As Peter was traveling from place to place, he also came down to the saints who

Transcription

1 Explore the Bible Lesson Preview May 15, 2016 Bold Background: Acts 9:32-43 Lesson: Acts 9:36-43 Motivation: Wonders were used by God in the early church to advance the gospel and give credibility to Christianity. Examination: I. Preparing for God s Message (9:32-35) As Peter was traveling from place to place, he also came down to the saints who lived in Lydda. 33 There he found a man named Aeneas, who was paralyzed and had been bedridden for eight years. 34 Peter said to him, Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and make your bed, and immediately he got up. 35 So all who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord. A. Purpose as Peter was traveling from place to place, he also came down to the saints who lived in Lydda. (9:32) We find in Peter s travels the sense of obedience to his Lord s command you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria... (1:8) HCSB 1 / 7

2 ; p.1879: 9:32 The saints at Lydda may have been there since Pentecost and the time of persecution that had scattered believers throughout Judea (8:1). It is also possible that they traced their origins to Philip s ministry (8:40). 1. In Jerusalem Peter was the spokesman for the Apostles as evidenced at Pentecost. (2:14ff) 2. In Judea The present passage documents his travels through Judea. 3. In Samaria In Acts 8:14-25, Peter went with John to Samaria, confronted Simon the sorcerer, and testified and spoken the message of the Lord. (8:25) B. Paralytic: Aeneas 1. Condition: who was paralyzed and had been bedridden eight years. (33) Physical healing was a hallmark of Jesus ministry and was among the sign gifts promised to the Apostles (Mt. 10:8). Similar to the condition of the paralyzed man at the Beautiful Gate (Acts 3:2), Aeneas condition would have led to atrophied muscles. 2. Command: Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and make your bed, (34) Obviously a proof text for good housekeeping! HCSB ; p. 1879: 9:32-35 Again we see that the apostles never hesitated to give all credit for healing miracles to Jesus Christ (3:6). Indirect evidence for this is found for this is found in the fact that the people in Lydda and Sharon turned in faith to the Lord rather than His apostolic messengers when they witnessed the healing of 2 / 7

3 Aeneas. 3. Consequence: So all who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord (35) Here s another example of signs and wonders being used to establish the authority of the fledgling church. Notice that Peter is careful to give the credit for the healing to Jesus Christ and not to himself. II. The Final Rest (36-37) In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha, which is translated Dorcas. She was always doing good works and acts of charity. 37 In those days she became sick and died. After washing her, they placed her in a room upstairs. 1. Commendation: a disciple always doing good works and acts of charity. (36) Dorcas was semi-famous for her good works and acts of charity, (36) she was a noted seamstress of robes and clothes (39). Raising this particular woman from the dead became known throughout Joppa. (42). Note that the formula for salvation is not Good Works =Eternal Life nor is it Faith + Good Works=Eternal Life. Rather according to Ephesians 2:8-10 Faith=Eternal Life+Good Works. The relationship between works, faith and salvation is perhaps the most misunderstood theological concept of Christianity. 2. Coronation she became sick and died. (37) Unless we re killed in an accident, suffer a sudden fatal condition or are caught up in the rapture, all of us will become sick and die (Heb. 9:27). The early Christians call death the day to receive one s crown. Rather than a tragedy, it is a Christian s coronation day. As Ken Hemphill noted Christians spend more time trying to pray dying Christians out of heaven than living sinners out of hell. III. The Request (38-39) 3 / 7

4 Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples heard that Peter was there and sent two men to him who begged him, Don t delay in coming with us. 39 So Peter got up and went with them. When he arrived, they led him to the room upstairs. And all the widows approached him, weeping and showing him the robes and clothes that Dorcas had made while she was with them. A. Confidence Don t delay in coming with us HCSB; p. 1879: 9:37-38 So powerfully had God worked wonders through Peter and the other apostles that even when Dorcas died and had been ceremonially washed and placed in a room upstairs for viewing, Christians in Joppa did not give up hope but instead sent for Peter. B. Crying And all the widows approached him, weeping While death means coronation for the departed Christian, sorrow still remains for those left behind. IV. The Restoration (40-41) Then Peter sent them all out of the room. He knelt down, prayed, and turning toward the body said, Tabitha, get up! She opened her eyes, saw Peter, and sat up. 41 He gave her his hand and helped her stand up. Then he called the saints and widows and presented her alive. A. Command: Tabitha, get up! (40) Notice that Peter claimed no power other than what God provided; he asked her to arise only after he knelt down and prayed. (40) 4 / 7

