Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. And a man lame from birth was being carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple that is called the Beautiful Gate to ask alms of those entering the temple. Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive alms. And Peter directed his gaze at him, as did John, and said, "Look at us." And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. But Peter said, "I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!" And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. (Acts 3:1-7)
Lord Jesus:
We know you entered Jerusalem many times
by way of the Beautiful Gate,
the eastern gate facing the Mount of Olives.
You must have passed by this beggar each time
he reached up a rag-draped hand
to beg a coin from you.
I'm sure you looked at him and noticed his infirmity,
but you were not unmoved.
You did not ignore his plight
but postponed his healing to the kairos moment,
just the right time in the unfolding of your Kingdom come.
You left it to Peter and John
to reach yout your healing
in shared ministry.
"Greater things than I do you will do," you told your apostles.
Greater not in quality, but greater in scope,
beginning in Jerusalem,
spreading through Judea,
and reaching the ends of the earth.
Help us, Lord, when it seems our prayers go unanswered,
that your passing by is not rejection,
but waiting for the kairos moment,
just the right time in the unfolding of your Kingdom come.
And this -- may we receive from each other the ability to heal and to bless
with your own presence and power.
This is how we truly discern your body in Communion,
to know your incarnational presence
manifest in the common clay of our humanity.
And when we are that believer who sees another's need
and for whom we may be the touch of heaven,
may we not fail the hurting or You.
Let this be our purpose: not the accumulation of gold and silver,
but the distribution of such grace as each of us
has received.
In Jesus' name, let us rise up, walk and be strengthened.
Amen.
But Peter said, "I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!" And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. And leaping up he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God, and recognized him as the one who sat at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, asking for alms. And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. While he clung to Peter and John, all the people, utterly astounded, ran together to them in the portico called Solomon’s.
(Acts 3:6-11)
Heavenly Father:
You recall to my memory today
the man with a clubfoot I saw begging
outside the so-called house of Mary in Ephesus;
sitting legs all akimbo on a plaited mat,
one hand raised in pitiful supplication
while another gaurded a plastic cup
containing a coin or two.
He occupied a strategic spot, like a rock in a stream,
as crowds parted around him, flowing from tour busses
to yet another shrine.
How like the scene Peter and John beheld
that afternoon going with pilgrims to the hour of prayer.
But unlike us, the apostles stopped -- just stopped,
and stooped and gazed
at the deformed beggar.
What drew them up halt?
Did You speak to them in the still small voice?
Did the beggar recognize that they had been with Jesus?
Something happened that the apostles saw faith.
Peter and John stop and look and listen,
jamming the line of the pious not wanting to be late for prayer.
And then as fast as you can say, "In the name of Jesus Messiah of Nazareth,
get up an walk,"
they grasp that beggar by the arm and
yank him,
jolt him to his feet!
No questions -- no qualifications -- no miracle hankies or holy oil.
Just a hard tug on faith that no bootstrap can match.
O God, save us from the cult of virgins and the man-made pieties
of the vainly superstitous.
May we claim only the name of Jesus, his resurrected power
and his glorious presence that abides not in shrines
or rituals, but in hearts touched by grace,
as that ancient beggar surely was.
We do not know how Peter and John reckoned that
the man's kairos moment had arrived,
but You made it clear in that moment they stopped,
and stooped, and gazed.
So, help us to know the times and places when You would have us
pause, pray, and support the weary and forgotten.
We pray for the March of Dimes and its effort to continue
your healing ministry to children born with clubfeet.
And this -- help us not to hesitate when a brother or sister
reaches out to yank us to our feet
when we have settled in for a nice day of begging and self-pity.
Help us know your will is for the healing of body, mind, and spirit
and, like the man who,
in spite of healing still needed to cling to Peter and John,
may we cling to You and to those You give us
to be Your Body, to be Your vessels of grace,
in a world content with silver and gold
when there's new life and love to be shared.
Amen.
And when Peter saw the (crowd gathering around the healed beggar) he addressed the people: "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? The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his servant Jesus, whom you delivered over and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release him. But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses. And by faith in his name this man whom you see and know has been made strong. The faith that is through Jesus has given the man this perfect health in the presence of you all. (Acts 3:12-16)
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ:
We praise and bless you for the Name
that is above every name,
that name before which every knee will one day bow,
the precious name of Jesus - Yeshua - The Lord Saves!
