Two New Men

MARCH 9, 2022 STUDY NOTES ACTS 3:11-13 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES TWO NEW MEN INTRODUCTION People were amazed as they watched the lame man who had been physically healed, Act 3:10 And they knew that it was he which sat for alms at the Beautiful gate of the temple: and they were filled with wonder and amazement at that which had happened unto him. They wondered, what has happened to this man? He was showing them and telling them what happened He was a new man, he had a new body, a new mind, a new heart, a new will, he had a "new life" They were looking at a man who had been physically and spiritually healed, he was praising God, Act 3:9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God: They were amazed that he was walking, they were amazed at the manner-in which he was praising God There is no doubt that he was having a "Pentecostal Fit," he was definitely "In the Spirit" The people who watched him were "filled" with amazement for more than one reason The man they were looking at had been healed and was now "filled" with the Spirit Sunday, we looked at the parallel between his physical healing and his spiritual healing He was a new man physically and he was a new man spiritually As the crowd watched him, they could easily see the evidence of his physical healing From what they heard they could see the evidence of an emotional, psychological, and spiritual change There was no question about it, he was a "New Man" When you were saved, God worked a miracle in you, can others see a change in you? Our daily life should praise God for all that He has already done in us and will do through us Act 3:11 And as the lame man which was healed held Peter and John, all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon's, greatly wondering. The lame man that was healed was a "New Man" with new desires in life The man who was healed was not going to let Peter and John get away from him He was clinging to them, sticking like glue to them, and they did not reject him Many people today are willing to give an offering to those in need, but will not come near them They do not want a personal touch with those who are down and out and in personal need But when Christians are involved in a hands-on ministry, they will attract the attention of the world A crowd gathered around Peter, John, and the healed man, which was an opportunity for Peter to preach Peter knew that the miracle of healing had provided an opportunity for him to preach to the people Peter knew that there stood before him a "Divine Appointment" and he did not fail A selfish path of life will not see a divine appointment, a Spirit-Filled life will seize them Peter was ready to fulfill his calling, Peter was a fisherman and Jesus had told him, Mat 4:19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. The place for Peter to fish that day was the Temple in Jerusalem where Jesus had preached to the Jews There is an interesting parallel between the experience of Jesus and Peter's experience in the Temple Jesus had walked and taught in the temple, Joh 10:23 And Jesus walked in the temple in Solomon's porch. A crowd gathered and asked Jesus a question, Joh 10:24 Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus said that what they had already seen would answer their question, Joh 10:25 Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me. The miracles of Jesus revealed the truth of Jesus and confirmed the message of Jesus The miracle of the healing of the lame man revealed the truth of Jesus and confirmed Peter's message Jesus told the Jews the truth of who He was, Joh 10:30 I and my Father are one. The Jews immediately rejected the truth of what Jesus said, Joh 10:31 Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. The Temple was built to worship God, God Himself stood before them and they sought to kill Him Jesus told them that they had every good reason to believe Him, Joh 10:32 Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? That which they must believe is that Jesus is the Son of God, Joh 10:36 Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God? Peter will preach the same message to the Jews, telling them that Jesus is alive, and He is the Son of God And the miracle they have witnessed is another good reason to believe that Jesus is the Son of God Act 3:12 And when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people, Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness we had made this man to walk? Peter was a "New Man," he was no longer the man who would deny Jesus Peter was now filled with the Spirit and ready to proclaim Jesus as the Promised Messiah, the Savior In our study of Luke, we have already talked about divine opportunities, when God opens the door Throughout our study of Luke, we will consider the same thought many times, we will see it many times It is a most important point for us today because God still makes appointments for us God opens doors for us, and we often fail to see the opportunity to share Jesus with those who need Him Many times, we recognize the opportunity, yet we fail to fulfill our duty as a Christian witness Sometimes, it is later when we recognize that we failed to walk through the door that God had opened We need to learn from personal experience what God can and will do "through us," Eph 3:20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, As we study Acts, pray that "we" will "all" learn to take advantage of God's "Divine Appointments" Peter saw his, "and when Peter saw it," what did Peter see? He saw the people standing before him We