Paul escaped from the Jews that wanted to sabotage him, and made his way to the city of Athens. And he noticed two things about the people of Athens that resulted in a change of tactics for his evangelizing. First, he noticed the people of Athens had a desire to please the gods – any and all gods! There were so many temples with so many altars for sacrifices, and the people were willing to make those sacrifices. And second, the people of Athens were humble about their knowledge of God, even to the point of inscribing an altar with “to an unknown god.” For these people, “Messiah” was a meaningless word, and describing Jesus as Messiah was pointless. So Paul instead, starts his message with God the Father – a God who made the world and everything in it, and who is not served by human hands as though he needed anything. Paul started with the new-to-Athens concept of monotheism, as the Athenians were attuned and receptive to new concepts. And from there, Paul introduces Jesus as the appointed judge on the last day, whose credentials are his resurrection. In presenting the message in this fashion, Paul convinces Dionysius and Damaris and others, creating a community of faith in the city of Athens.
What can we notice about the people around us, and what change would that recommend for our evangelizing tactics? Well, if I had the definitive answer to that question, I would have already sold a million books! Here are a few preliminary thoughts: One, we are much more interested in entertaining and influencing each other than we are in pleasing the gods – we are not as religious as Athens, unless you count environmentalism and Marxism as religions. Two, we live mostly in idea bubbles that reinforce our confidence in our own opinions, and we are not always keen to listen to new concepts. Three, the things we need that we find hardest to get in life are no longer food, clean water, and shelter – they are relationship and meaning. And four, we are entering a time of technological advancement so rapid that we can't imagine what the effects will be. If a certain way of presenting the gospel of Jesus Christ jumps out at you based on these things we notice, please write that book! And in any event, it will be critical to follow the Holy Spirit's leading, each time we get the opportunity to witness.
Gracious God, we thank you for the Holy Spirit, our guide to your direction in our lives. Keep us listening to the Spirit's voice, and keep us effective in bringing your word to the people around us, in Jesus' name....