WEBVTT 00:00:00.010 --> 00:00:02.609 Today we're going to turn in our Bibles to Acts 00:00:02.609 --> 00:00:11.910 chapter 3. The books of Genesis and Acts have 00:00:11.910 --> 00:00:16.129 at least one thing in common. They both stand 00:00:16.129 --> 00:00:20.870 at the beginning of a whole new era of time, 00:00:21.070 --> 00:00:25.050 as God has proportioned history, and therefore 00:00:25.050 --> 00:00:31.710 they both contain notable firsts. Chapters 3 00:00:31.710 --> 00:00:37.030 and 4 are actually one extended account of an 00:00:37.030 --> 00:00:39.950 incident which we will begin studying today. 00:00:40.630 --> 00:00:45.109 They record for us the first opposition to the 00:00:45.109 --> 00:00:50.429 newborn church. Our text today, verses 1 through 00:00:50.429 --> 00:00:56.570 16, contains the first recorded miracle in this 00:00:56.570 --> 00:01:01.630 new age of the church. This miracle was intended 00:01:01.630 --> 00:01:05.370 to show the power and authority in the name of 00:01:05.370 --> 00:01:09.250 Jesus Christ and the message regarding Jesus 00:01:09.250 --> 00:01:13.430 of Nazareth, that he is both Lord and Christ. 00:01:14.430 --> 00:01:18.129 Chapter 2, verse 43 kind of summarizes things 00:01:18.129 --> 00:01:22.989 immediately after Pentecost. It says, and everyone 00:01:22.989 --> 00:01:28.450 kept feeling a sense of awe. And many wonders 00:01:28.450 --> 00:01:31.670 and signs were taking place through the apostles. 00:01:32.349 --> 00:01:36.730 Our text today is an example of one of those 00:01:36.730 --> 00:01:41.950 signs which took place. On the day of Pentecost, 00:01:42.010 --> 00:01:45.109 Peter stood before the multitude and he commanded 00:01:45.109 --> 00:01:49.790 them to repent and to be baptized in the name 00:01:49.790 --> 00:01:56.099 of Jesus Christ. And now in the might... Of that 00:01:56.099 --> 00:02:00.939 name, Jesus Christ, a lame man is restored to 00:02:00.939 --> 00:02:05.560 wholeness. You say, well, what's in a name? Well, 00:02:05.579 --> 00:02:11.340 biblically speaking, the name of a person represents 00:02:11.340 --> 00:02:19.000 his character and his authority. We sing that 00:02:19.000 --> 00:02:22.259 gospel song, there's just something about that 00:02:22.259 --> 00:02:27.840 name, Jesus. Jesus, Jesus. That should be sung 00:02:27.840 --> 00:02:31.819 not merely in a sentimental way, but with a realization 00:02:31.819 --> 00:02:34.939 that the something about that name is that it 00:02:34.939 --> 00:02:39.240 is the name of the One who is Lord and Christ. 00:02:40.240 --> 00:02:44.419 This miracle is done in the name of Jesus Christ 00:02:44.419 --> 00:02:49.620 and reveals His divine nature and His supreme 00:02:49.620 --> 00:02:54.710 authority. We'll begin reading in verse 1. Now 00:02:54.710 --> 00:02:58.110 Peter and John were going up to the temple at 00:02:58.110 --> 00:03:02.250 the ninth hour, the hour of prayer. And a certain 00:03:02.250 --> 00:03:05.229 man who had been lame from his mother's womb 00:03:05.229 --> 00:03:08.770 was being carried along, whom they used to sit 00:03:08.770 --> 00:03:12.689 down every day at the gate of the temple, which 00:03:12.689 --> 00:03:16.849 is called Beautiful, in order to beg alms of 00:03:16.849 --> 00:03:21.289 those who were entering the temple. And when 00:03:21.289 --> 00:03:23.849 he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple, 00:03:24.009 --> 00:03:28.129 he began asking to receive alms. And Peter, along 00:03:28.129 --> 00:03:31.229 with John, fixed his gaze upon him and said, 00:03:31.349 --> 00:03:35.550 Look at us. And he began to give them his attention, 00:03:35.830 --> 00:03:39.949 expecting to receive something from them. But 00:03:39.949 --> 00:03:42.789 Peter said, I do not possess silver and gold, 00:03:42.990 --> 00:03:47.389 but what I do have I give to you in the name 00:03:47.389 --> 00:03:53.439 of Jesus Christ the Nazarene. And seizing him 00:03:53.439 --> 00:03:56.580 by the right hand, he raised him up, and immediately 00:03:56.580 --> 00:04:01.180 his feet and his ankles were strengthened. And 00:04:01.180 --> 00:04:04.240 with a leap he stood upright and began to walk. 00:04:04.699 --> 00:04:07.780 And he entered the temple with them, walking 00:04:07.780 --> 00:04:11.460 and leaping and praising God. And all the people 00:04:11.460 --> 00:04:13.819 saw him walking and praising God, and they were 00:04:13.819 --> 00:04:16.699 taking note of him, as being the one who used 00:04:16.699 --> 00:04:21.870 to sit at the beautiful gate of the temple, And 00:04:21.870 --> 00:04:24.949 they were filled with wonder and amazement at 00:04:24.949 --> 00:04:29.050 what had happened to him. And while he was clinging 00:04:29.050 --> 00:04:31.110 to Peter and John, all the people ran together 00:04:31.110 --> 00:04:34.089 to them at the so -called portico of Solomon, 00:04:34.290 --> 00:04:38.509 full of amazement. But when Peter saw this, he 00:04:38.509 --> 00:04:41.949 replied to the people, Men of Israel, why do 00:04:41.949 --> 00:04:44.449 you marvel at this, or why do you gaze at us, 00:04:44.569 --> 00:04:48.970 as if by our own power or piety we had made him 00:04:48.970 --> 00:04:52.939 walk? The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the 00:04:52.939 --> 00:04:56.660 God of our fathers, has glorified his servant, 00:04:56.819 --> 00:05:00.600 Jesus, the one whom you delivered up and disowned 00:05:00.600 --> 00:05:03.420 in the presence of Pilate when he had decided 00:05:03.420 --> 00:05:07.759 to release him. But you disowned the Holy and 00:05:07.759 --> 00:05:11.139 Righteous One and asked for a murderer to be 00:05:11.139 --> 00:05:14.540 granted to you, but put to death the Prince of 00:05:14.540 --> 00:05:17.379 Life, the one whom God raised from the dead. 00:05:17.870 --> 00:05:21.050 a fact to which we are witnesses. And on the 00:05:21.050 --> 00:05:24.269 basis of faith in his name, it is the name of 00:05:24.269 --> 00:05:27.069 Jesus which has strengthened this man whom you 00:05:27.069 --> 00:05:30.930 see and know. And