What You Worship As Unknown I Proclaim To You
“For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, ‘To the unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.”
The Apostle Paul is in Athens and has been called upon to explain his preaching. Acts 17, along with 1 Peter 3:15, is most often used to provide guidelines on apologetics. By apologetics, we mean, defending the faith. 1 Peter 3:15, 16 say: “but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.”
We often miss in this passage the first line about honoring Christ in our hearts as holy. Peter means that we must set apart Christ in our hearts. We do this through behavior, words and thoughts. Each of these can be seen in 1 Peter 3:15, 16. In Acts 17, Paul speaks confidently and quietly, as he explains who God is and what God has done. His audience is the Athenians. They loved discussing anything and everything (Acts 17:21). That’s how they spent their time. The Greeks were known for their philosophy and wisdom (1 Cor. 1:22). Paul seeks to tell them that Christ is the wisdom of God. The Athenians worshiped a multitude of gods through their idols. Paul calls them “your objects of worship” (Acts 17:23). He even found an inscription “to the unknown god” (vs. 23).
It was this statement that provided him with the opening to introduce the Athenians to the living and true God. The Athenians, of course, had included this altar just in case they missed out mentioning some deity. They wanted to cover their bases. But what is the point in mentioning an unknown deity. If he is unknown why mention him? By including this deity in their pantheon of gods, they still do not know him or have any idea about him. People are exactly like this today. Worshiping what they do not know!
It is sad, of course, that sometimes it is people who say they are Christians. They have all kinds of ideas about God and Jesus, but hardly any of it is biblical. If we are going to have a faith to confess, then we must be biblical. That means that we must look to God’s revelation and not to experience as our final authority. This is so basic, yet it is remarkable how many people don’t believe it or practice it.
In Acts 17:22-31, the first point that Paul makes is that God is supreme. He made the world and all that is in it. He is Lord of heaven and earth. This statement by Paul puts God above any Athenian deity. He cannot be reduced to a temple or location (vs. 24). God is not served by human hands to keep him in existence. Rather, it is God who provides life for all things (vs. 25). When we witness, it is very important to keep this in mind. Aim to set God above everything and anyone. I have found this helpful in talking to Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons who lower Jesus to a place less than God. The Nicene Creed states that we “believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible.” At the same time, the Creed also says that we “believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, begotten from the Father before all ages, God from God…true God from true God.” So the supremacy of God is seen in his being both Creator and Sustainer. The existence of God, according to the Bible, points to the fact that God created all things and that he maintains all things (Col. 1:15-20; 1 Tim. 4:4; Heb. 1:2, 3; 11:3). God is, therefore, to be acknowledged as supreme and the sustainer of all things (especially our lives). God is sovereign, says Paul, because he created all peoples from one man, made earth for them to live on, and provided them with places and times in which to live (vs. 26). He did this so that all might seek him and find him (vs. 27). This God is not some abstract being. He is not some uninvolved deity like an idol whom no one can know for certain, whether he exists or cares. No, God is personal. He is caring of his creatures. So we affirm a personal God involved in human life.
Paul reminds us to give thanks for food and clothing and be content with such things (Phil. 4:11; 1 Tim. 6:8; also Heb. 13:5). It is God who provides for us because he is personal. Of what use is an uninvolved God, or an uncaring, unconcerned God? Paul affirms that God is personal because he is not far from each one of us (vs. 27). Not only is he transcendent and unchangeable, but also near and personal. If he is personal, he is an involved God. He is not some theory or some inscription. If the atheist will humble himself and seek God, he will find God. If the scientist will bow his mind before God and seek after God in his science, he will find God. God is not far from any of us. Paul stresses the nearness of God because man always complains that God is uncaring and far removed from us.
Man so often complains because he never wants to see death or destruction. He never wants to acknowledge personal sin. He has no explanation for the former and denies the latter. Sin is always reduced to a mistake, a disease, or a genetic deficiency, but never as an affront to a holy God. If God is personal and near, then you cannot think in this way. By affirming that God is personal and near, Paul stresses our obligation to God. We must think right thoughts about God (vs. 29). He is not some piece of wood–an inanimate object, like silver or gold or stone. God cannot be conceived by man in his imagination. Whatever man comes up with, will be a corruption. It will be idolatrous and false.
The only way to know God is through his revelation, both in creation and in his Word. In particular, it is through the eternal Word, our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul demands a decision about such truths in verses 30 and 31. God overlooked man’s ignorance previously (past ages), but no longer. He commands all people everywhere to repent because the Day of Judgment is coming. In fact, Jesus will be the Judge, because he has been raised from the dead. The certainty of future judgment is tied to the Resurrection of Jesus.
Now in debating truth and its claims, we must realize that we are calling upon people to abandon what they have believed and trusted in previously. God’s revelation of himself is the ultimate ground of knowledge. This revelation from God is authoritative. We claim the authority of God over all things and all people. It is this that we must press people to acknowledge. Why should we listen to any claim by any religion, person or cult? On what basis should we accept any claim by anyone else over God and his revelation?
This is the essence of apologetics. In advancing the truth and its claims, we defend the faith. We must never do this arrogantly, but with gentleness and respect as Peter says (1 Pet. 3:15). The only way to do this is to honor Christ in our hearts. If we are consciously seeking to honor Christ in our hearts, we shall find that we are prepared to give a defense of the hope that we have. Defending the faith means learning and applying. We desire the salvation of all men and women, all boys and girls. Let us remind them that God is supreme, sovereign and personal. Let us remind them of the good news in our Lord Jesus Christ. Let us affirm his Lordship over all. We do not worship an unknown God, but one who can be known and is known by us.