WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.080 We hope that you enjoy this teaching from Christ Church. 00:00:05.719 --> 00:00:11.580 This material is copyrighted and no unauthorized duplication, redistribution, or any other 00:00:11.580 --> 00:00:15.280 use of any part is permitted without prior consent from Christ Church. 00:00:15.640 --> 00:00:22.620 Please consider donating to this work in the San Francisco Bay Area online at ChristChurchEastBay.org. 00:00:22.620 --> 00:00:31.340 Good morning, my name is Christine Grant and I am part of the Cragmont Community Group. 00:00:32.160 --> 00:00:39.519 And today's scripture reading is from the book of the Acts of the Apostles, chapter 17, verses 00:00:39.519 --> 00:00:44.000 16 through 34, as printed in the liturgy. 00:00:45.420 --> 00:00:50.540 While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city 00:00:50.540 --> 00:00:51.400 was full of idols. 00:00:51.399 --> 00:00:57.839 So he reasoned in the synagogue with both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the 00:00:57.839 --> 00:01:01.100 marketplace, day by day with those who happened to be there. 00:01:02.219 --> 00:01:07.180 A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate with him. 00:01:07.780 --> 00:01:10.599 Some of them asked, what is the babbler trying to say? 00:01:11.959 --> 00:01:15.299 Others remarked, he seemed to be advocating foreign gods. 00:01:16.200 --> 00:01:21.340 They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus, the resurrection, 00:01:21.400 --> 00:01:28.740 then they took him and brought him to the meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, 00:01:29.160 --> 00:01:33.020 may we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? 00:01:33.980 --> 00:01:38.980 You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we would like to know what they mean. 00:01:38.980 --> 00:01:46.020 All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking and 00:01:46.020 --> 00:01:47.400 listening to the latest ideas. 00:01:48.560 --> 00:01:55.520 Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said, people of Athens, I see that in every 00:01:55.520 --> 00:01:56.780 way you are very religious. 00:01:56.780 --> 00:02:02.760 For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar 00:02:02.760 --> 00:02:09.800 with your object, I even found an altar with this inscription to an unknown God. 00:02:10.319 --> 00:02:12.860 So you are ignorant of the very things you worship. 00:02:13.420 --> 00:02:15.719 And this is what I am going to proclaim to you. 00:02:15.719 --> 00:02:22.060 The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does 00:02:22.060 --> 00:02:24.240 not live in temples built by human hands. 00:02:24.819 --> 00:02:29.180 And he is not served by human hands as if he needed anything. 00:02:29.979 --> 00:02:35.020 Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. 00:02:35.560 --> 00:02:40.219 From one man, he made all nations that they should inhabit the whole earth. 00:02:40.219 --> 00:02:45.740 And he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. 00:02:46.740 --> 00:02:52.400 God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him. 00:02:52.979 --> 00:02:55.860 Though he is not far from any one of us. 00:02:56.780 --> 00:02:59.560 For in him we live and move and have our being. 00:03:00.280 --> 00:03:03.879 As some of your own poets have said, we are his offspring. 00:03:05.020 --> 00:03:10.159 Therefore, since we are God's offspring, we should not think that the divine being 00:03:10.159 --> 00:03:11.799 is like gold or silver or stone. 00:03:12.520 --> 00:03:14.879 An image made by human design and skill. 00:03:15.939 --> 00:03:18.020 In the past, God overlooked such ignorance. 00:03:18.800 --> 00:03:21.819 But now he commands all people everywhere to repent. 00:03:22.240 --> 00:03:28.180 For he has set a day when he will judge the world with the justice by the man he has appointed. 00:03:28.759 --> 00:03:33.579 He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead. 00:03:34.460 --> 00:03:38.639 When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered. 00:03:38.639 --> 00:03:42.119 But others said, we want to hear you again on this subject. 00:03:42.579 --> 00:03:44.399 At that, Paul left the council. 00:03:45.359 --> 00:03:48.119 Some of the people became followers of Paul and believed. 00:03:49.000 --> 00:03:54.659 Among them was Dionysus, a member of the Areopagus, and a woman named Damaris. 00:03:55.119 --> 00:03:56.319 And a number of others. 00:03:56.859 --> 00:03:58.299 This is the word of the Lord. 00:03:58.300 --> 00:04:09.439 Thank you, Christine, for that scripture reading. 00:04:09.700 --> 00:04:13.340 And thank you, Eric and Garrett and Irene for leading us in worship. 00:04:13.480 --> 00:04:14.460 And thank you to Isaac. 00:04:14.460 --> 00:04:18.259 I think he scrambled a lot this morning to make sure our slides were working. 00:04:18.460 --> 00:04:19.879 So thank you so much, Isaac. 00:04:19.879 --> 00:04:21.019 That was awesome. 00:04:21.639 --> 00:04:24.139 Again, my name is Andrew, and I'm one of the pastors here. 00:04:24.199 --> 00:04:26.480 And super happy to be sharing God's word with you. 00:04:26.480 --> 00:04:29.500 So will you pray with me as we open up? 00:04:29.700 --> 00:04:31.840 Father, we want to hear from you. 00:04:32.240 --> 00:04:38.000 We want to have our eyes open to who you are and what you've done and how great you are 00:04:38.000 --> 00:04:42.400 in comparison to all these other things that we are tempted to bow down to. 00:04:42.460 --> 00:04:46.879 Would you help us to perceive these counterfeit gods all around us 00:04:46.879 --> 00:04:51.080 and to see that you are better, you are higher, and there is none like you. 00:04:51.079 --> 00:04:53.519 So we pray all these things in the name of Jesus. 00:04:54.060 --> 00:04:54.419 Amen. 00:04:55.439 --> 00:04:56.199 All right, Christ Church. 00:04:56.279 --> 00:04:58.680 So we're picking up in the book of Acts. 00:05:00.599 --> 00:05:01.740 We're backing up. 00:05:02.240 --> 00:05:04.120 And we're in Acts chapter 17. 00:05:04.500 --> 00:05:11.120 And as I mentioned last week, a big focus in this chapter, in Acts chapter 17, is Paul's methodology. 00:05:11.439 --> 00:05:13.680 Paul's witness in word. 00:05:13.799 --> 00:05:16.319 Paul's method of what we call evangelism. 00:05:16.319 --> 00:05:21.519 All right, and I'm aware that for a lot of us, this word evangelism can be kind of triggering. 00:05:21.800 --> 00:05:28.639 Maybe it sounds kind of like Christianese or reminds us of colonization or some hokey religious salesmanship. 00:05:29.060 --> 00:05:34.800 And I also know that, you know, the moral relativism of our present speak your truth, you do you, 00:05:35.100 --> 00:05:42.180 who am I to judge age has so infiltrated our psyches that evangelism can feel incredibly counterintuitive, right? 00:05:42.180 --> 00:05:46.639 Even immoral to some of us to share Jesus as the good news, right? 