the faith which comes through 00:05:30.930 --> 00:05:34.470 him has given him this perfect health in the 00:05:34.470 --> 00:05:40.089 presence of you all. Jesus Christ is glorified 00:05:40.089 --> 00:05:44.689 in the actions of his people. Hear Peter and 00:05:44.689 --> 00:05:49.980 John. Likewise, by the actions of our lives today, 00:05:50.259 --> 00:05:55.959 may his name be glorified in our world. This 00:05:55.959 --> 00:05:59.379 incident easily breaks into three parts. First, 00:05:59.540 --> 00:06:07.100 the situation. Secondly, the sign. And finally, 00:06:07.180 --> 00:06:09.259 the sermon. And we'll only get started in the 00:06:09.259 --> 00:06:11.519 sermon this morning, and we'll finish it next 00:06:11.519 --> 00:06:16.939 week. In this situation, the stage is set for 00:06:16.939 --> 00:06:20.740 the miracle to take place. Two of the apostles, 00:06:21.199 --> 00:06:24.759 Peter and John, are said to have been walking 00:06:24.759 --> 00:06:28.379 up the steps to the temple. Notice that in verse 00:06:28.379 --> 00:06:32.480 1, verse 3, verse 4, again in 11, chapter 4, 00:06:32.660 --> 00:06:36.240 verse 13, they are named in tandem, together, 00:06:36.399 --> 00:06:41.779 Peter and John, Peter and John. Now these two 00:06:41.779 --> 00:06:46.019 were of strikingly different personality and 00:06:46.019 --> 00:06:49.180 outlook, yet they were together on this occasion. 00:06:51.439 --> 00:06:54.040 It was Peter who did most of the talking, which 00:06:54.040 --> 00:06:57.680 may not be entirely unusual. In chapter 3, verse 00:06:57.680 --> 00:07:00.579 6, it's Peter who talked. Again in verse 12, 00:07:00.759 --> 00:07:03.560 he's the one who preached. Chapter 4, verse 8, 00:07:03.680 --> 00:07:06.199 which is a continuation of this same incident, 00:07:06.420 --> 00:07:09.399 it is Peter who spoke to the rulers and elders. 00:07:10.089 --> 00:07:12.430 The only exception is in verse 19 of chapter 00:07:12.430 --> 00:07:17.750 4 where it says that both of them answered. Now 00:07:17.750 --> 00:07:19.990 why are they both mentioned here? Why Peter and 00:07:19.990 --> 00:07:23.769 John together? I believe it was because this 00:07:23.769 --> 00:07:28.509 miracle was to be an official sign to the nation 00:07:28.509 --> 00:07:32.230 that the Jesus whom they had rejected was in 00:07:32.230 --> 00:07:37.470 fact their Christ and the Lord. Therefore there 00:07:37.470 --> 00:07:40.569 were two witnesses needed. according to Deuteronomy 00:07:40.569 --> 00:07:45.750 19, verse 15, to underscore the trustworthiness 00:07:45.750 --> 00:07:50.329 of this incident. It was three o 'clock in the 00:07:50.329 --> 00:07:53.509 afternoon, approximately, as they were heading 00:07:53.509 --> 00:07:56.550 to the temple. There were several times a day 00:07:56.550 --> 00:08:00.389 when the Jews prayed, apparently early in the 00:08:00.389 --> 00:08:04.810 morning, then again at the ninth hour, three 00:08:04.810 --> 00:08:07.329 in the afternoon, along with the evening sacrifice. 00:08:08.379 --> 00:08:11.360 And then at sunset, there are some who say they 00:08:11.360 --> 00:08:16.639 also prayed at noon. But the point is this, that 00:08:16.639 --> 00:08:21.160 these early apostles and believers in Jesus Christ 00:08:21.160 --> 00:08:26.180 continued to practice the Jewish forms of worship. 00:08:28.100 --> 00:08:32.220 They found no contradiction in doing that. And 00:08:32.220 --> 00:08:35.460 there was no opposition to it up to this point. 00:08:36.970 --> 00:08:40.870 So they continued practicing the times of prayer 00:08:40.870 --> 00:08:45.330 and so on, which the other Jews did. The focus 00:08:45.330 --> 00:08:48.049 of their worship seems to have been the temple, 00:08:48.110 --> 00:08:53.850 as was true with all Jews. We are very much in 00:08:53.850 --> 00:08:59.909 this part of Acts, still very much upon Jewish 00:08:59.909 --> 00:09:06.049 ground, a Jewish foundation. As you move through 00:09:06.049 --> 00:09:09.169 the book of Acts, you will find that more and 00:09:09.169 --> 00:09:13.029 more the Jewishness of the book drops off and 00:09:13.029 --> 00:09:16.129 Gentiles come more and more onto center stage. 00:09:17.129 --> 00:09:20.590 That is important to remember, for the book of 00:09:20.590 --> 00:09:25.570 Acts is a transitional book from Israel to the 00:09:25.570 --> 00:09:30.870 church, from the old economy to the new, from 00:09:30.870 --> 00:09:34.409 the Jewish worship to that which is distinctively 00:09:34.409 --> 00:09:41.429 Christian. The situation developed in this way. 00:09:41.490 --> 00:09:44.710 Peter and John were apparently ascending the 00:09:44.710 --> 00:09:49.269 steps to the temple itself. And just at that 00:09:49.269 --> 00:09:52.330 same time, there were some people who carried 00:09:52.330 --> 00:09:56.870 this lame man and placed him at his customary 00:09:56.870 --> 00:10:03.679 spot next to the beautiful gate. Luke, who writes 00:10:03.679 --> 00:10:07.519 these words, was a physician, of course, and 00:10:07.519 --> 00:10:10.919 he notes that the man was lame from his birth. 00:10:11.480 --> 00:10:14.039 In other words, he did not become lame because 00:10:14.039 --> 00:10:18.820 of an accident, but he was congenitally lame. 00:10:19.259 --> 00:10:25.419 It was a birth defect. He had never walked on 00:10:25.419 --> 00:10:29.799 his limbs. Therefore, they were undoubtedly atrophied. 00:10:30.379 --> 00:10:37.179 This was... A pitiful case of a man. There is 00:10:37.179 --> 00:10:41.559 no gate outside of the Bible in secular history 00:10:41.559 --> 00:10:45.460 which is called the beautiful gate to the temple. 