Controversy in Athens

For much of Paul's life, he had been "a Hebrew of the Hebrews; concerning the law, a Pharisee...concerning the righteousness which is in the law, blameless" (Philippians 3:5-6). In other words, he had always lived a very strict life. He was so strict, in fact, that he had persecuted the church, which he had viewed as a divergent Jewish sect founded upon tenets that were blasphemous to the Jewish religion (Phil. 3:6a). Although he was from Tarsus in Cilicia (Acts 21:39), he spent much of his time in Jerusalem, the epicenter of Judaism and a place where the corrupt influence of Greek culture was minimal (compared to other regions of the Roman empire).

Then, Paul was converted to Christ in dramatic fashion. He encountered Jesus as he journeyed from Jerusalem to Damascus and was baptized three days later by a humble Christian named Ananias (Acts 9). From that point on, Paul redirected his zeal for the cause of Christ. He proclaimed Christianity as staunchly and as vigorously as he had opposed it before. Of course, Christianity had sprouted from Judaism; it was still a monotheistic religion. Like Judaism, Paul's new Christian faith also required strict moral living (Gal. 5:19-20) as also taught by Christ Himself in the famous "Sermon on the Mount" (Mt. 5-7). Christianity was also similar to Judaism in that it limited salvation to its members (Jn. 8:24; 14:6; Acts 4:12).

My whole point in all of this is to give you a glimpse of Paul's character. He was a man of conviction, who was certainly very religious and knowledgeable, with a strong moral code, and an unwavering devotion to the God of the Bible, the great "I AM!" When he transitioned from Judaism to Christianity, much of this remained the same. 

Okay, now imagine Paul standing in the middle of a city that "was given over to idols" (Acts 17:16), a city of morally-lax, polytheistic Gentiles who had so many pagan altars that there was even an altar "to the unknown god" (Acts 17:23). The city was Athens of Achaia, far removed from his homeland...from his "comfort zone," if you will. This environment was radically liberal for a conservative Christian man such as Paul, so I can only imagine how awkward that must have felt. It would be like placing an American Christian today on a street corner in Tehran and surrounding him with Shiite Muslims. Daniel in the lion's den, right?

But what did Paul do?

He saw the opportunity to impact LOST souls for the cause of Christ. He began his mighty sermon by finding common ground with the men of Athens:

"Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you" (Acts 17:22-23).

We ought to admire Paul's ability to find common ground and to begin his message so tactfully, and yet please do not think that Paul's sermon in Athens was tactful, diplomatic, ecumenical or at all positive (at least not in that setting). In fact, everything Paul went on to say to these Gentiles was an attack on their religion!

• They believed in multiple gods and goddesses who all had their own roles in the spiritual realm, and yet Paul affirmed the existance of one "God who made the world and everything in it" (vs. 24).
• They believed that with their own hands, they could make idols and images in worshiping their gods and goddesses. They had countless physical rituals, and perhaps felt that their deities relied upon their worship. But Paul told them that the true God isn't "worshiped with men's hands" (vs. 25).
• The Athenians believed that every nation had its own deities. In fact, when Rome would conquer a new nation, that nations deities were added to Rome's list of deities. But Paul told them that this one God had created from ONE blood ALL nations of men (vs. 26). So all nations were obligated to "Paul's God." To the Athenians, this would have been absurd.
• They believed that the gods and goddesses lived detached lives far, far away, but Paul boldly proclaimed that God is "not far from each one of us" (vs. 27).
• They must have really viewed Paul as narrow-minded when he said that we "ought not think that the divine nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man's devising" (vs. 29). In other words, God is who He is, not who we want Him to be! 
• Then Paul called them "ignorant" (vs. 30). He told them that they had to repent; that is, they had to change their behavior, abandon their religion, and turn to the one true and living God (vs. 30). Why? Because judgment is coming (vs. 31). The implication is that if they didn't accept Paul's message, and if they didn't become Christians, they would face God's wrath (vs. 31). Otherwise, why would Paul mention repentance and judgment?

Paul's sermon in Athens contains many positive themes as well. We see God's power and might (vs. 24-25), His providence and soveriegnty (vs. 26), His love (vs. 27-29), and even the hope that we have as God's people in a life beyond this one (vs. 31, i.e. "assurance"). But I'm sure that many of these pagans were too offended to notice these positive themes.

This mighty message may not seem so controversial to us. The majority of the sermon wouldn't have even been controversial to the Jews of Paul's day; I imagine that if there were any Jews present in Athens that day, they were silently cheering Paul on...at least until He started talking about Jesus and the resurrection. But again, put yourself in Paul's shoes. Imagine the setting. Learn the culture of Athens. Maybe then you'll realize how awkward and controversial this message was.