Verses 2-5 "And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple; Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms. 4 And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us. 5 And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them."

A. "When seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple....

1. This was an obvious place for a beggar. People would naturally be in a more charitable mood, going in to worship God.

B. "And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John..."

1. This is another example of a figure of speech. Peter and John didn't literally fasten their eyes on the man. The looked intently upon him.

2. It is obvious that the man expected an alm from them.

A. "Silver and gold have I none"

1. Did this mean that Peter and John were penniless? Probably not. Acts 2:45 shows that the apostles were stewards over the funds given by member of the church.

2. May possibly mean that they either had none with them, or just another way of stating that they had something far better for him than money that would only perpetuate him in his present condition.

B. "In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk."

1. Means "by the authority of Jesus of Nazareth."

a. We are to do all things in the name (by the authority) of Jesus. See Colossians 3:17.

b. Peter was clearly showing the source of the power that was to proceed from him.

2. This was just one of many miracles done by the apostles during this period of the confirmation of the word and building of the church. See 2:43.

3. Walk here literally means "walk around." Peter was insuring beforehand that no one, not even the enemies of Jesus, could deny the validity of the miracle. See ch. 4:16.

A. "And he took him by the right hand...and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength"

1. The man didn't have to wait for improvement. Neither did he have to wait for a gradual cure from God. It was immediate.

2. Many faith healers require people to "wait upon God" for an eventual healing, thus demonstrating that they are fakes

B. "And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God."

1. The healing was instantaneous. He was immediately able to walk as if he were never ill.

2. Notice Luke's interest in the fine details of this healing. Being a physician, he identifies the problem, weakness in the feet and ankle bones. He understood that this was a divine healing and not attributable to some physical cause.

a. There was no doubt. The man started not only walking, but leaping.

3. The natural emotions by the man was that of rejoicing and praising God.

. a. This seems to show that faith was present in the man. He understood where the miracle came from. It didn't come from Peter and John, but from God.

A. "And all the people saw him walking and praising God"

1. Since he would be such a fixture of the area of the temple it was natural that people recognized him as lame. Him jumping and walking and praising God for the miracle would be immediately noticed by the temple worshppers.

B. "And they knew that it was he which sat for alms at the Beautiful gate of the temple...."

1. He was well known as lame, they couldn't understand what had happen to him to give him his complete use of his limbs.

C. "all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon's greatly wondering."

1. Solomon's porch was on the east side of the temple; it was a covered colommade and overlooked the Kedron valley.

2. Was called Solomon's porch because fragments of Solomon's temple was used to build it.

3. This was obviously creating a great stir. Up to this time the people were still unaware of how the lame man was healed. They were not privy to the details of the matter.

A. "And when Peter saw it...."

1. Brother Boles (G. A. Commentary on Acts) divided Peter's sermon into three parts.

a. The miracle was the work of God to glorify Jesus.

b. The Jews denied Jesus from ignorance, but he fulfilled prophecy.

c. Therefore they should repent and be saved by the gospel.

B. "Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why look ye so earnestly on us......."

1. Peter and John wanted to crowd to understand that the this was not a carnival show that they had devised to draw attention to themselves. It was not by that action or righteousness that they were able to heal the man.

A. "The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers"

1. This was the statement that God used when He spoke to Moses out the burning bush. See Exodus 3:6. In other words the miracle that was wrought was by the power of Jehovah.

2. Peter uses this statement to begin to lay the groundwork for the fact that (1) This undeniable miracle came from God, which is obvious and (2) That God and His work is expressed in Jesus Christ, who was raised and (3) That it would be necessary to be obedient to this same Jesus in order to have their guilt and sin washed away.

B. "hath glorified his Son Jesus."

1. Here was the next step. It was not only through Jehovah God. His power was to be expressed in Jesus, His glorfied Son.

2. It is quite possible that glorify here refers to the miracle that was just performed.

C. "whom ye delivered up...."

1. It was true that the Jewish mob swayed Pilate, who was desireous of finding a pretext to let Jesus go.

2. Pilate clearly desired to release Jesus. See Luke 23:16-20

A. "But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you."

1. Here he gives the great contrast between Jesus and Barabbas.

a. Jesus was the Holy One. - Most assuredly has reference to the Messiah. Psalm 16:10 used the term in reference to the resurrection of the Messiah, while Isaiah 43:3 uses it in reference to Jehovah.

b. He also was the Just one - One who suffered and died for others sins, not his own. Jesus had been charged with blasphemy by the Sanhedrin and with sedition before Pilate. Both, of course, were untrue.

2. The contrast to Barabbas is obvious. Barabbas was not the annointed of God. He was not even innocent, but guilty of capitol crimes. Likely Pilate, desiring to find an excuse to release Jesus, offered one whom he thought was so wicked that the crowd would desire the freedon of Jesus.

B. "And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses."

1. They had chosen Barabbas and yelled for the death of Jesus.

2. Peter, just as in Acts 2, declares the central fact of the gospel, that God raised up Jesus from the grave.

3. The apostles were all witnesses of the resurrection of Christ, in that they had been with the Lord numerous times after the resurrection and witnessed his ascension back in Heaven.

a. Was a qualification of an apostle. See Acts 1:22.