00:10:46.700 --> 00:10:49.500 But most scholars believe that it's probably 00:10:49.500 --> 00:10:54.840 the same as the gate of Nicanor. That was the 00:10:54.840 --> 00:10:59.960 gate which faced the east side of the temple 00:10:59.960 --> 00:11:04.700 area. It was the gate from the outer court, where 00:11:04.700 --> 00:11:08.240 even Gentiles were allowed to be, into the inner 00:11:08.240 --> 00:11:14.580 court of the women. Josephus, the Jewish historian, 00:11:14.980 --> 00:11:19.960 writes that it was overlaid, this gate was overlaid, 00:11:19.960 --> 00:11:26.039 with Corinthian bronze, and on that bronze were 00:11:26.039 --> 00:11:32.110 placed carvings of gold and silver. This was 00:11:32.110 --> 00:11:34.950 no small door as we think of a door into our 00:11:34.950 --> 00:11:38.509 auditorium. This gate in the temple area was 00:11:38.509 --> 00:11:46.669 75 feet high and 60 feet wide. So you can imagine 00:11:46.669 --> 00:11:51.389 something that large, made of bronze and ornamented 00:11:51.389 --> 00:11:54.730 with gold and silver, how it must have looked 00:11:54.730 --> 00:11:58.090 in the early morning as the sun came up over 00:11:58.090 --> 00:12:00.230 the Mount of Olives and shone upon that temple 00:12:00.230 --> 00:12:05.769 mount. It must have been a beautiful sight, thus 00:12:05.769 --> 00:12:10.909 its name, the Beautiful Gate. It was the most 00:12:10.909 --> 00:12:14.009 popular gate, because of its beauty, into the 00:12:14.009 --> 00:12:16.889 temple area. And that's why the man went there 00:12:16.889 --> 00:12:20.330 to beg. It was purely an economic reason on his 00:12:20.330 --> 00:12:25.049 part. Almsgiving was considered meritorious to 00:12:25.049 --> 00:12:28.590 the Jews. That is, it gave them a better standing 00:12:28.590 --> 00:12:31.710 with God. in their Jewish traditions at this 00:12:31.710 --> 00:12:35.049 point. And so it seemed like the right place 00:12:35.049 --> 00:12:37.149 to be for this lame man. A lot of people going 00:12:37.149 --> 00:12:40.990 in to worship God. They would feel better if 00:12:40.990 --> 00:12:43.129 they gave him alms because they thought that 00:12:43.129 --> 00:12:45.509 that gave them more merit before God. So it seemed 00:12:45.509 --> 00:12:48.669 like the ideal place to be. And that's where 00:12:48.669 --> 00:12:51.750 he had been for most of his life, day in and 00:12:51.750 --> 00:12:55.789 day out. You think he was the only beggar there? 00:12:58.090 --> 00:13:02.169 Probably not. Indeed, Jerusalem was, and still 00:13:02.169 --> 00:13:07.529 is today, filled with beggars, people who make 00:13:07.529 --> 00:13:11.909 their living by asking for alms from others. 00:13:13.330 --> 00:13:16.870 He was not the only beggar there, but he is the 00:13:16.870 --> 00:13:20.269 only one mentioned on this occasion. This man 00:13:20.269 --> 00:13:23.690 was there for God's appointment on this afternoon. 00:13:25.899 --> 00:13:28.700 The work of God's grace is evident here, apart 00:13:28.700 --> 00:13:32.460 from any merit on this man, for he was no different 00:13:32.460 --> 00:13:34.340 than any of the other people who were undoubtedly 00:13:34.340 --> 00:13:38.039 there begging, and yet he is the only one who 00:13:38.039 --> 00:13:43.080 received the miracle. In his pitiful situation, 00:13:43.559 --> 00:13:47.960 this man illustrates the plight of every sinner. 00:13:49.120 --> 00:13:52.940 In the first place, he was afflicted from birth, 00:13:53.139 --> 00:13:57.259 and so is the sinner. For from the moment of 00:13:57.259 --> 00:14:01.919 conception, an individual has within him a nature 00:14:01.919 --> 00:14:07.100 of sin passed down from Adam, and he bears in 00:14:07.100 --> 00:14:12.179 himself the guilt of Adam's sin, afflicted from 00:14:12.179 --> 00:14:17.320 birth. Secondly, he was paralyzed and helpless 00:14:17.320 --> 00:14:22.539 because of his problem, and so is a sinner. A 00:14:22.539 --> 00:14:25.120 sinner is no more able to help himself than this 00:14:25.120 --> 00:14:29.659 lame man was able to walk. A sinner is paralyzed 00:14:29.659 --> 00:14:34.559 before a holy God, unable to do anything to better 00:14:34.559 --> 00:14:40.320 his condition. Thirdly, he was outside the temple, 00:14:40.460 --> 00:14:45.340 which was the only place he could be. He was 00:14:45.340 --> 00:14:47.720 outside the temple, which represented the presence 00:14:47.720 --> 00:14:52.549 of God. And thus it is with the sinner. For his 00:14:52.549 --> 00:14:58.029 sin bars him from the presence of God. In the 00:14:58.029 --> 00:15:01.210 sinner there is a great chasm between himself 00:15:01.210 --> 00:15:05.889 and a holy God, a chasm produced by his sin. 00:15:07.289 --> 00:15:11.350 And fourthly, he is a man who is begging, a man 00:15:11.350 --> 00:15:15.149 who is in desperate need. And so it is with the 00:15:15.149 --> 00:15:19.509 one who is a sinner, who is without Jesus Christ 00:15:19.509 --> 00:15:24.299 as Savior. He is in a desperate condition. And 00:15:24.299 --> 00:15:27.519 though he may not be willing consciously to admit 00:15:27.519 --> 00:15:31.059 that desperate condition, it is there. It is 00:15:31.059 --> 00:15:35.360 evidenced by his life, by what he does to try 00:15:35.360 --> 00:15:40.259 to fill that God -shaped vacuum within him. Sinners 00:15:40.259 --> 00:15:43.419 are desperate by their very nature, inherently 00:15:43.419 --> 00:15:49.480 in need of what only God can give them. And so 00:15:49.480 --> 00:15:51.960 this man illustrates the plight of every sinner. 00:15:52.399 --> 00:15:55.460 He may illustrate the situation of someone who's 00:15:55.460 --> 00:15:58.179 here this morning and has not yet trusted the 00:15:58.179 --> 00:16:01.200 Savior. But I want you to know that even though 00:16:01.200 --> 00:16:04.559 you are as much in need as was this lame man, 00:16:04.740 --> 00:16:07.519 that the one who had the answer for the lame 00:16:07.519 --> 00:16:11.659 man has the answer for you today. That brings 00:16:11.659 --> 00:16:14.559 us to the second part of our text, and that's 00:16:14.559 --> 00:16:18.899 the sign, verses 3 through 10. The drama now 00:16:18.899 --> 00:16:23.519 begins to unfold. The first contact between the 00:16:23.519 --> 00:16:26.799 apostles and this lame man was a visual one. 00:16:29.820 --> 00:16:36.139 This man saw them coming, and therefore he began 00:16:36.139 --> 00:16:40.720 to ask for alms. The idea does not seem to be 00:16:40.720 --> 00:16:43.720 that he particularly saw them so much as he saw 00:16:43.720 --> 00:16:48.039 a group of people. And he probably had his head 00:16:48.039 --> 00:16:50.360 down, which would have been the normal custom 00:16:50.360 --> 00:16:54.480 at that time, looking only out the top of his 00:16:54.480 --> 00:16:58.379 eyes as he held out his hand or whatever he had 00:16:58.379 --> 00:17:04.720 to beg. That is why Peter and John fixed their 00:17:04.720 --> 00:17:11.200 gaze on this man and said to him, Look at us. 00:17:13.390 --> 00:17:16.309 And so the man was drawn in his attention just 00:17:16.309 --> 00:17:23.329 to them. And then he began to give them his attention, 00:17:23.529 --> 00:17:27.609 expecting to receive something. He was not drawn 00:17:27.609 --> 00:17:30.650 to them because he expected a miracle, but because 00:17:30.650 --> 00:17:33.609 he expected some money, for that's all anyone 00:17:33.609 --> 00:17:39.509 had ever given to him. Peter responded by saying, 00:17:39.690 --> 00:17:46.529 I do not possess silver. He was not apologizing 00:17:46.529 --> 00:17:48.710 here because he did not have silver or gold. 00:17:49.230 --> 00:17:52.390 The point is that he had something better in 00:17:52.390 --> 00:17:58.089 mind for this man. He said, what I have, I give 00:17:58.089 --> 00:18:04.710 to you. And what did he have? He had the Holy 00:18:04.710 --> 00:18:09.630 Spirit indwelling him. The Holy Spirit who had 00:18:09.630 --> 00:18:15.000 brought power to Peter. and a special gift of 00:18:15.000 --> 00:18:21.240 healing. And so he said to the man, in the name 00:18:21.240 --> 00:18:26.400 of Jesus Christ, the Nazarene, that's the same 00:18:26.400 --> 00:18:28.579 one Peter had preached on the day of Pentecost, 00:18:28.799 --> 00:18:32.640 the same one who only a few weeks before this 00:18:32.640 --> 00:18:36.759 had been crucified in the city of Jerusalem, 00:18:37.039 --> 00:18:40.779 and who when he was crucified, the very veil 00:18:40.779 --> 00:18:45.609 in this temple, was rent in two in the name of 00:18:45.609 --> 00:18:54.230 jesus christ the nazarene he said walk walk what 00:18:54.230 --> 00:18:56.849 a simple word and how we take that for granted 00:18:56.849 --> 00:19:03.349 don't we yesterday my wife bent over at one of 00:19:03.349 --> 00:19:05.630 our local stores and when she did that she felt 00:19:05.630 --> 00:19:08.029 something searing through her back and could 00:19:08.029 --> 00:19:11.960 hardly get up I was almost late for church this 00:19:11.960 --> 00:19:13.779 morning because I had not only to get the kids 00:19:13.779 --> 00:19:17.059 dressed, but I had to get her dressed. She can 00:19:17.059 --> 00:19:20.900 hardly walk. Now, yesterday morning at this time, 00:19:20.920 --> 00:19:23.740 that didn't seem like such a big deal. I don't 00:19:23.740 --> 00:19:25.660 suppose any of us even thought about her walking 00:19:25.660 --> 00:19:27.539 around the house, but we thought about it this 00:19:27.539 --> 00:19:32.720 morning. We take walking for granted. We learn 00:19:32.720 --> 00:19:36.799 it young, and for the rest of our lives, unless 00:19:36.799 --> 00:19:39.619 we have... A situation like happened with my 00:19:39.619 --> 00:19:43.579 wife, we just walk around. But look at it from 00:19:43.579 --> 00:19:45.880 the perspective of this man who's there who's 00:19:45.880 --> 00:19:50.220 never walked, whose feet are curled up under 00:19:50.220 --> 00:19:55.799 him, whose legs are emaciated, whose ankle bones 00:19:55.799 --> 00:19:59.359 are twisted, and the language suggests they were 00:19:59.359 --> 00:20:04.720 out of socket. A man who had only been carried 00:20:04.720 --> 00:20:09.480 all of his life. anywhere he wanted to go, he 00:20:09.480 --> 00:20:11.920 would have to say to someone, would you please 00:20:11.920 --> 00:20:19.259 take me to... And now a man says to him, walk. 00:20:21.920 --> 00:20:26.940 How do you think he responded? I personally think 00:20:26.940 --> 00:20:32.240 he was stunned. Perhaps amazed that this person 00:20:32.240 --> 00:20:37.410 was so ignorant of his condition. I do not think 00:20:37.410 --> 00:20:39.950 that this man had faith to expect a miracle. 00:20:41.710 --> 00:20:44.430 I don't think he was singing that morning as 00:20:44.430 --> 00:20:46.670 he went on his way to the temple, something good 00:20:46.670 --> 00:20:49.589 is going to happen to me today. I don't think 00:20:49.589 --> 00:20:52.950 he was thinking that. Such a thing was foreign 00:20:52.950 --> 00:20:59.109 to him. But now Peter says, walk. And because 00:20:59.109 --> 00:21:03.609 he apparently made no response, it says that 00:21:03.609 --> 00:21:07.980 Peter seized him. with his right hand, and he 00:21:07.980 --> 00:21:12.440 raised him, at least part way. Now imagine how 00:21:12.440 --> 00:21:15.960 this man must have looked as Peter began to pull 00:21:15.960 --> 00:21:20.440 him up. And somewhere in that process, when Peter 00:21:20.440 --> 00:21:22.339 grabbed and began to pull until he stood up, 00:21:22.440 --> 00:21:27.980 it says very simply, his feet and his ankles 00:21:27.980 --> 00:21:34.059 were strengthened. Peter did what he could do. 00:21:34.920 --> 00:21:38.480 But God did what he alone could do. He wrought 00:21:38.480 --> 00:21:42.920 a healing for this man. Now Luke again is a physician. 00:21:43.519 --> 00:21:47.720 He uses a technical word for feet found only 00:21:47.720 --> 00:21:50.740 here in the whole New Testament. It literally 00:21:50.740 --> 00:21:55.980 means his heels or his soles were strengthened. 00:21:57.019 --> 00:22:00.700 And again, ankles means ankle bones, and it's 00:22:00.700 --> 00:22:04.150 found only here in the New Testament. It says 00:22:04.150 --> 00:22:06.170 that they were strengthened, and the language 00:22:06.170 --> 00:22:08.549 suggests that they were put back in the socket. 00:22:10.109 --> 00:22:15.410 So that fast, that man's legs straightened, and 00:22:15.410 --> 00:22:18.950 his feet, instead of being curled and atrophied, 00:22:19.049 --> 00:22:23.890 went straight upon the ground. And he was able 00:22:23.890 --> 00:22:28.809 to stand up and notice that it happened immediately. 