INTRODUCTION

(What’s the point of all this?)

Good afternoon/morning!

My name is David Sorn, and I’m the Lead Pastor here at Renovation Church.

Life is fascinating. It can be really fun at times, and excruciatingly difficult at times.

And if we ever get a moment where we’re not staring at our phones, maybe, just maybe, we can start to think about the deeper questions of life.

Maybe I was a weird kid, but I can remember riding in the back of my parents’ car at about 4th grade, and looking up at the sky, and thinking, “How do we even exist? Why am I here?”

Or you might say, “What’s the point of all this?”

And when I became a Christian as a young adult, one of the things I just loved about the Bible is that it gives, not just answers, but great answers, to life’s biggest questions.

And so with that, let’s open the Bible together

THE PASSAGE

Acts 17:16-21

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There is a Bible at every chair, and we’d love for you to pick it up and see it (as it won’t be on the screen).

This is what we do here. We are a Bible teaching church, and we teach right from through this Book and help you understand what it says

By the way, if you’ve never really read or studied it this book yourself, this is our gift to you today.

We’d love for you to take this with you!

There’s even a little reading plan (or QR code in the front cover to that Bible reading plan) that will help you start with the easiest parts first!

So, we are going to be reading today from the Book of Acts in the Bible, which is a book about how Christianity, and the church, first got started after Jesus resurrected from the dead.

And today, we’re going to read about one of the early Christian leaders, the Apostle Paul, and his visit to Athens.

(Acts 17:16-21) – NIV

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 both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. 18 A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate 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 would like 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.)

(What’s the point of all this?)

All right, Athens was a very unique city.

Athens was the intellectual capital of Greece

It was the birthplace of democracy

This is where Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle all taught here

And in many ways, it’s an incredibly religious city too

Athens was named after the Greek goddess Athena.

it’s where the Parthenon…

(Parthenon)

…(the temple for Athena) is and more.

And so Paul has his hands full in trying to get the message of Jesus across here.

Not only did a lot of people in Athens worship a whole pantheon of Greek gods, but plenty of them didn’t worship gods at all.

In fact, look at verse 18 again.

It says, “A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate with him”

STOICS THEN & NOW

Who were these people?

To most of us this sounds like ancient history & philosophy, but it’s actually worth taking a minute to talk about

And here’s why:

Millions of Americans today feel hopeless, unfulfilled, trapped, confused, and more…

…in part because they are still following the empty ways of the stoics and epicureans today…without knowing it.

And just as Paul is going to give these philosophers a deeper and more beautiful answer than they’ve ever heard…(one that would eventually win their whole country for Christ)

We today, in our culture, need that beautiful and deeper answer from Christianity once again.

Okay, so who were these people that Paul was debating with in Athens??

Let’s actually start with the Stoics.

Who Were the Stoics?

They believed God was in everything, in fate, and discouraged emotions

They didn’t believe in a specific god, but that god was in everything.

Technically, this is called pantheism.

But think of it like “the force” from star wars.

Except without the jedi mind tricks and Obi Wan Kenobi

The Stoics believed the universe, and everything in it, was God.

The Stoics also believed that life was going to happen the way life was going to happen. So deal with it.

In modern day we would call this FATE.

The Stoics would say, the best you can do is just calm down (they hated emotion)…that’s why we call a serious person today, “very stoic” in their personality.

So they believed that the wise person has to just accept their lot in life and try and be good along the way.

And even though Paul is debating with Stoics two thousand years ago, this kind of thinking is still pretty prevalent in America today, is it not?

Let me give you some examples:

When people talk about something that happened to them, they say, “Well, I guess that’s just the way the universe wanted it to be”

What is that? That’s modern-day Stoicism.

Or honestly, a huge slice of the self-help movement is rooted in ancient stoicism

There’s a book written every 5 minutes about how you can’t control what happens to you, but you can center yourself, focus on your breathing, and master your emotions, and work on having a mentally healthy response.

We even talk to each other like stoics! We say:

“It is what it is”

Or (Good Vibes Only)

Or (Keep Calm and Carry On)

All that is…is stoicism rebranded for modern day

EPICUREANS THEN & NOW

Paul also is debating with another group whose ideas very much live on today, even if most people couldn’t label it as such

The other group we read about in verse 18 were called Epicureans

Who Were the Stoics?

They believed God was in everything, in fate, and discouraged emotions

Who Were the Epicureans?

