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Some might think pastors get impromptu situations all the
time. But really? Oh sure, they face public speaking every
weekend. But those sermons are rarely
done by winging-it. Instead they are
prepared well ahead of time. And
weddings, funerals, and child dedications are not events that occur without at
least some foreknowledge they are coming.
These events generally have a lot in common, i.e. when you have done one
baby dedication, you have done them all kind of thinking. Being asked about your own personal testimony
with Jesus may happen unexpectedly, but it tends to be the same story you have
told a hundred times before, so that one is well rehearsed. Even the questions that spiritual leaders are
asked tend to follow similar lines of thinking, why me, why her, why does God
permit evil to happen to good folks, when will it all end, how can I be saved,
how do you know Jesus is real, etc. etc.
The answers to these questions for the speaker tend to be well rehearsed
over a lifetime, if you have ever done any witnessing to anyone before. So while it is not impossible for a pastor or
spiritual leader to get caught with something impromptu that has not been well
rehearsed, it is not as common as you might think.
But here is the kicker; when you are NOT a pastor, or
well-rehearsed spiritual leader, and “then” you get asked to preach a sermon,
or tell a story, in front of a crowd, with zero time to prep, no idea it was
coming, and wham – the spotlight falls upon you – then what? Can you imagine anything more nerve racking
than that? It does happen. It did happen. Let’s pick up with the study we began in our
last post and continue looking at one of these type of impromptu
situations. It begins with Peter and
John heading to the Temple to pray at about 3pm in the afternoon. That’s all they intended to do. But along the way they encounter a lame man,
at the gate called “Beautiful” of the Temple, who then asked them for
money. They did not have any. But instead, Peter looks the lame man in the
eyes and says in the name of Jesus of Nazareth rise up and walk. The man tries. His legs and feet are restored and he winds
up walking and leaping into the Temple praising God with all of his might. If the story ended here and we printed the
“and everyone lived happily for ever and ever” banner, we would all leave with
the warm fuzzy in our tummy. If we
imagined ourselves as Peter in this story, we might wonder if that kind of
miracle healing was still possible in our day, through our prayers. But that is not where the story ends. It continues.
Luke picks back up in the book of Acts, in the third chapter
in verse 11 saying … “And as the lame man which was healed held Peter and John,
all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon's,
greatly wondering.” The loud
praise of this man, leaping for joy, just caused such a stir in an otherwise
somber Temple gathering people were just amazed and spellbound at what had
taken place. This miracle was like a
light in the darkness. A light that
could not, nor should not, be hidden. It
needed to be explained. Later we will
read, that more than 5000 men gathered to hear the explanation, so the size of
the crown was no small thing. Now I know
you probably don’t imagine yourself as truly being like Peter in this story of
old. So you likely don’t pray prayers of
miraculous healings, that result in someone leaping around praising God,
particularly in such a crowded public place.
But that is us all, myself included, missing the whole point of this
story. We are all, meant for more. This miracle was intended not to just be a
light to the lame man changing his life, it was meant to be a catalyst light to
every worshipper to point them back to the love Jesus Christ has for each of
us. Has the need for that kind of light ever
been greater than now?
Luke continues in verse 12 saying … “And when Peter saw it, he
answered unto the people, Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why look
ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness we had made this
man to walk?” The first thing
Peter needs to do, is to center the credit for this healing back on God, not on
anything to do with the “holiness” of Peter or John. Human nature tends to look first at the person,
instead of the God behind the person.
And so often we would relish the attention and praise we might get for
being “the miracle worker”, even though it is always only the power of God that
can do anything miraculous. If the
healer wants the credit, he serves a different master. But now arises one of those dreaded impromptu
situations. One where there is zero time
to prep, no rehearsed sermons to call on, and frankly Peter probably does not
think of himself as any kind of preacher at all. He has only given one sermon before. It is not like he has made any kind of career
out of this up to now. He is young,
uneducated, not qualified (by current standards), a known sinner, a guy who
even denied Jesus when it counted. This
guy is not a preacher. Neither are
you? Or, does God have a surprise for
you coming soon, a situation just like this, a question, or a personal witness
that right now you have no idea about.
