I want to bring to you this morning
a story from the book of Acts chapter 3. A story of a lame
man who was healed by the Lord through two men, Simon Peter
and John, the apostles. This is the story though of every
person saved by sovereign grace, saved by the Lord himself. This
is my story. In verses 1 through 3, let me
read it to you. Now, Peter and John went up together
into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour,
and a certain man, lame from his mother's womb, was carried,
and they laid daily at the gate of the temple, which is called
Beautiful, the Beautiful Gate. They laid him there to ask alms
of them that entered into the temple, asked for help. Who seen Peter and John about
to go into the temple, asked them an alms, asked them for
help. It says these two men went up
together into the temple. These two men were together,
Peter and John. Who were they? Well, when you
think of Simon Peter and John the Apostle and Matthew and these
men. Do you think of someone very,
very special, someone much higher and nobler and someone has supernatural
powers? No, these were just men whom
the Lord chose and called and saved. And they were just sinners
like everyone, like me, like you, saved by grace. They were once fishermen and
now fishers. of men. They never thought of
God. They never gave a thought to
God. Fishing was their life. Now Christ is their life. Now
they rarely think about fishing. And they were once in business. They had boats and nets and all
that. Well, when Christ came and called them, they dropped
all of that to follow the Lord Jesus Christ. These two men were
together. Scripture says where two or three
are gathered together in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,
He is there. It says they went up to the temple. at the hour of prayer. These
two men once never went to the temple to worship. Now this is
their life. It says they went up. The Lord
called them from the bottom of a boat to go up to His temple
like the children of Israel were in Egypt. They were in the slime
pits. The Lord brought them out of
those slime pits, out of the depths, up to Mount Zion. And that's what the Lord does
for a sinner. from this miry clay to set their
feet on a rock. They go up. These two men went
up together to the temple, God's house. God's house where God's
people are, where God is worshiped. God still has His places where
His name is there and His people worship Him in spirit and truth,
rejoicing in the Lord Jesus Christ. God's house, a place chosen.
And what our Lord called the house of God was a house of prayer.
And verse 1 says they went to the house of prayer at the ninth
hour. What a blessing to pray. What a mercy if we do pray and
feel the need to pray. What mercy if God hears us pray. What a privilege, what a blessing
to pray. Well, they went up at the ninth
hour. It says a certain man lame from
his mother's womb was carried and laid daily at the gate of
that temple. A certain man. He was lame. He
could not walk from birth. Someone carried him and laid
him at that gate. A certain man. All through Scriptures
it says this many times. A certain man. A certain woman.
This man has no name. He's a nobody from nowhere. And
he's lame on his feet. He cannot walk. He never had. He will today. Today is His salvation. But the Lord saves certain individuals,
certain people whom He hath chosen in love and mercy and grace to
cause them to walk by faith, to come to Christ. All of us
are born lame. We cannot walk. We will not walk
by faith, walk in paths of righteousness, cannot come to God. Christ said
of many that were right beside Him, He said, You will not come
unto Me. Oh, they were religious and they
were interested in this Jesus, but they had not really come
to Him for mercy, for salvation. But this man will, and all of
God's people will in due time. It says this man was carried.
Every day they carried him and laid him at the gate of this
temple. Do you know that you and I have been carried all of
our lives. God has carried us, has fed us,
has girded us, though we did not know Him. He is God in whose
hands our breath is. We're in His hands. He has carried
us all our days. This man probably never gave
God a thought. He will. Well, they laid Him
at this gate, the gate of the temple, the gate of the temple
called Beautiful. They laid Him at the gate. He's
not in the temple. He's outside. He's not inside. He's at the threshold. He's near,
but he's not in. Oh, how many people come into
the church house that are not in Christ, in God, in the kingdom. How many sit in the pew, not
seated in Christ. in the heavenly. How many people
think the building is beautiful, the singing is beautiful, the
service is beautiful, but see no beauty in the Lord Jesus Christ. See no need of Him. Well, there
this man sat. Sat on the outside. He's not
inside. This was me. This was me. In Ephesians 2 it says of some
that were dead, who were quickened, this was me. In time past walked
according to the course of this world, according to the prince
of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the
children of disobedient, that is, just like everybody else.
