moment you are against them, they will turn against you and

you will don't know who is it. You wouldn't know who they are because

they're always hiding somewhere there. And that's exactly what the evil men did.

They knew they were stirring, but they do not want to be identified,

and they gathered who they gether evil men and all or don't want to gether

the good men, but they gether the evil men. He said. It's

not about the understanding that they are trying to rally, but it's about the

intent of their heart, trying to do evil. So what did they do?

They set all the city in up Rochester, small group of people can

set the whole entire community and attack the House of Jason and sought to bring

them out to the people. But when they did not find them, Okay,

continue verse. They drank Jason and some of the brethren to the rulers

of the city, crying out, saying this, these who have turned the

world upside down have come here too. Jason has harbored them, and these

are all acting contrary to the decrease of Caesar, saying there is another king,

Jesus. And they trouble the crowd and the rulers of the city when

they heard these things. So when they had taken security from Jason and the

rest, they let them go. And when you read this right, sounds

very familiar, isn't it? Not just in our current event, but when

Jesus was doing his ministry, didn't he what they call it encounter the same

very resistance. A few group of people who decide to if we can't win

you by reason or by power, we use the crowd. You know what

I mean? Right? They cannot do miracles, then they cannot win you

with what they do do turn to their crowd. Always people, always the

same strategy. They all overwhelm you, and sol Christians, do not be

surprised. Do not be surprised. There's always been detected of the enemy.

And what did they want to do? They eventually let them go, Let

Jason go after they take security, take money. Okay, let's continue.

Okay. Like I said, these are not the main location, but our

world want to go through so that you can understand where they were coming from

as well. Verse ten, then the Brethren immediately sent Paul and Silace away

by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagadue of

the Jews. These were more fair minded than those in Thessalonica in that they

received the world with all readiness and search the scripture daily to find out whether

these things were sold. Okay, you know when people were hungry. When

people are sincere in seeking God, what did they do? When they receive

the word, they will search, They will seek instead of immediately reject.

Okay. And in verse twelve it says that therefore many of them believe.

After searching the scriptures, they believe. They realized that it is true God's

work, not God's words, and hither it confirms one another. Okay,

therefore many of them believe, and also not a few of the Greeks,

prominent women as well as men. But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that

the word of God was preached by Paul a Berea. They came also and

stirred up the crowds. Wow, and see, like I said, whenever

you want to do good works, they might not be there, but somehow

they will follow you from your previous destination as well. Then verse fourteen.

Then immediately the Brethrence and and Paul away to go to the sea. Okay,

they same Paul first, but both Silas and Timothy remained later. So

Paul was there first before the other two. So those who conducted Paul brought

him to Athens, and receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to

him with all speed, they the pattern. So Paul arrived in Athens for

the very first time on his own. Okay, I don't know you.

I don't know if you can recall how do you how did you feel?

And the first time when you were dropping booky being tongue, you know,

or in Singapore in the middle of the street there you know, and then

he started to realize that this is the entire world, you know, and

then there you are, and then you can begin, you know, your

journey from there. I don't know how you feel, you feel overwhelmed,

you feel like too small, You feel like the bright lights have consumed you.

But this is exactly how poor where Paul and how Paul will be feeling

right now in Athens. Now arrive in the main place, and this is

where I'm going to spend your time here. Now. How many of you

have been to Athens before? Not mean I have not been there yet,

would love to go one day? Okay? What is Athens known for?

Athens? What is Athens known for? How can we? Why is Ethens

non for? Don't tell me pizza? Okay? What is Ethens don for?

Olympics? Okay, Olympics for what else? What is Ethens don for?

Where are the students? Where are the teens? Were? Ah?

Yah, yeah, bana bana? What's Ethens known for? You know?

How may you repeat your you're not exkidding? What is Athens known for?

Huhm? Philosophers, netcrop police? Okay? Good, okay? Probably some

of you were like, I know the image, but I don't know what's

the word. Okay, because something we're building with a rock and triangle at

the roof there, you know, is it mass he? Is it aeropagers?

