Acts 3

Acts 3

Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the ninth hour, the hour of prayer. And a man who had been lame from his mother’s womb was being carried along, whom they used to set down every day at the gate of the temple, which is called Beautiful, in order to beg alms of those who were entering the temple.When he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple, he began asking to receive alms. But Peter, along with John, fixed his gaze on him and said, “Look at us!” And he began to give them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. But Peter said, “I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene—walk!” And seizing him by the right hand, he raised him up; and immediately his feet and his ankles were strengthened.With a leap he stood upright and began to walk; and he entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God.And all the people saw him walking and praising God; and they were taking note of him as being the one who used to sit at the Beautiful Gate of the temple to beg alms, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. While he was clinging to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them at the so-called portico of Solomon, full of amazement. But when Peter saw this, he replied to the people, “Men of Israel, why are you amazed at this, or why do you gaze at us, as if by our own power or piety we had made him walk?

“The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified His servant Jesus, the one whom you delivered and disowned in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release Him. “But you disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, but put to death the Prince of life, the one whom God raised from the dead, a fact to which we are witnesses. And on the basis of faith in His name, it is the name of Jesus which has strengthened this man whom you see and know; and the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect health in the presence of you all.“And now, brethren, I know that you acted in ignorance, just as your rulers did also. But the things which God announced beforehand by the mouth of all the prophets, that His Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled. Therefore, repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you, whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time.“Moses said, ‘The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brethren; to Him you shall give heed to everything He says to you. ‘And it will be that every soul that does not heed that prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.’ “And likewise, all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and his successors onward, also announced these days. It is you who are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’[1] “For you first, God raised up His Servant and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways.”[2]

In this chapter of Acts Peter and John were going to the Temple during the hour of prayer. The hours of prayer are mentioned throughout the new and Old Testaments so i think it not robbery to take a minute and talk about the hours of prayer in that time.

There were three times that were used for prayer in that time and it might not be a bad idea for us to adopt some of those practices.

Prime or Early Morning Prayer (First Hour = approximately 6 a.m.) or sunrise. Terce or Mid-Morning Prayer (Third Hour = approximately 9 a.m.) Sext or Midday Prayer (Sixth Hour = approximately 12 noon) None or Mid-Afternoon Prayer (Ninth Hour = approximately 3 p.m.)

Without clocks, people divided daytime (however long or short) into 12 hours. The third hour was approximately three hours after sunlight, the sixth hour was around noon, and the ninth was associated with three hours after no

These hours were announced publicly and were a convenient opportunity to gather to pray. In scripture these are the only times specifically and repeatedly associated with prayer. They were the moments every day when Jews prayed.”

These are biblical examples of the discipline of scheduled and scripted prayer (the early church used the Psalms to pray most of the time) rather than unscheduled and spontaneous prayer. Neither are right or wrong, but I do think both need to be embraced by believers to be best equipped, shaped and listen to our Lord.

Now this man went to the temple every day to beg. His name is never mentioned because it was not significant. Curious I thought that he did not go there to pray but to beg. I think we do the same things when we come to church to beg God for something and not for prayer or worship.

In other words, we come to church but all of us are not in church. As the old song goes. “My body’s here with you but my mind is on the other side of town”. We’re not all here. God wants us to be here now.

This is a sad example of a person using the church for their own gain. But God used his manipulating ways for his glory and for the beggars healing.

Now when he begged Peter and John they stopped and fixed their gaze upon him. Now if you have ever had one of your parents or an adult in authority over you know what it means for someone to fix their gaze upon you. It’s like they are peering into your soul.

Gazing is mentioned twice in the first 3 chapters of Acts. Gazing can be good or bad depending on how we use it.

Now there is nothing wrong with gazing. It’s what you’re looking at and how long you are looking. If you drive your car you gaze into your rear-view mirror. The problem comes in if you gaze too long.

Now when you driving there are two pieces of glass in front of you. the windshield and the rear-view mirror. The big glass is for looking forward and the little glass is for gazing back.

If you gaze too long in that little glass it will affect what’s in the big glass. It’s how we should look at life and God in our lives. We can glance back in our lives and see where God has brought us from and through. It’s just a brief look as a reminder.

But you really need to focus on where you are now and where God is leading you. We have to look ahead more than we glance behind.

Ok back to the scripture. Peter did not have silver or gold, but he possessed the power of the love and faith in Jesus Christ the Nazarene. He was ready willing and able to share what Jesus had done for him. You see a man’s life is more than the sum of his possessions.

He commanded the man to walk. When God heals it is not a request it is a command to do something. We pray for God to heal us of some aliment, addiction sickness or weakness and the we sit there waiting for something to happen and never stand up and move on the assurance that God can deliver.

When we get up and believe God, He will strengthen your ankles and your feet for the journey ahead. He heals us for a reason. Because he plans to use you. So get up and walk into God’s destiny for your life.

Now when I read that Peter seized him by the right hand. I had to ask myself why it was import for the author to mention so specifically the right hand.

Now all this did was to initially distract me from the fact that Peter reached down and touched someone who was considered untouchable. It didn’t matter what hand he used it was the fact that he used his hand at all.

Peter was mimicking what Jesus did for him with his mother-in-law.

Mark 1:31. During that time men didn’t go around touching women who they were not married to.

Ok so when he was healed the beggar leaped upright and began walking and leaping and praising God. Now look at this. He entered the temple with them, walking leaping and praising God.

So, God had to do something for him before he went into the temple and praised God. Sound s like some of us doesn’t it.

Now he was praising God but clinging to Peter and John as if they healed him. Even the people were in wonder and amazement.

The people were impressed by the healing and not the healer. God. The people and the beggar had misdirected amazement. Peter and John were tangible and right in front of them. They could see touch and feel them.

It didn’t require any faith, it didn’t require any change in lifestyle, it didn’t require any sacrifice. Even the beggar was clinging to them with misplaced amazement. he wasn’t paying attention when Peter said in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene.

Peter kept Jesus first. he took no credit. It’s one thing to take credit and another thing to not give credit. Peter did not do the latter. he gave Jesus all the glory. He called Jesus the Prince of Life.

By using this phrase Peter declared that Jesus is the originator, the author of life. But he wasn't just crediting Jesus with the creation of the world. Peter was giving the honor to Jesus of being the first to pass through the front lines of death, coming out on the other side as the Victor. He defeated death and through this victory gives life everlasting! He is the leader of a great army of victors who shall also pass through death into everlasting life because they have trusted their eternal souls into His Gospel care. He Is, The Prince Of Life!

It was on the basis of faith, not the beggar’s faith but Peter and John’s faith. Sometime its going to your faith that activates the power of the love of Jesus Christ in someone’s life.

It will be the same faith that came through Jesus Christ to Peter. Our faith in Jesus causes the power of the love of Jesus Christ to flow through us.

Now is the time to repent and return all of you not part of you to God. What part of you have you been holding back from God? What is it you can’t seem to let go of?

Are you holding back in your prayer life? In your giving? In your serving? In how you treat people? What is it? give it to God today.

And here is the reason why you should do it. In verse 26 God is speaking directly to each of us.

“For you first, God raised up His Servant and sent Him to bless you by turning

every one of you from your wicked ways.”[3] He is talking to you and you and you.

He sent His Son specifically for you.

You are missing you time of refreshing that comes with the presences of Jesus in your life.

Turn to your neighbor and say Neighbor, I have work to do and Neighbor so do you.