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Today's Little Lift
by Jim Bullington
A STARK CONTRAST
The miracle was undeniable. There the man stood! In stark contrast, someone had carried him there a little while earlier. Now he stood and leaped and walked! Now he ascribed glory to God as he clung tenaciously to the ones who had a part in his healing (Acts 3:1-9). This unexpected happening had ignited the curiosity of the crowds coming into and going out of the temple and “all the people ran together to them in the porch which is called Solomon's, greatly amazed.” (Acts 3:11b). The unrestrained joy of the man could not be suppressed and his attraction to Peter and John, his benefactors, was instantly apparent to anyone within earshot. What an opportunity for a gospel preacher!
Interestingly, the first thing Peter did was to tell what had not happened. “Why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?” (Acts 3:12b). We are not responsible! Then He recounted two recent events that had occurred in which some of his hearers had been involved. These events were not done in a corner. They were well known happenings. They had occurred in this very city of Jerusalem only a few days earlier. Roman officials, Jewish officials, commoners, the socially elite, the educated, the religious, the uneducated, and the irreligious had witnessed the events. The public records could be sought and eye-witnesses could be consulted to verify their occurrence.
Within the two events which Peter cited there are stark contrasts, as stark as the contrast between the impotent lame man and the energized spokesperson for God who was leaping and praising God before the multitudes. This installment will serve to introduce the two events which Peter cited and to emphasize the stark contrasts that were involved in them. The first event was this – God glorified Jesus while they (Peter’s hearers) denied Him and delivered Him over to the hands of ungodly men (Acts 3:13). The second – God resurrected the Prince of Life after they had willingly released a murderer and demanded the death of the Just One! (Acts 3:14,15). Two more contrary sets of events could hardly be imagined. While heaven moved to exalt the Messiah, the earth, almost with unanimous voice, cried out, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!”
This theme will be continued, but these events corroborate God’s statement through Isaiah as he wrote, "’For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,’ says the Lord. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.’” (Isaiah 55:8,9 ). Certainly the events of Calvary draw the contrast clearly between the ways of God as compared to the ways of men. The despised thing was the beloved thing; the One worthy of death was to become the source of life!
As human beings prone to color things the way we want to see them, we must ever be aware that God does not see as we see nor does He act as we act. He is the higher standard from whom we ought to take counsel in all spiritual matters. The contrast between the ways of men as compared to God is as sharp as the one between the lame man before his healing and the man afterwards!
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