Paul's Evangelism Masterclass
The Bulletin, 1/14/26
We live in a Mars Hill world, and so we need to learn Mars Hill tactics. Here are 4 steps we can take from Paul’s approach in Acts 17.
He found common ground
Paul commended the people of Athens for their religiosity and used one of their pagan altars as a launching point to talk about the God they needed to know. They had much to learn, and he was about to tell them as much, but he got their attention by starting on a positive note and highlighting a shared interest. Unfortunately, in our day there’s a lot of emphasis put up this step, and far less on the next.
He corrected
Like Jesus with the woman at the well (John 4), Paul quickly came around to point out exactly where his listeners had gone wrong. This is the tricky one. The easy thing to do is to put off the correction to a later date and just hope the perfect opportunity presents itself, or they come out and ask us what to do. But more often than not, we’re going to have to point out where they’re wrong, for that is where they find their need for Christ.
He called to action
After showing the Athenians what they had misunderstood about God, He told them what they needed to do about it in vss. 30-31. Repent is a bit of a taboo word in this world where everybody is told we are perfect just the way we are. But read Luke 24:47 and virtually every presentation of the Gospel in Acts and you’ll see that repentance is at the heart of our message for the world.
He pointed to the resurrection
Who are we to tell people they are wrong and need to change? Few acts are seen as more offensive in this day and age. Truth be told, it would be wrong if it was just our word against theirs. But this message is backed by the one who died and rose again, proving all of His claims about sin, righteousness, and judgment (Acts 17:31). We should never forget to appeal to the resurrection, because it is the clincher over every other belief system.
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