Acts 3:11-26 And as the lame man which was healed held Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in the porch that is called Solomon's… Here was a congregation worthy of an apostle; and Peter was ready for the occasion. The people were excited. They "ran together." This made it possible to address them all at once. They were amazed, and were, therefore, in an inquiring mood. Peter — I. CALLED HIS HEARERS TO QUIET THOUGHTFULNESS. He asked them the cause of their amazement. Did he pause after his questions to let the hearer's mind balance itself? The miracle had aroused attention which must now be steadied, in order that judgment might be calmly exercised. II. CORRECTED THE SUPPOSITION THAT THE MIRACLE HAD BEEN DONE BY HUMAN ABILITY. Some supposed the cause was in their magical power or extraordinary godliness. But this was a superficial and God-dishonouring hypothesis, as is that which attributes the results of preaching to the preacher's eloquence, logic, or "magnetism." Peter corrected this, and we say that conviction, penitence, conversion, and the power to live holy is all of God's grace. III. Cleared a way for the truth. If false suppositions had not been removed the true view of the miracle would have been prevented; but by contradicting error Peter brought the minds of the hearers to need a true explanation. So long as astronomers believed the earth to be the centre of the solar system, many false suppositions had to be made, and many phenomena were misinterpreted. Ptolemaic error blocked out Copernican truth. But when the fundamental error had been overthrown the chariot of knowledge could proceed. See the magnificent results in the precision and fulness of modern astronomical science. Conclusion: Let us learn to remove error in order that the way of truth may be open. Let us do this for penitents whom some error may keep in bondage, for inquirers lest some false notion blind them. (A. Hudson.) Parallel Verses KJV: And as the lame man which was healed held Peter and John, all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon's, greatly wondering. |
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