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Main Idea
We should let the blindness of this world provoke us to action.
Has something ever provoked you? Maybe seeing someone bullied at school caused you to stand up for that person. Or maybe your sibling keeps pushing your buttons in the back seat during the long hours of a family vacation, and you blow up (of course, I’m sure that has never happened to you personally, right?). I remember being in Cameroon. I had just gotten to my hotel room, which was tiny, dingy, dark, and hot because there was no AC. I could feel the first-world pains bubble to the surface until I pulled open the window curtain. Behind my hotel was a whole slum community where entire families were living in tiny shacks that were constructed from scrap pieces of metal roofing. Not only was I convicted of my poor attitude, but I was brought to tears and provoked to pray for them… that God would care for them physically and send them someone who would tell them the good news of Jesus.
Today is about being provoked, and we see it acted upon sinfully and righteously. The core of the passage today is a call to be righteously provoked, so let’s plunge in and unpack what that means for us.
Passage
Acts 17:10–21 ESV
The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they went into the Jewish synagogue. Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so. Many of them therefore believed, with not a few Greek women of high standing as well as men. But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was proclaimed by Paul at Berea also, they came there too, agitating and stirring up the crowds. Then the brothers immediately sent Paul off on his way to the sea, but Silas and Timothy remained there. Those who conducted Paul brought him as far as Athens, and after receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they departed.
Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols. So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be there. Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also conversed with him. And some said, “What does this babbler wish to say?” Others said, “He seems to be a preacher of foreign divinities”—because he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection. And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? For you bring some strange things to our ears. We wish to know therefore what these things mean.” Now all the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there would spend their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new.
Outline
I – Setting
II – Paul in Berea (vv. 10-15)
III – Paul in Athens (vv. 16-21)
I – Setting
Berea
- 45 miles southwest of Thessalonica.
- “Place of many waters,” built at the foot of Mount Bermius and was established in the 4th century BC.
- A scenic town on the Egnatian Way (a road connecting key Roman colonies).
Athens
- 195 miles south of Berea
- Ancient, dating back to 3,000 BC
- The intellectual center of Macedonia. The ‘Oxford’ of the Roman world, where the best and brightest minds of religion, philosophy, and finances met to discuss and debate.
- Incredible architecture and culture: the Parthenon, the Acropolis, and the Agora (marketplace).
- Produced famous minds like Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle.
- It has been said it was easier to meet a god or goddess on the main street of Athens than to meet a man because there were so many idols.
Jews
There are 3 groups:
- Berean Jews (more noble than the others)
- Thessalonian Jews (the troublemakers)
- Athenian Jews (information junkies)
Greeks
Generally speaking
- men
- prominent women
- devout persons
Specifically
- Epicureans (materialistic naturalism and hedonism)
- Stoics (virtuous fatalists)
Before we get into the details, I want to plant the seed in your mind that this is the first time we see an intentional push into the public square, where Paul speaks directly to the cultural norms of the city. Start thinking about what types of cultural norms exist here in this county.
Now that we know the setting and people groups, let’s jump into the conversation.
II – Paul in Berea
Noble Jews hear and respond
- Noble = noble-minded/open-minded/high-character. Not necessarily noble birth, but noble character.
- What made them noble?
1. They received the word with eagerness. Lively and passionate interest without prejudice.
2. They examined the scripture to confirm the message. Evaluate and form a critical opinion, mining the gold from the scriptural hills but keeping their faith subordinate to the authority of scripture. This would have been like the debates we see on TV without all the prep work, so it was more intellectually involved at the moment as the discussion unfolded.
As a result of points 1 and 2, many believed.
If that was the mark of virtuous character, let us strive for the same attitudes. We should be willing to listen to others without prejudice and thoughtfully examine their claims against the ultimate authoritative standard of the Bible. As your pastor, I don’t expect you to accept my teaching blindly. I pray that you will be skilled examiners, and if you have a question about what has been taught, you go to the text and seek understanding.
The Greeks are also affected
- As it was in Thessalonica, many prominent Greeks believed – “now a few” men and women.
- These weren’t just commoners either. These were educated men and women who held positions of authority in the community.
- Evidently, they had the same noble attitudes as the Berean Jews.
Thessalonian Jews agitate
- Now, the second group of Jews comes into play.
- Word got back to Thessalonica that Paul was proclaiming the word of God in Berea.
- Jealousy provoked the Thessalonian Jews to travel 45 miles to Berea.
- They agitated and stirred up the crowd, just as they had done previously, spewing their toxicity over the Berean community.
Christian brothers protect Paul
This section is sandwiched between two groups of caring Christians.
Urgency – The brothers (local Christians) immediately get Paul and the others out of Thessalonica and then again out of Berea when the same angry Jewish mob tries to attack.
Paul seemed to be their primary target since he asked Silas and Timothy to remain there.
If you stand for truth, others will stand against you. Trouble followed Paul from Thessalonica just as it did from Pisidian Antioch. There will be opposition, but thankfully, there will also be allies. The brothers also stood with Paul as he stood for truth and against the jealous mob.
It is also in this passage that we see a tainted view of being provoked. The nature of being provoked is to stir up what’s inside you. The Thessalonian Jews had contaminated hearts, poisoned by the bitter root of jealousy. They were provoked to agitate and stir the crowd in a sinful way that did not bring honor and glory to God. Our sin can also do that to us, so this passage serves as a warning to examine what is inside us because when provoked, that will come out.
That’s our first lesson from the Bereans, but there is much more to learn as we travel with Paul to the famed city of Athens.
III – Paul in Athens
Righteously provoked
When Paul made the 195-mile trek to Athens, he was overwhelmed by the number of idols.
Not only was he overwhelmed, but he was provoked in his spirit. Provoked can mean sharp irritation (like in the case of Paul and Barnabas’s disagreement) or to urge (as in Heb. 10:24 to stir up to love and good works). Those were the noun forms. The only other verb form of this word is in 1 Cor. 13:5, which says that love is not irritable or resentful, so we can get the idea that he was upset and stirred to action.
Like the Thessalonian Jews, Paul was provoked to action, but unlike that group, his actions produced fruit for God’s kingdom instead of sinful, jealous division.
Christians must adopt the same heart and mindset as Paul. Too often, Christians apathetically look at the world around them and see people worshiping idols. Outrage does not fill the hearts of Christians as they see the name of God defamed and glory given to something other than Yahweh. Indifference has replaced zeal, and lethargy has drowned passion. When God’s people see idols worshiped, a righteous anger should burn within their soul. With the blast of a trumpet, the Christian must charge into the battle, storm the gates of the enemy, obliterate the idol, and bring the captives to see the only One worthy of worship.
– Acts 13–28 for You Commentary
That is why the name of this sermon is righteously provoked. We can (and should be) outraged by the level of evil in our world and how human praise is given to worldly things and people rather than the God who made them. That should provoke us.
But, the core difference between Paul and the Thessalonian mob is what came out. Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit, so righteous actions flowed out. He didn’t insight riots and gather mobs. Paul knew how to be indignant toward the sin that blinded people and yet, be compassionate to those who were blinded. He hated the sin but longed to free the sinner. We’ll see that in part today and in more detail next week.
reasoned in the synagogues
- This is where he starts, but he doesn’t stay there for long. Did he want the message of the Jewish Messiah to reach the Jews first? Absolutely.
- But he also knew how enslaved the Greek population was to the countless idols he saw on his way in, so he didn’t stay in the synagogue.
reasoned in the marketplace
Paul intentionally goes outside of the synagogue and into the marketplace, otherwise known as the Agora. (the center of philosophical and religious thought) to declare the gospel. Imagine a world without internet, cell phones, or even rotary phones. How would you get your information and have important conversations? You would gather in the city center in the public square.
Has the same feel as Penny Universities – English coffeehouses where ideas were discussed.
