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Acts 3

Introduction:

We left off last time with the church having been baptized in the power of the Holy Spirit. They had been waiting in prayer and supplication, being of one mind and in one accord. After the baptism of the Holy Spirit, we see the church growing exponentially, adding over 3,000 souls in one day. I’ve often found it amazing that many small churches start off dedicated to the Word of God and operating in the Spirit. However, after they experience exponential growth, more times than not, they go off into all kinds of “programs,” trying to come up with things that will continue to bring the people in. This is actually a mistake, for after having experienced the mighty move of the Holy Spirit and watching the church grow exponentially, what do we find the early church doing?

Acts 2:42-47(42) And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.(43) And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.(44) And all that believed were together, and had all things common;(45) And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.(46) And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,(47) Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

Acts 3:1-26(1) Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.

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I. Peter and John go to temple: It is important to note that the early church there in Jerusalem was not considered separate from Judaism, except for the fact that they believed that Jesus was the Messiah. Even to this day, there is a common misconception among Jews that in order to become a Christian, you must become a non-Jew. This was not the case with the early church. They remained very Jewish, going to the temple, worshiping in the temple, and observing the feasts. The difference, of course, was that these things had an entirely different meaning to them now. Instead of mere ritual, which was done out of tradition, they saw the rituals as pointing to Christ. They saw no need to seek a break from Judaism, except to proclaim that Jesus Christ was the fulfillment of a promise that God had made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob about the coming Messiah.

a. The evening sacrifice: We are told here in our text that Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour. The ninth hour would have been 3:00 in the afternoon. What is significant about that? It was at 2:30 in the afternoon that the evening sacrifices were offered. I point this out so that you can see that Peter and John were not going to the temple to engage in the sacrifices, because they knew sacrifices were no longer valid. They were going for the evening prayer. As the smoke of the sacrifice, which had been offered at 2:30, was still ascending to heaven, the people would gather at 3:00 to offer up prayer. Peter and John, being men of prayer, went up to the temple at the ninth hour to pray with the people.

(2) And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple;(3) Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms.

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(4) And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us.(5) And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them.

II. Look on us: It has always been interesting to me that when Peter and John encountered the lame man, who had been at the temple begging alms for many years, for some reason they fasted their eyes upon him. Keep it in mind that this wasn’t their first trip to the temple, and the lame man was well known. Why this time? Personally, I believe it’s because of the Holy Spirit. These two men are not just men anymore; they are two men who are believers in Jesus Christ, who have been empowered by the Holy Spirit. It was the Holy Spirit that brought this man to the attention of Peter and John. So, fastening their eyes upon him, the first thing out of their mouths is, “Look on us.” Why did they make that statement? This has always puzzled me. I know what it wasn’t for. It wasn’t to bring attention to themselves, and it could be as simple as they wanted this man’s undivided attention. No doubt, after having his attention, this man was expecting to receive something, although it wouldn’t be what he was seeking.

(6) Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.(7) And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.(8) And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.

III. Silver and gold have I none: I can only imagine the disappointment in this beggar’s mind when Peter says, “We’re broke.” This was how he made his living. No doubt, in his mind, Peter and John were wasting his time. Being empowered by the Holy Spirit, Peter and John understood that this man’s needs transcended his need for money.

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So often in Christendom, we have this mindset that if we just give enough money to someone in need, regardless of the problem, that money will fix the problem. It does not. This man’s poverty was through no fault of his own, nor was it through a lack of his desire to work. It was, indeed, because of his lack of ability to work due to the lameness of his feet.

There’s an old saying: “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.” I do believe that benevolence within the church is good; albeit, there are all kinds of alms beggars—people who make their living off of begging from the church. We would do well to try to get to the bottom of the reason for their poverty and give to that rather than to keep throwing money into an endless well of despair.

a. Such as I have: I’m sure that the disappointment was still lingering in the eyes of the lame man after Peter had informed him of their inability to give him any money. Even while he was in that state of disappointment, Peter, being filled with the Holy Spirit, says, “But such as I have I give unto you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.”

(7) And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.

Luke, who was a physician, uses very descriptive words in this verse to describe what happened to the lame man. They are medical terms, and they are only used in this verse. They describe a condition of this man’s ankles that were completely twisted out of joint, and the healing process indicates these bones coming back into the socket and becoming straight.

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Here’s this crippled man, unable to walk from birth; yet, Peter with that faith which the Lord had planted in his heart took hold of the man and lifted him to his feet. Immediately, the ankles came back into joint and the man began to leap and praise God. He then walked and entered with them into the temple, “walking, and leaping, and praising God.” I can only imagine the kind of excitement this miracle must have created.

