Acts 17v16 Now while Paul waited for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols. 17 Therefore he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the Gentile worshipers, and in the marketplace daily with those who happened to be there. 18 Then[a] certain Epicurean and Stoic philosophers encountered him. And some said, “What does this babbler want to say?”
Acts 17v19 And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new doctrine is of which you speak? 20 For you are bringing some strange things to our ears. Therefore we want to know what these things mean.” 21 For all the Athenians and the foreigners who were there spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear some new thing.
One way the enemy loves to try and desensitise Christians to the truth, and to curb their desire to continue to grow in it, is to flood the society where we live with as many ideas, ideologies and perspectives on life and living as he possibly can. If the enemy can cause an avalanche of these things to continually rain down on Christians, he can wear us down and cause us to put up a shield, not only to the world's ways, but also to Christian ways and Christian truths, because we simply are tired and scared of learning the wrong thing.
This is also how the enemy can silence Christians, as they no longer think that shining the 'light' of truth is important or beneficial in any way. Whereas Christ said to shine our light on a hill, we hide it in a bushel and become ineffective with the talents He's given us. The Christian has been given many hills in today's society; these come in many forms, including the hills (opportunities and platforms) we get in our work places, in times with our friends and families, and yes, even Facebook. Shining the truth is always beneficial, because we are, in effect, sharing the Holy Spirit with others, for '...the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.' (Heb 4v12). We have been given so much, and yet to not share it is to not believe in its power, and to not believe in the purpose it has because of the one who first gave it:
Is 55v10: 'As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
11so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.'
The enemy also wants to set up as many hills and as much communication as he can to try and block and frustrate the communication of the Lord. And he has done all he can to make this happen through nearly every form of technology and media and voices that our world has and speaks with today. However, the simple fact is that, when the Word is shared, the Lord's purpose for that word will not be frustrated, but it will always be effectual, whether we see it or not. That is why, not only is this walk a walk of faith, but also actions that come from that walk are faith based. That is why it is always an act of faith to share the Word, for you will not often see its effect, but you must still believe it has one. If our sharing of the truth is done only according to the effect that we see it has, we'll rarely share it, because the truth often comes to people as a seed, which is obviously something so small and seemingly insignificant. But like Jesus said, even though that seed may be so small, and even though it may be hidden, when the Lord grows it and makes it fruitful, it will end up being the biggest tree in the garden of men's hearts and lives. Never underestimate the effect truth has, and never become discouraged at our lack of ability to make anything happen in the natural. God wanted to teach Paul that in himself, he was weak and only a vessel, and so it is with us. Though, from what we know, it is likely that Paul was martyred by wicked men, God has shown us since then what the result of Paul's shining forth of the truth was, and no doubt the full extent of it will not be known till we all as Christians reach Heaven one day.
Our society is now an information super-highway, and it looks so busy and seems so much larger than life, and yet, in reality, people are starving for Words of life that nourish and give life, and only Jesus has those Words. And we, as His people, have been entrusted with them, not so that we can hoard them away and hide them, but that so we can be generous with what we've been given. As we have been freely given the truth, so must we freely give that truth, without shame or thought for ourselves, for the light of life is not just for us, but for all men. Shine your light on a hill! Let people know the truth, and shine the light of the Word for your fellow Christians so that we can continue to learn and grow in it! We all need each other in this, we all need each other to share, for Christ made us a body for a reason, and this is one of the main reasons for it.
Acts 17v19 And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new doctrine is of which you speak? 20 For you are bringing some strange things to our ears. Therefore we want to know what these things mean.” 21 For all the Athenians and the foreigners who were there spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear some new thing.
One way the enemy loves to try and desensitise Christians to the truth, and to curb their desire to continue to grow in it, is to flood the society where we live with as many ideas, ideologies and perspectives on life and living as he possibly can. If the enemy can cause an avalanche of these things to continually rain down on Christians, he can wear us down and cause us to put up a shield, not only to the world's ways, but also to Christian ways and Christian truths, because we simply are tired and scared of learning the wrong thing.
This is also how the enemy can silence Christians, as they no longer think that shining the 'light' of truth is important or beneficial in any way. Whereas Christ said to shine our light on a hill, we hide it in a bushel and become ineffective with the talents He's given us. The Christian has been given many hills in today's society; these come in many forms, including the hills (opportunities and platforms) we get in our work places, in times with our friends and families, and yes, even Facebook. Shining the truth is always beneficial, because we are, in effect, sharing the Holy Spirit with others, for '...the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.' (Heb 4v12). We have been given so much, and yet to not share it is to not believe in its power, and to not believe in the purpose it has because of the one who first gave it:
Is 55v10: 'As the rain and the snow
come down from heaven,
and do not return to it
without watering the earth
and making it bud and flourish,
so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater,
11so is my word that goes out from my mouth:
It will not return to me empty,
but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.'
The enemy also wants to set up as many hills and as much communication as he can to try and block and frustrate the communication of the Lord. And he has done all he can to make this happen through nearly every form of technology and media and voices that our world has and speaks with today. However, the simple fact is that, when the Word is shared, the Lord's purpose for that word will not be frustrated, but it will always be effectual, whether we see it or not. That is why, not only is this walk a walk of faith, but also actions that come from that walk are faith based. That is why it is always an act of faith to share the Word, for you will not often see its effect, but you must still believe it has one. If our sharing of the truth is done only according to the effect that we see it has, we'll rarely share it, because the truth often comes to people as a seed, which is obviously something so small and seemingly insignificant. But like Jesus said, even though that seed may be so small, and even though it may be hidden, when the Lord grows it and makes it fruitful, it will end up being the biggest tree in the garden of men's hearts and lives. Never underestimate the effect truth has, and never become discouraged at our lack of ability to make anything happen in the natural. God wanted to teach Paul that in himself, he was weak and only a vessel, and so it is with us. Though, from what we know, it is likely that Paul was martyred by wicked men, God has shown us since then what the result of Paul's shining forth of the truth was, and no doubt the full extent of it will not be known till we all as Christians reach Heaven one day.
Our society is now an information super-highway, and it looks so busy and seems so much larger than life, and yet, in reality, people are starving for Words of life that nourish and give life, and only Jesus has those Words. And we, as His people, have been entrusted with them, not so that we can hoard them away and hide them, but that so we can be generous with what we've been given. As we have been freely given the truth, so must we freely give that truth, without shame or thought for ourselves, for the light of life is not just for us, but for all men. Shine your light on a hill! Let people know the truth, and shine the light of the Word for your fellow Christians so that we can continue to learn and grow in it! We all need each other in this, we all need each other to share, for Christ made us a body for a reason, and this is one of the main reasons for it.
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