The Unknown God

Steven Carter

• Publisher: Covenant Books, Inc.
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN: 9781644685051
• eBook ISBN: 9781644685068
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Religion

There is a very interesting account found in Acts 17: 22-23 in which the Apostle Paul was waiting for Silas and Timothy in Athens. While he waited, he was provoked within his spirit when he found the city was given over to idols. Paul addressed the men of Athens by saying, In all things you are very religious, for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you.It is startling to know that the men of Athens were religious, they had objects of worship, and they had an altar; yet they didn't even know the God of their worship! We know altars to be a place of sacrifice, prayer, and religion; but the question arises, How do you worship whom you don't even know? Even Jesus gives us a glimpse into the importance of knowing Him intimately in Matthew 7: 22-23: Many will say to Me in that day, "Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?" And then I will declare to them, "I never knew [my emphasis] you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!" (NKJV)Note that Jesus's emphasis was not on rituals but, rather, on relationship. We must ask ourselves today, are we any different from the men of Athens? I'm afraid that week after week, we fill edifices with people who don't even know God. Sure, we have objects of worship. We have buildings, instruments, podiums, microphones, lighting, etc., but do we know the God of our worship? With the help of the Holy Spirit, I will declare as the great apostle did to the men of Athens, The Unknown God.

The Light of the Body of Christ

Therefore disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews, and with the devout persons, and in the market daily with them that met with him.

—Acts 17:17

The light of the body is the eye.

—Mathew 6:22

Acts 17:17 begins with the word therefore. To get a clear understanding of the point I am attempting to make here, you must understand that in verse 16, Paul was stirred in his spirit because he saw the whole city of Athens given to idolatry. So when verse 17 begins with therefore, basically it is saying that because of the idolatry that he encountered in Athens, “therefore” he disputed in the synagogue with the Jews and the devout persons and in the market daily with them who met with him.

Notice this great revelation here. The whole city of Athens was given to idolatry, but Paul didn’t go to the governmental officials or to the ones who were totally ignorant of God. He went to the synagogue, the place of worship, to the devout persons—to the church, if you will. He went to those who carried a representation of religion. He went to the market, which was not a grocery store but was a place where assemblies were held to discuss religion. Churches should be assemblies held not only to worship but also to discuss the things of God. The body of Christ is the only answer for the darkness that is in the world. As the church of Jesus Christ, we must understand that until we take our place in the earth as the body of our Lord Jesus, we will have little effect on the lost.

I believe the following is a prophetic word for leaders in the body of Christ. As I was writing, the Lord quickened me to see spiritual insight concerning the Body of Christ. Notice this word spoken by Jesus in Matthew 6:22–23:

The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. but if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!

As we look at this verse of scripture, we realize that Jesus was referring to the natural body of a man, but spiritually, there is a key revealed to us in this text. The position of the eye is very detrimental to the way the body functions. With the eye

• you see your way and you are able to make sound steps with no need of assistance;
• you move with confidence because you are able to take notice of your surroundings;
• you recognize obstructions to your progress; and
• you are able to navigate safely to your destination.

As we look at the spiritual side of things, the eye of the body of Christ is its leadership. These are the believers who have matured to the level of fivefold ministry: deacons, ministries of help, etc. These believers are those who are full-grown followers of Christ and are perceived as such by the lost. Who have left elementary principles of Christ and are mature in the things of God, the ones who could very well be considered overseers, in the body of Christ? Is it coincidence that the word overseer has within it the word see? I believe when we as Christians reach a certain level of maturity, we step into the position as the eyes of the body of Christ. And as the natural eye is to the body, the spiritual eye holds a detrimental position in the way the body of Christ functions. With the spiritual eye or can we say the leadership,

• the body of Christ sees its way and we are able to make sound steps with no need of assistance;
• the body of Christ can be confident because we are able to take notice of our surroundings;
• we can recognize obstructions to our progress; and
• the body of Christ is able to navigate safely to our destination.

Hallelujah! The determining factor in whether or not the body is full of light or darkness is solely based on the eye. Jesus stated in verse 23 that “if thine eye is evil thy whole body shall be full of darkness.” Therefore, if the leaders in the body of Christ are evil, then the body will be full of darkness.