00:05:46.699 --> 00:05:52.379 The truth in a pluralistic society that values tolerance above maybe everything else. 00:05:53.220 --> 00:05:58.319 But honestly, every single one of us, every single one of us, we all have an evangel. 00:05:58.860 --> 00:06:01.899 An evangel, which means the good news, which means the gospel. 00:06:02.060 --> 00:06:07.000 Each one of us has some version of good news that we cannot help but share. 00:06:07.120 --> 00:06:09.079 We are all evangelistic, okay? 00:06:09.079 --> 00:06:10.079 We are all evangelistic. 00:06:10.139 --> 00:06:17.560 On a micro level, we're always sharing, what, new diets, new books, podcasts, that new Netflix documentary series, 00:06:17.959 --> 00:06:21.800 various lifestyles and brands that we swear will change your life, right? 00:06:21.800 --> 00:06:23.740 Because they change our lives for the better. 00:06:24.099 --> 00:06:30.319 And then even on a macro level, we are inundated, right, with evangelistic good news messages all the time, right? 00:06:30.759 --> 00:06:35.259 Alternative gospels like the gospel of upward mobility, the gospel of careerism, 00:06:35.259 --> 00:06:40.599 the gospel of salvation through science, the gospel of this political tribe, or that one. 00:06:41.759 --> 00:06:43.920 Evangelism is happening all the time. 00:06:44.000 --> 00:06:46.639 It's happening all the time, whether we notice it or not. 00:06:46.920 --> 00:06:50.699 And no matter how critical, no matter how skeptical we all claim to be, 00:06:50.779 --> 00:06:57.439 there is no doubt that this world has been influenced significantly by all manner of evangelism. 00:06:58.000 --> 00:07:00.480 Everyone is bearing witness to something. 00:07:00.939 --> 00:07:02.219 Everyone is bearing witness to something. 00:07:02.220 --> 00:07:07.320 So what should that look like for us, for those who profess to follow Jesus? 00:07:07.400 --> 00:07:12.140 I want to point out three things from Acts chapter 17 today about bearing witness to Jesus. 00:07:12.380 --> 00:07:14.260 First, the spirit of Christ's witness. 00:07:14.660 --> 00:07:16.580 Second, the scope of Christ's witness. 00:07:17.020 --> 00:07:19.060 Third, the strategy of Christ's witness. 00:07:19.140 --> 00:07:22.200 All right, the spirit, the scope, and the strategy of Christ's witness. 00:07:22.860 --> 00:07:25.900 So number one, first, the spirit of Christ's witness. 00:07:25.899 --> 00:07:34.319 Now in verse 16, here it says, while Paul was waiting in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. 00:07:34.659 --> 00:07:43.319 Perhaps even more helpfully, the Greek literally says that he was provoked in the spirit within him when he perceived the city was full of idols. 00:07:43.399 --> 00:07:50.779 And the point is this, the spirit of Christ's witnesses we perceive and are provoked by the surrounding idols around us. 00:07:50.779 --> 00:07:56.419 Christ's church, in this Acts series, you know, we're banging this drum of be Jesus' witnesses. 00:07:56.679 --> 00:07:58.159 Be Jesus' witnesses. 00:07:58.279 --> 00:08:03.839 But we don't want to bang this drum as some kind of impersonal law for your rote obedience as faithful Christians. 00:08:03.919 --> 00:08:06.699 It has to come from the core of our very beings. 00:08:06.759 --> 00:08:08.000 It has to come from our spirits. 00:08:08.079 --> 00:08:14.819 If our spirits do not perceive the idols in our cities, and if our spirits are not provoked by these same idols, 00:08:14.819 --> 00:08:19.719 we will never be faithful and effective witnesses for Christ. 00:08:20.439 --> 00:08:24.159 So my question for us is, do we perceive the idols that are around us? 00:08:24.379 --> 00:08:26.000 And are we provoked by them? 00:08:26.579 --> 00:08:28.800 Do we perceive them and are we provoked by them? 00:08:28.839 --> 00:08:32.340 Imagine what Paul saw as he entered into the city of Athens, right? 00:08:33.059 --> 00:08:34.539 He's going into Athens, he sees what? 00:08:35.179 --> 00:08:39.740 Athena's Parthenon, he sees Zeus' Olympian Temple, maybe he sees Aphrodite's Temple. 00:08:39.740 --> 00:08:45.320 To us today, and probably to many living in Athens back then, you know, just simple cultural artifacts. 00:08:45.700 --> 00:08:47.879 Magnificent works of architecture, right? 00:08:48.580 --> 00:08:51.779 But for Paul, these weren't just cultural artifacts. 00:08:52.139 --> 00:08:57.659 These weren't just buildings to admire, but they were expressions of worship to false gods. 00:08:58.080 --> 00:09:02.019 See, Paul saw through the beauty that everyone else simplistically admired, 00:09:02.120 --> 00:09:06.680 and he perceived what had a strong hold upon the hearts of the Athenians. 00:09:06.679 --> 00:09:11.719 He perceived their highest allegiances, their highest values by observing the details of their cities, 00:09:11.799 --> 00:09:14.719 how they invested their time, how they invested their treasure, 00:09:15.059 --> 00:09:17.039 how they invested their talent, what they honored, 00:09:17.159 --> 00:09:19.879 what they venerated with their art and their architecture. 00:09:20.859 --> 00:09:25.059 So Christchurch, are we as perceptive of the cities that we inhabit? 00:09:25.679 --> 00:09:31.000 Maybe we don't see outside a statue built to Zeus or a temple for Athena or Aphrodite, 00:09:31.000 --> 00:09:36.659 but do we not see the shrines and altars to the gods of sex, money, and power all around us? 00:09:37.659 --> 00:09:39.519 San Francisco, what do you see? 00:09:40.059 --> 00:09:43.419 Salesforce and the Transamerica Building, not evil in and of themselves. 00:09:43.500 --> 00:09:45.120 Don't get me wrong, I know some of you work there. 00:09:45.720 --> 00:09:54.419 But are they not architectural testaments to what the Bay Area most values? 00:09:54.480 --> 00:09:55.039 Are they not? 00:09:55.039 --> 00:09:58.879 How about lifestyle Instagram influencers, all right? 00:09:59.360 --> 00:10:02.939 Are they not priests and prophets unto the gods of sex and power, 00:10:03.059 --> 00:10:07.899 testifying of the good news of being sexy, the good news of being successful? 00:10:08.779 --> 00:10:12.719 As Christ witnesses, we need to be attentive to the Spirit of God, 00:10:12.759 --> 00:10:15.120 to see the world as God sees the world, 00:10:15.159 --> 00:10:20.639 and to perceive the counterfeit gods who falsely promise to satiate our appetites 00:10:20.639 --> 00:10:23.659 and achieve our ambitions and secure our approval. 00:10:24.399 --> 00:10:26.779 But not only do we need to perceive these idols, 00:10:26.980 --> 00:10:29.220 we need to be provoked by them. 00:10:29.460 --> 00:10:31.659 We need to be provoked by these idols that we perceive. 00:10:31.899 --> 00:10:34.559 This word here in verse 16 about Paul's distress 00:10:34.559 --> 00:10:37.720 is a word of incredible emotional turmoil. 00:10:37.919 --> 00:10:40.480 And I think what it was, was a Christ-like mixture 00:10:40.480 --> 00:10:43.199 of what I want to call madness and sadness. 00:10:43.860 --> 00:10:44.580 Madness and sadness. 