Acts 17:22-34 "Is Jesus Really the Only Way to God?"

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Today is the last sermon in our summer series on tough questions.

These are hard topics and I, for one, will be relieved to get back to preaching through a book of the Bible as usual.

Even if that means revelation here shortly.

But in all sincerity, this study has been really helpful for my faith.

I pray that the same is true for you.

And I pray that in addition to your own faith being strengthened, that you'll be encouraged to listen to,

to engage with friends and neighbors because these questions we're talking about really are fundamental to life.

A foundational to eternity.

We've talked about suffering and science and the Bible and hell.

But today we close with a question that a lot of people ask.

Is Jesus really the only way to God?

And I want us to turn to Acts chapter 17 together.

Acts 17 · chapter mention

There are passages that answer this question more simply and directly.

But I really love this passage where Paul is in Athens and he's engaging with the philosophers of the day about such significant and eternal issues.

I'd encourage you, if you're not personally wondering about the question for today, think of someone who is.

Put yourself in their shoes.

Think of someone you know, perhaps.

Let's read God's word in Acts 17 at verse 22.

With Paul standing in the center of the city's social discussion, underneath the shadow of the Parthenon and speaking to the crowds gathered there about Jesus.

So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said,

Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious.

For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription,

To the unknown God.

What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.

The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man,

Nor is he served by human hands as though he needed anything,

Since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.

And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth,

Having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place,

That they should seek God in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him.

Yet he is actually not far from each one of us.

For in him we live and move and have our being, as even some of your own poets have said,

For we are indeed his offspring.

Being then God's offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone,

An image formed by the art and imagination of man.

The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent,

Because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed,

And of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.

Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked.

But others said, We will hear you again about this.

So Paul went out from their midst, but some men joined him and believed,

Among them Dionysius the Areopagite, and a woman named Damaris, and others with them.

This is God's word, let's ask for his help.

Father, what an incredible day when Paul spoke,

Would you do that now?

Would that be true again as we speak of this same Jesus with our friends and our neighbors and those we love?

That your same spirit would be at work?

Give us that hope in the resurrected, living, powerful Savior.

We ask you in his name.

Amen.

The nuns are on the rise in our culture, surveys tell us.

The nuns are not an order of Catholic women,

but rather those who describe themselves as having no religion at all.

Some of you in this room think of yourself that way.

One of the interesting things is less than 20% of the nuns in America say that they are atheists.

In other words, the large majority of them are open to the idea of God.

They're asking some honest questions about what God would be like.

Questions like the ones we've asked this summer.

And one of the benefits of asking such questions, if you're one who's prone to doing that,

one of the benefits of having an open mind is that many people are there interested in answers.

As G.K. Chesterton once quipped,

an open mind is like an open mouth.

The purpose of its being open is to close it on something substantial.

What I mean is, in different words,

we're all actually worshiping something, all of us.

Whether or not we would use that word worship.

Most of us are looking for some centering principle for our lives,

something that helps us understand our place,

our significance in the world,

that gives us meaning and purpose each day.

Even if some wouldn't call it God,

we're looking for something bigger than ourselves to be a part of.

If you don't believe me, go to a college football stadium on a Saturday this fall.

It may be freedom that we're looking to,

being true to myself, right?

It may be success, professional advancement,

or money will make me somebody.

Or it may be pleasure.

Maybe happiness will satisfy me deep inside.

But we're all looking for something that we can live for.

And this is where Paul makes his connection with the intellectual elite in Athens.

Athens long, the philosophical center of the world.

Paul's going to answer yes to our question,

is Jesus really the only way to God?

But he wants to connect with his hearers first.

He wants to help them understand Jesus as answer to questions they ask.

That they too ask questions to which Jesus is the answer.

That's what happens here in this interaction.

Paul sees this altar, right?

To an unknown God.

God, you've got questions, he says.

Amidst this Greek pantheon of gods and idols,

they had plenty of them.

There's one for crops, right?

There's one for your family.

There's one for love.

There's one more here.

To an unknown God, you know, to cover their bases

because they weren't sure that they had life figured out.

That they'd covered everything.

There was no one God that could handle all of it.

But Paul doesn't leave them just with open minds, right?

Searching for answers, not caring where they find them.

No, Paul has more in his heart for them.

He says, you worship.

You worship.

What you worship as unknown,

this I proclaim to you.

For our purposes, Paul says three things.

First, there is a God who made all this world, including us.

That's where he starts, right?

Paul says, there's a God,

not one tribal deity among many,

but the one supreme over all.

