Two Ways to Tell the Story

 I have another great sermon by Voddie Baucham I would like to summarize for you.  He is speaking mostly to evangelists, and he has some important things to say.  Have a thoughtful reading experience:

There is much discussion about how we, as those who love to evangelize for the Lord, interact with culture, and how we can most effectively impact culture.  Right now, there is the sense in which the way we do that, is by becoming more like the culture.  That way we are more palatable to the culture. We have to learn the culture’s language, the culture’s music and clothing styles.  And not just learn them, but to adopt them, and mirror them.  We become what the culture is.  Then they will listen to us as we tell the Gospel.  That’s the prevailing ideology, especially dealing with younger generations. The classic example of this is the Christian musicians, who make their music appealing, become a star, so then they have a platform for the gospel.

But this is a bait-and-switch.  Once I am enthroned as popular, then I will flip the switch, and spring on them about Jesus.  The world will listen, so I can be part of many being saved. 

Are you sure? Is that what we see in the New Testament?  Does the apostle Paul use that technique?  Let’s read Acts 17:16 to begin:

Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols

Everywhere he had been—Thessalonica, Berea—his speaking drew a revival, or a riot—or both.  So he is asking the Lord what to say.  In answer, I expect, God opens his eyes, to see their religion as He sees it--so Paul is “provoked”—exceedingly agitated, to the point of being emotionally sad and angry.  He is in touch with God so that knows what He feels.   Given his background of training in Jewry, if he abhors anything most, it is idolatry.  Now he looks at temples, and monuments, and statues to demon-gods, not to the real God.  He doesn’t feel superior; he senses an overwhelming mandate, arriving from his God-given compassion toward these people who simply do not know, nor have not heard, about the real God, and His greatness.

This is a departure between what we see in culture, and how Paul saw it, on his missionary trip:  Our problem is, we don’t say “It sickens me.”  We say, let’s learn about them.  So we embrace these very idols, or at least act as if we do.

So, what does he say?  He had a history of a tactic: he “reasoned” with the Jews and devout people in the synagogue, and in the marketplace.   If you want more of that “reasoning” idea in the synagogue, study Thessalonians for his tactic.  Here, in the synagogue at Athens, similarly, he gets right into showing, using the Old Testament, how Jesus is the Christ, and how He was prophesied there.  He is copying Jesus’ method, like He did in Emmaus in Luke 24, like He did in John 5, saying, “Moses spoke of Me.” Paul showed how Jesus is the Anointed One, the Messiah, in the Old Testament.

In the Gentile marketplace, though, where people don’t know the Old Testament, he uses a different strategy.  Now keep in mind--today, our tactic is, we don’t want to offend the culture, we don’t want to be too overtly Christian.  We’re “down low” until we “get to the right place.”  But that’s not Paul.

The Epicureans are saying, “what does this babbler wish to say?”  That’s insulting:  the word “babbler” speaks of one who picks up seeds and spits them out.  So they’re saying, he just comes up with ideas, undigested, and spits them out all over the place without first thinking on them seriously.  They also  were laughing about the idea of a “resurrection,” too, which they had heard about.  So they didn’t think Paul was “cool." He did not hide his Christianity; he refused to try and “synch” with them. He got on the biggest stage of his day (the Areopagus in Mars Hill)—but he didn't get on that stage by compromising. God led the people to put him there.  Let's start with Acts 17:19-20, after the crowd led him to Areopagus, and then sat down to listen (continuing in Acts 17):

May we know what this new doctrine is of which you speak? ²⁰ For you are bringing some strange things to our ears. Therefore, we want to know what these things mean.” 

He did not gain their attention and this great stage by embracing their culture; in fact, he got this break because he did not.  First, hiding the gospel is wrong, even if you spring in on people later. That’s dishonest. Secondly, the “embrace the culture” idea is faithless.  God doesn’t need your help in making the gospel attractive.  Also, God can get you where you need to be by His own might and His own power.  This is demonstrated with the life of Paul.  He went faithfully to the synagogue, reasoning with them that Jesus is the Christ.

