John 3:30 Geography

Luke records the missionary journeys of Paul in great cities such as Athens, Corinth, Philippi, and Rome. Obviously these are truncated accounts—he doesn't have the time or space to tell us everything Paul did or everywhere he went. Hence, the travel narratives are sometimes reduced to placing dots on a map. For instance, in Acts 17:1 Luke recounts Paul's trip through Amphipolis and Apollonia. After years of teaching through the book of Acts I was finally able to visit these Grecian cities that I had heretofore deemed insignificant. Hence, I was amazed to discover at Amphipolis a twenty-foot lion which stood at the city entrance even during the days of the Apostle. Such monuments, as you can well imagine, are reserved for cities of note. They must be places of wealth and reputation. Why, then, does Luke give this stop such short shrift? As I pondered this, it struck me that in Acts, the places Luke records are not always the largest, richest, or most famous. They are not always the sort of places that make CNN. Rather, Luke lists places where the Holy Spirit established a church. It is as if a place has little significance for Luke except through the presence of God's people in it. Perhaps our own estimation of significance should follow the third Evangelist. Spiritual demographics should accord value based upon the growth of the church rather than secular streams of economics, power, or entertainment.