Acts 3:1-3

Acts 3:1-3

And Peter and John were going up into the temple upon the ninth hour of prayer.  And some man – while existing lame out of his mother’s womb – was being carried aloft, whom they were putting according to a day by the door of the temple – the one being said “timely” – to ask for compassion from the ones who go into the temple.  Who, after seeing Peter and John while being about to be into the temple, was interrogating to take compassion.

Thoughts for Today:

First Thought:

Peter and John are in the position to meet this lame beggar because they are going about their regular religious practices.  They didn’t set out to meet this beggar, they set out to simply worship God.  Yet God uses their faithful religious obedience in an unexpected way.

Why is it hard to be faithful in obedience?  What obstacles do the faithful face?  Why do you think God uses the faithful moreso than the sporadically faithful or even the unfaithful?

Second Thought:

The lame beggar’s friends are also faithful.  They are faithful to their service to the beggar as a response to God’s love.  They have an unsung role in this story, but the truth is that if the friends hadn’t brought the beggar, he wouldn’t have been there to meet Pater and John.

Is it hard to play the background role?  What can we learn from this story about how to be faithful even if it feels like we aren’t starring in God’s plan?

Third Thought:

The beggar initiates the encounter by begging from Peter and John.  The beggar cries out for anything that Peter and John might be willing to hand out.

How is this beggar like the human being before finding God?

Passage for Tomorrow: Acts 3:4-7