He's not? Is it a temple of artemist, you know. Okay,

Athens. Okay, first of all, let me okay, maybe I

will read this verse verse again. Let's read from verse sixteen, so that

we can have the proper introduction verse sixteen till verse twenty one. Now,

while Paul waited for them in Athens, his spirit was provoked within him when

he saw that the city was given over to idols. Okay, Therefore he

reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the gentile worshippers, and in the

marketplace daily with those who happened to be there. Then certain Epicurean and Storic

philosophers, I want you to underline that. Okay, Epicurean and Storic philosophers

encountered him, and some said, what does this babbler want to say?

Others said, he seems to be a proclaimer of foreign gods because he preached

to them Jesus and the resurrection. And they took him and brought him to

the aeropagus, Okay, saying, may we know what this new doctrine is

of which you speak, For you are bringing some strange things to our ears.

Therefore we want to know what these things mean. For all the Athenians

and the foreigners who were there spend their time in nothing else but either to

tell or to hear some new thing. Okay, Now we known from here

and that when Paul arrived, right, he was overwhelmed and stern not because

of the high rise buildings and all the lights. He was stirred and overwhelmed

by the amount of gods that he was surrounded with. Now, there's a

saying in Athens that it is more likely when you rock on the streets that

you is more likely for you to meet a god than a man. Okay,

it's more like you for you to meet an idol than a man.

Okay. It's like you know, if you go to I don't know if

you go to New Zealand or certain parts that you'll meet more you likely more

to meet a ship than the men. Certain places there are more ships than

men. O here, But in this place there are more idols than men.

Extremely religious, okay, extremely religious, and also a place where a

lot of philosophers gather together as well. Now, who knows what is the

origin of the the origin of the name of Athens. Who what was his

name after? Athena. Athena is the name of a Greek god known for

what, god of wisdom? Okay, the god of wisdom Okay. In

the Roman that is the equivalent of Athena as well, it's called Minerva.

Okay, Minerva. I think there is a cosmetici or called Minerva, right,

Okay. Anyways, uh so, a lot of the cities they take

on so called there what is that word host pagan god? So Athens,

you know, will worship Athena, and that city will basically draw a lot

of very light minded worshippers and people as well. So because because of the

goddess of a lot of people will come from different places to come to reason,

to debate. Another very famous place. And it's not Ethens. It's

not so much like a New York or Tokyo, not so much of that.

It's more like a Boston like it's more like Oxford, okay of our

current world. Okay, it's not a big city, but it's a very

highly intellectual city. Okay, it's not the biggest city, but a highly

intextual, very influential kind of city as well. Sorry. Oh yeah,

all the big universities and all the high highly intelligent people who are there as

well. Now he says, there and that Paul. When he was there,

he actually met with two groups of people, which were the Epicurean and

the Stoic philosophers. How Mayvilla have heard these two names? Howmiovill is an

Epicurean? How many of your Stoic Actually you don't realize that we actually have

a lot of Epicurean and historic beliefs in our our generation right now. And

these are very quite important, Okay, because later I will summarize it up.

Just to give you a bit of quick summary. Actually have the slight

right, So Epicureans, what is their main belief okay, Epicurus don't don't

don't show them, don't tell them, okay, just in case, what

do Epicurreans believe in Epicureans. It's focused mainly on a kind of heathenism.

You know why? It's a hedonism? Have you heard their Hidonists? People?

Who is a Hedonesia? Hidden? Is what do they believe in?

That life is all about what pleasure? Life is all about pleasure, whether

you like to eat, whether it's an essential decharge you feel, you see

your experience. Life is all about pleasure. The end of life is all

about pleasure and they actually believe in gods, okay. They believe there is

a God on many gods, okay, but they do not believe that the

gods actually intervene or care in the affairs of men, okay. And so

because of that, and that's a very important implication, because if they believe

there is a God and God doesn't intervene or care, that means whether you

do right or wrong, there are no consequences. It's a very important belief.

Imagine you combine these both are okay, you believe that life has no

consequences whether you do right and wrong, and your main goal is to pursue

pleasure. When you combine these together, what do you get? People who

are completely out of control? You get what I'm saying. When life is

all about pleasure and there is no consequences in life, you get people who

are completely out of control. And sometimes we have a form of that as

well. You lo, everybody said, you get no, don't do it.