00:10:44.679 --> 00:10:47.319 See, Paul's spirit, it was outraged. 00:10:47.379 --> 00:10:48.419 It was truly outraged. 00:10:48.419 --> 00:10:51.399 He saw that Yahweh was not being worshipped in Athens, 00:10:52.000 --> 00:10:52.819 and he was livid. 00:10:53.339 --> 00:10:55.139 He saw people made in the image of God, 00:10:55.259 --> 00:10:58.000 not honoring God as God, and he was indignant. 00:10:58.779 --> 00:11:03.259 But equal to his outrage, his spirit also grieved. 00:11:03.539 --> 00:11:04.839 His spirit also grieved. 00:11:05.039 --> 00:11:09.919 Paul saw that Yahweh's good intentions were being traded for self-destructive lies 00:11:09.919 --> 00:11:12.379 that only deepened the world's wounds. 00:11:12.480 --> 00:11:15.000 He saw hurting people in need of salvation, 00:11:15.000 --> 00:11:18.600 seeking salvation from gods that could not save. 00:11:19.480 --> 00:11:20.559 And he was heartbroken. 00:11:21.419 --> 00:11:24.500 In the presence of idols, the spirit of Christ's witnesses, 00:11:24.740 --> 00:11:29.460 we are provoked to madness and to sadness at the same time. 00:11:29.500 --> 00:11:32.720 And this is super important, so important to feel both, 00:11:33.039 --> 00:11:36.379 madness and sadness as we perceive the idols around us. 00:11:36.379 --> 00:11:37.080 Because you know what? 00:11:37.519 --> 00:11:41.460 If you are only ever mad but not sad at the idolatry around you, 00:11:41.460 --> 00:11:43.440 you are going to be obnoxious. 00:11:43.860 --> 00:11:46.660 You will form your own tribe of self-righteousness. 00:11:46.720 --> 00:11:48.600 You're going to have a moralistic Christianity. 00:11:48.879 --> 00:11:51.300 You will never move toward people who need Jesus. 00:11:51.420 --> 00:11:55.040 Or if you do, you will never communicate the truth of Jesus to them 00:11:55.040 --> 00:11:57.720 with tenderness and kindness and love. 00:11:58.280 --> 00:12:02.200 And if you are only ever mad and not sad about the idolatry around you, 00:12:02.200 --> 00:12:06.139 you will ultimately never understand the people who disagree with you. 00:12:06.139 --> 00:12:11.600 You will never empathize with the hurts that they're hoping their idols will heal for them. 00:12:12.480 --> 00:12:17.179 But you know, if you are only ever sad but not mad at the idolatry around you, 00:12:17.259 --> 00:12:18.059 you're going to be a coward. 00:12:18.580 --> 00:12:20.600 You will have a relativistic Christianity. 00:12:20.919 --> 00:12:24.879 You will excuse or ignore the harm that idols truly do to people. 00:12:25.539 --> 00:12:29.480 And you will never have the courage to tell people what they really need to hear 00:12:29.480 --> 00:12:32.299 and that Jesus Christ alone is Lord. 00:12:32.299 --> 00:12:37.740 See, it's easy to be either sad or mad, to have conviction or compassion, 00:12:37.879 --> 00:12:40.399 but it's hard, it's hard to have both. 00:12:40.979 --> 00:12:41.620 And you know why? 00:12:42.039 --> 00:12:46.500 Because for those of us who err on the side of madness, we're afraid. 00:12:46.979 --> 00:12:51.599 We're afraid that if we ever lean into sadness and compassion toward evildoers, 00:12:51.719 --> 00:12:54.859 we will minimize the truly heinous offense of evil. 00:12:54.979 --> 00:12:59.059 We're afraid we'll render evil explainable, maybe even acceptable. 00:12:59.059 --> 00:13:01.799 And who wants to be sad for Hitler, right? 00:13:01.799 --> 00:13:03.159 Who wants to be sad for Hitler? 00:13:03.599 --> 00:13:06.879 Isn't it easier just to ignore his humanity and his backstory 00:13:06.879 --> 00:13:11.439 and to villainize him as the chief of sinners way worse than any of us, right? 00:13:12.240 --> 00:13:13.399 Madness makes sense. 00:13:13.699 --> 00:13:15.240 Sadness sounds like compromise. 00:13:16.059 --> 00:13:18.659 But for those of us who err on the side of sadness, 00:13:19.139 --> 00:13:22.699 we are afraid that if we ever lean into madness and conviction, 00:13:22.899 --> 00:13:26.679 we will set ourselves up for an impossibly high standard to live by 00:13:26.679 --> 00:13:28.179 that we know we will fail at. 00:13:28.599 --> 00:13:31.439 So why not just be lax about everything, right? 00:13:31.440 --> 00:13:33.580 Do whatever you want with your body. 00:13:33.700 --> 00:13:34.200 You do you. 00:13:34.300 --> 00:13:35.320 Pretty much anything goes. 00:13:35.420 --> 00:13:37.340 Just try hard not to hurt people. 00:13:37.520 --> 00:13:39.320 Try not to hurt people's feelings. 00:13:39.480 --> 00:13:41.060 And basically, you're a good person. 00:13:41.460 --> 00:13:42.340 No need to get mad. 00:13:42.900 --> 00:13:43.780 Madness is unkind. 00:13:43.940 --> 00:13:45.560 Madness is self-righteous. 00:13:46.220 --> 00:13:49.160 It's hard to feel both madness and sadness 00:13:49.160 --> 00:13:54.200 because we are either afraid of moral laxity or we're afraid of moral-ism. 00:13:54.200 --> 00:13:56.920 But you know, if we understand the gospel, 00:13:57.420 --> 00:13:59.400 and if we understand the cross of Christ, 00:14:00.140 --> 00:14:03.520 this is the only way we can truly hold both. 00:14:04.120 --> 00:14:05.160 Pastor Tim Keller says, 00:14:05.159 --> 00:14:07.079 if you don't have a cross in your religion, 00:14:07.480 --> 00:14:11.100 you will either have a moralistic religion or a relativistic religion. 00:14:11.100 --> 00:14:13.659 You will either have a God who is very demanding, 00:14:13.779 --> 00:14:15.299 and that's it, live up or else. 00:14:15.679 --> 00:14:18.759 Or you'll have a God who is so completely accepting, 00:14:19.100 --> 00:14:21.519 but whose love for us cost him not a thing. 00:14:22.139 --> 00:14:26.579 And a thunder religion or a sweetheart religion never has changed anybody. 00:14:26.980 --> 00:14:27.299 Never. 00:14:27.859 --> 00:14:28.679 Only the cross. 00:14:29.159 --> 00:14:29.979 Only the gospel. 00:14:30.279 --> 00:14:32.039 That Jesus Christ had to die. 00:14:32.219 --> 00:14:33.179 God is that holy. 00:14:33.620 --> 00:14:35.659 And that Jesus Christ had to die. 00:14:36.319 --> 00:14:37.379 He's that loving. 00:14:38.259 --> 00:14:40.199 See, witnesses of Christ must be mad. 00:14:40.500 --> 00:14:45.019 We must be mad that the holy God who offered free salvation at the cost of his own son 00:14:45.019 --> 00:14:48.099 is still not worshipped in so many places in the world. 00:14:48.339 --> 00:14:50.699 And witnesses of Christ must also be sad. 00:14:51.139 --> 00:14:53.639 That across the world, hurting people do not know 00:14:53.639 --> 00:14:57.860 the holy, healing love of God demonstrated in the cross of Christ 00:14:57.860 --> 00:15:00.759 and the joy of worshipping him as Lord. 00:15:01.799 --> 00:15:02.860 So that's point number one. 00:15:03.319 --> 00:15:05.179 That's point number one, the spirit of Christ's witness. 00:15:05.279 --> 00:15:05.899 Now let's keep going. 00:15:06.000 --> 00:15:07.559 I also want to talk about the scope. 00:15:07.799 --> 00:15:09.580 The scope of Christ's witnesses. 