Acts 3
Peter and John Heal a Lame Man at the Temple
1 Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time for prayer, at three o’clock in the afternoon.
There was a morning sacrifice every day at 9 AM. There was an evening sacrifice every day at 3 PM. There was a weekly sacrifice every Sabbath. There was a monthly sacrifice on every new moon. There was a yearly sacrifice on the Day of Atonement. There were also sacrifices on every day of a Jewish Feast. Peter and John were attending the daily 3 PM sacrifice. They were free from the Mosaic Law, but they used their freedom to keep the parts of the Law that they desired.
2 And a man lame from birth was being carried up, who was placed at the temple gate called “the Beautiful Gate” every day so he could beg for money from those going into the temple courts.
This man was born lame and had been that way for forty years. He begged at the Beautiful Gate every day for forty years, so everyone knew him and his condition of birth. The Beautiful Gate was a busy gate between the inner and outer courts.
3 When he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple courts, he asked them for money.
Peter and John can give him a lot more than money.
4 Peter looked directly at him (as did John) and said, “Look at us!”
Peter told the man to quit begging everyone else and look at them instead.
5 So the lame man paid attention to them, expecting to receive something from them.
The lame man was expecting money.
6 But Peter said, “I have no silver or gold, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, stand up and walk!”
Peter used his apostolic authority to cause the man to walk. If charismatics had this gift today, then they should be able to empty hospitals. However, they only heal where there are collection plates.
7 Then Peter took hold of him by the right hand and raised him up, and at once the man’s feet and ankles were made strong.
The man had never walked in his life and did not know how to walk. Therefore, he just sat there. Peter took him by the right hand and raised him up.
8 He jumped up, stood and began walking around, and he entered the temple courts with them, walking and leaping and praising God.
This leaping and jumping drew a curious audience.
9 All the people saw him walking and praising God,
They had witnessed a miracle.
10 and they recognized him as the man who used to sit and ask for donations at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, and they were filled with astonishment and amazement at what had happened to him.
They had seen this lame man begging at the temple gates for forty years. Now he was jumping and leaping and walking and praising God. This made them very curious.
Peter Addresses the Crowd
11 While the man was hanging on to Peter and John, all the people, completely astounded, ran together to them in the covered walkway called Solomon’s Portico.
This gave Peter another chance to use his keys.
12 When Peter saw this, he declared to the people, “Men of Israel, why are you amazed at this? Why do you stare at us as if we had made this man walk by our own power or piety?”
Neither Peter nor John healed this lame man.
13 “ The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our forefathers, has glorified his servant Jesus, whom you handed over and rejected in the presence of Pilate after he had decided to release him.”
The covenant-keeping-promise-keeping God healed the lame man. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob was the one who promised the Abrahamic Covenant. He was now keeping that promise.
Jesus was the fulfillment of the Abrahamic Covenant. Now, he was serving those listening to the message of Peter.
Those listening had rejected the Servant of Jehovah. They called him demon-possessed, turned him over to Pilate, and cried out "let his blood be on us and our children."
14 “But you rejected the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a man who was a murderer be released to you.”
These listeners rejected the One who was holy and righteous and had him killed, while a murderer was released in his place. They chose an evil murderer over the Messiah, even though the Messiah came to serve them. The holiness was attributed to the deity of Christ, while the righteousness referred to the perfect sinless humanity of Christ.
15 “You killed the Originator of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this fact we are witnesses!”
The Messiah was the Creator of all life, and the listeners killed the One who breathes life into everything. The listeners witnessed all of these things and they are now accountable.
16 “And on the basis of faith in Jesus’ name, his very name has made this man, whom you see and know is strong. The faith that is through Jesus has given him this complete health in the presence of you all.”
The lame man had heard Jesus teach many times. He believed in Jesus. The lame man was healed so that these listeners would know the identity of whom they killed.
17 “And now, brothers, I know you acted in ignorance, as your rulers did too.”
Judas, Caiaphas, and Annas were not innocent, but many of their followers were innocent. Their ignorance did not absolve their guilt.
18 “But the things God foretold long ago through all the prophets, that his Christ would suffer, he has fulfilled in this way.”
The Christ was the Messiah predicted in the Old Testament. Isaiah 53 and many other verses predicted Jesus as the Suffering Servant.
19 “Therefore repent and turn back so that your sins may be wiped out,”
Repent means to change one's thinking. These listeners had to change their mind about Jesus being demon-possessed to the truth that Jesus was Lord and Messiah. When a person believes, his sins are wiped out forever.
20 “so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and so that he may send the Messiah appointed for you, that is, Jesus.
The time of refreshing is the national salvation of Israel. Jesus was appointed to be the Messianic King of the Millennial Kingdom. When the nation repents nationally, then Jesus will return and set up this kingdom.
21 “This one heaven must receive until the time all things are restored, which God declared from times long ago through his holy prophets.”
Jesus will remain in heaven until the Jews cry out, "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord." The prophets declared that the Messiah would return after their national salvation.
22 Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers. You must obey him in everything he tells you.’
Peter quoted Deuteronomy 18:15. Moses led the rebellious Jews into the Promised Land, but the Jews sinned so grievously, that God had to vomit them out of the land. Jesus will lead the Jews into the Promised Land during the Millennial Kingdom. The Jews who enter the Millennial Kingdom will have a new nature and a new law. This new nature will give the Jews the ability to keep the new Millennial Law.
23 ‘Every person who does not obey that prophet will be destroyed and thus removed from the people.’
Peter now quoted Deuteronomy 18:19. Moses predicted that those who disobey the prophecies of Jesus will be destroyed and removed from the Jewish people forever. In other words, they will burn in the Lake of Fire forever.
24 “And all the prophets, from Samuel and those who followed him, have spoken about and announced these days.’
All of the prophets warned about rejecting the coming Messiah.
25 “You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your ancestors, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed.’”
The Jews were heirs of the prophet's teachings. They were sons of the Abrahamic Covenant, which Peter quoted here from Genesis 12:3.
26 “God raised up his servant and sent him first to you, to bless you by turning each one of you from your iniquities.”
Jesus was the Servant of God. He was sent to the Jews first. He was sent to bring the blessings of the Abrahamic Covenant to them. He came to turn them from their evil lifestyle, which was destructive to them.