He does not depend on people to serve him like your gods do.

But he makes the world and all people.

On top of that,

this God is involved in the world.

Now, here's where it starts to get a little bit different

from what they would have expected.

Some of them would have expected there was a God.

But this God, he says, is involved in the world.

Where people live and when they move

and every other piece of society,

this God is involved.

And that's new information.

But see, they loved new ideas.

That's what they gathered to talk about.

It would be new to them

because their leading philosophies,

Stoicism and Epicureanism,

are mentioned in verse 18.

They were both functionally naturalistic,

like many in our culture today.

In other words,

if there was a God outside this world,

and maybe they weren't sure,

but if there was,

he didn't get involved here.

So you were stuck dealing with yourself,

your desires,

your emotions,

either way.

Paul says this true God

is different from that.

He's inside and involved.

In fact,

there's a reason, Paul says,

this true God

is so intimately involved

in this world.

This God is personal,

and he wants a relationship

with us.

Track there in verse 26,

why did he make them

and put them

in this time,

in this place,

verse 27,

that they might seek God

and find him

since he's actually close to us.

So he says,

listen, listen,

don't think that this true God

is made of stone by men.

Don't think, friend,

that life's centering principle

is something that we invent,

that we could come up with,

that we could concoct.

No,

he made us

and is personal.

And that speaks to his reality.

This is important to follow.

See,

if God is just some man-made God of gold,

then you can pretend

whatever you'd like

about who it is

and what he does.

You could pretend

that he'll hear you

if you dance longer

or reward you

if you say the magic words

or that he'll satisfy you

if you mix in other pursuits

and you learn some calming postures.

Whatever.

You get to make it up

if you made the God.

But if God is personal,

then like you or me,

you have to know him

for who he really is.

That's what it means

to be a person.

Paul says,

truth is a person,

someone you know

in relationship.

So,

you should not say,

well,

you know,

I like to think of God

as a vengeful warrior

or a heavenly Santa Claus

or a cosmic cheerleader

who supports whatever I want to do.

No, no, no, no.

Even if you really like the idea

of God being like one of those things,

it doesn't make him that.

He's a person.

You can think of Will Spink

as a gifted auto mechanic

who hates people

and loves cooked spinach.

You can,

but you'd be wrong

on all counts.

In fact,

if you really,

sincerely believe those things,

you are really,

sincerely wrong.

See,

truth,

God says,

is a person

you can know

in relationship.

Truth,

then,

is based

not on sincerity

but on reality.

Because God

can actually be known

because he wants

relationship with us,

because he's a personal being,

you can be sincere

in your thoughts about him

and be sincerely wrong.

Right?

That's what Paul's saying.

And by the way,

any other kind of God,

a distant one,

an impersonal one,

you got nothing to do with,

right?

And nothing to worry about

from anyway,

so don't bother

with that option.

One side note

before we move on

to Paul's punchline.

I hope that you,

just if you grabbed this verse

and thought,

man,

this isn't even really

what Paul's building to,

but I hope you can stop here

and remember

how much God wants to be

in relationship with you.

Can you see that there

in verse 27?

Why he's doing

all of these things

in history?

When we talk about

our faith priority,

the importance of owning

our relationship with God,

we don't mean

that it's up to us

to figure it out

and make our way

up the mountain

to God

to finally get

to where he is.

No,

he has made us

and he has placed us

when we are

and where we are

that we might know him.

He made you

and placed you

in Huntsville,

in the 21st century,

in your school,

in your friendships,

in your neighborhood,

today at Southwood Church.

Why?

Why are you here?

That you might know him

because he wants

to know you

and he wants you

to know him.

I hope that encourages you.

I hope that warms

your heart to him

to making a priority

out of that relationship

as he makes

a priority out of it.

If that doesn't do it,

how about the fact

that he came after you

for that relationship?

God became man

to fix our broken relationship.

This is where I want us

to slow down.

It's Paul's climactic point.

Jesus' resurrection

demonstrates

that he uniquely

is the key

to this relationship.

It's what DJ

was just singing about, right?

It's a living hope.

See verse 30,

God commands all people

everywhere to repent,

to turn back to him

as the true God,

not just one among many,

not just take your pick

today or this week,

to turn back to him

as the true God

because,

verse 31,

God has fixed a day

on which he will judge

the world in righteousness

by a man

whom he has appointed.

And of this,

he has given assurance

to all

by raising him

from the dead.

boom.

Paul has moved

immediately

and starkly

from philosophical

to practical,

from theoretical

to tangible,

from hypothetical

to historical,

right?

