Making an Impact:
Telling Others the Gospel
Thank you, Kids Choir for that excellent reminder. God will use our feet, our hands, and our mouths to tell others the gospel.
Our former co-workers in Mexico City are missionaries today because of Ken Hanna’s direct influence in their lives. Just recently they sent me an email about how their 4-year-old daughter has been involved in evangelism.
Like our girls, their daughter Geneva is really into Barbies. Apparently she engages in long conversations with them as she walks around the house. Searching for common ground with his little girl, her dad suggested that she teach her Barbies about Jesus. Geneva then went back to her room for a few minutes, gathered all her Barbies in a circle around her and told them that they needed to believe in Jesus in order to go to heaven.
A few minutes later, she came out of her room and proudly announced that all of her Barbies were now believers. Mike then asked her how it happened that they all become Christians so quickly. With a big grin on her face, Geneva said, “It was easy. I just sat on each of them until they said yes!”
While this method sure sounds effective, it’s probably much better to communicate the gospel in other ways. This morning we’re going to look into God’s Word in order to find out how the Apostle Paul did evangelism. If you have your Bibles, turn to Acts 17, beginning in verse 16.
Background
Athens has been in the news lately because of the recent earthquake in Greece. Both the Acropolis and the Parthenon sustained some damage. When Paul was there, as part of his Second Missionary Journey, he did what most people do when they go to a beautiful city he went sightseeing. But instead of being impressed with what he saw, verse 16 says that he was distressed to see that the city was full of idols.
One ancient writer tells us that at the time there were 30,000 gods in Athens! In fact, one historian has said that it was easier to find a god than a man in the downtown area. Paul’s spirit was moved when he saw all these idols. The Greek helps us here because it shows how strongly Paul was distressed it literally means that he was provoked by a storm of protest within his inner being.
Instead of leaving the city or complaining to the officials, verse 17 shows us that he went to work. He spent time both in the religious centers and in the marketplace. The text says that he did it every day. We see in verse 18 that some philosophers wanted to debate with him.
The Epicureans were atheists; they denied God’s existence. They didn’t believe in the afterlife. They were content to just live for today we might call them materialists. Their motto was, “Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die.” There are still plenty of Epicureans around today right here in Livingston County.
The Stoics were pantheists they believed that everything is God, and that He does not exist as a separate entity, but is in the rocks and trees and every material thing. Their attitude toward life was one of ultimate resignation they prided themselves on their ability to take whatever came their way. Their motto was, “Grin and bear it.” Apathy was regarded as the highest virtue in life. Do you know anyone like that today?
Now, look at the last part of verse 18 through verse 21: “Some of them asked, ‘What is this babbler trying to say?’ [Those were the Epicureans.] Others remarked, ‘He seems to be advocating foreign gods.’ [These were the Stoics.] They said this because Paul was preaching about Jesus and the resurrection. Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, ‘May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we want to know what they mean. (All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.)”
The Epicureans, who were atheists, treated Paul with utter disdain. The word babbler is literally a “seed-picker.” They saw Paul as one of the little birds in the marketplace going around pecking at seeds here and there. In their minds, Paul was little more than a collector of fragments of truth and they dismissed him.
But the Stoics were interested. In their theology, they had some room for additional gods. They were intrigued. I love Luke’s commentary the people spent their time doing nothing but talking and listening to the latest ideas sounds like Talk Radio today, doesn’t it?
These people brought Paul before the Supreme Court of Athens. As the only Christian in the city, he was asked to explain what he believed. This is one of the most dramatic scenes in the New Testament Paul preaching the gospel in the intellectual capital of the world. His words are clear, concise, and very much to the point.
More than that, they show what it means to become “all things to all men” (1 Corinthians 9:22). We know that Paul as a Jew could speak to his own people. But here we see him before an audience of Gentiles who have never heard of Jesus Christ. Standing on their turf, at their invitation, he starts where they are and uses this opportunity to preach the gospel to them.
As we walk through the text this morning, I want us to see Paul’s approach as a model for us as we mix it up with the Epicurean and Stoic people in our own lives. I see four things that Paul did which we need to emulate all of them begin with the letter “C”.
1 - Be Courteous
If we want to follow Paul’s lead, the first thing we need to do is to Be Courteous. Look at verse 22: Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious…”
What a great approach. Paul started right where his listeners were. He didn’t denounce them or attack their idolatry. In fact, he paid them a compliment. He basically said, “As I’ve been walking around your city, I’ve noticed one thing about you: You are a very religious people.”
