The Importance Of Paul Spent In Athens

The consensus of many authors is that Paul didn’t plan to begin preaching in Athens until his companions Silas and Timothy arrived. Paul most likely occupied his time by walking around Athens, taking in the sights. Athens is a city that Paul has heard of since he was a boy, why not explore this famous city? “He could have been spellbound by the sheer splendor of the city’s architecture, history, or wisdom. What he (Paul) saw was neither beauty nor brilliance of the city, but idolatry.” Stott, J. R. (1994)
“While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was deeply troubled by all the idols he saw everywhere in the city.” (Acts 17:16) “Of all the things Paul saw, one seemed to make the greatest impression on him. It was that this great city was
Situated a little north-west of Acropolis, It was formerly the place where the most vulnerable Judicial Court of ancient Greece met.” (Stott, J. R. (1994) “Paul seldom passed up an invitation to speak, when it gave him the opportunity to preach the gospel to lost men and women. The opportunity to speak in the synagogue was apparently a matter of custom, but the invitation to preach to pagan philosophers was rarer.” (Stott, J. R. (1994) “The motive of these Athenians for giving Paul a hearing, an opportunity to expound his views, were not very noble. But Paul was invited to speak, and that was sufficient for him. It was an opportunity he gladly accepted and utilized for the sake of the gospel.” (Deffinbaugh, R. (2014, August) Paul goes on to speak the words we find in Acts 17:23-31. He finishes with “Therefore since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising. Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent.” (Acts
What a blow to the religious multi-god system of Athens, to be told that there is but one true God, and in all of their “gods” they had missed Him. What a blow Paul struck at the philosophical, academic approach of these men to their religious pursuits.” (Deffinbaugh, R. (2014, August) At this point, we wonder how did these men react to being called out? “When they heard Paul speak of the resurrection of the dead, some laughed in contempt, but others said, “We want to hear more about this later.” That ended Paul’s discussion with them, but some joined him and became believers. (Acts 17:32-34) These philosophers, these men of high regard, reacted in the same way that every other man that heard Paul speak did. It’s incontestable that Paul had a profound way of sharing Christ, it didn’t matter the location, audience, or circumstances. Paul simply spoke the truth, the word of God, and God used that word to change the