Okay, it's true, your Lord, But then because of that we

take it to the extreme in uh, why it works so hard? You

so all you're spending now and then just enjoy alcoula. You never know you're

gonna live again, and then you buy a first class when you can't you

can't afford it, you know, go to a hotel you can't afford it.

The things that you cannot afford it, we do it because life is

all about pleasure, isn't it. Because what you see on your Instagram and

your TikTok and stuff like that is people, you know, you just enjoying

their life to the maximum. As well. Someone was telling me, you

know, people are so focused on their pleasure, okay that you know,

people will actually come together to collect their money to rent a very expensive hotel

that they cannot afford individually, just so that they can tend to tell themselves

and their friends they are actually stay in this hotel before. It is actually

an elite group there, you know, in many many cities, you know,

in Shanghai, in Tokyo, people who do that. I want to

know. So I can't afford if stay hotel it's five thousand, we can

get a night. I get a few friends so that we can have one

night and we take all the Instagram photos we can. There is my life.

And you look at them like, oh, they just started to work

in one year on how come like they want past is not doing good jobs

living young adults to know, lady, huh true or not? How can

they got private jets? Wanting on? Well, how can they got all

these time of bags wunning on? Life is all about pleasure? They believe

life is random and there is no out of life, no consequences. The

stoics okay, probably quite familiar to some of you as well. What do

the stoics believe? And see now they are quite if you go online there

are quite people who believe in storics okay, wisdom. Stoics believe in one

main thing self mastery, self mastery. They believe in discipline, pain,

pursuit of control, discipline. So they are quite contrary to the Epicureans.

They look at epicurances who pursue only pleasure as very flawed and very unadventurous,

very shallow. Okay, So they believe life is about mastery. You know,

pursue you know, whether it's a physical mastery discipline, you know,

if you know, like who is it, David Godginza, you know who

will run and run until he like, like, he'll still run running because

I can do it, I do it. You know, It's like you

know, and then they believe that in the in the in the belief in

God, they believe that everything is gone. Very pantheism. You know,

we've got it, penteistic. Everything is go, God is everywhere, Everything

is God. There is a God that is God. So nobody is wrong.

We accept all religion. Everything is God. Okay, But they don't.

They don't really feel like that is really important. But the most importantly

is that you can be like that and you need to muster. You need

to become that God that you will call to ment to be, you know

what I mean? Right? And sometimes or that that type of thinking has

also infiltrated into a church as well. Well, why is it that wrong?

Is that wrong? Is it wrong to a discipline? Is it wrong

to ty your eating? Is it wrong to have eight pecks? Is it

wrong to dress well? Story? People dress well? Want to know,

hey, not dress nice? One? And not all these things? Is

it wrong? In some ways? We can say, But it's good,

isn't it. God wants us to care for ourselves, isn't it? But

yet in all the things that they do, who is the master when they

pursue mastery? We are the master and not God? You fast. You're

fast because or intermittent fasting, not because it's God true or not. And

it becomes hard because anything you do in your Christian life becomes blurred ready because

really is about more about you, rare than about God. When you dress,

you dress for God or you dress for yourself. Ah And everything you

do is about you, you you you you. And when anything, whether

it is your family, whether it is your relationship, where there is a

church, where there is your workplace, that's cause you to do something that

is not about you and or goes against something that you prefer, you go

into you enter into a conflict in the stage. You know, you run

into conflict, conflict with people, conflict with the value system because all this

time it's about you mustering yourself. You cannot have another muster about you.

Ah, am I connecting with people here? You know, am I connecting

with people? You know what I'm saying here, It's very fascinating. You

know. So our belief system now is not really that more advanced than them.

You know, they at that time, at that time of simulation,

they are very very evolved and advancing. They're thinking in their philosophy and their

way of life, one. Okay, Now let's pursue a bit more.

Okay, let's go into verse eleven. Okay, verse eleven vers let's see.

Yeah, wait, let me for a while. Yeah. So in

so, okay, wait for a while, he says here, so in

verse nineteen is they said that, and they took him because he they they

hear that Paul was talking all sorts of things. They brought him to the

aeropapers or aeropapers are just mention very quickly. Aeropagers is for another name.

It's called Mars Hill. I mean a few of the word mass will before.

