May it please almighty God to
be with us now as we consider his word. May it be blessed to
us. Really there are three verses
I'll draw your attention to in regard to addressed tonight. The first is in verse 16 of chapter
17 in the Acts of the Apostles. The Acts of the Apostles chapter
17 and verse 16. Now while Paul waited for them
at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him. when he saw the whole
city given to idolatry. And then verses 22 and 23. 22 and 23. Then Paul stood in
the midst of Mars Hill and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive
that in all things ye are too superstitious. For as I was passing
by and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription
to the unknown God, whom therefore ye ignorantly worship. Him declare I unto you. The 17th chapter of the Acts
is a very instructive account of part of the journeys that
the Apostle Paul did, and we've commenced it with those things
in Thessalonica, where we're told, and Paul as his manner
was, went in unto them and three Sabbath days reasoned with them
out of the Scriptures, opening and alleging that Christ must
needs have suffered and risen again from the dead and this
Jesus whom I preach unto you is Christ. Well surely that is
the gospel in a nutshell and surely that's the same that we
would desire to preach in our age today so many years have
passed but yet the Gospel is the same. And then of course
there was the case of Jason and his situation and then we're
told that the brethren then immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night
unto Berea. Again an interesting statement.
Who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews. These,
the Brians, were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that
they received the word with all readiness of mind and searched
the scriptures daily whether those things were so. Well, they
were a good example in the day and age in which they lived,
and surely It's a good example for us today to search the scriptures
and to see whether the things that we hear are true and are
truly a benefit and a blessing. And we're told, therefore many
of them believed, also honourable women, which were Greeks, and
of men, not a few. And then we see how the Jews
of Thessalonica rose up and came against them, stirred up the
people. And immediately the brethren sent away Paul to go as it were
to the sea, but Silas and Timotheus abode there still. And they conducted
Paul and brought him unto Athens, and receiving a commandment unto
Silas and Timotheus, for it had come to him with all speed they
departed. And then we come down to the
16th verse and of course we can imagine the Apostle Paul, he
was very keen to spread the Gospel, that was his great desire, his
great commission and he was not backward in doing those things. And we're told, now while Paul
waited for them at Athens, his spirit was stirred in him when
he saw the city wholly given up to idolatry. And surely we
live in an age when how true that is of our nation today for
the most part wholly given up to idolatry. But what did the
Apostle do? Did he fold his arms and sit
down? We're told, therefore, disputed
he in the synagogue with the Jews and with the devout persons
and in the market daily with them that met with him. So in a very small way we can
understand what the Apostle desired as we have our market stall you
know once a month because Paul did it every day but we're not
able to do that but we are able to do it once a month and we
see the method that he used therefore disputed he in that case in the
synagogue with the Jews and with devout persons, and in the market
daily with them that met with him." Well, we see the zeal of
the Apostle, the great desire he had for the conversion of
souls. Now, we're not told, but it would
seem there were not very many conversions in Athens when he
was there. So we should not be discouraged
in our efforts to spread the word of God and we don't seem
to get very much success. We are to follow the Word of
God. We are to do God's will and leave
the issue with Him so that we can receive that statement, well
done, thou good and faithful servants. Well, we're told then
that the apostle came and he stood in the midst of Mars Hill. Well, I've been there myself.