(9) And all the people saw him walking and praising God:(10) And they knew that it was he which sat for alms at the Beautiful gate of the temple: and they were filled with wonder and amazement at that which had happened unto him.(11) And as the lame man which was healed held Peter and John, all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon's, greatly wondering.

IV. A notable miracle: Peter and John have just performed a notable miracle, which grabbed the attention of all the people—a miracle that could not be denied or explained. This man, no doubt, for years had been a common sight to those who went to worship. His crippled condition was evident when you looked at his feet. Now, this man is walking and leaping and praising God, and he’s hugging Peter and John. So, the people realize that Peter and John were the men responsible for whatever had happened to him. This great crowd of people of at least 5,000 men were gathered on Solomon’s porch, and they were greatly wondering what had happened.

(12) And when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people, Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness we had made this man to walk?

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V. Why marvel ye: Peter asked the men, “. . . why marvel ye at this?” It’s a question that begs to be answered. The answer, though, is quite simple. They had lost a sense of greatness of the God that they served. Think about it. These were Jews to whom Peter was addressing—people who said that they believed in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The fact is if they really believed, then God doing such a thing should not have caused them to wonder. They should have known that God is a God of miracles. The Torah is filled with examples of God showing His glory through the working of miracles. You can understand Gentiles wondering, but these are the sons of Israel. “Why should you marvel at this?”

a. The church today: Before we become too critical of these marveling Jews, I think we have to ask the New Testament church, “Why do you marvel when you see miracles?”

Mark 16:17-18(17) And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;(18) They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

Unfortunately, today, gang, the signs don’t follow the believers. The believers follow the signs, flocking to ministries that claim some special anointing or healing ministries. You can always tell them because the name of the “anointed one” will be plastered all over the logo. What did Peter say to this?

. . . why look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness we had made this man to walk?

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b. Ordinary men: People are all too ready to relate the work of God with the instrument through which God works. This, my friends, is wrong. This is why Peter says, “. . . why look you on us, as though by our own power or holiness we have done this thing?” It is unfortunate that there are many evangelists and some who have healing ministries that try to give off the feeling that it is the result of their righteousness or their own holiness that marvelous works are done. One of the most well-known that comes to mind even wears special clothing that he has custom made with a little embroidered dove on the left breast. Oh, it’s subtle, my friends, and most of them would not stand up and take the credit directly, but they want to leave you with the impression that is by their own holiness or their special relationship with God that they are able to do such things. I am so thankful that over the last 35 or so years of my ministry, I have been privileged to see the Lord do many signs and wonders, casting out devils, and healing the sick. At the church where I pastored, these things were so common place that the people did not marvel at them—they expected them—nor did they exalt the instrument that God chose to use.

Illustration: I want to drive the point home so that you can see the absurdity of exalting an instrument. I heard a great pastor one time use this illustration. He said, “To exalt a man or woman of God through whom the Lord has done a great miracle is as wrong and as absurd as a person who has been operated on and healed of a life-threatening disease to begin to praise and exalt the scalpel instead of the one who wielded it.”

(13) The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go.

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VI. Starting at their level: When Peter begins his preaching, I think it’s important to take note of the fact that he starts at a level that they understood. He starts off with, “The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers . . . .” In saying this, he had the attention of the people. They knew to whom he was referring. Many of you will remember when Paul was asked to speak on Mars’ hill there at the Areopagus. When he started his speech and was speaking to the Epicureans and philosophers, he didn’t start off with the concept of justification by faith. In fact, he started his message on the same level as the people. He said,

Acts 17:22-24(22) . . . Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious.(23) For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.(24) God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands;

Peter started where the people were, and then he brought them to God. The same can be said of Paul here in Acts 17. It is important that we do the same thing. Get a feel for where people are spiritually and then begin there and preach Christ unto them.

a. Whom you delivered up: These people were well aware of what had transpired in Jerusalem. They knew that Jesus had been crucified. Take note that Peter lays the blame squarely upon them. Pilate wanted to let Christ go, “. . . but you wanted a murderer” and insisted upon His death.

(14) But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;

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(15) And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.

VII. Back to the resurrection: Remember the first sermon that Peter preached was centered on the resurrection. Once again, as he has an opportunity to preach, his message centers on the resurrection. When Paul was preaching on Mars’ hill, in his sermon, he eventually gets to the resurrection, but alas, that’s when he loses them, and the Epicureans and philosophers rejected the idea that one could raise from the dead, even as some do now. Here in Acts 3, Peter is, once again, preaching the resurrection. This was the heart of the message of the early church that there is hope for eternal life because Jesus rose again. If Christ is not risen and we are still in our sins, we are in a hopeless condition. If Jesus is not risen, then all those who have died before us have perished, and “. . . we are all men most miserable” (I Corinthians 15:19). It is the resurrection of Jesus Christ that makes up the foundation of the Gospel in the New Testament. Our hope is premised upon the fact that Jesus rose. Peter said, “Thanks be unto God who has begotten us again to a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” It is the heart of the message of the Gospel. If you take it away, there is no Gospel. Therefore, Peter drives it home saying, “God has raised Him from the dead; whereof, we are witnesses.” So, Peter is bearing witness to the fact of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

(16) And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.

