The Unknown
Imagine being born and raised in a home and town where all of the refrigerators and stores only have sodas, orange juice, apple juice and coffee.
Then one day, as your ten-year-old self is playing hide and seek with your friends in the woods, huffing and puffing from running around all day — you hide behind a tree next to a chasm with clear liquid flowing through it.
You wonder what it is. Out of curiosity, you dip your hand into the liquid to discover that it’s cold! You scoop a little with your hand, you smell it — there’s no scent! You dip your tongue in — there’s no taste? You scoop up a little more. This time, you slurp it up quick! Suddenly, your whole body is weirdly refreshed and energized.
“You guys! You guys!” You call out to your friends, not even caring that you just lost the game. They all come rushing, everyone gasping for air and sweating from all the running. “Drink this,” you say excitedly.
“What is it? Is this a prank?” They asked as you receive suspicious looks from everyone.
“No, it’s a clear drink that feels so good to drink. I was so thirsty from playing so I drank some and now I have so much energy. I feel alive!” You say grinning from ear to ear. You could tell your friends were still a bit skeptical, so you run over to the edge of the chasm carefully, and scoop up the liquid with both hands this time to get more. You slurp it up, thrilled by this new discovery.
No one needed any more convincing, everyone began scooping — some drank more than you did. You and your friends forget about the game and run back to society to tell everyone your new discovery.
“Are you talking about clear soda? We have that in the stores,” people would say.
“No, no! It’s not soda at all!”
“Did it taste like orange juice?” They ask.
“No! It’s clear.”
“Oh, you mean like apple juice?” People continue to ask.
“No! It’s clearer than apple juice, and there’s no taste.”
“No taste? Well, why would you want to drink that?” People say in disbelief.
“I just do, it’s incredible. I feel like my body needed it. It’s what my body has been wanting. It’s as if my body was made for this, and nothing else.” You’re excited and frustrated at the same time because this clear liquid is so amazing, it’s hard to explain. Their lack of understanding is understandable.
“I don’t get it.” People responded.
“It’s hard to explain. Come with me, you’ll have to experience it for yourself!” You replied, super ecstatic as you take their hand to run to the beautiful, life-giving discovery.
———
This little fictional story was dropped in my spirit to remind me of Acts 17, which talks about Paul visiting Athens, waiting for Silas and Timothy, “he was deeply troubled by all the idols he saw everywhere in the city.” (Acts 17:16) He began to preach about Jesus, which resulted in him being taken to the High Council, where he was questioned about what he was doing.
“Men of Athens, I notice that you are very religious in every way, for as I was walking along I saw your many shrines. And one of your altars had this inscription on it: ‘To an Unknown God.’ This God, whom you worship without knowing, is the one I’m telling you about. He is the God who made the world and everything in it. Since he is Lord of heaven and earth, he doesn’t live in man-made temples, and human hands can’t serve his needs—for he has no needs. He himself gives life and breath to everything, and he satisfies every need. From one man he created all the nations throughout the whole earth. He decided beforehand when they should rise and fall, and he determined their boundaries.
“His purpose was for the nations to seek after God and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him—though he is not far from any one of us. For in him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ And since this is true, we shouldn’t think of God as an idol designed by craftsmen from gold or silver or stone.” (Acts 17:22-29)
As believers, we have to remember that every single person we meet has their own story. It’s not our job to shove the Bible down people’s throats. Our job is to show people the love of Jesus. Like the fictional story from earlier, it’s not going be easy trying to explain what God’s presence is like. It’s something a person has to experience for themselves.
Just like Paul, we are to meet people where they are and usher them toward God. However, when I say, “meet them where they are,” I don’t mean go out to clubs and bars and try to talk to people about Jesus there. I don’t mean, “do what the world is doing so you can fit it or blend in, and then they’ll like you, and then they’ll listen to what you have to say.” No, this is a common mistake Christians make. There is a way to love people and speak about the love of Christ without compromise.
If you meet a new friend who doesn’t know Jesus, invite them to lunch or get a group together to go to the movies and just get to know each other. Find some common ground and talk about that, and maybe ask them if there’s anything you can pray about.
Paul told the people of Athens, ‘Hey, I noticed that y’all are very dedicated to your beliefs, and that’s so amazing—but, I noticed that you have an altar that said ‘To the Unknown God’. Well, fortunately, I know who that God is. Let me tell you about Him.’
Notice how there’s not a hint of condemnation. Nothing but truth and love. Those things go hand-in-hand.