They believed life was an accident, in no afterlife, and that the main purpose of life was pleasure

The founder of this belief, Epicurus, thought everything in the world was just made up of tiny atoms (which he was kind of right!), but he believed that at one point, atoms came together in a unique way and created earth

…so therefore, because atoms created the earth, there is certainly no afterlife.

And there is no ultimate plan or even POINT to life.

And so therefore, you might as well seek out pleasure and enjoy life as much as you can.

And boy, you can still see this today too, can’t you??

We don’t call it the philosophy of epicureanism, instead it’s known as the philosophy of YOLO: You only live once…

…so you might as well pursue as much pleasure, riches, sensuality as much as possible, right!

And there are plenty of us today that live like epicureans.

For a lot of people, if someone actually audited their life from the outside, they’d say the point of their life appears to be the pursuit of happiness and pleasure.

They try to survive work for 5 days so they can finally play on the weekend, or go on vacation, or get a bigger house

For others of us, we’re just grinding through life every day, with the hope that we can just numb out at night.

The only thing you truly look forward to…is scrolling, or queueing up 7 episodes of your favorite show, pour a glass of wine, and let the world fade a way for a bit.

That’s epicureanism.

Living as if the point of life is…pleasure.

But is it? Is that really the POINT of your existence?

At some point, every person on earth should ask the question:

What’s the point of all this?

What’s the point of all this?

What is my life really about?

Is just wake up, take the kids to school, go to work, go to dance practice, watch Netflix, and then die?

Is that it? Really?

And this is where Christianity starts to look so beautiful.

Because its answers are so much deeper.

Think about when life gets hard

What happens when you do all the right things, trying to be a good person, and you eat well, exercise, avoid all the food dyes or whatever we’re supposed to do now…and you’re still given a cancer diagnosis…

What comfort is there in “That was just the universe’s plan”

There is no comfort. None.

When your parent dies, what comfort is there in, “Well, we’re all just an accident, and this life is all there is”

None. AT. All.

See, these sort of life-philosophies seem good right up until the point that life gets hard, and you realize they can’t answer the deeper questions.

THE GOD YOU’RE REALLY LOOKING FOR

And this is how Paul begins to turn the minds of his listeners.

Let’s go back to the Bible now

Acts 17:22-23

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(Acts 17:22-23) – NIV

22 Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People 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. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.

(What’s the Point of all this?)

So the people of Athens are trying to cover all of their bases.

Even to the point that they have an idol and altar where you can just offer your religious sacrifices to “an unknown god” (in case you missed one)

But Paul essentially says,

“You don’t know what you’re worshipping…”

“you don’t understand what you’re really, truly looking for, so I’m going to tell you about it.

So let’s read what he says

Acts 17:24-28

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(Acts 17:24-28) – NIV

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 human hands. 25 And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. 26 From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. 27 God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any 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.’

(What’s the Point of all this?)

This is beautiful. Truly beautiful.

And it’s what we need as a people in our country.

I don’t know about you, but I’m sick of watching people I know out there fall deeper into depression, addiction, hopelessness, and even taking their life.

And why are so many falling into that?

It’s because these hollow philosophies don’t really solve the deepest questions of our heart.

And thus they leave people hopeless when life gets hard

But the Jesus Christ can answer these questions for you.

I just officiated a funeral for a woman named Janie Pearson on Thursday

And she died of cancer at 73, and yet through her life (and whole battle w/ cancer), she was filled with joy and hope.

And hundreds of people came out to celebrate her life and stayed for hours, talking about her joy.

Why? How did she live like that?

She could live like that…because the point of her life, the foundation of her life was based on the principles we just read.

And it makes all the difference.

It changes everything.

Let me show you the principles we just read:

The Real Truth

1. You are not an accident – God made the universe (verse 24)

Verse 24 says God made the world and everything in it.

Including you.

He designed you and has a purpose for you

The Real Truth

1. You are not an accident – God made the universe (verse 24)

2. Your life is not random chance – It’s in God’s hands (verse 26)

Your life is not controlled by destiny, luck, fate, karma, or the universe.

Verse 26 says that your life has been marked out by God

The Real Truth

1. You are not an accident – God made the universe (verse 24)

2. Your life is not random chance – God has a plan for you (verse 26)

3. God is not impersonal – He is near and wants to know you (verse 27)

When we talk about the force, karma, fate, or the universe and vibes…

It all sounds good. At first.

But it’s rather depressing in the end.

Because there are no deep answers in any of those things.

