Acts 17:16-34 - Novelty in Preaching

Acts 17:16-34 - Now while Paul was waiting for them in Athens, his spirit was being provoked within him...he was reasoning in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles...he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection. Paul stood...and said..."God...does not dwell in temples made with hands....He made from one, every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times, and the boundaries of their habitation, that they should seek God,...for in Him we live and move and exist...God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent." Some men joined him and believed. 

Message: Novelty in Preaching

Time: Clearly written by Luke, this book follows the lives of Peter and then Paul after Jesus' ascension into heaven. The book was completed about 62 AD as Paul sat in prison. It provides an account of the growth of the Church and spread from Jerusalem, from a small group of frightened believers in Jerusalem transformed into an empire-wide movement of people who had committed their lives to Jesus Christ, and it should help us to be bold and have zeal in our walks with God.

What the Lord is Saying: We often have a thirst for new and improved. There is nothing wrong with improving a product but sometimes it begs to question what was wrong with the past. Yet it is true that our culture prizes novelty and the present. Our marketplace thrives on this, with new releases of phones, technology continues to improve and we must have the latest. 

I've always enjoyed pastors and teachers that simply take the Word of God and read through it verse by verse and preach it. This way, you get the whole package of truth instead of wading through it and packaging it a certain way. Granted, those types of messages can be appealing at times. It is great to hear the Bible presented clearly. I'm all for that, but we also need to be a people that looks at every part. 

Lately, I've been reading through the Bible, one chapter at a time each day and taking notes. Thinking about this God that doesn't change. And yet reading chapters like Ezekiel that speak of his wrath on kingdoms that do their own thing and elevate themselves over him. Hard subjects at times, but I am reading them nevertheless, trying to understand what they mean and how they fit into the larger picture. 

Jeremiah 6:16, "The Lord says, "Stand by the ways and see and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is, and walk in it."" We can look to the past to help plan out our present days. 

It is good to discover truths in the Bible that perhaps we have not seen before. It is also good to find truths that remind us of falsehood or falling away from our faith. On this sense it is good. But we need to be careful that we are not constantly on a hunt to find new ways of saying the same things that have been said before. 

Summary: There is novelty in preaching to encounter God's word and discover truths that we have not seen before. 

Promise: So often we think it takes courage to say something new, in our day, however, the truly courageous stand for what is true, regardless of its age. May we have the courage to proclaim the old truths of God's word as the only answer to the problems of this new era. 

Prayer: O God, your ways are perfect and true. You God know what we need and Your word is alive. Only today in reading from Ezekiel I discover truths of righteousness and sin and justice that I have never discovered before. Thank you for this discovery and the joy that reading your Word brings. Keep us alive to this preaching. But guard us into the feeling that we must invent new ways constantly. Help us to not do anything that distances the application of Your word and understanding of it. It is true we can find your truth in our world and what it values but it is also not hard to find clarity in your truth. We do not have to search for it by what the world offers. Give us wisdom.