Kingsport Sovereign Grace Church,
located at 905 Yadkin Street in Kingsport, Tennessee, would
like to invite you to listen to a message of sovereign grace
by their pastor, Gabe Stoniker. And now, Pastor Gabe Stoniker. I invite you to turn with me
this morning to Acts chapter 9. Acts chapter 9. At the end of this chapter, there
are two stories about two different people from verse 32 down through
the end. And I want us to look at something
very encouraging first, and then I wanna look at each of their
stories. Let's begin reading in Acts chapter nine, verse 32.
And it came to pass, as Peter passed throughout all quarters,
He came down also to the saints which dwelt at Leda. And there
he found a certain man named Aeneas which had kept his bed
eight years and was sick of the palsy. And Peter said unto him,
Aeneas, Jesus Christ maketh thee whole. Arise and make thy bed. and he arose immediately. And all that dwelt at Leda and
Saron saw him and turned to the Lord." Is that not a wonderful
story? They saw the mercy and the grace
and the work of God done in this man. They saw what God did to
this man. And this man went around telling
everybody how great things the Lord had done for him. And verse
35 says, all that dwelt in Leda and Saron saw him and turned
to the Lord. When they saw the gift of God
in him and the power of God to him,
they themselves turned to the Lord. Now this gospel that we
preach is not a weak gospel. It is not a weak gospel. The reason is because the God
of this gospel is not a weak God. He is the all-powerful God. This is a saving message of a
saving God. His arm is not short. He is able to save to the uttermost. And there's no reason to believe
that He won't do the same thing today that He did back then.
There's no reason that we should not believe that with all of
our hearts. Now whether He does or does not,
that's His business. But we ought to know and believe
that he changes not. That's what he said in his word.
He said, I change not. He is the same yesterday, today,
and forever. And if he's willing, he's able.
He's able. Let's start praying that where
he saves one, he would save more. where He has saved one in a house. Let's pray that He'll save more. All of His people are known to
Him from the foundation of the world, and He won't lose one,
but He told us, you pray. You pray for Him. Pray without
ceasing. Brethren, pray for us. So let's just do that. Where
our Lord has saved one in a town, one in a city, Let's pray that
He'll save more. Save mightily in this place,
Lord. We know You're able. We know
You are. We believe that You are able.
Well, I just told you that there were two different people with
two different stories. But really, it's two different
people with the same story. Different circumstances, but
the same story. Here's the message I want to
get across this morning. The title of it is, The Power
of His Name. The Power of His Name. Now let me show you these two
people. Verse 32 again says, And it came to pass, as Peter
passed throughout all quarters, he came down also to the saints
which dwelt at Leda. And there he found a certain
man named Enios. which had kept his bed eight
years and was sick of the palsy. This man, Aeneas, had palsy. That means that he was paralyzed.
And he had been for eight years. He did nothing but lay in a bed
for eight years. Verse 34 says, And Peter said
unto him, Aeneas, Jesus Christ maketh thee whole. That's all
he did. He just told the man who makes
him whole. That's all he did. He just told the man who makes
him whole. He said, Jesus Christ maketh
thee whole. Arise and make thy bed. And he arose immediately. And all that dwelt at Leda and
Saron saw him and turned to the Lord. What a response. What a
response from just declaring the name of Jesus Christ. Is that not amazing? What a response. All right, now we have a lady.
Verse 36 says, there was at Joppa a certain disciple named Tabitha,
which by interpretation is called Dorcas. This woman was full of
good works and alms deeds, which she did. There's a big difference
between this woman and that man. He didn't do anything but lay
on a bed. She was full of good works and alms deeds, constantly
doing, constantly running and doing and working. Verse 37 says, and it came to
pass in those days that she was sick and died, whom when they
had washed, they laid her in an upper chamber, And for as
much as Leta was nigh to Joppa, and the disciples had heard that
Peter was there, they sent unto him two men, desiring him that
he would not delay to come unto them. Then Peter arose and went
with them. When he was come, they brought
him into the upper chamber. And all the widows stood by him
weeping and showing the coats and garments which Dorcas made
while she was with him. But Peter put them all forth
and kneeling down and prayed and turning him to the body said,
Tabitha, arise. And she opened her eyes. And
when she saw Peter, she sat up. And he gave her his hand and
lifted her up. And when he had called the saints
and widows, presented her alive. And it was known throughout all
Joppa, and many believed in the Lord. And it came to pass that
he tarried many days in Joppa with one Simon a Tanner. Why did many believe in the Lord? After he did this, many believed
in the Lord. Why? The reason is because every
bit of that was done in the name of the Lord. Oh, the sovereignty
of His name. The power of His name. A man who was crippled and could
not move, stood up. And a woman who was dead, I mean
dead, lived by the power of His name. Peter just declared His name. I had the opportunity to preach
to about 100 people who, as far as I know, None of them had ever heard the
true gospel. They had never heard of the true
and living God and everything that he accomplished for sinners.
