The Times of Ignorance

Collins Concise Dictionary defines ignorance as: A lack of knowledge, information, or education; the state of being ignorant. If you label somebody as being ignorant it means that they must have a lack of knowledge or information or education.

The apostle Paul when addressing the people at the Areopagus in Athens noticed that they were ignorant about the true and living God.

Acts 17:24-31:

"(24) 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.
(25) Nor is He worshiped with men's hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things.
(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,
(27) so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope 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 also some of your own poets have said, 'For we are also His offspring.'
(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.
(30) Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent,

(31) because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead."

These Greeks had no knowledge of the Creator God; they were taken up with their false gods whom they worshipped. The Greeks had a highly cultured society in Paul's day. Yet they were ignorant when it came to knowledge of their Creator. They were what I call 'smart/dumb' people. They were very smart when it came to their culture; but dumb when it came to knowledge of the Creator God.

It's the same in our day and age; man now has tremendous knowledge about many things. However, he believes that he evolved and was not created. He believes that the universe began with a big bang. He will believe anything that tells him that he is not accountable to the true and living God. He refuses to believe in a God who created all things. Why is this?

Is it because if he believes in a Creator God then he must be accountable to the Creator God for all his deeds and actions? It is much easier to remain ignorant than try to find out God's requirements for his life. That way the question of his sins does not have to be answered.

In verse 25 we noted that "He gives to all life, breath, and all things."

Verse 26 tells us, "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"

The true and living God has made from one blood every nation - we are all descended from Adam! It is God who has brought into being the various nations and set them in their own pre-appointed times and given those nations their national boundaries.

In verse 27 we are informed that it is "So that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope [reach out] for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us” The reason is that we should seek the Lord and reach out for Him. "For in Him we live and move and have our being" Nothing escapes the eyes of the true and living God.

Now let's have a close look at verses 30 and 31.

"(30) Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent,

(31) because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead."

If it was true back then, then it is true today. There was a time when God overlooked men's ignorance - "but now commands all men everywhere to repent." The time for ignorance is over! Ignorance today is not an excuse or reason. Now God commands men to repent; that is, to believe in God not in yourself, and turn to Him for salvation full and free.

Verse 31 tells us quite clearly that there is a coming day when God will judge the world in righteousness. From the context of this verse the person who will do the judging must be Jesus Christ of Nazareth, the Son of God.

The apostle Paul told the Greeks at Athens that they were no longer ignorant of the true and living God and they needed to repent, that is, do an about face and believe in the true and living God and stop worshipping idols - false gods.

You also are now aware of the true and living God who commands you to repent. You need to reach out for Him now and be saved from the debt of your sins. That's why Jesus Christ, God's Son became a flesh and blood Man; to pay the price of your sins, and mine at Calvary.

2 Peter 3:9:

"The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance." True repentance leads to salvation!

Romans 10:9-10:

"(9) That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
(10) For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."

Repenting also means in this instance a heartfelt belief that God raised Jesus Christ of Nazareth from the dead on your behalf and for your benefit. Then if you are saved tell others that you are saved!

Jon Peasey

Words of Life blog www.jrpeasey.blogspot.com

Ebooks author page https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/JRPeasey

[All Scriptures quoted are from the New King James version; unless otherwise noted. Words enclosed in [ ] are inserted for clarity. Words in bold type emphasise a point. You may notice some verses are quoted with ... at the beginning, ending or elsewhere in a verse. Only the relevant part or parts of the verse, that relate directly to the current subject matter is quoted.]

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