00:15:10.519 --> 00:15:12.220 So here, Paul is in Athens, 00:15:13.179 --> 00:15:16.299 and his spirit perceives and is provoked by the city's idols. 00:15:16.960 --> 00:15:20.279 And while those who get mad at idols might declare war, right? 00:15:20.279 --> 00:15:24.220 And those who get sad about idols might flee or just try to blend in, 00:15:24.720 --> 00:15:27.740 Paul, who is maddened and saddened by these idols, 00:15:28.120 --> 00:15:32.779 he leans in to this idol-infested city yet without compromise. 00:15:33.500 --> 00:15:36.000 And see, this is the scope of Christ's witnesses. 00:15:36.139 --> 00:15:38.919 We go everywhere to the ends of the earth. 00:15:38.980 --> 00:15:41.319 In verse 17, Paul first goes to the synagogue, right? 00:15:41.339 --> 00:15:45.019 He goes to his own cultural people who have the most context for his message, 00:15:45.019 --> 00:15:47.819 people who expected the Messiah that he preached. 00:15:47.820 --> 00:15:50.500 But he doesn't stay in this comfort zone, right? 00:15:50.760 --> 00:15:52.560 The scope is wider than his own people, 00:15:52.920 --> 00:15:56.060 wider than those simply interested in institutional religion. 00:15:56.200 --> 00:15:57.180 He also goes where? 00:15:57.780 --> 00:15:58.600 Into the marketplace. 00:15:59.300 --> 00:16:01.540 And this is not him just going to Trader Joe's, all right? 00:16:01.580 --> 00:16:04.660 The marketplace was the center of public life. 00:16:04.900 --> 00:16:06.400 In a world without the internet, right? 00:16:06.460 --> 00:16:08.720 Everything had to happen in the marketplace. 00:16:09.040 --> 00:16:11.620 Business, art, academics, entertainment. 00:16:11.780 --> 00:16:13.520 There were no newspapers, no ads. 00:16:13.519 --> 00:16:19.000 You had to go and you had to listen to the different voices and the different messages 00:16:19.000 --> 00:16:23.740 all selling their religions and ideologies and political agendas and lifestyles. 00:16:24.639 --> 00:16:29.179 And so in this marketplace and to this marketplace, Paul, he adds his own voice. 00:16:29.299 --> 00:16:32.439 He adds his own message, his own evangel, his own good news. 00:16:32.579 --> 00:16:33.539 And verse 17 says, 00:16:33.899 --> 00:16:37.059 Every day with those who happen to be there, he reasoned with them. 00:16:37.340 --> 00:16:38.840 And he dialogued with them. 00:16:38.840 --> 00:16:44.660 Verse 18 says he was debating or more simply in the Greek, pondering, comparing views and conversing. 00:16:45.320 --> 00:16:50.820 Some commentators speculate that the author Luke here is trying to make a comparison actually 00:16:50.820 --> 00:16:54.899 between Paul and Socrates as he's going about reasoning with people. 00:16:55.000 --> 00:16:56.019 So Paul is out there, right? 00:16:56.240 --> 00:16:59.940 Using the Socratic method and the scope of his witness is wide. 00:17:01.000 --> 00:17:02.620 And he was quite successful. 00:17:02.620 --> 00:17:08.859 So successful that the philosophers from the two most popular schools of thought at the time, 00:17:09.200 --> 00:17:11.779 they invited him to speak at what was called the Areopagus. 00:17:11.900 --> 00:17:13.539 They wanted to hear him say more. 00:17:14.240 --> 00:17:19.640 But what you should know is that this is also what they did to Socrates centuries earlier 00:17:19.640 --> 00:17:23.619 before executing him for his impiety, for his strange ideas. 00:17:24.339 --> 00:17:28.859 Verse 18 indicates that some even suspected Paul to be guilty of this as well. 00:17:29.319 --> 00:17:30.940 Preaching foreign gods. 00:17:30.940 --> 00:17:32.740 So this was quite serious. 00:17:33.320 --> 00:17:35.480 Paul's life may have been endangered. 00:17:36.279 --> 00:17:36.960 But he went. 00:17:37.340 --> 00:17:37.680 He went. 00:17:37.759 --> 00:17:42.140 He committed himself to bringing the gospel to the ends of the earth. 00:17:42.460 --> 00:17:45.840 That's how much he believed in the goodness of the good news of Jesus. 00:17:46.720 --> 00:17:50.200 And the question for us, Christ Church, is where will we take our good news? 00:17:50.640 --> 00:17:52.880 Where will we take our good news about Jesus? 00:17:53.440 --> 00:17:55.160 Even if it threatens our lives. 00:17:55.860 --> 00:17:58.860 There is no place that the gospel should not go. 00:17:58.859 --> 00:18:02.179 There is no place that the gospel cannot influence. 00:18:02.279 --> 00:18:06.439 The gospel does not just belong within the scope of institutional religion. 00:18:07.059 --> 00:18:09.959 It speaks to businessmen just as much as the priest. 00:18:10.319 --> 00:18:15.719 It bears on the academy, the arts, the sciences, the economy, even as it bears on the church. 00:18:15.819 --> 00:18:24.259 We must take it into our lecture halls and our workplaces and our city councils just as much as we take it into our campus ministries and on our mission trips, 00:18:24.259 --> 00:18:27.579 taking every single thought captive to Christ. 00:18:28.299 --> 00:18:30.700 We are committed to doing that here as a church. 00:18:30.779 --> 00:18:34.599 So I want to invite you all to a faith and work event that we are putting on. 00:18:35.119 --> 00:18:37.119 Denise Yon and David Gill will be leading it. 00:18:37.200 --> 00:18:40.420 And I believe Cheruba, Wes Selke, and some others will be participating. 00:18:40.579 --> 00:18:44.519 We're going to be talking about the integration of our faith and our work. 00:18:44.519 --> 00:18:48.539 And we're going to be inviting people into what we want to call vocational discipleship. 00:18:48.599 --> 00:18:56.940 Really understanding how does our faith and our work, how does it come together into a holistic way of following Jesus. 00:18:57.059 --> 00:19:00.259 So mark your calendar, September 10th, Friday at 7 p.m. 00:19:00.259 --> 00:19:01.759 You can see that in the liturgy as well. 00:19:02.359 --> 00:19:03.900 And this is important to us because why? 00:19:03.980 --> 00:19:06.619 Because the scope of Christ's witness, it's wide. 00:19:07.079 --> 00:19:07.920 It's super wide. 00:19:07.920 --> 00:19:10.680 And we want to equip the church to witness winsomely. 00:19:11.240 --> 00:19:17.160 We want to equip you to witness to Jesus Christ in a very winsome, powerful way. 00:19:17.220 --> 00:19:21.800 And this brings me to my last and also my longest point, the strategy. 00:19:22.000 --> 00:19:22.160 All right? 00:19:22.180 --> 00:19:24.259 The strategy of Christ's witness. 00:19:25.380 --> 00:19:27.900 Now again, Paul is in Athens. 00:19:28.360 --> 00:19:29.700 We're just like in Lystra. 00:19:29.940 --> 00:19:33.519 These people he's speaking to, they don't share the same convictions. 00:19:33.779 --> 00:19:36.320 They don't share the same assumptions that he does. 00:19:36.320 --> 00:19:37.500 They don't know the story of Israel. 00:19:37.920 --> 00:19:42.360 And they certainly don't view the Hebrew scriptures as the authoritative word of God. 00:19:42.440 --> 00:19:46.140 So the question is, where do you even start with such people? 00:19:46.779 --> 00:19:49.940 People not unlike your average Bay Area person, right? 