Joining the Conversation

Those who conducted Paul brought him as far as Athens; and after receiving instructions to have Silas and Timothy join him as soon as possible, they left him.

16 While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was deeply distressed to see that the city was full of idols.

So he argued in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and also in the market-place every day with those who happened to be there.

Also some Epicurean and Stoic philosophers debated with him.

Some said, ‘What does this babbler want to say?’

Others said, ‘He seems to be a proclaimer of foreign divinities.’ (This was because he was telling the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.)

So they took him and brought him to the Areopagus and asked him, ‘May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting?

It sounds rather strange to us, so we would like to know what it means.’

Now all the Athenians and the foreigners living there would spend their time in nothing but telling or hearing something new.

Then Paul stood in front of the Areopagus and said, ‘Athenians, I see how extremely religious you are in every way....

So we see that Paul was not engaged in casual remarks, but in vigorous debate with those who are highly skilled in the arts of debate.

There is risk that he could himself become befuddled.

There is risk that he could not say clearly what he wanted to say and thus confuse his listeners.

There is risk that his hearers would drop the politeness and turn into a mob.

There is risk that he would be arrested for introducing new gods, the punishment for which was death (remember Socrates.!)

There is risk that he might be made to “disappear” as have so many other witnesses since then, to this very day.

With all of this risk, why does he bother?

Why not wait for an easier time and place?

Because the message he has is so overwhelmingly important, it is intended for all, including the philosophers, and it needs to be conveyed by conversation.

He accepts the risk and goes ahead, ...with mixed success.

Some hear gladly and come to faith;

some are merely curious;

some reject what they hear.

Sounds like the reaction to most any sermon, doesn't it?

Why take the risk?

Because some will join in the conversation,

the conversation with God,

the conversation about God and with each other, about the really big questions,

the conversation which wrestles with

Who am I?

Why am I here?

With whom am I connected?

Do I belong to someone, or am I here all on my own?

And a host of related questions.

That ongoing conversation.

And it is precisely that, a conversation.

It is the way we have been wondrously made, to join in the give and take of conversation with God and with each other in order to explore the big questions and get ready to receive the big answers which will in God's good time be revealed to us.

God made us for this conversation with himself.

James Weldon Johnson begins his imaginative retelling of the Genesis origin stories this way:

And God stepped out on space

and he looked around and said

I'm lonely – I'll make me a world....

And Johnson later continues:

And God looked around on all that he had made and said “I'm lonely still.”

God thought and thought

Till he thought “I'll make me a man [and woman.]

Toiling over a lump of clay

Till he shaped it in his own image.

Then into it he blew the breath of life

And man became a living soul.”

Now, God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit could be utterly complete within the Trinity, needing for nothing.

But this mighty Lord God has chosen from the very beginning to involve us in the divine conversation.

This mighty Lord of all desires our response to his gifts and invitation and does everything he can to make it possible.

So of course Paul will take the risk to alert anyone who will listen about the the truth of the situation.

It is that important and that wonderful!

How?

1.Paul looks for things which he has in common with the philosophers.

2.He quotes Greek poets whom they would know.

3.He takes note of the altar to the unknown god, and assures them that what they despaired of knowing is indeed now known in the Lord Jesus.

4.But also Paul does not hold back when the conversation gets to the unfamiliar topics and the most important thing of all – Jesus' resurrection.

His side of the conversation is gracious but firm, and challenging.

Not surprisingly, the reaction is mixed.

--Some dismiss this crazy resurrection stuff and walk away from the conversation.

--Some are intrigued enough to want to hear more at another time, so the conversation can continue.

--Some hear it with joy and come to faith, so that the conversation about God turns into conversation with God.

The church continues to grow in numbers and in faith.

Some have gotten the idea that to be “inclusive” means to say nothing distinctive, nothing that might point out a difference in another's faith or lack of faith.

What a wishy-washy stance that is!

To be truly inclusive is much more than smiling and engaging in idle chit-chat.

It is to join in the big conversation,

to listen carefully to other voices,

to respond to them clearly,

to bear witness to the hope that is in you, as Paul says elsewhere.

Paul is calling us to that kind of inclusiveness, and demonstrating one way of doing it.

To understand our part in the conversation in this way may challenge others to think, to explore, and just maybe to change... but it is not a nasty or destructive thing.

By recent orders, Canadian military chaplains are forbidden by their government to utter the name Father, Son,and Holy Spirit in any public setting.

In a supposed democracy, the Canadians are forbidding the conversation to even take place, so that no one will be offended...except any Christian who wants to follow Paul's example.

So, they could have public rallies after 9/11, but no one could publicly pray, no one could say anything distinctively Christian.

Sadly, our government appears to be moving in the same directions.

These days we are deciding that we need to know more about Judaism and Islam, and that may be fine.

But let's not paper things over in a false niceness.

Let's use Paul's model of vigorous engagement, not apologizing for the name of Father,Son, and Holy Spirit as so many are doing these days.

Let us name clearly the resurrection of Jesus as the source of our hope.

In the give and take of that conversation, some will say –“ it's not for me.”

Others will says “I need to think more about this.”

Some just may come to new and renewed faith.

It is happening in terribly dangerous places such as Pakistan, Iran, China,Sudan... and it can happen here, too.

Many have felt and continue to feel that it is a risk worth taking.

The Spirit of the risen Christ will guide us as we figure out ways to effectively approach our neighbors.

The voices of scripture correct us when our ideas wander astray.

The voices of the saints propose models for what we who want to be faithful can do so today.

The conversation ebbs and flows.

It moves back and forth between talking about God to talking with God.

It is evangelism and worship.

It is ever inviting new participants and not giving up on old ones.

Some outsiders may have the idea that the church is a place to escape from the world and “real life”.

But we know that this assembly is the most realistic place around!

--because this is the place we see the big picture.

--because this is the place where we are granted a promise, a vision of the outcome of life.

--because this is the place where we practice the reason for hope, and how we might invite others into the conversation.

Paul challenges us; it is worth the risk, because Christ is risen,

He is risen indeed. Amen.

Please note: The preceding sermon is provided as a resource for the thought, prayer, and meditation of the members and friends of St. Mark's. It is the residue of a verbal event, and thus it does not have academic footnotes and other details that would be expected in a written document. The writer gladly acknowledges the prior thought and work of many Christians before him.