Good morning. I’m Scott and I’m the pastor of recovery and counseling and middle school. So if you have a middle schooler, they’re over in the ark — unattended. Just kidding. We’ve got leaders over there. Charlotte and Russ are over there hanging out with them, so it’s a good day.

I’m glad to have the opportunity to be here with you. And today we’re going to talk about something that I think all of us can find in common — and that is this: at some point in our life, there’s a God that we’re looking for. And Paul brings that up in this passage of scripture out of the book of Acts. So I’m going to go to Acts 17:22 through 31. You can turn there in your Bibles or it’ll be on the screen.

It says this: “So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said, ‘Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: To the unknown God. What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us. For in him we live and move and have our being,’ as even some of your own poets have said, ‘for we are indeed his offspring.’ Being then God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man. The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed. And of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.’”

That’s a big message there. Luke penned these words telling the story of what Paul was doing as he goes into this place where philosophy was rich and religion was rich. They had all these gods that they would worship, and just in case they missed one, they put an idol up there for the unknown god. Well, God meets people where they’re at. And that’s exactly what Paul does as he walks into this environment.

Let me go back and read the first two verses for us: “So Paul, standing in the midst of the Areopagus, said, ‘Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious. For as I passed along and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription: To the unknown God. What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.’”

I don’t know what your experience is like in sharing Christ with other people. I went to Liberty University on the East Coast — Lynchburg, Virginia. And we had to take this class, Evangelism Explosion, I think it was called. In that class, the professor always had us say things like, “Jesus is what?” And we’d always go, “Awesome!” — which was perfect for me because I’m a yeller kind of guy. So I’d just be all in. It was great.

I remember I went on a missions trip to New York City and we were supposed to do confrontational evangelism — which is a style of evangelism where you go and talk to somebody and then confront them with the idea that there’s a God out there and what are they going to do with that? I was sitting on a subway and there’s a guy sitting across from me and I thought, “All right, I’m going to do it.” So I strike up a conversation and we’re talking for a few moments, and then I say, “Hey, if you were to die today and stand before God, what would you say?” And he stands up and goes, “What do you know that I don’t know?” — and then takes off running. And I was like, “I’m out. I’m done.”

The following year on spring break, I had the opportunity to lead a missions trip with a buddy of mine named Troy Temple. And we roughed it — we led this group of future youth pastors down to Clearwater Beach, Florida. Really rough. I mean, hanging out on the beach for a week. But we had to do evangelism on this trip, and I was watching over the different guys as they went out and shared Christ with people.

Well, there was a group of them that did the opposite of confrontational evangelism. They did passive evangelism — they built sand castles that spelled out something about Jesus and made a big cross. And I’m like, “How is that going to reach people?” And then they got mad because the next day we came back and it was all gone. I said, “Yeah, don’t you know how tides work?”

I don’t know what your experience is like sharing Christ. But Paul comes in and he finds common ground. He sees, “Hey, you guys are religious people.” And in our life, we can become very religious about different things. I am a Raiders fan. I’m religious about loving the Raiders even though I never get anything in return — just empty. They promise me every year, “This is our year,” and every year they fall way short.

Maybe it’s traditions that you have in your life. For my family, every Christmas Eve my brother started this tradition — we go to Chuck E. Cheese. Soon as they open, we’re there knocking at the door. We go in, play games, eat cardboard pizza, and have a great time.

I had a tradition in high school — I had a PE shirt from junior high that I wore every day, every football practice and every game, and never washed it. It was awesome. By the time I was a senior, you could hold it up and literally see through both sides of the shirt. It would stand up on its own. That was my shirt, the one I wore underneath all my pads. And if we were winning, I never washed it. My senior year we were a good team and made it to playoffs. Now that I’m a wrestling coach, I understand that you need to wash your clothes — otherwise you get ringworm and impetigo and staph. It’s gross.

But we have traditions, and sometimes we think those things give us some special ability. And sometimes our traditions — if I do certain things a certain way, things will be better. And that’s not how God works.

