Let's open our Bibles again now
to the book of Acts. I love God's Word, don't you?
I love to read it. I love to hear it preached. It
ought to be our constant companion. There's nothing more blessed
than to read the messages which our Lord preached and which immediate
disciples, his apostles preached. Experiences they had, the messages
they gave to the people, how they dealt with certain things.
So I want us to look at chapter 3. The title of this message
is The Name By Which Men Live. the name by which men live. And
here, after Pentecost, we just read the Apostle Peter's message
to the people at Pentecost on that particular day. And this
is after Pentecost. And it says in verse 1 of Acts
chapter 3, Peter and John went up together into the temple at
the hour of prayer, being about the ninth hour, three in the
afternoon. And a certain man, lame from
his mother's womb, was carried. Here was a man been crippled
since he was born. Someone carried him, and whom
they laid daily. They carried him every day to
the gate of the temple, which is called Beautiful. There were
several gates around the temple. This one was particularly named
Beautiful. And they put in there this crippled
man to ask alms, to beg, of them that entered into the temple.
Down in Mexico I've seen that many times in these big cathedrals
and church buildings. People sitting out in front of
the doors where folks come in and out all day. with their hands out, dirty,
poor, begging hands, asking alms. That's what we have here. This
man is lying there on the stone pavement, begging. Seeing Peter
and John, the disciples, about to go into the temple, he raised
his hand to them, asking of something, a gift, money or something. And
Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on
us, look on us. And the man gave
heed unto them. He looked diligently, expecting
to receive something from them. Peter stopped, paid attention
to him, told him to look at him upon him. He of course thought,
well, he's going to give me something. He wouldn't take his time if
he wasn't going to give me something. Then Peter said, silver and gold
have I none. That's what the man wanted, what
he was interested in. Peter says, I don't have any
silver or gold, but such as I have, give I thee. In the name of Jesus
Christ of Nazareth. rise up and walk. The name, the
name, in the name, by the name, through the name, the person
and work, character, compassion of Jesus Christ, you rise up
and walk. And he took him by the hand and
lifted him up. And immediately his feet and
ankle bones received strength. And he leaping, he didn't just
walk, he leaping up, stood 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 who he was. They knew it was
he who sat every day. for alms at the beautiful gate
of the temple. And they were filled with wonder
and amazement at what had happened unto him. And verse 11, And as the lame
man which was healed held Peter and John. He held on to them. Imagine he had his arm wrapped
around Peter's arm, or holding on to his I guess out of gratitude,
I suppose, out of affection. Think about it, he'd never walked.
Now he was leaping, praising God. He's holding on to Peter.
Out of gratitude or affection, or maybe out of fear. Perhaps he thought if he loses
Peter, he'll lose his strength again, that if Peter left His
lameness would return, so he wanted to hold on to him. It
was by his word that he was healed. And all the people, think about
it, they saw this, they witnessed this, all the people that were
there at the Iowa prayer, they ran together unto them, unto
the man and unto Peter and John. They ran to them in the porch
that's called Solomon's porch. greatly wondering, wondering
at the man that was healed, and wondering more at the men who
healed him. Think about it. They came running,
gathered around Peter and John, and there stood this man, and
they were greatly wondering at the man who was healed, and even
more at the men who healed him. Verse 12, And when Peter saw
it, Let's see what he has to say
about this. God give us wisdom to answer the people, to speak
in the name of God for the glory of God, giving God all the glory. He answered and said to the people,
ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? Is anything too hard for God? Here you are in the house of
God. Here you are professing to believe God. Here you have
come to pray and ask favors of God. Why do you marvel when God
acts? Is anything too hard for God? Did he not say in Isaiah 35,
Be strong, fear not, behold your God will come and the eyes of
the blind shall see? That's in the scripture that
you came here to read. The eyes of the blind shall see,
the ears of the deaf shall hear, and the lame shall leap as a
young deer and the tongue of the dumb shall sing. Why do you
marvel at the mysteries and miracles of God? His hand is not short
that he cannot save, his ear is not heavy that he cannot hear.
Can I not do with my own, he said, what I will? He who made legs can certainly
heal them. He who made eyes can certainly
give them sight or withhold from them the ability to see. Why
do you marvel at this? What's so unusual? And why, listen, why do you look
so earnestly on us? You can imagine. But he wants
to know why. As though by, listen, two things. Why do you look so earnestly
on us as though by our own power or holiness we've made this man to walk?
