In the sermon, "Preappointed Times and Boundaries," delivered by Mala Chindongo, the focus is on Apostle Paul's journey to Athens during his second missionary trip. Paul, initially intending to preach in Asia Minor, is redirected by divine intervention to bring the gospel to Europe, specifically Athens, a city deeply entrenched in idol worship and philosophical debates. The sermon highlights the religious and philosophical context of Athens, dominated by Epicurean and Stoic thinkers, who either scorned or misunderstood the concept of resurrection. Paul seizes the opportunity to preach about the 'unknown God,' emphasizing God's role as the Creator, Sustainer, and Judge. He challenges the Athenians' beliefs by presenting a theology of God, underscoring God's self-sufficiency and providence. The sermon stresses that God has determined the times and places of all people so that they might seek and find Him. It calls attention to the need for repentance in light of God's impending judgment, showcasing God's attributes of long-suffering, justice, and love.

Let's take a moment to pray. Father, we thank you for your providence, that Lord, in your wisdom, in your power, in your mercy and grace, you said each one of us at the right time the right place that you send the right people and give us the right tools to hear your word, to believe on our Lord Jesus Christ, to see him not only dying for the sins of the chosen ones, oh God, but to be able to see that he died for my sins. And God, I pray that as we consider your providence this evening, oh God, you may bless our time, you may cause your word, O God, to sink deep in our hearts and to give us life. We pray, dear God, that you may attend our time this evening with your mercy, that you would pour your grace upon us, that Lord, you may continue to show us your love as you continue to save sinners, even in our midst. We ask in Jesus' name, amen.

So we're still with Paul, continuing from where we left off this morning. He's on a second missionary journey. As we pointed out that started in Acts chapter 15, Paul has just come out of the Jerusalem council and he and Barnabas decide to go back to the churches that they had established to encourage and exhort those churches. But as we read chapter 16 and also chapter 17, we see that they are not only seeking to encourage the churches and visit the churches they had planted, but they're continuing with the work of missions, even establishing new works. And so the Bible tells us that Paul had desired with his team, without Barnabas at this point, to continue preaching throughout Asia Minor.

But twice the Bible tells us that the Spirit of God forbade him to go into the rest of Asia Minor. And this Paul, God shows him a vision, a man of Macedonia calling and asking that Paul would come to help them. And Luke tells us that at this point, they believe that God wanted them to go into Europe. And so the gospel comes into Europe for the first time as it is recorded at least. And in verse 16, the Bible records now while Paul waited for the Marathans.

And this happened because Paul was preaching in Thessalonica. He is persecuted. He flees to Berea and even in Berea others came following Paul and persecuted there and Paul is... Others They managed to take Paul away from the crowds into Athens. And now the Bible records in verse 16 that while he was waiting in Athens, His spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols.

Something I would like to point out is that this is the first time in scripture that the phrase is used that a city is wholly given over to idols. The people in that city in Athens were consumed in the worship of false gods. It is interesting that men and women in this world can be consumed in worship and passionate, devoted to worship, yet to a false God. We want to be those that are passionate in worship, those that are consumed with worship, yet we want to do that to the holy God of the Bible. That is our desire.

Paul ends up in Athens, one of the most beautiful city, one of the most, one of the leading cities in science, arts, philosophy, and, but the whole city is wrapped up in religion, the worship of idols. Just also remember that this is the city and home to Plato and Aristotle. It's considered to be the birthplace of democracy and civilization as we understand it at least today. It also means that as Luke records for us in verse 18, he says, then certain Epicurean and Stoic philosophers encountered him and some said, what does this babbler want to say. Others said he seems to be a proclaimer of foreign gods because he preached to them Jesus and the resurrection.

These two schools of thought that Luke records for us, the Epicureans, this is a group of philosophers that lived 300 years before the New Testament was put together or was established, the New Testament church. They did not believe in creation. The God had created creation as we know it. They did not believe in the afterlife, so hearing the resurrection was something they scorned, laughed at, and mocked. They denied also the involvement of any deity in the affairs of men.

The Epicureans believed that the chief end of man was pleasure in all the good things found on earth, and that led to all kinds of worldliness. Luke says there's also a group of philosophers, the Stoics. This was also a group of philosophers that existed two centuries before the coming of Christ. So when Christ was coming on the earth to die on the cross, these were already there and established, at least in Greece and that part of the world. The Stoics believed that God created the world but left it to fate.

