Our next stop was Athens! We set out in the morning and immediately headed straight for the Acropolis. What we didn't realize was that the admission was free for the day because it was Environment Day. While this was great that we didn't have to pay anything to see the sites, it also meant that there were HOARDS of people there. The line was so long for the acropolis that we went to Mars Hill first and then came back. Mars Hill was the site on which the Apostle Paul proclaimed the unknown God to the Athenians.......
Acts 17:22-31
Then Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, “Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; 23 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: 24 “God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. 25 Nor is He worshiped with men’s hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things.26 And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings, 27 so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; 28 for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’29 Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising. 30 Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, 31 because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.”
We'd read this passage the night before, and it was very moving to stand in the same area and look upon some of the ancient ruins that Paul must have seen. Praise God, for coming to us and making Himself known!
 |
| The inscription of Paul's Mars Hill sermon on side of the Hill. |
 |
| View of the Acropolis from Mars Hill. |
 |
| We weren't the only visitors on Mars Hill. |
 |
| View of Athens from Mars Hill. |
After visiting Mars Hill, we made our way to the Acropolis and quickly saw the sites since they were packed with people!
 |
| Zonked out! |
We then went and walked along the Athenian agora. These ruins are scarce and require a lot of imagination, aside from a well intact temple. Nonetheless, we still enjoyed the views!
 |
| View of the Acropolis from the Agora. |
After the agora we stopped for a quick lunch and got out of the heat for a bit- it was warm! We then went and walked along the plaka area of Athens that's mostly full of quaint shops and streets. Our next stop was the wonderful acropolis museum.
 |
| At lunch! |
 |
| Plaka Area |
We had a wonderful day and enjoyed Athens! Next stop- The Greek Isle of Santorini
No comments:
Post a Comment