after the miraculous healing of the crippled beggar, people gape at peter and john in open-mouthed wonder and astonishment. how did these uneducated, unschooled, illiterate men bring about the complete healing of a severely crippled man? we might well "gape in open-mouthed wonder and astonishment" at the miraculous change in peter. he was a scared and cowering disciple who could not stand up to a little servant girl on the night of Jesus's arrest, but now he has turned into a mighty prophet who enacts miraculous healings and preaches with such authority as to bring about the conversion of 3000 people on the day of pentecost."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?"
the difference in peter is almost as amazing as the healing that occurred through him. what is the secret? peter recounts to the crowd the suffering and death of Jesus and how God raised Him to life. then he makes this simple statement "we are witnesses of this". herein lies the secret to peter's boldness and his access to God's power to heal and convert a lame beggar. peter has seen with his own eyes Jesus raised from the dead. peter realizes that the same Power that raised Christ from the dead is the same Power that could heal a cripple, change his own heart so dramatically, bring about the conversion of thousands of people through one sermon, and change the hearts of hardened sinners throughout the ages. it is one and the same Power, and he was a witness to it.
it is one thing to say that we believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ and another thing entirely to truly know the living Christ raised from the dead, to be "witnesses of this". seeing is not necessarily believing, but believing is truly to see. if peter can be changed so dramatically then there is hope for all of us, even for you and for me.
2 comments:
Thanks for your post sahmoneem :)
I loved peter's response after the crippled man was completely healed. He did speak with such boldness and confidence which may have not been the reponse the crowd would have expected in the moment. It was very encouraging to have read your reflection about peter's conversion. I hope we are all able to believe in the way peter did in our passage.
Thank you, Dulla smn for sharing your thoughts and wisdom.
As I was reading this passage, it's shocking in transformation of Peter. This was the same man who had his foot in his mouth more times throughout Jesus's three years of ministry and now he speaks so powerfully and authoritatively. I mean I already knew this but to grasp it is totally different. Reading his words seemed different this time for some reason. It had more depth. Maybe it's because after reading how he was in Matthew and now reading him in Acts, it's like a totally 180.
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