The Unknown God

Sunday, October 25, 2020

Acts 17:16-34

Introduction

Imagine driving down a major thoroughfare in an urban area. As you endure traffic congestion and plod along from stoplight to stoplight, you see home improvement centers, clothing stores, supermarkets, pet shops, outdoor supply stores, restaurants, beauty shops, car dealerships. There are shopping malls, big-box stores, bars, liquor stores, farm supply stores, and then, right in the middle of it all stands a nondescript little building with an A-framed roof and a tiny white cross at its peak. There is a small sign in front, but its words blur amid the moving vehicles and noise. It seems so out of place amid the urban - dare I say, “houses of worship” that you feel compelled to go back to read the little sign. You finally pull into the narrow old driveway and park before the sign after great effort and frustration. Black and white sheet metal letter cards form the words, “Dedicated to An Unknown God.” 

The Unknown God

 Athens had many altars to unknown gods. Hoping to stave off a terrible epidemic six centuries earlier, the Athenians had taken a flock of sheep to the Areopagus. Wherever a wandering sheep laid down, it was sacrificed on the nearest altar to appease that god. If no altar was nearby, the people built an altar to an unknown god and sacrificed the sheep on it. Athenians brought their dis-eases to the most suitable god and offer it prayers and sacrifices. Paul’s words flew in the face of the Epicureans in particular because they believed that the knowledge of God was unattainable. It certainly would have surprised them to hear that Paul claimed to know God personally. The Epicureans devoted themselves to things of the flesh because they didn’t believe God was paying attention. Imagine their response when Paul declared that,“‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “‘For we are indeed his offspring.’” This meant that the very core of one’s being resides within the heart of the creator; that one’s being is grafted from his side.  

Conclusion

  If the Apostle Paul appeared before us today, would he say, “I perceive that in every way you are very religious. For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, [and now] I found also an altar. . . ‘To the unknown god’” again. If the truth is told, it could be said that many church-goers worship like the Athenians. They turn to the gods of the flesh to relieve their discomfort and keep the “unknown god” in reserve for times when all else fails. This is far from living as children of the Lord’s flesh. 

The reality of Christ’s redeeming act is that it returns us to the Father’s family. In the same way that God drew Adam’s bride from his side, Christ, the new Adam, emptied himself so that His bride emerged from His side. As redeemed, born-again believers, it truly is within Him that we have our being. We are more than children of God, were are flesh of His Flesh, bone of His bone. The born-again Christian is like a caterpillar who enters the cocoon is deconstructed and remade into a butterfly. It is a metamorphosis. 

In the Genesis story of creation, we read that God took the woman from within the Man on the eighth day, or after the creation was complete. Therefore, the love and passion of the woman came from within the man. In the same way, our new life in Christ comes from within the Lord, and therefore, our passion and love for Him and for His other offspring. It is a trustworthy sign of Christ’s life in you when you love like Him. Now, consider your life as a Christian believer. What would it be like if it was in Him that you live and move and have your being? How would your other objects of worship change? How would your love and passion for others change?