A Lame Man Walks Again
1Peter and John were walking up to the Temple to attend the three o’clock afternoon prayer service. 2That’s also when a man who had been born lame was getting into position to beg there. Some people were carrying him to the Temple entrance called “Beautiful Gate.” They put him there every day so he could beg from people coming and going to the Temple. 3When he saw Peter and John heading into the Temple courtyard, he asked them for a charitable donation. [1] 4Peter looked hard into the man’s eyes. So did John. Peter said, “Take a good look at us.” 5That’s what the man did. He gave them his full attention because he thought they were about to give him something.6Peter said, “I’ve got no silver. I’ve got no gold. But what I do have, I’m giving to you. Jesus Christ of Nazareth has given me the power and the authority [2] to tell you this: Stand up and walk.” 7Peter reached out, took the man by his right hand, and lifted him up. Instantly, the man’s feet and ankles became strong enough to hold him. 8In fact, he could even jump. So he did. Then he walked right beside Peter and John as they went into the Temple. But this man did more than walk. He walked, jumped, and thanked God with all the praise he could muster. 9All the people saw him walking and giving thanks to God. 10They recognized him right away. They knew he was the man who always parked himself at the Beautiful Gate, where he begged for donations. So they were dumbfounded at what they were seeing here.
11The man kept hugging Peter and John, staying close to them. All the people who saw what was going on rushed toward the three men to get a closer look. They crowded into the covered walkway called Solomon’s Porch. [3] They were astounded at what they were seeing.
Peter Preaches at the Temple
12As Peter watched the crowd gather, he said, “Gentleman of Israel, what makes you think we did this? You look astonished. You stare at us as though we have the power or the extra helping of holiness to pull off a miracle like this. 13Let me tell you something, the God of our founding fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob has given his servant Jesus more glory than you could ever imagine [4]—and you’re seeing the evidence of it now. You, however, gave Jesus an execution. You turned him over to Pilate, who wanted to release him. 14But you refused to let Pilate free this good man who devoted himself to God. Instead, you insisted that Pilate free a murderer. 15People, you actually killed the Author of Life. Well, God raised him from the dead. We saw it with our own eyes. 16We didn’t heal this man. Faith in Jesus healed him. This man is well and strong for one reason only: trust in Jesus. You see the results.17“Brothers, you didn’t know any better when you became accessories to the execution of Jesus. Your leaders didn’t know any better, either. 18Yet this is how God fulfilled prophecies about how Christ would suffer. 19Turn away from sinful living. If you do that, God will forgive you and erase your sins. 20Then, God’s presence in your life will reinvigorate you. In time, he’ll send the Messiah for you—Jesus. 21Meanwhile, Jesus will stay in heaven until it’s time for God to restore his creation. The prophets spoke about this long ago. 22Moses said, ‘The Lord your God is going to give you a prophet. Like me, that man will come from your own people. Whatever that man tells you to do, you need to do it. 23Anyone who doesn’t do as told will become dead to us—no longer a part of us.’ [5]
24“From the time of Samuel, every prophet we’ve had has talked about what’s happening right now. 25Gentlemen, you are the sons of these prophets. You are written into the contract agreement that God himself made with your ancestors. God told Abraham, ‘Your descendants are going to make this world a better place for everyone.’ [6] 26Jesus has done just that. He’s the prophet Moses was talking about. God sent Jesus to you first, to make the world a better place for you. Jesus did this by teaching you to reject your sinful way of living.”