And a lot of other beliefs come to mind that we have today that embrace such kind of thinking. These behave more like the Pharisees with a strong emphasis on a works-based approach to religion. The Apostle Paul encountered men and women trenched in such kind of ideas and lifestyles. Sounds like our day and age. Paul later would write in 1st Corinthians chapter 1 verse 22 to 24, for the Jews require a sign and the Greeks seek after wisdom.

But we preach Christ crucified. And so in the midst of these philosophers who were given over to idols, Paul came with a simple message, Christ crucified. Again Luke continues to just give us a picture of what Paul was dealing with in his time, especially here in Athens. If you look with me in verse 19, And they took him and brought him to Ariel Perger saying, may we know what this new doctrine is of which you speak, for you are bringing some strange things to our ears. It sounds like our society today.

The resurrection. Like I said this morning that sometimes it almost feels like, indeed it is strange to our society that we feel it, that you come before non-believers to even talk about Jesus and the resurrection, something that you're claiming and we're claiming happened 2, 000 years ago. And our society looks at that and says, What does that have to do with me? And it becomes us now at that point to begin to show them that this has everything to do with you and with me. You are bringing strange things to our ears.

Therefore we want to know what these things mean. And Luke goes on to tell us in verse 21, for all the Athenians and the foreigners who were there spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear something new. We live in such a society that is so curious and always listening in and even so for us with social media, always listening to something, reading something, seeing something. We as curious and occupied and busy as they were. We're not different.

And in verse 22, then Paul stood in the midst of the Europegis and said, Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious. These were not, and I also should point out that the group of people that brought Paul before this Areopagus were not just ordinary men. These were men sort of the judicial system of Athens and they were not here to try poor but at least to hear him out before they could dismiss him. This was the highest court in the land. Policies were made there.

Every decision that governed Athens at that point was made in this court and they wanted to hear Paul hear him out before they could dismiss him. And Paul begins taking an opportunity to speak and address this great assembly. Paul says, I see, I perceive that in all things, you are very religious, for as I was passing through and considered the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription to their known God. Paul says at least you have admitted that you know that all that we see around us didn't just come into existence out of nothing. Someone was there, God, bringing all these things out of nothing.

But you admit that you don't know him and you don't know his name. And Paul says I'm going to tell you who this unknown God is. A very wise approach. Very wise approach Therefore the one whom you worship without knowing him I proclaimed to you If you found a group of people like this who say we know something about God, we worship God, but we just don't know him very well, Where would you start? What would you say?

They are sitting and they say we want to hear you out. What message would you bring to them? Paul did something that we can learn from in our gospel witness. Paul gives them the theology of God. He gives them exactly what they need to hear.

And So in verse 24 he says God, that's where he starts. God, you have said to their non-God, you have said you admit there is a God. You are zealous to worship God, but you don't know who he is. And so this God of whom you worship without knowing him I proclaim, and then he begins in verse 24 with God and gives them the theology of God, and Paul begins with creation. He knows there is a group of people in the audience who don't believe in creation.

So he begins there. God who made the world and everything in it, since he is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. It begins with creation that God is the creator. And then he moves on to show them that he's not just a creator. He didn't just create the world and then let it run on its own and all its creation free to do as they please.

But he goes on to show them that this God, yes, is the Creator, but He's also the Sustainer. Since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. He is Lord of heaven and earth. He's not just sitting up there watching all that He's made and say they'll figure it out. God is involved.

He's sustaining. He's orchestrating everything that happens. He's ordained and He's ensuring that all that He desires to happen in this world happen accordingly. And Paul says, he's Lord of heaven and earth. This is the message that our generation ought to hear and need to hear on a daily basis that they're not outside of God's domain that God owns them and God rules over them.

His Lord of heaven and earth. Look at how he brings the sufficiency, the self-sufficiency of God. He does not dwell in temples made with hands, nor is he worshiped with man's hands as though he needed anything since he gives to all life, breath and all things. He brings before them the self-sufficiency of God. You have all these gods, you've made yourself, but I want to show you that the God whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you, His self-existence, self-sufficient, He does not need you.

He does not need me. I've been sharing with some of the brothers here that a few months ago we discovered in one of the largest townships in Africa, ten minutes away from where we live, a group of young men and women reading John Owen, Calvin, Edwards, who still reads Owen today? John Owen. We found these men and women reading these things and one of the things that struck us was that these men and women have been reading these things without the help of anybody for a year, without us. And it was so humbling to see that God doesn't need us.

