Acts 3
Today’s chapter follows immediately after the descent of the Holy Spirit on the disciples in chapter 2. With the power of the Holy Spirit, they were greatly strengthened and preached the gospel with might and wisdom.
This made me wonder why there is such a great discrepancy between people who received the Holy Spirit then and people who receive the Holy Spirit now. Has the Holy Spirit lost some of His power over the span of two thousand years?
We know that this is not possible. This brings to mind what Pr Aun Quek said not too long ago about the power of the Holy Spirit being great and mighty as always but the hearts of man remaining ‘unploughed’, which results in no good fruit being borne. What is the difference between the first church and us then?
Today’s chapter clues us in on some of the attitudes of the apostles and believers in the first church and from what they say, we can see the great faith and wisdom they received through the Holy Spirit and use their words to question our personal faith and reflect upon ourselves.
Let’s read the chapter first.
Bible Passage: Acts 3
What do you have?
Then Peter said, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.” (Acts 3:6)
Sometimes, I look around me and think that one of the major hindrances in our upward journey is the fact that we really have too many things in our lives. Physical possessions, emotional ties, societal position and recognition…the list just grows day by day. Not to say that all these are evil and bad for all we have is from God anyway. However, we do tend to lose sight of what is truly important amidst all the other things in our lives.
This was not so for the apostles. From the words of Peter, we feel a sense of conviction in the utmost importance of having the name of Jesus. This ‘having the name of Jesus’ does not mean having a magic formula that we tote out every time we have need of it but really carrying the power of Christ in us because of our faith in Him and obedience to His word. This was why Peter (and John) was so assured in ‘having’ this most important thing. What about us? Do *we* truly have the name of Jesus?
Who do you look at?
So when Peter saw it, he responded to the people: “Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? … And His (Jesus’) name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all. (Acts 3:12, 16)
To be very fair, this was also a problem that already existed during the time of the early church. This is especially so when there were such mighty workers like Peter, Paul and Apollos in that time. For us today, it is the same. Who do we obey? Who do we admire? When we look up to, obey or admire someone, is it because we see Christ in them or just because they are charismatic? More importantly, do we see Christ before them?
In the same way, in all the work that we do, let us also always pray that people see God and not us. Like what Peter said, ‘Why look intently at us?’ It is not by my own power I do these work anyway. Maybe we can learn from the seraphim in the book of Isaiah (6:1-3) who cover their faces and give all glory to God.
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PS
This is my childish imagination:
Did the lame man have any faith at the moment when he received healing? May be not.
Acts 3:3 who, seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked for alms
Acts 3:5 So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them,
Acts 3:16 “And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which come through Him has given him this perfect soundness in teh presence of you all.”
The chinese bible reads slightly different in the front portion: 我们因信他的名，他的名便叫你们所看见所认识的这个人健壮了…
A literal translation is: And His name, through our faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know…
The difference is in that the faith in the name of Lord Jesus Christ is “our faith” ie Peter’s and John’s faith. The lame man was not included. He was expecting only alms from Peter and John, not healing. May be the most he did was to respond to Peter’s word of “rise up and walk.”
For him, may be more important, was what he did after receiving the great grace of healing by the name of Lord Jesus Christ: So he leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them—walking, leaping, and praising God.
From where we start is not as important as how we continue the journey. This is especially true of our journey of faith.
Receive baptism during infancy or in a later stage of life is just a starting. As time passes, have i spiritually nurtured a personal relationship with God like Isaac and Jacob, like Moses and Caleb?
Please pardon my abruptness:
For the blessed brethren who are baptized as a baby, the baptism is conducted by the faith of the parents (just like Peter’s and John’s). Now importantly when we come to church, are we walking, leaping and praising God or are we dragging our feet and forgetting our heart?
For the blessed brethren who are baptized later, the baptism is conducted by the hope that we can receive the remission of sins and eternal life (stand up and walk). Now importantly when we come to church, do we holdfast that the name of the God who healed us is Jesus?
Are we still in ignorance? (Acts 3:17)
Peter said, “Repent therefore and be converted…” (Acts 3:19)
Repentance is leaping up. Conversion is standing, walking and praising Lord Jesus Christ.
appleofHiseye
I thought about this question: “Now importantly when we come to church, are we walking, leaping and praising God or are we dragging our feet and forgetting our heart?”
And then I remembered the story of Jacob. His faith was not his own, it was the God of his fathers, of Abraham and Isaac. The turning point for him was when he asked God to provide for his needs, then he would acknowledge God as His own.
So I was thinking how different am I from him? God has provided me with all my needs, but I am still learning to make God my own and not the God of my parents. Also while pondering on the things that I have, I know that at times it can become a hindrance to me because I care about it subconsciously even if I deny it with my conscience.
I am still learning to call upon God not only in times of need but at Bethel, knowing that God is awesome, and the house of God and the gate to heaven is not represented by physical things, but in our hearts.
biblereadingcompanion
I like to offer another view point to aquillofGod’s question… “Who do you look at?”
Now imagine you are Peter or John. Who do you see when you are walking to the temple?
Peter and John showed me an example of how the work of God meets the basic needs of man. In this case, they engaged the crippled man through direct eye contact and treated him with respect and dignity.
They acknowledged him as a man who has his values and worth.
What they have him was of incomparably greater value than a few dollars in a cup. They offered him a reason to lift his head, the ability to stretch his legs – and jump. They gave him the ultimate thing – a permanent solution to begging and an opportunity to get to know the Saviour.
Dignity and respect cannot be bought. Donating money to solve a problem, while good in itself, may not always be the complete solution.
The poor and suffering needs dignity that comes from being treated as people – not just as objects of need.
Are there anyone that we know in church whom we have not treated well with dignity and respect just because of their background or situation they are in?
When I think about it… I do recall with shame how I can be curt and dismissive of some members who are not as fortunate as me. Perhaps, because of their circumstances, their mannerisms and behaviour are not ideal… but instead of taking the time and effort to really find out their true needs, I have dismissed them.
But I realised now that engaging directly with people in suffering is not something comfortable at first. But it is the only way to really bring a person complete to Christ.
I am now thinking about doing something for an unfortunate person that I know… but I am still not sure if I can do it and have the faith and support to do it….
But the example that Peter and John has showed me is this… through their direct actions and contact, both the givers and receivers can discover their true value to God.