A. "And by his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong"

1. It was by the authority of the risen Christ that the miracle was done.

2. There was also faith in the risen Christ's power on the part of the man.

a. It took a measure of faith on the part of the lame man, to reach out his hand for Peter to take hold to help him up.

B. And now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers."

1. There was a lever of guilt for the people that was lesser that the rulers

2. The is no doubt that the leaders understood far better than the people that Jesus was the messiah. Jesus said as much in a parable. See Mark 12:7. Coffman in his commentary makes the point that the ignorance here with the leaders might be ignorance that Jesus, even though they understood that he was the messiah, was God come in the flesh and the one to judge them on the last day.

3. The masses were swayed by the leaders and they ignorantly chose to kill Jesus, rather than accept him.

4. Peter was saying that God was offering them an opportunity to accept the one whom they had ignorantly put to death.

a. Wasn't saying their ignorance was an excuse. Just the opposite. Even though they were ignorant, there still had to be a price paid for their sins. It would be Jesus.

b. The New Testament teaches that ignorance of the gospel is not an excuse.

(1) See Acts 17:30-31

C. "But those things, which God before had showed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled."

1. This is another key theme of apostolic preaching, that Jesus was not put to death for nothing, it was the pre-ordained plan of God.

2. See Isaiah 53; 1 Peter 1:18-20

A. This is the same terms of pardon that Peter enumerated in chapter two.

1. The terms are exact as in 2:38.

2. "Repent ye" - repent

3. "and be converted" (more accurate "turn again") - be baptized.

4. "that your sins my be blotted out" - for the remission of sins

5. "when the times of refreshing come from the presence of the Lord" - receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

B. "Repent ye therefore, and be converted"

1. repentance - a change of heart that leads to a change of conduct.

2. "and be converted" should really be translated "turn again" which shows the sinner active and not passive in conversion.

3. Notice further about "and be converted" ("turn again" ASV)

a. At what point do we leave the world and enter into a relationship with Christ. In other words, at what point are we converted or turn again, from the world.

b. See Acts 22:16; Romans 6:1-3

c. Since the Bible recognizes the point of baptism as the time when a new life is begun, and where forgiveness of sins takes place, it would be logical to assume that the point of conversion ("turning again") would be baptism.

C. "that your sins may be blotted out"

1. "Comes from the practice of creditors charging their debtors, and when the debt is paid, the record is cancelled or blotted out, removed from the record. The word used here refers to the practice of writing such records on tablets covered with wax, and then by inverting the stylus, or instrument of writing, smoothing the wax again with the blunt end, thus removing every trace of the writing." - New Testament History

D. "when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;"

1. Refers to act on God's part of granting pardon when the alien sinner repents and is converted.

2, "times" seems to suggest a continual period of cleansing from sins, which is exactly what 1 John 1:7 teaches.

A. "And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you"

1. How was Jesus preached to them before?

2. In all likelihood he is referring to the prophets, for he refers to them in verse 21 and again when he refers to the words of Moses.

B. "Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things..."

1. Jesus ascended to Heaven but the Scriptures teach that he will come back again.

2. The "restitution of all things" likely refers to the time when the relationship of man toward God which will return to it's pure, sinless, pristeen state, as it was in the garden of Eden before the fall.

3. It is not necessary to understand this in the context of some millinial kingdom, but simply that Jesus will remain in heaven until the close of the Christian age.

C. "which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."

1. The Christian age was spoken of by the prophets of old, beginning by the Lord himself in Genesis 3:15, repeated to Abraham in Genesis 22:18, then throughtout the Old Testament up to the coming of Christ.

A. "For Moses truly said unto the fathers...."

1. Found in Deuteronomy 18:15-19

2. Authorship of Deuteronomy is clearly attributed to Moses.

B. "A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you..."

1. The Jews clearly understood this passage as being messianic.

2. See concerning John the baptist in John 1:21ff

3. A prophet is one who speaks by inspiration as he delivers the message of God.

a. See John 12:48-49

4. Jesus was like unto Moses in that he would have certain qualities similar to Moses. Both had an exalted parentage, Moses by adoption and Jesus by his eternal nature. Both were rejected by their people yet would rule over them. Both would usher in a new covenant. Both would be great lawgivers.

C. “And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people."

1. Obedience to Jesus would not be optional, those who would not obey would be cut off from God’s people. This suggests the truth that those fleshly Jews who refused Jesus would lose their status as the people of God. Obedience to the gospel is the only way any Jew, or Gentile, will enter into a special relationship with the Father.

2. See Romans 11:26-27

A. “Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after”

1. Samuel is mentioned by name likely because he is thought to be the first of the important of the prophets, the first great one after Moses.

2. For Samuel’s prophecy of Jesus see 2 Samuel 7:12-16.

3. Coffman says that there are some 333 different prophecies concerning the coming of the messiah.

B. “as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days.”

1. The “these days” would include the coming, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus. It would certainly include the coming of the Christian age as told by the prophet Joel.

A. “Ye are the children of the prophets”

1. They were the descendants of those same prophets who spoke all the prophecies about Jesus.

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