Living in the Image of God M05S03
In an interaction with the Sanhedrin (council of Jewish rulers, elders and teachers of the law), Peter and John explained their healing a lame man as an act of compassion motivated by care and accomplished by the name and power of Jesus. That is, human actions of Peter and John by faith of the name and power of Jesus led to a miracle that healed the lame man. Their explanation conveys a message: that an act of compassion motivated by care of the needy fulfills God’s purpose and will be accomplished by the name and power of God. Therefore, in a call to compassion (when you are alerted to provide goods or service to benefit others in need), focus on doing what you can humanly do; because your task belongs to God and he will work through your human effort to accomplish his goal.
We discuss Peter-and-John explanation of their healing a lame man: to understand their message of compassion, that an act of compassion motivated by care of the needy fulfills God’s purpose and will be accomplished by the name and power of God. Peter and John were brought to the Sanhedrin (council of Jewish rulers, elders and teachers of the law) to explain their healing a lame man [Acts 4:7]: “By what power or what name did you do this?”
They explained that the healing was “an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame” [Acts 4:9] and accomplished “by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth” [Acts 4:10]. That is, human actions of Peter and John by faith of the name and power of Jesus led to a miracle that healed the lame man.
Their explanation to the Sanhedrin conveys a message that an act of compassion is a task of God and will be accomplished by the name and power of God, through a combination of human effort and miracles. Therefore, in a call to compassion, focus on doing what you can humanly do, because your task belongs to God and he will work through your human effort to accomplish his goal.
As we discuss previously under Managing Expectation in a Call to Compassion (M05S02), a call to compassion means that God alerts a person to the need of another and calls the person to recognize the need and needy, care about the needy, commit to providing goods or service to alleviate the need, and persevere in seeking to do so. Peter and John recognized the lame man’s need, cared about him, committed to doing what they could to alleviate his need, and persevered by faith of the name and power of God to accomplish the objective.
We discuss their interactions with the man as a series of step-by-step human actions that culminated in a miracle healing of the lame man.
Peter and John Interactions with the Sanhedrin
Peter and John were brought to the Sanhedrin to explain their healing a lame man. The Sanhedrin was a council of Jewish rulers, elders and teachers of the law [Acts 4:5–6]: “The next day the rulers, the elders and the teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and others of the high priest’s family.”
The Sanhedrin asked Peter and John to explain by what power or what name they healed the man [Acts 4:7]: “By what power or what name did you do this?” Peter explained that what they did was an act of compassion for the lame man, and was accomplished by the name and power of Jesus Christ of Nazareth [Acts 4:9–10]: “If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.”
Compassion for Lame Man by Peter and John
Their explanation of the healing conveys a message regarding compassion. To understand the message, we describe Peter and John interactions with the lame man as a series of action steps.
- Peter and John recognized the man’s need.
- They cared about the man.
- They committed to providing what they could to alleviate his need.
- They understood the man expected money.
- They also understood they could not offer him money.
- They realized that they could offer him healing in the name of Jesus.
- They explained to the man that what they could offer him differed from what he expected.
- They extended a helping hand and the man accepted, knowing the hand was not an offer of money.
- They pulled the man up.
- Instantly, the man’s feet and ankles became strong and manifested his healing.
The actions in steps 1–9 represent human effort by Peter and John. The action in step 10 is a miracle that God performed as an outcome of their human effort. Peter explained that everything they did (i.e., all their human effort and the miracle), was done by the name and power of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. That is, human actions of Peter and John by faith of the name and power of Jesus led to a miracle that healed the lame man.
By the Name and Power of God
As we discuss previously under Managing Expectation in a Call to Compassion (M05S02), an act of compassion begins with God alerting a person to the need of another. He calls the person (the intended benefactor) to recognize the need and needy, care about the needy, commit to providing goods or service to alleviate the need, and persevere in seeking to do so. Peter and John recognized the lame man’s need, cared about him, committed to doing what they could to alleviate his need, and persevered by faith of the name and power of God to accomplish the objective.
Their explanation to the Sanhedrin conveys a message that an act of compassion is a task of God and will be accomplished by the name and power of God, through a combination of human effort and miracles. Therefore, as the intended benefactor in a call to compassion, focus on doing what you can humanly do, because your task belongs to God and he will work through your human effort to accomplish his goal.
Faith, Human Effort, and Miracles
To understand Peter and John message of compassion based on their healing a lame man, recall Christ teaching based on his interactions with disciples during two storms on the Sea of Galilee [Individual Responsibility Regarding Faith and Human Effort (M04S09)]. In the first event, the disciples panicked and shifted their attention from human effort to pray for a miracle. Jesus released a miracle to end their ordeal and scolded them for lack of faith. In contrast, during the second event, the disciples focused on human effort. Jesus encouraged them to keep working and released a miracle to end their ordeal.
The interactions convey a message of human relationship with God regarding faith, prayer, and human effort. Your battle belongs to God if your task is motivated by seeking to fulfill God’s purpose, your target outcome is consistent with his purpose, and your methods and approach are consistent with Living in the Image of God. Then, focus on doing what you can humanly do, because he will work through your effort to guide you to victory when and how he chooses.
Summary of What We Learned
In an interaction with the Sanhedrin (council of Jewish rulers, elders and teachers of the law), Peter and John explained their healing a lame man as an act of compassion motivated by care and accomplished by the name and power of Jesus. That is, human actions of Peter and John by faith of the name and power of Jesus led to a miracle that healed the lame man.
Their explanation conveys a message: that an act of compassion motivated by care of the needy fulfills God’s purpose and will be accomplished by the name and power of God. Therefore, in a call to compassion (when you are alerted to provide goods or service to benefit others in need), focus on doing what you can humanly do; because your task belongs to God and he will work through your human effort to accomplish his goal.