It is here that Paul encounters two distinct types of thinkers:
EPICUREANS (ĕp-ĭ-kū-rēʾănz, Gr. Epikoureioi). The followers of Epicurus, the Greek philosopher who lived 341–270 b.c. He taught that nature rather than reason is the true reality; nothing exists but atoms and void, that is, matter and space. The chief purpose of man is to achieve happiness.
-The New International Bible Commentary
So, to summarize, epicureans believe that ‘god’ is either non-existent or so far removed that he doesn’t manage any of the details. Therefore, the pleasures of this life are all we get, so we should avoid pain and hardship and pursue pleasure to enjoy it to the fullest. Sound familiar?
What does our consumeristic culture tell us? It’s all about you… you deserve this… your ultimate goal should be your well-being and happiness. We are living in an epicurean age.
STOICISM A philosophy attributed to Zeno (b. 334 bc). A unified theory of the cosmos involving physics, logic, and ethics. He borrowed heavily from Plato and Heraclitus for Stoic physics, especially their concept of a physical world that was a single, unified entity governed by an active, guiding principle that could be considered the logos/god of the world. For Zeno, the physical world was the only thing people could truly understand, and they must assent to or challenge impressions from the world until they attain true understanding.
– The Lexham Bible Dictionary
So again, to summarize, stoicism says there is an entity that governs all things, called the logos. Therefore, there is reason, morality, and virtue to pursue. This sounds a lot like Christianity, except that stoics don’t view God as a loving Father. The entity known as the logos is not a person and, therefore, not personal, and virtue is lived out as a duty, not in a joyful relationship. When life gets tough, you just wear a brave face, grit your teeth, and bear it.
We have much of this in our culture, too, right? We can live our lives according to the laws of the Bible and take things head-on with cold, emotionless obligations but fail to embrace a real and loving relationship with our Heavenly Father, who reconciles us to him in Christ. Is this really any better than epicureanism?
two reactions from two schools of thought
Now, these two types of philosophers have something to say about Paul’s message, and it isn’t all that pleasant.
- “What does this babbler wish to say?” The word babbler is a derogatory term that literally means seed-picker. The imagery is a chicken pecking at seeds on the ground arbitrarily without an understanding. You have no original thoughts but randomly peck at other concepts.
- “He seems to be a preacher of foreign divinities.” This was in direct response to proclaiming Jesus’s resurrection. To the epicurean, it would have been absurd to think that a ‘god’ would have come into his own creation if there was a god at all. To the stoic, the logos was not a personal being, so this would have cut against the grain of both philosophies.
To the Areopagus – Though there were differing views, they both wanted to learn more. So, they took Paul to the Areopagus, otherwise known as the “Hill of Ares” (the Greek god of war) or “Mars Hill” (Ares’s Roman name), where ideas were talked through in a public forum.
The Athenians (people of Athens who probably encompassed all streams of thought) were information junkies, thriving on new information to discuss. If they had smartphones, they would have been glued to the endless scroll of social media for sure! Though they differed in their thinking, they were eager and willing listeners, which sets the stage for Paul’s famous sermon on Mars Hill that we will see next week.
In closing…
Conclusion
The clarion call of this passage is to discern the pitfalls of our culture and let that righteously provoke us to engage in the public square.
Our faith is not contained in our private devotional lives (just me and Jesus) nor confined to the church. We must love God and others to the degree we are stepping out to make Jesus known to a world that does not know him. Paul knew what the Epicureans and the Stoics believed, and he used elements of their beliefs to point to Christ.
Even though we may be persecuted (the Thessalonian mob) or ridiculed (the initial reaction from the philosophers), we can move forward in the power of the Spirit and the fellowship of other believers (the brothers who helped Paul retreat twice). We do so by being righteously provoked: hating the sin and darkness around us but compassionately loving those in darkness and pointing them to the light of Christ.
In doing so, you are an agent, used by God to establish His kingdom, and that is worth every ounce of hardship we could face.