Why is Jesus

the only way to God,

Paul says?

Why,

if God so wants

to have this relationship

with us,

are there not just

a million ways

and you can get to him

any way you please?

Because God

is a person

and no other person

has ever risen

from the dead

like this

but God has

in the person

of Jesus.

So to finish

Paul's argument,

that got interrupted

there in Athens,

the unknown God

is unknown

no longer

but has made

himself known

in Jesus,

crucified

and risen

from the dead.

He's how you know

God.

Yahweh,

his personal name,

has sent

his son

and he's the way

that you know

God.

See,

the point

Paul is making

is there's a lot

of philosophical

things you can talk

about

but in

an objective

human history,

Jesus

either rose

from the dead

or he didn't.

Right?

It's not like,

well,

kind of

and maybe

he either rose

from the dead

or he didn't.

It is a debated,

admittedly,

historical fact

that makes

a significant

statement

about who

God is

and this

is why

saying

that all

roads

lead to

God

while

perhaps

well intended

by some

actually does

not respect

any religion

except

the one

belief system

that embraces

that particular

theory.

That's not

the teaching

of Buddha.

That's not

the teaching

of Muhammad.

That's not

the teaching

of Confucius.

That's not

the teaching

of Jesus.

They all

present

unique ways

to experience

the divine.

And by the

way,

only one

of those

founders

claims to

have died

and then

risen from

the dead.

You can

visit

Muhammad's

grave site

today.

The resurrection

of Jesus

is where

all these

roads

diverge,

isn't it?

See,

Muslims

talk a whole

lot about

Jesus,

but they

don't believe

that he

died.

Jews

talk a lot

about Jesus,

but they

don't believe

that he

rose from

the dead.

Christians

understand

that both

the death

of Jesus

and the

resurrection

of Jesus

are essential

for our

salvation,

for our

relationship

with God

to be

restored.

the life

giver

must pay

our

penalty

and then

conquer

death

once

and for

all.

And what

does he

do?

Jesus

appears

to hundreds,

starting with

women who

wouldn't have

been legal

witnesses.

He appears

to hundreds

and hundreds

on different

occasions.

In fact,

many of his

followers who

see him

then end up

giving their

lives to

defend the

truth of the

resurrection

that they

saw with

their own

eyes.

None of the

religious

authorities,

none of the

Roman authorities

who desperately

wanted to

stamp out

this movement

could produce

his body

days or even

months after

his public

crucifixion.

If you think

of the

resurrection as

something that

Jesus'

followers made

up to pretend

that he was

God,

and he really

didn't think

that,

now just

remember all

the things

Jesus himself

said and

did to

demonstrate

his self

understanding

that he

was the

divine

son of

God.

What does

Jesus do?

Jesus forgives

sins.

Jesus accepts

worship.

Jesus commands

creation.

Jesus speaks

of the unity

that he has

with his

father,

and then he

says in

John 14,

I am the

way,

the truth,

and the

life.

No one

comes to

the father

except through

me.

undeniably

an exclusive

claim.

Right or

wrong,

an exclusive

claim.

One echoed by

the apostle

Peter in

Acts 4 as

he says of

Jesus,

salvation is

found in no

one else,

for there is

no other name

under heaven

given to

men by

which we

must be

saved.

He said

the Bible's

answer,

answer,

Jesus'

answer,

the apostles'

answer to

the question of

how to live a

meaningful life.

How do people

separate it from

the God who

created them

in his image

to have a

purpose for

which he made

them?

How do they get

back into

relationship to

have that image

restored completely

from cover to

cover?

the answer to

that question

is Jesus.

Right?

The death of

the sacrificial

lamb.

The life of

the resurrected

king.

Jesus is the

way you find

the purpose and

significance that

you feel deep

inside but you

can't live up to,

that you struggle

to explain in

the real world.

Jesus is the

way to God.

God.

Now that can be

good news.

That you today

can respond to

that with joy

and embrace

and believe in

him but I

understand that

often statements

like that Jesus

is the only way

to God are more

of a shock to

our system.

Especially with

our modern

sensibilities.

People often ask

our question

this morning

because the

exclusive claims

of Jesus

sound to

them narrow

minded

or intolerant

or arrogant.

You may have

heard those

words in that

context.

It's important

to say that

sometimes the

way we hold

these truths

is arrogant.

Right?

Shame on us.

Father forgive

us for

ever being

like that.

Actually

properly

understood

the claims

of Jesus

should make

us not

arrogant but

humble.

Eager to

see others

as better

than ourselves.

