Paul Preaches the Creator God
Month 3: Creation & Science · Bible Story
Today's Scripture
Read together: Acts 17:22-31
22 Then Paul stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens, I see that in every way you are very religious. 23 For as I walked around and examined your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore what you worship as something unknown, I now proclaim to you. 24 The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples made by human hands. 25 Nor is He served by human hands, as if He needed anything, because He Himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. 26 From one man He made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their lands. 27 God intended that they would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us. 28 ‘For in Him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are His offspring.’ 29 Therefore, being offspring of God, we should not think that the Divine Being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by man’s skill and imagination. 30 Although God overlooked the ignorance of earlier times, He now commands all people everywhere to repent. 31 For He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the Man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising Him from the dead.”
Memory Verse
“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from His workmanship, so that men are without excuse.”— Romans 1:20 (BSB)memorize this week
📖 Bible-in-a-Year (optional)
Today's reading: Genesis 5-8
Reading the whole Bible in a year — do this when you have extra time. (The long line from Adam to Noah, and the rising waters of the flood.)The Heart of It
Paul walked into Athens, the smartest city in the world. It was packed with statues to dozens of made-up gods. He could have argued or shouted. Instead he stood up calmly on Mars Hill, and he said something like this. "You already feel there's a God you can't see. Let me tell you who He is." Then he pointed to the world around them. God "made the world and everything in it." God gives "life, breath, and all things." And God is not far from any of us (). Paul didn't start by quoting the Bible to people who didn't know it. He started with what they could already see. He started with creation, and he walked them up to the Creator.
That is a beautiful pattern for us. When we tell others about Jesus, we can begin where they already are. Everyone has seen a sunrise, a newborn, a snowflake. Everyone senses, deep down, that all this didn't make itself. Paul used that quiet sense people carry. He lifted their eyes from the made things to the Maker who made them. And then he pointed them to Jesus, the One God raised from the dead (). The Creator God is not a stranger to be feared. He is a Father to be found.
Around the Table
Paul told a whole city, "The God who made everything wants to know you!" He pointed at the world to talk about God.
Let's do it: Point at something God made and say, "God who made you, I love You!"
Paul started talking about God by talking about things people could already see. Why is that a kind, smart way to begin?
Let's talk: What is one thing in nature you could point to when telling a friend about God?
Paul met the Athenians on their own ground. He used their poets and their altar to the "unknown God." Then he turned them toward the Creator and the risen Christ.
Let's go deeper: How could you start a faith conversation from something a non-Christian friend already cares about?
💬 Conversation Starter
If you had two minutes to tell a whole stadium one true thing about God, what would you say?
🛡️ Defending the Faith
You don't have to win an argument to point someone to God. Like Paul, you can simply invite them to look honestly at the world and ask where it came from. Peter says to give a reason for our hope "with gentleness and respect" (). That means we stay gentle and respectful, never pushy.
For Dad · Go Deeper
Notice Paul's posture in Athens. He was "provoked" by the idols (), yet he spoke with respect, and he even quoted their own poets. He was bold without being obnoxious. That's a balance many of us miss in one direction or the other. Apologetics is not about crushing opponents. It is about removing obstacles so people can see Jesus. Your kids are watching how you talk about people who believe differently. They hear it at the dinner table, in how you talk about the news, in how you talk about that relative. If your tone is sneering, they will learn that defending the faith means winning fights. If your tone matches Paul's, with confident truth wrapped in genuine love, they will learn the real thing. Model the manner, not just the message.
Draws on: Sean McDowell, A New Kind of Apologist.
Let's Pray Together
"Father, You made everything, and You are near to each of us. Help our family point others to You with kind, brave words, like Paul did. Make us ready to tell the good news of Jesus. In Jesus' name, amen."
The God who made the whole world is near enough to be found. And I can help others find Him.