First words matter. If he loses his audience—either by boring them or insulting them—he’ll never get them back again. To Paul, the Athenians were like blind men groping in the dark towards a God they did not know and could not find. But no kind person makes sport of the blind. Write it down in large letters: You cannot insult a person into the Kingdom of God. Were not the Athenians idolaters? Yes they were. But he didn’t begin by saying, “I’ve come to expose your sins, you dirty, wretched, hell-bound, idol-worshipping, heathenistic pagans. Thank God I’m here because I’m going to lead you to Jesus.” They wouldn’t have given him the time of day if he had said that.
Are you courteous when you spend time with people who are not Christians yet? Or, are you secretly angry with them because of some of the things they do? If so, we need to remember that people without Christ are going to sin. In other words, we shouldn’t be surprised when non-Christians act like non-Christians. Are you kind and gracious or are you abrasive? Non-believers can pick up on our attitudes so we need to be careful.
I think the early church had a good handle on this. They were so thankful for the grace of God in their own lives, that they extended this same grace to others. I’m intrigued by what we read in Acts 2:47 when it says that the believers were praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. That tells me that Christians were fun to be around. They were winsome. Upbeat. Full of grace. Non-Christians wanted to hang out with church people. Question. Do non-Christians feel that same way about you? If not, work at being more courteous.
2 Be Contemporary
Paul was courteous when he dealt with people operating within a different worldview. We see in the first part of verse 23 that second, he was also contemporary. He established some common ground with his listeners. Here’s another way to say it: When he was courteous, he broke down barriers; when he was contemporary, he built bridges to the heart of his audience.
Notice verse 23: “For as I walked around and observed your objects of worship, I found even an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD…” Paul was out where the people lived and worked. He hung out with people. This is important for several reasons. First, it would tell the Athenians that Paul had taken the time to get to know their city. This is a key principle, isn’t it? You’ve got to get to know people if you want to talk to them intelligently.
Second, this statement tells us that Paul found a natural point of contact. As he walked around, he looked for connectors, or bridges, from their world to the gospel. In missions, these are called “redemptive analogies,” which are cultural or traditional beliefs that the missionary can use as a springboard to explain the gospel message.
As he strolled through the city, he saw altars to every conceivable deity. Historians tell us that the Athenians built altars not only to their main gods—such as Zeus and Aphrodite, but also to abstract concepts such as justice, modesty, energy, and virtue. They were trying to cover all the bases, so to speak.
As Paul toured the city, he came upon an altar with a strange inscription: “To an unknown God.” There were a number of these in Athens. Here’s the background: Several centuries before this, a plague had hit the city and a man from Cyprus advised them to take a flock of black and white sheep to the Areopagus and let them go. Wherever a sheep stopped, they would kill the sheep and offer it on the nearest altar. If there was no altar nearby, they built one and dedicated it to “the unknown God.” The plague eventually lifted and the altars stayed. They attributed their deliverance to one of the “unknown gods.” Evidently, Paul found one of these altars and used it as his opening illustration.
Think about this for a moment. 30,000 altars in one city and still they weren’t sure they had enough. When you don’t know the true God, you always turn to idols. And not just one, but to many of them, because one is never enough. Some of our friends and neighbors have idols as well though they might not be the kind you can see on a shelf in their house they might be a little more hidden than that.
Brothers and sisters, are you spending enough time with non-Christians? Do you know what their interests are? Do you know what they are concerned about? Do you know those things that make them happy? The things that make them cry? Have you discovered any idols in their hearts? Be contemporary up-to-date with your neighbors, co-workers and extended family members.
3 Be Courageous
Not only was Paul courteous and contemporary, he was also courageous. We don’t have time this morning to mine the depths of this passage, but I want you to notice how bold Paul was in verses 23-30. Look at the last part of verse 23: “Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you.”
The phrase something unknown really means “in ignorance” though the hearers wouldn’t have taken it that way. He tactfully tells them they don’t know what they are talking about—which is literally true. It’s as if he is saying, “You admit there is a God you don’t know. Very well, then. I happen to know that God and I will now proclaim him to you. I will begin where you end.”
This is tremendous evangelistic strategy. How could they be offended when he starts by quoting from one of their own altars “To the unknown God?” By admitting there is more to God than they know, they have opened the door for Paul to preach the gospel boldly.
This is what I mean by finding common ground. It doesn’t mean compromising your values in order to share the gospel. Paul here isn’t compromising anything. He’s just finding a way to gain a hearing with these highly intelligent people. And how did he find it? The same way you will in your own evangelism—by listening, by reading, by watching, by observing, by paying attention to what people say and do.