Empowered

to love

sacrificially

since that's

what the

Savior at the

center of

Christianity

is and

does.

Those are

resources that

no other

religion has.

We ought to

live like that.

But if the

claims of

Jesus are

true,

demonstrated by

his rising

from the

dead so

that we

can trust

everything else

he says,

then sharing

them in

love is

not arrogant

or intolerant.

I've told you

before of this

evening that I

was on some

nearby trails

and starting

to get really

confused about

where I was.

I was turned

around,

I walked in

circles,

it was starting

to get dark,

I decided to

run some but

I didn't know

if I was

running in the

right direction,

I walked

back a little

bit,

tried different

trails.

I was urgently

needing to

get back to

the safety of

my car.

When I walked

past an old

sign that

said parking

lot this

way and it

pointed to a

trail.

Now that

trail was not

one that

looked very

bright,

it was getting

quite dark

and looking

down the

trail I

could not

see the

parking lot.

There were

actually a

couple other

trails nearby

that looked a

little bit

brighter but I

followed the

trail within a

few minutes,

made it back to

the safety and

rest of my

car.

Now listen,

that sign was

not arrogant

because it

told me the

one trail that

led to my

car, right?

And it would

not have been

loving to

label all of

the trails with

the same sign

when some of

them were

actually loops

that I could

have walked

around all

night and

never found

my car.

The only way

that the trail,

the way,

doesn't matter

matter is if

the destination

doesn't matter,

right?

But if there

is a personal

God, if there

is a true

source of

safety and

rest, then we

follow the sign

to Him and we

know we can

trust Him.

Think about it

this way, I

hardly hesitated

when I saw

that sign.

I was looking

for a sign to

follow, right?

But to be

honest, it was

kind of an old

sign and I

do know some

kids who have

sometimes in

their boredom or

mischievousness

decided to mess

with a sign and

point it down a

wrong trail.

Maybe they were

messing with me.

I couldn't be

sure that that

trail would get

me to my car just

because the sign

was there.

But what if there

was a person

standing there

instead of an

old sign?

What if there

was a person

saying, I've

just come from

the parking lot

and I've got a

headlamp that's

really bright.

Jump on my

back, in fact, I

will carry you

there to the

parking lot.

Wouldn't that be

even better?

Jesus is the

person who came

as the way to

safety and

security and

joy and hope

and life with

your heavenly

Father that you

may never have

personally met.

Jesus says, I

am the light of

the world.

Whoever follows

me will never

walk in darkness

but will have the

light of life.

He is the way,

the truth, and

the life.

He's the door of

the sheep because

he is the

resurrection and

the life.

We need no other

way.

Jesus saves.

That's our hope.

God.

One other concern

that causes some

people to ask this

question is their

genuine care for

those who have

never heard the

good news of

Jesus.

I love the heart

of that concern.

A couple of things

I want to say

briefly.

First, the Bible

says that creation

itself testifies

to God.

It's a way,

all of creation

is, that God

generally reveals

himself and his

character to all

people.

So there's always a

sign pointing to

God near everyone

who has ever lived

and who knows all

of the ways that

God might use this

sign to point them

to Jesus.

I don't know.

But we do know

the most common

way that God does

that and that's

that God sends

you and me to

them.

That's the message

of Paul in Romans

10.

How will they

believe in him

of whom they

have not heard

and how will they

hear without

someone preaching?

If that's a

burden on your

heart, how is

God sending you

to be a part of

that mission?

Sharing the good

news, translating

his word, equipping

others to share

the good news with

people you'll never

reach?

Who are you going

to meet this week

that you can share

with?

So there's

creation.

There's God's

people as

ambassadors of

Jesus.

And my single

greatest hope by

far is God

himself.

God's grace that

is bigger than

any of us can

grasp.

Let's contemplate

this glorious truth

as we come to

this table.

It's what I call

inclusive

exclusivity.

people complain

about the

exclusivity of

Christianity,

claiming to be the

only way to God.

But listen, many

religions and

approaches to life

require a lot of

proper performance

from you to

approach God, to

get anywhere near

him, to have any

opportunity to be

pleasing to him.

There's often a

long list.

Some require, in

fact, multiple

lifetimes of good

deeds.

Try that.

others offer

preference based

on race,

finances,

or physical

sacrifice, even

harming yourself

or others.

Still others

insist on inner

peace from long

practice of getting

there just right.

that.

Listen, only Jesus

says, God so

loved the world

that he didn't

send a long list

of things to do

to get near to

him, but in fact

he gave his

only son, the

exclusive only

son, that

whoever believes

in him will not

perish but have

everlasting life.

whoever just does

what?

