August 15th, 2025
Recently, Tina and I toured the Acropolis in Greece. As the bus was nearing the cite, you could see the large columns towering over Athens. To see something in person you have only ever seen in textbooks (or google searches) is overwhelming. As we trekked up the steep hill towards the entrance, we were more and more overwhelmed at what we were experiencing. Just inside the Acropolis, we stopped at a location where several tour guides were explaining to their groups what they were seeing among the ruins. One tour guide (not ours) was showing his group the location where Paul preached a sermon during his second missionary journey.
If you look through Acts 17 you can read about this particular moment in Paul’s ministry. Paul was wandering around the city and noticing all of their objects of worship. Among them was an alter with the inscription “TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.”(Acts 17:23) Paul was there to witness to the people of Athens not just about the “Unknown God” but about what Jesus did when He came as God in the flesh.
On the nearby hill that was just beyond the wall, in the shadows of the Parthenon that was honoring the goddess Athena, Paul spoke these words: “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. 30 In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. 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 17:29-31)
As Christians, it can be easy to feel overshadowed by the things of this world. It can be intimidating to be surrounded by so many reminders of the gods of this world so many choose to worship. But Paul reminds us here of the power of the message of the resurrected Christ to transform who we are and what we worship. The hill where Paul spoke to his listeners is without stone markers or statues, but it remains holy ground because it represents a place where people’s lives were changed by Jesus. Whatever challenges you may face in your walk with Christ, remember you walk daily with the living God who is active inside of your life and circumstances. Nothing can take the place of the power and strength he represents to you today. There’s power in the name of Jesus that requires nothing more than your daily dependance on Him.
If you look through Acts 17 you can read about this particular moment in Paul’s ministry. Paul was wandering around the city and noticing all of their objects of worship. Among them was an alter with the inscription “TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.”(Acts 17:23) Paul was there to witness to the people of Athens not just about the “Unknown God” but about what Jesus did when He came as God in the flesh.
On the nearby hill that was just beyond the wall, in the shadows of the Parthenon that was honoring the goddess Athena, Paul spoke these words: “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. 30 In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. 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 17:29-31)
As Christians, it can be easy to feel overshadowed by the things of this world. It can be intimidating to be surrounded by so many reminders of the gods of this world so many choose to worship. But Paul reminds us here of the power of the message of the resurrected Christ to transform who we are and what we worship. The hill where Paul spoke to his listeners is without stone markers or statues, but it remains holy ground because it represents a place where people’s lives were changed by Jesus. Whatever challenges you may face in your walk with Christ, remember you walk daily with the living God who is active inside of your life and circumstances. Nothing can take the place of the power and strength he represents to you today. There’s power in the name of Jesus that requires nothing more than your daily dependance on Him.
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