Spend Some Time in the Trenches

                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. So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who happened to be there. Acts 17:16-17

The verses above show us that Paul’s spirit was provoked. Now we must understand this is Paul’s lowercase “s” spirit and not the Holy Spirit provoking him. This tells me a lot about Paul and his heart. He actually cared about those around him and their eternity. What should have been a holiday for Paul in Athens, instead, turned into a heart troubling experience for him as he recognized the idol worship of the people there. Paul, I guess, could have let this go and enjoyed his time off, but his heart and love for the gospel and those around him wouldn’t allow him to ignore what he was seeing.

The idol worship found here in Athens is not much different than the idol worship found in America. This should trouble all of us because we are all guilty of idol worship. Tim Keller does a great job explaining this type of worship in his book Counterfeit gods.

“What is an idol? It is anything more important to you than God, anything that absorbs your heart and imagination more than God, anything you seek to give you what only God can give.”

Do you see that? What absorbs your heart and the hearts of those around you? We spend so much of our time looking to manmade idols that cannot save us. Please realize that idols are in need of man. Idols absolutely do not exist without man. Idols will ultimately fail man and bring an eternity apart from God. Jeremiah 10:5 lays this out clearly.

Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field, and they cannot speak; they have to be carried for they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them, for they cannot do evil, neither is it in them to do good.

These truths point us to the ultimate truth of God. God needs nothing. God existed before man and will exist long after man. God brings salvation and an eternity with Him. This is why we focus our praises and all our glory vertically to our Father. This is what Psalms 121 is pointing out.

I lift my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made the heaven and earth.

We must take Paul’s lead and quit sitting on our hands. We must get up and tell everyone about the gospel and the God that is greater than all idols. How do we this? Look at verse 17. Paul noticed his surroundings and saw a need and he was intentional about providing that need. Scripture doesn’t tell us that Paul wished that something would change. No, Scripture tells us that Paul did something about it. Paul started preaching in the synagogues and in the marketplace every day. Did you hear that clearly? He preached the gospel to an idol worshipping lost population every single day. He did this without fear. He did this without hesitation. He did this with the Kingdom on his mind.

Is your spirit ever provoked? Do you ever hurt for those around you? We must spend time thinking about these things. We must recognize that God deserves our worship above all idols. There should never be a time where we truly take a holiday. I am not calling for us to not go to the beach or not take time off from our jobs. I am calling on us to not take time off from the gospel. We should bathe in this gospel by always having the Kingdom on our mind.

Paul understood the desperate need of the people around him. He understood that their idol worshiping would ultimately be their destruction. Paul wouldn’t allow himself to be on the outside looking in while people were dying and going to hell. Paul made it a point to be on the inside. His mission his call was to be in the trenches amongst the lost. He didn’t do this to be a hero. He didn’t do this so that we would be talking about him today. Paul willingly went to the trenches because lost people were found there and he longed to see them saved. Paul went to the trenches because he had an answer for the lost in the saving God he served.

The trench is a home for the loss and can be a scary place. The trench can be unwelcoming. The trench can be harmful. The trench used to be our home—Christian. This is why we must take a cue from Paul and intentionally and willingly go to where the lost are found—in the trenches—taking them the amazing saving news of the gospel of Jesus Christ our Lord.