Paul in Athens
Many times on his travels through the Mediterranean world, Paul would have found himself talking to an audience confused by the multiplicity of religious views their culture offered. The ancient Mediterranean culture recognised many gods and many different philosophies. Some Greek philosophers (the Epicureans) advocated the view that avoiding pain was the main aim of life while others, known as Stoics, believed in submitting to whatever happened without complaining or seeking to avoid it, and tuning themselves to the will of God. There were many different points of view, and philosophers argued endlessly over who was right.
In a way, the world and audience to which Paul found himself speaking in Athens, the centre of Greek culture and philosophical thought, is not so different from our own. Today we are faced by many contradictory religious and philosophical opinions, and it can be hard to know which one is right, or even if there is a right one. Postmodern attitudes say that there is no single right answer or universal truth, but that whichever view you think best is ‘right’ for you. Yet if we follow Jesus’ teachings, we cannot accept this. If there had been another way for us to come to God, would Jesus really have subjected himself to everything he went through in his death? If we serve Jesus as Lord, as he calls us to, there can be no room for other gods. Jesus himself said “I am the way,” not “I am one way of many,” and if we believe he is telling the truth we cannot believe that other ways are equally valid. He doesn’t give us that option. So how did Paul deal with this situation? Acts 17 verses 16–34 tell us about his methods in Athens. He talks to the Athenians out of their own experience, quoting their own poets, and tries to be culture-sensitive. But he doesn’t hesitate to tell them about their need to turn away from the things that come between them and God, or to raise controversy.
There are a few points that I (and bear in mind that this is only my opinion) think may be useful to us as we try to witness in a similar situation: — Firstly, Paul doesn’t criticise Athenian ways of life. He praises them for their devotion to religion and finding the truth (v22–23), before saying that he will tell them what they don’t know.
— Paul doesn’t start by talking about judgement. He starts by telling the Athenians about who God is and how he created the world, he is ‘Lord of heaven and earth’ (v24). This seems a sensible way to start. Why should people believe what they hear about judgement unless they know who it is who is judging them and what right he has to do so? Not until he has established God’s lordship as creator of mankind and the proper object of our worship does he mention the just consequences of not doing so.
— In verse 27, Paul puts the emphasis on God’s desire for us to reach out to him, for us to be in a loving relationship with him. The desire to be loved, to know that someone loves you, is more or less universal. Sometimes we lose sight of just how amazing it is to be loved by God- loved so much that he chose to die so that we could know how much he wanted us to know him. People tend to see the Christian God as either an angry, judgemental, even cruel God or as a weak wishy-washy old man sitting on a cloud, but the kind of God Paul describes is clearly neither.
— By the end of the passage, we see that some people were interested while others just wanted to get this madman out of the way. We often get the same reactions today. It seems to be the resurrection of Christ which gave the Athenians the most concern, and stopped some of them from understanding and believing Paul. Many probably just couldn’t believe that it was credible, because it didn’t fit with their beliefs. Maybe some were scared by the prospect of a God who could raise the dead. Gods sitting on mountain tops or off in a cloud are remote and easily forgotten about, but a God who came to earth, lived, died and came back from the dead was a bit too close to home for some of Paul’s audience. But that’s what Jesus is like. He wants to be alongside us, helping us and loving us.
Some of Paul’s listeners believed him, and became Christians. But the vast majority didn’t. This must have been depressing for Paul, but the few who did believe must have been a great encouragement. It’s easy for us to get depressed when those we speak to just don’t get it, don’t care, or get hung up on aspects of the gospel. But, like Paul, we shouldn’t give up. We never know what impact our words will have, how God can use us even if we think we’ve failed. Ultimately, he’s in control. He’s God.
Picture: mgrenner57 via flickr.com