OUT OF DARKNESS
ACTS 17:24- 31
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."
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It was a miner's worst nightmare. What began as a typical working day in March of 1977 ended tragically when a crushing torrent of water slammed into the Kosher Coal Company mine in Tower City, Pennsylvania. The flash flood wrecked the mining operation and buried nine miners alive. Amazingly, one man survived. For 29 hours Ronald Adley sat trapped in a cold, wet and dark tomb. Surrounded by darkness and silence, Adley's only companion was his imagination. And it ran wild as he stared into the blackness.
After all those hours of silence and darkness, Adley suddenly thought he heard something. He tilted his head and listened. Again he heard the sound, like a tapping on the stone wall behind him. In the darkness, Adley groped for a rock and began tapping back. Time and again he hit the wall, hoping he would be heard.
One minute passed. And then another. All of a sudden a drill burst through the wall, flooding the dark cavern with light and life-giving fresh air! Adley's friends had pulled through; they had done all they could to get him out of that dark place.
In a sense, the men of ancient Athens were like Ronald Adley. They were surrounded by darkness--spiritual darkness. And, like Adley, they needed someone to bring them light and life.
Notice how Paul brought light into their dark world. First, Paul spoke courteously (v.22), showing an awareness of and appreciation for their religious quest. Second, he used an example from their own religious culture as a means of introducing them to the true God (v. 23). Third, Paul gently pointed out religious culture as a means of introducing them to the true God (v. 23). Third, Paul gently pointed out the fallacies of their belief system (vv. 24-25). He delcared that God, the Creator and Ruler of the universe, isn't distant or uncaring. On the contrary, he is a personal God who wants all men to know him. Again Paul made reference to something they would find familiar in making a theological point (vv. 26-28). Finally, Paul urged his listeners to repent and embrace God's Son, whom God had raised from the dead (v. 31). Repentance was a fitting response because God would one day judge all men.
Notice how Paul identified something he could affirm in these men and then gently told them about their need for a Savior. And how did they respond? Some of his listeners saw the light and were delivered from darkness. Others chose to stay in the darkness: they simply walked away from the good news of the gospel.
God has called us to see unbelievers as victims of the enemy, the devil, not as the enemy. They are trapped in darkenss and need someone to bring them the message of light and life. Ask God to allow you to see your unbelieving friends in that way. And ask God to help you gently point them to Jesus Christ.
