Knowing the Unknown God

Introduction

Journey to discovering God

I am amazed by the ability of some preachers to stand on a stage and deliver a message without once looking at their notes. I am yet to be anywhere near that level of refinement and so I must rely on my laptop here to assist me. Those of you who know me know I am a very forgetful person and so I could use all the help I can get. I hope this bitten apple doesn’t cause anyone here to stumble.

Throughout the history of the ancient world, many civilizations rose and fell and with them their gods. Each claiming that their god or gods were the true gods. And as each civilization was birthed so too were its gods and when a civilization was buried, its gods were buried with it.

Each civilization borrowed a god from another, the Greeks from the Egyptians and the Romans from the Greeks and each civilization attributed a particular power or domain over which the god was sovereign.

Ancient gods:

Zeus, the god of thunder. Romans borrowed from the Greeks and called him Jupiter. Athena was the goddess of wisdom.

So exhaustive was this list of gods that they even had a god whom they didn’t even know by name. He was the unknown god.

The Greeks raised up an alter and underneath it they wrote this, “to the unknown god”

Now this is a god who exists, but who’s name and identity is unknown.

So long before the Greeks and long after the Greeks, mankind was on a journey to discover this unknown god.

Who is he and what does he want?

The title of my message is “Knowing the unknown God”

Paul in Athens

Our journey begins in Acts 17:14-15,

“Then the brothers immediately sent Paul off on his way to the sea… [and] brought him as far as Athens.”

At this moment, before we go any further we must understand the context of what we’re reading. Imagine for a minute what Paul was seeing as he was approaching Athens by ship

Off in the distance, at the very heart of Athens, stands a massive rock, called the Acropolis

Parthenon: White marble making it hard to miss, stood as a testament to Greek achievement. Stood over 40 feet tall. Was the epicenter of Athens, not just in the literal sense, but also in a metaphorical one.

Statue of Athena: Stood over 30 feet tall, clad in bronze.

No doubt visible from the sea, a sight that Paul beheld as his ship neared the port.

Agora

Was the commercial and political center of the city

Here philosophers debated, merchants sold good, and ideas were exchanged

Theatre of Dionysius

Large theatre that seated 15000 people

Plays and dramas were acted out for entertainment

Not only a home to grand architecture and engineering, but also to philosophy, math, and politics

Athens was the home of some of the greatest philosophers: Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle

Great progress was made in geometry and algebra. If you hate mathematics you can give partial thanks to the Greeks.

Athens was the birthplace of western civilization, of democracy.

How does Paul respond to being in one of the greatest and most influential cities in all of history?

Acts 17:16, “Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked (ie. greatly distressed [NIV]) within him as he saw that the city was full of idols.”

Paul saw beyond their political, architectural, philosophical achievements

Paul didn’t see the wealth of Athens, he saw the bankrupt hearts of idol worshippers

Where man saw the architectural triumph of the Parthenon, Paul saw an alter raised to a dead god

Where man was celebrating philosophy, Paul saw people given over to a delusion

Our world much like Athens

The alarming truth, however, is that our society around us is very much like Ancient Athens, it is infatuated with Idols.

Now you may say, “I look around and I do not see any idols or temples dedicated to Zeus.”

Our society is very much filled with Idols, but they take another form.

You may not see the idol by looking around, but you will see it when you look in the mirror. Because our societies greatest idol is Self.

In an age of Instagram and Facebook, every person is at the center of their world, every person has their own line of followers, hundreds, thousands, even millions of people long.

You’ve got your own little platform, people click to see your story, they want to know “what’s on your mind?”

You’re your own little god in your own little world

Women posting pictures of your avocado toast that you had for brunch with your gals, or the different angles of the “new dress” you got. Yeah, I’m sure it’s the dress you’re trying to show us.

Men, if you think you’re getting off easy, you’ve got something else coming. We see your shirtless, gym mirror selfie pic. Posting your new BMW you got cause of your hustle. Some guys playing god with the women’s hearts, cause you’re afraid of getting hurt.

Now I know what some of you are thinking, “you’re just jealous of my fitness goals, nutrition goals, and my washboard abs and my BMW, because you’re out of shape and you can get more money by recycling your car than you can selling it.

Now let me be clear, this is more so representative of our society at large. The point being that the idols of our day are not statues of gold and silver but of flesh.

Now here is a question for you. Think about it, don’t answer it out loud, go home and think, because the answer is more indicative of your faith than any one thing you may do: When you land on the shores of this city, when you look at the people around you, are you provoked (ie. greatly distressed) at the idols you see around you?

The unknown god

Paul is deeply moved and he immediately begins to preach the gospel to anyone who would listen. Some of the philosophers who heard Paul invited him to speak at the Areopagus, or Mars Hill. Mars Hill was the judicial center in Athens; where trials were held and the religious matters discussed. He gets up and begins to share his gospel and he says this:

Acts 17:22-31

So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus,

[Areopagus is know by the Romans and most of you as Mars Hill. A hill were trials were held and religious matters discussed]

said: “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. 23 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. 24 The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man,[c] 25 nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.

