A few times in the past, I have mentioned the ancient writing style, or literary device, known as “chaiastic structure.” Sometimes this way of writing was used to record a whole book. Other times it was just used as a way to structure stories or make individual points. Chaiastic structure begins with the first point, and then makes the second, and then proceeds to the main, or central point. Then the second point is repeated, and finally the first point is also reiterated.
This way of writing serves to help reinforce each of the points. It also highlights the main point, which stands alone in the middle of the passage or story. It appears as though Luke used this way of writing to tell us about what happened one day when Peter and John went to the temple. This is recorded in Acts chapter three. By the way, this doesn't mean that Luke made up these events. It just means he is telling us the story in such a way as to highlight certain points. In fact, it isn't clear to me that Luke deliberately structured the story like this. It may be, actually, that the Holy Spirit arranged the events and words of that day so that the message would be so clear to all who heard about it later.
As Peter and John approach the temple, they encounter a lame beggar by one of the temple gates. Luke tells us that this man spent a lot of time begging in this particular area – so much so, that most of the people who were there that day, recognized him. He is a beggar by necessity and profession, and so he asks Peter and John for money. Most likely he held out some sort of cup or container towards everyone who went by; probably he did this in a repetitious, impersonal and hopeless sort of way. One interesting thought is that Peter and John have almost certainly passed this man before. Acts 2 tells us that they were in the temple courts very frequently at this point in time. They've never paid much attention to him in the past. But for some reason, this time, they actually notice him. Peter says something that I believe contains a profound truth (Acts 3:6):
“I have neither silver nor gold, but what I have, I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, get up and walk!”
This is the heart of the first point in Acts 3: Jesus wants to bless people through his followers. And we need to be very clear on what this means. It does not mean, Jesus wants you to bless people. No, Jesus himself seeks to bless people – he wants to do it through you – but the blessing comes from Him, not you. Too often, we see the lack of our own resources, and then say, “well, I can't bless this person.” However, Peter and John do not have any resources of their own that can make much of a difference in this man's life. That doesn't bother them. They know that Jesus wants to bless the man and they know that Jesus can bless the man. So Peter speaks out in faith, and trusts Jesus to provide the blessing. He can bless others through us too.
The result is startling. The lame man is healed. Of course, he is ecstatic. Not only does he love the idea of being whole for the first time in his life, he also starts trying out his new legs – jumping and leaping. And with every leap, he praises God. Naturally, this draws some attention to him and to Peter and John. Pretty soon a crowd gathers, and they recognize the lame man. This isn't the type of miracle that is open to a lot of doubt and dispute – they all knew who the man was. They knew his condition. They'd been seeing him there for years. And so they were astonished.
Peter sees the crowd and begins to speak. He starts by making the second point in this passage – the miracle and the blessing that comes with it, is all about faith in Jesus. You notice Peter doesn't say: “God has blessed me to be able to provide healing for this fellow today.” That's often how we credit God these days. We say “God made me able to do it.” But not Peter. He says, “I didn't do it at all. This miracle came from Jesus Christ, through faith in his name.”
Peter keeps talking, and he gets down to the heart of the matter. He says basically this: “You denied Jesus, you killed him, when he was the source of all life. Therefore, repent, turn away from your stubborn ways so that your sins will be wiped out and seasons of refreshing may come from the Lord.” This message – that people have rejected Jesus, and they should repent and be forgiven – is the central point of Acts 3:1-26. That's not surprising, because it is the central point of the whole Bible. Since Adam and Eve, every single human being has rejected God, and every single sin has to be accounted for, by Jesus' crucifixion. He didn't have to die for his own sake. He died for our sins. So, in a very real sense, we are the ones who are responsible for his crucifixion – just as much as the Jews and Romans who put him to death. We killed him, because if we hadn't rejected God, he wouldn't have to die. It's true enough that if you were the only person in the world who would repent, Jesus would have chosen to die for you. But that also means that your sins alone were enough to kill Jesus.
This should be cause for true repentance. In this day and age, people often acknowledge their sins pretty freely. We say “I'm no saint,” or “I never claimed to be perfect.” That's fine. But that attitude is not repentance. What Peter is saying, is that we need to approach God with humility and sorrow and a willingness to turn away from sins, to turn away from rejecting God, to turn away from serving ourselves or serving anything at all except God. That is the essence of repentance: to turn away from everything except God. From that point on, everything else you receive or experience or do in life comes through God. If you have never repented like this, the time to do it is right now. When God sees that attitude in our hearts, his forgiveness and refreshing are immediately there for us.
In verse 21, Peter repeats the second point he made: it is all about faith in Jesus. This time he approaches the subject from the perspective of some of the Old Testament prophecies that Jesus fulfilled. He alludes to Isaiah 53 in verse18, and quotes Deuteronomy 18:15-18 in verses 22-23. as well as Genesis 12:3; 18:18 and 26:4 in verse 25. The point is, as before – this is all about faith in Jesus. The healing miracle is about faith in Jesus; the Old Testament is about faith in Jesus (verse 24); repentance and forgiveness is all about faith in Jesus.
Finally, we end up where we began. When Peter and John healed the lame man in Acts 3:6, it was because they knew that Jesus wanted to bless others through them. In Acts 3:25 Peter quotes something that God said to Abraham three times: “And in your seed, all the families of the earth will be blessed.” The “seed” spoken of here means “descendant” and it refers to Jesus. Through his people, starting with Abraham, Jesus wants to bless the whole world. In Genesis 12:2 God says very clearly to Abraham that he was supposed to be a blessing. Paul writes that we are the spiritual descendants of Abraham; our relationship with God is on the same basis as God's relationship with Abraham (Romans 4:11-16). Peter reiterates the idea here: like Abraham, we are supposed to be available to God, so that God can bless others through us.
There are all sorts of possible implications for us. The first and most important is repentance. If you have never turned away from everything else, and turned to God, that is the message for you here today. There is no other way to true life. Even those of us who have given our lives to Jesus, still need to periodically turn away from the things that clamor for our allegiance, and reiterate our desire for God to really be God in our lives.
For others, maybe the application here is about the centrality and importance of faith in Jesus. It is easy to get caught up in what Jesus does for us – like the people in Acts 3, who were excited by the miracle of healing. However, the point is not what he can do for us, but rather who he is, and living in relationship with him.
For me, one of the most powerful messages here is that I am supposed to allow Jesus to bless others through me. The blessing comes from Jesus, not my own strength. I shouldn't be judging my own resources to see if I have what it takes to be a blessing. Instead, I should be listening to the Holy Spirit, to see if he wants to work through me in any given situation. I need to be available to him for that.
Let the Holy Spirit speak to you today through this scripture.
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