Ecclesiastes 3:11 says that God has set eternity in every human heart. Sooner or later, that longing for eternity will express itself in one way or another. Pay attention and you’ll see it when it happens. That’s your common ground.
That leads me to suggest a simple prayer: “Lord, give me an open door to share Christ this week. Amen.” If you pray that prayer, just keep your eyes open and your ears tuned in because sooner or later, you’ll sense the “God-shaped vacuum” inside the heart of those who don’t know Jesus. When the door opens, be courageous and just step in. That’s what Paul did. You can do it, too.
In verses 24-25, Paul gives them a theology lesson, courageously speaking of God as the Creator and the Giver of all things: “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 hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.” Paul then establishes the fact that God is near enough for us to reach out to Him and find what we’re looking for.
Verse 30 shows us the depth of Paul’s courageousness: “In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.” Paul is mincing no words here.
When I think about the need to be courageous, I’m helped greatly by something Bill Bright once said: “Instead of assuming that people don’t want to hear the gospel, try instead to assume that they will be interested in the good news. Your friend may have just gone through circumstances that have prepared his heart to receive Jesus Christ. God may have been leading him into an awareness of his need for truth. Perhaps he has felt especially alone -- or in need of love.”
Be Christ-Centered
As Paul moves from being courteous to being contemporary, to being courageous, he comes to the final phase of his speech: he was Christ-centered. You see, it’s not enough to just be nice and spend time with people. Nor is it enough to just be bold. We must look for ways to talk about Jesus.
Look at verse 31: “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 all men by raising him from the dead.”
Paul was not afraid to speak of an inescapable day of judgment. He did not shrink from speaking the truth about the resurrection of Jesus, even though he knew that many of his listeners would not want to hear it.
Friends, we must not shrink from speaking about Jesus. He is the only way to peace with God and people have to believe in Him in order to be saved. Paul said it strongly in 1 Corinthians 1:22-23: “Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified.”
As God gives you opportunity, speak boldly for Christ. Tell people about His death so they understand that Jesus died in their place and that they can be forgiven for all the sins they have committed. Tell them about His resurrection so that that they can have hope for eternity. Tell them about the love and peace and joy that will be theirs once they surrender to Christ.
My Friend Bob
I really like Paul’s model for effective evangelism. The order is significant it’s important to start with being courteous, and then to look for ways to be contemporary. After taking a deep breath and praying for courage, then make sure we point people to Christ.
Let me flesh this out by telling you about my friend Bob. I first met Bob several years ago when I was living in Oak Park. Bob’s mother came up to me at church one day and asked if I would go visit her son. She warned me that Bob was a very bitter man and hated the church. You see, he was a quadriplegic as a result of a diving accident in a swimming pool.
I decided to go to his house one afternoon and introduce myself. Bob’s mom had told me that I should just knock on the door and walk in. I timidly knocked, didn’t hear anything, and went in. Bob was sitting in his wheel chair in the Living Room watching the Cubs on TV. He looked up and snarled at me and said, “What do you want?” I smiled and told him who I was, sat down for a few minutes and then left. My only goal for this visit was to be courteous.
About a week later, I took a deep breath and decided to visit Bob again. This time, I purposely went during the Cubs game so we could at least find something to talk about. I knocked on the door, walked in, and sat down on the couch. Bob nodded at me. I then sat back and watched the game with him, looking for ways to find common ground. I had read up on how the Cubs were doing, which was pretty easy they were lousy and was able to talk about how bad they were. This was my attempt at being contemporary.
After several months of visits, Bob and I finally started to talk about spiritual matters. This took a lot of nerve on my part because he liked to argue with me. I’d answer his questions from the Bible as best I could. I then brought him some videos of some of our services so he could listen to my preaching. I was trying to be courageous, by not shrinking away when he would attack Christianity.
Finally, after about two years, I had the chance to share the gospel with Bob. I still remember the day. He was in the hospital and was very sick. I decided to be Christ-centered and walked him through the gospel message. Because he couldn’t talk, I asked him to blink if he wanted to receive Christ as His Savior. He blinked. I prayed for him. A few days later, he died.
I don’t know what your evangelism experiences have been like, but most of mine don’t turn out this well. With many people, I never make it to the 4th phase even though I want to. Even so, I continue to be courteous with people and look for ways to be contemporary by finding common ground. Once this connection takes place, I then pray for courage and look for ways to talk about Christ.
