Created, Redeemed, Sustained

Acts 17:22-34 22

Then Paul stood in front of the Ar-re-o-pa-gus and said, “A-then-ni-ans, I see how extremely religious you are in every way. 23For as I went through the city and looked carefully at the objects of your worship, I found among them an altar with the inscription, 'To an unknown god.' What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. 24The God who made the world and everything in it, he who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by human hands, 25nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mortals life and breath and all things. 26From one ancestor he made all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, 27so that they would search for God and perhaps grope for him and find him — though indeed he is not far from each one of us. 28For 'In him we live and move and have our being'; as even some of your own poets have said, 'For we, too, are his offspring.' 29Since we are God's offspring, we ought not to think that the deity is like gold, or silver, or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of mortals. 30While God has overlooked the times of human ignorance, now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 31because he has fixed a day on which he will have the world judged in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead." 32When they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some scoffed; but others said, "We will hear you again about this." 33At that point Paul left them. 34But some of them joined him and became believers, including Di-o’knee”si-us the Ar-e-o-pa’ gite and a woman named Dam’a-ris, and others with them. John 14: 15-17…‘If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you for ever. 17 This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you. 18 ‘I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. 

HOMILY

There are moments in life when people find themselves searching— but not always knowing what they are looking for. They sense that something is missing but they don’t know what it is. I have been there; and chances are so have many of you.There are moments in life when people find themselves searching— but not always knowing what they are looking for. They sense that something is missing but they don’t know what it is. I have been there; and chances are so have many of you. That is what is happening in the narrative which we just read from Acts 17. The Apostle Paul walks through the city of Athens—a center of learning, culture, and religion. Everywhere he looks he sees altars, temples and shrines. Finally something gets his attention—-it’s an altar with this inscription: “To an unknown god”. That altar tells Paul something important about the people of Athens—they believe in God, yes —but they don’t really know him. They have no experience of him—they have no relationship with him—Something is missing. And that is something that Paul can relate to—because, once, he was like them—He was religious— he was even zealous for his religion—he believed in God—thought he was serving God. But something was missing in Paul’s life—until he met Jesus. Now, He can identify with these people—because— he had walked in their shoes. Therefore Paul did not condemn them for their ignorance. Instead, he starts where they are at—with their “unknown god”. He says “What you worship as unknown, I now proclaim to you”. He begins by saying that this god—who they do not know— is actually a god, who is by his very nature, related to them—related to them because he is their creator—but not a capricious creator. He is a creator with a purpose. Paul specifies that purpose in verses 26-27 “From one ancestor he made all peoples to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, so that—they—would search for God.” Did you hear those words. He has made them “So that they would search for GOD” Those words must have resonated with the Athenians— because that was what they were doing. They were searching for God. They were doing exactly what they were made to do. Did you hear those words. He has made them “So that they would search for GOD” Those words must have resonated with the Athenians— because that was what they were doing. They were searching for God. They were doing exactly what they were made to do. And so it is with us. We too, are created by God for the purpose of seeking him out. And that explains why there is a longing in each of our hearts for something beyond ourselves. That desire is not accidental—it was placed there by the very ONE who made us. Centuries ago, Augustine expressed this truth in words that Christians have treasured for years: “O Lord, Thou hast made us for Thyself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in Thee” And so whether it is the people who created the altar in Athens, or you and I looking into the star-studded sky of the Eastern Shore—or the pastor looking into the eyes of a tiny baby who is about to be baptized— all of it reflects the same truth: We are reaching for God because we were made for Him. “Reaching for God” is built into our very DNA. But then Paul has something else to say that is even more astonishing— We see it in the last part of verse 27 of our narrative . Not only did God make us for himself—not only did he put within our heart a desire to be with Him—He makes it possible for it to happen—for us to be with Him. In the words Paul spoke to the people of Athens—which he now speaks to us by his written word—“GOD IS NOT FAR AWAY”. . He is very near. Just as we are reaching out for Him—God is reaching out for You and me. That changes the equation, doesn’t it? God is not distant. God is not hiding. God is not playing games with us. He is near—very near! The brother of our Lord says essentially the same thing in the epistle he wrote. “Draw nigh to God and he will draw nigh to you”. How close is God? Paul says he is very close—his exact words—“In Him we live and move and have our being”. How close is God? Paul says he is very close—his exact words—“In Him we live and move and have our being”. That means that every breath we take— is sustained by Him. Every step we walk— is made possible by Him. Every moment of our existence— is held together by Him. Think about that! The fact that you and I awoke this morning is because God was close enough to make it happen. PAUSE. The fact that we are alive today, gathered in this building—is evidence of just how close God is to us. Psalm 66 (which Sharon read moments ago) — echoes this truth beautifully: “He has preserved our lives and kept our feet from slipping”. From the time of our birth to this very day— the hand of God has kept us alive to fulfill His purpose. i have witnessed this personally. And so have all of you. God’s purpose for creating us—is for us to be in a relationship with him. He has placed within our very heartl— that desire. And he remains close enough for that desire to be filled. John says in the book of Revelation, “Behold I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and will open the door, I will come in to him and sup with him”. How close is God? He is at the door. So that raises another question. If God is very near, why is it that sometimes he seems to be far away? Could the answer be that sometimes we seek Him in the wrong places? Could it be that there is a God shaped hole in our very innermost being— a hole that cannot be filled with anything or anyone but God? I think so. The prophet, Jeremiah tells us about how sometimes we get sidetracked. He says: “My people have forsaken me. the spring of living water and have dug their own cisterns that can hold NO water.” That is the human condition—not just for people in general—but even for God’s people—we all get sidetracked, don’t we?The prophet, Jeremiah tells us about how sometimes we get sidetracked. He says: “My people have forsaken me. the spring of living water and have dug their own cisterns that can hold NO water.” That is the human condition—not just for people in general—but even for God’s people—we all get sidetracked, don’t we? So beyond creation, God moves toward redemption. Though we get side tracked—He does not give up on us. He calls us to turn—to repent—to come back to Him. But even while He calls us, He knows that left to ourselves—we will be slow to make that turn. So He comes to us. In John’s gospel. Jesus says, “I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you.” That is exactly what Jesus did for Paul on the road to Damascus. Paul did not come to Jesus, Jesus came to Paul. He did the same for some of the Athenians. Some of them mocked him. Some scorned the thought that God would come for them. But some believed and became followers. They realized that God had created them; and that while they were seeking him, he was already seeking them. That is a reality that still unfolds this very day. While we seek for God, God is seeking for us. He never ceases to call us by name. While we search for him here, there and everywhere else, he is forever standing close by— even at the door. He does not force his way into our lives. He is patient and long suffering. He lovingly waits for us to open the door. Are we seeking him today? The good news is that he is seeking us. No one has said it better than an anonymous artist whose words we find in our Red Book hymn #402…. And I quote: “I sought the Lord and afterward I knew, He moved my soul to seek Him seeking me. It was not I that found the Savior true; No, I was found of Thee.” We can run, but we cannot hide. We may give up on trying to fill what is missing in our lives. But God does not give up on us--why— because we belong to Him. He loves us; and when we come to the end of our searching—when we cannot find what it is we are looking for—1.God will find us—2.He will fill us with His Holy Spirit—and like the Good Shepherd that he is, 3.He will care for us until he takes us home to be with Him in heaven—forever. AmenHe loves us; and when we come to the end of our searching—when we cannot find what it is we are looking for—1.God will find us—2.He will fill us with His Holy Spirit—and like the Good Shepherd that he is, 3.He will care for us until he takes us home to be with Him in heaven—forever. Amen