God's true servants are humble, humble men. I told my class this
morning when they gathered around John the Baptist, whose fame
had spread throughout the countryside. People came out to the wilderness
to hear him. Even kings came to hear him.
And they said, who are you? He said, I'm a voice. I know,
but are you Elijah, are you one of the prophets, are you that
prophet, are you the Christ? I'm just a voice, nameless voice,
crying in the wilderness. God's men, true men, servants,
are humble men. And Peter denied any power, any
special power to heal anybody. He denied any special power on
his part. There's no power in my hands
or in me to make anybody whole. It's not there. No power. And a true servant
of God will never claim to have any special power himself above
other people to make people well. And listen, he said, don't look
on me as if I have any power to do this or any special holiness. It's the Pharisee who said, I
fast more than you. I don't live as you. I'm holier
than you. That was the Pharisee who went
home damned. But Peter said, I have no special
merit. I have no special holiness. I'm
not stronger or holier or more pious and righteous than anyone,
which gives me power to work miracles." Can you understand what he's
saying? And this is the very thing that's
going on today, people claiming that they have been given certain
powers and gifts to do certain things. It's not so. Or because
they fast more than others and are more holy and pious than
others, or their religious activities are more outwardly holy, that
therefore they get their prayers answered and things happen. Peter
said, why do you look on us as if we had any power or special
holiness to do anything? All credit and praise and glory
is due to him whom he mentions in the next verse." Listen, the
God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob, the
God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Now listen, don't be reluctant
to use that phrase to identify our God, because God himself
used it. Turn to Genesis, it should be
worth your while, or Exodus rather, Exodus 3. When he had this conversation
with Moses, before he sent him down into Egypt to deliver his
people, he said in Exodus 3, verse 6,
this is the Lord God of heaven speaking. This is God himself,
the living God. In Exodus 3 verse 6, moreover
he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the
God of Isaac, the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face, he was
afraid to look upon God. Verse 15, and God said moreover
to Moses, thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel,
The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of
Isaac, the God of Jacob has sent me unto you. This is my name. This is my memorial unto all
generations. Verse 16, Go and gather the elders
of Israel together and say to them, The Lord God of your fathers,
the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob appeared to me saying,
I have surely visited you and seen that which is done to you
in Egypt. See that? He said, there's no power in
me or special holiness in me to do this. The God of Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob. And he uses that phrase to distinguish
the Lord God from other idols and gods which men worship, like
we have today, Buddha, Mohammed, Confucius, all these pagan gods. They're the God of men's hands.
God of men's makings, but our God is the God of Abraham, Isaac,
and Jacob. And he uses this phrase again
to show God's love for a certain people. He's not the God of the Babylonians, the Egyptians. He's the God of
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, whom I have chosen. I'm the God of the tabernacle
and the mercy seat. I'm the God of the sacrifice
and the atonement. And Peter used this title to
let it be known that he believed and worshipped and preached the
same God. Our God is the same yesterday,
today, and forever. He's the God of Abraham, Isaac,
and Jacob when he spoke to Moses on Mount And he's the God of
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob when Peter spoke to this crowd of
people at the temple. And he's today, as I speak to
you, my God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And he's the
God, listen to verse 13, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
the God of our fathers. He had glorified his son. That's his purpose. to glorify
His Son. He has glorified His Son, Jesus,
by raising Him from the dead, by exalting Him to His right
hand in glory, by declaring Him to be both Lord and Christ, and
giving Him a name above every name that is the name of Jesus
Christ, every needle bound. Every tongue will confess that
He's Lord. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God who
exalted his Son and glorified his Son. Now listen, whom you
delivered up. Whom you delivered up. You seized
him as a thief in the night. You came to the garden where
he was with his disciples and arrested him like a thief in
the night. And you bound his hands as if
he were a criminal. And you delivered him into the
hands of the soldiers to spit on him and mock him and crown
him with thorns. And you delivered him to Pilate. And there, listen, you denied
him. You denied him in the presence of Pilate. when he was determined
to let him go. Pilate said, behold the man.
You said, crucify him. Pilate said, shall I crucify
your king? You said, we have no king but
Caesar. Crucify him. Pilate wrote above
his cross, Jesus of Nazareth, king of the Jews. You said, write
not. King of the Jews. But he said,
he's an imposter, he said, I'm the King of the Jews. But Pilate
said, what I've written, I've written. And he would have delivered
him. Let him go. But you were determined
that he should die. And you cried, remember? Remember? You cried. His blood be on us
and on our children. You call heaven to witness. His
blood be on us. This is what you say in our children. We will not have this man reign
over us. You delivered him. You denied
him. Verse 14, you denied the Holy
One and the Just One, the Holy One of God, the Holy One of Israel,
the Just God, the only Just God and Savior. And you desired a
murderer to be granted unto you. And listen, and you killed the
Prince of Life, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who exalted
his son, whom you delivered up to be crucified, whom you deny,
whom you kill. Who is this that you kill? Listen,
the prince of life. Have you got a marginal reference
there that says the author? Who is he? He's the only living
God. He's the creator of all things.
He's the author and giver of life. In him was life, and that
life was the life of men. That life was the light of Him.
He's the author of natural life. He's the author of spiritual
life. He's the author of eternal life. The Son quickeneth whom
He will. As the Father hath life in Himself,
so hath He given to the Son, whom He glorified to have life
in Himself. And you killed Him! You denied Him and you killed
Him. The Lord of Life, the King of Glory, the Messiah Prince,
you killed Him. His death is laid to your charge
because you instigated it. You requested it. In fact, when
a man would let Him go, you demanded it. Give us a murderer. Crucify the Lord of Glory. What
did the father do? Verse 15, you killed the prince
of life, the author of life, whom God hath raised from the
grave. Raised him from the dead. What
did the father do? He raised him. Look back there
at that scripture I read a few moments ago, Acts 2, verse 22. Peter said this a few days before
that. Acts 2.22, you men of Israel,
hear these words, Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you,
by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst
of you, as you yourselves know, him being delivered. It wasn't
an accident all this happened. It's in the purpose of God, in
the will of God, in the covenant of grace, him being delivered. By the determinate counsel and
foreknowledge, foreordination of God, you have taken, and by
your wicked hands, you've crucified and slain. But God raised him. Raised him up. Having loosed
the pains of death because it wasn't possible death could hold
him, or the grave could hold him, God raised him up. What you did, you did because
you wanted to do. And what you did, you did because
God willed it. In Acts 4 verse 26, the kings of the earth stood
up and all the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and
against his Christ. For of a truth against our holy
child Jesus whom thou hast anointed, appointed, Both Herod, Pontius
Pilate, Jew and Gentiles, with the Gentiles, people of Israel,
were gathered together. They were all gathered together
to deny this man, deliver this man, to crucify this man, to
reject this man. He's in the world, the world
knew him not. Came to his own, his own received him not. But
they were determined that this man should die. But verse 28,
that we gather together to do whatsoever your hand, O God,
and your counsel determined before it to be done. It pleased the
Lord to bruise him. Thou hast put his soul to grief. Thou hast made his soul an offering
for sin. The heavenly Father sent the
Son, bruised the Son. delivered him into the hands
of a cruel people to be crucified. But that doesn't lessen their
responsibility. Doesn't lessen their responsibility.
God the Father, in many ways, identified our Messiah during
his walk on the earth. When he was born in Bethlehem,
God miraculously hung a star over his birthplace. and guided
men who were interested in the event to that place. God sent
the angels down from heaven, a multitude of heavenly hosts
to cry out to the people, unto you is born this day in the city
of David a Savior, Christ the Lord. When he was baptized, he
sent a dove down upon the shoulders of our
Lord and said from heaven, this is my beloved Son in whom I am
well pleased. Throughout His walk on this earth,
the Heavenly Father, through the voice of Christ, raised the
dead, healed the sick, healed the blind, ministered to people.
When He was hanging on that cross, God hung a curtain over the sun,
refused to sign, shook the earth, the graves were opened, and then He was buried, and the
crowning act of identification is this despised and rejected
and denied Redeemer whom the world rejected, despised. There was
no beauty about him, we should desire him. He was despised and
rejected of me and a man of sorrows acquainted with grief and we
killed him, put him in a grave. And then God spoke. In the crowning
act of identification, he raised him from the grave. He raised him from the grave. He says to the whole world, this
is my son, this is my anointed king, this is my Messiah, this
is the Christ. And he raised him from the grave.
He delivered all judgment, all flesh, all authority, all people
into the hands of this one whom we crucify. That's the reason
they called out at Pentecost, well what are we going to do? We rejected Him, God accepted
Him, we denied Him, God confessed Him, we killed Him, God raised
Him, we humbled Him, God exalted Him, what are we going to do?