Mars Hill is quite a small hill and it's in the shadow of the
Parthenon, where obviously they would mostly have met to worship,
but here was this little hillock, it's quite small, and yet the
Apostle stood in the midst of this and said, Ye men of Athens,
I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious. For as I passed by and beheld
your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription to the
unknown God, whom therefore ye ignorantly worship him, declare
I unto you. Well, the apostle recognized
the need there was in his day to preach Christ, to declare
the unsearchable riches of Christ. And the emphasis and the desire
has not changed. We live in a day and age when
that is still known and required so greatly, and as the Apostle
said, whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you. And he goes on to just emphasize
the greatness of God as we consider this morning, God that made the
world and all things therein, seeing that he in temples made with hands, neither
is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed anything,
seeing he giveth to all life and breath and all things. And it seems so essential really,
in the day and age in which we live, to declare that we worship
not the unknown God, we worship the great God, the all-powerful
God, the one who made the world. How few people are prepared to
accept that great and wonderful truth, but the Lord has placed
us in the world for such day as this. Just like it was
in the case of Esther when she came before the king and Mordecai
told her, perhaps she was there for such a time as this. And we should realize that perhaps
we know not what God's purposes are, but we should be concerned
that we fulfill that commission which is given to us to spread
the Word of God and that through that a divine blessing an application
of the Holy Spirit many may be converted oh what a great blessing
that would be how our hearts would rejoice And so we see here
the example, the testimony of the Apostle Paul telling us these
great truths, those things which he passed through, neither is
worshipped with men's hands as though he needed anything seeing
he giveth to all life and breath and all things and so he does
we're here today because of God's favour because of God's divine
purpose and we should realise that all of his children there
is a purpose in their life we don't just come into this world
We don't just pass out of this world, but there is a purpose
for us being in this world. That indeed we may be the light
that shines and directs people to the great and glorious Saviour. What a privilege it is to be
able to declare such grand and glorious truths. And if we think
of it, there's only one true Gospel. There's only one true
saviour and everyone has that great need of being under the
power of the blessed saviour. And come to that position where
they recognise where they stand, lost and ruined. Lost and ruined. No hope in self. and yet eternity
faces everybody who is born into this world. No one can escape
eternity and everyone must live either eternally in heaven or
eternally in hell. And again it would be a blessing
if the Holy Spirit shows to us the blessedness of those who
are called and those who are saved and the terrible situation
of those who are lost and those indeed who have no hope to spend
eternity in utter misery. It's a real terrible consideration
and it's something which should graciously affect us in our lives. and may we be able therefore
to speak and testify as the Apostle did on this occasion. He tells
them clearly about the greatness of God and what a blessing it
is if we can do the same, declare plainly the greatness of God
and as the Apostle went on to say, neither is worship with
men's hands as though he needed anything, seeing he giveth to
all life and breath and all things. and is made of one blood, all
nations of men, for to dwell on all the face of the earth.
We're different nationalities, there's different colours, but
there's only one blood. And all those on the earth consist
of that situation, all are of one blood, all nations, who dwell
on the face of the earth and have determined the times before
appointed and the bounds of their habitation. People don't recognise
that, but God guides and directs us in our little lives and our
habitation, the bounds of where we live, are set by Almighty
God. How few people realise that. But yet it is so powerfully true
that everything in your life and my life is ordained by God
and ordained in eternity past. And we may perhaps think that
we can choose what we want to do and where we want to live
and how we want to operate, but in reality it's determined by
Almighty God. And it's good therefore to be
able to come and commit ourselves unto our God and pray that he
will indeed lead us and direct us safely through this life and
bring us at last home to our desired haven. And so he tells
us that they should seek the Lord. Everyone, everyone should
be found seeking the Lord. if happily, and what a happy
state it is, that they might feel after him and find him,
though he be not far from every one of us. What a great blessing
it is when God gives into our hearts a desire, a heavenly desire
to know the Saviour, Sometimes we may feel far off and yet there
is that wonderful consideration that if we feel like that to
be able to come to our God and pray that he would give us a
desire after heavenly blessings. We don't have a desire and by
nature we won't have a desire and many people don't have a
desire but it's good therefore if the Lord puts in our heart
a desire after heavenly blessings, heavenly realities because the
things of this world, the things of time pass away But the Lord
remains. Thou remainest. The Lord ever
lives. And what a blessing it is to
realise that. And so says the Apostle that
they should seek the Lord. if happily they might feel after
him and find him, though he be not far from every one of us. What a blessing, therefore, if
God enables us to seek the Lord, seek the Lord day by day, pray
for his direction, pray for his blessing, Pray that we may grow
in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus
Christ. Pray for that undeserved favour
that God gives through his grace to reveal to us the blessings
of the Lord Jesus Christ. And it's only through the work
of his Holy Spirit that brings us to see the glorious light
of the Gospel brings us to observe the wonderful plan of salvation,
the wonderful gift of God, which is eternal life. Oh, there's
no greater gift that you and I can receive than the gift of
eternal life. It is what it says. It's eternal,
it never ceases, and it's life in glory. It's a wonderful consideration,
a wonderful favour and a wonderful prospect. So may each one of
us be found with that living desire, that God-given desire. You and I can't desire it ourselves. We might think we can, but we
need the power of God to desire these things. They should seek
the Lord. If happily they might feel after
him and find him, they be not far from every one of us. What
a mercy if we have found the Lord, if we've sought him, if
we've sought him. There we were strangers and then
Jesus sought us as a stranger, wandering from the fold of God,
how easily we wander away. But what a blessing it is when
God restrains us and directs us into the fold of Christ. and directs us to be a true believer,
not a false believer, not one who just acts at believing, one
who pretends to be a believer, but one who is a true believer. And so says the Apostle, for
in him, the Lord Jesus Christ, we live and move and have our
being. Well what a great blessing that
is and how wonderful if you and I know it ourselves through a
personal spiritual experience as the blessed God reveals to
us our need of a saviour to deliver us from our sin and directs us
to none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. and to realise therefore
that that great and wonderful Son of God was willing to come
down into this world to save such unworthy sinners. Just ponder it for a moment and
to think that Almighty God, the Lord Jesus was Almighty God,
is Almighty God, second person in the Trinity, co-equal with
the Father and the Holy Spirit. He who was eternal ever had been. We can't understand that, but
how true it is. There was the blessed Lord and
there was that agreement with the Father and the Holy Spirit
for Him to come into this world and to pay the price required
to take away our sins. pay the price required to redeem
us. We couldn't redeem ourselves.
We couldn't pay the price ourselves. We had no ability but to think
that the Lord Jesus Christ, very God, very God, the creator of
all things, condescended to come into this sinful world for that
divine purpose to save you, to save me. Wonderful, isn't it? Wonderful. How many have passed
by? How many were passed by on this
occasion and this time, this period in Athens? How many did
not believe? Just a few, just a handful. What a blessing if, by the grace
of God, you and I are amongst that number. a number ultimately
that no man can number. A vast congregation will be found
in glory at last, praising God, not for a short time, not for
a short service, but forever and ever. And in that place of
eternal happiness and glory, there'll be no sin, there'll
be no sorrow, there'll be no sighing, no pain, but eternal
happiness that's again our minds are very mortal we cannot really
appreciate and understand the greatness of such a blessing
but yet how true it is and how wonderful it is therefore that
the Lord Jesus came to secure our salvation. The Word of God
tells us in Romans, there is a place in heaven reserved for
us. Each one, each one of his people,
a place that no one else can occupy. It's reserved personally. It's wonderful to think of that,
isn't it? Unworthy sinners, great sinners,
wretched sinners called by grace receive this wonderful gift of
a reserved place in glory. No one else can take it. No one
else can occupy it. It's reserved for each one a
place in glory. Well what a mercy that is therefore
if we recognize therefore the need of our salvation. That's
why the apostle preached urgently to the Athenians every day. He went into the marketplace
and expounded the truth of the Gospel, the need there was to
be saved, and directed them to the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ,
and His great and wonderful and glorious salvation. And so we're told here, for in
Him none other. In Him we live and move and have
our being. We're only alive because the
Lord has ordained it. And again it's a great wonderful
thing to think that we are born into this world and a tragic
thing if we're born into this world to perish in our sins but
a glorious truth if we are born into this world, to pass through
this world and enter into glory forever and ever. If we'd never
been born, we would never enter into glory. And so what a wonderful
consideration to think that the Lord Jesus Christ came into this
world, as the Apostle Paul tells us, to save sinners Yes, not
the righteous, sinners of whom I am chief, said the Apostle. He knew his situation. He knew
how he'd operated and been against God and against the Christians,
but God had mercy upon him. And it may be so in our lives. We may have been anti to the
things of God. We may not have wanted them.
But as the hymn writer says, the appointed time, God's time,
moved on, rolled on, not to propose, but to call by grace. What a blessing. If there has
been an appointed time, in your life and my life and God with
the blessed power of the Holy Spirit called us out of darkness
into the glorious light of the everlasting Gospel. So we therefore
have then a good hope Not a false hope, a good hope based upon
the wonderful revelation of God's direction as to what we are by
nature and how we need to have the glorious Saviour as our Saviour. Well, says the Apostle, that
they should seek the Lord. Well, I wonder whether the Holy
Spirit has indeed moved us to seek the Lord, that's pray
for his blessing pray that he might reveal himself unto us
as it is not unto the world see that revelation is personal to
each one of us to think the Holy Spirit condescends to convey
these things to declare unto us our condition and direct us
to the great and glorious work of the Saviour. And he says then,
for as much then as we are the offspring of God, the offspring
of God, his children. Amazing, isn't it? To think that
we, a child of God, undeserving black sinners and yet you see
what a mercy to be an offspring of God and he goes on we ought
not to think that the Godhead is like under gold or silver
or stone graven by art and man's device and then he says and the
times of this ignorance God winked at, but now, but now commandeth
all men everywhere to repent. Well, what a blessing, as you
read and hear that word. He's come and commanded all men
everywhere to repent, and God has given you and me that grace. God has given you and me that
willing spirit to come to our God, confessing our sins, being
sorry for our sins, repenting for our sins. It's not something
that you and I do naturally, but it's by the work of the Holy
Spirit. And it is essential that everyone
is a true believer and one who truly repents of their sins and
so here he was here at Athens and speaking like this there
was the ignorance and that's how we are by nature we're ignorant
we just carry on aimlessly in this poor old world not realizing
the great need there is for God to give us that spirit of repentance,
to come to Him seeking for mercy, seeking for forgiveness, and
as we said this morning, to be found looking unto Jesus, the
author and the finisher of our faith. What a blessing it is
to know that we have such a Saviour, such a great God who begins in
our heart that great work of salvation, who causes us to consider
who causes us to look into our heart and who causes us to look
out of ourselves unto our great and glorious Saviour. Well, says
the Apostle, and the times of this ignorance God winked at. That's past, but now. The Lord sets before us, but
now. What a mercy if there's been
a but now in your life and my life. And if there hasn't been,
may there be a but now. A but now. and that but now is
so vital and so important but now commandeth all men everywhere
to repent wherever there is life, wherever there's men and women
throughout this whole world The word is true to everyone. There is a need that everyone
repents. There are no unrepentant sinners
in heaven. And the devil will try and stop
us repenting. Stop us. And he'll say, well,
you're not too bad, of course. You haven't got too much to be
worried about. when the Holy Spirit works in
our heart we realise we have a lot to worry about we have
a mountain of sin which all needs to be taken away and so what
a blessing then to have this and then the Apostle goes on
just to warn the situation he says because he hath appointed
a day in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by
that man whom he hath ordained. The Lord Jesus Christ is the
great judge, and all of us appear before him. That man whom he
hath ordained, whereof he hath given assurance unto all men,
in that he hath raised him from the dead.' Well, the apostle
was able to preach Christ crucified. Yes, the Lord had given him a
wonderful vision. He blessed him indeed. He knew
how he'd been, how he needed that great salvation, and he
knew there was no other. that could redeem his soul. That's
why the Lord Jesus Christ was truly precious to the Apostle
and he is to the whole Church of God. All those who've been
saved with that great salvation to realise a wonderful God we
have, a compassionate God, a merciful God. And when they heard of the
resurrection of the dead, some mocked, Another said, we will
hear thee again of this matter. Well, my friends, I hope none
of us come under that category where we mock God by not believing
the great truths contained in his word. And I think there can
be really nothing worse than hearing the gospel in our lives
on this earth. never receiving it, never believing
it, and end up in eternity in a lost hell, and recognise that
we've heard the Word of God, we've heard the truth of God,
and we've turned our back upon it, consider it as not very important,
and we want more to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season,
than to plead for that mercy, plead to be given that true godly
repentance, and turn away from all the vanities of life to serve
the ever-living and true God, and to become a true worshipper,
one who bows down before Almighty God. Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Not to stand proudly and try
and justify ourselves, but recognize that as the Apostle said so clearly,
in me, that is in my flesh, his actual body dwelleth no good
thing. No good thing. Sin is mixed with
all we do. What a blessing it is to have
a great and glorious Saviour who removes all sin, all sin
washed away in that one sacrifice upon the cross at Calvary. And
again, it's good to go to Calvary. It's good to meditate upon that
great and glorious act of salvation, which the blessed Savior did
when he gave up his life. And what a life it was. 33 years
in this world, so much opposition and finally of course brought
before the judgment seat and condemned to death not because
of his sin but on behalf of the sins of his whole church. It's almost impossible, it is
impossible for us to comprehend the greatness of that transaction
and we perhaps can say how willing was Jesus to die that we fellow
sinners might live. The life they could not take
away, how willing was Jesus to give. And to think that that
greater blessed Saviour gave His life to redeem such unthankful
sinners of the earth. Well it would be good if you
and I are able to ponder these things and to realise what a
God we have. A great God. A merciful God. A compassionate God. Who hasn't
dealt with us as our sins deserve. Because if he did we wouldn't
be here. We would be cut off. but his mercies are new every
morning. That's why Jeremiah tells us
in his prophecy those wonderful words in the Lamentations where
the prophet tells us, he says, it is the Lord's mercies that
we are not consumed because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning, every
morning. Great is thy faithfulness. And
Jeremiah goes on to say, the Lord is my portion. That's a blessing, isn't it?
If you and I can say the Lord is my portion, saith my soul,
are in a most being, the evidence of it. Therefore will I hope
in him. The Lord is good unto them that
wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him. It is good that
a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the
Lord. Those who seek shall find, no
doubt about it, what a blessing therefore it is so but remember
the Lord says your time is always my time is not yet God has a
perfect time to come and reveal himself unto us as that great
and glorious Saviour yes not our time His time why? because His time is perfect His
time brings honour and glory to his name and that's the purpose
of our deliverance, that's the purpose of our conversion, is
to bring honour and glory to our God. And that's why we are
enabled to take up our cross and to follow him, follow his
great and glorious example because of what he's done. Now, you might,
this third chapter of Lamentations, you can read, you can read the
beginning of it, the beginning of it, you can read Jeremiah,
how he found himself. It was a real tough life for
him, a real difficult time he had, and yet he's able to come. and tell us, this I recall to
my mind, therefore have I hope. And it's a good hope, a good
hope of eternal life. And so says Father on this third
chapter, let us search and try our ways
and turn again to the Lord. Let us lift up our heart with
our hands unto God in the heavens. God hears and answers prayer. And so we have this account here
in the Acts of the Apostles at Athens, Paul there preaching
to the people on Mars Hill. We're not told what success occurred
on that occasion, but what we do know is this. He preached
the gospel. He preached Christ. He was faithful
in his declaration. And the apostle continued. In season and out of season. And what a blessing if in our
little lives we find that God looks upon us and has mercy upon
us and calls us by his grace out of the darkness of nature,
darkness of this world. into the glorious light of the
everlasting gospel. Oh, my friends, what wonderful
light it is and what a blessed time and favour it is to be blessed
indeed with this light. And the Apostle tells us in the
4th and 2nd Corinthians, For we preach not ourselves, but
Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your servants, for Jesus' sake,
for God, who commanded, this is the power of God, who commanded
the light to shine out of darkness into a shine in our hearts to
give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face
of Jesus Christ. that is a great statement, has
shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of
the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. He tells us
then, but we have this treasure, and what a treasure it is, It's
not an earthly treasure. It's a heavenly treasure, this
light. We have this treasure in earthen
vessels. We are an earthen vessel. We're just really dust of the
earth. That the excellency of the power
may be of God and not of us. These things, this light, you
and I, can't produce ourselves, but it's the power of God. and
what reason there is to praise God for it. And the apostle tells
us that we are troubled on every side, yet not distressed. We are perplexed, but not in
despair. Persecuted, but not forsaken. Cast down, but not destroyed. This is the life of the Christian. always bearing about in the body
the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might
be made manifest in our body. For we which live are always
delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus
might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. while we're on
this earth in that mortal state with our mortal flesh to think
that these great and glorious truths with regard to the light
of the gospel are conveyed to us by the power of the Spirit
of God the clear evidence of God's work in our heart the truth
of God displayed and revealed to us so that what do we do We
can rejoice in Christ the Lord and have no confidence in our
flesh. Well, it's a wonderful account
in the Acts of the Apostles of God's great and glorious work
and we're thankful to know that that work still continues. It
still goes on today. And what a blessing to be able
to discern it in our lives. Because as I often say, real
religion is personal between your soul and God and my soul
and God. We can't die for another, we
have to die for ourselves and we need the blessed revelation
that we are born again of the Spirit of God and to know therefore
it is eternally well with our soul. Amen.