Title: The Question of Balance
Scripture: Acts 17:1-15
Have you ever wondered just why it is you have a little toe? I mean really, think about it! It doesn’t do anything but just sit there. All the other toes move while we are walking. All the other toes are active and support us just fine. Why did God give us the little toe? The answer is: for balance.
Without the little toe we would simply fall over to the side where there isn’t a little toe. If we were to have an accident and the little toe was to be removed, we would have to go through a rehabilitation program to learn to walk without a little toe, because it provides the balance that we need to stand upright.
Balance is surely needed in walking down the street, and balance is surely needed when we are witnessing on that same street. If there is no balance in our message the person we are witnessing to will remain lost. Without balance in our Christian life we will not be able to bring a balanced message to the people. Balance is needed. No matter what word you use to explain it, it is needed:
I. Steadiness (vv.1-4)
II. Unsteadiness (vv. 5-9)
III. Balanced (vv.10-12)
IV. Unbalanced (vv.13-15)
V. Staying Poised (vv. 16-17)
VI. Wobbling (vv.18-21)
VII. Upright (vv. 22-31)
VIII. Even Keel (vv. 32-34)
I. Steadiness (vv.1-4)
1 When they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2 As his custom was, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3 explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead. "This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Christ, " he said. 4 Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women
Balance requires steadiness. Meaning, you are not easily going to swerve to the left or the right. Paul was steady in the fact that he always went straightway into the Jewish synagogue whenever he entered a city. Paul was also steady in the fact that he never wavered in his message, whether to the Jew or to the Gentile.
Paul used the scriptures, that is the Old Testament, to not only maintain his personal balance with the Lord, but when he was sharing the Gospel message as well. He reasoned, explained and proved, proclaimed and persuaded men and women to put their faith in Jesus Christ through the Word of God.
a. Reasoning
(Isaiah 1:18) "Come now, let us reason together," says the LORD. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.
The Bible tells us to come to the Lord and reason with the Lord. It is implying that we may intelligently and mindfully seek the Lord. Nowhere in scripture are we asked to blindly and dumbly worship God. Whether we go into the Bible Study or the streets, we are asked to reason, to let the Spirit of God guide our minds to persuade the immature and lost.
b. Explaining and Proving
As we reason, we provide explanations and exposition to encourage and enlighten so that we are able to prove, through the Word, what we are talking about. The Bible says that Paul explained and proved to the lost what he was talking about.
These types of sessions, that is reasoning, explaining, and proving, are much different than proclaiming. These types of sessions are more similar to the group setting, with interaction.
c. Proclaiming (state publicly, announce, declare, decree)
But, Paul did not only reason, explain and prove, he also proclaimed. He publicly stated his belief in Jesus. He publicly announced that Jesus was the Lord of his life, and that others should follow Jesus also.
d. Persuasion
In an effort to maintain a ‘steadiness’ in our Gospel message we must use, like Paul, reasoning, explaining, proving, and proclaiming in an effort to bring others to Jesus, in our effort to persuade others and to build up those already in Christ.
Our passage says in verse four:
“4 Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women.”
Paul was successful in evangelism because he studied the scriptures. How could you reason from the scriptures without study?
Paul was successful in his evangelism because he approached evangelism with the scriptures. How could you explain and prove without the scriptures?
Paul was successful in his evangelism because he believed and proclaimed that Jesus is the Christ. How could you persuade anyone to become a Christian without this very important detail?
II. Unsteadiness (vv. 5-9)
5 But the Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. 6 But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other brothers before the city officials, shouting: "These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, 7 and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus." 8 When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil. 9 Then they made Jason and the others post bond and let them go.
Though we may be steady in our approach, there will always be opposition. Though we may be well-rounded and well-studied, there will always be those that refuse to believe. And, like we have said before, not only do some people refuse to believe but they will also seek to silence the messengers. They will use anything to confuse people and stir up trouble. Whether it be using people of questionable character, telling lies, or starting a riot, nothing is beneath those that desire to defy God. Because, in all actuality, that is indeed what they are doing. But, remember, it is not you that they are rejecting, it is God.
We, however, must maintain our balance in the Lord, which is exactly what Paul did.
III. Balanced (vv.10-12)
10 As soon as it was night, the brothers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. 11 Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. 12 Many of the Jews believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.
Paul traveled from Thessalonica to Berea. No doubt Paul used the same evangelism techniques, reasoning, explaining, and proving, and proclaiming. But, we cannot give Paul all the credit, and we can see by these passages, that Luke does tell us that the people of Berea were more opened to the Gospel than were the Thessalonians.
Who were the Thessalonians, and why were the Bereans considered of more noble character?
Thessalonica was a port city which probably explains how easy it was for the Jews to find the ‘bad characters’ mentioned in verse five. We can be sure that Satan had a strong foothold in that city. While, Berea was located inland, at the base of the Olympus mountain range. These men were probably farmers and statesmen, and were not influenced by the wild life of the bars and marketplaces.
This noble character provides a balance in Paul’s evangelism efforts. The Bereans’ willingness to study the scriptures was rewarded with many people being added to the kingdom of God. But, where there is balance for a season, we can expect a period of being unbalanced also.