There's a church called Mars Hill as well. Mars Hill because er aeropapers

is basically the hill top where people come together to debate or they settle civil

suits or cases as well. Sometimes they will actually see that in the talks

about here there is a judge here. The name of his the name of

the judge is called Dionysus, who eventually became a bishop and a saint in

Athens as well. So there's a judge who will preside over different things.

Okay, and aeropapers is actually almost like it's like a parliament, but and

a more global scale. People from Egypt people from Rome, people fro from

different places will come to Athens and the Aeropeakers to talk about all things as

well. Sometimes they don't do anything, it's not bottlingthing, just to talk

to me. See who has a new thing to think about as well.

So error comes from the word errors. Errors is actually the other word is

actually in Mars. Okay, it's called Mars Ras. Errors is the godless

of war and the reason if you want to know the one, it's called

aeropapers because the first chord, the first proceeding they have, was to judge

between how errors has killed Poseidon's son or if you want to know about it

as well. So this is why it called the aeropapers. Okay. Now,

so they brought Paul there to hear his address. So this is where

we're gonna listen to from verse sixteen. It's not from verse twenty two.

Okay, We're gonna read from verse twenty two all the way to verse twenty

nine. Let's do this, Okay, Pay careful attention. Then paulstal in

the midst of the aeropapers and said, men of Athens, I perceive then

in all things that you are very religious for as I was passing through and

considering the object of your worship. I even found an altar with this inscription

to the unknown God. I want you to highlight that and underline them.

This is very important. Okay. Therefore, the one whom you worship without

knowing him, I proclaim to you God, who made the world and everything

in it, Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell

in temples made with hands, nor is he worshiped with men's hands, as

though he needed anything, Since he gives to all life, breath, and

all things, and he has made from their pre appointed He made from one

blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth,

and is determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwelling, so that

they should seek underlying the Lord, in the hope that they might grow for

him and find him. Though he is not far from each one of us,

for in him, underlining this, for in him we leave and move

and have our being. As also some of your own poets have said,

for we are also His our friends. Therefore, since we are the offspring

of God, we ought not to think that the divine nature is like gold

or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man's devising. Let's past

there for a while. Now, Paul is giving a very difficult sermon to

a very difficult crowd. How many or you like to do that? Go

and go to maybe go to Oxford and give your somemon preaching to some of

some of the most intelligent people. Some of you will not even give,

not share about Christ to your own friends and family members, let alone to

this group of very highly intellectual people as well. But Paul, it's quite

interesting because he started knowing, like his observation, he comes and meets what

they like to do on their daily life, what is important to them.

It is a very good communication skill you now, if you want to connect

with someone, figure out what is important to them. And sometimes a lot

of times you can see from what they dress, or what they talk about,

or what they're observed, what is important to them, or what do

they fear. Things like that you can begin the conversation. And it says

here that he noticed that they are very religious. Many altars okay, and

he even found an altar with this inscription to the Unknown God. How many

of you have heard this altar before? To the Unknown God? A lot

of times when we read passage. We come to the Oh. Yes,

you know, these Athenians, they just want to make sure that they cover

every god. Just in case we didn't cover anything, we put one into

the Unknown God. You know, like you know, you get me right,

because you're scared you didn't you didn't cover some pire chazzing here if you

miss somebody you know who gets angry with us, you know. Okay,

we put the unknowng Okay, by the way, you know a lot of

times we think like that, but it is far far from the truth.

You want to know the story behind it. Actually, I was doing a

research and I discussed and I saw it. I realized that it is very,

very fascinating. Actually, there's a picture of it. You want to

see the picture, kind of the slide. It looks like that, not

very high, about this high. Okay, to the Unknown God. I'll

tell you the story and I'll wrap it up. I won't take this very

long. Okay. Athens has been a very religious city for a very very

long time. There was many, many gods, and about four hundred or

five hundred years before Christ was born, Okay, Athens experienced a very severe

epidemic, very very tough epidemic. Some people say it was typhos. Some

people if they could busy small pox okay, very bad, and a lot

of people were dying. And because they are so religious, what what do

you think they would do? The whole entire city went into you know,

you know, sacrificial in a uh spree, you know, sacrificing everything to

gods. They pray for everything, They built new idols, The whole city

went into turma. This God cannot do, that God, that God can

not do. And the under God get me on. Everybody was just doing

everything just to appease the gods and all sorts of law. But nothing worked.