Believes.

Whoever follows

the light of the

world will never

walk in darkness.

If you are hearing

my voice right now,

you are invited

in, not excluded

from, the family

of God, the hope

of Jesus, the

Savior who's big

enough for you.

God is so gracious,

y'all, that his

family is made up

of people from

every tribe and

tongue and language

and nation, Jew

and Gentile, rich

and poor, tight

laced rule follower

types and go with

the flow, partiers

are all in his

family.

I mean, just

think it's amazing

to consider the

different ways people

encounter Jesus and

the different lengths

of time they

actually spend

following him.

The way to God.

Right?

Isn't it the same

for everybody?

Don't we all have

the same experience?

We do not.

Some never remember

a day they didn't

trust Jesus.

Baptized before they

can remember but

prayed to trust Jesus

in the church,

nursery or VBS or

their home at three

years old.

Others met Jesus

on a retreat as a

teenager.

Others spent years

sowing their wild

oats before a friend

told them about a

Savior who would

forgive all those

sins and show them

the path of true

life.

Still others

wrestled painfully

through intellectual

questions and

discussed things

with friends and

others and then

Jesus met them as

an adult over

coffee and they

surrendered.

Increasingly these

days I hear stories

of a man in white

who appeared in a

vision to introduce

himself to people

before they knew

his name.

And yet others are

like the thief on

the cross who

doesn't follow Jesus

a single day in his

life here but

spends eternity with

Jesus in paradise.

Not because he knew

enough, not because he

did enough, but

because God's grace

saves people that you

know didn't deserve

it and never thought

would encounter Jesus

personally at all.

That's what God's

grace is like so you

keep praying, you

keep sharing, you

keep praying.

What greater hope

could there be than

a God whose gracious

character brought him

from the comforts of

heaven to the pain of

a cross and the shame

of a tomb for us?

Yes, Jesus is the only

way to God but anyone,

yes him, yes her, yes

you can come to God

through Jesus.

Jesus, praise the Lord.

This may be your first

day in church and you

may think you are the

worst person in here.

You're not.

But Jesus is alive for

you regardless.

You may think you have

nothing to do with

religion, with lists of

rules, it's just anathema

to you, with hypocritical

people like you're

surrounded by right now.

Well then listen, come

not to us, come to

Jesus who brings you

straight into a

relationship with God

because he's the way,

the truth, and the life

risen from the dead.

You have options.

You can mock like some

did that day to Paul.

You can ask to talk more.

We would love that

opportunity.

We'll even do it after

the service.

You also have the

option to join the man

Dionysius on the

philosopher's council or

the woman Damaris.

Among others, you can

hear the good news of

Jesus and believe and

find life in him today.

I want you to hear the

invitation straight from

the lips of Jesus.

Come to me, all who

labor and are heavy

laden, and I will give

you rest.

I am the way and the

truth and the life.

No one comes to the

Father except through me.

And whoever comes to me,

I will never drive away.

Jesus sat with his

disciples the night he

was betrayed and he

took bread and he broke

it and he gave it to

them as I am ministering

in his name.

Give this bread to you.

He said, take and eat.

This is my body given

for you.

Do this in remembrance of

me.

Then after supper, he

took the cup saying,

this cup is the new

covenant in my blood.

My blood shed for many.

For the forgiveness of

sins, drink from it, all

of you.

Do this.

Eat this.

Drink this as long as

you're remembering Jesus

as you do.

If your hope is not in

Jesus, don't come and

perform a religious ritual

that your heart is not

in.

We're warned against

acting like that.

Instead, would you

consider the offer of

Jesus to bring you to

God, to be the person

at the center of your

life that gives you

hope and peace and

purpose that you so long

for?

Jesus is offering you

that today.

And for those of you who

have found him to be just

that, even though you

struggle, even though you

may have wandered after

idols, but you're coming

back right now to the one

in whom you found life.

You've been baptized in

his name.

You're part of his family

at any church that

preaches the good news of

salvation by grace alone,

through faith alone, in

Christ alone.

Come and eat then with the

one who comes first to set

the table and to eat with

you.

Let's pray and we'll do that

together.

Father, Jesus, we're so

grateful for you, for your

salvation, for the hope

that we have because you

died instead of us and you

live so that we will live

with you.

Would you use very normal

bread and wine to remind our

hearts afresh that we have

life in you?

We ask it in your name.

Amen.

For more information, visit

us online at

southwood.org.

Thank you.