12 Seeing this, Kefa addressed the people: “Men of Isra’el! Why are you amazed at this? Or why do you stare at us as if we had made this man walk through some power or godliness of our own? 13 The God of Avraham, Yitz’chak and Ya‘akov, the God of our fathers,[a] has glorified his servant Yeshua — the same Yeshua you handed over and disowned before Pilate, even after he had decided to release him. 14 You denied the holy and innocent one, and instead asked for the reprieve of a murderer! 15 You killed the author of life!
“But God has raised him from the dead! Of this we are witnesses. 16 And it is through putting trust in his name that his name has given strength to this man whom you see and know. Yes, it is the trust that comes through Yeshua which has given him this perfect healing in the presence of you all.
17 “Now, brothers, I know that you did not understand the significance of what you were doing; neither did your leaders. 18 But this is how God fulfilled what he had announced in advance, when he spoke through all the prophets, namely, that his Messiah was to die.
19 “Therefore, repent and turn to God, so that your sins may be erased; 20 so that times of refreshing may come from the Lord’s presence; and he may send the Messiah appointed in advance for you, that is, Yeshua. 21 He has to remain in heaven until the time comes for restoring everything, as God said long ago, when he spoke through the holy prophets. 22 For Moshe himself said, ‘Adonai will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers. You are to listen to everything he tells you. 23 Everyone who fails to listen to that prophet will be removed from the people and destroyed.’[b] 24 Indeed, all the prophets announced these days, starting with Sh’mu’el and continuing through all who followed.
25 “You are the sons of the prophets; and you are included in the covenant which God made with our fathers when he said to Avraham, ‘By your seed will all the families of the earth be blessed.’[c] 26 So it is to you first that God has sent his servant whom he has raised up, so that he might bless you by turning each one of you from your evil ways.”[Footnotes:
Acts 3:13 Exodus 3:6, 15
Acts 3:23 Deuteronomy 18:15–16
Acts 3:25 Genesis 22:18; 26:4]
Thursday within the Octave of EasterWhy are you amazed at this? (Acts 3:12)
So Peter asks the crowd who have gathered upon seeing him heal a man who was crippled from birth. Why indeed are they amazed? All their lives they have been proclaiming that God is all-powerful, that he is a healer and deliverer. So why is it such a stretch actually to see God heal someone through the prayers of a group of faithful believers like themselves?
There is often a gap between what we proclaim to be true and what we actually count on in our own lives. We faithfully and passionately intercede for ailing friends and family members, but we may not have much expectation that they will get better—at least not in a dramatic way. Then if God does intervene and bring about a remarkable healing or some other kind of restoration, we are surprised. Looking at it logically, we could ask ourselves, “Why am I so surprised? Isn’t this what I asked for in the first place?”
It’s also true, as Peter proclaims, that God has far greater purposes than physical restoration. He wants to heal the broken relationship between himself and his people. He wants to unite them to himself and to each other in deeper and deeper ways. We shouldn’t limit our prayers only to physical healings; there are many other blessings our God wants to bestow on us.
So how should we pray? First, begin with the people right in front of you. Choose one or two people whose needs you know, both physical and spiritual, and commit to praying for them every day until you see results. Then as you pray, remind yourself that you are bringing these people to Jesus, the risen Lord. You’re not making a wish; you’re praying!
So often, we can think another person’s healing depends on our faith as intercessors. There is some truth to this, but it’s not the whole truth. God hears every prayer we breathe, and he responds. Finally, be sure to thank Jesus for his work in these people’s lives—even before you see anything happening. Tell him that you believe, and trust in his power to act.
Persist in prayer, and you too will be “amazed” (Acts 3:12)!
“Jesus, I trust in your love for me and for all those I meet.” Amen!
Psalm 8:2 (1) Adonai! Our Lord! How glorious
is your name throughout the earth!
The fame of your majesty
spreads even above the heavens!
5 (4) what are mere mortals, that you concern yourself with them;
humans, that you watch over them with such care?
6 (5) You made him but little lower than the angels,
you crowned him with glory and honor,
7 (6) you had him rule what your hands made,
you put everything under his feet —
8 (7) sheep and oxen, all of them,
also the animals in the wilds,
9 (8) the birds in the air, the fish in the sea,
whatever passes through the paths of the seas.
Luke 24:35 Then the two told what had happened on the road and how he had become known to them in the breaking of the matzah.
36 They were still talking about it when — there he was, standing among them! 37 Startled and terrified, they thought they were seeing a ghost. 38 But he said to them, “Why are you so upset? Why are these doubts welling up inside you? 39 Look at my hands and my feet — it is I, myself! Touch me and see — a ghost doesn’t have flesh and bones, as you can see I do.” 40 As he said this, he showed them his hands and feet. 41 While they were still unable to believe it for joy and stood there dumbfounded, he said to them, “Have you something here to eat?” 42 They gave him a piece of broiled fish, 43 which he took and ate in their presence.
44 Yeshua said to them, “This is what I meant when I was still with you and told you that everything written about me in the Torah of Moshe, the Prophets and the Psalms had to be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds, so that they could understand the Tanakh, 46 telling them, “Here is what it says: the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day; 47 and in his name repentance leading to forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed to people from all nations, starting with Yerushalayim. 48 You are witnesses of these things.
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