Acts 3:1-26: A Miracle and a Message

Acts 3:1-26: A Miracle and a Message

We’ve been working our way passage by passage through the book of Acts, and today the next passage we come to is Acts 3:1-26 as the passage upon which today’s message will be based. Acts 3:1-26:

1 Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. 2 And a man lame from birth was being carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple that is called the Beautiful Gate to ask alms of those entering the temple. 3 Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive alms. 4 And Peter directed his gaze at him, as did John, and said, “Look at us.” 5 And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. 6 But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” 7 And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. 8 And leaping up, he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. 9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God, 10 and recognized him as the one who sat at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, asking for alms. And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. 11 While he clung to Peter and John, all the people, utterly astounded, ran together to them in the portico called Solomon’s. 12 And when Peter saw it he addressed the people: “Men of Israel, why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though by our own power or piety we have made him walk? 13 The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus, whom you delivered over and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release him. 14 But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, 15 and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses. 16 And his name—by faith in his name—has made this man strong whom you see and know, and the faith that is through Jesus has given the man this perfect health in the presence of you all. 17 “And now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. 18 But what God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ would suffer, he thus fulfilled. 19 Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, 20 that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, 21 whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago. 22 Moses said, ‘The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers. You shall listen to him in whatever he tells you. 23 And it shall be that every soul who does not listen to that prophet shall be destroyed from the people.’ 24 And all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and those who came after him, also proclaimed these days. 25 You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.’ 26 God, having raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you by turning every one of you from your wickedness.” 

We’ve been working our way passage by passage through the book of Acts. And the very beginning of the book records Jesus ascending into heaven. He had died on the cross, resurrected from the dead, and then ascends into heaven before the very eyes of his disciples. It really must have been an incredible sight to behold. Yet have you ever wondered why Jesus didn’t take his disciples with him when he ascended? Like, why did he leave them there, in a world where he knew they would face constant opposition and even persecution? And the same might be asked of us as well. Why doesn’t Jesus immediately take us to heaven when we become Christians? Why does he leave us here—in a world filled with so much suffering and heartache and pain? 

There’s only one answer to that question, and it’s actually given to us very clearly in Acts 1:8. This is the most important verse in Acts because it sets the stage for everything else we read throughout the whole rest of the book. Right before Jesus ascends into heaven, he explains to his disciples why he’s not taking them with him. He says, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” That’s why Jesus left them behind—for that one reason—so they could be his witnesses in Jerusalem, in the regions around Jerusalem, and even to the ends of the earth. And he expected them to devote themselves to that mission and make that mission the singular focus of their lives. And even though it’s been nearly 2,000 years since the words of Acts 1:8 were spoken, nothing’s changed in the expectations or the calling that God has for his people. God calls us to be just as devoted to that mission as the Christians we read about in the book of Acts. That’s why we’re here. 

Yet I’m sure you know as well as I do that it’s so easy for us to lose focus of that mission, isn’t it? Kind of like when you go into a certain room of your house in order to do something but then get distracted by something else, and then, for the life of you, you can’t remember what that thing was that you first walked into that room to do. Isn’t that annoying? Or maybe you could compare it to a series of memes that have been popular on the Internet with the caption, “you had one job.” Such as this one with mispainted lines on the road. “You had one job!” Or this one with the backwards billboard. Or this one with the word “shcool” on the road. In all of these cases—plus many others you can find online—the person had one job and apparently wasn’t able to do it very well. And sometimes I imagine God up there in heaven thinking something similar about us whenever we struggle to focus on the mission he’s given us: “You had one job, and you’re getting distracted with all these other things.” And it’s true. How easy is it for us as individuals to get distracted by the comforts and concerns of this world and even for churches to get distracted by various things—perhaps putting all of their focus on programs that have little discernible value or on buildings that are never really utilized as a tool for the Kingdom. It’s so easy to get sidetracked! 

That’s why we need to be reminded again and again of the reason why we’re here. And that’s exactly the kind of reminder we find in the main passage of Scripture we’ll be looking at this morning—Acts 3:1-26. In this chapter, we see Peter and John being faithful to the mission Jesus had given them back in Acts 1:8 of being his witnesses. And we see what being a faithful witness involves. Being a faithful witness involves both showing the power of God and sharing the gospel of God. That’s the main idea that arises from Acts 3. Being a faithful witness involves both showing the power of God and sharing the gospel of God. And as we’re going to see, those two things work together in a beautiful way. So let’s take a closer look at these two components of being a faithful witness as we see them in this passage. 

