The healing of a beggar in Acts 3 serves as a reminder that true blessing comes from recognizing our spiritual poverty and dependence on God’s grace.
These are only preliminary, unedited outlines and may differ from Andy’s final message.
I. We Are All Beggars
A. Martin Luther’s Final Words
One month before he died, Martin Luther was feeling acutely the agonies of old age. He was 62 years old, much older than the average man was at death during his era. Luther wrote a friend,
“I, old, weary, lazy, worn-out, cold, chilly, and, over and above, one-eyed man. Half-dead as I am, I might be left in peace.”
But unfortunately he would not be left in peace. The town of his birth, Eisleben, was facing a crisis that needed his intervention. Despite his weakened condition and the terrible winter weather, he travelled to his hometown to try to help. Sadly, on the way he caught an illness. He preached one last sermon in the church in Eisleben. But he soon succumbed to his age and infirmities. As he lay on his deathbed on February 18, 1546, had written on a piece of paper they later found in his pocket:
“We are all beggars. This is true.”
One of the greatest leaders in church history died with these words in his mind. He would stand before God on Judgment Day with his shameful nakedness covered in Christ’s robe of righteousness, a robe given him freely because he asked for it by faith.
B. One of the Most Important Verses of My Life
Matthew 5:3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
The opening words to the greatest sermon ever preached… the Sermon on the Mount… spoken by our Lord Jesus Christ, the King of the Kingdom of Heaven.
The word “poor” there is ptochos… meaning beggar, one totally destitute… who survives only by the alms put in the cup.
So I understand the verse as saying, “Blessed are the spiritual beggars, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
Jesus is saying, “I will give the kingdom of heaven to those who ask for it like a beggar.”
Recognizing you have nothing that God sees as valuable… no good works to your name, no possessions of you own, nothing to commend your case. You are stripped of possessions and power and standing spiritually.
So, you are like the tax collector in Jesus’ parable:
Luke 18:13-14 But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ 14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.
C. God Invites Beggars to His Banquet
1. Christ also told a parable of a king who was preparing a lavish banquet… and he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited to come, for everything was now ready. But they all alike began to make excuses: I bought a field, I bought some oxen, I just got married.
Luke 14:21-23 Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ 22 “‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’ 23 “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come in, so that my house will be full.
2. No one who thinks they deserve to be at God’s banquet will be there. Only the beggars who know they don’t deserve it.
Dear friends, we are ALL beggars!
D. Today’s Passage: A Well-Known Beggar Healed
II. The Miracle’s Purpose
A. The Lord empowered his apostles to do miracles in his name
B. Why? Primarily to establish the truth of the message they would preach… to validate THEM and more importantly, the GOSPEL
C. Jesus’ miracles established his identity and confirmed the truthfulness of his message
John 14:11 …believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves.
D. the apostles’ miracles did the same
Acts 14:3 So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there [Iconium], speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to do miraculous signs and wonders.
E. Apostolic miracles were essential to the salvation of the early converts
Romans 15:18-19 I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obey God by what I have said and done– 19 by the power of signs and miracles, through the power of the Spirit. So from Jerusalem all the way around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ.
F. Also the miracles drew a crowd to hear the message
Acts 3:11 While the beggar held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon’s Colonnade.
Acts 8:6 When the crowds heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he did, they all paid close attention to what he said.
The healing of this well-known beggar was a strategic move by the Holy Spirit… there were certainly hundreds, perhaps thousands of beggars in that region. But only one sat in the main gate that so many Jews walked through every single day.
God chose that man for healing because he was so familiar… so his healing would make an amazing impact.
Keep in mind… there is nothing visually spectacular about a healing. Health is normal… disease is not. So when a disabled person suddenly becomes healed, he just looks normal. It is because it was a famous beggar walking and leaping and praising God that it meant so much.
III. The Miracle Accomplished
Let’s walk through the narrative
A. The Time of Prayer
Acts 3:1 One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer– at three in the afternoon.
