By: Dale Weckbacher
Mark 16:17-18
And these signs will
accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will
speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if
they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands
on the sick, and they will recover.”
(ESV)
Role models are usually equated
with entertainers, athletes, musicians, and other public figures that are
visible in media. While these
individuals have a presence in media and are viewed by millions, they should
not be the most influential role models in our lives. This is because they are flawed individuals
who will do something that disappoints people holding them in high esteem. Acts
3:1-10 provides an account of the ministry of Peter and John after the ascension
of Christ and the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
The activities of Peter and John recorded in this passage of scripture show
that their role model was not some flawed individual but Jesus Christ.
In this account, we see Peter and
John approaching the Temple at the time of prayer. While one can pray from anywhere, Peter and
John went to the temple to let those in the Jewish community in Jerusalem know
that they had not abandoned their Jewish roots.
They are also modeling Jesus who went throughout Galilee teaching in the
synagogues (Matthew
4:23) and frequently took time to pray (Mark 1:35; 6:46; Matthew 14:23). This habit of regular fellowship with God and
others provides opportunities for ministry by,
1) Providing
intimacy with God through prayer and the Word (Acts
3:1) – While Peter and John knew they had access to God from anywhere due
to the presence of God in their lives in the person of the Holy Spirit, they
still went to the Temple at the hour of prayer.
One reason for this may have been to mingle with other Jewish people who
may not have been believers in Jesus as their Messiah. However, they were also modeling Jesus who
took the time to frequently pray and have intimacy with God the Father (Mark
1:35; 6:46; Matthew 14:23). Scripture
does not record Jesus taking time to study the Word, only reading it in the
synagogues (Matthew
4:23). The reason for this is that
Jesus is the Word (John
1:1) and has no need to study Himself.
Peter and John did not go to the Temple that day to perform a miracle of
healing but to have intimacy with God.
2) Positions
us for Spirit-led opportunities for ministry (Acts
3:2-4) – Even though Peter and John went to the Temple for intimacy with
God, God arranged circumstances that presented an opportunity for ministry to a
man lame from birth. However, this
arrangement of circumstances was no guarantee a miracle would happen for Peter
and John had to be willing to minister.
The lame man asked Peter and John for alms and they answered him
honestly by telling him they had no silver or gold to give him. They could have then simply walked away to go
in and pray. However, they had something
much more valuable than gold or silver to offer this man, his healing in the
name of Jesus. Opportunities to minister
to others are all around us, especially during this time of crisis in our
world. The question we must ask
ourselves is are we allowing the Holy Spirit to open our spiritual eyes to see
opportunities to minister the love of Christ to people who may be depressed or
in despair over what is happening in the world today.
3) Presentation
of the Gospel as the Holy Spirit leads (Acts
3:5-7) – Similar to the miracle of speaking in tongues that occurred at
Pentecost, this miracle filled the people at the Temple with wonder and
amazement. In next Wednesday’s posting,
we will see what occurred after the miracle and how Peter and John used this
miracle to present the Gospel message (Acts
3:11-26).
In Acts
3:1-10, we see Peter and John modeling Jesus and God arranging an
opportunity for them to minister.
Thankfully for the lame man, Peter and John were sensitive to the
leadership of the Spirit in their lives and did not just pass the man by since
they had no silver or gold to offer him but instead stopped to minister to his
need. Perhaps you are reading this
posting and need a miracle in your life.
Perhaps you are among many in the world experiencing depression or
despair over the events occurring in the world today. My prayer is that you would find the peace of
God in your life and I encourage you to read Psalm
23 for it is a great psalm of comfort in a time of need.
I urge those reading this who
have never made a profession of faith in Jesus as the savior in their lives to
pray with me now to receive complete forgiveness of sin (1
John 1:9) and eternal life (John
3:16).
Dear Lord Jesus, I know I have sinned (Romans
3:23) and know that the penalty for my sin is death (Romans
6:23). I ask you to forgive me of my
sin and cleanse me as you promise in your Word (1
John 1:9). I believe you died, spent
three days in the grave, and resurrected from the dead and now declare you Lord
of my life.
These are unparalleled times of
crisis that can leave those without hope in Jesus depressed or in despair. For those believing in Jesus as their savior,
there is an eternal hope a world in crisis needs to hear. This requires modeling the joy of the Lord in
their lives in a time of crisis and being sensitive to the leading of the Holy
Spirit to minister the love of Christ into the lives of others. Will you join me in praying that the Church
follows the leading of the Holy Spirit and begins ministering the love of
Christ and the Gospel to a world in need.
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