Acts 17:16-34 | in the Worldਨਮੂਨਾ

Being in the world means taking the time to help people of the world understand.

Acts 17 says Paul reasoned in the synagogue with both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there (17:17). He reasoned with them, day-by-day. He took the time to go with them when they wanted to hear more (while some suggest that this was more of a courtroom proceeding than a friendly intellectual conversation, Paul nonetheless decided to go with them). He felt a burden for them. As Luke writes, “he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols” (17:16, NIV).

Being in the world but not of the world means having a burden for people who are in and of the world. It means valuing them as people, God’s people, even if they are not God’s people. Which means investing in people.

This century, relational evangelism has become all the rage in Western countries. That shouldn’t lead us to believe that pointing people to Jesus depends on friendships and relationships. Paul was not friends with the people he met in the marketplace day by day. He did not have relationships with the philosophers who wanted to hear more. But he related to them, not treating them as “pagans,” but as human beings with inherent worth because they mattered to God.

People of the world have stories and struggles, and an inner yearning for the things of God (even when it’s suppressed, ignored, misdirected, or distorted). Just like people who are not of the world. The way of Jesus, and what we see with Paul, is taking the time to help people work through their misperceptions and help them understand they way of Jesus – which is the way of God, and who God truly is.