To Mars and Beyond!

Acts 17: 16-34

It’s an exciting day at Ampthill as we prepare to launch our Vacation Bible School to Mars and Beyond. I figured, what better Scripture to use this morning than a Bible story about Mars? To be specific, Mars Hill...also known as the Areopagus in Greek ( which means the rock of Ares, named after the Greek God of war). Mars was the Roman god of war, hence why the Romans took to referring to it as Mars Hill. Mars Hill was the location of the council of elders of the city, responsible for investigating corruption in the public sector

Timothy, Silas and Paul have a gift for corruption in the book of Acts. Prior to arriving in Athens, they’ve traveled to Philippi where Paul cast out a demon from a slave-girl whose masters made a fortune off of her telling fortunes. When Paul drove out this demon, she could no longer predict the future. And the Scripture reads that when her owners realized that their hope for making money off of her was gone, they grabbed Paul and Silas and dragged them before officials in the city center (Acts 16:19-20). “These people are causing an uproar in our city. They are Jews who are promoting customs that we Romans can’t accept or practice.” They were stripped, severely beaten, and thrown into jail.

Long story short, God intervened and Timothy, Silas, and Paul left Philippi and ended up in Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. Paul went there and began to preach the Gospel of how Jesus had to suffer and rise from the dead. Some were, indeed, convinced that Jesus was the long-awaited Messiah. Others...became jealous and gathered up a group of thugs from the marketplace to start up a riot in the city. They attacked the house where Paul and Silas were staying while in Thessalonica, but Paul and Silas were not there. So the mob ended up dragging the owner of the house, Jason, and some of the people who had already been converted by Paul’s preaching before the city officials and shouted, “These people who have been disturbing the peace throughout the empire have also come here. What is more, Jason has welcomed them into his home. Every one of them does what is contrary to Caesar’s decrees by naming someone else as king: Jesus.” Sound familiar? This provoked the crowd and the city officials tremendously. Jason encouraged the apostles to leave Thessalonica and continue their journey to Beroea.

As he had done in Thessalonica, Paul went to the synagogue in Beroea and began to preach there and found a much warmer reception by the Beroean Jews. But when the Thessalonian Jews learned that Paul and Silas were preaching over in Beroea, they showed up and started upsetting the crowds there, too. This time Timothy and Silas stayed behind, but Paul was encouraged to leave. Those who escorted him to safety took Paul as far as Athens and then returned with instructions to bring Timothy and Silas as quickly as possible.

And that brings us to today’s Scripture lesson:

16 While Paul waited for them in Athens, he was deeply distressed to find that the city was flooded with idols. 17 He began to interact with the Jews and Gentile God-worshippers in the synagogue. He also addressed whoever happened to be in the marketplace each day.18 Certain Epicurean and Stoic philosophers engaged him in discussion too. Some said, “What an amateur! What’s he trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be a proclaimer of foreign gods.” (They said this because he was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.) 19 They took him into custody and brought him to the council on Mars Hill. “What is this new teaching? Can we learn what you are talking about? 20 You’ve told us some strange things and we want to know what they mean.” (21 They said this because all Athenians as well as the foreigners who live in Athens used to spend their time doing nothing but talking about or listening to the newest thing.)

22 Paul stood up in the middle of the council on Mars Hill and said, “People of Athens, I see that you are very religious in every way. 23 As I was walking through town and carefully observing your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: ‘To an unknown God.’ What you worship as unknown, I now proclaim to you. 24 God, who made the world and everything in it, is Lord of heaven and earth. He doesn’t live in temples made with human hands. 25 Nor is God served by human hands, as though he needed something, since he is the one who gives life, breath, and everything else. 26 From one person God created every human nation to live on the whole earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their lands. 27 God made the nations so they would seek him, perhaps even reach out to him and find him. In fact, God isn’t far away from any of us. 28 In God we live, move, and exist. As some of your own poets said, ‘We are his offspring.’

29 “Therefore, as God’s offspring, we have no need to imagine that the divine being is like a gold, silver, or stone image made by human skill and thought. 30 God overlooks ignorance of these things in times past, but now directs everyone everywhere to change their hearts and lives. 31 This is because God has set a day when he intends to judge the world justly by a man he has appointed. God has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.”

32 When they heard about the resurrection from the dead, some began to ridicule Paul. However, others said, “We’ll hear from you about this again.” 33 At that, Paul left the council.34 Some people joined him and came to believe, including Dionysius, a member of the council on Mars Hill, a woman named Damaris, and several others.

