Reconsidering Our Faith

Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye 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 ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you. 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  worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he 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 haply 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. Forasmuch 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 every  where to repent: Because he hath appointed a day, in the 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. - (Act 17:22)

Paul gave us much to consider when he spoke to the Athenians. He makes the point that God cannot be contained, nor can we offer him anything he has not already given us. He has given us light, stars, the sun and moon, and the world of earth, sky, and sea. He inhabited the land and sea with plants and animals and then created man and woman. He gave them free will to seek him. They would surely find him as they sought to understand the world in which he created for them.

All God asks for in return is our devotion to him. He could have made us like the angels, without free will, but he didn't. Just like we want someone to choose to love us, he wants us to choose to love him. It is a more rewarding kind of love than one that is perfunctory. In fact, the Bible repeatedly states that God despises hypocrisy.

Some of us who don't worship gold, silver, or stone today might be feeling a little smug. Yet, we worship other things in our culture. If we look at what we spend the most money or time on, that will tell us where our faith is strongest. Do we spend more time watching television, for example, than praying for others or worshiping God?

Prayer : Almighty God, help me be more mindful of where I place my hope. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, In Jesus Loving Name I Pray, Amen."