The Unknown God

Good morning. This is Insights with

Pastor John and today we're going to be

talking about the unknown God.

Um, let's pray. Lord, we just thank you

and praise you for all the things you

do. God, we ask that you focus our minds

and our hearts on your word and that you

open us to the anointing, Lord, that we

need to understand your word. In Jesus

name we pray. Amen.

So, the unknown god.

This is

probably one of the most amazing stories

in the book of Acts. It's in chapter 17.

But before we get jump into it, we need

to lay a little background information

here. This is after Paul and Silas were

uh beaten and jailed in the city of

Philippi.

um they had come to the city. They were

in uh Macedonia.

they were preaching the gospel and the

Jews got offended at their word and they

created a

uh almost a riot uh kind of like what

we're seeing going on with uh like a

couple nights ago when Turning Point was

at Berkeley uh UC Berkeley in California

and there was a riot outside because

people didn't didn't want them there

and uh so what's going on is They they

left Philippi. They were in

Thessalonica.

Um they had to smuggle Paul out of out

of Berea because of of people who were

they were against what he had to say.

And uh they they snuck him out of Berea

and he goes into Athens where he's

waiting on Silas and Timothy to arrive.

And the spirit stirs him up. And this

that's in verse 16 to 21. He goes

walking through the town and looking at

everything and then Paul comes to a

place called the aerial goas. It's a

place of debate. It's where philosophers

went to present their philosophy. And

we're going to pick up in verse 22.

And uh

Paul stood in the midst of Mars Hill and

said, "You men of Athens, I perceive

that in all things you are too

superstitious.

For as I passed by and beheld your

devotions, I found an altar with this

inscription to the unknown God. Whom

therefore you ignorantly worship him

declare I unto you.

God, God that made the world and all

things therein, seeing that he is Lord

of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in

temples made with hands, neither is

worshiped with men's hands, as though he

needed anything, seeing he giveth life

to uh giveth to all life and breath, and

all things, and hath made of one blood

all nations of men, for to dwell on all

the face of the earth, and hath

determined the times before appointed,

and the bounds of their habitation.

that they should seek the Lord if if

happily they might feel after him and

find him, though he be not far from

every one of us. For in him we live and

move and have our being. As certain also

of your own poets have said, for we are

also his offspring.

For as much then as we are the offspring

of God, we ought not to think that the

Godhead is like unto gold or silver or

stone, graven by art and man's device.

And the times of this ignorance God

winked at, but now commandeth all men

everywhere to repent,

because he hath appointed a day in into

which he will judge the world in

righteousness by that man whom he hath

ordained, whereof he hath given

assurance unto all men, in that he hath

raised him from the dead. And when they

heard of the resurrection of the dead,

some mocked, and others said, "We will

hear thee again of this matter." So Paul

departed from among them. How be it,

certain men clave unto him, and

believed, among which was Dionasus and

Ariopagga, and a woman named Dearis, and

others with him. And we're looking at

this because if you look at this with an

open mind and open heart, you can see

how this parallels the very world we

live in

right now. The generation that we're

reaching in in uh

in the world and on the campuses of our

colleges and places of great debate, so

to speak.

People from the ages of 18 to 40 are

starting to have a spiritual reawakening

and they're seeking truth, but they

don't know where to look.

And so the the what we need to

understand is people are ignorant, not

stupid, ignorant of God. And it's your

my responsibility to share with them who

God truly is. Now, have you ever met

someone who seemed familiar,

but you couldn't quite remember their

name? You recognize the face, but not

the relationship. Um,

many people today treat God that way.

They sense there's a divine presence.

That's a spiritual search that these

people are. They even talk about him,

but they don't really know him.

uh we can know

who who Jesus is without knowing Jesus.

And that's what this is about is that

deeper relationship of actually knowing

Jesus. In the city of Athens, Paul found

a similar situation. The people had

temples for every god imaginable. Yet

one

altar stood out to the unknown god. They

admitted that in all their knowledge and

religion, there was still something

missing. Paul used that moment to

introduce them to the one they were

missing, the living, personal, and

rebuilded God through Jesus Christ.

Athens was the heart of Greek culture.