VIII. His name: There is power in the name of Jesus, my friends. In fact, we are told in the scriptures that there is no name given under heaven by which men must be saved. But Jesus also said in John

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14:14, “If you shall ask anything in my name, I shall do it.”

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Henceforth, he said, “You’ve asked nothing in my name: ask, and you shall receive, that your joy may be full” (John 16:24). There is enormous power in the name of Jesus Christ. Even the weakest saint is like David when he calls out the name of Jesus Christ. Make no mistake, it’s not how righteous you are or how holy you are that gives you the authority to call upon His name. I don’t care how weak you are. The power isn’t in you; it’s in the name of Jesus. It wasn’t in Peter or John.

a. Not my faith: One of the things for which I’m also thankful is that the power in the name of Jesus Christ is not predicated upon my ability to muster up enough faith to invoke it. Oh no, my friends, it is the faith that is by Him that had given this man “. . . perfect soundness in the presence of them all.”

1 Corinthians 12:7-11(7) But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.(8) For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;(9) To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;(10) To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues:(11) But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.

“. . . Yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.” That’s a powerful verse, my friends, and I want you to notice something here. When Peter says, “the faith which is by him . . . ,” he’s using a preposition, which is the word by. Peter is not saying that it was his great faith; he’s saying that it is the faith that is by Jesus Christ. He is saying

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that Christ is the One who gave him the faith. To this simple preposition, the rest of scripture gives agreement.

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For we are also told that Christ is the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). It is easy to fall into the mindset of thinking that faith is something that we can develop, kind of like working a muscle out in the gym. It’s easy to fall into the false belief that if we just meditate enough, we can expand our faith. This concept is wrong. Faith is a gift.

Ephesians 2:8-9(8) For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:(9) Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Even the faith that we must have for salvation is a gift. There are those times, such as the one we are reading now, when the Lord will impart a gift of faith that brings about great miracles. It is the Holy Spirit who deals to every man severally as He will. This is what Peter and John were experiencing at this moment. Being baptized in the Holy Spirit, it was the Holy Spirit who had compassion upon this man and gave Peter and John the gift of faith at that moment that they might be able to speak words of healing that were not just encouraging, but miraculous in their effect.

(17) And now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers.

IX. Peter makes it more personal: Peter now begins to talk about the crucifixion of Jesus, and he tells the people that “I know through ignorance you did it . . . .” How did he know that? He knew it because of what Jesus said on the cross when He said, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). So, Peter points out that the people were ignorant in demanding the crucifixion of Jesus; they had no idea what they were asking.

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a. Nothing’s changed: I think the same can be said of this generation. So often, we think we have sin by the tail, that we know exactly what we are doing, and that somehow we are going to escape the judgment of it, or the law of reciprocity. Sin is a thief and a liar. You might think you know what the consequences will be, but you have no idea. We are all so ignorant of the things of the flesh, which is why it is much better to walk in the Spirit.

(18) But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled.

X. No accident: All that transpired in the crucifixion of Jesus was something that God had planned way ahead of time. In fact, it was prophesied in the scriptures the suffering of the Messiah spoken by the prophets. So then, Peter gets to the application.

(19) Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;

XI. Change your mind: Peter tells these people to “repent;” that is, change your mind about Jesus Christ and what you think about Him and how that applies to you so that you might be converted and your sins will be blotted out.

(20) And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:

XII. Jesus is coming again: Jesus said, “If I go away, I will come again.” Back in Chapter 1, as Jesus ascended into heaven, the disciples were standing there looking up into heaven as He was ascending and a cloud received Him out of their sight. Two angels were standing there and said, “Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye here gazing into heaven; for this same Jesus shall come again in like manner as you have seen Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11). He’s coming again, my friends.

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(21) Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.

XIII. Universal heresy: There is a heresy within the body of Christ that’s been around for a long time but has made a resurgence in these last days, and that is the heresy of universalism. Those who hold such views have as their main scriptural basis this particular verse, which is Acts 3:21, when Peter says “. . . until the times of restitution of all things . . . .” They firmly believe that there is going to come a time when Satan will eventually bow down and confess his guilt before God and, at that time, Satan, everybody, and everything will be saved in the final restitution of all things. As I said earlier, this particular heresy is based mainly upon this one sole scripture. We know that this verse is not talking about this; that is, the restitution of the wicked at some future point, because Peter says it’s something that all the prophets have spoken.