But it is coming. And Peter gives
us the road map for how to handle it.
Luke continues in verse 13 saying … “The God of Abraham, and of
Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom
ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was
determined to let him go. [verse 14] But ye denied the Holy One and the
Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; [verse 15] And killed the
Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses. [verse
16] And
his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and
know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in
the presence of you all.”
Ouch. Peter does not sugar coat
his story. He identifies that Jesus is
the Son of God, and then quickly reminds this crowd that they recently killed
Jesus when even Pilate wanted to let Him go.
He then tells the crowd that Jesus has risen from the dead and it is by
faith in the name of Jesus that this lame man has been fully healed. Perhaps not the most elegant way to start up
a sermon, but keep in mind 5000 men were converted by the power of the Holy
Spirit from the words Peter spoke.
Perhaps elegant, professional, and polished was NOT what God was looking
for right then. Perhaps the Holy Spirit
was able to use the words of Peter such as they were to effect conviction and
change. Perhaps the Holy Spirit was
feeding Peter what to say, right as he was saying it.
Luke continues in verse 17 saying … “And now, brethren, I wot
that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers. [verse 18] But those
things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that
Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled. [verse 19] Repent ye
therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times
of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; [verse 20] And he shall
send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: [verse 21] Whom the
heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God
hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.” Then Peter says, even if you were ignorant
before, it is time to repent now, to be converted, and ready for the refreshing
and return of Jesus foretold by all the prophets of old. Do you think Peter was concerned about
looking like an idiot in front of this huge crowd? Do you think Peter was even thinking about
himself at all right about then? I doubt
it. My guess is he was deep in the Holy
Spirit’s inspiration, and fully content to open his own mouth with whatever
words the Spirit put in them to say. He
did not need to prep. He did not need to
worry. This sermon was to be preached
whether he thought of himself as a preacher right then or not. People needed to see the light cast back upon
Jesus, both then and now.
Luke continues in verse 22 saying … “For Moses truly said unto
the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your
brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say
unto you. [verse 23] And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not
hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people. [verse 24] Yea, and all
the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken,
have likewise foretold of these days. [verse 25] Ye are the children of the
prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto
Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed. [verse
26] Unto
you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in
turning away every one of you from his iniquities.” And that last line is the essence of the
Gospel and its power both then and now.
Jesus was sent to bless us, in that He will turn us away from our sins. Moses foretold this. Samuel and all the prophets foretold
this. This Jewish audience were the
metaphorical sons of these prophets in that the blessing of Jesus coming was
done in their lifetimes. We are the same
sons now; we have the same Bible to read and realize all this was done for us
as well. The Gospel is the same
now. Jesus is still turning hearts away
from sin, and THAT is the biggest miracle He can perform for each one of
us. And frankly, it is the most needed
one we have.
Jesus told us not to concern ourselves with what to say,
when a time like this arose. Don’t worry
about it. Let go, and let the Spirit put
the words in your mouth to say. Keep in
mind the results of this sermon led to the conversion of 5000 men, who knows
how many more were reached after the initial counting of this. Who knows how many people were reached as
these 5000 went home and told their families and friends what they saw and
heard. All because the most common of
young person, allowed himself to be used in spreading the love of Jesus to
those who needed it most. All because a non-preacher
became a preacher in the course of 2 sermons, he had no time to prepare for. All because when a known sinner like Peter
looked upon the lame man, he knew Jesus would heal that man, regardless of his
own short comings, or the short comings of the lame man. Jesus’ love is greater than our sin. And the Power of Jesus is enough to turn our
hearts away from our sins. This is how
Jesus saves us to the uttermost.
Isn’t it about time for us to start channeling the love and
power of God, through that name of Jesus Christ back into the world as I know
Jesus wants us to do? It is not our power,
it is His. It is not our holiness, it is
His. It may not even be our love for
another, but surely Jesus loves that precious soul more than we can
imagine. The time of miracles has come
again. Will you take your first step
into the wider world? Will you let go
your sins (allowing Jesus to transform and save you), and focus on asking for
Holy Spirit to be poured out on your life everyday? In an age such as this, how will you be
found? The time is now, what will you do
with it? …
