Beggar

Acts 3:1-10

¹Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour [3pm].

²And a man lame from birth was being carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple that is called the Beautiful Gate to ask alms of those entering the temple.

³Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive alms.

⁴And Peter directed his gaze at him, as did John, and said, “Look at us.”

⁵And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them.

⁶But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!”

⁷And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong.

⁸And leaping up he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God.

⁹And all the people saw him walking and praising God,

¹⁰and recognized him as the one who sat at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, asking for alms. And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

Back in the 60s, 70s, and 80s, and perhaps even still today, there were guys on TV who were “faith healers.” People who were sick, blind, or lame would come to the revivals meetings and wait for a “healing” miracle. Ernest Angley in particular usually caught my attention. He would walk back and forth on the stage shouting and waving his hands. Then he would go up to the person who was hoping for a miracle and bash them in the forehead with the palm of his hand and shout “be healed” in their face. They would then fall down to the stage floor and lay there. Pretty soon they would get up and declare that they could walk, see, or no longer have any pain. It was all very dramatic. The one thing I never saw was a shriveled leg spring back to health.

The scene we read about today is far different. Imagine if you will, having Peter and John come up to you on the street; Peter and John, walking around together doing the work of the Lord. That alone would blow me away. But there they are in a very public place, the temple at prayer time. This man who cannot walk is well known to the crowd. He sits outside of the temple everyday begging for coins. He is denied entrance into the temple because of his crippled legs. When Peter and John see his plight they offer what they have. Not coins but what the man truly needs; to know Jesus Christ. Peter very simply declares that in Jesus’ name the man is healed. He reaches out and takes the man’s hand and raises him to his restored limbs. Now we all know what happens to limbs that are not used. They shrivel up and lose their muscle mass. You have to imagine that his legs are very small and would not possibly sustain his weight. The miraculous takes places as the man’s muscles are restored and not only is he able to walk, he leaps into the air and follows Peter and John into the temple. Every person who witnesses this miracle knows they are in presence of something truly amazing.

This man, who gained what he needs to support his life through begging, is not much different than we are. Daily he begs for money as he sees that as his greatest need. He has lost hope that he will ever walk again. It never even occurs to him to ask for that! But God knows exactly what this man needs and gives it to him without even being asked. It is possible that all of us daily ask God for things we think will solve our problems but probably won’t help us out much at all. Instead we might consider relying on God to give us what we actually need instead. My own prayer life changed in that direction years ago when I tried to stop telling God what to do. Now I may tell Him what I would like to see happen but that is only because I want to talk to Him about everything. I am a beggar before the Lord, but I’m going to wait and see what He wants to drop into my hand rather than telling Him what to give me.