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His Name Through Faith In His Name Acts 3:6 Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. The man was instantly healed. He entered the temple with Peter and John and wouldn't let go of them as he walked, leaping and praising God. The crowd at the temple was composed of many who had cried, "crucify Him," just a few days earlier. They came near and began to inquire, "Isn't this the fellow that we passed everyday at the gate of the temple? Wasn't he crippled? What's happened? A Perfect Opportunity for Peter to Preach and Preach He Did. Don't look at us like we're something special. We're just men like yourselves. We don't have any special power or holiness in ourselves. He proclaimed that God had glorified His Son Jesus, whom they had denied and delivered to Pilate to be crucified. They had denied the Holy One and the Just and desired that a murderer be released in His stead. You killed the Prince of Life but we are witnesses that God has raised from the dead. Acts 3:16 And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all. So what's in a name? For many of us, not too much. For the name of Jesus? Everything! The name of Jesus denotes just who He is. He is the Son of God, the eternal I AM. He is Wonderful, a Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father and the Prince of Peace ((Isaiah 9:6). His name is the name above every name . It is a name above all power might and dominion (Ephesians 1:21; Philippians 2:9) It is the only name given under heaven that contains salvation (Acts 4:12). The name of Jesus speaks of His personal character. Matchless! The name of Jesus was established by His mighty works. Who else could walk on the water and rebuke the storm. Who else could turn water into wine and feed five thousand with just a little bread and fish? Who else was raised from the dead and elevated to the throne of heaven? Who else could claim that all of the Deity dwells in His body? No one, and with a resume like that comes authority. At the mention of the name of Jesus, hell trembles and heaven stands ready to act. When we exercise faith in the name of Jesus we know that heaven will respond. Peter said that yes, they had crucified Jesus, but they did it through ignorance. God's mercy and grace was being extended in spite of their past deeds (That has never changed. his mercy is still abundant today). It was time for these folks to repent and accept Jesus as their Messiah. Peter reminded them the prophesies concerning Jesus had all been fulfilled. Moses had written of Him and said that any who would not receive Him would be destroyed (vs. 23). Jesus reiterated this when He said that He was the way, the truth and the life and that no man could come to the Father except by Him (John 14:6). He also was emphatic that the unbelievers would be damned (Mark 16:16). The temple hierarchy could see that the crowd was being swayed by Peter's preaching. Imagine these charlatans preaching that a man had risen from the dead? They had the audacity to preach the resurrection from the dead in the name of Jesus. They put Peter and John into the lockup, but they were a little late. Five thousand new souls had believed and been born into the kingdom of God (Acts 4:1-4). I ask myself, "what is so different now in our modern church age, compared to this primitive early church?" Here are some of my thoughts. Perhaps you have some also? I would be happy to hear them from you. The apostles had seen Calvary. But they had also seen the risen Christ. Peter and John had raced each other to the tomb and Thomas was offered the opportunity to put his hand into the Lord's side. They had also seen the ascension and heard the Lord's commission to go into all the world and preach the gospel. They also had heard the angel's proclamation that this Jesus whom they saw being caught up to heaven would return in like manner, and they expected that His return would be soon. This was church 101. The gospel they preached was not how to get rich at the expense of the stripes on Jesus' back. Nor was it some motivational seminar, etc. etc. It was the death burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, His ascension to heaven's throne and His soon return. Nothing else mattered. Can we say the same today? We’ll continue with this story in Acts 4 next week. "Our flag symbolizes our taxes," he said. "We get red when we talk about them, white when we get our tax bill, and blue after we pay them." "That's the same with us," the American said, "only we see stars, too" Keep Looking Up! Don and Marie Spooner About Him! Ministries Your thoughts and Inquiries Contact@about-him.com Subscribe to this devotional? Subscribe@about-him.com
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