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“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” Rom 1:16 (ESV)
“So Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, ‘Men of Athens, I see that you are very religious in all respects. For while I was passing through and examining the objects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription, ‘TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.’ Therefore, what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you.’ ” Acts 17:22-23.
“He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.” Eccl 3:11.
This week, we are focusing on being the Messenger; the person that hears and then delivers The Message of Life. This message, the Gospel or “Good News”, is valid across cultures and across time.
When Paul brought the Gospel to Greece, though he knew Judiasim and his own culture very well, he did not require Greeks to adopt his own culture to become Christians. Instead, Paul took time to understand the existing culture and spoke directly to it, such as recorded in Acts chapter 17 at the Areopagus (“Mars Hill”) in Athens.
Have you noticed that many Scandinavian flags also have a Cross in their flag? Yet the Vikings were not Christians until folks shared the Message of Life with them. Before Saint Patrick the Celts in Ireland were mostly not Christian, and since then the Church has become an integral part of Irish society.
The common understanding from Ecclesiastes 3:11 is that In every human soul is a God-given awareness that there is “something more” than this transient world. This world is not our home.
You can see it today in Western culture as men are concerned about leaving a legacy that is worthwhile and “has made the world a better place”, even if unsure how to do it.
The Gospel, through good news for you, is not just for you, but for you and those you disciple to give away to others. The rest of this week, we’ll look further at how you can share this message of life, locally and to cultures different from your own.
Daily Battle Order: What is the message you’re delivering? Who are you delivering it to?
Could you be ashamed of the message? Paul was not ashamed, as the Gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, everyone, in all cultures.
Are you living out the message in a way that others would want to emulate?
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