Showing the Power of God

First, we see Peter and John showing the power of God in verses 1-10. The text records how “Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour”—which was 3:00pm. This was the most popular of the three prayer meetings that were held each day at the temple since it was also the hour of the evening sacrifice. And so the temple crowds at this hour would have been at their peak. “And a man lame from birth was being carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple that is called the Beautiful Gate to ask alms of those entering the temple.” So this guy was “lame from birth,” it says. His condition wasn’t a recent development that might have left more hope for recovery but rather was something that had afflicted him from the moment he was born. In other words, his case was pretty much hopeless. 

Then, 3 Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive alms. 4 And Peter directed his gaze at him, as did John, and said, “Look at us.” 5 And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. 6 But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” 7 And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. 8 And leaping up, he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. 9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God, 10 and recognized him as the one who sat at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, asking for alms. And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. So Peter tells this guy to walk, and he doesn’t just get up slowly and start stumbling around and tripping over himself the way we might expect someone to do if they had never walked before. Instead, he leaps up and immediately starts to walk as if he’s been doing it his entire life. This was an incredible occurrence that could have only happened by the power of God. 

And the reason God did this was to establish the credibility of the gospel message. Just like in the ministry of Jesus, we find him frequently appealing to people to believe in him on the basis of the miracles he did. He states in John 10:25, “The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me.” He also challenges Philip in John 14:11, “Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.” And likewise in Acts, the miracles God does through the apostles are intended to demonstrate the truth of the gospel message that they’re proclaiming. 

And it’s natural for us to wonder at this point whether such miracles still happen today. Unfortunately, we don’t have time to explore that question in detail, but the short answer is yes with about a dozen caveats after it. One important caveat is that there are many fraudulent miracles that rely on various forms of psychological manipulation. Also, there are many purported miracles that are actually performed by the power of demons rather than the power of God. In Exodus 7-8, for example, we read that Pharaoh’s magicians were able to perform false miracles. Also, in Acts 8, Simon the sorcerer was a local celebrity among the people of Samaria for the magic that he demonstrated. And finally, the Apostle Paul tells us very clearly in 2 Thessalonians 2:9 that we should expect a man of sin to come in the future—referred to elsewhere as the Antichrist—who will come “with all power and false signs and wonders.” 

So how do we know then if a miracle-worker is genuine or not? Two things: their teaching and their character. First, are they teaching sound theology? Not that we have to agree with them on every single point of doctrine, but are they at least teaching sound theology in all of the areas that are directly connected to the gospel—such as who Jesus is and what he accomplished and how we can benefit from that. Also, secondly, do they exhibit godly character? In the Bible, ungodly character is always linked with false teachers. Jesus states in Matthew 7:15-16, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits.” Now, if someone’s very famous, it may be difficult to evaluate their fruits since you don’t really know the person. So you often don’t know if they’re hiding some sort of scandalous sin or not. But one example of a character issue you can look for from a distance is greed. Do they seem to exhibit an unhealthy interest in earthly wealth and prosperity? Are they living a life of excessive luxury? 

You know, 1 Timothy 6 teaches that there’s a very strong link between false teachers and greed. Paul says that false teachers are constantly “imagining that godliness is a means of gain,” and then he spends most of the rest of the chapter warning Timothy about greed leading people to depart from sound doctrine. So if you see someone who claims to be a miracle-worker today getting rich off of their ministry, well, common sense should probably be enough to tell you that there’s something not right there, but even beyond that, the Bible actually gives very specific warnings about such people. Greed is a huge red flag, biblically speaking, that someone is a false teacher and a charlatan. So is it possible for miracles to happen today? Yes, but I’m not sure I’ve ever heard of a famous miracle-worker that seemed anywhere close to legitimate. I’ve never heard of a single one that passed the “sniff-test,” if you will. All of the miracles I’ve heard about that seemed like they might be legitimate came in response to ordinary people simply praying that God would heal somebody or intervene in some way.  

Yet one connection that I don’t want to miss from this passage is that, regardless of whether God ever chooses to uses us to accomplish a miracle, we’re still called to show the supernatural power of God. That’s part of being a faithful witness. And the way we most often show the supernatural power of God is in our lives. Is there something supernatural about your life? You see, from what I’ve observed, in the vast majority of cases, people need to see something supernatural in our lives before they’ll be willing to listen to anything we have to say about Jesus. So is there something about your life that can only be described as supernatural? 

