“When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he began to ask them for a gift. Peter and John stared at him. Peter said, “Look at us!” So the man gazed at them, expecting to receive something from them. Peter said, “I don’t have any money, but I will give you what I do have. In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, rise up and walk!” Then he grasped the man’s right hand and raised him up. At once his feet and ankles became strong. Jumping up, he began to walk around. He entered the temple with them, walking, leaping, and praising God. All the people saw him walking and praising God. They recognized him as the same one who used to sit at the temple’s Beautiful Gate asking for money. They were filled with amazement and surprise at what had happened to him.”
Acts 3:3-10 CEB
We All Can Identify With The Man At The Gate
1. Every one of us have felt lame at some point in our lives.
“A man crippled since birth was being carried in.”
Acts 3:2 CEB
“Why didn’t I die at birth, come from the womb and die? For now I would be lying down quietly; I’d sleep; rest would be mine”
Job 3:11,13 CEB
“The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; he saves those whose spirits
are crushed.”
Psalms 34:18 CEB
2. Every one of us have felt helpless to overcome our lameness.
“Every day, people would place him at the temple gate known as the Beautiful Gate...”
Acts 3:2 CEB
“Because I was afraid of something awful, and it arrived; what I dreaded came to me. I had no ease, quiet, or rest, and trembling came.”
Job 3:25-26 CEB
3. Every one of us have searched for relief in a multitude of ways.
“...so he could ask for money from those entering the temple.”
Acts 3:2
“I looked at everything I had done and the wealth I had gained. I decided it was all a waste of time! It was like trying to catch the wind. There is nothing to gain from anything we do in this life.”
Ecclesiastes 2:11 ERV
How Do We Move Beyond The Lame Life We Have Been Living
1. I must look to the one who can heal me.
“Peter said, “Look at us!” So the man gazed at them, expecting to receive something from them. Peter said, “I don’t have any money, but I will give you what I do have. In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, rise up and walk!”
Acts 3 (CEB)
“I have seen their ways, but I will heal them. I will guide them, and reward them with comfort. And for those who mourn, I will create reason for praise: utter prosperity to those far and near, and I will heal them, says the LORD.”
Isaiah 57:18-19 CEB
2. I choose to take the hand of those who can help me.
Then he grasped the man’s right hand and raised him up...
Acts 2
“For this reason, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous person is powerful in what it can achieve.”
James 5:16 CEB
3. I obey God’s commands that allow me to find healing.
“At once his feet and ankles became strong. Jumping up, he began to walk around. He entered the temple with them, walking, leaping, and praising God.”
Acts 3 (CEB)
“Naaman’s servants came up to him and spoke to him: “Our father, if the prophet had told you to do something difficult, wouldn’t you have done it? All he said to you was, ‘Wash and become clean.’” So Naaman went down and bathed in the Jordan seven times, just as the man of God had said. His skin was restored like that of a young boy, and he became
clean.”
2 Kings 5:13-14 CEB
5. I praise God and see others amazed by what God is doing.
All the people saw him walking and praising God. They recognized him as the same one who used to sit at the temple’s Beautiful Gate asking for money. They were filled with amazement and surprise at what had happened to him.”
Acts 3