are not told what the people were saying or asking, but it had to be similar to--Act 2:12 And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this? Peter answered their question with a sermon, he is going to do the same thing again with another sermon We must realize that Peter was prepared for the opportunity that was before him, we must be prepared Our opportunity may not be a crowd, it may be a single individual, God cares about every soul In Acts 8 we will see that God sent Peter to present Jesus to one man (Acts 8:26-40) We need to understand what Peter faced when the people gathered before him, what their thinking was Too often today the focus of people is like that of the crowd that gathered because of the healed man Satan wants to place the attention upon man instead of God, Satan does a good job of that today Peter asked, "You men of Israel, why marvel you at this, or why look you so earnestly on us? The crowd was Jewish, they were God's covenant people who were looking for the Messiah Peter specifically traces the lineage of the Jewish nation in the next verse They were the men of the covenant, the scriptures, the prophets, and of the Messiah, Heb 1:1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Heb 1:2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; Peter will once again present the truth of the Messiah to the Jews "Why marvel you at this?" They were amazed because they knew that the lame man had been healed They would not have been so amazed if Jesus had been standing before them They knew of the miraculous power of Jesus and had recently seen him heal in the temple, Mat 21:14 And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them. But they did not see Jesus, they knew that He had died on the cross, so they looked at Peter and John Peter questioned them, "Why look you so earnestly on us?" The crowd gathered and their attention focused more on Peter and John than the healed man They were more interested in the "healers" than the "healed," and Peter used that point What an opportunity it was for Peter and John to be praised, to bring glory unto self Here we have a good lesson for us to learn, "to God be the Glory" How tempting it can be for us to take credit for what God has done in our life It is easy for our old nature to desire credit and praise, to seek self-glory What an opportunity Peter had for that to happen, but Peter knew of the "woes" of Jesus, Luk 6:26 Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets. "Woe" to those who seek the popularity and praise of man, instead of seeking to glorify God Peter's desire was that which was proclaimed by the psalmist, Psa 115:1 Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth's sake. Peter refused the opportunity of glorifying self and immediately turned their attention upon Jesus "As though by our own power or holiness we had made this man to walk?" Peter's words identify with the thinking of the people, only a "holy" person had such power to heal Just as Nicodemus had said to Jesus, Joh 3:2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. It appeared to them that no one else there could have performed the miracle of healing but Peter and John Which added to their amazement, these two men were fishermen from Galilee How could they have such power, how could they perform such a miracle? Peter assured them that they had not witnessed a self-attained power through personal holiness It was not their power that had healed the lame man and gave him the power to walk Peter saw what was happening and he took the opportunity to speak the truth, he went to the scriptures Peter immediately turned their attention toward Jesus because He is the "Miracle Worker" Peter preached to them using OT scripture pointing to the coming of the Messiah His question to them was, "why are you so amazed at what you have seen?" Why are your eyes set upon us? It was not our power or holiness that healed the lame man Peter turns their attention away from self and away from the healed man and points them to Jesus He begins by identifying Jesus as the "Messiah" Remember that Peter is the man who had previously denied Jesus three times, now he is Spirit-filled What a difference the Holy Spirit makes in a person's life, Peter had already stood for Jesus, Act 2:14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: Now he stands before the crowd again, he accepts the opportunity that God had given him to share Jesus In Peter's sermon there are at least 10 direct references to Christ, he wanted all eyes and ears upon Jesus Peter used different names and titles for Jesus, all of which identified with the Messiah: His Son Jesus (13, 26) The Holy One (14) The Just (14) The Prince of Life (15) Christ (18) Jesus Christ (20) Lord (19) A Prophet (22) His message was, "The Messiah has come," and his message was to Israel, look at how he begins Act 3:13 The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go. Peter took them back to the "burning bush" and the call of Moses, where God said, Exo 3:6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. "The God of our fathers, whom you delivered up," The "Covenant God" of our Fathers is keeping His promises made to "our fathers" He is "the God" who spoke to "our fathers," the same God the prophets preached Peter's approach was, you claim to believe in God, you say you want to obey God, then listen God has fulfilled His promise to give Israel a Messiah, the Messiah is "His Son Jesus" "Hath glorified His Son Jesus," Our "Covenant God" is the one who has healed the lame man through "His Son Jesus" Peter makes a