Sermons on Acts 17:28

Acts 17:28 Interpretation:

Embracing the Essential Story of Transformation in Christ (Cornerstone Church Crystal) interprets Acts 17:28 as an invitation to anchor one’s entire personal story within the larger story of God. The sermon draws on the context of Paul addressing the philosophers in Athens, highlighting that even the most intellectual or spiritually searching people are ultimately “missing something” if they do not recognize that their very existence is rooted in God. The preacher uses the analogy of “locating our lives in him” rather than merely “locating Jesus in our lives,” suggesting a paradigm shift from self-centeredness to God-centeredness. This is a fresh take, emphasizing that Acts 17:28 is not just a statement of dependence but a call to active participation and alignment with God’s ongoing work.

Embracing God's Presence: Our Father in Community (Become New) provides a novel interpretation by connecting Acts 17:28 to the concept of “spiritual environment,” using the phrase “this is water” (from David Foster Wallace) as a metaphor for God’s omnipresence. The sermon explains that while God is always present (“in him we live and move and have our being”), what is needed is an awareness of his “manifest presence”—a participatory, interactive relationship. The preacher references the Greek structure of “Our Father” in the Lord’s Prayer, noting that “Father” comes first, emphasizing intimacy and nearness, and then “our,” highlighting communal belonging. The analogy of air (“closer than the air we breathe”) is used to illustrate the immediacy and intimacy of God’s presence, making Acts 17:28 a lived, experiential reality rather than an abstract doctrine.

Deepening Spiritual Connection Beyond Intellectual Understanding (Abundant Life with Mark Johnson) interprets Acts 17:28 through the lens of spiritual union and experiential connection. The preacher draws on the Hebrew word “ruach” (spirit/breath) to emphasize that God’s breath animates all life, and that “in him we live and move and have our being” is a literal, ongoing spiritual reality. The sermon critiques the Western tendency to approach Christianity primarily through intellect and reason, advocating instead for practices (worship, meditation, nature walks) that quiet the mind and allow the spirit to connect directly with God. The analogy of “removing the cap” between mind and spirit is used to describe the process of moving from intellectual assent to spiritual union, making Acts 17:28 a call to holistic, embodied spirituality.

Living in Awareness of God's Magnificent Presence (Become New) offers a notably experiential and literal interpretation of Acts 17:28, emphasizing that Paul’s statement “in him we live and move and have our being” is not metaphorical or abstract, but a direct, lived reality for those who trust God. The sermon draws on the Greek context, noting that Paul quotes a pagan poet to connect with his audience, and then pivots to a unique analogy: just as a dog is alive to the presence of its owner and the promise of peanut butter, so humans can be “alive to the presence and care and leading of God.” The preacher, referencing Dallas Willard, describes “living in God” as being “interactively joined with a dynamic unseen system of divine reality,” making the passage about a present, participatory relationship with God’s kingdom, not just a theological abstraction.

Experiencing God's Presence: Faith in the Invisible (Ligonier Ministries) interprets Acts 17:28 through a philosophical and metaphysical lens, focusing on the distinction between God’s infinite being and created, finite beings. The sermon uses the analogy of infinite lines in mathematics to explain how God’s being is everywhere, yet distinct from creation, and explicitly rejects pantheism. The preacher stresses that “in him we live and move and have our being” means our very existence is contingent on God’s sustaining presence, but that God remains ontologically distinct from creation. The analogy of modalism and the sun’s rays is used to clarify the difference between pantheism and Christian theism.

Understanding God's Eternal Nature and Our Worship (Ligonier Ministries) provides a metaphysical and philosophical interpretation, connecting Acts 17:28 to the concept of “being” versus “becoming.” The sermon draws on Greek philosophy (Parmenides and Heraclitus) to contrast God’s unchanging, self-existent being with the contingent, ever-changing existence of creatures. The preacher asserts that “in him we live and move and have our being” means all created things derive their existence, motion, and being from God’s pure, eternal being, and without God, nothing could exist or move. The analogy of the river (Heraclitus) and the “verb to be” in God’s name (I AM) are used to reinforce this interpretation.