We're crosswise with God on everything, especially this man. And that's
where it all is, in this man. And that's what Peter said to
these folks. You killed him. God raised him. And he says,
verse 15, well, we're all witnesses of his resurrection. And let
me tell you this, in his name, verse 16, through faith in his
name, hath made this man strong. It's the name of Christ that
made him strong. It's the name of Christ that
restored his health. It was the name and power of
Christ that set him free, that made him walk. This man had no
faith. This man had no faith. I hear
people say, well, God will do this if you do that. God's not
depending on you to do anything. This man had no faith. None whatsoever. He wanted money.
He didn't have the slightest inkling that he was going to
be healed. Peter said that it's not by my
power or my holiness. The disciples don't claim, do
not claim any special faith that has the power or holiness to
heal people. Peter tells us the source of
this man's life and strength and healing. It's in his name. It's in the name and the person
and the work of Him whom you denied, delivered up to death
and rejected, but God raised Him. And His name, listen, through
faith in His name, hath made this man strong, whom you see
and know. Yea, the faith which is by Him,
His faith, His faithfulness. hath given him this perfect soundness
in the presence of you all." The Lord God is revealing here
the only way that the dead can live is by Christ. By the power
of Christ, by the name of Christ, by the grace of Christ, by the
blood of Christ, by the righteousness of Christ. The only way that
the lame can walk, the dead can live, the blind can see, the
deaf can hear, and the dumb can speak is by calling on his name,
in his name, based on who he is, based on what he did, and
why he did it, and where he is now. That's the power that came
to this man, Christ. Peter was just the instrument,
Peter was just the voice, like John the Baptist, just the voice.
My voice has no power to heal, no power to save, no power to
give life, no power to comfort. But I'm speaking of Him who is
the power, who has the power, who is the life. His name. This is a picture of us in our
sins. This man is helpless. The disciples
who stood here are helpless. But there's a strong one. There's
a mighty one. There's an exalted one. There's
the one at the right hand of God. If we can look to Him and
believe on Him and boutsafe Him to intercede, to interfere, to
take notice, to do something in the name of Him. by the life of him, the love
of him, the grace of him, the blood of him. Lord, here's a
man in trouble. That's the reason he said, look
to me. Moses couldn't make those people
live who were bitten. He said, there he is on a cross. There he is lifted up. But this world of religionists,
they want to look at Peter. They want to look at the results.
They want to look at all this other stuff. And Peter said that's
not where it is. By his name. His name. the living God, the mighty God,
the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace, the Messiah, the Redeemer,
His name. And now brethren, verse 17, talking
about Christ, and I know my brethren, he calls them brethren according
to the flesh, the same reason Paul said in Romans 9, I could
wish myself a curse from Christ for my brethren, according to
the flesh. Now brethren, I know. Through
ignorance you did it, as did your rulers. Through ignorance
you did it. See, 1 Corinthians 2 said, had
they known who he was, they wouldn't have crucified him. And our Lord said to the disciples,
he said, they'll kick you out of the synagogue and they'll
persecute you. And they'll hate you because
they don't know me and don't know my father. Peter says to
these people who delivered him up, who denied him, who crucified
him, I know through ignorance you did it. I know you were born
in ignorance and you were taught by ignorant men. And you followed
ignorant leaders. The blind leading the blind,
they both fall into the ditch. But now wait a minute. Your ignorance is no excuse. It's inexcusable because you
didn't try to find out who he is. Listen to the next verse. Verse 17 says, Brethren, my brothers
in the flesh, I know through ignorance you did what you did
as did your rulers. But those things which God before
showed by the mouth of the prophets that Christ should suffer, he
hath fulfilled. He said the scriptures which
lie about in your synagogue and temples and churches, They tell
all these things about Him. About who He is, when He would
come, by whom He'd come, a virgin, seed of David, family of Jesse,
tribe of Judah, that He'd been denied, rejected, spat upon,
crucified, nailed His hands and feet. All this is in the Scripture.
You could have known it. I know through ignorance you
did what you did, and you fulfilled what God willed to be done, but
you could have known it. if you wanted to, if you tried. Men are responsible for what
they could hear and won't. What they could know and deny. What they've written, which they
won't read. He said, if any man wants to
know my will, he'll know it. And he's charging these people
with the fact that the very Scriptures which they held in their hands,
and went about their ceremonies, and duties, and deeds, and fastings,
and tithings, and Sabbath-keeping, and all these things." The Scriptures
talked about a Messiah, a Redeemer, who would come. A lamb slain
from the foundation of the world. A Passover lamb, a rock smitten,
a brazen serpent lifted up. It's all there! You could have
known, he said. He came and you didn't know Him,
but you could have known Him, if you had tried. And I say that
to this world today, of who He is and what He did and why He
did it and who God is, His sovereignty and majesty and His elective
grace and His eternal covenant. The Bible is a book of covenants.
