Acts 17:16-34
In Mark 1:16-18 we read:
16 As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 17 “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” 18 At once they left their nets and followed him. (Mark 1:16-18)
Fishing for people is a metaphor that expresses evangelism. We do not catch people in order to make them our slaves. We catch people in order to save them from eternal death in Hell and the lake of fire.
How can we be successful “fishers of men”? By following Jesus and the apostles and imitating them.
In the Apostle Paul’s sermon at the Areopagus we can see several extraordinarily effective principles to follow if we want to be successful witnesses of the gospel.
BE WELL MOTIVATED (vv.16-21)!
In order to share the gospel we must be very well motivated to do it — to love people with the love of Christ and to be genuinely angry at the devil for what he is doing to them. In Acts 17:16 we read about the Apostle Paul:
16 While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. (Acts 17:16)
The Apostle Paul was angry at Satan because he had blinded the minds of people to the light of the gospel (2 Corinthians 4:6).
3 And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. 4 The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. (2 Corinthians 4:3-4)
Perhaps the other visitors to Athens took delight in the sculptures of the various gods placed all over the city, but the Apostle Paul did not look on them as works of art but as idols to which the Athenians bowed down. He was so disturbed by the corruption to which idolatry had led that it is said “he was greatly distressed.” Paul was outraged at the violation of the first and the second of the Ten Commandments of God. This outrage was in fact positive, because it motivated Paul to action.
17 So he reasoned in the synagogue with both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. (Acts 17:17)
The Apostle Paul reasoned with all kinds of people — with the Jews and the God-fearing in the synagogue, and with the Greeks and even their philosophers in the marketplace.
18 A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. (Acts 17:18)
Paul was completely misunderstood. What he was saying did not fit in any way into the frameworks already established in that day. Neither the Epicureans nor the Stoics understood him.
The Epicurean school of philosophy was founded by Epicurus, who lived 340-270 B.C. He created an ethical theory based on the atomic physics of Democritus. For the Epicureans the chief goal, the meaning of life, was the attainment of true pleasure, and for them pleasure consisted in a state in which a person is free from all pain and fear, including the fear of death.
The Stoics were followers of Zeno, who lived 340-265 B.C. He usually taught beside a painted colonnade at the Agora in Athens, and since in Greek a colonnade is “stoa,” his followers came to be called “Stoics” after the name of the building where they gathered. For the Stoics the meaning of life is a way of living in accordance with nature and the attainment of inner equilibrium and balance. According to them the way to avoid depression is to avoid excitement. For them the highest virtue is apathy, or the absence of all emotions.
Both groups, however, were baffled by Paul’s preaching. So much so that when the Apostle Paul spoke about Jesus and the resurrection, which in Greek is anastasis, they thought that the Apostle Paul was speaking of two gods — Jesus and Anastasis.
19 Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? 20 You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we would like to know what they mean.” (Acts 17:19-20)
The “Areopagus” was a special court that had the right to rule on matters connected with religion and morals. It was called by this name because it met on the hill of Ares — the Greek god of war.
In this case the Apostle Paul was brought before the Areopagus not to be judged, but simply so that he would have the opportunity to set out his teaching before a group of experts in religious and philosophical questions.
The attitude of the hearers, described in verse 21, is superficial — they are not seeking anything serious, but merely showing an extreme interest in novelties.
21 (All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.) (Acts 17:21)
People today are no different from people back then. The only difference is that today’s mass media are far more powerful than those of that time. Today we have radio, television and the internet — all powerful means of listening to “the latest ideas.”
DO NOT BEGIN WITH AN ARGUMENT OR CONFRONTATION (v.22)!
And so, invited to set out his teaching before the Athenians, the Apostle Paul made use of this opportunity to proclaim the gospel to them. But notice that, even though he was furious with the Athenians for allowing their splendid city to be filled with idols, the Apostle Paul began his speech in an extraordinarily friendly and warm way.
22 Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. (Acts 17:22)
The Apostle Paul shares that he is impressed by the exceptional religiousness of the Athenians. Calling them “religious” is not necessarily a compliment, since the rules of the Areopagus forbade compliments aimed at winning favor. By calling them “religious,” the Apostle Paul is rather acknowledging that, by erecting so many idols, the Athenians prove the fact that human beings need God. In fact, this is one of the theological arguments for the existence of God — that, in creating human beings, God placed in their heart a longing for himself.
The problem of human beings is not that they fail to recognize their need for God, but that in their sin they distort their longing for God into idolatry.
So when we begin to share the gospel with someone, there is no need to begin with an argument, because most people believe in the existence of “some power” or a “higher intelligence” that is above us. That is why we can begin by directing the conversation toward the human need for worship. All the peoples of the earth, wherever they come from and wherever they live, have some gods to whom they bow down. In other words, worship is something inherent in human beings.
FIND COMMON GROUND (v.23)!
23 For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship — and this is what I am going to proclaim to you. (Acts 17:23)
The inscription on this altar — “to an unknown god” — is in fact an admission on the part of the Athenians of their ignorance concerning God. Most people in this world would admit their ignorance concerning God. They do not have the Bible and have not read it, and in most cases they would admit that their knowledge concerning God and spiritual things is insufficient.
DIRECT THE GAZE TOWARD GOD (vv.24-25)!
And so, starting from the desire for worship placed within human beings, together with their ignorance concerning spiritual things, as his point of departure, the Apostle Paul directs the gaze of his hearers toward the one and true God, our Creator.
Unlike the Greek beliefs, according to which God created the world through an intermediary called a “demiurge,” the Apostle Paul speaks of God as the direct and immediate creator of the material world.
24 “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. 25 And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. (Acts 17:24-25)
Because he made the world and everything in it, God is above it and is far greater than it. In theological language this is called “transcendence” — as Creator, God is outside of and above creation. He could not be placed by human beings in a little box, even if that box were called a “temple.” In fact, here the Apostle Paul touches on the very nature of idolatry. By worshiping gods created by himself, a person desires to be able to manipulate them and to have power over them. If they help him — he will bring them gifts on their altars; if they do not help him — he will stop, and that “god” will be forgotten. So at the root of idolatry lies self-interest. But the true God does not depend on human beings. He is self-existent — he needs nothing; on the contrary, he is the one who is the source of life and of every provision needed to sustain it. If God takes pleasure in worship, this does not mean that he depends on what his worshipers offer. On this matter Psalm 50:9-12 says:
9 I have no need of a bull from your stall or of goats from your pens, 10 for every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. 11 I know every bird in the mountains, and the insects in the fields are mine. 12 If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it. (Psalm 50:9-12)
So it is not that the true God depends on human beings; rather, we human beings depend on him — he is the source of every good and every perfect gift, he is the Creator and he is the giver of life.
24 “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. 25 And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. (Acts 17:24-25)
DIRECT THE GAZE TOWARD MAN (vv.26-28)!
Once we have directed the gaze of the person we are speaking with toward God, we must also direct it toward man. This is the moment to ask the question about the meaning of human existence and about man’s relationship with God.
26 From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. (Acts 17:26)
With this verse the Apostle Paul blows apart every attempt at racism or feeling of superiority on the basis of origin. The Athenians believed that they sprang from the soil of their native Attica and were therefore higher than the barbarians, but this belief of theirs was based on a false notion. There is no such thing as a division of the various peoples on the basis of their origin. All human beings have one and the same Creator and one and the same forefather — Adam. All the nations of humanity that live over the whole face of the earth are made from “one man,” which means that they have one and the same origin. No one is higher than the rest and no one is lower. We are all equal before God. And we are not only equal, but also dependent on him, because he is the one who has determined the times of the nations and their boundaries.
But what is God’s purpose in his care and provision for people? Why does he care for our well-being? So that we would seek him and find him. As the catechism of the Westminster Confession of Faith puts it: “The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy his presence forever.”
27 God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. (Acts 17:27)
What is the meaning of human existence? Why were we created? These are the great questions of life, and here the Apostle Paul answers them in a single word — the meaning of our existence is to seek God.
Man is not ignorant concerning God’s power and divinity, because they are imprinted upon God’s creation. But man’s problem is that in his search for God he puts himself in first place, and not God. And the consequences of this confusion are ruinous. This is what the Apostle Paul says in Romans 1:18-25:
18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities — his eternal power and divine nature — have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles. 24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator — who is forever praised. Amen. (Romans 1:18-25)
SPEAK IN LANGUAGE THAT CAN BE UNDERSTOOD (v.29)!
Here it is very important to note the Apostle Paul’s style as well. He adapts his message to the audience before which he is speaking. In one way he presents Christ before the Jews, in another before the Gentiles, and in yet another before the church.
In verse 28 the Apostle Paul quotes not one but two Greek poets. In this way he shows us how not to speak to people only in religious terms, but in language they can understand.
28 ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ (Acts 17:28)
One of the quotations used here is from a quatrain attributed to Epimenides the Cretan, who lived around 600 B.C., though in fact it is of a later date. This poem was written in honor of Zeus, and the final line of its verse says: “for in you we live and move and have our being.”
The other quotation is from the fifth line of a poem called Phaenomena by the Cilician poet Aratus (born in 310 B.C.), which is also dedicated to Zeus and ends with the words: “For we are indeed his offspring.”
In quoting lines from poems dedicated to Zeus, the Apostle Paul is not seeking in any way to equate the God of Israel with the chief god of the Greek pantheon. He is simply using poetic language familiar to the Greeks in order to explain the relationship between God and man.
Although he does not quote lines from the Bible, his arguments are firmly grounded in biblical revelation. They begin with God, the Creator of the universe and of man, and end with God the judge of all. The content of his message is biblical, while the manner of its presentation is culturally adapted to his own day. In this the Apostle Paul shows us in practice how to apply the principle to which he holds fast in his ministry (1 Corinthians 9:19-23):
19 Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20 To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21 To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. 23 I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings. (1 Corinthians 9:19-23)
Since we are God’s offspring — says the Apostle Paul — created by God in his image and likeness, we are responsible before him to honor him in the way that he deserves.
