Acts 3 explained: A Lame Man Walks Again

A beggar at the gate (vv. 1-5)

Three in the afternoon was one of the regular prayer times at the temple, so crowds passed the spot where this man, lame from birth, was laid daily to beg. The gate called Beautiful was probably a grand, richly decorated entrance, though its exact location is debated.

Healed in Jesus' name (vv. 6-10)

Peter has no money, but acting "in the name of Jesus" means acting with Jesus' authority rather than his own, and he lifts the man up by the hand. Everyone knew this beggar, so the healing could not be quietly explained away.

Not by our power (vv. 11-16)

In a covered walkway along the temple named after King Solomon, Peter tells the gathering crowd that the credit belongs to Jesus, not to him or John. He calls Jesus God's "servant," a title echoing the servant in the book of Isaiah, and sets the crowd's rejection of Jesus before the Roman governor Pilate against God raising him to life.

You acted without knowing (vv. 17-21)

Peter, himself Jewish, speaks to a Jerusalem crowd connected to the recent events, and says they and their leaders acted in ignorance. He urges them to repent, meaning to change direction and turn to God, and says Jesus remains in heaven until God restores everything, though what that will look like is not spelled out.

What the prophets foretold (vv. 22-26)

Peter quotes Moses, who said God would one day raise up a prophet like him, and God's promise to Abraham that through his descendants all peoples would be blessed. Peter applies both to Jesus, saying he was sent to these hearers first to bless them by turning them from wrongdoing.

Key verse: Acts 3:16

Where Christians differ

Christians differ on whether the "times of refreshing" and the restoring of everything in verses 19 to 21 point mainly to a future renewal of the world when Jesus returns, possibly tied to the Jewish people as a whole turning to him, or mainly to blessings already available to anyone who turns to God now.

Something to think about

Does acting without understanding change how responsible someone is for harm they helped cause?