Sometimes we have religious things we believe in, like saints, or maybe the scale of good and bad — if I do enough good things, it’ll outweigh all the bad. And I’m just telling you, if you’re like me, I’ve got to do a whole lot more good things because man, I struggle.

I remember going to India a few years ago and I just thought idols were something from Bible times — old history. And then I got boots on the ground in India and I saw idols everywhere. Big statue idols, little statues. I saw them everywhere — people going to temples and worshiping. And man, that was a shock.

You may not have a physical statue in your house or your life, but is there something that you worship on a regular basis that is not God? Sometimes it can come off as good things. It’s good to have a house, but if that house becomes your god — you have to keep getting a better house, a bigger house, more land. Maybe it’s the car. You have a nice car and you’ve got to get a nicer car and a nicer car — that becomes your idol and you’re willing to sacrifice whatever for it.

Maybe it’s the next rung on the ladder at work. Sometimes our family becomes our idol — we’re willing to sacrifice just so our family can be okay, and they become the thing we worship. And then our kids leave our home and we’re like, “What do we do now?” I love my kids and I love the sports they play. But if I sacrifice my relationship with God and I worship how well my kids do at a sport, that’s not a good thing.

Maybe it’s physical appearance — how we look, how we dress. Sometimes we worship that more than we worship God himself.

I bring all those things up because the reality is in Romans 3:23 it says this: “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We all have sinned, and in our sin, God meets us there.

If you remember in the book of John, chapter 4, Jesus meets a woman at the well. A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria? For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.” Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.”

He didn’t bring up the five husbands she’d had in the past and the current one she was living with. He didn’t bring up all her sins. He simply met her where she was at. Loved her, cared for her, and met her there.

Romans 5:8 says this: “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” All the sin I ever committed in my past and all the sin I will ever commit in my future — God knows. And Jesus died on the cross for those sins. And he did the exact same thing for you.

We may be spiritual and we may be sincere in our spirituality, but spiritual people are still lost. Spiritual curiosity is not salvation — but it can be the doorway to it. And that’s what I hope to share with you today.

So the second point is this: God is the creator, not a created thing.

Acts 17:24–25: “The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.”

God is not contained. He is not controlled and he is not dependent upon us. Much to our disappointment, he is self-existent. He is sovereign and he is sufficient.

A lot of times in my life I’ve tried to put God in a box. I tell him where his boundaries are and what he can do and how big or small he is. I’ve tried to control God — tell him what he needs to do. When I go to him in prayer, I make my list: God, you’re going to do this, this, this, and this.

I have a friend whose family member was dying of cancer. And that young man had other family members who were adamant that God was going to heal him. They were making predictions about how God was going to do it, saying he was going to be able to walk down the aisle at a family member’s wedding. And then the Lord called him home. Sometimes we like to dictate what God does and what he doesn’t do. We like to control those things, and that’s tough.

Sometimes we become dependent on him only in crisis. It’s like — break glass in case of emergency. I remember my youngest son is seven, and my wife was going into labor with him at the hospital. She had these earrings in and said, “Get these earrings out.” So I’m leaning over the bed working on it and I pop the earrings out. As soon as I pop them out, my back goes out completely. I can’t see anything. She’s in the middle of labor, my back’s gone. I manned up and we got through it.

A week later I’m getting adjusted at a chiropractor’s office. They have a masseuse there. She gives me a back rub and I’m dying — she hit my sciatic nerve. I remember she left the room, and I’m on the floor trying to get my shoes on, crying, telling myself I’m going to man up and do this. I make it home, fall on the floor, and cry out to God: “God, heal my back. I will never sin again.”

We like to dictate those things to God. We have these crises in life and we break that glass and push that button and ask God to help us.

My view of God has been wrong a lot of times. When I was younger, I had a view of God as my own personal police officer following me around — like those motorcycle cops. And every time I did something wrong, boop, got me. That’s how I viewed God — just there to point out everything I did wrong. That’s not how God is.

But we can find in Genesis 1:1: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Isaiah 42:5: “Thus says God, the Lord, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people on it and spirit to those who walk in it.” And Romans 1:20: “For his invisible attributes, namely his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived ever since the creation of the world and the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.”