29 “Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone — an image made by human design and skill. (Acts 17:29)
Worship before the living God must not take place before monuments of art, since they could in no way represent the nature of God.
In this way the Athenians are pressed to acknowledge their ignorance and their sin before God.
REVEAL GOD’S PLAN OF SALVATION (vv.30-31)!
And so, this is the way we are to share the gospel — not to begin with an argument or confrontation, to find common ground from which to direct the conversation toward the truth about God, then to turn the gaze toward man and to prove his sinfulness and his inadequacy in the face of God’s love and provision.
Shutting a person up under sin is part of the gospel, because only then can he appreciate the goodness and the grace of the gospel. Only the sinner who has come to his senses can appreciate the grace of forgiveness and the gift of justification because his sin was borne on the cross of Golgotha.
But we must not leave people in a hopeless state; we must tell them the good news that, because of the sacrifice of Christ, God has provided for us forgiveness, salvation and eternal life. And the only thing we must do in order to receive this salvation is to believe in the Son of God and to repent of our sins.
30 In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. (Acts 17:30)
By sending his Son, God gives all of humanity the opportunity of a second chance and a new start. He will not “hold against us the sin and the ignorance in which we have lived.” In Christ we have the opportunity for a new beginning.
And this beginning starts with repentance, it starts with an “about-face.”
At the same time, in speaking of God’s grace, we must not fail to warn our hearers that this generous invitation to faith and repentance is not only an invitation but also a “command,” and that rejecting it is equivalent to spiritual suicide and taking one’s stand on the side of God’s enemies.
31 For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.” (Acts 17:31)
The gospel is good news, but it is also an ultimatum. Either you accept it and are reconciled to God, or you reject it and take your stand against God. There is no middle position. There are no abstentions. For God is the Creator, he is the Savior, but he is also the Judge. And as Judge, he will judge the world justly and impartially. In 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10 it says:
6 God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you 7 and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8 He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might 10 on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you. (2 Thessalonians 1:6-10)
And so we see that in these few verses the Apostle Paul reveals the whole plan of God for salvation. He reveals God as Creator, God as Savior and God as Judge. If they had allowed him to finish, he would surely have mentioned the blessed Christian hope of the resurrection from the dead — that just as Christ was raised from the dead, so we too will be raised to new life in glorified, heavenly bodies. But even without this last point, his gospel is sufficient for the first step that people must take in order to be saved — to turn from idols to God and to begin to serve the living and true God (1 Thessalonians 1:9).
DO NOT BE DISCOURAGED IF THEY DO NOT ACCEPT YOUR MESSAGE (vv.32-33)!
32 When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.” 33 At that, Paul left the Council. (Acts 17:32-33)
According to the legends, the Areopagus was founded by the patron of the city — the goddess Athena — so that a trial could be held there over the god Ares for the murder he committed against the son of the god Poseidon. In this trial the god Apollo also took part, and in his speech he said the following words: “Once a man dies and the earth drinks up his blood, there is no resurrection.” With the exception of the Epicureans, the rest of the Athenians would have agreed with the idea of the immortality of the soul, but they were all of one mind that there was no such thing as a resurrection of the body from death. That is why, when they hear about the “resurrection” of the dead and realize that this is not simply some second God besides Jesus, but that Jesus is the one who died and rose again — they interrupt the Apostle Paul and begin to sneer at him. But even in this case Luke tells us that there were also others who showed interest in the subject of the resurrection.
GOD’S WORD WILL NOT RETURN EMPTY (v.34)!
34 Some of the people became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others. (Acts 17:34)
Even though the response to the Apostle Paul’s speech was not great, there were still a few people who accepted his message and believed in Christ.
This should be an encouragement to us. Although we often do not see immediate results, in order to be effective witnesses of the gospel we must be convinced that God works in mysterious ways and saves some of those to whom we bring the good news. It is an encouragement to us that sometimes our witnessing efforts may bring only one person to Christ, but that one person may become so effective and so gifted by God that he brings hundreds and thousands to Christ. Dionysius the Areopagite is mentioned by the church historian Eusebius of Caesarea (Church History, book 3, chapter 4, verse 11) as one of the fellow workers of the Apostle Paul. In one of the places where he examines the question of the first successors of the apostles, he says the following:
11. Besides these, that Areopagite named Dionysius, who was the first to believe after Paul’s address to the Athenians at the Areopagus (as recorded by Luke in Acts), is mentioned by another Dionysius, an ancient writer and pastor of the parish in Corinth, as the first bishop of the church in Athens.
The Orthodox Church commemorates Dionysius on October 3, and the Roman Catholic Church on October 9. This is a testimony to the importance of Dionysius the Areopagite for the advance of the work of God. Evidently he became a disciple of the Apostle Paul, the leader of the church in Athens, and later, according to tradition, a martyr for the faith of Christ. So when we bear witness to someone, we do not know whom and how we will touch with the Word of God, and in what way God will use that person for his kingdom.