May 31, 2015 · Acts 3:1–10

At The Beautiful Gate

One day Peter and John were going to the temple at the time of prayer, at three in the afternoon. Now a man who was lame from birth was being carried to the temple, the gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those who were going into the temple courts. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money.

“I know that sometimes, like Jesus, God does not let the cup pass from people. But I also know that we're called to pray, and to hope, and to accept that God can do things. He can intervene, and we need to pray for that. You need to hope for that. See, the early church didn't know. They were probably wondering, what would happen when Jesus left them physically? Could they survive? Would they be destroyed? What about the healings? What about the redemption? And in this chance encounter outside the temple of God, all these questions get answered. The name of Jesus is powerful. It continues to work. People continue to be healed. Those who feel that they're never able to enter the presence of God are brought in leaping, praising. It's a hope, I think, that the church we cannot let go of, right? We start to lower expectations. We just turn our problems into financial figures. Our Jesus is bigger than that. He might not be here physically, but he's still hospitable. He still cares for the outcast and for the ostracized. He might not be able to be gazed upon with our physical eyes, but he's still missional, still reaching after people. He's still chasing after people. We might not be able to touch him with our hands, but he's still discipling. He's still teaching us. He's helping us to look at the world in new ways. And so I want us to accept hope, trust, cry out to God for our hearts, for our beautiful gates. Shall we pray for you now? … Lord, we come to you.”