Archive for the ‘Acts3’ Tag
“Jesus Has An Agenda Of Healing and Wholeness!”
Filed under: Bible, By Pastor Timothy, By Tim Brassell, By Timothy Brassell, Christian Living, Christianity, Church, Discipleship, Evangelism, Faith, GCI Windsor Mill, Maryland, God, God Father Son and Spirit, God the Trinity, God's love, good news, Gospel, Grace Communion Baltimore, Grace Communion International, identity in Christ, Inclusion, Jesus Christ, Love, Ministry, New Life Fellowship Of Baltimore Maryland, New Life Fellowship Of Windsor Mill, MD., On Mission with Christ, Participation with Christ, Participation with Jesus, Perichoresis, Prayer, relationship with God, Relationships, Sermons, The Church, The Dance and Dream of the Trinity, The Father, Son and Holy Spirit, The Gospel Project, The Holy Spirit, The Plan of Adoption, Timothy Brassell, Trinity, Uncategorized, union, Union In Christ, Union with Christ, Witness, Witnessing to God, Witnessing to Jesus, Worship, Worshiping God, Worshipping Jesus | Tags: Acts3, Adoption, Basic Christian Doctrine, Being In God's Family, Christian Faith, Christian Living, Christianity, Church, Faith, GCI Baltimore, God's Faith, God's Grace, God's love, Gospel, Grace Communion International, Having The Peace Of God, Healing And Wholeness, How God Reveals Himself, Humanity Revealed, Humanity Revealed In Jesus, Jesus, Knowing The Father's Love, Life's meaning and Significance, Love, New Life Fellowship Baltimore MD, New Life Fellowship Of Baltimore Maryland, Relationships, Revealing Your Life's Purpose, Sharing God More Accurately, Sharing In God's JOy, Sharing In God's Laughter, Sharing In The Divine Nature, The Basic Christian Belief, The God Who Is Love, the reason for your existence, Timothy Brassell of New Life Fellowship, Trinitarian Theology, Trinity, Understanding God, Understanding Human Beings, Understanding Life's Calling, Who Is God?, Who Is Jesus?
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Summary
In Acts 3, a man who had been lame from birth sat at the temple gate expecting to receive silver or gold. Instead, through Peter and John, he encountered something far greater. The healing and wholeness of Jesus Christ.
As St. Athanasius wrote: “The Lord did not come to make a display. He came to heal and to teach suffering men.” — St. Athanasius, On the Incarnation, §43
That gets right to the heart of this passage and Pastor Timothy Brassell’s message: Jesus has an agenda of healing and wholeness.
But Pastor Tim reminds us to keep first things first. Peter and John did not heal this man by their own power or godliness. Jesus did. Peter and John were participating in the continuing ministry of the risen Christ. In the same way, we do not have an independent ministry of our own. United to Christ and empowered by the Holy Spirit, we are invited to participate in His ministry.
And Jesus’ agenda is the Father’s agenda and the Holy Spirit’s agenda. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit God is at work bringing His broken humanity and creation toward the healing and wholeness revealed in Jesus Christ. In the great Gospel sense, our humanity has already been taken up, healed, sanctified, and made whole in Jesus; and through the Holy Spirit, what is true of us in Him is being worked out in us.
This gives us hope even when healing does not come when or how we expect. We do not determine God’s ultimate intention for us by looking only at our present circumstances. We look to Jesus. In His resurrection we see the future of our humanity. Present healing, whether extraordinary or through the ordinary gifts of medicine, care, food, community, and service, points toward the day when God will make all things whole.
The healing at the Beautiful Gate also teaches us something important about grace. The man was asking for money; he wasn’t even expecting to be healed. God gave him far more than he imagined. His healing was not something he earned, it came unexpectedly and by grace. Our healing and wholeness likewise do not rest upon our worthiness, but upon God’s gracious intention for us in Jesus Christ.
And that grace changes how we see other people. Rather than first defining people by their failures, sins, circumstances, or labels, Pastor Tim challenges us to see them as Jesus does. Jesus sees suffering and moves toward people with grace. As members of His Body, we are called to ask not merely what someone wants from us, but how Jesus might be inviting us to participate in His healing and wholeness in their life.
Reflective Moment
Where do you need to trust Jesus’ agenda of healing and wholeness today? And who has He placed before you?
Perhaps, like Peter and John, you do not have the “silver or gold” someone expects. But united to Jesus and filled with the Holy Spirit, you have something to give. What might change if you looked at that person through the eyes of Christ and asked, “Jesus, how are You inviting me to participate in what You are doing here?” The Father has not changed His mind about humanity. Jesus Christ is alive, His ministry continues, and the Holy Spirit is at work.
Watch Pastor Timothy Brassell’s full message as he explores Acts 3:1–16 and what it means for us to participate in the healing and wholeness of Jesus Christ.