Choosing the Narrow Path: A Call to True Faith (SermonIndex.net) interprets Acts 17:28 as a declaration of God’s absolute sovereignty and the utter dependence of all creation on Him. The preacher references Paul’s speech in Acts 17 to stress that “in him we live and move and have our being” means that every breath, every heartbeat, and every aspect of existence is sustained by God. The sermon uses the phrase to underscore human humility and the need to recognize that without God, we are nothing. This interpretation is less about mystical immersion and more about existential dependence and accountability, using the passage to call listeners to repentance and a genuine relationship with God, rather than mere intellectual assent or religious activity.

Acts 17:28 Theological Themes:

Embracing Fellowship: The Heart of Christian Community (Saint Joseph Church of Christ) introduces the theme that spiritual isolation, even when motivated by hurt or a desire for freedom, leads to spiritual death—just as the leaf dies when separated from the tree. The sermon adds the facet that true Christian fellowship is not merely a social preference but a spiritual necessity rooted in the very nature of our existence in Christ, as expressed in Acts 17:28. The “coin with an edge” analogy further deepens the theme by suggesting that our relationship with God (the edge) determines the health of our relationships with others (the two sides), making fellowship a multidimensional reality.

Embracing the Essential Story of Transformation in Christ (Cornerstone Church Crystal) presents the distinct theological theme that Acts 17:28 is an invitation to “anchor” one’s micro-story (personal life) within God’s macro-story (creation, fall, redemption, renewal). The sermon uniquely frames faith as the “entry point” into this story, emphasizing that belief is not just intellectual assent but a lived, ongoing participation in God’s redemptive narrative. The preacher’s use of “kairos” (appointed time) and “chronos” (linear time) adds a fresh angle, suggesting that every moment is an opportunity to align with God’s purpose.

Embracing God's Presence: Our Father in Community (Become New) develops the theme that the true environment of human existence is not merely physical but spiritual, with God’s presence as the foundational reality. The sermon’s focus on “manifest presence” versus mere omnipresence adds a new dimension, arguing that Acts 17:28 calls believers to cultivate awareness and participation in God’s interactive presence, not just acknowledge his existence.

Deepening Spiritual Connection Beyond Intellectual Understanding (Abundant Life with Mark Johnson) introduces the theme that Acts 17:28 is a call to move beyond intellectual Christianity to a lived, experiential union with God. The preacher’s emphasis on the Hebrew “ruach” and the practices of worship and meditation as means to “fan the flame” of spiritual connection adds a practical, mystical facet to the theological understanding of the passage.

Living in Awareness of God's Magnificent Presence (Become New) introduces the theme of “interactive union” with God’s reality, suggesting that Acts 17:28 is an invitation to live with a constant, practical awareness of God’s presence permeating every aspect of life. The sermon uniquely frames this as a call to “be born from above,” not merely as a spiritual experience but as a continual, dynamic participation in God’s kingdom, echoing the New Testament’s use of “in” as a marker of deep, ongoing relationship.

Experiencing God's Presence: Faith in the Invisible (Ligonier Ministries) develops the theme of God’s infinite presence and the necessity of distinguishing between Creator and creation. The sermon adds a fresh angle by warning against both pantheism and modalism, and by emphasizing that Christian doctrine insists on a real ontological distinction between God and the world, even as God sustains all things. The preacher also highlights the pastoral implication: God’s omnipresence is a source of comfort in suffering, not a guarantee of a pain-free life.

Understanding God's Eternal Nature and Our Worship (Ligonier Ministries) presents the theme of contingency and dependence, arguing that all created things are in a state of “becoming” and change, while only God possesses “being” in the fullest sense. The sermon’s unique contribution is its assertion that Acts 17:28 is a rationally compelling proof for God’s existence: if anything exists, there must be a self-existent being (God) from whom all else derives.