IV. Unbalanced (vv.13-15)
13 When the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea, they went there too, agitating the crowds and stirring them up. 14 The brothers immediately sent Paul to the coast, but Silas and Timothy stayed at Berea. 15 The men who escorted Paul brought him to Athens and then left with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible.
Though the men and women of Berea were willing to search the scriptures and prove whether Paul was right or wrong, those in Thessalonica were not. These men and women were dismissing Paul’s proclamation of Christ as heresy, without ever having looked at scriptures and the prophecies that are found there.
These verses seem to indicate an unbalance in the city. But, the unbalance was not in the city, nor with the city’s inhabitants, it was with the Jewish Thessalonians. We must go back and find comfort in verse twelve, where it said:
12 Many of the Jews believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men .
By focusing on the successes that we have had in God we will be able to stay poised (balanced) for God.
V. Staying Poised (vv. 16-17)
16 While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. 17 So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there.
Paul leaves the areas of Thessalonica and Berea and travels over 100 miles south to the city of Athens. When he arrives there, he sees the many gods of the Greek people, all of which had a statue or object erected to depict that god. These idols rightly troubled him. And, as was his custom, he went into the synagogue to reason, explain, and prove the Christ, while proclaiming the Christ in the marketplace.
Though Paul was distressed he didn’t lose his poise. He continued steadfast in his beliefs and took them to the streets in an effort to win people to Jesus. Though Paul was distressed he didn’t lose his balance. He resolutely continued in his beliefs and always promoted Christ over himself. In turn, Paul was rewarded with wisdom to handle the situation. He was blessed with guidance to utilize the surroundings to bring the focus to the real and living God of Abraham, Isaac, and Paul.
Yet, no matter how blessed or how powerful God makes His message through us, there will always be those that sit on the fence, or disbelieve entirely. No matter how strong the message or how charismatic the messenger, there always will be some ‘wobbling’ going on with those that are listening.
VI. Wobbling (vv. 18-21)
18 A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, "What is this babbler trying to say?" Others remarked, "He seems to be advocating foreign gods." They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. 19 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? 20 You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we want to know what they mean." 21 (All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.)
Athens was no different than any other city in that they, too, had non-believers. They heard the message. Some chose to believe, some chose to not believe, and some did not choose at all.
Reading through this portion of scripture brings to my mind the Senate or Congress of the U.S. In the beginning, it was established for a noble purpose, yet now we see only people desiring to control other people under the disguise of doing what is best for people by making according to what they think is best for the people. It doesn’t matter where you are, it could be the Parliament of the U.K., or the congress in Korea, or the Diet in Japan, it doesn’t matter. There will always be those that choose to not believe or to sit on the fence and wobble back and forth. We, on the other hand, must remain strong in the Lord. We must remain true to the faith and walk uprightly in the Lord and preach the message that the Lord gives to us.
VII. Upright (22-31)
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. 23 For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you. 24 "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. 25 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. 26 From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. 27 God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out 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 some of your own poets have said, ’We are his offspring.’ 29 "Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone--an image made by man’s design and skill. 30 In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. 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."
The Greeks were so afraid that they might have missed a god. And, they were afraid that same god would get mad at them because he was not recognized and do something. In their fear they built a shrine, or statue to an unknown god as a kind of ‘catch all.’ Paul used that shrine as an opportunity to introduce to them the truly unknown God, the Living God of the Old Testament and the saving God of the New Testament.
Notice in these verses that the Greeks are given a history they can understand. They don’t know the history of Abraham. They had no clue about the Jews being slaves in Egypt. So, Paul starts right where they’re at and allows God to work through him to enlighten them concerning the Living God.
When we look at these scripture passages, we should look at them in the light of how Paul was used by God to witness to a group of lost people. When the time comes, and you are witnessing in the spirit to a person or a group, God will grant you that same power, wisdom and guidance that He gave to Paul. Remember the Bible itself says that these people, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Isaiah, Daniel, and Paul, were men and women just like us. They were children of the promise, just like you are. They were guided by God, just like you can be. But, like James said,
(James 1:5~6)
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6 But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.
Paul’s speech about the unknown God was elegant, well-timed, and God-inspired. You have that same resource, you have that same GOD! But, it requires that you believe and not doubt. It requires that you maintain an even keel.
VIII. Even Keel (vv. 32-34)
32 When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, "We want to hear you again on this subject." 33 At that, Paul left the Council. 34 A few men became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others.
When it is all said and done, there will be some that follow Jesus and others that will not. When the message is plain, and is laid in front of them, there will be those that will jump at the chance to put their faith in Christ and there will be some that will say, "We want to hear you again on this subject."
Paul presents to us a steady plan of evangelism: reasoning, examining and proving, and proclaiming. By following these essentials of evangelism you will be just as successful as Paul.
Keep in mind that Paul maintains an even keel, which is a good illustration to visualize when we are witnessing to the lost. All we have to do is picture ourselves sitting in a small boat. If we lean over too far to one side to follow some foreign doctrine, the boat will turn over. If we lean over too far to the other side in not doing anything, the boat will turn over. And, if we don’t steer the boat by following the path outlined in the Word of God we will either run aground or be lost at sea.