They had only been in religion. And my wife went with me, and
after the message was over and we were driving away, we were
talking about it. And it could be that nobody heard
a thing. It might have gone in one ear and out the other. People
generally are not concerned. They're not concerned. They're
not burdened by the truth of life and death and these matters.
They don't listen. But none of that matters when
God moves. None of that matters. This is
not reliant on the dead person. This is reliant on the God who
makes the dead live. And none of that matters when
God moves. And the declaring of His name
is the power of God unto salvation. It is what raises people from
the dead. It's what makes a lame man walk
and a blind man see and a deaf man hear, just the declaring
of His sovereign name. And we're called to go out and
declare it and then walk away and leave it in the Lord's hands.
And it's amazing the power that is in His name. It's amazing
the power that is in His name. He breaks men and women through
the declaring of His name. He binds up broken hearts through
the declaring of His name. He calls His sheep through the
declaring of His name. Now in our text here, why were
these physical healings done? That is not actually what the
world needs at all. Why were these physical healings
done? They were done to show us the
spiritual healing that God performs on the heart of a sinner. That's
the only reason these two accounts are written here. It's to show
the spiritual healing that we all need. If a person was literally
raised from the dead, Or if an eight year cripple, a man who'd
been in a bed for eight years, if he stood up and walked, that
would get a lot of attention, wouldn't it? But turn with me
back over to Matthew chapter nine. Matthew nine verse one
says, and he, that's our Lord, he entered into a ship and passed
over and came into his own city. And behold, they brought to him
a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed. And Jesus, seeing their
faith, said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, be of good cheer,
thy sins be forgiven thee. And behold, certain of the scribes
said within themselves, This man blasphemeth. blasphemeth. He said, your sins are forgiven.
But the man is still lying in the bed. We see no change. We
don't see a change. Verse four says, and Jesus, knowing
their thoughts, said, wherefore think ye evil in your hearts?
For whether is easier to say, thy sins be forgiven thee, or
to say, arise and walk. Which one is easier? Which one
is easier, to justify and sanctify a sinful man before a holy God,
or to make him stand up and walk around? Which one is easier?
Verse six says, but that you may know that the Son of Man
hath power on earth to forgive sins, power on earth to forgive
sins. The only reason I am performing
this healing on His body is to prove to you a healing on His
heart, a healing of the soul. But that you may know that the
Son of Man hath power on earth to forgive sins, then saith He
to the sick of the palsy, Arise, take up thy bed, and go into
thy house. And he arose and departed to
his house. But when the multitude saw it,
they marveled and glorified God, which had given such power unto
men. Our Lord put this man Aeneas
and this woman Tabitha in a position that proved their need of healing. And that's what the Lord does
spiritually to sinners, His sinners, His chosen sinners. He comes to them. He comes to
them because they can't come to Him. They're spiritually crippled. He comes to them even while they
are dead in their trespasses and sins. And He gives life to
them. A man named Robert Hawker said,
the bed of sickness is blessed. The bed of sickness is blessed
upon which the Lord Jesus puts His people. The bed of spiritual
sickness is a blessed thing. There's an old poem that says,
a sinner is a sacred thing. The Holy Ghost has made him so.
But this man, Robert Hawker, he said, the bed of sickness
is blessed upon which the Lord Jesus puts his people. For they
are sure of the frequent visits of their almighty physician.
Oh, it's a blessed place to be. that bed of sickness. Seeing
our spiritual sickness, that's a blessed place to be because
our Almighty Physician comes to the bed. He comes to the bedside
with the balm of Gilead. Oh, it's a blessed place to see
our need, to be put in a place where We see that we need Him. A man named Charles Spurgeon
said, the greatest blessing in this life is health. The only
greater blessing is sickness. It makes us cry out to Him. When
everything is well and great, we have no need of Him, not really. But when sickness comes, physical
sickness makes us cry out. And if we get a glimpse of our
spiritual sickness, oh man. Physical sickness is just a reminder
of spiritual sickness, that's all it is. And that's what we
need to see. We don't need a physical healing.
That's wonderful if the Lord gives it, that's kind if the
Lord gives it, but that's not what we need. We need a spiritual
healing. And we have a great physician
who can do that. He is able. I'm telling you,
he is able. Go with me back over to Acts
chapter nine. These two very different people both prove to
us that it does not matter who you are. It does not matter what
you've done. It does not matter where you've
come from. It doesn't matter whether you've
come from the gutter or the pew. It does not matter if you've
been in the gutter all your life or if you've been in the pew
all your life. Jesus Christ came to save sinners. And whether a man's in the gutter
or the pew, he's a sinner. The pews are full of sinners. But Christ came to save sinners.
