Visiting pastors, missionaries and friends from England and Wales made for a larger congregation than usual on Sunday evening and helped make the prayer time more dynamic with first-hand news from Yemen, Burma and many other countries.

A selection of contemporary worship songs was inspired by the call to be living sacrifices in Romans 12.

The pastor, Rev. Peter Richmond, talked through Acts, chapter 17, which follows the Apostles as they travel the Roman road known as the Egnatian Way.

Paul taught about Jesus in the synagogue at Thessalonica and met with opposition that not only forced him out of that place, but also out of Berea, where he had met with a far more favourable reaction.

However, he had persuaded many gentiles at Thessalonica, plus many women. They, being educated, knew the emptiness of Greek philosophies, while their conversion to Judaism would have shown them restrictions. But now the Gospel declared that in Christ there is no longer a distinction between Jew and gentile, man and woman.

In Berea, Jews and Greeks both responded well to the message because they listened without prejudice and studied the scriptures daily.

"Cults are formed when people let others do the thinking for them," warned the pastor. "How do you prepare for a service, and do you check what you hear?"

While Silas and Timothy stayed in Berea, Paul was obliged to move on and travelled to Athens. It was no longer a political city, but it had a 'university' of philosophers. Some were Epicurean; they were materialistic, pleasure seeking atheists; others were Stoics, who saw divinity in everything, good and bad, and advocated a life of resignation to fate. Both philosophies are prevalent today.

"God doesn't disapprove of education," said Peter, as he showed how Paul used his understanding of Greek thought to answer the philosophers' questions. For the most part he was listened to with amused ridicule, but a few people responded, and over the next three centuries, Athens was to produce a solid, influential church.

This Sunday's service is at 6 pm in the Avenue Centre, Greenhill Avenue, Tenby. Telephone 01646 681805 or visit http://www.hesed.co.uk">www.hesed.co.uk for further details.