[This stood in sharp contrast to the Greek understanding of god. First off, the first gods came into being from the chaos of the universe. Paul is saying that the true God was not the result of the universe but the cause of it. In fact it is because of Him that we have life and breath.]

26 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, 27 that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us,

[Remember this because we’ll come back to this point.]

28 for

“‘In him we live and move and have our being’;[d]

as even some of your own poets have said,

“‘For we are indeed his offspring.’[e]

29 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. 30 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 31 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.”

[This true God has appointed a man who will judge the world, and has raised him from the dead. This is significant for two reasons. Who is it that has the authority to pass judgment? Even Tupac knew this one. “Only God can judge me!” In all of scripture we see that judgement is only reserved for God. Psalm 75:7, Psalm 50:6, Isaiah 33:22. But here it says a man is appointed to pass judgement. How can a man be judge when that title is reserved for God. You can only marry these two if this man is God! The second reason this is significant is because this man has already been raised from the dead. What man fits this description? John 5:27, “And God has given Jesus the authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man.” And we know it was Jesus who was also resurrected from the dead. One more verse. John 1:14,18 . Paul is saying this, this unknown God, who was distant because of his holiness, has been made known through his son, Jesus Christ]

What else do we know about God?

He is preexistent

John 1:1-3

Like Paul said, God is not a result of something, but a cause of everything

Acts 17:24

He is all powerful

He has conquered death

Gal 1:1

Devil bruised his heel, but Jesus has crushed his head.

He is a personal God. Acts 17:27

God is near us and is personal and cares for us. He is interested in our lives.

This idea was completely foreign, that God would care about us and draw near to us is unheard of. The Greek gods were selfish and only cared for themselves. They regarded humans as less than, and kept their distance. Only when an offering was pleasing enough would the gods consider blessing the people or give them something they asked for. But Paul is introducing us to a God who draws near to us, who cares about us, is eager to bless us, who wants nothing in return, who loves us not based on a condition or precondition, but because that is who he is at the core.

Hebrew 4:14-16

He is a God of peace

2 Thess 3:16

Our God is not a resource, but a source of peace

A peace that is so great that it even overwhelms the chaos around us

What are we to do now?

So where does this bring us, an unknown God is known to man through Jesus Christ

2 Cor 5:19-20

Are you hearing the depths of what God has done?

He has entrusted the message to us; you have a responsibility.

God has given to you a message of reconciliation and by believing it you have been saved.

But this message is not for your sake only, but also for those who are around you.

God is trying to reach your colleagues, he is trying to reach your neighbors, your coworkers. How does he do this?

V.20, “God [is] making his appeal through us.” The way people come to know this unknown God is through the message of reconciliation that has been entrusted to us. Do you now see the weight of responsibility you have as a believer?

It is not enough to just know God, but we must also make him known to those around us.

Now I know why Paul’s spirit was provoked. He understood the gravity of what he had, of knowing the unknown God. Seeing lost people around him, he immediately took to the streets and shared the message with anyone who would listen.

Do you understand the responsibility that God has given you? I believe the true answer to this question comes from how we answer the first question I asked, “Is your spirit provoked by the idols in this city?”

Practical Lessons from Paul’s sermon

Often times this idea of sharing our faith can at times seem distressing and overwhelming, but I think we can take a few pointers from Paul’s experience in Athens

Paul identified what the greeks valued and spoke on their level.

“I see you are a very religious people… I found an alter with this inscription: To an unknown god.”

Paul seized on what they believe and used their platform as an introduction to his God.

You know how to get an unbeliever to run from you. Approach him at a Starbucks, sit down, and say, “Do you know Jesus?”

Know your audience

Paul understood that the greeks loved philosophy and religion, so he took the time to study and understand their philosophy and religion.

Many times throughout the sermon Paul makes an appeal to their philosophy. v.28, “as even some of your poets have said...” He goes on to quote their poets. How does Paul know what their poets said? Because he took the time to study them and learn about them.

Many times we are unsuccessful in sharing our faith because we don’t take the time to care or understand what it is that our neighbor believes and where he’s coming from.

Know. your. audience.

You won’t always win the hearts and minds of people. Learn to accept that and move on.

A majority of Paul’s audience scoffed at his message and dismissed it.

You may not be the person who brings that person to believe, but you played your part in his story. The rest is up to God.

Last point. There is a timer on you opportunity.

After Paul’s message the crowd said, “We will hear you again about this.”

The day drew to a close, many didn’t believe, but were interested in hearing more from Paul. But Paul didn’t come back. He had already moved on.

Acts 18:1, “Paul left Athens and went to Corinth.”

His time in Athens was over. Though he may have planned for a reunion with these people, God had other plans.

How many of you here today thought you would be where you are now 6 months ago?

We don’t know how long we have with the people around us. They may move or you may move, but everyday that goes by is one less day you have to influence them.