00:22:30.600 --> 00:22:33.380 immediately his feet and his ankles were strengthened. 00:22:34.160 --> 00:22:37.259 Again, that is a term that is a medical term 00:22:37.259 --> 00:22:42.680 which Luke uses. It's found 19 times in the New 00:22:42.680 --> 00:22:45.500 Testament, 18 of those times it's used by Luke. 00:22:46.740 --> 00:22:50.619 It refers to the prompt effects of a remedy. 00:22:52.559 --> 00:22:55.579 When I was a child, I remember a quick remedy 00:22:55.579 --> 00:23:00.250 which the doctor gave to my mother. My mother 00:23:00.250 --> 00:23:04.230 had a severe case of pneumonia. The doctor came 00:23:04.230 --> 00:23:06.490 to our house. That was back in the old days. 00:23:07.769 --> 00:23:11.829 He came to our house and gave her a shot of penicillin. 00:23:13.170 --> 00:23:15.349 Unknown to him or to my mother or any of us, 00:23:15.369 --> 00:23:17.970 she was allergic to penicillin, or at least became 00:23:17.970 --> 00:23:21.869 allergic. He left to go back to his office, which 00:23:21.869 --> 00:23:26.250 was 15 miles away. My father had died. My uncle 00:23:26.250 --> 00:23:28.940 was there. That day with us, he had come up to 00:23:28.940 --> 00:23:32.299 help us with our farm work. And I'm glad he was. 00:23:33.559 --> 00:23:36.359 Because no sooner had the doctor pulled out than 00:23:36.359 --> 00:23:39.579 my mother began to get hives all over her body. 00:23:41.539 --> 00:23:43.700 And it was obvious that she was going into a 00:23:43.700 --> 00:23:49.339 severe reaction to the penicillin. She asked 00:23:49.339 --> 00:23:51.660 me to rub her hand. She said, the room is going 00:23:51.660 --> 00:23:54.240 dark. I'm getting cold. My mother was dying. 00:23:56.039 --> 00:23:58.420 We were finally able to get a hold of the doctor 00:23:58.420 --> 00:24:00.420 as soon as he got back to his office. He rushed 00:24:00.420 --> 00:24:03.279 back to our house and injected my mother with 00:24:03.279 --> 00:24:06.180 something. I do not know what it was. But I do 00:24:06.180 --> 00:24:09.380 know that in the next few minutes, a marvelous 00:24:09.380 --> 00:24:12.740 thing took place as she began to be restored 00:24:12.740 --> 00:24:19.680 to life. Now that was quick. But this was quicker. 00:24:21.859 --> 00:24:24.400 Because Luke says it was not a process, but... 00:24:24.759 --> 00:24:29.099 That fast. It was done. Immediately, the remedy 00:24:29.099 --> 00:24:33.819 was there. And he goes on to say, and with a 00:24:33.819 --> 00:24:37.420 leap, he stood upright and began to walk. He 00:24:37.420 --> 00:24:40.460 didn't just stand up. He jumped three feet in 00:24:40.460 --> 00:24:44.619 the air and came down on both of his feet. And 00:24:44.619 --> 00:24:48.359 then he began to walk around. And in verse 9, 00:24:48.559 --> 00:24:51.299 or verse 8, it says, and he entered the temple 00:24:51.299 --> 00:24:54.589 with them. walking and leaping and praising God. 00:24:55.809 --> 00:24:57.809 Now, there were a lot of people going into the 00:24:57.809 --> 00:24:59.930 temple at this point, but there was one guy who 00:24:59.930 --> 00:25:03.829 was like a kangaroo in the crowd, jumping up 00:25:03.829 --> 00:25:06.829 and down, up and down, praising God out loud. 00:25:07.089 --> 00:25:12.150 It was this man who was healed. He kept on doing 00:25:12.150 --> 00:25:15.730 that, and of course, created a little bit of 00:25:15.730 --> 00:25:19.509 disturbance. A crowd gathered with amazement. 00:25:19.869 --> 00:25:22.269 They could not get their minds on anything else 00:25:22.269 --> 00:25:26.529 than what had taken place. Now this was a sign. 00:25:28.849 --> 00:25:34.190 This miracle was a sign to Israel. Of what, you 00:25:34.190 --> 00:25:38.930 say? That the one that they had rejected, Jesus 00:25:38.930 --> 00:25:44.950 Christ, the Nazarene, is Lord and Christ. And 00:25:44.950 --> 00:25:48.940 that he was still working in their midst. though 00:25:48.940 --> 00:25:52.759 he was invisible. He was working through his 00:25:52.759 --> 00:25:57.819 people. Thus, Peter uses this occasion to begin 00:25:57.819 --> 00:26:01.519 preaching again. And here we have the meaning 00:26:01.519 --> 00:26:06.299 explained, all that's taken place. Verse 11 pictures 00:26:06.299 --> 00:26:11.500 this lame man clinging to Peter and John. He 00:26:11.500 --> 00:26:14.420 had his arms around them. He would not let them 00:26:14.420 --> 00:26:17.869 go. And it says, all the people came running 00:26:17.869 --> 00:26:20.990 together to what is called the Portico of Solomon. 00:26:21.130 --> 00:26:24.390 That was a porch, as it were, on the east side 00:26:24.390 --> 00:26:28.410 of the temple area. It had many columns down 00:26:28.410 --> 00:26:32.170 it. It was a large area, accommodated a large, 00:26:32.410 --> 00:26:35.230 hundreds and hundreds of people in this crowd. 00:26:36.410 --> 00:26:40.029 And they were amazed, it says. And when Peter 00:26:40.029 --> 00:26:42.190 saw this crowd being a good preacher, he could 00:26:42.190 --> 00:26:46.279 not help but let loose. And he did. Now the sermon 00:26:46.279 --> 00:26:48.240 that's recorded here is not quite as polished 00:26:48.240 --> 00:26:51.619 as Pentecost, which probably indicates that as 00:26:51.619 --> 00:26:54.819 Luke was writing that sermon, he polished it 00:26:54.819 --> 00:26:58.099 up a little bit. But here he perhaps is a little 00:26:58.099 --> 00:27:00.920 bit more recording the authentic words of Peter 00:27:00.920 --> 00:27:05.259 when he says, Men of Israel, why do you marvel 00:27:05.259 --> 00:27:10.160 at this? Why do you gaze at us? He asks a question 00:27:10.160 --> 00:27:14.140 here, which in effect... is denying the assumption 00:27:14.140 --> 00:27:16.700 of the crowd. And that was that by their power 00:27:16.700 --> 00:27:21.440 or their piety, their reverence, their godliness, 00:27:21.559 --> 00:27:27.200 they had made this man walk. He denies that by 00:27:27.200 --> 00:27:29.299 the question. Then he goes on in verse 13 to 00:27:29.299 --> 00:27:32.859 give his declaration. And essentially what Peter 00:27:32.859 --> 00:27:37.599 says is this, that God is still glorifying Jesus, 00:27:37.839 --> 00:27:40.779 his servant. If you take the whole sermon and 00:27:40.779 --> 00:27:43.559 boil it down, That's the one sentence summary. 