This shows the regular pattern of the church… they continued to meet daily in the temple area for doctrine and prayer
Acts 2:42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
Acts 2:46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts.
Why? First of all, it was Jesus’ regular habit in the final days of his ministry. And it was the Jews’ regular habit, for God commanded them to make morning and evening sacrifices daily.
B. The Beggar Positioned for God’s Purposes
God had been grooming this man for just this exact moment. Remember the question about the man born blind:
John 9:2-3 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus, “but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.
This beggar’s disability was ordained by God for his own glory and the glory of his Son, Jesus Christ:
Acts 3:2 Now a man crippled from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts.
The cost to him was high… he was “crippled FROM BIRTH”… literally, “from his mother’s womb”… so, the cost to his parents had been high. The cost of this plan of God was high to everyone who cared about him or had ever helped him in any way.
But it was all for God’s glory:
Romans 8:18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.
Note that he had to be carried by some caring people to his usual position, at the temple gate called “Beautiful”; this was the gate that faced east, toward the sunrise, and it separated the Court of the Gentiles from the Court of Women. It was large and ornate; according to Josephus, it was made of Corinthian brass and it took twenty men to close it.
This was the strategic location he chose every day. The Jewish worshipers who went by him would have been motivated to prove their piety to God by helping beggars.
C. The Beggar Petitioned Peter and John
Acts 3:3-5 When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. 4 Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!” 5 So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.
This is a moment hanging in time… he wanted money, which would have been spent and gone that same day. Instead, he got something infinitely better:
Acts 3:6-8 Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” 7 Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong. 8 He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God.
I love the way Peter begins… “Silver or gold I do not have.” The church was poor in material resources, but rich in power.
There is a famous story from the Medieval Church in which Thomas Acquinas, the great theologian, went to meet with the Pope… the Bishop of Rome. By this point the pope was one of the most powerful and wealthy men in the world. As Thomas entered the room, the Pope was counting coins that had flowed in by the Catholic church’s various revenue streams. The coins were stacked high. When he saw the theologian, he said, “You can see, Thomas… the church no longer can say ‘Silver or gold have I none.’ Thomas answered, “Yes, that is true. But neither can we say to a beggar, ‘Rise and walk.’”
In God’s eyes, silver and gold are vastly inferior commodities to faith, humility, and love.
Peter and John were poor in money but rich in faith and in the power of the Holy Spirit.
As with all the miracles done by Jesus and the apostles, it was instantaneous, effortless, and completely effective. And it was clearly done in the name of Jesus Christ… Peter adds “of Nazareth”… lest there be any mistaking who is getting the credit for the miracle. The name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth… that name is POWER. By his name God moves.
And the power of God through Christ was incredible… here was a man who had never walked a single step in his entire life. His “feet and ankles became strong.” Also skilled, trained, experienced. God gave him instant coordination and balance, enabling him to leap around.
D. Praising God
1. The immediate effect of this miracle on the man’s heart was WORSHIP to Almighty God!
2. He gave God the glory for his healing… beginning (as it seems) a life of worship that has continued on into eternity
IV. The Miracle Explained
A. A Crowd Transfixed… and Assembled
1. He went into the temple courts to do his leaping and praising God
2. There was already a huge crowd there… many of them had walked by this man for years, including that very day
3. They couldn’t believe their eyes!
Acts 3:9-11 When all the people saw him walking and praising God, 10 they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. 11While the beggar held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon’s Colonnade.
4. Wonder and amazement! Huge crowd rushing to see what had happened!
5. Solomon’s Colonnade
a. Solomon built the original temple, which was destroyed in 586 BC by the Babylonians… Ezra and Haggai helped rebuild the temple, much smaller than Solomon’s
b. King Herod refurbished the temple before Jesus was born
c. They named a portion of Herod’s temple after Solomon… right near the Beautiful Gate
B. Peter’s Humility: He Deflects All Glory
Acts 3:12 When Peter saw this, he said to them: “Men of Israel, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?
1. First… [He says] “This should not surprise you at all!” [More on that statement in a moment!]
2. Secondly… don’t stare at US… we are nothing; God is everything!
a. Our power did not make this man walk
b. Certainly not our godliness… our piety… our righteousness
c. Here we see Peter’s deep humility; it was not long before this that he denied even knowing Jesus at all
d. Peter knew that God was using him in spite of his sinfulness not because of his godliness
God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.
C. Peter Ascribes All Glory to God and to Christ
In so doing, he transitions to preaching the gospel:
V. The Message Proclaimed
A. Proclaiming the Identity and Glory of Christ
Acts 3:13 The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus.
1. This is a message given to Jews in the geographical heart of Judaism, the holy city of Jerusalem
2. So, he cloaks it with terms that would have resonated clearly in the hearts of all Jewish people… the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob… the God of our fathers
3. This is not some new religion or some false god… this is the continuation and the perfection of the covenant God made centuries ago with Abraham
4. God has glorified Jesus by doing this miracle in his name!
5. “His servant, Jesus”
a. What an incredible title to give Jesus
b. Jesus is God as much as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is God… but he was God’s servant to do his will, especially by dying on the cross
Next Peter mingles the conviction of the Jewish nation’s sin with the glory of Jesus Christ… they are woven together:
B. Convicting the Jews of Sin
1. Peter now bears down on unbelieving Israel
Acts 3:13-15 You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go. 14 You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. 15 You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this.
2. The nation’s leaders represented the nation in rejecting Jesus
3. Peter understands the eternal significance of that rejection
4. This was the culmination of the same pattern Israel has always followed, rejecting the ones God sends; even his only begotten son
[Jesus said] Matthew 23:37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing.
[Stephen said] Acts 7:51-52 You stiff-necked people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are just like your fathers: You always resist the Holy Spirit! 52 Was there ever a prophet your fathers did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him
5. Peter bears down on them
a. You handed Jesus over to be killed
b. You disowned him before Pilate… “not this man, but Barabbas”
c. You disowned the HOLY and RIGHTEOUS ONE… the only perfectly holy man that has ever lived
d. You asked that a murderer be released to you and killed the author of life
e. But God raised him from the dead; you are directly against God
6. Look at the exalted person of Christ
a. The servant of God
b. The Holy and Righteous One (absolutely sinless)
c. Author of life! Jesus is the Creator of all living beings
John 1:3-4 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of men.
C. Declaring the Resurrection of Christ
Acts 3:15 You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this.
1. The apostles consistently proclaim the resurrection of Christ
2. They cannot stop mentioning this, because death is the final enemy, the tyrant who stands over everything we do in life and declares that it is all meaningless
Ecclesiastes 9:10 in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom.
Christ’s resurrection is the most important moment in human history!
Jesus promises us all this same gift:
John 14:19 Because I live, you also will live.
3. So Peter openly proclaims in Jesus the resurrection from the dead
D. Giving Honor to Jesus for the Miracle
Acts 3:16 By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see.
E. God’s Amazing Grace Through His Messenger
1. Having turned up the heat, Peter now backs off and gives a reprieve
Acts 3:17 Now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders.
2. This statement may seem perplexing, as though he’s letting them off the hook
3. But what he’s saying is that they did not really know who Jesus is
4. That was their ignorance
1 Corinthians 2:8 None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
F. Christ the Fulfillment of Judaism
1. Peter now closes the presentation by showing Jesus as the fulfillment of all the promises made in the Old Covenant… Jesus is the perfection and fulfillment of Judaism
Acts 3:18 But this is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Christ would suffer.
2. God intends to restore everything to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and indeed to David and all the godly Jews… the promises made to the forefathers all rest completely on Jesus
3. But in order for that to happen, the Jews must repent of their sins toward Jesus and toward God
Acts 3:19-21 Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, 20 and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you– even Jesus. 21 He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.