Okay, you can actually read this if you want online. So one

day they decided say we've done all we can and you still don't work.

We decided to hire a consultant. They literally when they hire a consultant,

okay, and what kind of consultant were? They hire a poet? To

know a poet? Actually, all mythologies come from poets. Did you realize

that their backstory where they's used, Oh, come for poetry one, All

the backstraates come from them. One. You get me in right. These

people seem to like, oh, how can you think of a story this

already, you must be inspired, you know something that. But they hired

this guy call a power and I can't seem to pronounce his name. Probably

his name is Epimenideses. Okay, you can go ahead find him out,

okay, And they hire him to sort of figure out to solve the city's

epidemic issue. And what he did, okay, and what he did was

very very fascinating. I want you to play coast attention. Okay. So

what he did is that he asked the city together the ships. Okay,

the ships together, whether they're white, where they are black, gather altogether.

The goats all come together as well. And what they did is that

what he did that he put them together, and he staffed them for about

a week. He'll starve the ship, starve them for about one week.

After one week, he will let lose the pen okay, the pen for

and they will observe all the ships. Okay, they're immediately grained to increase

the grass and then eat whatever they can. They just let them go.

But here and there there will be some ships there were one away from the

pack and start to go to one corner and then just sit down there and

lay down their life. There is exactly there where at that spot and where

that ship is. The instruction was given so that they will take that place

and build an altar that altar, so it's not just one altho, there

are multiple althars. You will build an author there, say to the unknown

God and sacrifice that ship. And when they did that, it worked.

It worked. All the gods they sacrificed to you don't work, but for

this particular one it worked. And decide, who is this god? And

we call it the unknown We don't know what it is. You don't know

what it is, but we sacrificed and it worked. Just why the college

to the unknown God? And it's been there until now. It's still there

because people want to not forget that this has happened in Athens, and if

that happen again, this is what they would do. So a lot of

cities are actually very haunted and filtered with a lot of so called urban urban

stories and legends and stuff like that. Okay, but they had that as

well. So now with that understanding in mind, right kind of gives you

a new perspective on things, isn't it very very new new perspective? Because

What did you really really learn from here? Did? Paul was very very

aware of what they were they were doing. You see, after this was

happening four five hundred years before, After four five hundred years, what would

you expect from Athens, a city that recovered from epidemic that was delivered by

one unknown god? What do you think would have happened to them? You

would expect them to worship only one god? Isn't it? But yet when

Paul arrives, what did he find? Multiple gods? So our Athenians without

blame? Of course not isn't it? Literally is really like us? Isn't

it our lives? Isn't it this story? You know? When if you

look at it? You know? What? What? What did Paul?

What? What did Paul say? What did Paul say? What do you?

What do you write? He says it. Therefore, the one whom

you worship without knowing, not just knowing, the one whom you did not

know, but delivered you, save you even you were ignorant, saved you

him. I proclaim to you God who made the world and everything in it,

Seeing he is Lord of heaven and us, and does not do well

in temples made with him, nor is he worshiped with men's hands, so

on and so forth? What is he? What is Paul trying to say?

First of all, men like to create call in their image. Man,

I love to create God in their image. That's what like to do.

But God is not after a men's creation. I don't care how you

look. You look at you, you know when you know when we when

we traveled to Italy, it's amazing, you know, everything they creator,

it's not really after you know, it's not a true representation of what history

is. When I saw the statue of Moses, you know, what does

Moses look like? Now? Moses looks like I know, big biceps and

huge triceps. You know who has been before you if you know what I'm

talking about. There, I saw that this is the is Moses like it

was so bulke and oh really it's massive. You go online and check out

the statue of Moses, all type David. It's like the perfect or the

David. You know, oh what was like like that? I don't know.