There is no more excuse. God has made himself evident and clear — that we could know there is a higher power greater than ourselves, and his name is God. His name is Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.

We don’t serve God to complete God. God sustains us. He helps us. He’s the one that puts air in our lungs, that makes our heartbeat, that allows our brain to think. Any god that we can fully manage, shape, or tame is too small to save us. Let me say that again. Any god we can fully manage, shape, or tame is too small to save us.

Our third point is this, that we see in this passage: God is sovereign and intentionally near. He is a sovereign God. He knows all things and he is intentionally waiting there for you.

Acts 17:26–28: “And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us. In him we live and move and have our being, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are indeed his offspring.’”

God rules history. He rules geography with purpose — so that people might seek and find him. History is there for a reason. In the book of Acts, we see how persecution played a huge role in the growing of the church and the sharing of the gospel. They wanted to stay in Jerusalem and persecution happened. They spread out. And through Paul and the others, their missionary journeys were fruitful and the gospel spread and people came to know Jesus Christ.

I love Viking stuff — that’s my heritage. I watch everything Viking. A friend tried to trip me up and said, “Hey, have you watched this anime show, Vinland Saga?” And I said, “Yeah, seen it. I watch all things Viking.” He said, “Oh, you can’t love the Vikings. They were horrible people.” And you’re right — they were horrible. They worshipped false gods. They made sacrifices to false gods. They conquered lands, killed people, took slaves. But you know what happened? Great Vikings such as Harald Bluetooth — which is where Bluetooth comes from for your phone, by the way — got converted and went back into Denmark and shared Jesus Christ and the gospel spread. People like Leif Erikson, who I hear I’m related to, went and told people in Greenland and the gospel spread.

There’s a purpose for these things. Do we always understand it? Do we always agree with it? No. But somehow God has a plan. He is a sovereign God and he knows these things.

Sometimes there are things we don’t understand. Cancer. God has a plan. You may be struggling with this, and I know a lot of people right now who are battling cancer. For some, he may heal. For others, he may not. And we don’t know why. But God chooses to keep those things private. And he does allow those things to impact other people.

Think back to your own history — your past hurts, the past things that have caused you pain. Maybe it’s grief — the loss of a loved one, loss of a family member, loss of a child. Maybe it’s a hurt. Maybe it’s a habit. Maybe there’s an addiction you’re struggling with — drugs, alcohol, gambling, food, sex addiction, whatever it may be. Maybe you’re addicted to social media and you just can’t get off it. Maybe it’s codependency — you put other people above yourself and if they’re doing okay, you’re okay, but if they’re not doing okay, your world has ended. Maybe it’s a hangup — anxiety, fear, shame, guilt.

God is there to help you. God is near to you. Psalm 145:18 says this: “The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.” Do you feel like God is near you today?

Your time, the place you’re living, the culture you’re in, and your story are not accidents. Romans 5:8: “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” God has been pursuing you long before you even started looking toward God. He’s done that for you.

Don’t you know that sin you’re struggling with, that addiction, that hurt, that pain, the guilt, the shame — I don’t know what you’re wrestling with, but know that God knows and yet he still died for you. He offered you a free gift so you could have healing and freedom and salvation.

James 4:8 says this: “Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

God is not an image that we can create. Acts 17:29 says: “Being then God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man.”

Idolatry isn’t just a carved image. It’s shaping God into something more comfortable, more manageable, more agreeable with us. We look as a culture to find that softer, easier, gentler way. We like this portion of scripture but we really don’t like that other portion, so we’re going to take that out. I mean, I like nine of the commandments — I’m not going to do that tenth one.

Psalm 115:4–8 says: “Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths but do not speak, eyes but do not see. They have ears but do not hear, noses but do not smell. They have hands but do not feel, feet but do not walk, and they do not make a sound in their throat. Those who make them become like them — so do all who trust in them.”