It was filled with art and idols and

intellectual pride. The Athenians

worshiped many gods, each representing

different aspects of life, war, wisdom,

love, harvest, and more. But they feared

missing one. So they built an altar to

the unknown god. It was a symbol of both

spiritual hunger and human uncertainty.

When Paul arrived, he wasn't impressed

by their wisdom. He was burdened by

their lostness. And the Bible says his

spirit was stirred in him when he saw

the city holy given to idolatry. That's

Acts 17:16. Yet Paul didn't respond with

anger. He responded with compassion and

clarity. He didn't condemn them. He

connected with them. Standing in the

aerial pagus, a public place of debate,

he reasoned with philosophers and

thinkers using their own altar as a

doorway to the gospel. Sounds kind of

like what Charlie Kirk was doing uh when

he got shot. Paul's message reveals a

timeless truth. People can have

religion, but not a relationship. They

may know about God, but they but not

know him personally. And today, millions

around the world acknowledge a higher

power,

but live without peace, forgiveness, or

eternal assurance. Like the Athenians,

they worship what they do not know.

Every human heart has a built-in longing

for the divine, a spiritual emptiness

that can't be filled by success,

pleasure, or possessions.

Augustine once said, "Our hearts are

restless until they rest in thee. We see

this restlessness in modern so modern

society. People searching for identity,

chasing meaning and yet feeling empty.

Look at all the loonies out there that

you know they men who think they're

women and women who think they're men

and uh people who dress up like animals

and call themselves furies. um they

can't identify whether they're male or

female, so they say they're androgynous.

When in the beginning, God created male

and female. That's what he created.

That's all he created. Everything else

is just a a man man's invention trying

to find an and fill an empty hole that

only Jesus can fill. So the altar in

Athens still stands in modern form. It's

the career altar, the pleasure altar,

the self altar. People worship what they

think will bring them peace. But peace

never comes because only the true God

can satisfy the soul he created. Paul's

message in Acts 17 gives us four

revelations about this unknown God. And

each one brings us closer to

understanding who he truly is and why

knowing him personally changes

everything.

Paul said, "The unknown God is the

creator of all things." Paul begins with

creation. God that made the world and

all things therein, seeing that he is

Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not

in temples made with hands.

He declares that God is not one among

many. He is the creator of all. The

Athenians built gods out of gold,

silver, and stone. But Paul rebuilds a

God who made gold, silver, and stone

themselves. The creator doesn't need our

temples. We need him for life and

breath. Acts 17:28 says, "Forin in him

we live and move and have our being."

Think of a painter in his painting.

The canvas depends on the artist, but

the artist doesn't depend on the c

canvas. If the painting is damaged, the

artist can resort. Likewise, creation

depends on its creator who can renew

what is broken. If God created you, then

your purpose is found in him alone. Life

apart from the creator is life without

direction. True life begins when we

acknowledge God not as an idea but as

the author of our existence.

The unknown God is the sustainer and

rooter of life.

Paul continues, "Neither is worshiped

with men's hands as though he needed

anything, seeing he giveth to to all

life and breath and all things." God

doesn't need our help. We need his. We

need his grace. We need his

self-sufficiency.

But we are completely dependent on him.

Every breath we take is a gift. Paul

also says, "God hath made of one blood

all nations of men, showing that all

humanity is equal before him."

Acts 17:25, "He giveth to all life and

breath and all things."

When you unplug a lamp from its socket,

it goes dark. Not because the bulb

failed, but because it's lost its

source. In the same way, when we dis

disconnect from God, our spiritual light

fades.

You may think you're strong or

self-made, but every heartbeat is

borrowed grace. God sustains your life

because he has a purpose for it.

Dependence on God is not weakness, it's

wisdom.

The unknown God is near and knowable.

Paul proclaims that they should seek the

Lord if happily they might feel after

him and find him, though he be not far

from every one of us. Acts 17:27.

This is revolutionary.

The God who created the universe is not

distant. He's close. The Athenians

thought of gods as far away, but Paul

says he is near. James 4:8 says, "Draw

nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to

you." A blindfolded child in a room may

cry out for her father. And though she

cannot see him, the father takes her

hand and whispers, "I'm here." That's

how God reaches out to us through his

spirit. Not distance, but near enough to

touch our hearts. You may feel

forgotten, but God is closer than your

next breath. He wait for your

perfection. He waits for you to

surrender.