Shepherds are it look like they're one and on because they went through an

age of Renaissance and that they went through an age of Renaissance age or renass

means enlightened, that we should celebrate humanity, we should glorify humanity. You

get me in right, So Renaissance was after the Dark Ages. Okay,

so they celebrate everything, even Moses. Anything else must be glorious and human

form as well. Okay, so they created from them and I was like,

is that Moses? So if not, because we are we have an

agent or maybe like a more conservative perspective. And when you go like this

is quite quite different from what I imagine what Adams like perfect trying to reach

God and know the system chapel. Interesting, okay, but men love to

create things from their own emanigation, from in their own and how they look

like said God should look like this, and to that they will said this

is how God wants to live in the type of temple and the type of

houses. But actually what it represents is what hard one. We want to

look like that, and we want to live in houses like this. You

get me a we impose, we cut and paste our desires and put it

on God and say that that's God. Unfortunately, isn't it so limitted?

We are so like that, that's what puts it. God is not created

by silver or God not easier created by the hands of men. But of

all, okay, it's not God reaching down to us. It's about us

reaching up to the Lord. God is created. And he goes on further,

okay, and he's saying, what is the purpose of man? God

is created? And the second what is the purpose of man? The Epicureans

it's okay. The idol worshiper say that our job is to appease the gods,

to give sacrifices so that they will bless us. They will give us

rain, they will give us crop, they will give us sons and daughters

as well, so we sacrifice of that. The Epicureans believe, no,

God don't care about us, So our life purpose is to what the pursuit

of maximum pleasure with no consequence. And then the Stoics say that our life

is all about self mastery and everything is the stor wings the Epicureans, the

idolators are all. It's about they themselves. Isn't it all about they themselves?

And Paul says that no, the purpose of man is that men were

created by God to seek God. And God has pre appointed where and when

you all will be placed, so that we might reach out for him.

And because he said, we reach out because we desire to know him.

We desire to know our maker, we desire to know our source. And

when we reach out, we actually have a hope and a desire to grow

for something in the dam. And Paul says that he is not far.

He is not far. Okay. So our purpose is to know him and

to glorify him. And he says that we seek him for in him.

We leave, we move, and we have our being. We leave.

It means we draw our breath, we start to breathe, we move.

You continue to leave and have our being means to continue existing for a reason,

isn't it? We leave, we move, and we have our being.

Okay, Now all these things sounds good and fine. Okay I'm doing

to curse. Sounds good? Okay, Paul, your kite good. You

know our history, you know our gods, and you are proclaiming something that

is so unique you know to us, you know that even you know it

goes. You know it's not just you know it's higher than our philosophers,

higher than our idols and our god. Okay, where are you taking us

all? Not all the world? He's okay, but they started to stumble.

In the second part of his sermon, what did he say in verse

thirty there he says, there, oh, let me check it carefully.

Verse thirty, Verse thirty. Truly, these times of ignorance, God has

overlooked, okay, saying this time, these periods of ignorance, you create

all these things without knowledge. God has overlooked. But now commands all men,

everyone everywhere, to repent, because He has appointed a day on which

he will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he has ordained.

He has given assurance of this to all by raising him from the death.

Everything was okay. Umtil this point, everything was good, no problem this

main part. So what do you say? He introduced the word one two

keywords resurrection and repentance. Repentance. It's so unique to them Aster. What

we have to repent? Repair from what? Repair from our own self indulgence,

Repair from our own you know, focus on our own hands and our

own creation, on our own self mastery. And he says that no,

calling everyone to repent, because why because God has created God on that on

the God has appointed a date on which he would judge the world. What

do the Epicureans believe in God doesn't care. There are no consequences. Suppose

that God actually cares, God actually sees God, and God will require accountability.

You're right, God sees and God will require accountability. And God has

appointed a day that he will judge. And who is that judge? By

the way, you must understand a lot of people think that everything in Christianity

and everything in heaven, it's all by grace, you know, yes,

and not yes and not when you were born on this earth, it's truly

by grace. One. And know you didn't something a registration from to your

mum and that I want to be like this and I come out like that.

You know I wanted it. But after you were born, everything in

your family are you have to do right by your parent one and know not

everything the things like, oh, everything you do is perfect one and all.

There is a sensor that you have to earn it. You have to

be by merrit one and all. Do you know that how a person becomes

king. Jesus became king and not because he was the son of God and

one just because he was the son of God and not because he was the

grace of God. Yes, in a way. But Jesus became king because

of one main thing. What's that word? He was worthy? We have

a talk before this concept, but it's a very important thing. You know,

to become a king. You don't go back grace when you know it's

not go by race, you know, not go by you know bla,

You go by worthiness. Why do you think we sing the word worthy?