He also goes faithfully to the marketplace, preaching the gospel, no-holds-barred, about the resurrection--to people who he knows are opposed to the idea of resurrection.  God honored his faithfulness by giving him the biggest platform of his day.  He had to figure out what to preach, since they didn't have the same background or worldview like fellow Jews.  He has to bring the over-arching meta-narrative of God in history:  namely, he warmed them up speaking of the Creation, the Fall, the Redemption, and the Consummation.  So this is how he starts in Acts 17:22:

“Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; ²³ for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription:  TO THE UNKNOWN GOD.

Note that he observed the culture.  Very important.  You do not want to be an enemy of all the culture, or ignorant of it.  There is a difference, though, between being an objective observer of culture and being an indiscriminate consumer of culture--doing it because it's popular, then doing the 'bait and switch.'  All that approach is man's method.

Note what he does next:

Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you: ²⁴ God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth...

This pronouncement that God created the world also goes contrary to their beliefs.  But, consider the majority opinion in our culture.  They say that we are “ignorant, narrow-minded hicks” if we believe that God created the world. They worship Charles Darwin, a scientist, after all.  In that day, they said the same thing to Paul too--most of them.  But that didn't change God's message, and that's what Paul delivered.

That's Creation; the next topic is The Fall.  He is now going to tell them that their religious philosophy is all wrong. That means he will have implied sin in their midst; God is not worshipped like you are worshipping Him. We see that in vv. 25b-30 of his sermon:

...(God) does not dwell in temples made with hands. ²⁵ Nor is He worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things. And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their pre-appointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, ²⁷ so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; ²⁸ for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’ ²⁹ Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising. 

So he is saying, "In your attempt to honor Him, you're wrong.  Even in your attempt to 'cover' yourself by making a statue to the Unknown God, well...He is here--and He is not pleased; that's not the right way to worship Him.

Then he lays it down heavier:  v. 30:

Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent

Now he's on Redemption, and the words are getting sharper:  He accuses them of ignorance. How do you get right with this God? The answer is repent; turn from your sin.  So Paul, unlike today, says, "Your world view is wrong; not only is it wrong, it's an affront to God.  You're in sin.  But the good news is, God has extended an opportunity for you to repent; to turn away from sin, to turn away from this wrong effort to appease Him, this God that you don't even know.

Well, that's Creation, Fall and part of Redemption--now we see Consummation in v. 31:

because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.”

Note that he throws the hard-to-believe resurrection again in there.  Is he hoping for a shut-down of this discussion? Another throw-him-out? That rumor about him is why they called him names in the first place.  So not only has he called their worship into question, but he has suggested they are in sin, and they need to change what they are doing to get it right.  Now, for extra-good measure, he brings up the resurrection—all on his opening sermon. What's the impact of doing the opposite of what we do?  V. 32:

And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked, while others said, “We will hear you again on this matter.” ³³ So Paul departed from among them. ³⁴ However, some men joined him and believe

Think about the two methods. Today we compromise--and sin against God, by fearing to be unpopular, by fearing their mocking.  Even when you, after much effort, develop a friendly, listening audience, when you finally lay down the whole Gospel, some will still mock, some will want to hear you further, and some will believe.  So, since the results of the two methods seem to be the same, why compromise (and possibly be accused of being hypocritical) in the first place?  There is also the danger that if your gospel lacks a fair degree of God's judgment, i.e., it lacks mention of repentance, or our wicked sinful nature, or the dangers of hell, then those who believe will be only skin deep. They often don't really see the need for a Savior, see no need to turn their lives over to Him--and will flee when tough times come. 

Remember, Jesus promised that we will experience persecution when we preach. We need to preach the Whole gospel.  Cover the 'bad' (sin) thoroughly, unpopular though you will be, then how we're in a box, then cover the good, the only escape from hell--and heaven at the end--and His love throughout. Paul says in Romans 1:17:

I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes

The power of God doesn't result from popularity, or using our influential name to get the gospel out.  But God uses the despised things to shame the things that are (I Corinthians 1:18-24).  So what should we pray?  "Oh, God, make me weak--so they will see Your strength."  Since He has a name that is above every name, what makes us think He needs ours?

The goal of our life must not be a scheme to gain popularity to be used by God.  No, it is to know Him better, that we may serve Him more faithfully.  If you think you need a lot of credentials, your God is not big enough.  Wherever He places you, low or high, you be faithful to Him.  Our world is not aching for another superstar.