Acts 17:1-34
As Paul travels from city to city preaching the Gospel, he experiences a wide variety of responses. We continue to see these same responses today not only in the lives of those to whom we preach the Gospel, but also in our own lives as we respond to God's Word.
HOSTILITY: Many in Thessalonica begin to follow Christ through Paul's teaching. However, the Jewish leaders responded with hostility and sought, not only to kill Paul but any who had helped him. Jason, Paul's host almost lost his life for having served Paul by providing hospitality. Paul decided to move on and take his message to the next place. We should not be surprised when unbelievers respond to the teachings of Scripture with hostility because the Gospel can be very offensive to those who have rejected the truth. People like to worship themselves or the gods of their own making. They take offense when we must tell them that they a wrong and must repent from their idolatry to worship the only true God and trust His provision for our sin. We must also guard our own hearts from hostility towards Christ's teachings in our own lives. There are many commands in Scripture that are difficult for us and may be offensive to us. We are called to obey the Word of God whether we like it or not.
SINCERITY: The Bereans carefully listen to Paul and then faithfully go to the Scriptures to make sure that his teachings were true. This is the true and sincere response to the teaching of God's Word. Unfortunately, the people from Thessalonica came to stir up the Bereans and Paul had to flee from there as well. Fortunately there are those who truly want to learn and grow from the teaching of God's Word. These are the people who make it a joy to teach the Word of God. They question what they hear but trust the Word of God and compare teaching with Scripture out of a true desire to know and obey the truth. May this be the attitude we emulate every time we hear a message or read a book about God's Word. We must always rely on the authority of Scripture.
CURIOSITY: When Paul arrived in Athens, he found a religious people who had no knowledge of the truth. They were devout and loved philosophy but were open to any type of teaching and seem to mirror the relativistic society in which we live today. They had many gods and the diverse group of worshipers were content to coexist with divergent beliefs. So when Paul teaches them something new, they are curious and eager to learn more. They have an open mind, but this can be a very dangerous thing. Christianity is exclusive in that it require a complete commitment and refuses to coexist with contradictory beliefs. To follow Christ, one must be convinced of absolute truth and find that truth in Christ alone. When Paul teaches them of the one true God, there are many who are interested in this "new god" but when He speaks of exclusivity and the resurrection the people turn from the truth. We must never come to God and His Word simply out of curiosity or a desire to hear another version of the "truth." We must honor God and His Word as the only source of truth and conform our lives to His will.
HOSTILITY: Many in Thessalonica begin to follow Christ through Paul's teaching. However, the Jewish leaders responded with hostility and sought, not only to kill Paul but any who had helped him. Jason, Paul's host almost lost his life for having served Paul by providing hospitality. Paul decided to move on and take his message to the next place. We should not be surprised when unbelievers respond to the teachings of Scripture with hostility because the Gospel can be very offensive to those who have rejected the truth. People like to worship themselves or the gods of their own making. They take offense when we must tell them that they a wrong and must repent from their idolatry to worship the only true God and trust His provision for our sin. We must also guard our own hearts from hostility towards Christ's teachings in our own lives. There are many commands in Scripture that are difficult for us and may be offensive to us. We are called to obey the Word of God whether we like it or not.
SINCERITY: The Bereans carefully listen to Paul and then faithfully go to the Scriptures to make sure that his teachings were true. This is the true and sincere response to the teaching of God's Word. Unfortunately, the people from Thessalonica came to stir up the Bereans and Paul had to flee from there as well. Fortunately there are those who truly want to learn and grow from the teaching of God's Word. These are the people who make it a joy to teach the Word of God. They question what they hear but trust the Word of God and compare teaching with Scripture out of a true desire to know and obey the truth. May this be the attitude we emulate every time we hear a message or read a book about God's Word. We must always rely on the authority of Scripture.
CURIOSITY: When Paul arrived in Athens, he found a religious people who had no knowledge of the truth. They were devout and loved philosophy but were open to any type of teaching and seem to mirror the relativistic society in which we live today. They had many gods and the diverse group of worshipers were content to coexist with divergent beliefs. So when Paul teaches them something new, they are curious and eager to learn more. They have an open mind, but this can be a very dangerous thing. Christianity is exclusive in that it require a complete commitment and refuses to coexist with contradictory beliefs. To follow Christ, one must be convinced of absolute truth and find that truth in Christ alone. When Paul teaches them of the one true God, there are many who are interested in this "new god" but when He speaks of exclusivity and the resurrection the people turn from the truth. We must never come to God and His Word simply out of curiosity or a desire to hear another version of the "truth." We must honor God and His Word as the only source of truth and conform our lives to His will.
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