Paul's last point at the meeting in Areopagus was comparing God to gold, silver, or stone. He said to them, "Therefore since we are God's offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by human design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead" (Acts 17:29-31). When Paul arrived in Athens, the first thing he noticed was all the idols displayed all over the city. The idols, made up of gold, silver, or stone, represented the gods they worshiped. The people offered sacrifices and offerings to them, believing they worshipped God. However, the true living God, our God, cannot be compared to any created things on this earth because everything is His creation. The only way to relate with God is through faith in our Lord Jesus.
God wants people to repent or turn away from comparing God to any idols, for He has set a day to judge the world with justice through our Lord Jesus, who rose from the dead. After the people of Athens heard about the resurrection of Jesus, some rejected the idea, others wanted to hear more about Jesus, and others, such as Dionysius and Damaris, believed in Jesus and repented (Acts 17:32-34). Our God wants us to worship Him as He is, not through anything we compare Him to. When we pray, we pray directly to God through the name of our Lord Jesus. He does not want us to pray to an image that represents Him, regardless of how beautiful the image is.
If we want to pray to God, the only way to approach God is to go directly to Him. We have direct access to God because of our faith in our Lord Jesus. Jesus made way for us to have access directly to our Heavenly Father because He died for our sins. Paul shared this with Athens because they didn't know any better, but now they heard the truth, so Paul encouraged them to turn away from their idols or stop comparing God with images made from gold, silver, or stone.
Ask yourself these questions for application: (Think through these questions carefully and meditate on them while answering them, and let the Spirit of God speaks to you). Can I compare God to any images made from gold, silver, or stone? Do I believe what the Bible says that I have direct access to God through my Lord Jesus? Why do I have direct access to God through my Lord Jesus?
Write down all the worries you face today and lift them up to God.
Prayer:
Father in Heaven, thank you that I have direct access to you through my faith in the Lord Jesus. I can pray to you anytime, anywhere, and you answer all my prayers. Please help me not to compare you to anything, for you created everything. Please help and teach me to worship you for who you are. I want to worship you in a way that is acceptable and pleasing to you. May you please be with me now as I go through the day? In your name Jesus, I pray. Amen.
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