00:19:49.960 --> 00:19:52.420 How do you call people to change their minds, to repent? 00:19:52.700 --> 00:19:55.640 And how do you persuade them that Jesus is Lord? 00:19:56.259 --> 00:19:58.320 How do you bear witness to the good news about Jesus, 00:19:58.420 --> 00:20:03.519 to a people swimming in a sea of multiple alternative good newses? 00:20:04.140 --> 00:20:05.779 Well, I want to suggest a strategy. 00:20:05.880 --> 00:20:07.519 I mentioned it last week that is unique. 00:20:07.920 --> 00:20:09.100 To the Christian faith. 00:20:09.460 --> 00:20:13.140 And I want to call this strategy, the strategy of subversive fulfillment. 00:20:13.360 --> 00:20:13.460 All right? 00:20:13.700 --> 00:20:14.580 Subversive fulfillment. 00:20:14.740 --> 00:20:18.640 See, at the Areopagus, Paul, what he does is he shows his audience 00:20:18.640 --> 00:20:23.140 how the truth of Jesus not only subverts their deepest commitments, 00:20:23.820 --> 00:20:27.900 but also fulfills their deepest concerns at the very same time. 00:20:28.360 --> 00:20:29.740 Subverts and fulfills. 00:20:29.740 --> 00:20:34.900 See, as a follower of Christ embedded in the biblical story of creation and fall and redemption, 00:20:35.299 --> 00:20:36.920 Paul has a unique toolkit here. 00:20:36.960 --> 00:20:41.099 He has a unique view of his God and his religious others. 00:20:41.799 --> 00:20:44.980 Although these religious others clearly believed different things than him, 00:20:45.339 --> 00:20:47.960 and although they clearly worshipped other gods than him, 00:20:47.960 --> 00:20:52.420 Paul could explain why and how their false religions came to be. 00:20:52.460 --> 00:20:53.599 It was because of the fall. 00:20:53.599 --> 00:20:59.659 See, Paul understood that God created all people, all people, and made them in his image. 00:21:00.259 --> 00:21:03.740 And therefore, every single person, every single person that he encountered, 00:21:04.240 --> 00:21:08.359 he knew that by their very nature, they had a sense of the one true God, 00:21:08.539 --> 00:21:12.039 and by their very nature, they were made to worship. 00:21:12.039 --> 00:21:17.240 So when Paul engaged these people of other beliefs and these people of other religions and faith, 00:21:17.619 --> 00:21:22.359 the problem for him was not that they stopped being religious and they stopped worshipping, 00:21:22.500 --> 00:21:24.460 it's that they stopped worshipping rightly. 00:21:25.019 --> 00:21:28.799 They actually kept worshipping, but their worship and their religious devotion, 00:21:29.379 --> 00:21:31.420 it was misdirected by sin. 00:21:32.519 --> 00:21:37.200 Now, can you see how that might influence the way we bear witness about Jesus? 00:21:37.200 --> 00:21:42.779 Can you see how that might change the way we go and tell people the good news about Christ? 00:21:43.240 --> 00:21:44.240 Notice what he doesn't do. 00:21:44.700 --> 00:21:49.019 He doesn't go angrily condemning them as pagan idolaters, right? 00:21:49.100 --> 00:21:53.240 That idiotically bow down to stones crafted by the hands of men. 00:21:53.799 --> 00:21:59.880 And he also doesn't cowardly, you know, minimize the differences between their gods and his god 00:21:59.880 --> 00:22:01.880 as minor or insignificant. 00:22:03.100 --> 00:22:05.680 Instead, according to the light of what God's revealed, 00:22:05.680 --> 00:22:11.140 he winsomely establishes both a point of contact and a point of critique. 00:22:11.400 --> 00:22:14.940 And this is so important to notice about Paul's method. 00:22:15.600 --> 00:22:20.000 Out of both madness and sadness, out of both conviction and compassion, 00:22:20.100 --> 00:22:22.759 he neither condemns nor capitulates. 00:22:23.400 --> 00:22:28.380 His main concern is not simply to critique these idolatrous Athenian worshippers, 00:22:28.940 --> 00:22:32.340 but to critique their inferior objects of worship. 00:22:33.039 --> 00:22:34.580 And to confront them with what? 00:22:34.579 --> 00:22:37.639 The good news, the supremacy of Christ. 00:22:37.639 --> 00:22:42.299 The one true God who alone is worthy of all our religious devotion. 00:22:43.079 --> 00:22:45.519 And the way he connects and critiques, it's so masterful. 00:22:45.539 --> 00:22:46.339 And I want to show this to you. 00:22:46.419 --> 00:22:47.619 Look at verse 22 with me. 00:22:47.619 --> 00:22:50.099 He doesn't open up again with, 00:22:50.099 --> 00:22:52.179 repent, you wicked pagan idolaters. 00:22:52.379 --> 00:22:53.059 But he says, 00:22:53.159 --> 00:22:54.240 people of Athens, 00:22:54.859 --> 00:22:57.919 I see that in every way you are very religious. 00:22:58.619 --> 00:23:02.079 For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, 00:23:02.500 --> 00:23:04.480 I even found an altar with this inscription, 00:23:05.079 --> 00:23:06.339 to an unknown god. 00:23:06.379 --> 00:23:07.480 So Paul notices, 00:23:08.019 --> 00:23:09.759 he begins with their values. 00:23:09.839 --> 00:23:11.639 He begins with their commitments. 00:23:11.740 --> 00:23:12.059 And he says, 00:23:12.059 --> 00:23:14.720 you're obviously a very pious people. 00:23:14.819 --> 00:23:18.700 You clearly value your relationship with whatever you deem to be divine. 00:23:19.059 --> 00:23:19.220 You know, 00:23:19.220 --> 00:23:20.179 I see all these altars, 00:23:20.259 --> 00:23:22.200 I see all these temples in your city, 00:23:22.220 --> 00:23:25.480 and you are so earnest to cover all your religious bases 00:23:25.480 --> 00:23:28.279 that you even worship an unknown god. 00:23:28.879 --> 00:23:30.279 Let's talk about that, he says. 00:23:30.559 --> 00:23:31.619 Let's talk about that. 00:23:31.700 --> 00:23:34.000 Clearly you have a sense of the transcendent. 00:23:34.000 --> 00:23:34.880 And yet, 00:23:35.200 --> 00:23:38.880 that you also don't fully know all there is to know about the divine. 00:23:39.539 --> 00:23:40.039 So he says, 00:23:40.319 --> 00:23:43.940 what therefore you yourselves claim to be ignorant of, 00:23:44.480 --> 00:23:46.440 this I proclaim to you. 00:23:46.940 --> 00:23:49.299 And he wants to fill that knowledge to them 00:23:49.299 --> 00:23:51.200 as he communicates the gospel to them. 00:23:51.880 --> 00:23:52.319 See, Paul, 00:23:52.539 --> 00:23:53.519 he meets them where they're at. 00:23:53.759 --> 00:23:54.359 This is what he's doing. 00:23:54.380 --> 00:23:55.559 He's meeting them where they're at, 00:23:55.619 --> 00:23:57.660 and he's connecting with their own beliefs, 00:23:57.779 --> 00:23:59.720 their own religious sensibilities. 00:24:00.319 --> 00:24:01.420 But he doesn't just say, 00:24:01.619 --> 00:24:02.240 cool, cool, 00:24:02.240 --> 00:24:02.519 you know, 00:24:02.599 --> 00:24:03.839 you worship an unknown god, 00:24:04.000 --> 00:24:05.519 I happen to call him Jesus, 00:24:05.960 --> 00:24:07.460 but basically we're on the same page. 00:24:07.519 --> 00:24:08.079 Close enough. 