Third Sunday of Easter
Sunday, April 26th, 2020click here for past entries
Loving God, you continue to work in and through and among us by the power of your Spirit, reminding us that the Risen Christ is present in our midst. Teach us to recognize you wherever you may be found, through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Today, in our reading from Acts, we hear about a man whose entire existence depends on the kindness of others. He cannot walk. His only source of income is to beg for alms. In order to get anywhere in order to beg, he needs other people to carry him. And, in order to get to the Temple gates, which is a prime location for begging, he needs people to carry him up both hills and stairs. Neither Jerusalem nor the Temple precinct are particularly friendly to those who have mobility issues.
Such is life for this unnamed man when Peter and John encounter him on their way into the Temple for prayer. For those who may not know Peter and John, they are fishermen, and also disciples of Jesus who had eaten with him, learned from him, walked with him and talked with him both before and after his resurrection from the dead. Now, they have been empowered by the Holy Spirit, as Jesus is no longer with them in bodily form.
As Peter and John enter the Temple precinct, just like so many others before them, the man asks them for alms. Peter, however, does not have silver or gold to give the man. What he does have is the power of the Holy Spirit through Jesus Christ, and so, he and John invite the man to actually look at them, and then they heal him in the name of Jesus.
In many ways, it would have been much easier just to give the man a few coins. However, Peter and John take the time to actually look him in the eye and to pray for his healing in the name of Jesus. As a result, they end up giving him so much more than money. They give him the ability to walk and to leap for the first time in his life. They give him the capacity to earn a living for himself in ways other than begging. And, they give him the gift of community.
While the man did have at least somebody who was bringing him to the Temple to beg, he would never have been part of a worshiping or praying community. Right from the time of Solomon, when the first Temple was built, those who were blind or lame had been excluded from entering the Temple. They could sit at the gates, but that was it. Now, this man can actually enter the Temple with Peter and John, “walking and leaping and praising God” (Acts 3:8).
What this story has to say to us might depend on what is happening in our lives from day to day. On some days, we might find ourselves sympathizing with the crippled beggar – especially if we are having to depend on others, or in need of healing, or feeling excluded from community. When we find ourselves in these situations, we are reminded by this story that God calls us into community, and God has the power to heal us, and sometimes God comes to us through perfect strangers who just happen to be passing by.
On other days, we might feel more like the other people in the Temple who see the man who has been healed, and recognize him, and are filled with wonder and amazement at what God has done. These days, it is easy to focus only on bad news, tragedies and fear. However, thankfully we have also been hearing about reasons to praise God – like the people who have been stepping up to help those in need, or the people who have been going the extra mile to say “thank you” to health care workers and first responders, or the people who have been finding ways to connect with people in personal care homes. There are always signs of God at work in our world. The challenge is for us to see these signs and to recognize them.
Now, while we might have trouble seeing ourselves in Peter and John some days (or maybe any day), most of us have had somebody ask us for help at one time or another. And most of us have seen the people on the street corners, or the panhandlers downtown, and have had to decide how or if to offer help. An added question for many people (which may or may not have been an issue in the first century) is whether the person actually needs help or not.
In the case of the crippled beggar at the Temple, there was no doubt that he needed people’s help in order to survive. And so, what is our response when somebody comes into our lives who quite obviously could use our help? In the case of Peter and John, they give the man, not what he asks for, but what they have. In their case – or at least in Peter’s case – he had been given the gift of healing by the Holy Spirit. Not everybody who believes in Jesus has this particular gift, but Peter did. And so, he gives the man what he has – healing in the name of Jesus Christ.
The Spirit, however, gives many different gifts, and each one of us has different things to offer in the service of others. Some have more time than money, and some have more money than time. Some have wisdom and knowledge, and some have compassion and generosity. Some are able to make things with their hands, and some are able to make music, or art, or poetry. Some have gifts of faith and discernment, and some have the gift of evangelism. “To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (1 Cor. 12:7).
The good news is that Jesus continues to be present in our world in and through God’s people. And so, whether we are the one in need, or the ones witnessing what God has done, or the ones who allow God to use us by the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus continues to save and to heal and to give life. For Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Amen.
Easter 3 (NL 2) Acts 3:1-10
April 26, 2020
St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church
Pastor Lynne Hutchison
© 2020 Lynne Hutchison All Rights Reserved
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