Thoughts on...
April 26: Third Sunday of Easter
New Testament Lesson: Acts 3:(1-11), 12-19, (20-21)

Are you looking for a miracle? Who isn't? Miracles remind us of God's presence in the world. They assure us that we are not on our own but there is a God who is bigger and stronger than any of us.

The early church must have felt powerless. Jesus had been crucified and they were powerless to stand up to the Roman government because of their fear. Following the resurrection, the apostles were charged to go out into all the world sharing the message of Christ but how could they present the power of the risen Lord without the risen Lord physically present?

In Acts 3, the Apostles are given the power to perform a miracle and the crowd gathers around them in curiousity, fear and amazement. And here opens up a teaching moment. This miracle is followed by a sermon explaining the basis of the miracle itself.

In the crowd's ignorance, they misunderstand the miracle. The miracle is not that the lame man was healed, although it is an amazing event in his personal life, the miracle is that God's power is still at work in a world that sought to kill it. This miracle reveals the power of God and our need for repentence as we doubt and even ignore the power of God in our life everyday.

We look for visual miracles that are easy to see and have the wow factor. Visual miracles definitely affect us. But there are quiet miracles that bring greater comfort in the midst of our everyday life, quiet revelations that offer us hope, peace and even faith. In repenting of our sins, and turning to God our sins are wiped out and remembered no more. That is the greatest miracle, that in our ignorance we are granted forgiveness and a deeper relationship with the one we often times ignore.

God is at work in this world offering us power for life, repent and believe the Good News. We are forgiven.