As one man said, “Life can only be understood backwards.” Because if we close our ears to the past, we are simultaneously closing our eyes to the present. As the late pastor Adrian Rogers says, what HAS happened IS happening. What does Athens have to do with me? ---As Dr. Robert Smith Jr says....What does the culture of Athens have to do with you? Navigating through the Athens in America...
In the words of my seminary president the world needs a fearless
church--
The more we know about the Athens account, the better we are prepared to
address our current culture of religious pluralism—the acceptance that all
religions are equally valid and acceptable. Listen up church, what happened
in Athens IS happening now but the apostle Paul is demonstrating an
attitudinal and theological approach to proclaiming the gospel in a city full of
skeptics.-- Adrian Rogers says, the city is full of people slanging
soul dope
Athens: It is a shadow of its former self, the city was built
philosophically on cynicism and debate. Intellectual giants..
Politically Athens is no longer of importance when Paul comes
though it is still the university seat of the world with all its rich
environment and traditions. 5,000 people—Criminal and Civil,
Religious matters
What does Athens have to do with me? How should we faithfully
proclaim the gospel in a culture with competing worldviews?
1.Check your emotions —Listen to the cry of Christ in the culture
2.Capitalize on open dialogue (Herald under authority of the one true God)
3.Commend opponents with charitable remarks
4.Commit to building bridges of relevancy
5.Chart how you will collide with the culture
6.Champion the supremacy of the God of the bible –Be ready with an
answer for your hope—Confess the champion of your faith ---
Champion the confession of your faith –Champion the hope of the world
Expect people to receive the message----We are not judged for the outcome of our proclamation but on the output of our faith, it’s never a question of how many people but how much we trust...Be Faith driven not results
driven, yet faithfully expect for God to call men to himself—This isn’t an invitation but a divine subpoena... RC Sproul
Don’t believe the lie that no wants to hear about Jesus....either they will reject, reschedule, receive and believe and breakaway
What does Athens have to do with you? Check your history and you’ll know...