No thoughts of God, captive to the God of this world and the
things of this world. Down in verse 11 it says, In
verse 12 it says, without Christ, aliens, strangers from the truth,
no hope without God in the world. That was me. That's everyone
by nature. But it says, but now in Christ
Jesus, you who were sometime afar off are made nigh by the
blood of Christ, brought into the kingdom by the Sovereign
mercy and grace of our God, by the Gospel of God, by the Spirit
of God. That was me. That was this man. They carried
him daily, laid him at the gate. He's not on the inside. He's
going to be. And he saw Peter and John. He saw two men go into
the temple. And he asked alms of them. He
saw two men. As I said, these weren't special
men. These were just men. And what he saw in them was two
men that might help him out financially. He had no spiritual need. Now,
Simon, Peter, and John were apostles, men of God, sent by God to do
one thing, preach the gospel, the gospel which is the power
of God, the Word of God concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, the Word,
the salvation. of God in Jesus Christ, the power
of God to raise dead sinners, to make people walk by faith
and come to Christ, to walk into the Kingdom like Enoch. Well,
he didn't see anything in these men, but two men that could help
him financially. And so he asked them for some
money. Oh, how many people come to the study of the church building
where I sit and prepare messages such as this, where I'm sitting
right now, bringing this message to you. How many people come
here seeking a handout? None. I say none come here asking
for spiritual help, for answers from God's Word. Verse 4, Peter
fastening his eyes upon this man with John said, Look on us.
Look at me. Look at us. You know, preaching
is to people. Paul said, I don't fight as one
that beats the air, shadow boxing. I'm not speaking to hear my own
voice, but preaching to people. The Word of God to people. The
salvation of God to people that are lost. The Word of God. And Peter said, Look on us, look
at me. What do you see when you see the preacher? Just a man? Yes, that's all he is. That's
all he is. He's just a man. But I tell you
what he has if the Lord sent him. He has the salvation of
God in the message that he brings. And you need to listen. You need
to take heed of what He's saying like these two men, Simon, Peter,
and John. In verse 5, the man gave heed
unto them. He heard them and he's listening,
expecting to receive something of them. Oh, he's going to receive
something, all right. Something he did not expect.
Something he wasn't looking for. Something he wasn't wanting.
He wanted money. He's going to receive mercy.
He wanted financial help. He's going to receive. soul salvation. Oh, my. Here is what Peter said
to him. Peter said the gospel in one
line. Simon 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. In the name of Jesus Christ of
Nazareth, rise up and walk. Silver and gold, he said, have
I none. But I preach a person. I preach
the Lord Jesus Christ and his salvation. In Peter's letter
to the church, he said, you know, you're not redeemed with corruptible
things. as silver and gold. People take
great refuge in their money and their possessions and their savings
account and their trust in riches. The Scriptures call them the
deceitfulness of riches, the uncertainty of riches. No man
can redeem his soul with money. You're not redeemed with corruptible
things as silver and gold, or from your vain conversation.
We're not redeemed. We're not saved by works. No
one is justified by his own works, by his morality, by anything
he's ever done or quit doing. It's all vain, he said, or traditions
received from your fathers, church traditions to do this or do that.
But he said we're redeemed, saved, forgiven, Brought into the kingdom
of God one way, verse 19, and 1 Peter 1, with the precious
blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. This is what Peter was preaching.
In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, rise up and walk. In
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Son of Man, Jesus,
yeah, but God manifest in the flesh. Jesus Christ, second Adam
from above, Messiah, Savior, Redeemer, Prophet, Priest, King,
the only Mediator, the only Savior of sinners, the only Redeemer,
the only name given among men under heaven whereby we must
be saved in the name, whosoever shall call on the name of the
Lord Jesus Christ shall be saved. Well, he said, In the name of
Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk. And he laid hold
of that man and verse 7, took him by the right hand, lifted
him up and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.
Now a man can receive nothing except to be given him from above.
The Spirit of God, the Word of God came in power and lifted
this man up. It says, leaping up, he stood
and walked and went into the temple. He had never been in
there before. He is now with Peter and John. It says he was holding on to
these two men, walking by faith, walking with them into the house
of God to worship the God he never gave a thought of, and
holding on to these men who were now his brethren in Christ. And
all the people saw what had happened to him, and they wondered greatly
at the great mercy and grace of God to make a lame sinner
walk again. How about you? Oh, may the Lord
lay hold of you through His Word and cause you to rise up, come
to Christ, and walk by faith. Amen.