Acts 3:1-10, Jesus name is power to heal

Today's Scripture Summary

A man who was crippled from birth begs Peter and John at the temple gate. Peter says he has no silver, but he gives him what he has, telling him to get up and walk in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. The people are greatly astonished to see him running and walking, entering the temple and praising God.

1. The Man Who Couldn't Walk from Birth (3:1-5)

After the descent of the Holy Spirit, power begins to be manifested through the apostles. This paragraph is the first healing transfer in the book of Acts, showing that Jesus' ministry was passed on to the apostles. As Peter and John go up to the temple at the time of the first reading, or the 3:00 p.m. prayer, they encounter a man begging at the temple gate. The phrase "who was lame and could not walk" (v. 2) indicates that his condition was hopeless, beyond cure. The Hebrew for "begging" (v. 3) is in the imperfect tense, meaning that he continued to beg. Peter draws his attention by saying, "Look at us." The sick man wants temporary material things, but Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, wants to meet his holistic and permanent needs.

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What did Peter say to the begging man as he focused his attention on him? Is what I am asking for a temporary need or a permanent need?

2. Be healed in the name of Jesus Christ (3:6-10)

Peter doesn't have the "silver and gold" that the begging man wants. Peter's words, "Silver and gold I have not," contrast with the temple's beautiful gates (meaning "beautiful gates"), which were adorned with silver and gold. What Peter does have is the most precious treasure of all: Jesus Christ. Peter takes the man by the hand and lifts him up, proclaiming, "In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk" (v. 6). He proclaims with confidence in the power and authority of the name of Jesus, and the man, who had not been able to walk since birth, walks and runs. Luke, the physician, paints a dynamic picture of the healed man: the man had long been begging at the temple gates; the old temple could not heal him, but Jesus, the new temple, offered him holistic and ultimate salvation.

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What did Peter exclaim as he took the leper's hand and lifted him up? What are some things you can pray about, confidently proclaiming the power and authority of Jesus' name?

Prayer for Today

God, I believe that healing power resides in you, who values one life above all others and desires to see one soul made whole. Heal my spiritual condition, frustrated by the lack of silver and gold. Help me to build up the weak by the power of the name of Jesus, implanted in me by his cross and resurrection.