Paul worked very, very hard to connect his message to the cultural underpinnings of the day. In the cultured world of Athens he referenced many of their own poets and philosophers as he made his well reasoned arguments. Below are some of the key bridges he makes as he speaks. The Bible verse will come first and then it will be followed by the poet/philosopher he’s referencing. The whole idea is that we must engage people with the gospel on their own turf.
- “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.” Acts 17:24
“What house built by craftsmen could enclose the form divine within enfolding walls?”
Euripides (ca. 480 BC–406 BC)
- “And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.” Acts 17:25
“God, if he be truly God, has need of nothing.”
Euripides (ca. 480 BC–406 BC)
“What advantage accrues to the gods from what they get from us?”
Plato (428/427 BC – 348/347 BC)
- “For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.” Acts 17:28
“But thou art not dead; thou livest and abidest for ever, for in thee we live and move and have our being.”
From a known work of Epimenides (6th century BC).
“In every way we have all to do with Zeus, for we are truly his offspring.”
Cleanthes’ Hymn to Zeus. (330- c. 230 BC)
- “When they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some of them ridiculed the idea.” Acts 17:32
“Once a man dies and the earth drinks up his blood, there is no resurrection.”
Aschylus (525 BC/524 BC – 456 BC/455 BC. This is a quote by the god Apollo spoken at the very founding of the court of the Areopagus was founded – you clearly get the sense that Paul is speaking truth here that flies in the face of what the Athenians believed. So Paul is not merely building bridges with the culture – he’s also not afraid to confront some of the elements of the culture that oppose the gospel.)
Below are some lyrics from contemporary poets/musicians that shape our culture. It’s not very hard to browse through them and find obvious connections to the gospel that could well serve as a bridge in helping people understand the message of Jesus.
Lindsay Lohan
“Daughter to father, daughter to father!
I am crying, a part of me's dying.
And these are, these are, the
confessions of a broken heart!
And I wear all your old clothes your polo sweater.
I dream of another you, one who would never.
Never, leave me alone to pick up the pieces. Daddy to hold me, that's what I needed.”
Tim McGraw
And he said some day I hope you get the chance
To live like you were dyin'
Like tomorrow was the end
And ya got eternity to think about what to do with it
What should you do with it
What can I do with it
What would I do with it”
Kanye West
“God show me the way because the Devil trying to break me down
(Jesus Walks with me)
The only thing that that I pray is that my feet don't fail me now
(Jesus Walks)
And I don't think there is nothing I can do now to right my wrongs
(Jesus Walks with me)
I want to talk to God but I'm afraid because we ain't spoke in so long”
George Straight
“I'll see you on the other side
If I make it
And it might be a long hard ride
But I'm gonna take it
Sometimes it seems I don't have a prayer
Let the weather take me anywhere
But I know I wanna go
Where the streets are gold
Cause you'll be there
You don't bring nothing with you here
And you can't take nothing back
I ain't never seen a hearse, with a luggage rack
So I've torn my knees from praying
Scarred my back from falling down
Spent so much time flying high, til I'm face first in the ground
So if you're up there watching me, can you talk to God and say,
Tell him I might need a hand to see a boat someday”
Rodney Crowell
“Man In Me
There's a man in me
He's cold and he's hard
He's got an eye for deception
He's always on guard
He's swimming in concrete
Drowning in fear
And he keeps it all locked in his heart
God, I gotta get away from the man in me”
Carrie Underwood
“Jesus take the wheel
Take it from my hands
Cause I can't do this on my own
I'ma let it go
So give me one more chance
To save me from this road I'm on
Jesus take the wheel”
Cold Play
“When you try your best, but you don't succeed
When you get what you want, but not what you need
When you feel so tired, but you can't sleep
Stuck in reverse
And the tears come streaming down your face
When you lose something you can't replace
When you love someone but it goes to waste
Could it be worse?”
Nickelback
And teach me wrong from right
And I'll show you what I can be
Say it for me
Say it to me
And I'll leave this life behind me
Say it if it's worth saving me”
Krystal Meyers
“Image is overrated if it washes off in the rain
You know you gotta go deeper to go against the grain
So I'm anticonformity
I don't try too hard to be
I'm not what you think you see
Inside I've made a change
And I'll never be the same
NO WAY!”
Posted on
Sat, October 4, 2008
by Bill White