I’m at the first two stages with several people here in Pontiac. God has helped me to be courageous with a couple of them and I’m still looking for ways to point people to Christ. Does this mean that I haven’t done evangelism yet? No, I don’t think so. As I said in my very first sermon here: Evangelism is what spills over when you bump into someone. Some of us are not in any position to present Christ to people because frankly we’re not close enough to lost people in order to allow the gospel to spill out of our lives. Others of us are just not taking the time to be courteous and contemporary. Friends, this is where we need to start!
3 Responses
Let’s go back to the text to see how people responded to Paul’s message. I see at least 3 reactions people have the same sort of responses today and interestingly, my friend Bob exhibited all three at different times along the way.
Response #1 is found in verse 32. Some were contemptuous. When they heard about the resurrection, they sneered.
A second response is found in the last part of verse 32: Others were curious. Their appetites were whetted and they told Paul that they wanted to hear more.
Verse 34 gives us the encouraging news that a number of others were convinced.
Friends, this is what we can expect when we are involved in the lives of lost people. Some will become agitated and contemptuous. Others will be curious. And some will become convinced and commit themselves to Christ.
Closing Thoughts
As I think about how Paul mixed it up with the intellectuals of his day, a couple closing thoughts come to mind:
1. How people respond to the gospel is God’s responsibility. Remember the words from Acts 2:47, “The Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.” It’s God who brings people to Himself. Some will be upset, others will be interested, and still others will come to Christ. That’s up to Him, not me.
2. How I respond to God is my responsibility. As we wrap up this series called, Making an Impact, I’m struck by the fact that my responsibility is to become completely committed and totally sold-out to Christ. As we are sold out to Jesus, we will also want to focus on 6 key lifestyle values these key ingredients were clearly evident in the early church and need to be in our church as well:
Instruction in God’s Word get the Word into our heads, our hearts, and our hands.
Mobilizing for Ministry we will see fruit, we’ll be fulfilled, and the church will be fortified when we use our God-given gifts for ministry.
Praying with Faith As we pray earnestly, God will answer even if we have some doubt. Our responsibility is to pray with others and to pray with persistence.
Adoring God in Worship We are to see God as awesome and worship Him with reverent and rejoicing hearts both corporately and in our individual lives.
Caring for Other Believers The early church was a caring place because they valued community over isolation, ministry over selfishness, and people over possessions.
In order to Tell Others the Gospel we need to be courteous, contemporary, courageous, and Christ-centered.
I’m convinced of this: As we devote ourselves to these 6 key lifestyle traits, we will become an IMPACT CHURCH and God will bring people to Himself.
Be a Lighthouse
Let me give you some action steps this morning to help you apply these truths to your relationships. I’m intrigued by some of the wonderful ministry resources that are available as we approach the new millennium. One that I recently read about is geared to help believers see their home as a lighthouse. They are hoping that there will be millions of Christians who participate in this. It’s really pretty simple and pretty easy. It ties in well with what we’ve been talking about Prayer Care Share.
Prayer. Pray for neighbors as you walk around and drive through your neighborhood. Pray for your co-workers by name. List 3 or 4 people and pray for them everyday.
Care. Seek ways to show people you care and offer to pray for their needs. Be courteous and contemporary. Organize a block party or have someone over and grill out. Reach out with random acts of kindness. Pick up trash. Put your neighbor’s paper by the front door. Invite a neighbor in when they stop by.
Share. This is where being courageous and Christ-centered come in. Look for natural opportunities to share your faith. Be ready to tell others about how you came to Christ. Use the brochure in your bulletin to invite someone to come to PBC with you.
Does it Show?
In the 1850s, some people discovered a tremendous amount of gold in a riverbed in Montana. But, because they didn’t have any tools and some members of their team were sick, they realized that they had to go back to town for some supplies and to rest up.
Before they left, they decided to make a pact to not tell anyone where the gold was. They then went to the city for a couple weeks.
Early one morning, as they all got up to leave the town and head back to the riverbed, over 50 of the townspeople walked out of town with them. They asked each other, “Did you tell them about the gold?” No, did you?
They finally asked the people why they were coming along. This is what they said; “We knew you found gold by the smiles on your faces.”
That sounds a lot like the song the Children’s Choir sang “When people look at me, they’ll see a bit of heaven above.”
Question. Do your neighbors know that you’ve found gold? Can they tell just by looking at your face? Do they see a bit of heaven when they look at you? If so, they’re going to want what you have. Are you ready to tell them?
Believe me, this is much more effective then trying to sit on them …