00:27:44.119 --> 00:27:50.259 God is still glorifying his servant, Jesus. Now 00:27:50.259 --> 00:27:52.799 we might ask a question at this point. Who is 00:27:52.799 --> 00:27:57.619 this God that Peter, the apostles, and the early 00:27:57.619 --> 00:28:02.279 church was declaring? Peter makes it very clear. 00:28:02.500 --> 00:28:05.880 He is talking about the God of the patriarchs, 00:28:05.880 --> 00:28:11.279 Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The Jews had no question. 00:28:11.720 --> 00:28:14.980 as to who Peter was talking about. He says it's 00:28:14.980 --> 00:28:19.599 the God of our fathers. It was the God of themselves. 00:28:21.039 --> 00:28:24.420 So what Peter does here is to draw a line of 00:28:24.420 --> 00:28:30.460 continuity with the nation's past. He says this 00:28:30.460 --> 00:28:35.299 is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, our 00:28:35.299 --> 00:28:40.079 fathers, our fathers. You see, he's saying this 00:28:40.079 --> 00:28:44.869 is a continuous, line from Abraham to us today. 00:28:45.890 --> 00:28:52.569 And he says, he goes on to say, this God of our 00:28:52.569 --> 00:28:58.869 fathers, you have rejected. He wants them to 00:28:58.869 --> 00:29:03.309 see the terrible, heinous nature of their crime. 00:29:03.849 --> 00:29:09.500 Their crime of rebellion against God. And who 00:29:09.500 --> 00:29:12.920 is this Jesus that he speaks about? He describes 00:29:12.920 --> 00:29:17.880 him in the text here with several titles, Christological 00:29:17.880 --> 00:29:23.420 titles, important titles assigned to him. He 00:29:23.420 --> 00:29:27.599 calls him in the first place God's servant, verse 00:29:27.599 --> 00:29:31.220 13. Now that would not be a particularly significant 00:29:31.220 --> 00:29:34.779 word to you and me today, but to the Jews it 00:29:34.779 --> 00:29:38.039 was very significant. because that was one of 00:29:38.039 --> 00:29:42.019 the names given to the Messiah. It is the theme 00:29:42.019 --> 00:29:46.000 of their most popular of the prophets, Isaiah, 00:29:46.220 --> 00:29:52.500 in chapters 42 through 53 of his book. So when 00:29:52.500 --> 00:29:54.559 you talked about the servant of the Lord, there 00:29:54.559 --> 00:29:58.079 was only one that you had in mind as a Jew, and 00:29:58.079 --> 00:30:02.359 that was the Messiah. And so he says he is God's 00:30:02.359 --> 00:30:07.529 servant. Now the Lord Jesus, perfectly exemplified 00:30:07.529 --> 00:30:11.269 all that a servant should be by his obedience, 00:30:11.650 --> 00:30:18.670 his humility, his diligence and devotion. He 00:30:18.670 --> 00:30:23.910 furthermore calls him the Holy One. Verse 14. 00:30:24.589 --> 00:30:29.549 Once again, Isaiah refers to that name. Hosea, 00:30:29.549 --> 00:30:34.369 likewise. It was a common name again for Messiah. 00:30:36.359 --> 00:30:39.519 Luke uses this same term back in his gospel, 00:30:39.700 --> 00:30:43.579 chapter 4, verse 34. And a most amazing source 00:30:43.579 --> 00:30:49.519 here uses it. On this occasion, Jesus came to 00:30:49.519 --> 00:30:54.519 Capernaum and was teaching there. And again, 00:30:54.619 --> 00:30:56.779 they were amazed at his message, that it was 00:30:56.779 --> 00:31:00.460 with authority. In verse 33 of Luke 4, it says, 00:31:07.370 --> 00:31:12.410 And he cried out with a loud voice, Ha! What 00:31:12.410 --> 00:31:16.390 do we have to do with you, Jesus of Nazareth? 00:31:17.130 --> 00:31:21.849 Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, 00:31:21.990 --> 00:31:30.049 the Holy One of God. And so even the demons used 00:31:30.049 --> 00:31:34.950 this name for Jesus of Nazareth, the Holy One. 00:31:36.030 --> 00:31:39.190 An unclean, unholy demon says, you're the holy 00:31:39.190 --> 00:31:47.529 one of God. The one who's without sin. Peter 00:31:47.529 --> 00:31:50.670 uses that term as he proclaims Jesus of Nazareth 00:31:50.670 --> 00:31:54.650 to the Jews. Then would you notice again in verse 00:31:54.650 --> 00:31:59.829 14 that he calls him the righteous one. The righteous 00:31:59.829 --> 00:32:05.140 one. Once more, Isaiah. refers to Messiah in 00:32:05.140 --> 00:32:09.420 that term. Isaiah 53, 11. Zechariah 9, verse 00:32:09.420 --> 00:32:13.220 9 speaks about him in those terms. Even two of 00:32:13.220 --> 00:32:20.420 the pagans in Jesus' ministry referred to him 00:32:20.420 --> 00:32:24.559 as a righteous man. For example, the man, the 00:32:24.559 --> 00:32:27.759 soldier at the cross, said he was a righteous 00:32:27.759 --> 00:32:34.609 man. Peter says he's the righteous one. Then 00:32:34.609 --> 00:32:38.430 again in chapter 3 of Acts, he calls him the 00:32:38.430 --> 00:32:43.529 prince of life in verse 15. The prince of life. 00:32:43.910 --> 00:32:46.490 The word prince here I think could be better 00:32:46.490 --> 00:32:49.970 rendered. For actually the word means the originator. 00:32:50.910 --> 00:32:53.490 It's the same word that is translated author 00:32:53.490 --> 00:32:59.549 in Hebrews 2 .10 and 12 .2. He is the originator, 00:32:59.609 --> 00:33:04.789 the source of life. Or the word can mean the 00:33:04.789 --> 00:33:08.490 leader. It was a word that would be used for 00:33:08.490 --> 00:33:12.049 the one who led a file of people. For example, 00:33:12.049 --> 00:33:16.450 a soldier who leads his battalion, perhaps, behind 00:33:16.450 --> 00:33:19.250 him. He's the point man, out there in front. 00:33:19.470 --> 00:33:21.769 That is the word here that's used for Jesus. 