In the Name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ and may our Lord and Savior sanctify you in the truth, for His word is truth. Amen

The Sixth Sunday of Easter (2011)

Are You Religious or are You Christian? Rev. Toby Byrd

Acts 17:30-31 (ESV)

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 is a solemn weekend for our country as we commemorate Memorial Day; a time that our country honors those brave men and women who answered their countries call to duty, serving as soldiers, sailors, and airmen in foreign conflicts, and who paid the ultimate price; their lives, in the defense of our great nation. We grieve their loss and sympathize with their loved ones as we give thanks to God for their willingness to serve. May our righteous God bring comfort to the families of these brave souls knowing their sacrifice was not in vain.

In our Reading from the Acts of the Apostles today God opens our eyes to another brave soldier of years gone by; a very specific soldier who, as a witness of the Gospel, carried the Cross of Christ to free those enslaved by the tyranny of Satan in foreign lands. St. Paul was unflinching as he eagerly proclaimed the Gospel to the lost and to those who thought they already had all the answers.

The Apostle Paul in his second missionary journey travels to Greece and our Reading today finds him in the pagan city of Athens. Athens: “the eye of Greece, the mother of arts and eloquence.” This ancient city was filled with the great memories of Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Sophocles, and Demosthenes. Athens was unlike any city Paul had ever visited. Sculptures, Greek architecture, Greek theaters, schools of philosophies, and literates of all kinds permeated the city. The Athens St. Paul saw in A.D. 52 was the world’s center of art; however, it was art devoted chiefly to the idolatries of Greek mythology as was most of its philosophy and literature; all steeped in Greek paganism.

As was their custom, the Greeks of Athens had placed sculptured statues of their gods throughout the city. There was even a statue to “the unknown god” (v. 23). In addition to their desire to appease their gods, Athenians were famous for their philosophers. These learned men loved to sit, whiling away the hours discussing the workings of the world, the limits of ones desires, or the relationship between cosmic forces and human freedom. Often times, these discussions took on the form of debates and men would lounge for hours offering their opinions to questions that had no answers this side of heaven. Their passion for philosophizing was never quenched and with each rising sun they eagerly looked forward to another day of verbal comradery, anxious to display their intellect. Such were the men, who, intrigued by what Paul had to say, brought him to the Areopagus to explain this new teaching regarding Jesus and the resurrection.

There are two things with which we can take note as St. Paul encounters this pagan city. First, he is filled with intense indignation as he surveys Athens. What the Athenians thought was glory Paul saw as the cities shame. Instead of being humbled by this pagan art, Paul was stimulated to seat the glory of God and of Christ where the glory of idolatry now sat. Secondly, Paul was not impressed by the philosophic show in this central seat of philosophic cults. Moreover, his spirit strained at the leash as it desired to silence all this supposed, pagan wisdom with the Truth of God’s Divine Wisdom.

St. Paul begins his encounter with the philosophers of the city by pointing out that he can perceive that in every way these men were very religious (v. 22). Moreover, their quest for religion had led them to create gods of every description and need, even creating an unknown god just to cover all their bases. How foolish it would be if they were to miss a god. However, St. Paul informs these intellectual elites that what they have perceived as the unknown god, he would now unveil to them as the true, almighty, Triune God; the very Lord of heaven and earth. A God who was not created by human hands, a God who does not live in temples made by man, a God who is not served by human hands since He has no earthly needs, and yet a God who out of His love and mercy gives humanity everything they need; life in this world and more importantly, an eternal life for those who follow the Resurrected Son of God. Having explained all this, the sixty-four dollar question is will these Stoics and Epicureans understand and therefore eagerly receive what St. Paul has to teach them; will they grasp hold of the Gospel as God’s door to salvation or will they reject the Gospel out of hand?

In the days of St. Paul, religion was very popular in Athens, just as it is popular in our country today. When we survey religion in our country, we see that in many areas church attendance is growing; it is even requiring the construction of new worship centers. Religious book stores can be found in nearly every shopping mall, thus religious books, magazines, and paraphernalia are easily obtainable and sought after items. Seeking new converts, churches are busy publishing literature to attract prospective members. Now all of this activity of building new facilities and creating new, integrated outreach programs is great, but we must remember that organizations and buildings are not an end in themselves; they are merely a means to an end. Relying solely on the blessings of God, we must be mindful first and always to build the kingdom of God through the preaching of the Gospel and Holy Scriptures central doctrine of justification; that our sins are forgiven solely because of the atoning sacrifice of our Lord, Jesus Christ. This is the doctrine that separates the Religious from the Christian.

The church today and especially its pastors must take their lead from the Apostle Paul who was a true teacher of the church. He looked at everything in relation to his Gospel ministry. Athens provided a lucid example of what was stirring in the hearts of men. The Athenians were no different than other men; they were born with the same corrupted human nature. Because of the fall of Adam and Eve, their hearts were filled with sin and like the rest of the world, they attempted to cover their sins with an air of interest in religious matters; seeking to learn whatever new religious teaching that came their way.