Delighting in the Lord: Finding Joy and Peace (SermonIndex.net) introduces the distinct theological theme of “spiritual immersion” as the foundation for Christian joy and maturity. The sermon argues that Acts 17:28 is not just a metaphysical statement but a practical reality to be consciously walked in: Christians are called to live in a state of continual awareness that they are “in God” at all times. This immersion is presented as the prerequisite for all other Christian virtues and actions—only when one is fully immersed in Christ can one truly love, serve, and obey. The sermon also adds the theme of “radical integration,” urging believers to find Christ in every aspect of life, from mundane tasks to spiritual disciplines, thereby collapsing the sacred/secular divide.

Choosing the Narrow Path: A Call to True Faith (SermonIndex.net) adds a new facet to the theme of dependence on God by connecting Acts 17:28 to the necessity of humility and repentance. The preacher emphasizes that recognizing our existence as entirely contingent on God should lead to a breaking of pride and a heartfelt turning to God, not just outward religious observance. This theme is developed with the warning that mere knowledge about God is insufficient; what matters is a living relationship rooted in the reality that our very being is held by Him.

Acts 17:28 Historical and Contextual Insights:

Embracing the Essential Story of Transformation in Christ (Cornerstone Church Crystal) provides historical context by explaining that Paul’s quotation of Acts 17:28 occurs during his address to the philosophers of Athens, who had erected an altar “to the unknown God.” The sermon highlights the cultural norm of philosophical inquiry and religious pluralism in ancient Athens, noting that Paul’s use of their own poets and the altar was a strategic way to connect the gospel to their context. The preacher also references the Greek concepts of “chronos” and “kairos” to explain how time was understood in the ancient world, deepening the listener’s appreciation for the passage’s original setting.

Embracing God's Presence: Our Father in Community (Become New) offers historical insight into the ancient Jewish and Greco-Roman understanding of “heavens.” The sermon explains that in the biblical worldview, “heavens” referred to multiple layers: the air around us, the sky, and the spiritual realm where God acts. This context helps clarify that “in him we live and move and have our being” is not about God being distant, but about his presence being as close as the air we breathe. The preacher also notes the Greek word order in the Lord’s Prayer, emphasizing the communal and intimate aspects of addressing God.

Living in Awareness of God's Magnificent Presence (Become New) provides historical context by noting that Paul’s quotation in Acts 17:28 is from a Greek poet, not the Old Testament, and that Paul uses this to connect with his pagan audience on Mars Hill. The sermon also references the Jewish experience of God’s direct presence and the New Testament’s use of “heavens” in the plural, explaining the ancient worldview of layered realities (air, sky, stars, spiritual realm) all under God’s rule.

Understanding God the Father: Relationship and Sovereignty (Ligonier Ministries) offers a detailed historical account of how the concept of the “fatherhood of God” was understood in both Jewish and early Christian contexts. The sermon explains that, in Jewish tradition, addressing God as “Father” was almost unheard of until Jesus, and that Paul’s use of “we are his offspring” in Acts 17:28 is a rare, culturally contextual affirmation of God as Creator, not as Father in the salvific sense. The preacher also discusses the evolution of religious thought (animism, polytheism, henotheism, monotheism) and how the early church’s creeds responded to Gnostic and heretical views about God’s relationship to creation.

Acts 17:28 Cross-References in the Bible:

Embracing Fellowship: The Heart of Christian Community (Saint Joseph Church of Christ) cross-references John 15 (“I am the vine, you are the branches”) to reinforce the interpretation of Acts 17:28, drawing a parallel between remaining in Christ and remaining attached to the tree. The sermon also references 1 John and 3 John to discuss the themes of fellowship, truth, and love among believers, and Romans 8:37-39 to affirm that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. These passages are used to support the idea that spiritual life and community are inseparable from our union with Christ.