It's mentioned over 300 times. The covenant, the covenant, the
everlasting covenant. God's chosen one, but they're
carrying it around and going about the motion, just like those
Jews. Walking up and down aisles, burning
candles, wearing uniforms, keeping holy days, paying tithes, doing
all these things, and they keep this closed. And when the Son
of God is preached, they don't want any part of it. When the
gospel is declared God's grace and power and sovereignty and
majesty and glory with which He's crowned Christ, they say,
we've got our wills, our free wills. We'll do what we will,
not what He wills. Why will? Don't violate our wills. Alright. I know through ignorance,
ignorance, ignorance, you did it. Those things which God showed
by the mouth of the prophets, all His prophets, to Him give
all the prophets witness. That Christ should suffer, God
has fulfilled. And you know the tragedy of it
is these very men fulfilled those things with their own hands.
Let me show you that if I can find it here. It's in Acts 13. I believe. Acts 13. Turn over
here. Acts 13. Acts 13 verse 27. Acts 13 verse
27. Listen. For they that dwell at
Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew him not in
his true work and character, Nor yet the voices of the prophets,
which were read every Sabbath day, they have fulfilled in condemning
him. And though they found no cause
of death in him, yet desired they Pilate that he should be
slain. And when they had fulfilled all that was written of him,
they took him down from the cross, and laid him in a grave, and
sealed it up, and said, We're through with him. This is the heartache of heartaches
which men will realize someday before God. So I teach Jews. Standing there
now, Peter talking to them. And he said, you delivered the
King of Glory, the Prince of Life. You killed him. You rejected
him. You denied him. Your hands are
dripping with his blood. And yet you could have known
who he was. You could have known if you had searched the Scriptures.
You thought you had life in the Scriptures, but there they was
testifying to him. Life's not in religion. Life's
not in the Scriptures. Life's in Christ. That's where
life is. So, verse 19, he says, repent. What's repent? Change your mind.
God has to do it, I know that. But change your mind. Change
your direction. Repent of denying Christ. Repent
of crucifying Christ. Repent of entertaining low thoughts
of Christ. Turn to Him in faith. Acknowledge
Him to be the Lord. That's who He is. Christ, that's
who He is. Son of God, that's who He is.
Your only hope, that's who He is. Acknowledge Him to be my
Lord and my God. Receive Him as your prophet,
priest, and king, as total Savior, Alpha to Omega, as Lord of my
life, my hope, my joy, my all. Receive His Word. Bow to His
Word. Get off your high horse. Come
down. Sit at His feet like Mary and
say, Lord, give me wisdom. Show me Your
way. Show me Your will. Show me Your
glory. I'm nothing. I'm a worm. I'm no worm, somebody says. But
Christ took that name to himself when he was in the flesh. He
said in Psalm 22, I'm a worm and no man. I'm a worm. I am. I came from
the dust. I live from the dust. I eat what
the dust produces and I go back to the dust. A worm does the
same thing. But the eternal Lord of glory
can deliver me from the dust by His will, not by mine, by
His grace, not by my merit, by His blood and righteousness,
not by any works of righteousness which I may claim, by His eternal
covenant, by His name, giving Him a name above every name.
And be converted to Christ that your sins may be blotted out
when the time of refreshing shall come from the presence of the
Lord. And he shall send Jesus Christ.
He sent Him as the Redeemer. He sent Him on the day you heard
the gospel. And He'll send Him again. He's
coming back. Whom the heavens must receive,
they have. He's been received into heaven
until the time of restitution of all things. All things, what
things? Which God has spoken by the mouth
of His Holy Prophet since the world began. For Moses truly
said of the Father, unto the fathers of prophets shall the
Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren like me. Him
shall you hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto
you. And it will come to pass that
every soul that will not hear that prophet shall be destroyed. All the prophets from Samuel
and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have
likewise foretold of these days the coming of Christ. And you,
the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God
made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, in thy seed shall
all the kindreds of the earth be blessed. Unto you first, the
Jew, having raised up your son Jesus Christ, sent him to bless
you. and turning away every one of you from your iniquities.
May God bless His word to our prophet.