If we go back to the woman at the well, Jesus tells us what he’s looking for. John 4:24: “God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.” We don’t get to redefine who God is. God redefines who we are. He shapes us and he molds us and he helps us to become more and more like him. A God who never challenges you cannot transform you.

God now calls for repentance in this passage. Paul says this in verses 30 and 31: “The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed. And of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”

Ignorance is no longer an excuse. Today I have presented the truth to you. The question is what are you going to do with it?

Jesus — his resurrection, his resurrecting power — proves that judgment is coming and that mercy and grace are available. Romans 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” There is a free gift that God wants to offer you. The wages of what I have done is death. But God has given me that free gift.

So let me share with you how you receive that gift, which is found in Romans 10:9–10: “Because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”

It is simple. He laid it out. There’s no special prayer, no special thing you have to do except this one thing — believe in your heart and confess with your mouth that he is Lord and you will be saved. And the tension that we have felt between us and God, the creator of the universe, will go away.

Here’s how I know it will go away — Romans 5:1: “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” That tension, the things you’re wrestling with — you can have peace. That guilt, that shame, that fear, that anxiety — you can have peace.

The resurrection isn’t just proof of life after death. It’s proof that Jesus is Lord, judge, and Savior. But Paul makes it clear — neutrality is not an option. You can’t be neutral. Paul is calling you to have a response. So what is your response?

Paul didn’t end with something comfortable — something these people could leave the service with a warm fuzzy feeling about. He ends it with a call. And if we read a couple verses later, we find that some mocked him. I’ve had people like that in my life. I have an uncle named Uncle Wyn who used to mock God, used to mock Jesus. Some mocked him.

Some delayed. I had a guy I used to work with at Baskin-Robbins — my first job, best job ever, scooping ice cream and eating ice cream — his name was Joey. I remember talking to him about Jesus Christ and getting to the point of seeing if he’d make a decision, and he said, “You know, I’m not going to do that today. But maybe when I’m 40 or 50 I’ll make that decision later.”

Some people will delay their response. And then some people believed. What will you do?

If you’re here and you’ve never believed in your heart and confessed with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, then hopefully today your response is one of repentance and putting your faith in Jesus Christ — repentance leading to salvation.

For those of you that have been believers and you’ve had some idol pop up in your life — I don’t know what it is, some hurt, habit, or hangup that’s caused problems — I hope you’ll have a moment of repentance leading to sanctification, which is becoming more and more like Jesus Christ every single day.

I want to finish with three verses, then we’ll end our time.

Joshua 24:15: “Choose whom you will serve.” 2 Corinthians 6:2 tells us: “Now is the day of salvation.” And Hebrews 3:15 encourages us: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.”

The God you’re looking for is not an unknown God. He has revealed himself in Jesus Christ. And today, he is calling you to respond.

So if you have a hurt, a habit, or a hangup, I’d like to extend a personal invitation to join us on Tuesday nights in this very room at 6:30. We have Celebrate Recovery in here and we have a blast — because we’re all messed up people and we acknowledge it and we know that we’re not God and we allow God to start working in our life. You don’t have to be perfect to show up. We want messed up people. So if you’re messed up, join us. We invite it.

If you wanted to make a decision for Jesus Christ today and you’ve never done that, there are a couple of ways you can do that. You can put it on your connect card and place it in one of the black boxes. You can come up and hand it to me. Or you can bring it into the prayer room across the hallway and talk to somebody there.

If your decision is not about salvation — you’ve already done that — but you want somebody to pray with you because you’re trying to become more and more like Jesus Christ, you have those same options. But don’t be neutral today. Make a decision. Choose whom you will serve.

If you’re struggling and need prayer, we have a prayer room with leaders in there who would love to pray for you. And I’ll be down front if you want to come up and talk.

Let me pray for us and we’ll end our time. Lord, thank you for today. Thank you for your truth. Thank you for your scripture. Thank you for the fact that you have made yourself known to us. Lord, may we not walk out of this room without making a decision. We’ve decided to follow you — so help us as we follow you. Pour your favor out upon us and bless us as we go about our day today. Thank you in Jesus’ holy and precious name. Amen.