00:33:22.069 --> 00:33:25.970 He is the originator of life. He is the one who 00:33:25.970 --> 00:33:28.410 is out in front of a whole line of people who 00:33:28.410 --> 00:33:31.890 follow him. And among those people were Peter 00:33:31.890 --> 00:33:37.920 and John. And you, me. He is the prince of life. 00:33:39.380 --> 00:33:42.359 And then there's one other reference that is 00:33:42.359 --> 00:33:47.460 Christological, and that is in the name. Verse 00:33:47.460 --> 00:33:52.420 16. And on the basis of faith in his name, in 00:33:52.420 --> 00:33:59.890 the name of Jesus. The name. When you would use 00:33:59.890 --> 00:34:02.630 that word to a religious Jew, he would immediately 00:34:02.630 --> 00:34:06.910 associate the name with how they referred to 00:34:06.910 --> 00:34:09.230 God. For they considered the name of God most 00:34:09.230 --> 00:34:12.809 holy. They would never pronounce it. And so they 00:34:12.809 --> 00:34:15.250 would use a surrogate. They would use another 00:34:15.250 --> 00:34:19.989 reference other than his actual name. They would 00:34:19.989 --> 00:34:23.869 never call him Yahweh or Jehovah. They would 00:34:23.869 --> 00:34:27.619 simply say the name. when they wanted to refer 00:34:27.619 --> 00:34:31.599 to God, the name. And so now Peter comes along 00:34:31.599 --> 00:34:37.880 and he says, in the name of Jesus, walk. The 00:34:37.880 --> 00:34:41.800 man walked. And so do you see how over and over 00:34:41.800 --> 00:34:46.440 again in his brief sermon, Peter refers to Jesus 00:34:46.440 --> 00:34:51.320 of Nazareth as being the one that the Jews had 00:34:51.320 --> 00:34:55.190 long anticipated, the Messiah. And yet whom they 00:34:55.190 --> 00:34:57.369 had rejected. And notice how he puts that in 00:34:57.369 --> 00:35:02.989 verse 13. He says, God has glorified his servant, 00:35:03.050 --> 00:35:07.050 the one whom you delivered up. He says, you delivered 00:35:07.050 --> 00:35:13.010 him up. And disowned him in the presence of Pilate. 00:35:13.570 --> 00:35:16.989 In fact, twice, again in verse 14, he says, you 00:35:16.989 --> 00:35:20.110 disowned him. The word means denied. And what 00:35:20.110 --> 00:35:24.769 do you think that word meant to Peter? He knew 00:35:24.769 --> 00:35:27.710 what he was talking about. He says, you've denied 00:35:27.710 --> 00:35:33.349 him. In verse 14, he says, in his place, you 00:35:33.349 --> 00:35:38.510 ask for a murderer to be granted to you. Barabbas, 00:35:38.510 --> 00:35:42.530 of course. And in verse 15, he puts the knife 00:35:42.530 --> 00:35:46.269 into the hilt when he says, and you put to death 00:35:46.269 --> 00:35:50.090 the prince of life. Notice the paradox there. 00:35:51.530 --> 00:35:55.690 The prince of life you put to death. And yet 00:35:55.690 --> 00:35:59.909 that's what they did. You put him to death. But 00:35:59.909 --> 00:36:02.030 he goes on to say that this one that you have 00:36:02.030 --> 00:36:05.070 delivered up, disowned, replaced with a murderer, 00:36:05.130 --> 00:36:08.190 the one you've put to death, God has glorified. 00:36:08.769 --> 00:36:13.730 Verse 13. And in verse 15 he says, God has raised 00:36:13.730 --> 00:36:17.710 him from the dead. A fact of which we're all 00:36:17.710 --> 00:36:23.000 witnesses. We're witnesses, he says. And now 00:36:23.000 --> 00:36:28.099 he proclaims it is Jesus Christ who has healed 00:36:28.099 --> 00:36:34.199 this man. That's the meaning of verse 16. That, 00:36:34.199 --> 00:36:36.619 in fact, a notable miracle had been done they 00:36:36.619 --> 00:36:40.920 could not deny. Look over in chapter 4, beginning 00:36:40.920 --> 00:36:44.440 in verse 13. This is a little bit later in this 00:36:44.440 --> 00:36:47.539 whole incident when the Jewish leaders had called 00:36:47.539 --> 00:36:50.159 these people in, Peter and John and the healed 00:36:50.159 --> 00:36:53.760 man. And questioned them. Now it says in verse 00:36:53.760 --> 00:36:56.460 13, As they observed the confidence of Peter 00:36:56.460 --> 00:36:59.820 and John, and understood that they were uneducated 00:36:59.820 --> 00:37:02.800 and untrained men, they were marveling, and notice, 00:37:03.019 --> 00:37:06.400 and began to recognize them as having been with 00:37:06.400 --> 00:37:12.400 Jesus. Haven't I seen? Yes. I've seen you before. 00:37:13.159 --> 00:37:17.000 You were out there by that fire the night that 00:37:17.000 --> 00:37:19.880 Jesus was tried. You were standing there in the 00:37:19.880 --> 00:37:23.519 courtyard with him, weren't you? They began to 00:37:23.519 --> 00:37:26.500 recognize that these two men, Peter and John, 00:37:26.659 --> 00:37:29.039 had both been there in the courtyard when Jesus 00:37:29.039 --> 00:37:33.179 was tried. And seeing the man who had been healed 00:37:33.179 --> 00:37:35.719 standing with them, they had nothing to say in 00:37:35.719 --> 00:37:39.199 reply. But when they had ordered them to go outside 00:37:39.199 --> 00:37:41.420 of the council, they began to confer with one 00:37:41.420 --> 00:37:44.000 another, saying, What shall we do with these 00:37:44.000 --> 00:37:47.360 men? For the fact that a noteworthy miracle has 00:37:47.360 --> 00:37:50.639 taken place through them is apparent to all who 00:37:50.639 --> 00:37:57.519 live in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. They 00:37:57.519 --> 00:38:02.000 could not deny that in the name of Jesus Christ 00:38:02.000 --> 00:38:06.300 of Nazareth, there was a man who stood before 00:38:06.300 --> 00:38:10.960 them, who had never walked, who was now jumping 00:38:10.960 --> 00:38:16.869 up and down, walking, And praising God, they 00:38:16.869 --> 00:38:21.670 could not deny it. My friend, people can deny 00:38:21.670 --> 00:38:27.329 your theology. They may be able to argue better 00:38:27.329 --> 00:38:34.269 than you can regarding spiritual facts. They 00:38:34.269 --> 00:38:39.190 may insist that the faith you hold dear is a 00:38:39.190 --> 00:38:45.969 myth. But they cannot deny the miracle. that 00:38:45.969 --> 00:38:50.510 Jesus Christ has wrought in your life. For that, 00:38:50.510 --> 00:38:56.610 there is no reply. And so it was with the healing 00:38:56.610 --> 00:39:00.309 of this man. He had been healed through faith. 