In today’s passage, we read about the astonishment of the people who just witnessed Peter healing a beggar crippled since birth. The people who gathered around Peter and John could not believe what they saw. Like people today, they cannot believe that God could bring about a miracle in someone’s life. They would rather believe that somehow Peter and John possess magical powers rather than God. That is a consequence of spiritual blindness for those who does not know God. What did Peter do here? He used this opportunity to preach the Gospel to them. Peter understood that the people surrounding him needed healing as much as the lame beggar. Many do not realise it but their spiritual state has been crippled by sin and by their refusal to worship God.
When we are given an opportunity, it is our responsibility to point them towards Jesus. Peter was prepared to share the gospel in that instant. Often some of us are not prepared to share the Gospel when an opportunity presents himself. For example, we cannot think fast enough what to say or by the time you think about what you want to say, the opportunity to share is gone. In the youth discipleship ministry, we just had a message on sharing our personal testimonies. One of the main points was that we must have our testimony ready and this entails us knowing what to say and how to say it in a succinct but impactful way. One of the ways is practice sharing the gospel with your leaders, with your family or your friends. Sharing of one’s testimony can be the difference between a person turning to Christ or live the rest of his life not knowing God because someone failed to share the gospel. All of us are giving this duty to testify about God. So be prepared to always give an answer for the hope that you have. (1 Peter 3:15).
Peter preached boldly and courageously, not afraid of repercussions. Sometimes we fail to share our testimony or the gospel because we are afraid of rejection or afraid or negative impression it might cause. In this passage, Peter was direct in asking them to repent and turn to God so that they may be forgiven. Sometimes, we can skirt around the issue of sin and guilt because we are afraid people might get offended. But if we fail to let people know that we have all sinned before God, how does the gospel come in? There would be no need for a savior if we do not realise that all of us have sinned before a Holy and Righteous God. There is no good news without the bad news. The good news is this, our God is gracious and merciful. Jesus came and paid a debt that no one of us could have paid ourselves. Repent so your sins may be wiped away and times of refreshing may come from the Lord (v.19). This is the amazing grace that we need to tell the world. What an amazing sight it would be to see one commit their life to God that the Bible tells us that there is joy in heaven when one sinner repents.
Prayer:
Father, we pray for a desire to share Your truth for you have called us to make disciples. We ask for courage and boldness to share the gospel to those around us. We ask for divine opportunities to share your love, grace and mercy and also an obedient heart to share when the opportunity arises.
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