Within to be Out

The Rev. Dr. Skip Ferguson

Manassas Presbyterian Church

Manassas, Virginia

May 25, 2014

                                                               Within to be Out                     

John 14:15-17

Phillipi, Amphipolus, Appolinia,

Thessalonika, Borea:

The apostle Paul was constantly on the move,

traveling from one city to another,

moving west along the Aegean coast,

west, and then south,

as he felt the pull of Athens.

Athens: that great city,

the heart of all that was Greece,

the city that reflected the glory that had been Greece.

Vestiges of greatness and glory

were still visible throughout the city:

certainly no place more than the Parthenon –

the magnificent Temple on the Acropolis,

built more than 400 years before the birth of our Lord.

It still stood strong and imposing

with all its Doric columns,

a place of tribute to Greece and its gods.

Greece had its pantheon of gods,

a multitude of gods,

with Zeus and Hera at the top of the godly pyramid,

Zeus and Hera who watched over the world

from Mount Olympus.

How many other Greek gods do we remember

from our high school history classes,

or from watching “Jeopardy”?

Of course we’ll remember the goddess Athena

the goddess of wisdom:

she gave her name to the city.

But there were others as well,

and throughout the city

there were places of worship,

temples dedicated to the many gods.

As Paul wandered the streets of Athens

like a timeless tourist,

he found these temples, and as Luke tells us,

“he was deeply distressed to see the city full of idols.”

(Acts 17:16)

But Paul knew that idol worship

came all too easily to men and women.

It was something the Greeks did;

something the Romans did,

and something even those who followed the Lord God did –

all too often.

There was something about having a statue,

a sculpture – something to see,

something to touch,

a god with a name, a specific purpose:

that made it easier to believe,

easier to trust,

easier to follow.

A God who identifies himself with nothing more

than the words, “I am”;

a God who cannot be seen,

a God who is hidden behind smoke and fire –

that’s a more challenging God to worship.

How much easier it was to pray to a god

whose function was specific:

a god of war, a god of the harvest,

a god of fertility,

a god of grapes and wine.

                          

The Greek people’s long history of

worshiping their many gods

and their city full of idols and temples

didn’t deter Paul from his mission, though.

He came to the city with work to do.

He came to the city because

he knew he’d been sent there,

sent there by God to tell the

good news of Jesus Christ.

And so he got to work,

starting first by going to the synagogue,

talking with his Jewish brothers and sisters about Jesus,

telling them about his own experience,

how he had been trained as a Pharisee;

how he had persecuted the followers of Jesus,

before he himself became a follower.

He didn’t stop with the synagogues, though;

he went to the marketplace and spoke

to any and all who would listen.

He didn’t harangue,

he didn’t shout,

he didn’t judge or condemn.

There was none of the theatrics and threats

that are too much a part of

what is called evangelizing today.

He didn’t fume and fulminate:

“Accept Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior

or spend all of eternity in torment.”

                          

No, Paul’s approach was informative, simpler,

grounded in Scripture, the gospels,

grounded in grace and love.

He shared the good news.

Of course, many did deride and mock him,

calling him nothing more than a babbler,

a man who went on and on about foreign gods.

But others listened and were intrigued.

and some invited Paul to speak at the Areopagus,

the forum where the council of elders sat for judgment,

the forum where great ideas were

discussed and debated.

                                                              

“May we know what this new teaching is

that you are presenting?”,

they said to him.

“It sounds rather strange to us,

so we would like to know what it means.”

(Acts 17:19)

To our ears, living as we do

in time of so little civil conversation,

so much angry shouting back and forth,

so many verbal grenades lobbed from

one side to the other

and then back again,

what happened in Athens 2,000 years ago

when Paul came to spread the good news of the gospel

all seemed so civil

so calm, so polite.

Paul spoke to his listeners with respect,

with courtesy and civility:

“Athenians, I see how extremely religious

you are in every way.”

Paul’s opening words were words of warmth.

He recognized the culture he was in.

He didn’t condemn it;

rather he honored it, he honored the people.

        

Still he didn’t hold back from speaking boldly.

He told the Athenians of the Lord God,

the one God,

the God who, “made the world and everything in it.”

He didn’t hesitate to tell his listeners

that this God,“who is Lord of heaven and earth,

does not live in shrines made by human hands.”

(Acts 17:24)

He told them that the Lord God was no idol;

not something that could be formed of gold or silver,

wood or stone.

The response to Paul’s words from the people

gathered there in the northwest corner of the Acropolis

wasn’t much different from the response he’d had

in the marketplace:

most would have agreed with those who

called him a “babbler.”

It all sounded so fantastic,

so wild,       

unbelievable.

But some did hear his words,

some were intrigued enough to respond,

“we will hear you again about this.”

How many were swayed?

Luke tells us only a few.

This story we find in the middle of the book of Acts

is a fascinating story,

this story of Paul’s time in Athens.

But it isn’t a story about conversion,

about “bringing people to Christ,”

to use that well-worn phrase.

It is a story about faith,

about trust,

about the Spirit of God at work in the world.

The Spirit of God at work through Paul,

within Paul, guiding him, helping him,

even comforting him to keep him

from feeling discouraged.

This is a story about the Spirit at work,

within and without:

within Paul to help him get the gospel out.

                 

This was the Spirit Jesus spoke of

as he shared his final meal with his disciples,

the Spirit Jesus called the Advocate, the Helper.

This Spirit, promised us all by our Lord,

guided Paul as he went about his ministry.

The Spirit helped him to stay true to Jesus words

we heard in our lesson:

“If you love me you will keep my commandments.”

You remember, of course,

that Jesus’ commandments were two:

Love the Lord God with all your heart,

all your strength,

all your mind,

and all your soul,

and love your neighbor as yourself.

Paul showed his love for God through his evangelism,

sharing the good news,

talking in the synagogues, the marketplace,

the Areopagus.

But he also showed his love for his neighbor

by speaking to his listeners with respect,

treating his listeners with dignity,

civility, and courtesy.

There was no anger in Paul’s words,

no judgment.

Paul’s were not words that condemned or incited,

they were words that welcomed and invited.

Paul took to heart the counsel he’d given the Galatians

when he urged them to live by the fruits of the Spirit:

to live by love and joy,

peace and patience,

kindness and gentleness,

and self-control.

Paul lived by these words,

and we too are called to live by them,

to live by the Spirit,

to let the Spirit guide us,

and help us to live by Jesus’ commandments.

When our lives are marked by enmity, anger,

quarrels, strife,

dissension  -

anything that fails to build community,

we’ve turned from the Spirit,

shut our minds, our hearts,

our ears to the Advocate,

turned away from the gift given us by our Lord,

the gift given us to help us live as Jesus calls us to live.

(Galatians 5:20)

Jesus spoke of the Spirit as he shared

his final meal with his disciples,

his final hours with them.

We can almost hear his voice

as he spoke urgently:

“Live by love;

let the love that is within you

flow freely out of you

for all the world to see;

then the world will know you are my follower.

This won’t be easy;

in fact, it will often be hard.

But I will give you a helper,

I will give you the Advocate

to help you live as I call you to live.”

Do you let the Spirit that is within you

lead you, guide you,

help you let love for God and love for neighbor

flow freely?

                                            
Do you live by love and joy,

peace and patience,

kindness and gentleness,

and self-control?

Or is yours a life marked more by

enmity, anger,

quarrels, strife,

dissension and turmoil?

Only one is a life of the Spirit.

Only one is a life of Christ.

AMEN