00:24:08.180 --> 00:24:08.400 No. 00:24:09.460 --> 00:24:10.960 Even as he connects with them 00:24:10.960 --> 00:24:12.980 and starts with their own beliefs, 00:24:13.400 --> 00:24:15.980 he then presses their religious sensibilities 00:24:15.980 --> 00:24:18.220 to show them the inconsistency 00:24:18.220 --> 00:24:21.880 and the inferiority of their misdirected worship. 00:24:21.980 --> 00:24:22.319 He says, 00:24:22.539 --> 00:24:23.859 I see you are very religious. 00:24:24.519 --> 00:24:26.519 You so desire to honor the divine 00:24:26.519 --> 00:24:29.680 that you even have an altar to some unknown god 00:24:29.680 --> 00:24:31.099 that you may have overlooked. 00:24:31.400 --> 00:24:33.759 But let me tell you something about this god 00:24:33.759 --> 00:24:36.220 you yourselves claim not to know. 00:24:36.720 --> 00:24:37.420 He says to them, 00:24:37.640 --> 00:24:38.619 unlike your conception, 00:24:38.779 --> 00:24:38.940 you know, 00:24:38.980 --> 00:24:39.720 of multiple gods 00:24:40.259 --> 00:24:41.359 where you have a god of thunder 00:24:41.359 --> 00:24:42.200 and a god of the sea 00:24:42.200 --> 00:24:42.960 and a god of war 00:24:42.960 --> 00:24:44.180 and a god of wisdom 00:24:44.180 --> 00:24:45.319 and art and love 00:24:45.319 --> 00:24:46.460 or a god of this nation 00:24:46.460 --> 00:24:47.759 or a god of this city, 00:24:48.220 --> 00:24:49.279 the one true god, 00:24:49.379 --> 00:24:49.940 verse 24, 00:24:50.099 --> 00:24:51.519 the god who made the world 00:24:51.519 --> 00:24:52.960 and everything in it 00:24:52.960 --> 00:24:54.759 is the lord of heaven and earth 00:24:54.759 --> 00:24:55.859 and does not live in temples 00:24:55.859 --> 00:24:56.980 built by human hands. 00:24:57.279 --> 00:24:59.039 And he is not served by human hands 00:24:59.039 --> 00:25:00.420 as if he needed anything. 00:25:00.420 --> 00:25:01.220 Rather, 00:25:01.380 --> 00:25:03.240 he himself gives everyone life 00:25:03.240 --> 00:25:03.980 and breath 00:25:03.980 --> 00:25:05.180 and everything else. 00:25:05.700 --> 00:25:06.380 From one man, 00:25:06.440 --> 00:25:07.500 he made all the nations 00:25:07.500 --> 00:25:09.340 that they should inhabit the whole earth 00:25:09.340 --> 00:25:11.200 and he marked out their appointed times 00:25:11.200 --> 00:25:11.680 in history 00:25:11.680 --> 00:25:13.000 and the boundaries of their lands. 00:25:13.340 --> 00:25:14.000 God did this 00:25:14.000 --> 00:25:14.779 so that 00:25:14.779 --> 00:25:15.900 they would seek him 00:25:15.900 --> 00:25:17.580 and perhaps reach out for him 00:25:17.580 --> 00:25:18.640 and find him 00:25:18.640 --> 00:25:19.960 though he is not far 00:25:19.960 --> 00:25:21.660 from any one of us. 00:25:22.400 --> 00:25:22.700 See, 00:25:22.759 --> 00:25:23.720 Paul starts 00:25:23.720 --> 00:25:24.640 with a strong 00:25:24.640 --> 00:25:26.539 creator-creature distinction 00:25:26.539 --> 00:25:28.019 and then he shows them 00:25:28.019 --> 00:25:29.940 that all their religious striving, 00:25:30.319 --> 00:25:31.480 all their reaching out 00:25:31.480 --> 00:25:32.220 to find him, 00:25:32.299 --> 00:25:34.139 all their idolatrous worship, 00:25:34.399 --> 00:25:35.019 all the lengths 00:25:35.019 --> 00:25:35.859 that they go to 00:25:35.859 --> 00:25:37.379 to maintain these temples 00:25:37.379 --> 00:25:38.740 and to serve their gods, 00:25:39.339 --> 00:25:40.159 all these things 00:25:40.159 --> 00:25:41.139 actually contradict 00:25:41.139 --> 00:25:42.379 their very own piety 00:25:42.379 --> 00:25:43.159 toward God 00:25:43.159 --> 00:25:44.119 for to treat God, 00:25:44.220 --> 00:25:44.839 the creator, 00:25:45.000 --> 00:25:46.159 as needing them 00:25:46.159 --> 00:25:47.200 to serve him, 00:25:47.879 --> 00:25:48.740 like to build him 00:25:48.740 --> 00:25:50.099 a temple to live in, 00:25:50.579 --> 00:25:52.180 is actually not honoring 00:25:52.180 --> 00:25:53.460 to God at all. 00:25:54.079 --> 00:25:55.000 The one true God 00:25:55.000 --> 00:25:55.839 who made all things, 00:25:55.839 --> 00:25:56.500 the one true God 00:25:56.500 --> 00:25:57.379 who is transcendent 00:25:57.379 --> 00:25:58.480 and yet also near to them, 00:25:58.799 --> 00:26:00.000 he needs nothing. 00:26:00.519 --> 00:26:01.220 He needs nothing. 00:26:02.139 --> 00:26:02.839 So holding his 00:26:02.839 --> 00:26:03.759 biblical understanding 00:26:03.759 --> 00:26:04.339 of God, 00:26:04.699 --> 00:26:06.119 yet without even opening up 00:26:06.119 --> 00:26:07.059 the Hebrew scriptures, 00:26:07.759 --> 00:26:09.119 Paul reasons with them 00:26:09.119 --> 00:26:10.379 based upon their own 00:26:10.379 --> 00:26:11.799 religious sensibilities 00:26:11.799 --> 00:26:12.699 to show them 00:26:12.699 --> 00:26:14.220 their own inconsistencies. 00:26:14.259 --> 00:26:14.859 He even quotes 00:26:14.859 --> 00:26:15.759 their poets, right? 00:26:15.799 --> 00:26:16.699 Their religious authorities. 00:26:16.819 --> 00:26:17.319 Verse 28, 00:26:17.679 --> 00:26:18.699 for in him we live 00:26:18.699 --> 00:26:19.419 and move 00:26:19.419 --> 00:26:20.379 and have our being 00:26:20.379 --> 00:26:21.839 and we are his offspring. 00:26:22.740 --> 00:26:23.439 And Paul says 00:26:23.439 --> 00:26:24.059 in verse 29, 00:26:24.439 --> 00:26:25.259 so how can you 00:26:25.259 --> 00:26:25.819 continue your 00:26:25.819 --> 00:26:26.740 idol worship then? 00:26:27.319 --> 00:26:27.919 Treating God 00:26:27.919 --> 00:26:28.939 like an image of gold 00:26:28.939 --> 00:26:29.539 or silver 00:26:29.539 --> 00:26:30.339 or stone 00:26:30.339 --> 00:26:31.679 crafted by human hands 00:26:31.679 --> 00:26:33.299 when you also believe 00:26:33.299 --> 00:26:34.339 that you are his offspring 00:26:34.339 --> 00:26:36.159 and that he made you. 00:26:36.740 --> 00:26:37.079 He says, 00:26:37.159 --> 00:26:37.799 don't you see 00:26:37.799 --> 00:26:38.720 the inconsistency? 00:26:38.819 --> 00:26:39.359 Don't you see 00:26:39.359 --> 00:26:40.759 how your idolatry 00:26:40.759 --> 00:26:42.359 actually presupposes 00:26:42.359 --> 00:26:43.679 and is evidence 00:26:43.679 --> 00:26:44.799 of the one true God 00:26:44.799 --> 00:26:45.819 even as it 00:26:45.819 --> 00:26:46.720 dishonors him? 00:26:47.799 --> 00:26:48.839 I hope you can see 00:26:48.839 --> 00:26:49.819 this is an incredibly 00:26:49.819 --> 00:26:51.559 masterful argument 00:26:51.559 --> 00:26:52.379 that he's making. 00:26:52.619 --> 00:26:53.200 It's not just 00:26:53.200 --> 00:26:54.000 to tell someone 00:26:54.000 --> 00:26:54.960 that they're wrong. 00:26:55.039 --> 00:26:55.460 That's not what 00:26:55.460 --> 00:26:55.880 we're about. 00:26:55.960 --> 00:26:56.779 We don't just tell people 00:26:56.779 --> 00:26:57.440 that they're wrong 00:26:57.440 --> 00:26:58.480 but we want to show them 00:26:58.480 --> 00:26:59.480 that they're wrong 00:26:59.480 --> 00:27:00.140 on the basis 00:27:00.140 --> 00:27:01.720 of their own beliefs 00:27:01.720 --> 00:27:03.359 which actually point 00:27:03.359 --> 00:27:04.019 to the truth 00:27:04.019 --> 00:27:05.000 all along. 