The
scene that we find before us in the text today is one that we can easily
imagine and have probably even observed a time or two ourselves; a man begging
the public for money. Our text opens
with Peter and John going to the temple for the hour of prayer. Now, the followers of Christ have not yet
formally broken off from their Jewish heritage as of yet seeing as how they are
in a transition between the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy and what
comes next. They haven’t quite reached
the point of division that we find between ourselves today as Christians (who
believe that the Messiah has come) and Jews (who still await his arrival). With that being the case, they still observed
the customary religious practices of the Jews; one of which was daily hours
devoted to praying in the temple. This
was a practice in which at three different periods during the day, the Jews
would gather in the temple for a time of prayer together. Now, inside of the temple, it was simply a
solemn time of prayer, but outside of the inner part of the temple was a free
for all. This was the part of the temple
where Jesus wrecked the temple, turning over merchants’ tables. This was the area where goods were commonly
sold since there was regularly a crowd. This
was the part of the temple that looked more like a marketplace than a house of
worship. It was also the area where many
people came to beg. And it’s that part
of the temple, the courtyard, where our text for today begins.
Whenever
there is a popular event in a large city, there is always a crowd. When the Super Bowl is played in New Orleans,
you can pretty much guess where the crowds are going to be. Well, so can the beggars and thieves and
everyone else who looks for a crowd to do their “work”. As a matter of fact, that’s one of the
logistical plans that host cities for Super Bowls have to present is the
presence of the homeless and how they will be “managed.” In our text, someone has placed this lame man
right outside of the inner part of the temple so that he could beg for
money. After all, how could these folks
go into the temple for a time of prayer and closeness with God and come out and
just turn a cold shoulder to this man in need.
About 10 years ago I had the privilege of attending the general assembly
of my former Presbyterian denomination in Richmond, VA as a commissioner, a big
deal seeing as how you had to be elected to be sent. It was a great event and really well
run. However, by the end of the week, it
was as if the entire homeless community of Richmond was living on the steps of
the convention center that we were meeting at.
Thinking quite logically, they figured that their best bet for some
assistance was this group of Christians, primarily composed of pastors, that
were all meeting together. The front
steps were littered with folks in need, begging for money from anyone and everyone
who walked out of the convention center.
The
lame beggar in our text saw John and Peter walking up to the Beautiful Gate as
it’s called. He saw these two apostles
walking up for this daily time of prayer.
He asked them for some money.
There’s no telling how many folks he had asked, or how many gave him
some or walked by him. There’s no
telling how many people altered their path to the temple simply because of his
presence. However, what we find here is
something I’m pretty sure he didn’t expect at all. Peter and John do not avoid him or ignore
him. They walk right up to this man, and
Peter tells him to look at them. Then he
tells him, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you.” Now at this point, I have to think that the
man was kind of put off by this response.
I know that in today’s world, when we offer to buy a beggar a meal
instead of giving him money, they often aren’t as excited as if I had just
given him the money, and sometimes they can become quite angry. However, Peter isn’t just offering some
comparable substitute for money here. He
goes on to say, “In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” This man (with the help of Peter) rose up and
stood. He began to walk for the first
time in his life. Remember, we were told
in verse 2 that this man had been lame since his birth. It’s not like he had some type of injury that
got better, this was something that he had suffered with for his entire life.
Peter
and John walked with this man into the temple.
Mind you, this was probably the first time that he had ever been in this
inner part of the temple. His physical
deformity would have prohibited him from coming any farther than the place
where these two apostles found him begging.
He was walking. He was
leaping. He was literally leaping for
joy and praising God who had healed him.
Notice that we’re told that he was praising God, not Peter. That’s a point that we will see in just a few
minutes that is of great emphasis. But
the people who are in the inner part of the temple saw him and recognized him. After all, many of them had just seen him and
been asked for change by him on their way into the temple. There’s no telling how many of them had
passed him by for years and are now seeing him standing, walking, jumping, and
praising God. Many folks gather around
these three men (Peter, John, and the former lame beggar). They can’t believe what they are seeing and they’re
in awe.
This
is where the point about the praise being towards God and not Peter and John
finds its fulfillment. Peter, who we saw
deliver the first post-Christ sermon a few weeks ago, now delivers what many
call the second sermon of the early church.
He says to the people gathering around them, “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?” He goes on to
tell them that they had nothing to do with it, but that it was all a work of
God; the same God of the Old Testament patriarchs of Abraham, Isaac, and
Jacob. He then goes on to tell them that
it’s the same God who glorified Jesus.
Then, Peter reminds them that they denied Jesus. They denied God’s Son already, and now they
are starting to deny God again by thinking that Peter or John has healed this
man. Peter reminds them as to what took
place with Jesus. He reminds them of
what Jesus spoke and how he fulfilled the Law.
Peter points the people, many (or at least some) of whom have moved on
from the whole Jesus thing by now, back to the cross.
Now,
I could stand up here and just recite for you over and over again Peter’s words
to the people in the temple at this point, and it would be a very accurate and
gospel and Christ-centered message. I
would be perfectly justified in doing so, because the truth of what Peter said
was dead on as to how they should respond and how we should respond today. However, I want to just re-emphasize the
notion that Peter is driving at with the people gathered there in the temple
who are trying to praise he and John for this lame man’s newfound ability to
walk. It’s not about what John did. It’s not about what Peter did. It’s not about what the lame man did. It’s about what God did. It’s always about what God does, not what we
do.
Our
lives, our salvation, all that we have; none of it is our own, but it’s all a
gift from God. As Paul wrote to the
church in Ephesus, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift
of God” (Ephesians 2:8 ESV). We
live in a world we’re we are all praised for our effort, our determination, and
our success. Now I’m not wanting to take
away from anyone’s accomplishments. In
fact, we’re getting ready to right celebrate the accomplishments of several folks
during our time of fellowship together after this service of worship. However, I do think that we must remember
that when we approach any accomplishment that we are to thank God for His
provision in our achievements. No matter
if it’s something as routine as graduating high school, finding the person whom
God has created to complete you, or healing a lame beggar, it is the work of
God and not of man. There were any
number of things that could have gone wrong or just not worked out along the
way, but God’s providence was true and good and we have all been able to
accomplish our goals and reach the various milestones along the way.
Yes,
the effort of man is to be admired, but the credit goes to God and God
alone. We are given so much by Him that
we begin to ignore it and perceive it as something that we’ve given to
ourselves. Remember, this man was lame,
broken, and begging for scraps. Yet, God
didn’t just give him a few coins; He didn’t just meet his wants and bestow upon
him the minimum that he was asking for.
No, God gave this man something so far beyond what he was asking for or
even thought possible. What are the
things in your life that you want to see God do? Now I’m not trying to turn God in a genie
here, so please don’t misunderstand me and think that all we have to do is ask
and it will come true. I’m simply saying
that God cares for us, each of us. And
in that love and care, He wants the best for us. When we recognize our blessings, no matter
how small, we must acknowledge that they are gifts from God. Glory be to God; in the name of the Father,
the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment