Acts 17 – Making the Unknown God Known

Series: Acts
Preached at: Eden Prairie, with campuses in Chaske, Pocatello, Egan, and Online
Date: June 7, 2026

A Sermon Summary — Acts 17:16–34

Overview

Pastor Troy opens by reflecting on the Apostle Paul as arguably the most influential church planter and missionary in human history. Several factors distinguished Paul: his willingness to travel (over 10,000 miles across the Roman Empire), his prolific writing (13 of 27 New Testament books), his ability to contextualize the gospel without diluting it, and his extraordinary toughness in the face of persecution. Yet beyond all of these, Pastor Troy points to one core motivator: a spirit provoked by idolatry and lostness.

Scripture Foundation

Acts 17:16 — "Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols."

Paul had been driven out of Thessalonica and then Berea, ultimately arriving in Athens — the elite cultural and intellectual center of the Roman Empire.
What struck Paul first was not the architecture, beauty, or history of Athens. It was the rampant idolatry.
The word "provoked" (Greek) means: to spasm, to feel something sharply in the core of who you are, to be stirred and twisted up on the inside.
Paul did not see Athens like a tourist. He saw it like a missionary.

Paul’s Engagement in Athens

In the Synagogue and Marketplace

Acts 17:17 — "So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and also in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be there."

Paul’s daily itinerary included:
- The synagogue — reasoning with those who had a basic understanding of Scripture
- The marketplace — engaging those with no knowledge of the Bible at all
This reflects Paul’s remarkable flexibility and range in evangelism

The Epicureans and Stoics

Acts 17:18 — "Some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also conversed with him."

Epicureans:
- Believed gods (little "g") existed but were unconcerned with human affairs
- Did not believe in the afterlife
- Embraced a fatalistic, hedonistic materialism — "Eat, drink, and be merry; for tomorrow we die"
- Called Paul a "babbler" — literally "seed picker," a small bird pecking at fragments; they dismissed him as a collector of half-truths
Stoics:
- Pantheists — believed God existed within all created things
- Their highest virtue was stoic resignation: "grin and bear it," "suck it up"
- Were intrigued by Paul’s message of Jesus and the resurrection
Key observation: Both worldviews left people without resurrection hope

The Areopagus

Acts 17:19–21 — "So they took him and brought him to the Areopagus… ‘May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?’… Now all the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there would spend their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new."

Being invited to speak at the Areopagus was a significant honor — a serious civic and intellectual forum
Presenters could speak for two to three hours
The Athenians were drawn by novelty — but Paul was about to offer them something truly new: new life in Jesus Christ

Paul’s Address at the Areopagus: The Christian Worldview Presented

Acts 17:22–23 — "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.’"

Paul opens with courtesy and a compliment — he does not come in aggressively
History records approximately 30,000 altars across Athens, including altars to abstract concepts like justice, modesty, and virtue
The altar "To an Unknown God" traces to an ancient plague in Athens: a man from Cyprus advised letting a flock of sheep wander; wherever they stopped, they were sacrificed. If no altar existed nearby, one was built and dedicated to "the unknown god." The plague lifted, but the altars remained.
Paul brilliantly uses this altar as his opening line, then declares:

Acts 17:23b — "What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you."
Paul then proceeds to dismantle their idolatry by revealing the character of the one true and living God:

1. God Is the Creator

Acts 17:24 — "The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man."

God made it all and is over it all
God cannot be contained in a structure, statue, system, or temple
God cannot be domesticated or reduced by human beings
The Bible (Romans 1) teaches that God has made Himself known through creation — unbelief is not due to lack of evidence, but suppression of truth
"You can pull down our steeples, but you can’t pull down the stars."
No one has any excuse; creation always points to a Creator

2. God Is the Sustainer of Life

Acts 17:25 — "Nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything."
Colossians 1:17 — "He is before all things, and in him all things hold together."

God does not need people; we need God
God is entirely self-sufficient — He needs no oxygen, no sleep, no food
A.W. Tozer: "God needs no one, but when faith is present, He works through anyone."
This truth would have stunned the Stoics and Epicureans — God is distinct from creation yet intimately involved in sustaining it

3. God Is the Ruler of the Nations

Acts 17:26 — "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."