The degree of darkness in the church today is a direct reflection of the overseers. Darkness indicates a lack of light. Light is symbolic of revelation. Revelation is making known something that was hidden. The more darkened the leadership in the body of Christ becomes, the more ignorant the world will become of God. This was the same principle with Adam. God had given him dominion and authority over His creation. As long as his eye was single, the earth was flooded with light. But when the headship’s eye became evil by the fruit of which he partook, the whole earth was flooded with darkness. This was the case from the time of the fall in the garden until the coming of the last Adam, Jesus Christ the Messiah.

He brought the light of the glorious Gospel and in the Sermon on the Mount pronounced that we were the light of the world. A few instances later, Jesus says in Matthew 6:23, “But if the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!” If the church, the body of Christ, has been darkened, how great is that darkness! I believe this is why Paul reasoned and argued in the synagogues and with the Jews rather than the normal men and women in Athens. Paul understood that the only way to make any spiritual progress in that city was to deal with the religious leadership. God has put believers in a position of authority, but this authority has been designated in Jesus Christ. We read this in John 1:4–5 (AMP): “In Him was Life, and the Life was the Light of men. And the Light shines on in the darkness, for the darkness has never overpowered it [put it out or absorbed it or appropriated it, and is unreceptive to it].”

In whatever home, city, country, or continent, this light is unobstructed; it overpowers any darkness! The only problem is that this light is transmitted through the eye or the leadership. So if the leadership in the body of Christ is darkened, we will never be able to walk in the fullness of this authority that has been given to us. If clergy is consumed with wealth, politics, religious hierarchy, entertainment, careers, etc., we have lost the original intent of the call of God.

Take notice of the power that Jesus walked in on the earth, and you will see the capabilities of the church. Jesus said Himself, “Verily, verily, I say unto you. He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also and greater works than these shall he do because I go unto my Father” (John 14:12). When Jesus ascended to heaven, He left this light with the leadership. Notice this verse from the Book of Ephesians:

Wherefore he saith, when he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. And he gave some, apostles, and some prophets, and some, evangelists, and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: till we all come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 that we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive. (Eph. 4:8, 11–14, italics mine)

Glory to God! Look what happens when the leadership lines up with the will of God:

• Saints are perfected.
• Ministry works.
• The body of Christ is edified.
• We are united in faith.
• We receive knowledge of Jesus.
• We experience the fullness of Christ.
• We are not deceived by false doctrine.

When all these attributes are manifest in the body of Christ, we will no longer pray to an Unknown God. The revealing of the Unknown God is directly connected to the leadership in the body of Christ fulfilling its role. As believers and especially as leaders in the body of Christ, we must understand that we are Christ’s ambassadors, God making His appeal as it were through us (2 Cor. 5:20).

In order for light to be revealed to the body of Christ, the church must be judged. The Bible in 1 Peter 4:17 (AMP) says this: “For the time [has arrived] for judgment to begin with the household of God: and if it begins with us, what will [be] the end of those who do not respect or believe or obey the good news [the Gospel] of God?” Until truth is made manifest in the body of Christ, no real work can be done with those who don’t respect, believe, or obey the Gospel. But Peter made it clear that now is the time for judgment to take place in the house of God.

We are the only hope for this world of darkness, not Democrats and Republicans. Only the sons and daughters of God hold the authority to bind the powers of darkness, but as I said before, this is only done through the authority of Christ. “For [even the whole] creation [all nature] waits expectantly and longs earnestly for God’s sons to be made known [waits for the revealing, the disclosing of their sonship],” Romans 8:19 says. Creation is begging for us to show them the power of this Unknown God, but with evil leadership, this will never happen.

Unbelief Is Evil

We must make it clear what God deems evil because some may excuse themselves unjustly. We know of all the obvious evil works that we have seen in the body of Christ, but there are some evil works that we simply overlook. In dealing with the disobedient generation that God had delivered from the Egyptian bondage, the writer of Hebrews recorded,

Wherefore I was grieved with that generation and said, they do always err in their heart; and they have not known my ways. So I sware in my wrath, they shal...

Table of contents

• To the Unknown God
• The Origin of Idolatry
• The Light of the Body of Christ
• A Strange God
• Ignorant Worship
• Priest of God
• The Place of Faith in Relation to God
• Accept the Spirit of God