Message for April 12, 2026 from Pastor Shirley

“So Paul stood in the middle of the leadership council and said, “Respected leaders of Athens, it is clear to me how extravagant you are in your worship of idols. As I walked through your city, I was captivated by the many shrines and objects of your worship. I even found an inscription on one altar that read, ‘To the Unknown God.’ I have come to introduce you to this God whom you worship without even knowing anything about him. “The true God is the Creator of all things. He is the owner and Lord of the heavenly realm and the earthly realm, and he doesn’t live in man-made temples. He supplies life and breath and all things to every living being. He doesn’t lack a thing that we mortals could supply for him, for he has all things and everything he needs. From one man, Adam, he made every man and woman and every race of humanity, and he spread us over all the earth. He sets the boundaries of people and nations, determining their appointed times in history. He has done this so that every person would long for God, find their way to him, and find him, for he is the God who is easy to discover! It is through him that we live and function and have our identity; just as your own poets have said, ‘Our lineage comes from him.’ “Since our lineage can be traced back to God, how could we even think that the divine image could be compared to something made of gold, silver, or stone, sculpted by man’s artwork and clever imagination? “In the past, God tolerated our ignorance of these things, but now the time of deception has passed away. He commands us all to repent and turn to God. For the appointed day has risen, in which he is going to judge the world in righteousness by the man he has designated. And the proof given to the world that God has chosen this man is this: he resurrected him from among the dead!”  Acts 17:22-31