00:39:02.409 --> 00:39:05.610 The faith I take it in verse 16 was not his faith, 00:39:05.789 --> 00:39:09.190 but it was rather through the faith which Peter 00:39:09.190 --> 00:39:13.389 and John exercised. Faith which came through 00:39:13.389 --> 00:39:21.250 Jesus. And gave this man perfect health. What 00:39:21.250 --> 00:39:25.230 a marvelous sign this was. And how Peter drew 00:39:25.230 --> 00:39:30.250 upon that sign to declare once again the truth 00:39:30.250 --> 00:39:37.349 of Jesus. Now we're going to stop at that point 00:39:37.349 --> 00:39:39.230 in the sermon. We'll take it up next week as 00:39:39.230 --> 00:39:42.630 he begins to apply it. But let's just draw a 00:39:42.630 --> 00:39:48.369 couple of observations. The first observation 00:39:48.369 --> 00:39:54.489 that I see is this. I see it in the way that 00:39:54.489 --> 00:39:57.309 God worked in having Peter and John come into 00:39:57.309 --> 00:39:59.289 the temple just as this other man was brought 00:39:59.289 --> 00:40:02.289 in and put into his place. It all happened at 00:40:02.289 --> 00:40:05.670 the same time. The observation is this, that 00:40:05.670 --> 00:40:09.989 God can still be trusted to work out the details 00:40:09.989 --> 00:40:14.969 and circumstances of our lives. You know, as 00:40:14.969 --> 00:40:18.769 we're walking with God, there are things that 00:40:18.769 --> 00:40:23.789 happen to us that we may wonder about. And at 00:40:23.789 --> 00:40:30.329 the time we say, why, Lord? Or we may say, isn't 00:40:30.329 --> 00:40:36.570 it a coincidence that the fact is that God can 00:40:36.570 --> 00:40:38.969 still be trusted today to be working out all 00:40:38.969 --> 00:40:42.409 the details of our lives? He makes no mistake. 00:40:44.489 --> 00:40:47.010 I've been reading the biography of R .A. Torrey, 00:40:47.110 --> 00:40:52.769 great evangelist, a man who pastored in Minneapolis 00:40:52.769 --> 00:40:57.469 100 years ago, right at this very time. He was 00:40:57.469 --> 00:41:02.409 there from 1883 until 1889 when he went to Moody 00:41:02.409 --> 00:41:06.230 Bible Institute to become president there at 00:41:06.230 --> 00:41:10.710 the request of D .L. Moody. R .A. Torrey had 00:41:10.710 --> 00:41:15.710 several children. Perhaps his favorite was Elizabeth. 00:41:18.349 --> 00:41:22.510 Elizabeth was nine years old when very, very 00:41:22.510 --> 00:41:27.389 suddenly she became ill with typhoid fever. Now, 00:41:27.409 --> 00:41:30.050 they didn't know it was typhoid fever at that 00:41:30.050 --> 00:41:32.329 moment. They just knew that she had quite a fever. 00:41:33.650 --> 00:41:36.769 And so they worked with her in their home, and 00:41:36.769 --> 00:41:40.030 the fever seemed to break, and so they did not 00:41:40.030 --> 00:41:44.139 call the doctor for any remedy. But they simply 00:41:44.139 --> 00:41:46.679 felt that whatever it was that had afflicted 00:41:46.679 --> 00:41:51.440 her had passed. And Torrey prayed for her, as 00:41:51.440 --> 00:41:53.780 was his custom, whenever any of his children 00:41:53.780 --> 00:41:56.619 were sick. And he felt that she was going to 00:41:56.619 --> 00:42:02.119 be restored, and praised God for it. But the 00:42:02.119 --> 00:42:04.719 next day, very suddenly, the fever shot up again. 00:42:05.940 --> 00:42:09.219 And before they could get a doctor there, little 00:42:09.219 --> 00:42:16.400 Elizabeth died in his arms. It broke Torrey's 00:42:16.400 --> 00:42:22.699 heart. He went out for a long walk in the cold 00:42:22.699 --> 00:42:26.900 of Minneapolis in the winter. Before he could 00:42:26.900 --> 00:42:30.159 get to the church office, he broke down weeping. 00:42:34.219 --> 00:42:38.159 And yet, the Holy Spirit, in that very moment, 00:42:38.440 --> 00:42:42.559 ministered in a way in which he said was the 00:42:42.559 --> 00:42:44.659 most powerful he had known up to that point. 00:42:47.920 --> 00:42:50.000 And it seemed as though there was a voice that 00:42:50.000 --> 00:42:54.199 he heard, it was internal of course, which said, 00:42:54.260 --> 00:42:58.980 Torrey, this is one of the all things of Romans 00:42:58.980 --> 00:43:04.019 8 .28. We know that all things work together 00:43:04.019 --> 00:43:07.480 for good to them that love God, to those who 00:43:07.480 --> 00:43:11.699 are the called according to his purpose. And 00:43:11.699 --> 00:43:14.420 though Torrey was tempted and indeed did for 00:43:14.420 --> 00:43:16.920 some time blame himself that Elizabeth died, 00:43:18.960 --> 00:43:21.420 because he had not called a doctor the very moment 00:43:21.420 --> 00:43:25.460 that she became ill. He nonetheless was finally 00:43:25.460 --> 00:43:27.940 able to rest in this fact that I'm talking about 00:43:27.940 --> 00:43:32.119 now, that we can trust God to bring together 00:43:32.119 --> 00:43:35.099 the details and the circumstances of our lives 00:43:35.099 --> 00:43:40.460 for our good and for his glory. It was that way 00:43:40.460 --> 00:43:46.659 for this man and Peter and John. Secondly, What 00:43:46.659 --> 00:43:50.960 we have, we can share with others. What we have, 00:43:51.159 --> 00:43:53.840 we can share with others. We can't share what 00:43:53.840 --> 00:43:58.619 we don't have, but what we do have, we can share. 00:44:00.260 --> 00:44:02.739 It is interesting that the early church did not 00:44:02.739 --> 00:44:05.619 embark on a campaign to care for all the poor 00:44:05.619 --> 00:44:10.639 in Jerusalem, nor to heal all the diseased and 00:44:10.639 --> 00:44:14.239 the crippled in the city. They did not do that. 00:44:17.199 --> 00:44:23.920 But what they did have, they gave. For the apostles, 00:44:24.179 --> 00:44:29.780 it included this ability to perform signs, wonders, 00:44:29.920 --> 00:44:34.539 and miracles, confirmations of the truthfulness 00:44:34.539 --> 00:44:38.559 of their message. We are not given that ability. 00:44:38.980 --> 00:44:42.079 Now, that was a part of a special assignment 00:44:42.079 --> 00:44:45.440 to the apostles and the prophets, according to 00:44:45.440 --> 00:44:46.059 the Word of God.