strong point by His choice of the word translated "Son," which also means "Servant" Peter is telling the Jews that Jesus is the "Servant Son," He is the "Servant promised by God, Isa 42:1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles. Isaiah 42 is a Messianic passage, which is confirmed in, Mat 12:18 Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles. Matthew assures us that the word "my servant" was a title for the Messiah The title "my servant" is found in another Messianic passage, Isa 52:13 Behold, my servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high. The prophecy of Isaiah 52 continues into Isaiah 53 where we read, Isa 53:5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. In Acts Peter refers to Jesus as God's "Servant" three more times, Act 3:26 Unto you first God, having raised up his Son (Servant) Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities. Act 4:27 For of a truth against thy holy child (Servant) Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together, Act 4:30 By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child (Servant) Jesus. Jesus was the "Servant" of God who came to do the will of God the Father, Joh 6:38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. Peter presents the "Servant" of God as the "Son" of God, and His name is "Jesus" So, this miraculous healing in the name of Jesus has "glorified" Jesus, the message is, Jesus is alive If Jesus was not alive the lame man would continue to be a cripple laying at the gate of the temple The healing of the lame man was to "glorify Jesus" To "glorify Jesus" is to identify who He is, reveal what He has done, and praise Him for all things It is important that we first identify who Jesus is, the very name "Jesus" tells us who He is, Mat 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. The name "Jesus" means "Savior," Jesus is the Messiah who was promised to be born of a virgin, Isa 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. Joseph was not the father of Jesus, but the virgin Mary was the mother of Jesus, Mat 1:16 And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. His name is "Jesus," His title is "Christ," Mat 16:16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. "Savior" is why Jesus came to the earth, "to save His people from their sins," Act 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. "Jesus" went to the cross because He is the author and finisher of our faith, Heb 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. The present glorification of Jesus is His is present position at the "right hand of the throne of God" Which is of utmost importance, Hebrews states 5 times that Jesus is seated at the right hand of God God has highly exalted the name of "Jesus," Php 2:9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: The day is coming when at the name of "Jesus" every knee will bow, Php 2:10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And every tongue will confess that "Jesus" is Lord, Php 2:11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Peter states a contrast, God glorified Jesus, the Jews denied Jesus, which is common in our world today At the time of the crucifixion the Jews did not glorify Jesus, they "denied" Jesus "And denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go" You, God's chosen people, "denied" God's chosen Messiah, His only begotten Son The word "denied" has the meaning of "to deliver," the Jews delivered Jesus to Pilate, Mat 27:1 When the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death: Mat 27:2 And when they had bound him, they led him away, and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governor. The Jews did not have the authority to crucify Jesus, so, they "delivered Him" to Pilate Jesus predicted that He would be delivered, Luk 9:44 Let these sayings sink down into your ears: for the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men. Jesus said the prophets had predicted His deliverance, Luk 18:31 Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. Luk 18:32 For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: The Jews delivered Jesus unto Pilate because they had denied Him, which means they rejected Him Pilate "was determined to let Jesus go," and he gave his reason why, Luk 23:14 Said unto them, Ye have brought this man unto me, as one that perverteth the people: and, behold, I, having examined him before you, have found no fault in this man touching those things whereof ye accuse him: Pilate said, "let Jesus go, the Jews said, "crucify Him," Luk 23:21 But they cried, saying, Crucify him, crucify him. The Jews were determined to crucify Jesus, Luk 23:23 And they were instant with loud voices, requiring that he might be crucified. And the voices of them and of the chief priests prevailed. That Jesus was crucified is strongly emphasized in all four Gospel accounts The word "crucify," or "crucified" is found a total of 31 times in the Gospel accounts: 10 times in Matthew; 8 times in Mark; 5 times in Luke; 8 times in John Just like in his first sermon Peter again tells them that God's Son Jesus is the one they crucified, Act 2:22 Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: Act 2:23 Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: Peter again preaches the death, burial, resurrection, and return of Jesus (Acts 3:14-26) Telling them that the miracle bestowed upon the lame man was from the hand of Jesus Peter concludes him sermon by telling them that the hand of Jesus has something for them, Act 3:26 Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities.