God Speaks
Paul and His Companions Minister in Thessalonica, Berea and Athens
Verse of the Day: [The essence of Paul’s message was:] “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. . . . now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.” (Acts 17:24-26 and 30b-31 NIV 2011)
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We Respond
Reflection: In Acts 17 Paul and Silas came to Thessalonica and preached in the synagogue, using the Jews’ own scriptures to show that Jesus was the suffering Messiah they had been expecting. Some people believed, including prominent Jews and Greek men and women. Opposition arose, causing a riot claiming that Paul and Silas (with Jason helping them) were trying to overthrow Caesar’s government by proclaiming Jesus as Lord. Paul, Silas, and Timothy went on to Berea. When they preached the message of Christ there, the Bereans listened and made their own “factcheck” of their scriptures to see if it was true. Again, many Jews and Greeks believed, and once again, opposition arose and stirred things up to the point that, leaving Silas and Timothy in Berea, some Christian leaders escorted Paul to Athens, then returned to Berea to relieve them. While waiting in Athens, Paul kept busy preaching in the synagogues, debating with the philosophers, and speaking at the Areopagus. Here is a summary of what Paul preached, “Let me tell you about the God you worship without knowing Him. He’s the creator of everything. He isn’t made with human hands or imagination. He doesn’t need anything from us. He is the one who gives us life and breath, satisfying the needs of every living thing or being. Starting with one man, He created every nation on earth. He determined where they would be and how long they would last. He did all this so that people everywhere would seek after God and by His grace be found by Him. For it is by Him that all people live, move, and exist. By the cross He has opened the door for all to be adopted into His family. Each individual must repent (change their mind regarding their sin), turn to God, and walk through ‘the door’ by faith. One day all will be judged by God on the basis of how they have responded to Jesus Christ’s provision of pardon.” The audience responded by some of them becoming believers, including an official named Dionysius and a woman named Damaris.
Prayer: Precious Holy Spirit, please empower preachers as they reason from the Scriptures, explaining and proving that Jesus, who is the Christ, had to suffer, die, and be raised from the dead so that we could believe and be saved. May many people be persuaded and join with others in furthering the good news. May your people turn the world right side up. Like the Bereans, may we receive the word with all eagerness and search the Scriptures daily to see if what we are being told is so. May I and all Christians be ready always to calmly and firmly reason from the Scriptures about Jesus wherever we are–whether with people in our families, at work, in the marketplace, in our churches or with philosophers at universities. Help us as believers to use the everyday experiences of people to explain God, Jesus, the cross and the resurrection to the point that Your chosen people respond in faith. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.
- I will write out and practice saying a summary of the gospel like this so that I can speak it out at every opportunity.
- I might say something like this to someone who considers themselves “religious.” “Let me tell you about the God you worship without knowing Him. He’s the creator of everything. He isn’t made with human hands or imagination. He doesn’t need anything from us. He is the one who gives us life and breath, satisfying the needs of every living thing or being. Starting with one man, He created every nation on earth. He determined where they would be and how long they would last. He did all this so that people everywhere would seek after God and by His grace be found by Him. For it is by Him that all people live, move, and exist. By the cross He has opened the door for all to be adopted into His family. Each individual must repent (change their mind regarding their sin), turn to God, and walk through ‘the door’ by faith. One day all will be judged by God on the basis of how they have responded to Jesus Christ’s provision of pardon.”
- I will affirm that I genuinely believe this summary of the gospel by listening to the Holy Spirit in my inner being and by studying God’s Word and then gratefully doing what He tells me today.
- I will pray for _______ (a specific person) to hear, understand, and respond to God’s invitation of pardon and adoption made available through Jesus.
- I will pray for my nation to repent and turn to God.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.