SERIES: “The Book of Acts”
TEXT: Acts 3:1-10
MESSAGE: “God’s Healing”
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Q: What can we learn about God’s healing? We need to see: (1. A broken humanity 2. A healing touch 3. A wonderful healer)
- A Broken Humanity (v. 1-3)
“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.”
“The man in view here is not simply broke. He’s broken. He’s physically crippled. He’s humiliated. He’s hopeless. And to make things worse, he’s more than forty years old. Presumably, he’d lived this way for decades.”
— Tony Merida
“Your emptiness is but the preparation for your being filled, and your casting down is but the making ready for your lifting up.”
- A Healing Touch (v. 4-7)
“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.”
“This story highlights the need to care for the the hurting people all around us. It is a sobering reminder that it is possible to attend religious events while ignoring the needs right in front of us…another point of application here involves the apostles care for just one guy. In the previous passage three thousand were saved. And from this switch in focus comes a new principle: Those who reach the many care about reaching the one. May God give us compassionate hearts for meeting the physical and spiritual needs of every individual. To see those who might feel lost in the crowd.” — Tony Merida
- A Wonderful Healer (v. 8-10)
“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.
“Miracles are a retelling in small letters of the very same story which is written across the whole world in letters too large for some of us to see.” — C. S. Lewis
TAKEAWAYS: How does God’s healing work in our lives?
- See Your Brokenness
- “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” – (Matthew 5:3)
- “If you want God’s grace, all you need is need, all you need is nothing.” — Timothy Keller
- Ask For The Healing You Really Need
“But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” — Isaiah 53:5