Discover His heart: His miracles will change the hearts of men
Governmental elections bring the political parties out in full force. They use every method that is legal, and otherwise, to get their candidates elected and do this to the point of ad nauseam. Television ads, phone calls, mass mailings, and radio spots interrupt our lives each day and are only limited by the number of dollars available to spend. The fervor rises to new heights when a candidate is able to stir up some dirt on his or her opponent. When this happens, the candidate’s political machine revs up to a damage-control mode, and the country’s brightest and best political minds devise a plan to keep lost votes to a minimum.
Watching all this take place is entertaining, to say the least, and would be funny if it wasn’t so very serious. The same was true of some damage control that the Sanhedrin, the High Council of religious leaders, was engaged in after the healing of a certain lame man in our reading today. You gotta love it.
Peter and John, now full of the Holy Spirit, were on their way to worship at the Temple when God interrupted their journey with their first recorded miracle. God chose to do this at the Temple gate called Beautiful, the most used and well-known gate of the Temple, and He decided to heal a well-known lame beggar at the gate. Obviously, God was out to stir up a little trouble for His opponents.
It wasn’t a quiet little healing to where Peter and John could discreetly proceed on their way to worship. No, the healed beggar “jumped up, stood on his feet, and began to walk! Then, walking, leaping, and praising God, he went into the Temple with them.” (3:8) The noise and commotion, as well as the apparent miracle, had drawn a crowd, and Peter, the preacher that he was, could not resist presenting the message of Jesus Christ. In a matter of minutes, a couple of thousand men plus women and children were added to the church.
This was no political rally, but that was somewhat how the High Council saw it. One would think that religious leaders would be interested in a bona fide miracle, but they were more interested in who was getting the credit for it – and that would be Jesus. Now it was time for damage control. After interviewing Peter and John, this was their concern and strategy, “What should we do with these men?” they asked each other. “We can’t deny that they have performed a miraculous sign, and everybody in Jerusalem knows about it. But to keep them from spreading their propaganda any further, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in Jesus’ name again.” (4:16-17)
“What should we do with these men?” During a political season, I imagine that men in backrooms ponder this same question regarding Christians and their values. They will devise schemes to dilute and nullify our influence in electing men and women who will govern our nation with Godly values and laws. But Peter and John were not damage controlled, and neither should we be!
“As soon as they were freed, Peter and John returned to the other believers and told them what the leading priests and elders had said. When they heard the report, all the believers lifted their voices together in prayer to God…O Lord, hear their threats, and give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word. Stretch out your hand with healing power; may miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” (29-30) Then the Holy Spirit came and shook up the place, and the Church was on fire! With His fire in the house, no one was worried about the enemy and its damage control.
Moving Forward: I pray those who oppose our message will be threatened enough to ask, “What should we do with these Christians?” I pray we will have the boldness of Peter and John to speak for our values and that all believers will lift their voices together in prayer to God because that is what will make a difference in the hearts of men. And, we’ll take some of that fire!
Tomorrow @ Hebrews 8-10
Phyllis Benigas 