The Unknown God | Compassion Church Dickson | Jamie Grisham

How do we reach a changing culture without changing the Gospel?

In Acts 17, Paul steps into cities filled with different beliefs, philosophies, religions, opinions, and people searching for meaning. Instead of becoming angry at the culture around him, Paul is stirred by the people who are lost within it.

Paul understood something the Church still needs today: the truth never changes, but the way we communicate that truth may.

In Thessalonica, Paul reasoned from Scripture. In Athens, he began with something the people already understood, the altar to the “unknown god” and used it as a bridge to introduce them to Jesus.

He changed his approach, but he never changed the Gospel.

As followers of Jesus, we are called to stay close enough to culture to speak to it, but different enough from culture to have something to say.

And ultimately, every bridge we build should lead somewhere. Paul began with the unknown god, but he ended with the resurrected Jesus.

Because behind every idol, every search for meaning, and every attempt to fill the emptiness is a human heart searching for something only Jesus can satisfy.

The goal isn't for people to simply know more about Jesus.

We want them to KNOW HIM.

📖 Scripture: Acts 17:1–29, 1 Corinthians 9:19–23, Matthew 9:36

In this message:

How we see people changes how we respond to them

Building bridges without compromising truth

Communicating an unchanging Gospel to a changing culture

Recognizing what people are truly searching for

Moving people from knowing about Jesus to actually knowing Him