Lessons From A Lame Man

Text: Acts 3:1

1  Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.

2  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;

3  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

1.   So many times our lameness don't allow us to enjoy the situation that God had placed us in.

a.   Lameness equals dependence on people.  When you find yourself depending on other people, you are lame.

b.   People don't necessarily beg for money, but they beg for other things, like acceptance, like worth, like validation.

             i.        They are searching for something that they can only get in the presence of God. But because they don't really have a relationship with God, they come looking for it in other people.

            ii.        The man in our text is being carried. The lame always want you to carry them, to do for them. Then, when they don't do for them, they blame you for their plight.

c.   In Verse 4, Peter says look on us, that means PAY ATTENTION.

d.   Verse 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.

             i.        They said, "We don't have what you're looking for."

            ii.        Stop trying to give people what they want, because the lame will get, and then move on to the next person who will meet their needs.

          iii.        A lame person doesn't ever want you to bring Jesus into the equation, because Jesus will challenge a person to change, and the lame don't want to change.

e.   John 5:1-7

1  After this there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

2  Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches.

3  In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water.

4  For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had.

5  And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.

6  When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto him, Wilt thou be made whole?

7  The impotent man answered him, Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before me.

             i.        When He asked the man if he would be made whole, he began to give Jesus excuses. The lame don't want to be responsible for their actions.

            ii.        Lameness brings a certain security, because we can blame our behavior on our infirmity. For the lame, every challenge to change is always met with an excuse why they can't.

          iii.        We use our past to keep us from being healed in the present. We hide behind our condition, because it keeps us from having expectations placed upon us.

          iv.        The lame love being around other lame people, because they don't challenge each other.

           v.        Why is it that nobody by the pool turned around to help anybody else get in? Because lame people only care for themselves.

2.   Will you be made whole? Forget about where you been, what you been through, who hurt you, the question is, DO YOU WANT TO BE HEALED?

a.   The answer to this question is always the same:

b.   John 5:8  Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed, and walk.

             i.        The man immediately got up and was healed. He stopped making excuses.

c.   Acts 3:7  And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.

             i.        Peter could not have lifted that man if he didn't want to get up. If you don't want to get up, nobody can make you get up.

d.   8  And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.

             i.        Notice he didn't receive strength until he responded to what they were doing.

            ii.        You keep looking through the eyes of your lameness and that's why you can't change. Your lameness will make you think that you can't do it.

e.   "Arise and walk" means the responsibility to walk is yours.

f.    You need to stop blaming everybody else for your refusal to walk. We all have lameness, and it's not physical, it's mostly spiritual.

3.   The problem with the lame, is they need confirmation before they move.

a.   Faith is following God without knowing the outcome.

             i.        Imagine if Noah didn't follow blindly. If Noah would have waited until he felt a raindrop in his nose, it would have been too late.

b.   Today, we need Christians to move. Stop contemplating, stop asking yourselves if this is okay. You need to get up and move!

c.   This is our time, our moment, men died for us to have this moment. And the church is distracted from our purpose.

d.   The lame say they would rather blame other people and their past, because then they can expect others to give them what they lack.

e.   God is trying to break some of our spirits, so that we will stop using excuses and making complaints for why we are not doing what we should be.

f.    Instead of being a need-meeter, some become a need-METER. The lame can become a meter for what needs someone ELSE can meet.

             i.        If you are a need-meter you will never grow, and always be stuck at the "gate called Beautiful" but because you are so lame, you can't even see the beauty, because everything that you see is based on your lameness.

Because Jesus was a need-MEETER, He was able to love the disciples although He knew that all they knew they would turn their backs on Him.