This man Aeneas, he didn't do anything but lay in a bed, did
he? Tabitha was working on her good works. They were both, though, without
hope. Both of them. One man was doing
nothing. One woman was working her heart
out. Both of them were without hope. And so is every sinner
who is without Christ. Every sinner. We are all palsied
in our souls. We are all dead in our trespasses
and sins. But when the power of the name
of Jesus Christ comes to a sinner, when God through his Holy Ghost
sends the name of Jesus Christ straight into the heart of a
sinner, that sinner lives. And that sinner comes. Every
single time. When God calls his sinner, you
come to me. Through the power of the name
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Every single time that sinner
comes. Every single time. All that the Father giveth me
shall come to me. And him that cometh to me I'll
in no wise cast out. Is that not wonderful news? Peter,
he didn't beg and plead either one of these people. He didn't
beg either one of them. He didn't say, now come on Aeneas,
won't you please get up, please? No, he said, Aeneas, Jesus Christ
maketh thee whole. Arise and make thy bed. Why make his bed? because he's not gonna need it
for a while. How long do you think it took
that precious man to lay back down? After he got up, he'd been
laying there for eight years. And in the name of the Lord Jesus
Christ, he got up. How long do you think it took
him to lay back down? Aren't you tired, Aeneas? Nope. Nope,
I think I'm gonna go for another jog. I've been set free. You know that's what a sinner
does when Christ sets him free? Through the power of the name
of Jesus Christ. Set free. Freedom. Oh, freedom from bondage. Freedom
from this bed that I could not get up from. And that's my sin. Freedom from sin. Freedom from
self. Oh, the Lord in mercy comes to
a sinner and says, arise. Start walking. You're free. You're free. Peter didn't say
to Tabitha. He did not say, Tabitha, can
you hear me? Tabitha, is there any life in
there at all? Can you hear me at all, Tabitha?
No, that's not what he said. That woman was dead. Absolutely
dead. And he said, Tabitha, arise. And she arose. In the name of
the Lord Jesus Christ, she arose. Verse 42 says, And it was known
throughout all Joppa, and many believed in the Lord. Many did. Peter didn't get the
glory for this. Peter did not get the glory for
this and God's true messenger does not want the glory for this.
This was all done in the name of the Lord. Many believed in
the Lord. They believed on Christ. Turn
with me to chapter three of Acts. Acts chapter three and look at
verse six. It says, 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. And he took him by the right
hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received
strength. And he leaping stood up and walked
and entered with them into the temple, walking and leaping and
praising God. And all the people saw him walking
and praising God. And they knew that it was he
which sat for alms at the beautiful gate of the temple. And they
were filled with wonder and amazement at that which had happened unto
him. And as the lame man which was healed hailed Peter and John. Oh, he loved them. How beautiful
are the feet of them that bring glad tidings of great joy. As
that lame man which hailed Peter and John, all the people, they
ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon's,
greatly wondering, what caused all of that? the name of Jesus
Christ of Nazareth. Oh, the power of His name. That's
the name that made this dead sinner live. Chapter 4 verse
8 says, Acts chapter 4 verse 8, Then Peter, filled with the
Holy Ghost, said unto them, Ye rulers of the people and elders
of Israel, If we this day be examined of the good deed done
to the impotent man, by what means He's made whole. Be it
known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by
the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God
raised from the dead, even by Him doth this man stand here
before you whole. This is the stone which was set
at nought of you builders, which has become the head of the corner.
Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is none
other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be
saved." No salvation in any other. No payment for sin in any other. One name whereby we must be saved. The Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord means Jehovah. That's
God. Jesus is the man, the perfect
man. Christ is both. Christ means
the union of God and man. Let me close with this verse
of scripture. Go with me over to Philippians chapter 2 and
look at verse 8. Being found in fashion as a man,
he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the
death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly
exalted him and given him a name which is above every name. that
at the name of Jesus every knee should bow of things in heaven
and things in earth and things under the earth and that every
tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of
God the Father. He is Lord. He is risen from
the grave and he is Lord. Every knee shall bow. And every
tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. He's Lord. Declaring that to sinners is
life. It's life. The power of His name. That's our hope of eternal glory.
It's in His name. It's in everything He is. It's
in everything He has done. It's in everything He has made
us to be in His name. Until next Sunday morning, may
our Lord bless His Word to our hearts. You have been listening to a
message by Gabe Stoniker, pastor of Kingsport Sovereign Grace
Church in Kingsport, Tennessee. If you would like a copy of this
message or to hear other messages of Sovereign Grace, you can write
to our physical mailing address at 905 Yadkin Street, Kingsport,
Tennessee 37660 or log on to our website at kingsportsovereigngracechurch.com. If you would like to come and
worship with us, our service times are Sunday morning Bible
study at 10 o'clock a.m., worship at 10.45 a.m. and 6 o'clock p.m.,
Wednesday evening at 7.30 p.m. Please tune in next Sunday morning
at 8.30 for another message of God's free and sovereign grace.