Have you ever visited a junkyard—a place where broken, old, and obsolete things end up to rust, decay, but not thrown away?

Is the junkyard in our own backyards?  Mentally, spiritually, as well as physically?

Paul has arrived in Athens, a place filled with statues of gods for all reasons and seasons.  This is the Athenian way of life.  Sold out to the One and Only God and His Son, Jesus who saved him, passionate Paul is sickened by this junkyard of idols.  But Paul is wise in the way he approaches the worshippers of this plethora of gods. 

Watch how Paul skillfully persuades the “stoic philosophers and intellectuals” of that day to listen to him.  He doesn’t beat them over the head with what he knows.  He doesn’t even begin with how he was changed by Jesus—yet.  Led by the Holy Spirit, he centers on their statue named the “unknown god” as a place to start.  This is a good teaching technique—begin with what they know then introduce them them to what they do not know.  Jesus used this technique often in his stories that related to what God wants us to know about Him.

Acts 17, The Message

Athens

¹⁶ The longer Paul waited in Athens for Silas and Timothy, the angrier he got—all those idols! The city was a junkyard of idols.

^17-18 He discussed it with the Jews and other like-minded people at their meeting place. And every day he went out on the streets and talked with anyone who happened along. He got to know some of the Epicurean and Stoic intellectuals pretty well through these conversations. Some of them dismissed him with sarcasm: “What a moron!” But others, listening to him go on about Jesus and the resurrection, were intrigued: “That’s a new slant on the gods. Tell us more.”

^19-21 These people got together and asked him to make a public presentation over at the Areopagus, where things were a little quieter. They said, “This is a new one on us. We’ve never heard anything quite like it. Where did you come up with this anyway? Explain it so we can understand.” Downtown Athens was a great place for gossip. There were always people hanging around, natives and tourists alike, waiting for the latest tidbit on most anything.

^22-23 So Paul took his stand in the open space at the Areopagus and laid it out for them. “It is plain to see that you Athenians take your religion seriously. When I arrived here the other day, I was fascinated with all the shrines I came across. And then I found one inscribed, to the god nobody knows. I’m here to introduce you to this God so you can worship intelligently, know who you’re dealing with.

^24-29 “The God who made the world and everything in it, this Master of sky and land, doesn’t live in custom-made shrines or need the human race to run errands for him, as if he couldn’t take care of himself. He makes the creatures; the creatures don’t make him. Starting from scratch, he made the entire human race and made the earth hospitable, with plenty of time and space for living so we could seek after God, and not just grope around in the dark but actually find him. He doesn’t play hide-and-seek with us. He’s not remote; he’s near. We live and move in him, can’t get away from him! One of your poets said it well: ‘We’re the God-created.’ Well, if we are the God-created, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to think we could hire a sculptor to chisel a god out of stone for us, does it?

^30-31 “God overlooks it as long as you don’t know any better—but that time is past. The unknown is now known, and he’s calling for a radical life-change. He has set a day when the entire human race will be judged and everything set right. And he has already appointed the judge, confirming him before everyone by raising him from the dead.”

^32-34 At the phrase “raising him from the dead,” the listeners split: Some laughed at him and walked off making jokes; others said, “Let’s do this again. We want to hear more.” But that was it for the day, and Paul left. There were still others, it turned out, who were convinced then and there, and stuck with Paul—among them Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Face it, we have our own junkyards of idols! I was recently convicted myself about all the things we have acquired over the years that take up our time and space.  I spent last week letting go of things I had worked to buy, be given, stored away, and rearranged many times.  We had acquired so much junk that I had to buy more places to store it! That’s crazy!

I shamed myself when I brought it all out into the open to see as I evaluated it’s importance in my life.  All this junk had occupied my time, focus, and space and even my peace! So, we cleaned out our own junkyard.  The useable good stuff went to a church that ministers to those in need, suffering calamities such as fires that destroyed their homes.  It was easy to let go of most of it, harder to let go of some stuff that brought back memories. However, when we finished (for now), we felt a peace that was missing.  It was good to let it all go and live with less management of stuff.

As I worked on this project; I thought and meditated, as I often do.  How much of this junk and its management got in the way or blocked my view of God at times?  Why was my focus on acquiring this stuff in the first place?  Did this stuff somehow and willingly become my idols?  Did I store this junk as assurance—because “I might need this someday”? Do I feel richer for having and storing this stuff? Ugh.

If we really want answers; we can look over the ledgers of our bank accounts.  Do our purchases reflect a junkyard of idols?  Do we purchase what we need or want?  Where does it go after the newness has worn off?  Do we purchase all kinds of things that have to be managed and cared for along with more storage spaces to accommodate them?  I thought of Jesus’ story about the grain farmer who had a bumper crop so he built bigger storage places for the harvest.  Jesus ended the story with; “But God said to him (the rich farmer), ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ –This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:16-21)

If Paul or Jesus came to our home and walked around, would he observe “idols” of all kinds that get in the way of our focus on God our Creator who loved us so much He sent His Son to save us for eternity?  Or would he find a lot of junk in our lives that we don’t need but we idolize the possession of them?  The world tells us we need all the right stuff and we must feel a certain way about ourselves to have peace. But Jesus says peace is a gift given to us who believe and trust; “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” John 14:25-27, NIV 

God is the Provider of all we need.  We learn that Jesus is all we need. The rest we acquire is non-essential to our wellbeing, wholeness, spiritual health.  When we come to the end of ourselves and all we think we must have; we discover all the stuff of earth just gets in the way of our focus on God and His rich blessings He longs to pour out over us.  Paul writes, “…whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.” Philippians 3:7-11, NIV

So, we learn it’s not just about the physical junk that lies around; but the mental and emotional junk we fill our minds with daily.  If we can’t hear God’s voice above the chatter of voices of this world, then maybe we need to clean out the closets of our minds!  Our minds can become so cluttered with the details of life that the clutter also becomes idols.  What we think about most is what we worship!  Paul warns; “For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.” Philippians 3:18-21, NIV

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” –Jesus, Matthew 6:19-21, NIV

“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. (Stuff) –Jesus, Matthew 6

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?

“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” –Jesus, Matthew 6:25-34, NIV

Lord,

May we look inward before telling someone else how to be saved by you and live in your ways.  Give us wisdom in our witness—just like Paul!  Help us to rid ourselves of the idols of junk that robs our peace.  May the peace that you give rule our hearts!

In Jesus Name, Amen