SERMON SPOTLIGHT * 8/28/22
Do I love my city to see it for what it truly is and tell it what it desperately needs to hear? Below is an outline summary of the sermon for your further study and deeper reflection.
SERIES: Hopeful: The Book of Acts
TEXT: Acts 17:16-34
TITLE: Loving Our City
PREACHER: Derek Overstreet
POINTS:
I. What Do You See?
II. What Do You Say?
SERMON EXCERPTS:
”We can be sure the beauty was not lost on Paul. But what he saw above all things was a city drowning in idolatry. And the effect of this raw paganism was—this is Luke’s word in verse 16—his spirit was provoked. Paul was deeply troubled. Seriously grieved. As he observed a city submerged in idolatry, his heart filled with righteous indignation.”
“Like Athens, Tucson is submerged in idols. That is the fundamental problem with society and our city—idolatry. As Romans 1:23 clearly reveals, we have exchanged the glory of the Creator for the glory of the created—IDOLATRY. Tucson might not be the cultural and intellectual center of the world like Athens was, but like Athens, the idolatry and paganism are raw.”
“…like Paul, as those redeemed by Christ, indwelt by Christ, and an ambassador for Christ, our greatest zeal is for Christ. And when we see Christ being denied his rightful place in the lives of others, it should affect us. Move us. Provoke us.”
“As Paul was provoked, he didn’t fall into despair. He didn’t curse the city. He didn’t throw his hands up in surrender. He opened his mouth.”
“If we listen closely and observe carefully, we realize our neighbors, co-workers, and classmates are searching for the diamonds of life. Our city is searching for purpose, meaning, and relevance beyond themselves—it’s why everyone likes a cause. The folks we rub shoulders with daily try to make sense of their existence and experiences. They are looking for a philosophy or worldview to fit it all into. “
“Listen, the doctrine of God is part of the gospel. It is the necessary backdrop to the gospel. It answers why the gospel is necessary. Why Jesus had to come. Why we need a Savior. The doctrine of God is the rest of the story that fills the gospel out.”
“The gospel is not trivial, it is essential. But just as salvation makes no sense apart from judgment, the gospel needs to be set in the context of a Holy God who created all things and will one day judge all things.”
“Paul proclaims an entirely different worldview centered on God and rooted in Christ: God is the Creator of all things, God is the Sustainer of all things, and God is the Ordainer of all things.”
QUOTES:
John Stott - “What Paul saw was a veritable forest of idols. There were more gods in Athens than in all the rest of the country. There were innumerable temples, shrines, statutes, and alters. In the Parthenon stood a huge gold and ivory statue of Athena, whose gleaming spear-point was visible forty miles away. Elsewhere there were images of Apollo, the city’s patron, Jupiter, Venus, Mercury, Bacchus, Neptune, Diana, and Asclepius. The whole Greek Pantheon was there, all the gods of Olympus. And they were beautiful. They were made not only of stone and brass, but of gold, silver, ivory, and marble, and they had been elegantly fashioned by the finest Greek sculptors”
Henry Martyn - “I could not endure existence if Jesus was not glorified; it would be hell to me, if he were to be always dishonored”
John Stott - “Many people are rejecting the gospel today not because they perceive it to be false, but because they perceive it to be trivial”
ADDITIONAL SCRIPTURE:
Isaiah 42:8
APPLICATION:
-As Christians, how do we respond to what we see in our city?
-Some mocked, and the conversation was over. Others were open but cautious and the conversation continued. But hallelujah, the Lord opened the hearts of some and they believed. So be Hopeful this week as you go love your city like Paul loved Athens!