And there are two things in particular that come to mind as examples of what I’m talking about. The first is joy even in suffering. You see, the gospel makes it possible for us to have real joy even in the midst of the most difficult seasons of our lives—because we understand that, regardless of what happens to us or what trials we may face, none of those trials can ever take away the grace we’ve received in Jesus. So, through Jesus, we have access to a joy that’s not in any way dependent on our earthly circumstances but rather transcends them all. And when Christians display joy even in the midst of suffering, that gets people’s attention in a way that few other things do. Anyone can be happy when things are going well and life is good. But when we demonstrate a joy that rises above our circumstances, that makes an impact on people and really gets them thinking about the message we proclaim. So is your life radiant with a joy that rises above your circumstances—a joy even in suffering? 

Also, the second example that comes to mind is love even for enemies. Do you demonstrate love even for those who treat you poorly? Do you pray for them, serve them, and genuinely care about them? Anybody can love someone who’s like them or who treats them well, but exhibiting love toward your enemies will really make you stand out. As we demonstrate love even toward our enemies, people really begin to take notice—because who else does that? Where else in society do you see people loving those who mistreat them or even who have different political views than them? You don’t really see that—or at least I haven’t. The main thing I see is people tearing each other to shreds simply for disagreeing with them about something. 

So those are two ways we can show the supernatural in our lives—demonstrating joy even in the midst of suffering and love even toward our enemies. If we’ll just live lives like that, I believe it’ll function in a very similar way to the miracle that we see here in Acts 3. People can argue with a lot of things, but one thing they can’t argue with is a changed life. You don’t have to be a brilliant theologian or have the answer to every single question people might ask. Just live a life that’s radiant with the joy and love of Christ, and people are going to take notice of that and often be open to hear what you have to say. 

Sharing the Gospel of God

Then, as we continue on in Acts 3, we see Peter not only showing the power of God but also sharing the gospel of God. Perhaps you’ve heard the old adage, “Preach the gospel at all times and use words if necessary.” Well, I don’t believe it’s possible to preach the gospel without words. The gospel is a message, and conveying that message requires words.

And as we look at the words Peter uses to convey the gospel here in verses 11-26 of our main passage, there are several features of his message that I’d like to emphasize. Verses 11-12 describe how people were utterly astounded at Peter’s miracle and gathered around him to see what had happened. So, of course, he uses that opportunity to proclaim the gospel. He tells them that it’s God who actually accomplished the miracle and then states in verses 13-16, 13 The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus, whom you delivered over and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release him. 14 But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, 15 and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses. 16 And his name—by faith in his name—has made this man strong whom you see and know, and the faith that is through Jesus has given the man this perfect health in the presence of you all. 

Now, as I read through these verses, the thing that immediately jumps out at me is how bold and direct Peter is about the role of his audience in the crucifixion of Jesus and about the fact that they’re responsible for that. I mean, this guy’s not beating around the bush, is he? He describes Jesus as the one “whom you delivered over and denied” and how “you…asked for a murderer to be granted to you” and how “you killed the Author of life.” “You, you, you.” And the reason why I believe he does that is because people have to be convicted of their sin before they’ll realize that they need Jesus. And it’s no different today. The reason why people have an inadequate view of salvation is because they have an inadequate view of sin. Without an adequate view of sin, the only way you can view Jesus is merely as someone who can make your life a little bit better or who can motivate you to be a nicer person. In order to fully appreciate the cure that Jesus offers, you first have to understand the sickness. And the sickness that we have isn’t just that we make mistakes once in a while or even that we occasionally commit sins. It’s that we’re sinners by nature. The very core of who we are is wicked and depraved. 

Paul describes us in Ephesians 2:1 as “dead in trespasses and sins.” And David confesses in Psalm 51:5, “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.” Think about that. We’ve had the seeds of sin within us even from conception. Nineteenth century theologian J. C. Ryle describes it in an especially direct way. He writes, “The fairest babe that has entered life this year, and become the sunbeam of a family, is not, as its mother perhaps fondly calls it, a little ‘angel,’ or a little ‘innocent,’ but a little ‘sinner.’ Alas! As it lies smiling and crowing in its cradle, that little creature carries in its heart the seeds of every kind of wickedness!” It’s shocking, but it’s true. And that sinful nature—the sinful heart that we all have—remains with us and taints everything we do. As another theologian has said, “The best things which we do have something in them to be pardoned.” So understand that we’re not sinners because we commit sins. We commit sins because we’re sinners by nature.

And in order to appreciate the rescue Jesus offers, people have to understand that. And those of us who are Christians have to tell it to them. We have to help them understand sin in all of its heinousness—just as Peter does here in Acts 3. Kind of like agriculture. Before you can reap a harvest, you first have to plant the seeds. And before you plant the seeds, you first have to do what? Plow the ground, right? What would happen, do you think, if a farmer tried to scatter seed without first plowing and preparing the soil? Even if you don’t have any experience in farming, you can probably guess that the seed isn’t going to take root very well. If the soil is hard and compacted, the seed won’t be able to penetrate that. And so, you have to plow. And you have to do the same thing spiritually. In order for the seed of the gospel to take root in someone’s heart, you’ve gotta do some plowing by helping them understand the seriousness and the pervasiveness of their sin. And that’s why Peter places so much emphasis here on the culpability of his hearers for the crucifixion. They had to feel the weight of their sin. 