Invited to speak before this impressive group, St. Paul had to be up to the task, and filled with the Holy Spirit we see there was no complacency in him. He didn’t cower in the face of sin and say, “Oh, I am only one person—what can I do?” Instead, he knew he had been called by Christ to proclaim the Gospel in all its truth and power, regardless of the danger to his person or reputation, and led by the Holy Spirit; he was able to fulfill his calling.

Entering Athens, St. Paul followed his normal practice of first going among the Jews in the hope of enlightening them to the truth of Jesus’ identity and His sacrificial death for the forgiveness of sins. He sought to teach them that the long awaited Messiah had come and that He was crucified, died, and was buried, but the grave could not hold Him for on the third day He rose from the dead proving that He was the Messiah, the long awaited Son of God. Moreover, he taught them that it was only through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ that they could be saved from their sin and granted eternal life in heaven.

Fulfilling his normal practice of going to the Jews, he then went to the market place in the hope of calling Greeks to come to the knowledge of this same Savior of all mankind; Jesus Christ the Son of God. There was no segregation for St. Paul, he was a lover of souls and he was confident that God’s Word would not return void.

When Paul preached the Gospel to the Jews it was often blocked by their reliance on the Law; however, for the Greeks, the preaching of the Gospel had to overcome their paganism; their worship of other gods and the evil which guided them. Armed with God’s Holy Word, Paul began to teach them that there were not many gods but only one God; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and that the Son had willing died on the Cross of Calvary so they could be saved from sin. Moreover, His death was only temporary, because on the third day He rose from the grave proving His divinity as the Son of God. His approach and subject drew a large audience, including some “expert philosophers” as they were all eager to hear of this new teaching. St. Luke tells us, “Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked. But others said, "We will hear you again about this." So Paul went out from their midst. But some men joined him and believed, among them Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them” (Acts 17:32-34 ESV).

In his letter to the church at Corinth, St. Paul wrote, “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Cor. 1:18 ESV). Moreover, he writes, “Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?” (1 Cor. 1:20 ESV) With these words, St. Paul sets the stage for debate between those who would rely on their own wisdom, reason, and logic over those who rely on God’s revealed Word of Holy Scripture.

The church today can learn much from St. Paul as we attempt to fulfill our calling of proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

First we must learn that much of what parades under the guise of religion is not religion at all; and most certainly not Christianity. Therefore, it is incumbent on us, when we come in contact with such religions, not to condemn them out of hand, suggesting they are not worthy of Christ’ love. Instead, like St. Paul, our best course is to establish a solid plan of proclaiming the Gospel in the hope that the Holy Spirit, through our efforts, will reverse their error and turn them to Christ. Our hearts are stirred by Christ’s love for us and we, like Him, want all men to be saved.

We have in St. Paul at Athens a perfect example of a true witness of Christ; the kind of witness we should be, because when we are witnessing to the world, we are witnessing to those who have other gods. Therefore, to be like Paul we must know the one, true God and be able to tell of His wondrous power, might, mercy, and love. We must know that people with new religious interests often try to use God for their own purpose rather than serving God to find His purpose for their lives. Therefore, we cannot be like the would-be philosophers of Athens who relied on human wisdom to engage in lengthy hypotheses which had no conclusion and only led to more questions. What purpose does that serve other than to satisfy our vanity?

Rather than rely on the thin veneer of human wisdom we must seek that which is from God. We must be well versed in His Revealed Word of Holy Scripture, able to declare the full counsel of God. Today when men demand, as did Philip on the night of our Savior’s betrayal, to, “Show us the Father” (John 14:8 ESV), we cannot be vague, instead, relying on the strong, clear lines of God’s Word we must point them to Him; Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Especially, we must point them to God in Christ. We must confess a Fair and Just God with all His commands while unveiling a merciful God in the life of our Savior, Jesus Christ. We must point them to see the love of God in Christ as the Babe of Bethlehem, as the unparalleled Preacher, as the merciful Benefactor, as the divine Physician, as the innocent Sufferer, the bleeding Redeemer, and the resurrected and ascended Lord. We must speak of the assurance of our faith, that God has raised Jesus Christ from the dead and a day will come when He will return to judge the living and dead.

In our witness to others, we must clearly show that Christianity is not a religion of failure; the kind that the Athenians embraced with their erection of the altar “to the unknown god.” In contrast to the paganism of the world we must show that Christianity is a religion of assurance, hope, peace, and blessedness. Through the Gospel, Christianity seeks to turn people away from religions that emphasize that its followers will receive earthly or heavenly rewards because of their work righteous efforts; instead, Christianity teaches that all rewards are received solely as a gift of grace from a benevolent God who has blessed men with faith to believe in the forgiveness of sins because of the atoning sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ. Moreover, those who have been blessed with the gift of faith, to believe in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ are promised life eternal in His heavenly home. Thus, in contrast to the world, Christianity teaches it is faith and not works that save, lest we become like the philosophers of Athens and boast of our accomplishments.

Thus it is with a sincere prayer that we ask our heavenly Father and the Holy Spirit to stir within us a greater desire to meet our responsibility as called servants of His Son, Jesus Christ that we may be able to continue the work of His Kingdom; proclaiming the Gospel to the world. Amen.

May the Peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.