4. By repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, all your sins will be “wiped out”… covered, atoned for, thrown into the depths of the sea, removed from you as far as the east is from the west
5. The “times of refreshing” are often pictured in the Old Testament as a renewal of the Promised Land
Isaiah 41:18-20 I will make rivers flow on barren heights, and springs within the valleys. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the parched ground into springs. 19 I will put in the desert the cedar and the acacia, the myrtle and the olive. I will set pines in the wasteland, the fir and the cypress together, 20 so that people may see and know, may consider and understand, that the hand of the LORD has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it.
6. Peter preaches clearly the Second Coming of Christ; BUT Jesus will remain in heaven until the work of the gospel is done among both Jews and Gentiles alike
Acts 3:20-21 and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you– even Jesus. 21 He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.
7. Moses’ warning about the Prophet to come… and all the prophets to come
Acts 3:22-25 For Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you. 23 Anyone who does not listen to him will be completely cut off from among his people.’ 24 “Indeed, all the prophets from Samuel on, as many as have spoken, have foretold these days. 25 And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers.
a. That was the opening of the prophetic office in the days of Moses
b. Moses was the first prophet for the nation… when the people were afraid of the voice of God, and asked Moses to go listen to God and tell them what he said
Deuteronomy 18:18-19 I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers; I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him. 19 If anyone does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name, I myself will call him to account.
c. The problem was the Jews consistently refused to listen to the prophets
d. As Stephen said, “Was there ever a prophet you did not persecute?”
e. Jesus is the fulfillment of the prophetic office… the perfection of it, effectively God’s final word to the Jewish nation
Hebrews 1:1-2 In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.
f. God has nothing more to say to the Jewish nation; if they won’t listen to Jesus as God’s final word, they will be cut off from the people
g. This is Peter’s warning
Acts 3:23 Anyone who does not listen to him will be completely cut off from among his people.’
8. So Peter wants the Jews of Jerusalem to realize that Jesus is the final prophetic word from God
G. Hint at the Rich Blessing of the Gentiles
Acts 3:25-26 And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.’ 26 When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.”
God always intended to bless all nations on earth through the descendants of Abraham.
Jesus is the seed of Abraham, by which all peoples on earth would be blessed.
Peter hints with the word “FIRST”… when God raised up his servant (Jesus) he sent him FIRST to you
As Paul would later say,
Romans 1:16 I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile.
H. Blessing is REPENTANCE
Acts 3:26 When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.
Their wicked ways is their hard-hearted rejection of the words of the prophets, and especially the Son of God; in addition to all their other sins… their idolatry, lusts, sexual immorality, covetousness, rebellion, rage, etc.
Jesus “turns them” from their wicked ways by the transforming power of the Spirit:
Ezekiel 36:26-27 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.
Foretaste of the response:
Acts 4:4 many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand.
VI. Applications
A. Understand the First Beatitude: We are all beggars
“Blessed are the spiritual beggars, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”
B. Marvel at the Power and Goodness of God in this Miracle
1. None of us in this room today has ever received a gift in this present age as valuable as the gift of healing that beggar received
2. No Super Bowl winning quarterback would refuse to trade that championship for a lifetime of ability to walk
3. Neither would any wealthy person his fortune
4. This one gift, the instant ability to walk given to a man crippled from birth, is more valuable than any gift you’ve ever encountered in your entire life
5. Yet it is still infinitely less than the value of forgiveness of sins
Acts 3:19 Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord
C. Use Miracle Stories to Preach the Gospel
1. I think it’s great to memorize a story like this and use it preach the gospel on a plane or in the workplace
2. Miracle stories are amazing and fascinating… and they glorify Jesus!
D. Look Forward to the New Heavens and the New Earth, and the Resurrection from the Dead
1. Peter speaks of “times of refreshing” from the Lord when he will restore all things
2. The healing points to that glorious future
3. Resurrection bodies:
1 Corinthians 15:42-44 The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; 43 it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
4. Resurrected world
Revelation 21:4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away