The force and vibes can’t help you when your spouse tells you they want a divorce

But the real God, verse 27 says, is near

The Bible says He wants you to seek Him, and reach out and find Him.

And this is the Real God wants to sit with you…even in your suffering.

And He knows suffering, as Jesus suffered himself on the cross.

HOW TO KNOW THAT REAL GOD

And Paul is going to refer now to Jesus’ death & resurrection next.

Let’s read the next few verses

Acts 17:29-31

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(Acts 17:29-31) – NIV

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 human 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 everyone by raising him from the dead.”

What does this mean?

That God will judge the world and that Jesus has resurrected?

Paul is referring to the basic Christian message, called the Gospel.

Which is that all of us have sinned, and thus we fall short of a perfect and holy God’s standards.

And so because we have broken God’s law, there must be judgment.

That was verse 31

The Real Truth

1. You are not an accident – God made the universe (verse 24)

2. Your life is not random chance – God has a plan for you (verse 26)

3. God is not impersonal – He is near and wants to know you (verse 27)

4. God is not indifferent – there will be judgment (verse 31)

It sounds foreign to our ears that God is the judge, but truthfully, we all would hate it if God weren’t just

Just as we long for justice to be done for injustice here on earth, we can’t imagine a future eternity where there is NOT justice for those who have done wrong.

Does Hitler get to just walk into heaven? Unpunished?

No we would say, “That would be wrong!”

But the reality is we all deserve justice because we’ve all done wrong, sinned, and broken God’s commands.

And so there must be justice for us.

And that’s why Jesus came, to die in our place, for us!

In dying on the cross, Jesus was actually taking the punishment that you deserved!

And the Bible says if you believe in that, you can have eternal life.

Because if you believe, then the judgment will come off of you and go onto Jesus.

(John 3:16) – NIV

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

This is the 5th truth I want you to see

The Real Truth

1. You are not an accident – God made the universe (verse 24)

2. Your life is not random chance – God has a plan for you (verse 26)

3. God is not impersonal – He is near and wants to know you (verse 27)

4. God is not indifferent – there will be judgment (verse 31)

5. Death is not the end – there is a resurrection (verse 31)

And Jesus’ resurrection after he was killed proved that there IS life after death.

And the Bible says that there is hell and there is heaven.

And Jesus came on a rescue to mission to die in your place, so that you wouldn’t have to suffer judgment for your sins and go to hell..

He wants to know you and be with you now, and save you, so you can spend eternity with Him in heaven.

So look at this truth. This may be the most important thing anyone ever says to you.

You’re not an accident.

Your life is not random. God has a plan for you

WE don’t live in just an impersonal universe with some force.

There is a real God, and He wants to know YOU and walk with you through all the ups & downs of life.

So much so that He sent His own Son to rescue you and provide a way for you to be made right w/ Him and know Him.

But there is life after death, so I pray that you do accept his offer of a rescue…and start walking in a relationship with Him today.

In fact, I want to give you an opportunity to do that right now.

Let’s just have everyone, just for a minute, close your eyes and bow your head.

If you need to make this decision for the first time today…to tell Jesus that you need His forgiveness for your sins…to make Him the Leader of your life…to accept His gift of Eternal life…

In just a minute, I’m going to ask you to stand up

No one’s going to be looking at you at all, that’s why we had everyone close their eyes.

But sometimes in life, we just need that moment…that moment where we press the button.

To say, “God come save me. I give you my life”

If you need to tell God for the first time today that you do believe, and you want to follow Him and be forgiven.

Then I invite you to stand where you are right now (and keep standing).

The Bible tells us that in this moment we believe in our hearts and confess with our mouths.

Repeat after me

Dear God

I confess to you, that I have sinned against you.

But God I believe, that you sent your Son Jesus, to take my place

And God I thank you, for forgiving my sins.

And now I commit, to following you, with my life.

(NEXT STEPS)

As everyone still has their eyes closed, for those of you standing up, you just made the most important decision of your life, and I believe that requires some more information…

And we want to get you some more resources and next steps so you know what to do next (this is so important)…

…so I want the ___ of you, to walk over to that door TOGETHER on your left where my friends are waving.

You won’t walk there alone.

There are many others standing with you, and our follow-up team is going to walk out at the same time with you

And then, for just a couple of minutes, I am going to give you some extremely important resources & next steps to get you started on the most important journey of your life (and then you can come back in the service).

You can start walking.

Okay, as they walk, let me pray.