Embracing the Essential Story of Transformation in Christ (Cornerstone Church Crystal) references Mark 1:14-15 (“The time has come. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the good news.”) to connect the idea of kairos (appointed time) with the invitation to participate in God’s story. The sermon also cites Jeremiah 32:27 (“I am the maker of all human flesh. Is anything too great for me?”) to challenge listeners to trust in God’s power, and 2 Corinthians 6 (“At just the right time, on the day of salvation, I helped you… the right time is now”) to emphasize the immediacy of God’s invitation. These cross-references are used to expand on the meaning of Acts 17:28 as a call to active, present participation in God’s work.

Embracing God's Presence: Our Father in Community (Become New) references Genesis 1 (“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”) to explain the biblical concept of “heavens” as the environment of God’s presence. The sermon also alludes to Exodus 4 (God calling Israel his “firstborn son”) and Acts 11 (use of “heavens” in the early church) to illustrate the continuity of God’s nearness and fatherhood throughout scripture. These references support the interpretation of Acts 17:28 as describing an all-encompassing, intimate presence.

Living in Awareness of God's Magnificent Presence (Become New) cross-references Matthew 6 (Sermon on the Mount), where Jesus teaches about God’s care for birds and flowers, to illustrate the practical implications of living “in God.” The sermon also references the story of Nicodemus and the concept of being “born from above” (John 3), connecting it to the idea of living in God’s reality as described in Acts 17:28.

Experiencing God's Presence: Faith in the Invisible (Ligonier Ministries) references Psalm 23 (“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me”) and Jesus’ promise in Matthew 28:20 (“Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age”) to support the doctrine of God’s omnipresence as expressed in Acts 17:28. The sermon also alludes to the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20) to discuss idolatry and the uniqueness of God.

Understanding God the Father: Relationship and Sovereignty (Ligonier Ministries) references John 1:12 (“as many as are led by the Spirit of God, those are the sons of God”), Ephesians 2 (“children of wrath”), and the Lord’s Prayer (“Our Father”) to distinguish between the general and special senses of God’s fatherhood, as well as the unique relationship made possible through Christ, all in connection to the “offspring” language of Acts 17:28.

Delighting in the Lord: Finding Joy and Peace (SermonIndex.net) cross-references Acts 17:28 with Colossians 3:11 (“Christ is all and in all”), using it to reinforce the idea of spiritual immersion. The preacher explains that just as Acts 17:28 describes living, moving, and having our being in God, Colossians 3:11 expands this to the communal and cosmic scope of Christ’s presence, where all distinctions are dissolved and Christ permeates everything. The sermon also references Psalm 37:4 (“Delight thyself also in the Lord”) as the practical outworking of the immersion described in Acts 17:28, and draws on Isaiah 28, 30, and 32 to illustrate the spiritual realities of calm and rest that flow from being “in” God.

Choosing the Narrow Path: A Call to True Faith (SermonIndex.net) references Daniel’s words to King Belshazzar (“the very breath you breathe God owns it, he holds it in his hand, he owns all your ways”) as a biblical parallel to Acts 17:28, reinforcing the theme of God’s sovereignty over every aspect of human life. The sermon also alludes to Jesus’ teaching on the narrow gate (Matthew 7:13-14) and the necessity of doing the Father’s will (Matthew 7:21-23), using these passages to call for genuine faith rooted in dependence on God, as articulated in Acts 17:28.

Acts 17:28 Christian References outside the Bible:

Embracing God's Presence: Our Father in Community (Become New) explicitly references Dallas Willard, who distinguishes between God’s omnipresence and his “manifest presence,” shaping the sermon’s understanding of Acts 17:28 as a call to interactive relationship rather than mere acknowledgment. The preacher also cites Tom Wright (N.T. Wright), who suggests that the Sermon on the Mount could be titled “What it means to call God your Father,” reinforcing the communal and intimate aspects of God’s presence. Additionally, the sermon draws on David Foster Wallace’s commencement address “This is Water” as a secular but spiritually resonant metaphor for the unnoticed, foundational reality of God’s presence.

