<html><head></head><body><div><div><div><div><br></div>Acts 17:19-23<div><br></div><div><b>19. &nbsp;And they took hold of him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new teaching is&nbsp;which you present?</b></div><div><b>20. &nbsp;For you bring some strange things to our ears; we wish to know therefore what these things mean.”</b></div><div><b>21. &nbsp;Now all the Athenians and foreigners who lived there spen their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new.</b></div><div><b>22. &nbsp;So Paul, standing in the middle of the Areopagus said: &nbsp;“Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious.</b></div><div><b>23. &nbsp;For as I passed along, and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, ‘To an unknown god.’ &nbsp;What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.</b></div><div><b><br></b></div><div>Is humanity continuing to evolve into <i>“something new”&nbsp;</i>and ever ‘improving’? &nbsp;This is the foolish&nbsp;contention of Progressivism.</div><div><br></div><div>The truth is unchanging, immutable, and&nbsp;absolute. &nbsp;What was sin, remains sin. &nbsp;<i>“I am the LORD, I&nbsp;change not.” </i>(Malachi 3;6)<i>&nbsp;</i>If mankind’s search for truth and righteousness&nbsp;does not end with Jesus, then mankind is doomed to deadly&nbsp;vanity and unending&nbsp;self-deception.</div><div><br></div><div>Paul, (a highly educated man) addressed&nbsp;these prideful men of Athens&nbsp;in a manner which would appeal to&nbsp;their vanity. &nbsp;Sadly, we will see that very few were made&nbsp;Believers. &nbsp;There is no ‘Letter to the Church in Athens’ found in the Bible. &nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>In Athens,&nbsp;Paul departed from his standard practice of first speaking to the Jewish community when he entered a new town. &nbsp;The truth of God in Christ Jesus for our salvation is founded upon the Old Testament law and the prophets. &nbsp;Trying to preach Christ from a humanistic, current social construct, seems to have been much less effective. &nbsp;Trying to use the&nbsp;culture as a way of presenting the radical message of the gospel has,&nbsp;and (also today), <u>is</u>&nbsp;proving to be ineffectual. &nbsp;</div><div><br></div><div>Christianity is a call <u>out</u>&nbsp;of our old lives, into an entirely new one. &nbsp;Trying to fit Christianity into present culture, (sort of a ‘blending’ of the two), sends the wrong message. &nbsp;Christians are given a death to self and sin in baptism, and a new birth into life in Christ. &nbsp;We are no longer living to do our will, but the will of the Father. &nbsp;Christianity is a radical departure from this ‘ever-progressing’&nbsp;corrupt&nbsp;world.</div><div><br></div><div>Being a Believer and a disciple is to be living a different life. &nbsp;We are not supposed to ‘fit in’. &nbsp;We are to be ‘in the world’ as salt and light, but we are no longer ‘of the world’. &nbsp;We are truly aliens from another world.</div><div><br></div><div>Prayer: &nbsp;Merciful Father, who never changes, establish us as ambassadors of light&nbsp;from your&nbsp;old unchanging kingdom, to an ever decaying, changing world of darkness. &nbsp;In Jesus we pray, Amen.</div><div><br></div><div>Love,</div><div>Dad/Baba/Eric</div><div>Grandpa Pickle Pastor</div><div>“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word. &nbsp;God’s Word is our habitation.”</div><div>&nbsp;<br><br><img title="Inline image" alt="Inline image" src="cid:7e297834-51df-9de2-3293-73bbda5ff709@yahoo.com" draggable="false" data-id="<7e297834-51df-9de2-3293-73bbda5ff709@yahoo.com>"><br><br><div><a href="https://mail.onelink.me/107872968?pid=nativeplacement&amp;c=Global_Acquisition_YMktg_315_Internal_EmailSignature&amp;af_sub1=Acquisition&amp;af_sub2=Global_YMktg&amp;af_sub3=&amp;af_sub4=100000604&amp;af_sub5=EmailSignature__Static_" rel="nofollow" target="_blank"></a><br></div></div></div></div></div></body></html>


Acts 17:19-23
19.  And they took hold of him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, “May we know what this new teaching is which you present?20.  For you bring some strange things to our ears; we wish to know therefore what these things mean.”21.  Now all the Athenians and foreigners who lived there spen their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new.22.  So Paul, standing in the middle of the Areopagus said:  “Men of Athens, I perceive that in every way you are very religious.23.  For as I passed along, and observed the objects of your worship, I found also an altar with this inscription, ‘To an unknown god.’  What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you.
Is humanity continuing to evolve into “something new” and ever ‘improving’?  This is the foolish contention of Progressivism.
The truth is unchanging, immutable, and absolute.  What was sin, remains sin.  “I am the LORD, I change not.” (Malachi 3;6) If mankind’s search for truth and righteousness does not end with Jesus, then mankind is doomed to deadly vanity and unending self-deception.
Paul, (a highly educated man) addressed these prideful men of Athens in a manner which would appeal to their vanity.  Sadly, we will see that very few were made Believers.  There is no ‘Letter to the Church in Athens’ found in the Bible.  
In Athens, Paul departed from his standard practice of first speaking to the Jewish community when he entered a new town.  The truth of God in Christ Jesus for our salvation is founded upon the Old Testament law and the prophets.  Trying to preach Christ from a humanistic, current social construct, seems to have been much less effective.  Trying to use the culture as a way of presenting the radical message of the gospel has, and (also today), is proving to be ineffectual.  
Christianity is a call out of our old lives, into an entirely new one.  Trying to fit Christianity into present culture, (sort of a ‘blending’ of the two), sends the wrong message.  Christians are given a death to self and sin in baptism, and a new birth into life in Christ.  We are no longer living to do our will, but the will of the Father.  Christianity is a radical departure from this ‘ever-progressing’ corrupt world.
Being a Believer and a disciple is to be living a different life.  We are not supposed to ‘fit in’.  We are to be ‘in the world’ as salt and light, but we are no longer ‘of the world’.  We are truly aliens from another world.
Prayer:  Merciful Father, who never changes, establish us as ambassadors of light from your old unchanging kingdom, to an ever decaying, changing world of darkness.  In Jesus we pray, Amen.
Love,Dad/Baba/EricGrandpa Pickle Pastor“A chapter a day, every day, progressively, be transformed, ‘soak’ in the living Word.  God’s Word is our habitation.” 



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