5 B. Courtesy 41 He gave her his hand and helped her stand up. While Aeneas immed iately got up apparently without assistance, Luke notes that Peter helped Dorcas to her feet. The distinction is a reminder to us that courtesy is always appropriate and that miraculous healings usually don t happen the same way twice. C. Certification Then he called the saints and widows and presented her alive. Having ushered witnesses out of a dead woman s room, Peter now invited them to be witnesses of a restoration. Our final resurrection must await Christ s command and will result in life eternal for the resurrected body. V. The Results (42-43) This became known throughout Joppa, and many believed in the Lord. And Peter stayed many days in Joppa with Simon, a leather tanner. A. Consequence: many believed on the Lord (42) In this passage, the word saints is used twice (32, 41). William Barclay, Acts of the Apostles, p. 78: The Greek word is hagios and it has far-reaching associations. It is sometimes translated holy but the root meaning of it is different. Basically the Christian is a man who is different from those who are merely people of the world. But wherein does that difference lie? Hagios was specially used of the people Israel. They are specifically a holy people, a different people. (2 Pet. 2:9-12; Rom. 9:1-7) B. Compassion So it was that he stayed many days in Joppa with Simon, a tanner 5 / 7

6 (43) The breakthrough of the gospel to Gentiles in chapter 10, predicated on God s vision to Peter, was the result of a gradual preparation of Peter s heart. Being a strict Jewish man, he had a cultural and religious bias against Gentiles. The Holy Spirit led him a step at a time: 1) preaching to a diverse crowd at Pentecost, 2) traveling to Samaria to share Christ, and now, 3) lodging at the house of a tanner who was ceremonially unclean through the handling of dead things. God gradually moved Peter outside his comfort zone to reach people who needed Jesus. HCSB; p. 1879: 9:43 Tanners were often considered impure because of their contact with dead animals. This indicates that either Jewish law on this practice had relaxed by this era, or else that Peter was already enjoying freedom from the Jewish law because of his liberty in Christ (10:6, 32). Application: 1. Signs and wonders such as healing the sick and raising the dead were given to the early church to spread the gospel. 2. Good works are not designed to earn salvation but rather to authenticate salvation to a lost world. 3. God leads us a step at a time toward breakthroughs in our ministry. Leader Pack Item 6: Miracles in the Early Church (Acts 1-12) Biblical Illustrator, p. 56: Joppa: Its History and Significance 6 / 7

7 Notes: **You may access David s Lesson Preview in MP3 format at: g ; also, the Highpoint Bible Study (Downtown) is available on MP3 at the HFBC site under the Highpoint link/downloads. Dates: /8 SPF Mother s Day Luncheon; 5/11 - VBS Big Training Preschool & Children; 5/14 - CBS Graduation; 5/1 5 High School Senior Celebration Sunday; 5/15 SPF B-day Bash; 5/22 Parent Commitment & First Grade Bible; 5/27 Last Day of FBA; 5/29 AMP/WIRED Sunday; 6/3 Summer Kickoff at the Loop; 6/3-4 5 th grade Launch at the Loop; 6/5 Promotion Sunday (all campuses); 6/5 SPF Birthday Bash; 6/5-9 Elevate Choir Tour; 6/6 7/5 Pastor Gregg s Sabbatical; 6/12-15 Camp Intersect; 6/18-25 HUB Intl. Mission Trip; 6/19 SPF Father s Day Lunch; 6/25 Men: Serve; 6/27-30 Loop only family night on 6/29. 7 / 7