Living in Awareness of God's Magnificent Presence (Become New) explicitly references Dallas Willard, particularly “The Divine Conspiracy,” to support the interpretation that God’s presence is a literal, interactive reality. Willard’s language about being “interactively joined with a dynamic unseen system of divine reality” is quoted to deepen the understanding of Acts 17:28. The sermon also quotes an old hymn (“O Worship the King”) to illustrate the pervasive presence of God in creation.

Understanding God: Revelation, Humility, and the True Gospel (Ligonier Ministries) references J. Gresham Machen’s writings to critique liberal theology’s view of the universal fatherhood of God, using Machen’s arguments to clarify the distinction between God as Creator (general fatherhood) and God as Redeemer (special fatherhood), which is relevant to the “offspring” language in Acts 17:28.

Understanding God the Father: Relationship and Sovereignty (Ligonier Ministries) references 19th-century theologians and scholars such as Adolf von Harnack and William Ellery Channing, critiquing their reductionist views of Christianity as the “universal fatherhood of God and brotherhood of man.” The sermon also discusses the influence of German scholarship and the development of religious thought, situating Acts 17:28 within these broader theological debates.

Acts 17:28 Illustrations from Secular Sources:

Embracing God's Presence: Our Father in Community (Become New) uses David Foster Wallace’s “This is Water” commencement address as a central metaphor. The story of two fish swimming, unaware of the water around them, is used to illustrate how people can be oblivious to the most foundational reality—God’s presence. The preacher explains that, like the fish, humans often miss the spiritual environment in which they live, making Acts 17:28 (“in him we live and move and have our being”) a call to awareness. The sermon also references “Take Your Dog to Work Day” as a playful analogy for manifest presence: just as the dog’s presence is made manifest when it is revealed, so God’s presence becomes manifest when we become aware of it.

Deepening Spiritual Connection Beyond Intellectual Understanding (Abundant Life with Mark Johnson) references the public intellectual Jordan Peterson as an example of someone who, through intellectual inquiry and personal experience, comes to faith in Christ. The preacher discusses Peterson’s journey, including his wife’s battle with cancer and the role of reason and evidence in his spiritual awakening, to illustrate the limits of intellectual Christianity and the need for experiential, spiritual connection. The sermon also alludes to John Eldredge’s practice of “benevolent detachment” as a way to release anxieties and connect with God during sleep, blending secular psychological insight with spiritual practice.

Living in Awareness of God's Magnificent Presence (Become New) uses the vivid secular analogy of a dog (Baxter) anticipating peanut butter to illustrate the posture of trust and attentiveness that humans can have toward God’s presence. The preacher describes the dog’s still head and wagging tail as a metaphor for focused attention and joyful anticipation, paralleling how believers can “live and move and have their being” in God’s care.

Experiencing God's Presence: Faith in the Invisible (Ligonier Ministries) recounts the philosophical parable by Antony Flew about two explorers discovering a meticulously arranged garden in the jungle, debating whether an invisible gardener exists. This story is used to illustrate the challenge of perceiving God’s presence in a world where God is invisible, and to highlight the reality of creation (“the garden”) as evidence for God’s sustaining presence, as expressed in Acts 17:28. The sermon also uses a mathematics classroom illustration, where a professor draws an “infinite line” around the room to explain the concept of infinity, paralleling the infinite nature of God’s being and presence.

Delighting in the Lord: Finding Joy and Peace (SermonIndex.net) uses the secular analogy of swimming—specifically, the experience of diving into a pool and being fully immersed in water—to illustrate the meaning of Acts 17:28. The preacher describes how swimming allows one to forget everything else and be completely enveloped, paralleling the spiritual reality of living “in” God. This analogy is used to make the abstract concept of spiritual immersion tangible and relatable, encouraging listeners to “dive in all the way” and forsake anything that would pull them out of the “water” of God’s presence. The sermon also references the everyday experience of taking a bath, using it as a metaphor for the calming and enveloping effect of being in God. These illustrations serve to demystify the concept of spiritual immersion and make it accessible to a contemporary audience.