Even when we speak of the Great Commission, God doesn't need us. Sometimes we approach it as if we're helping God, but God doesn't need us. And he just showed us that these that he could do it himself But he loves us so much that he brings us into the joy of the Great Commission He wants to build his church in doing so he wants to encourage his church. And so he brings us in, but God does not need us. And so these young men and women are busy studying and growing.

And just remember, they're doing all these things on their phones. The first few hard copies of books they have is what we give them. God is self-sufficient. Whether it be in taking the gospel to the ends of the earth, God is self-sufficient. Whether it be looking for worshipers, God is self-sufficient.

We're not helping him in all that we do. And Paul wanted to know, wanted them to know that this God does not dwell in temples made with hands. Nor is he worshiped with man's hands as though he needed anything. The Psalmist tells us that even if he were hungry, he would not tell us. And this should always humble us as we think about saving God We Can be saved and become Christians and be Christians for years and begin to feel Entitled begin to feel like we are doing something great for God.

We're doing nothing great for God. He's doing something great for us, encouraging us and building our faith as we see him save even using weak vessels like us. God is gracious. Look at what he does in verse 26, 27. This is where you want to just pause and worship.

Verse 26, and he has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth and has determined their pre-appointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings. You know, I preach this in our church and I say, guys, let's just pause for a bit. And we're here in Africa and we spend so much time complaining about getting power only for five hours, getting, you know, water maybe three days a week, and all these other things. And while I'm here, as we're driving around, I'm looking at different things, like I saw at the gas station, the price of fuel, I pulled my phone, I calculated, I'm like, man, you guys are giving you free gas? Cause it's unbelievable the amount of money we have to pay for gas out there and so and so I said guys let's just pause for a bit and let's just think because we spent so much time mourning and complaining that why was I born in Africa And then we come to vices like these and we hear God say to us that he has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth.

And so this is God's wisdom and God's design. And has determined, those are important words, has determined their pre-appointed times. God is so careful. Their boundaries of their dwellings. Why was I born in this family?

They are homeschooling me. They won't let me go to a boarding school God did it a man by the way don't go to boarding school I grew up there I know what's there Don't go there Praise God you in that family a man This is a place only the young people should say amen amen I'm serious amen God did it. Sometimes we meet American missionaries who almost sound like they come to Africa and they see the worst forms of poverty and they feel bad that they were born in America where they have all these things. I'm like don't you dare apologize. It's God's doing.

He determined where you would come from, the year you would be born, the year you and I would die. He determined the boundaries. But listen to the reason why he did that, verse 27, so that they should seek the Lord, so that they should seek the Lord in the hope that they might grow up for him and find him, that in the midst of whether it be struggling with all these other things in Africa or here in America but in the process as we grow up through life that we might find him. It is his love, his mercy, his grace that in the places and boundaries where he and the time where he has put us and the skin color that he has given us in that moment that we would grow up and we would be saved by the Lord Jesus Christ. God is so good.

He wants us to find Him in the trials and the pressure and the struggles of life that we would find him. The word he uses, the word that Luke uses there, so that they should seek the Lord in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him. It is the providence of God that as we go about life, sometimes even with a lot of questions, why am I in this situation? Why am I having to face these challenges in the midst of our lostness that we don't know what to do and we're suffering and encountering all kinds of challenges, in that moment we might be, we might grow up and Find him and meet him. It's not in a, within a life where we figure out everything.

It's in the process of being confused and Lost and not knowing where to go and who to talk to that in the process we might meet the Savior And God has designed it that way that in his providence we might seek him, grope and find him. Though he is not far from each one of us. That's a very comforting sentence that God is not far from each one of us. For in him we live and move and have our being as also some of your own poets have said for we are also his offspring. 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.

And Paul ensures that he shows them the providence of God, the omnipresence of God, the eternity of God. He says in verse 24 that God, I proclaim to you, and he starts to walk attributes of God. Listen to where he takes them. He says in verse 29, 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 overlooks. He moves quickly to show them the long-suffering of God.

And then he goes on to the justice of God. These times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent because he has appointed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he has appointed. He shows them the long suffering of God and takes them to show them the justice of God, then the love of God, then the power of God. And he does all this in the gospel. He says he has given assurance of these to the people.