When we go back to the Old Testament and we begin researching the prophets speaking of the restitution of all things, what we see their referring to is the restoration of the nation of Israel back into Divine favor. The prophets had foretold that Israel, because of her rejection of God, would be cut off. Not only would she be cut off, but her people would be dispersed throughout the entire world. They would become burdensome and a curse wherever they would go. The prophets said that they would be hated of all nations. Each of the prophets that foretold of this tragic misery that the Jews would endure during the Great Dispersion also saw through all the darkness to the light that would be at the end of the tunnel for the nation of Israel when God would, once again, restore His unfaithful bride and receive her again as His wife

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and restore her to her previous position of favor. In fact, the prophet Hosea and all the prophets speak of this restoration of God for the nation of Israel and the grace that God would bestow upon her in restoring her again to Himself. This is what all the prophets meant when they spoke of the restitution of all things—not that all things, being Satan, unbelievers, and ultimately, the whole world, would be saved.

The Apostle Paul said this in Romans 11:25-26:

Romans 11:25-26(25) For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.(26) And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:

Once again, the Apostle Paul makes mention of the restoring work of God among the Jewish people that shall take place during the End Times. Even Jesus said, “. . . Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord” (Matthew 23:39).

a. The seventieth week of Daniel: The earth has one more seven-year period to go through. In Chapter 9 of Daniel, we are told that there were 70 weeks determined upon the nation of Israel to finish the transgressions and to make an end of sin, to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to finish up the prophesies for the Messiah to come and to anoint the Most Holy Place. Also, in Daniel Chapter 9, we are told that there would be 69 weeks; that is, 69, seven-year periods from the time of the prophesy that would go forth to restore and rebuild Jerusalem to the coming of the Messiah, the Prince. That leaves one more seven-year period unfulfilled, which is yet—future.

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It is during this last seven-year period that God is going to deal with the nation of Israel and the blindness that has been over their eyes for almost 2,000 years. During that time, God is going to remove this blindness. It is important to note that he says that blindness in part has happened to Israel. Thus, we know that there are Messianic Jews, even to this day, whom God has opened their eyes to the truth of Jesus Christ. I’ve heard it said that when God opens the eyes of a Jew to the truth of Christ, God has created one more powerful evangelist. Once Jews come to know Christ, they are able to weave a path through the Law and the traditions and bring understanding about how all these things point to Jesus Christ. Make no mistake about it, my friends, God is going to restore Israel. He’s going to put His Spirit upon Israel, and it will be a glorious thing when He does. We have already seen the fulfillment of the prophecy spoken by Ezekiel with the restoration of the children of Israel to the land of Israel. We are told in Ezekiel that it will be during this last seven-year period that Russia will move against the nation of Israel in order to take over the Middle East. We are also told that during that time, God is going to destroy the Russian army. When He does, He will put His Spirit on the nation of Israel. This will be the beginning of the end. In this last seven-year period, God will be working and dealing with the nation of Israel. Also, during this particular period of time, the whole world around the nation of Israel will be going through a tribulation period like they have never seen. This will be the last three-and-a-half-year period of the seven-year week. We call it “The Great Tribulation.” For the Jews in the Old Testament, it’s called “The Time of Jacob’s Trouble.”

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During this time, as God is dealing with the nation of Israel, they will begin to weep over their blindness, as a woman who weeps over the loss of her only son. They will weep that they were so blind to the grace and goodness of God and because they rejected the Messiah that God had provided. We are told that they will recognize Jesus when He returns and as they see scripture coming to pass as it was prophesied. It will be at that time that they will realize that they made a mistake in rejecting Jesus Christ as the nation’s Messiah. They will, at that time, accept Him. It will be at that time that they will begin to say, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.” It will be at that point that Jesus will return with 10,000 of His saints to establish His kingdom upon the earth.

Colossians 3:4(4) When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.

So, the heavens must keep Him until the time of restitution of all things, which God has prophesized from the beginning of the world.

(22) For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you.(23) And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.(24) Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days.(25) Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.(26) Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities.

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In closing:

God has kept all of His promises that He made through the Old Testament prophets. They foretold of the Messiah coming the first time, and He did. They also foretold of the Messiah coming the second time, and He will. In Matthew 24, we read this:

Matthew 24:3-8(3) And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?(4) And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.(5) For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.(6) And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.(7) For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.(8) All these are the beginning of sorrows.

Luke 21:25-33(25) And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;(26) Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(27) And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.(28) And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.(29) And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree, and all the trees;(30) When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand.(31) So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand.(32) Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled.(33) Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.