Reaching a Skeptical World
Edited directly from the sermon transcript of Matthew Miller’s message at Highland Hills Church of Christ on August 23, 2026. Adapted for length and readability while preserving his voice and message.
We live in a skeptical world. A popular bumper sticker says, “Question everything.” I wonder: Should I question that?
People are skeptical of institutions, authority, organized religion, and absolute truth. Once, I was sitting on the greenway behind the football stadium, reading my Bible. A man walking his dog asked what I was reading, and we began a conversation about truth.
He said, “I’m on this side of the sidewalk and you’re on that side. How can we know there is such a thing as truth when we see things differently?”
I asked, “Is there a sidewalk?” He said yes. “Then maybe we can establish that there is such a thing as truth.”
Skepticism is nothing new. In Acts 17, the church proclaims Christ in a world of competing philosophies, religious beliefs, and political ideas. How do we reach people who are not convinced God exists or Jesus is alive?
Paul gives us a picture of faithfulness. He enters other people’s worlds, seeks to understand how they see things, proclaims Christ, and trusts God with the results. That last part can be difficult when we so want people to know Jesus. But the results aren’t in our hands.
In Thessalonica, Paul goes to the synagogue, as is his custom. For three Sabbaths, he reasons from Scripture, explaining that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead. “This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ.”
Some are persuaded and join Paul and Silas. Others become envious, gather a mob, and accuse the believers of turning the world upside down and proclaiming another king, Jesus.
A skeptical world needs a faithful witness, and that witness may come at a cost. Paul goes where people are, opens the Scriptures, explains them, and keeps Jesus at the center.
The core message is that Jesus is Lord. Christianity makes claims about reality: who God is, who we are, and where history is going. We need to be honest about those claims.
The same message brings different responses. Paul is responsible for faithfully proclaiming it. He cannot control how everyone receives it. Doing everything right does not guarantee an easy outcome or persuade every person. Our task is to be faithful.
Next, Paul and Silas go to Berea. The people receive the word eagerly and search the Scriptures daily to see whether what Paul says is true. Many believe.
The Bereans might be the healthiest skeptics in this chapter. They don’t believe simply because Paul says it. They take him seriously, investigate, and compare his message with Scripture.
There’s a difference between being resistant to learning and saying, “We’re skeptical, but we want to know what is true.” When someone is genuinely seeking truth, there is an open door to faith.
Taking a step of faith does not require setting your mind aside. The Bereans explore and study. They seek understanding grounded in God’s word.
Every way of knowing begins with confidence in something or someone. It might be an influential teacher, author, or public figure. Where do we begin our search for truth? As Christians, we begin with God and his revelation.
We need to know why we believe, where Scripture teaches it, and how it makes sense of reality. As parents, are we teaching children how to think Christianly? As a church, can we answer questions intelligently and lovingly? As individuals, can we share what we really believe?
A skeptical world also needs a listening witness.
In Athens, Paul is troubled by the city’s idols. He reasons in the synagogue and marketplace. Philosophers hear him preaching Jesus and the resurrection and invite him to explain his teaching at the Areopagus.
He observes their culture. He starts with a point of connection: “I perceive that in all things you are very religious.” He has found an altar “to the unknown God.” He tells them he can proclaim the one they worship without knowing.
Understanding what another person believes is not the same as approving it. But you should be able to describe their belief back to them clearly. That gives you the ability to listen to their fears, hopes, and hurts.
People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. Understanding where they come from shows care.
Paul begins where the Athenians are and proclaims the God who made the world. This God is Lord of heaven and earth. He does not need a temple made by human hands or anything we can supply, because he gives everyone life and breath.
He has made humanity and calls people to seek him, though he is not far from any of us. “In him we live and move and have our being.” Paul even quotes their own poets to make that connection.
You think you’re looking for God? God has already come. He is calling you. You belong to him, and he is near.
Paul then calls for a response. God commands people to repent and has given assurance through raising Jesus from the dead. This is more than information about God. It leads to Jesus and the cross.
Again, the responses differ. Some mock. Some want to hear more later. Some believe. Later can be a step toward faith, but it can also become a permanent substitute for yes.
Paul’s mission is to bear faithful witness to Jesus. He doesn’t manipulate, bully, mock, hide the difficult claims, or demand immediate results. He presents the message faithfully, and people must respond.
Acts 17 gives us a way to think about our own witness. Know the world you live in, with its good, bad, and ugly. Know the word. Know the gospel, the message of rescue and the grace that changes our lives. Know the person you’re speaking with.
Skeptical people are beautiful people made in God’s image. We are called to share Jesus’s loving heart with them.
Then trust God with the response. Our calling is faithfulness, not control.
A skeptical world needs Christians who think deeply, listen carefully, speak graciously, and know Scripture. It also needs Christians who can say, “I don’t know.” Nobody knows everything. When a question comes that we can’t answer, we can honestly say, “I’ve had that question too. I’m going to explore it.”
If you have doubts and questions, don’t be afraid of them. They can be ways to grow and learn. We want to bear testimony to Jesus, and we welcome honest questions.
Following him as Lord changes everything. But we don’t need to be afraid of a skeptical world. We can enter it with care, open God’s word, proclaim Christ, and trust him with what follows.