Every nation came from one man: Adam
Therefore there is one human race — multiple ethnicities, but one race — and all humans share the same dignity, origin, and value
God places people in specific eras and specific locations — He is sovereign over all of history and geography
You were born when you were born, and you live where you live, by the providence and sovereignty of God

4. God Is Knowable — and Near

Acts 17:27 — "…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 contrast to Epicurean teaching (gods are detached and uncaring), Paul declares God’s purpose in creating humans was that they might pursue and find Him
Paul introduces the doctrine of sin here: sin’s effect is like blindness — humans grope toward God in the dark
James Boyce illustration: The Greek word for "feel" or "reach out" is the same word Homer used in the Odyssey for the blinded Cyclops groping in the cave — "In our sin, we are as unseeing as the blinded Cyclops. We instinctively know God is there via creation, but because of sin’s blinding effects, we need divine grace to give us new spiritual eyes to see Him."
God is not detached, disinterested, or disengaged — He is near. But we need the work of Jesus Christ to know Him and be made right with Him.

5. God Is the Source of Our Life and Existence

Acts 17:28 — "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.’"

Paul quotes their own poets — a model of cultural engagement
Every breath we breathe comes from God
Every movement, every second of existence is only possible because we are sustained by God
The "offspring" reference is a reminder that humans are created in the image of God, made by God and made to know, love, and worship God
Therefore: it is illogical to worship lifeless idols that cannot think, move, or help you breathe

6. God in Christ Is Both Judge and Rescuer

Acts 17:30–31 — "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."
Hebrews 9:27 — "It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment."

"Overlooked" does not mean God ignored sin or turned a blind eye — God has always taken sin seriously
It means: in His great mercy, God did not immediately hammer humanity with the judgment they deserved
With the coming of Jesus, everyone everywhere must now repent or face God’s judgment
God has revealed Himself through creation (Romans 1), and then took it further by sending His Son into time, space, and history
The extraordinary good news: the appointed Judge is also the crucified and risen Savior — turn from sin and idolatry to Jesus Christ, and He pays for your judgment by giving His life for you

The Three Responses to the Gospel

Acts 17:32–34 — "Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked. But others said, ‘We will hear you again about this.’… But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them."
The gospel always produces one of three responses:

Mockery — scoffing, dismissal, writing it off
Interest — curiosity, wanting to hear more
Belief — conviction of sin, repentance, and faith in Jesus Christ
"That is always the response when the gospel is preached."

Application: Five Dangers to Avoid as Faithful Witnesses

Pastor Troy closes by asking: How do we apply this to our lives? What should we avoid if we want to be faithful witnesses like Paul in a world full of idols?

The Danger of Apathy
- Seeing idolatry and lostness without being moved
- Paul’s spirit was provoked — not apathetic
- Assessment: Have you grown spiritually dull toward the lostness around you?
The Danger of Isolation
- Being so angry at lost people for behaving like lost people that you withdraw from culture entirely
- Lost people act, speak, vote, and respond in lost ways — none of this should shock us
- Apathy can lead to angry isolation rather than compassionate engagement
The Danger of Cultural Ignorance
- Paul quoted their poets, understood Epicurean and Stoic ideology, and connected with their culture
- Good witnesses exegete the text, exegete the audience, and exegete the culture
- We need cultural savvy — understanding the spirit of the age and what people around us actually believe
The Danger of Lacking a Christian Worldview
- Knowing Bible verses is not enough — we must understand how the Bible answers the four fundamental worldview questions:
  - Origin — Where did we come from? (Created by God, not random chance)
  - Meaning — What is our purpose? (Found only in Christ)
  - Reality — What is true? (Revealed by God; we need new eyes and a new heart to see it)
  - Destiny — What is the future? (Secure forever in Christ)
- An evolutionary/secular worldview robs life of purpose, value, and meaning — and offers no certain destiny
The Danger of Skipping Hard Truths
- Preaching love without also preaching repentance, judgment, and the resurrection
- Paul did not pull up short — he declared that God commands everyone, everywhere to repent
- We must not leave out the last ten percent

Closing Exhortation

"Our world is not less religious — it simply has different altars: career, pleasure, politics, identity, comfort, technology, success. All of them promise meaning and reality. But none of them can save."

Paul gathered the scattered pieces of Athenian culture and showed them the picture they were missing: "You are religious, but you are not redeemed."
This is our calling too — to enter the world with burdened hearts, open eyes, cultural awareness, and the courage to declare that God has made Himself known in Christ Jesus
He is Creator. He is Sustainer. He is Judge. The time for excuses is over. Repent and trust in Jesus.

Closing Prayer Themes

Pastor Troy prayed for the congregation to be freed from:

Apathy toward lostness
Isolation and anger toward lost people
Cultural ignorance
A shallow, verse-only faith without worldview understanding
The temptation to skip hard truths about repentance, judgment, and the resurrection
And to be filled with:
A Paul-like provocation and burden for the lost
Cultural awareness and engagement
Courage to make the unknown God known in Christ Jesus

Scripture references cited: Acts 17:16–34 | Romans 1 | Colossians 1:17 | Hebrews 9:27

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June 7 – Sermon Acts 17 – Making the Unknown God Known-Summary