Is the lamb's worthy? When you're the book at the book of revelations?

Who can open the scroll? No one can open on? Oh, by

grace of God. But how can now one can open? None? Not

worthy? It's the concept of worthiness. A lot of people to understand it,

en all. So if you open your heart and realize that there is

this in this kingdom of God, there is this principle of worthiness, you

will start to leave your life very differently. You know, you once like

God, I want to do this because I want to be worthy. Ah.

Oh, are you realize it? Not when you enter into a company

and you get employed or not? But to be promoted is a base or

not by grace or it's by all worthiness? Why do you think God talks

about whether you are faithful with one talent to talent and five talent. It's

worthiness, so that you will not slack enough. You will understand what pleases

God or not by this another someone I will talk about. It's a very

powerful thing and all worthiness and the things a lot of times in a lot

of the things that we do are we make ourselves unworthy. You disqualify yourself

when God has given you grace. What are those things? You know?

So the concept of worthiness is very very important one. And not so that

you're will be blessed so that you get things that other people can't seem to

that because they got stuck. They don't understand the principle of worthiness. You

will be a good servant, You'll be a you know, you will be

someone that really truly reflects to become the child of God the concept of worthiness.

Okay, anyway, I digress. Apologize for her. You're very excited

talking about that. But God says that truly these are times of ignorance.

God has over. But God has appointed a judge. Why is Jesus the

judge because he is the only one who was raised from there. There there

is a requirement for you to become a judge of the living and the dead,

and that you must be raised by God. And there is no one,

no one except Jesus Christ himself. Even if you read share scripture the

Second Timothy chapter four, what do you say, sayah, I charge you

therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and

the dead at his appearing and kingdom, isn't it Jesus Christ will come again

to judge the living and the dead at disappearing because he is worthy. He

is worthy, He is the one who was raised. And after all that

he said, right he said that there will be a resurrection. There is

a resurrection. There is coming whose name, those whose names are written in

the Book of Life, they will not see the second death. They will

be raised like Christ has been raised. Together. Okay, so now as

I close this part here as I recamp. Okay, so we learn there

are idols, idol worshipers. They are stoics, they are Epicureans. Do

we have many? Are we like the Athenians? When God has clearly done

so something in your life delivered you, when all else failed, when all

the God's failure, when all the things the mastery is your pursuit, or

whatever all has failed you, did you remember him or are you like are

we like the Athenians? When God has done something great in our lives,

a few hundred years later, God comes back. God comes back and sees

what feels our hearts. There are many Christians who still have many idols in

their life. They love to create things they love. They have a brand

of Christianity. They have a brand of God that does not resemble anything like

the God in the Bible. Okay, they have a lot of that.

A lot of Christians have started to be started to allow the world to influence

their lives, to be like Storics, to be like Epicureans life. Yes,

I believe in Jesus, but God, I really value pleasure. I

really really want to enjoy my life right now, sir Ah. Later,

there's a lot of pain, men, there's a lot of suffering. You

know why I do that? My next five year businessman is about enjoying the

best I can in my young life right now, because that's what the world

and everyone else nearby me tells me to do. Maybe this is about MASTERI.

I will only go to a place where the value system and priorities aligned

to what I like and what is comfortable to me. I don't like to

go to a place where I have to change my priorities and my lifestyles because

it reminds me that I'm not in control anymore. Isn't it we become like

the Athenians? You know, oh, a city, a vessel that is

completely forgotten, that we are completely helpless except by the grace of God?

Have we become like that? This is a call for us to lay down

our idols, lay down our arms, lay down all the things that you're

so important, and start to remember who actually delivered you. Do not be

the Harmon. Learn from the Athenians, learn from them what they have forgotten.

After a while, if you're not careful, the Christian believe that you

hold so true will start to fade. It will start to become like an

unknown God in your life, just another piece, another author that you walk

by until someone comes along into your life. Who is that? Who is

that? What did he did for you? Is it not worth giving up

everything? Can you save yourself? We hope you've been blessed by this message.

For more information on our church, please visit as Church RG. We

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to be a good week. I hit for you, God bless