Everybody Worships 人人皆敬拜

[Dexu Xia]

People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious.  Acts 17:22

I recently visited Athens, Greece. Walking around its ancient Agora—the marketplace where philosophers taught and Athenians worshiped—I found altars to Apollo and Zeus, all in the shadow of the Acropolis, where a statue of the goddess Athena once stood.

We may not bow to Apollo or Zeus today, but society is no less religious. “Everybody worships,” novelist David Foster Wallace said, adding this warning: “If you worship money and things . . . then you will never have enough. . . . Worship your body and beauty. . . and you will always feel ugly. . . . Worship your intellect . . . [and] you will end up feeling stupid.” Our secular age has its own gods, and they’re not benign.

“People of Athens!” Paul said while visiting the Agora, “I see that in every way you are very religious” (Acts 17:22). The apostle then described the one true God as the Creator of all (vv. 24–26) who wants to be known (v. 27) and who has revealed Himself through the resurrection of Jesus (v. 31). Unlike Apollo and Zeus, this God isn’t made by human hands. Unlike money, looks, or intelligence, worshiping Him won’t ruin us.

Our “god” is whatever we rely on to give us purpose and security. Thankfully, when every earthly god fails us, the one true God is ready to be found (v. 27).

By:  Sheridan Voysey

What other “gods” do you see society worshiping today? What do you rely on to give you purpose and security?

Father, forgive me for placing wealth, beauty, politics, or other things first. I take them off the altar of my heart and place You there instead.

众位雅典人哪，我看你们凡事很敬畏鬼神。—使徒行传17章22节

最近我去了希腊的雅典，参观了著名的古市集阿哥拉。这里是古时哲学家教导众人的地方，也是雅典人膜拜神祇之处。在雅典卫城的附近，我看到了阿波罗与宙斯的祭坛，而这里也曾竖立女神雅典娜的雕像。

如今我们或许不再膜拜阿波罗或宙斯，但对各种神祇的敬拜丝毫不减。美国小说家大卫·福斯特·华莱士（David Foster Wallace）警告说：“每个人都在敬拜。如果你敬拜金钱与物质，就永远不会满足；敬拜你的身体与美貌，就会总觉得自己丑；敬拜你的才智，就会觉得自己很愚蠢。”我们这个世代有自己的神祇，只是这些神祇都不会使人蒙福。

使徒保罗曾在阿哥拉的亚略巴古会议中，对雅典人说：“众位雅典人哪，我看你们凡事很敬畏鬼神”（使徒行传17章22节）。保罗接着描述那位创造万物的独一真神（24-26节）；这位上帝要人们认识祂（27节），也透过耶稣的复活显明祂自己（31节）。不像阿波罗和宙斯，这位上帝并非人手所造；不像敬拜金钱、外表或才智，敬拜这位上帝会使我们蒙福！

我们为了达到目的或获得安全感而依赖的任何东西，都会成为我们的“神祇”。幸好，当每一个世上的神祇让我们失望时，那位独一真神正等着你我来认识祂（27节）。

作者：  霍薛顿

你看见现今社会正敬拜哪些“神祇”？
你依靠什么使你的生命有意义、得平安？

天父，请饶恕我将财富、美貌、
政治或别的事当作优先。
我要从心里的祭坛上除去这一切，单单敬拜祢。