To us names are little more than labels
that convey a conjuction of syllables
pleasant to the ear.
Some names are memorials to relatives;
our appelation serving as a challenge to both memory and good behavior.
But among the patriarchs, prophets, and apostles
the name embodied the character, soul,
destiny and essence of one's identity.
So as evidence of their conversion of character
at baptism disciples received their Christian names.
The covenant name of God -- YHWH --
was considered so holy as to be unspoken among ancient Jews
for fear that mispronouncing might offend and disqualify.
So in Temple and synagogue
people praised the power and awesomeness of your Name
without actually naming You.
Now Christ has opened for us the way of access by His grace.
We may come to You with boldness,
naming Jesus unafraid that we will ever offend
the Author of Life.
The leaping cripple was healed,
not by magic shibboleth,
but by faith through Jesus;
in Christ's character of faithfulness,
in Messiah's identity as Glorified Servant,
by the gift of faith that comes only through Jesus.
Is not all healing by faith?
Doctors trust their learning and skill.
Patients trust their physicians.
Who can be healed against their will?
Do health and cynicism really coexist?
Forgive us, Lord, for we are so prone to take credit for our achievements
rather than to bless You for Your providence and provision
that makes possible every moment of our being.
We confess that we are apt to claim the power of our own names,
our reputations,
our cleverness and self-reliance,
more than to credit your continuing watchcare of us.
Inspire us to forsake any name that we place
higher than His.
Let us know the name by which we have been inscribed
in the Lamb's Book of Life
for You named us when you claimed us.
Let those lesser names by which we know ourselves --
Angry, Impulsive, Sorrowful, People-pleaser,
Failure, Nice, Naughty, Risk-taker,
Ditzy, or Delightful --
fall away in the unmasking of godly fellowship,
be forgotten in the healing power of Jesus' name.
Amen.
(Peter's sermon continues) "...And now, friends, I know you had no idea what you were doing when you killed Jesus, and neither did your leaders. But God, who through the preaching of all the prophets had said all along that his Messiah would be killed, knew exactly what you were doing and used it to fulfill his plans. Now it's time to change your ways! Turn to face God so he can wipe away your sins, pour out showers of blessing to refresh you, and send you the Messiah he prepared for you, namely, Jesus. For the time being he must remain out of sight in heaven until everything is restored to order again just the way God, through the preaching of his holy prophets of old, said it would be...." (Acts 3:17-22)
Author of Life, Universe-Holder:
Your providence and power are astounding!
Who would have thought
You would re-convene the very crowd
that shouted "Cruficy" on the black Friday,
bring them together to hear Your Gospel
proclaimed by the Christ-Denier
who knew oh so well
Your reclaiming grace.
Peter speaks to the people he remembered
from that awful Passover
who chose a murderer's release
and rejected their Messiah.
Would my sermon have been as forgiving as his?
No way -- no way!
He gives them mercy -- that they followed bad leaders in ignorance.
That in spite of their murder
God brought Jesus back alive
to give the second chance
even as the Big Fisherman had been given.
How awful the responsibility of leaders
who peddle ignorance
and ignore Your holy Word.
How much more strictly will they be judged,
James declares.
How awful when leaders stir up their flock
with trumped-up allegations
and vindictive jealousy.
How quenching of Your Holy Spirit
when myths and superstitions substitute
the clear clarion call to repent and reform.
Holy Jesus, we pray for spiritual leaders
that they not lose their way
or cause others to stumble.
How well Peter knew the claws of sinful ignorance.
How well Peter knew the power of forgiveness
and the call to feed his Master's sheep
with the precious Gospel of grace;
and to water them with Holy Spirit refreshing.
O Jesus, we need your showers of blessing.
Our land is parched and so, too, our souls.
We need the rest and restoration
only You can provide.
Even as the shores of our man-made lake
retreat to the ancient Brazos riverbed,
so may our minds and hearts return to the channels of grace
You have dug deep into the bedrock of faith
and take us into the Arms of God
now and always for your dear sake.
Amen.
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