Athens is a university town where intellectuals sit around and do what intellectuals enjoy most: “relieve their boredom by searching for new ideas.” How will Paul’s proclamation of the Gospel hold up against such sophisticated minds? Athens, says William Willimon, “is the heart of the very best of pagan culture, the town of Pericles and of Plato.” Paul’s preaching winds up getting him front and center of the council at Mars Hill, where we can assume, just by knowing a bit of the history of the Mars Hill council, he was brought with charges of corruption. So far...not so good. But it is here, in front of this council that Paul delivers one of his most powerful sermons. Paul is disgusted by all of the idols and altars he sees around the city, but rather than opening with an insult, he flips the script: “I can tell that you are religious people.” Then he mentions an “altar to an unknown god.” “What you worship as unknown, I now proclaim to you.” Rather than insulting them for their idolatry, Paul hooks his audience by their curiosity. They sit around all day searching for new ideas, and Paul crafts his sermon to minister to their searching.

He starts with what they know, and then teaches them how God ties into it. Paul even quotes one of their own poets, using language they are familiar with to elaborate his teachings about this “unknown god” whom he wants to introduce them to as the Lord of heaven and earth, and the master of Creation in whom we live and move and have our being. Of course no proclamation of the Gospel is complete without the proclamation of Christ crucified and risen. And this is the most contentious part of Paul’s sermon. Paul would later write in his letter to the Corinthians that “preaching the crucified Christ is a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to the Greeks.” As you might suspect, some of the council at Mars Hill begin to ridicule Paul, but some were intrigued, yet others joined him and came to believe, including Dionysius, a member of the council on Mars Hill.

What can we learn from Mars Hill as we prepare to go To Mars and Beyond? Well, first off, I think we must acknowledge that we will be working with some very sophisticated and inquiring minds. Minds whose sense of wonder and willpower are daily ministered to by cultural idols at altars of worship that sit in the palms of their hands. YouTube, SnapChat, Pinterest, Instagram, Kahoot, TicToc. Lanie told me about some of these apps and websites that I had no idea about, she also informed me that most kids consider Facebook and Twitter and Reddit to be “for adults”...or as she put it “adult websites”.

Our tendency might be to insult these technologies, to gripe and grumble about “kids these days…” Or..we could take a page out of Paul’s book and flip the script. “I can tell by the posts and stories and videos that you scroll through that you’re interested in adding value and purpose and meaning to your life and that you enjoy feeling like you’re a part of something bigger than yourself...I just happen to know a story that had added more value and purpose to my life than any other story I’ve ever heard, and it connects me to a community that is soooooo much bigger than myself...a community that exists in the past, present, and future...a community of eternal life. Would you like to hear that story?” Just as Paul did to the members of the Mars Hill council, respect your audience’s curiosity. Don’t ignore their questions, but use them as a launching pad for teaching about the God you know. Minister to their searching, and they will be excited to come back day after day to learn alongside you.

Secondly, Paul used creation as a starting point for introducing the vision and power of God. We’re kicking off VBS with a literal rocket launch, I can only imagine how Paul might try to work that imagery into a sermon. “As your eyes were drawn upward by the flight of the rocket, did you happen to glimpse beyond into the sky above? It just goes on and on. So it is with God, and Christ is the rocket that draws our attention into the expanse of God’s love for us.” Maybe he’d say something like that...probably something better. Minister to their wonder, and they will learn to marvel at God’s majesty.

Lastly, Paul used words from a familiar poet to make the Athenians relationship with God relevant. “This is the God in whom you live and move and have your being, as some of your own poets even said, ‘We are his offspring.’” Use what these children are familiar with to make God relevant. Easier said than done, I know, but perhaps I can offer up a story as a means of encouragement.

When I was a child, I always looked forward to spending a week of my summer vacation out at Camp Hanover. Camp taught me how to marvel at God’s majesty, just being out in the middle of creation so much. But Camp was also the place where the Kingdom of God became relevant for me. Sure...we had Bible studies and vespers and worship every day...but those weren’t the places where God was made real for me. God’s love was made real through counselors who took time to listen to me, make me feel cared for, and laugh at my stupid 10-year-old sense of humor. God’s love was made real through making new friends with campers in my group. God’s love was made real through the marvel of watching campfires send sparks shooting up into the starry sky. God’s love was made real as we ate our meals and served one another at the table. God’s love was made real as we cleaned bathrooms, and swept pavilions, and helped break down recycling, because that’s how we live in Christian community, through acts of humble service. At the end of the day, Bible study and vespers became opportunities to further explore the new ideas I was discovering as I went about the rest of my day in a community of Christian hospitality.

While I’m excited for To Mars and Beyond--the curriculum and the decorations and the Bible stories are all incredible--what I’m most excited about is that these children get to spend time with you. You are an amazing church. You are beautiful, loving, caring, compassionate people. Your love for one another and for God are evident in all that you do. I’m excited for these kids to have that experience of community lived in Christian hospitality where Jesus’ love for them will be made real through the power of God at work within each and every one of you.

Glory to God, whose is able to do far beyond all that we could ask or imagine by his power at work within us!