00:27:05.660 --> 00:27:06.500 See, this is how 00:27:06.500 --> 00:27:07.920 subversive fulfillment 00:27:07.920 --> 00:27:08.859 works. 00:27:09.119 --> 00:27:09.740 It subverts 00:27:09.740 --> 00:27:11.119 and it deconstructs 00:27:11.119 --> 00:27:12.980 the misdirected worship 00:27:12.980 --> 00:27:13.980 of those who don't 00:27:13.980 --> 00:27:14.640 bow down 00:27:14.640 --> 00:27:15.339 to Jesus. 00:27:15.740 --> 00:27:16.220 And then you know 00:27:16.220 --> 00:27:16.559 what it does? 00:27:16.599 --> 00:27:17.680 It then points them 00:27:17.680 --> 00:27:18.539 to Jesus 00:27:18.539 --> 00:27:19.559 as the only one 00:27:19.559 --> 00:27:20.720 who can truly fulfill 00:27:20.720 --> 00:27:21.839 their deepest longings, 00:27:21.900 --> 00:27:22.279 the only one 00:27:22.279 --> 00:27:23.379 who can truly make sense 00:27:23.379 --> 00:27:25.259 of their deepest intuitions. 00:27:25.879 --> 00:27:26.440 It's a method 00:27:26.440 --> 00:27:27.119 of compassion 00:27:27.119 --> 00:27:28.579 and conviction. 00:27:28.759 --> 00:27:29.720 It shows people 00:27:29.720 --> 00:27:30.399 they're wrong 00:27:30.399 --> 00:27:31.099 not just because 00:27:31.099 --> 00:27:31.779 they're stupid 00:27:31.779 --> 00:27:33.079 and irrational 00:27:33.079 --> 00:27:33.799 and evil. 00:27:33.920 --> 00:27:34.539 We have too much 00:27:34.539 --> 00:27:34.960 of that. 00:27:35.259 --> 00:27:36.000 Oh, they're just wrong 00:27:36.000 --> 00:27:37.019 because they're being dumb. 00:27:37.279 --> 00:27:37.839 They're just wrong 00:27:37.839 --> 00:27:38.500 because they chose 00:27:38.500 --> 00:27:39.639 to be wrong, right? 00:27:40.119 --> 00:27:40.859 No, it's because 00:27:40.859 --> 00:27:41.660 they actually had 00:27:41.660 --> 00:27:42.420 something right 00:27:42.420 --> 00:27:43.440 and good 00:27:43.440 --> 00:27:45.119 that got misdirected 00:27:45.119 --> 00:27:47.220 but can also be redeemed 00:27:47.220 --> 00:27:48.339 by the good news 00:27:48.339 --> 00:27:49.079 of Jesus. 00:27:50.039 --> 00:27:50.619 Do you see, 00:27:50.619 --> 00:27:51.359 do you see how this 00:27:51.359 --> 00:27:52.959 makes all the difference 00:27:52.959 --> 00:27:54.759 in how we approach people 00:27:54.759 --> 00:27:55.439 and call them 00:27:55.439 --> 00:27:56.119 to repentance 00:27:56.119 --> 00:27:57.759 and faith in Jesus? 00:27:58.339 --> 00:27:58.819 And honestly, 00:27:58.959 --> 00:27:59.759 in how we, 00:27:59.979 --> 00:28:00.500 even Christians, 00:28:00.599 --> 00:28:02.000 should approach ourselves 00:28:02.000 --> 00:28:03.519 with the subversive 00:28:03.519 --> 00:28:04.779 fulfillment of Christ. 00:28:04.919 --> 00:28:06.000 See, this strategy 00:28:06.000 --> 00:28:07.739 of subversive fulfillment 00:28:07.739 --> 00:28:08.519 isn't some 00:28:08.519 --> 00:28:10.839 just apologetic tactic 00:28:10.839 --> 00:28:12.639 to use on religious others 00:28:12.639 --> 00:28:13.819 who don't believe in Jesus. 00:28:14.699 --> 00:28:15.519 It's a strategy 00:28:15.519 --> 00:28:16.779 to evangelize 00:28:16.779 --> 00:28:18.339 our very own selves, 00:28:18.399 --> 00:28:19.359 to preach the gospel 00:28:19.359 --> 00:28:20.359 to ourselves, 00:28:20.439 --> 00:28:21.479 with all of our addictions 00:28:21.479 --> 00:28:22.519 to pornography 00:28:22.519 --> 00:28:23.539 and substances 00:28:23.539 --> 00:28:24.639 and to our careers. 00:28:25.199 --> 00:28:26.219 Whether our allegiances 00:28:26.219 --> 00:28:26.979 be, you know, 00:28:27.019 --> 00:28:27.899 to the gods of sex 00:28:27.899 --> 00:28:28.799 or the gods of money 00:28:28.799 --> 00:28:29.740 or the gods of power, 00:28:29.839 --> 00:28:30.719 these deceptive gods 00:28:30.719 --> 00:28:31.799 who promise to secure 00:28:31.799 --> 00:28:32.500 our approval, 00:28:32.939 --> 00:28:34.059 satisfy our appetites 00:28:34.059 --> 00:28:35.039 and help us succeed 00:28:35.039 --> 00:28:36.240 in our ambitions. 00:28:37.099 --> 00:28:38.500 The sin and idolatry 00:28:38.500 --> 00:28:39.719 in all of our lives 00:28:39.719 --> 00:28:42.219 is so much more complicated 00:28:42.219 --> 00:28:43.099 than, hey, 00:28:43.159 --> 00:28:44.199 I feel like being bad 00:28:44.199 --> 00:28:45.939 and dishonoring God right now. 00:28:46.379 --> 00:28:46.639 No. 00:28:46.640 --> 00:28:48.060 We sin, 00:28:48.360 --> 00:28:49.360 we all bow down 00:28:49.360 --> 00:28:50.680 to other gods 00:28:50.680 --> 00:28:51.500 because we've come 00:28:51.500 --> 00:28:52.820 to believe that in some way 00:28:52.820 --> 00:28:54.540 these counterfeit gods 00:28:54.540 --> 00:28:56.040 will fulfill us. 00:28:56.540 --> 00:28:57.480 We're all looking for 00:28:57.480 --> 00:28:59.680 fulfillment outside of Christ 00:28:59.680 --> 00:29:01.060 and it's killing us. 00:29:01.800 --> 00:29:02.840 But the good news 00:29:02.840 --> 00:29:03.500 of the gospel 00:29:03.500 --> 00:29:04.920 is that God wants 00:29:04.920 --> 00:29:05.520 to subvert 00:29:05.520 --> 00:29:06.840 our self-destructive 00:29:06.840 --> 00:29:07.900 pursuits of fulfillment, 00:29:08.020 --> 00:29:09.060 not at the expense 00:29:09.060 --> 00:29:10.380 of our ultimate fulfillment, 00:29:10.980 --> 00:29:12.240 but to actually satisfy 00:29:12.240 --> 00:29:13.220 our longings 00:29:13.220 --> 00:29:14.420 with himself. 00:29:15.200 --> 00:29:15.640 With himself. 00:29:15.759 --> 00:29:16.920 That's what God is up to 00:29:16.920 --> 00:29:18.140 with this subversive 00:29:18.140 --> 00:29:18.700 fulfillment 00:29:18.700 --> 00:29:20.160 of the gospel in Christ. 00:29:21.200 --> 00:29:21.980 Now I want to end 00:29:21.980 --> 00:29:22.720 with a story 00:29:22.720 --> 00:29:23.660 about this altar 00:29:23.660 --> 00:29:25.220 to the unknown God 00:29:25.220 --> 00:29:26.259 that Paul referred to. 00:29:26.319 --> 00:29:27.400 See, as legend had it, 00:29:27.680 --> 00:29:28.720 centuries earlier 00:29:28.720 --> 00:29:29.440 during the time 00:29:29.440 --> 00:29:30.380 of Epimenides, 00:29:30.539 --> 00:29:32.680 there was this huge plague 00:29:32.680 --> 00:29:33.140 in Athens 00:29:33.140 --> 00:29:34.900 that just ravaged the city. 00:29:35.579 --> 00:29:36.600 And the people's attempts 00:29:36.600 --> 00:29:38.299 to appease the gods, 00:29:38.380 --> 00:29:38.880 they just seemed 00:29:38.880 --> 00:29:40.700 to have no effect whatsoever 00:29:40.700 --> 00:29:41.740 until one day 00:29:41.740 --> 00:29:43.559 this supposedly wise sage, 00:29:43.600 --> 00:29:44.700 he took a flock of sheep 00:29:44.700 --> 00:29:46.480 and from the Areopagus 00:29:46.480 --> 00:29:47.819 he sent these sheep out 00:29:47.819 --> 00:29:49.180 and wherever the sheep 00:29:49.180 --> 00:29:50.140 would stop, 00:29:50.620 --> 00:29:51.420 they would build 00:29:51.420 --> 00:29:52.200 an altar there 00:29:52.200 --> 00:29:53.900 to an anonymous God 00:29:53.900 --> 00:29:55.120 and then they would 00:29:55.120 --> 00:29:56.039 sacrifice the sheep 00:29:56.039 --> 00:29:57.559 upon that altar. 00:29:58.299 --> 00:29:59.480 And as legend had it, 00:29:59.980 --> 00:30:00.920 Athens was returned 00:30:00.920 --> 00:30:01.720 to health. 