However, having said that—having given them the bad news—Peter then gives them the good news. Look at verses 17-21: 17 “And now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. 18 But what God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ would suffer, he thus fulfilled. 19 Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, 20 that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, 21 whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago. So, you see, the crucifixion of Jesus for which Peter’s audience was fully responsible was actually a part of God’s plan from the very beginning. It says that “God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets that his Christ would suffer.” His Anointed One, his Messiah, who was appointed to rescue God’s people, would accomplish that rescue in the most unexpected way—through suffering and death. 

And the result, Peter says, is that “your sins may be blotted out.” Scholars tell us that, back in ancient times, the ink that they used to write with—unlike ink today—had no acid content and there was able to simply be wiped away or “blotted out” with a damp sponge. And that’s what Jesus does with our sins. You see, when he died on that cross, he was doing so in our place—in order to suffer the judgment for our sin. The full fury of God the Father’s wrath was poured out on Jesus so that we wouldn’t ever have to face it. And then, as Peter’s already mentioned several times, Jesus resurrected from the dead so that everyone who repents of their sins and puts their trust in him can experience the rescue he offers. Just like the crippled man earlier in the chapter obtained physical healing by faith in Jesus (like Peter mentioned back in verse 16), we can all obtain spiritual healing and eternal salvation through faith in Jesus as well. And as Peter explains in verses 22-26, this was all predicted in the Old Testament, both by Moses and to Abraham. 

Conclusion

So this is what’s involved in being a faithful witness—showing the power of God, as Peter does in verses 1-10, and sharing the gospel of God, as Peter does in verses 11-26. This is why Jesus has left us here. He could have just sent angels to be his witnesses or even speak to people directly in an audible voice to tell them the gospel—and yet, for whatever reason, he chooses to use us. Even with all of our weakness and failures and shortcomings, he chooses to use us. 

And maybe you’re here this morning and haven’t yet put your trust in Jesus or embraced the gospel message you’ve heard today in any decisive way. And yet, perhaps you’re intrigued by the things you’ve heard. You know, one thing I love about the narrative what we read in Acts 3 is the way the crippled man asks for one thing and Peter gives him something way better. Look again at verses 3-6: 3 Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive alms. 4 And Peter directed his gaze at him, as did John, and said, “Look at us.” 5 And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. 6 But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” So the beggar asks Peter for some spare change, and Peter gives him something way better—telling him to stand up and walk. And that’s a beautiful picture of the way Jesus gives us something infinitely greater than we even know to ask for. 

You see, most people want way too little from Jesus. Their mind is mainly—and often exclusively—on the cares and concerns of this world—things that are so shallow and so temporary. Maybe they’re having some financial difficulties that they want Jesus to help them with or some relational challenges or maybe they’re battling anxiety and want relief from that. And don’t get me wrong—all of these things are very real challenges and can be very difficult, and Jesus does offer us hope and help and healing in all of these situations. Yet he also offers us something infinitely greater. You may remember me saying that in order to understand the magnitude of what Jesus offers, you first have to understand the gravity and the pervasiveness of our sin. And once you really grasp that, then you can see the wonders and the glories of what Jesus offers. He offers us forgiveness from the guilt of that sin and cleansing from the defilement of that sin and freedom from the bondage of that sin.  

And not only that, but the greatest blessing isn’t even what he saves us out of but what he saves us into—an all-satisfying relationship with himself that brings us a kind of joy we never even knew existed—what Psalm 16 calls “fullness of joy.” David writes in Psalm 16:11, speaking to the Lord, “In your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” So look at what he’s saying there. In contrast to the cheap thrills and shallow enjoyments we find in this world, there’s a “fullness of joy” in the presence of God. And in contrast to the fading pleasures that we often get so caught up in pursuing, there are “pleasures forevermore”—eternal pleasures—at God’s right hand. So, going back to Acts 3, just like that beggar ended up receiving more than he ever dreamed possible, Jesus wants to give us something that’s beyond our wildest dreams as well—an all-satisfying relationship with God that we’ll get to enjoy without any hindrance or limitation for all eternity. You can have that this morning with the God who loves you so dearly if you’ll turn away from your sins and put your full trust and confidence in Jesus.