Acts 17:16-34
Worship works from the top down, you might say. In worship, we don’t just come to show God our devotion and give him our praise; we are called to worship because in this encounter God remakes and molds us top-down. Worship is the arena in which God recalibrates our hearts, reforms our desires, and re-habituates our loves. Worship isn’t just something we do; it is where God does something to us. Worship is the heart of discipleship because it is the gymnasium in which God retrains our hearts.” ~ James K.A. Smith
Main Idea: We are designed to worship with our whole being because we are created by and for God.
I. The Inevitability of Worship (17:16)
Athens was the cultural, philosophical, and intellectual epicenter of this region of the world, and was city was of great significance throughout history. Paul is not struck by its beauty or brilliance, however. Instead, he is bothered by the fact it is “full of idols.” He perceives everything in Athens through the lens of worship.
“There were innumerable temples, shrines, statues and altars. In the Parthenon stood a huge gold and ivory statue of Athena, ‘whose gleaming spear-point was visible forty miles away’. Elsewhere there were images of Apollo, the city’s patron, of Jupiter, Venus, Mercury, Neptune, and Diana. The whole Greek pantheon was there, all the gods of Olympus. And they were beautiful. They were made not only of stone and brass, but of gold, silver, ivory and marble, and they had been elegantly fashioned by the finest Greek sculptors” ~ John Stott
“Worship is ascribing ultimate value to an object and engaging your mind, your heart, and your will- your whole being, as you do it” ~ Tim Keller.
Worship is inevitable for humans. Everyone worships as it is fundamental to who we are. There is no “on” or “off” switch to our worship; we are constantly and naturally ascribing ultimate value to something in our lives, and our entire being is engaged in this activity (head, heart, and hands).
Application: What are we really worshipping? What has captivated our affections and our loves? Is it really God or something else?
Paul’s response to this idolatry is instructive for us as the church. He is “provoked” (conflicted, irritated, angered). This word is used in the OT to describe God’s feelings about idolatry; he viewed the city the same way that God does. God is rightly angry at idolatry, but he is also jealous for the worship of his creation.
II. The Interaction of Worship (17:17-21)
Being “provoked” drives Paul to action in Athens. As was his custom, he first goes to the synagogue (place of teaching & learning for the Jewish people). He then moves on to the marketplace (Gk. ‘agora’), which was the hub and central gathering place of city.
As he entered these spaces, he engaged in 2 things:
Meaningful Conversations (17:17-21). As he engaged with the Jews, Epicureans and Stoics, he was reasoning and conversing with them. He was listening and learning about their belief system, worldview, lifestyle, and ultimately - their worship.
Proclaiming Jesus and the resurrection (17:18a). Paul’s gospel conversations were “strange things” to the ears of those in Athens. The gospel is indeed “folly to those who are perishing” (1 Cor. 1:18), and we should both expect and embrace this “strangeness.”
Application: Do we know the idols of our neighbors, friends, coworkers, and city? Are we critically engaging with others in meaningful conversation through the lens of worship, or are we unconsciously being shaped by the worship happening around us?
III. The Inventor of Worship (17:22-31)
Having earned a hearing and the right to speak at Mars Hill, Paul bridges into their worship by observing two things that are true of all humanity: They are “religious in every way” and they are searching (an altar ‘to the unknown god’)
Having established this bridge, Paul then appeals to the Athenians to believe in the inventor of worship. His appeal is steeped in Biblical imagery as he draws their attention to 6 things about God:
1. God is Creator (17:24). He is the Lord over heaven and earth. He cannot be confined & controlled by those whom he has created, and he cannot be manipulated by worship.
2. God is Sustainer (17:25). God does not need ‘anything’ from us. He is actively involved and is upholding his creation (Heb. 1:3)
3. God is Sovereign (17:26-27a). God is sovereign over when and where we live, so that we might find him. This is God’s purpose for humanity.
“Human beings are made by and for the Creator, who is known in Jesus Christ. In other words, to be truly and fully human, we need to “find” ourselves in relationship to the One who made us and for whom we are made. The gospel is the way we learn to be human.” ~ James K.A. Smith
4. God is Near (17:27-28). He has come to seek and save the lost through the work of Christ. Paul quotes their own poets to show they have some conception & longing for this.
5. God is Personal (17:29). He is not a “statue” or an “image” that is impersonal and can be contained & controlled; he has created humanity in his image.
6. God is Judge (17:30-31). God commands all people to repent, because of the “man whom he has appointed” (Jesus), and his “raising him from the dead.” The time of ignorance is now over because of the manifestation of Jesus Christ.
IV. The Invitation of Worship (17:30, 32-34)
If these things are really true of God, then he is worthy of all of our worship. We are designed to esteem him of ultimate value, and to engage our entire being in orienting our lives around him.
There are three responses to this message at Mars Hill:
Mocking & Rejection (17:32a)
Intrigue & Curiosity (17:32b)
Repentance & Faith (17:30, 34)
“There is no such thing as not worshipping. Everybody worships... And the compelling reason for maybe choosing some sort of god or spiritual-type thing to worship is that pretty much anything else you worship will eat you alive” ~ David Foster Wallace
