Acts 3

Peter and John are going to the temple to pray at prayer time. It sounds like they are becoming observant religious Jews. I wonder if they are wearing traditional religious attire much like today's observant Jews do. The beggar speaks to them. They feel compassion for the beggar who asked for money.

They are living communally with other believers by faith. So they had no spending money. All the money in the community was used to buy essentials for the group. We read earlier that the group was growing. They had no spare money. But what they did have was faith in Jesus Christ their ascended Lord. They had seen him heal lame men before. So they called on Jesus, used his name, to heal the lame man. Peter, impetuous as always, grabs the man by the arm and yanks him up. He uses a maneuver he had used many times while fishing, to pull him to his feet. I imagine a strong pull, almost rough.

But as the man is pulled up his legs are strengthened and he is able to stand and walk without help. Just minutes before he had been carried by friends or family to this place. He was not able to move without help. It is possible that the very act of pulling him up did the trick. Perhaps he had not actually tried out his legs in a long long time. Perhaps he could have stood on his own but not known it. Perhaps. However Acts 3 tells us his feet and ankles we strengthened (7) and late in Peter's sermon (16). He is not wobbling around either. When he realizes he can stand on his own he gives a big leap. He is enthusiastic, eager to be free to move on his own. He walks, jumps around, and praises God.

The former beggar now follows Peter and John through the temple. Now when Peter sees they have attracted a crowd he decides to witness. Something so wonder as God's mercy on this man should not be hidden. It is appropriate to give credit to the one who is able to heal. That is certainly not Peter. God gets the glory

Peter then takes the time to glorify Jesus Christ who is risen from the dead. He blames them for his death but then excuses them because they did not know what they were doing. He explains that they can still be his followers even now. They do not scoff. The rumors about a man being raised from the dead surely have passed around. People may wonder but there are many who claim to have seen Jesus alive. As Paul said, this did not happen in a dark corner somewhere. Just as they were offered the gift of salvation so are we, even after we have rejected Jesus, we can still repent and accept him as savior and Lord.