And the distance between you and God is

not measured in miles.

but in willingness to believe.

The unknown God is revealed in redeeming

through Jesus Christ.

Paul concludes powerfully, "At the times

of this ignorance, God winked at.

But now commandeth all men everywhere to

repent."

In other words, God once overlooked

humanity's ignorance, but now he has

revealed himself fully in Jesus Christ.

Through the cross and resurrection, the

unknown god has become the revealed

savior.

John 14:9 Jesus says, "He that has seen

me has seen the father." Imagine living

in darkness and suddenly someone lights

a candle and you finally see what was

always there. Christ is that light.

Through him, God steps out of mystery

into relationship.

You can know God today not as a concept

but as a father. The way is open through

Jesus Christ who died for your sins and

rose again to give you new life. What

was once unknown has now been made known

through the son of God?

So you have to ask yourself questions.

What altars have I built in my life that

take God's place? Do I see God as

distant or near? And why?

How does understanding God as a creator

change the way you see yourself?

What does it mean to truly know God

through Jesus Christ? And what step of

faith can I take this week to draw

closer to him?

The first step is the most important

step. It's repent and believe.

Then you have to identify the idols that

you built in your life and start working

to remove them with God's help and God's

direction. You need to share the message

that there's hope that God has a better

way. And you need to to build a time of

personal worship with God. Not a

religious routine where you go to church

once a week and and tell someone how

sorry you are about the things you've

done, but actually spend time in

connection with the God who created you

to bring you to a place uh where you can

be set free. The word of God has uh it

does two things. It convicts you of

where you're at and it converts you by

giving you a way out.

The unknown God is not distant but

desires to be known personally. Through

Jesus Christ, God revealed himself as

creator, sustainer, and redeemer. What

was once a mystery can now be a living

relationship with the Savior.

The word uh agnosttos means unknown or

unrecognized. It's the same root as as

the word agnostic. One who claims God

cannot be known. Paul turns this concept

upside down proclaiming that God has

made himself known in Christ Jesus. The

Old and New Testament parallel these

things. In Exodus, God in Exodus, God

reveals himself to Moses as I am, the

self-existent one. In John 8:58, Jesus

uses the same phrase, saying, "Before

Abraham was, I am." And the unknown

becomes the known through divine

revelation.

The unknown God finds his face in Jesus

Christ, the express image of his person.

Hebrews 1:3. Through him we move from

ignorance to intimacy, from idolatry to

worship, and from lostness to life

eternal.

I would I I would encourage you to find

the altar to to the unknown God. It

still stands in many hearts today. Look

at people all around you that are

they're they're getting crystals.

They're trying to define their chakras.

They're doing all these different crazy

things when what the one thing that they

need more than anything else is Jesus.

And they need that relationship with

Jesus. And they need someone to tell

them about Jesus and provide the hope

that Christ brought for all men.

You can believe in something greater

than yourself

and not know the one who gave life, gave

you life. He created you. today invites

you to move from curiosity to conviction

and from religion to relationship.

Jesus Christ came not to add another

altar, but to remove the distance

between you and God. He died for your

sins. It's a personal thing.

He rose from the dead and now calls you

by name. He knows who you are. No matter

how far away from him you've walked, you

can know him personally, not as a

stranger, but as a savior. If you're

ready and you open your heart and pray,

the unknown God is waiting to reveal

himself to you. Now, I want to close

with this prayer. Thank you for sending

your son, Lord,

Jesus Christ, to reveal who you are. I

confess that I have lived without truly

knowing you. Today, I repent of my sin

and believe that Jesus died and rose

again to give me new life. Reveal

yourself to me, Lord. fill me with your

spirit and lead me in your truth in

Jesus name. Amen. If you prayed that

prayer with me, welcome to the family of

God. Don't stop where you're standing.

Go forward and find true meaning, true

purpose in your life in Jesus Christ.

Let him be the author and finisher of

your faith. and listen to the spirit is

it gives utterance to you

so that you can know in a a very

intimate and personal way just how much

God loves you and God wants you to know

him.

With that, I'm going to see you guys

next week. Jesus loves you. He has a

wonderful plan for your life. Take the

time to get to know him. Open your

hearts and minds to receive him and

you'll find how different your life will

be. We'll see you guys next week.