00:30:02.539 --> 00:30:03.380 And I share this story 00:30:03.380 --> 00:30:04.299 because whether or not 00:30:04.299 --> 00:30:04.940 it's true, 00:30:05.440 --> 00:30:06.200 I hope that you can see 00:30:06.200 --> 00:30:06.920 it's absolutely 00:30:06.920 --> 00:30:07.960 heartbreaking. 00:30:08.620 --> 00:30:09.920 Not just as a demonstration 00:30:09.920 --> 00:30:11.900 of the impotent gods 00:30:11.900 --> 00:30:13.440 that the Greeks trusted in 00:30:13.440 --> 00:30:14.100 or the cruelty 00:30:14.100 --> 00:30:15.460 of this anonymous God 00:30:15.460 --> 00:30:16.420 who just waited for them 00:30:16.420 --> 00:30:17.620 to finally get it right 00:30:17.620 --> 00:30:18.980 and build an altar to him, 00:30:19.060 --> 00:30:19.860 this unknown God 00:30:19.860 --> 00:30:21.259 and sacrifice sheep to him. 00:30:21.960 --> 00:30:22.640 But it's also 00:30:22.640 --> 00:30:24.019 a heartbreaking illustration 00:30:24.019 --> 00:30:26.220 of what so many of us, 00:30:26.900 --> 00:30:27.320 modern, 00:30:27.680 --> 00:30:29.060 21st century people 00:30:29.060 --> 00:30:30.720 are still engaged with. 00:30:30.779 --> 00:30:31.460 Because think about it, 00:30:31.480 --> 00:30:33.300 are we really less naive? 00:30:34.180 --> 00:30:36.759 Are we really less superstitious? 00:30:36.759 --> 00:30:38.700 In verse 27, 00:30:38.819 --> 00:30:39.940 Paul uses this image, 00:30:40.000 --> 00:30:40.180 right, 00:30:40.240 --> 00:30:41.259 of people just kind of 00:30:41.259 --> 00:30:42.879 walking around blind, 00:30:43.079 --> 00:30:44.180 fumbling around, 00:30:44.480 --> 00:30:45.059 trying to reach 00:30:45.059 --> 00:30:46.160 and find God, 00:30:46.259 --> 00:30:47.400 hoping against hope, 00:30:47.480 --> 00:30:48.759 trying all manner of things, 00:30:48.859 --> 00:30:50.000 no matter how arbitrary, 00:30:50.319 --> 00:30:51.640 no matter how ridiculous, 00:30:51.940 --> 00:30:52.559 looking for that 00:30:52.559 --> 00:30:54.460 ever so elusive fulfillment. 00:30:55.000 --> 00:30:55.940 Even serving 00:30:55.940 --> 00:30:58.220 and making random sacrifices 00:30:58.220 --> 00:31:00.379 to hypothetical unknown gods 00:31:00.379 --> 00:31:01.579 that might not even exist, 00:31:01.799 --> 00:31:03.039 much less save. 00:31:03.759 --> 00:31:04.740 Gods they don't know 00:31:04.740 --> 00:31:05.420 they can trust 00:31:05.420 --> 00:31:06.480 and probably don't even 00:31:06.480 --> 00:31:07.380 love them. 00:31:07.819 --> 00:31:08.420 And why? 00:31:09.099 --> 00:31:10.160 Why was humanity, 00:31:10.620 --> 00:31:11.420 why has humanity 00:31:11.420 --> 00:31:13.160 historically groped 00:31:13.160 --> 00:31:13.759 in the dark 00:31:13.759 --> 00:31:14.700 so pathetically? 00:31:15.740 --> 00:31:16.299 Why? 00:31:17.420 --> 00:31:18.140 Well, because 00:31:18.140 --> 00:31:19.539 what else can we do 00:31:19.539 --> 00:31:21.019 but strive 00:31:21.019 --> 00:31:22.299 and try anything, 00:31:22.599 --> 00:31:23.740 anything to deal 00:31:23.740 --> 00:31:25.759 with the plague of death? 00:31:27.099 --> 00:31:28.339 Isn't that what we're up to? 00:31:28.880 --> 00:31:29.779 Isn't this us? 00:31:30.980 --> 00:31:31.279 But, 00:31:31.859 --> 00:31:33.480 but what if there was a God 00:31:33.480 --> 00:31:35.039 who didn't leave us 00:31:35.039 --> 00:31:35.559 in the dark? 00:31:36.160 --> 00:31:36.900 What if there was a God 00:31:36.900 --> 00:31:37.640 who didn't leave us 00:31:37.640 --> 00:31:38.240 in the dark? 00:31:38.299 --> 00:31:39.620 A God who was truly there, 00:31:39.799 --> 00:31:40.539 so present, 00:31:40.819 --> 00:31:42.099 so close to us 00:31:42.099 --> 00:31:43.539 and our human experience 00:31:43.539 --> 00:31:44.539 that he himself 00:31:44.539 --> 00:31:45.559 tasted death 00:31:45.559 --> 00:31:46.579 in our place? 00:31:47.339 --> 00:31:48.000 And what if 00:31:48.000 --> 00:31:48.680 this God 00:31:48.680 --> 00:31:49.660 who tasted death 00:31:49.660 --> 00:31:50.960 conquered death 00:31:50.960 --> 00:31:51.980 by an actual, 00:31:52.180 --> 00:31:52.640 historical, 00:31:53.120 --> 00:31:53.819 and pretty much 00:31:53.819 --> 00:31:55.099 irrefutable resurrection? 00:31:55.539 --> 00:31:56.680 And what if he offered us 00:31:56.680 --> 00:31:58.339 this fullest fulfillment 00:31:58.339 --> 00:31:59.559 of resurrection life 00:31:59.559 --> 00:32:00.599 and new creation? 00:32:00.599 --> 00:32:03.079 would this not be 00:32:03.079 --> 00:32:03.959 better news 00:32:03.959 --> 00:32:05.359 of a better God? 00:32:06.179 --> 00:32:07.159 Would this not be 00:32:07.159 --> 00:32:07.719 better news 00:32:07.719 --> 00:32:08.779 of a better God? 00:32:09.919 --> 00:32:10.399 Christchurch, 00:32:10.480 --> 00:32:11.240 here once more, 00:32:11.599 --> 00:32:12.659 Acts chapter 17, 00:32:12.779 --> 00:32:13.339 verse 30. 00:32:14.339 --> 00:32:15.359 In the past, 00:32:15.879 --> 00:32:16.519 God overlooked 00:32:16.519 --> 00:32:17.319 our ignorance, 00:32:18.059 --> 00:32:19.099 but now he commands 00:32:19.099 --> 00:32:19.779 all people 00:32:19.779 --> 00:32:20.819 everywhere 00:32:20.819 --> 00:32:22.119 to repent. 00:32:23.219 --> 00:32:24.039 For he has set 00:32:24.039 --> 00:32:24.579 a day 00:32:24.579 --> 00:32:25.480 when he will judge 00:32:25.480 --> 00:32:26.579 the world with justice 00:32:26.579 --> 00:32:27.619 by the man 00:32:27.619 --> 00:32:28.279 he has appointed. 00:32:28.279 --> 00:32:29.759 He has given proof 00:32:29.759 --> 00:32:31.000 of this to everyone 00:32:31.000 --> 00:32:32.180 by raising him 00:32:32.180 --> 00:32:33.160 from the dead. 00:32:34.379 --> 00:32:35.700 Is this not better news 00:32:35.700 --> 00:32:36.799 of a better God? 00:32:37.799 --> 00:32:38.559 Whoever has ears, 00:32:38.660 --> 00:32:39.259 let them hear 00:32:39.259 --> 00:32:40.720 the forever better news 00:32:40.720 --> 00:32:41.480 of the crucified 00:32:41.480 --> 00:32:43.619 and risen Christ. 00:32:44.200 --> 00:32:45.019 Jesus is better. 00:32:45.839 --> 00:32:46.500 Jesus is better. 00:32:46.579 --> 00:32:47.259 Will you pray with me? 00:32:47.259 --> 00:32:47.339 Amen. 00:32:47.339 --> 00:32:47.399 Amen. 00:32:47.399 --> 00:32:47.440 Amen. 00:32:47.440 --> 00:32:47.460 Amen. 00:32:47.460 --> 00:32:47.500 Amen. 00:32:47.500 --> 00:32:47.539 Amen. 00:32:47.539 --> 00:32:47.579 Amen. 00:32:47.579 --> 00:32:47.599 Amen. 00:32:47.599 --> 00:32:47.680 Amen. 00:32:47.680 --> 00:32:47.960 Amen. 00:32:47.960 --> 00:32:48.039 Amen. 00:32:48.039 --> 00:32:48.339 Amen. 00:32:48.339 --> 00:32:48.500 Amen. 00:32:48.500 --> 00:32:49.460 Amen. 00:32:49.460 --> 00:32:49.500 Amen. 00:32:49.500 --> 00:32:49.539 Amen. 00:32:49.539 --> 00:32:50.379 Amen. 00:32:50.379 --> 00:32:51.420 Amen. 00:32:51.420 --> 00:32:51.500 Amen. 00:32:51.500 --> 00:32:52.500 Amen. 00:32:52.500 --> 00:32:53.420 Amen. 00:32:53.420 --> 00:32:53.460 Amen. 00:32:53.460 --> 00:32:54.460 Amen. 00:32:54.460 --> 00:32:55.460 Amen. 00:32:55.460 --> 00:32:55.500 Amen.