M-G: 11.25.13 // The Golden Egg, Acts 14:17, ESV

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The geese were noisily honking in their chevron formation as they were catching a northern tailwind heading for warmer weather. The air was firm and fresh that windy morning; old man winter was breathing down our necks before his time. Right before we were leaving for church, the preamble of colder air to come and the sounds of the geese in migration reminded me of God’s faithfulness in the seasons (Gn 8:22; Psa 119:90). My thoughts were on how spring, summer, fall, and winter maintained its cyclical pattern, declaring the goodness, greatness, and faithfulness of God to all men. 

I am reminded that not all men look at the earth and the Universe in the way that Christians do. We call this the general revelation of God (creation). Some see it through the lens of evolution as if scientific fact while others view it through non-Christian religious belief systems. When Paul and Barnabus, having fled persecution in Iconium (Acts 14:5), traveled about 18 miles and entered Lystra preaching the Gospel (Acts 14:6-7). Notice that Paul also refers to general revelation in order to reach the people of Lyaconia, a district of the Roman province of Galatia, for Christ. Incidentally, Lycaonia was also the home of Timothy (Acts 16:1), his mother Eunice, and his grandmother Lois (2 Tim 1:5).

After healing a crippled man in the idol-infested city of Lystra, the crowd thought that the gods had come down in human form, Barnabus as Zeus and Paul as Hermes (chief spokesperson for the gods), Acts 14:12! It is amazing how quickly demons want to take credit for acts of God. Paul and Barnabus quickly protested that they were not pagan gods but men like them. Paul barely averted sacrifices being offered to them because of the miracle! Paul and Barnabus were not willing to take credit for neither the healing nor being considered as some meaningless gods (Acts 14:12-13)! Paul pleaded with them to turn from useless idols to “the living God who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and all things that are in them” (Acts 14:15).

He went on to say that though God allowed all the nations to go their own way (Acts 14:16), God did not leave Himself “without witness” (Acts 14:17, Gk, amárturos, meaning “without witness or testimony,” occurs only here in NT [G267]; cf. Rom 1:20). “But He never left them [the nations] without evidence of Himself and His goodness” (Acts 14:17a, NLT). He demonstrates it, for instance, in His gifts of “rains from heaven and fruitful seasons,” providing food and happiness to the heart’s content (Acts 14:17). This is what is referred to as the common grace of God in bestowing gifts to all men (Mt 5:45; Job 12:10; Psa 145:9). It was a simple message for a simple people.

Though creation is a silent testimony, it speaks unwritten volumes to man (Psa 19:1-6)! Demons behind the idols of man are always trying to take credit for the good things that God provides all men, like the rain and the harvest, to enhance their deception (cf. Psa 96:5; Jer 10:11-12). We know the truth; God is behind the function of His creation – “giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness.” Creation is not self-governing (Col1:17); the Universe is sustained by Him (Heb1:3) not just running on its own or through demonic effort. “The power and balance necessary to life’s existence and continuity” are maintained by God alone (MacArthur in Col 1:17; see also 1 Sam 2:8; Psa 75:3). 

The seasons were God-made (Psa 74:17). “Made” in this verse (Heb, yāṣar, H3335) is the same verb used when God was fashioning man from the dust of the ground (Gn 2:7). God shaped the seasons just as He shaped or formed man. When we see creation from top to bottom, we should see God’s fingerprints are all over it. Is this what you see or think about when you look at the world around you (cf. Psa 8:3-4) or contemplate how could a God of love…? When we see the world around us as God does, it makes all the difference while in the world but not of the world (Jn 17:16). 

Learn, love, and live special revelation we should because it is the Word of God to us and for us, but we should never forget that the general revelation of God in creation spoke of God before any word of Him was ever penned by man and continues to speak in sync with His Word. We should avail ourselves of the general revelation of God in witnessing to others of God’s handiwork in nature and His common grace extended to all men along with special revelation.

Creation woos our spirit in awe and praise of the greatness and Majesty of our all-powerful, all-knowing, all-wise, and everywhere present Creator. As good stewards it is also our duty to treat our natural environment, animate and inanimate, respectfully and responsibly for it all belongs to God (Psa 24:1; 1 Cor 10:31). Is that surprising since He is the Creator; it’s called Divine property rights (Gn 1:1; Isa 42:5; 45:12, 18; Col 1:16; Rev 4:11)! 

We have a tendency to become arrogant in our thinking whenever we become self-sufficient, and there is no attitude of gratitude for what the Lord has done and is doing for us. When we lose sight of the truths of general revelation (creation) and special revelation (the Word of God), we are no longer hearing and heeding their testimonies, we wind up cooking our own goose through disobedience. The people of Lystra were doing a pretty good job of that ignoring the truth of general revelation through the practice of demonic-backed idolatry by stoning Paul (Acts 14:19).

Right before closing the car door for church, I heard one last honk from a goose bearing southward. I smiled to myself, but it wasn’t because of what you might think. It reminded me of that bumper sticker that said, “Honk, if you love Jesus!” And off we went to the warmth of worship while the geese traveled south. Here’s the golden egg in all of this; God is faithful, and that’s no fable! <><