Meditation 268
Acts 3; 12-19
The book of Acts is an invitation to trust that Jesus is the one who fulfils God’s promises to save and redeem people, that Jesus is the promised Messiah and that the resurrection of Jesus is the ground for our hope. Acts invites us to live this hopeful life, but it does not explain why or how any of these things came to be. “Acts offers no fancy atonement theories or trite spiritual laws that will satisfy people who prefer a theology that explains.” (Matt Skinner. Working Preacher) When people stand up in Acts to give a talk, they are in essence inviting the hearer to the journey similar to that of the earliest Christ followers, they are extending an invitation to embrace Jesus, follow his movement, tell others, pay attention to what happens next, consult scriptures in order to keep God’s promises close to you, be open to the Spirit and trust God to enlarge your understanding of the alternative society that God is creating. And at all times always remember that this is all founded on Jesus.
This address of Peter’s in Acts 3, is given at the temple after a disabled beggar had been healed by God. The crowd was quick to praise Peter and John for this miracle, and Peter immediately stands up and gives the praise to God for the healing that has happened, and for the way that this man who had been lame from birth is not able to walk and leap and praise God. This unnamed man who had been unable to support himself, who suffered the indignity of begging, was now completely resorted in body and spirit. As he leapt and praised God, Peter ensured that those who had witnessed the miracle knew that it was the work of God not the work of the God followers.
As Peter goes on in his talk, he reminds the people of Jerusalem that they had been the ones responsible for the death of Jesus, but Peter says “you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. In this way God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, that his Messiah would suffer. Repent therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out.” Peter is living out what Jesus had taught, that it is always a time to repent. Repentance is practised in our personal lives, and also in our societal lives, as we trust in God to help us live like those who have been made in God’s image. Repentance is much easier to say than it is to live, and so we need God’s help and strength to live our repentance, and we need much prayer.
This week I received a prayer that both recognizes the hope of the resurrection and prays for us to be able to live as repentant people and societies. The prayer came in an email from DIAKONIA, which is a world-wide organization of those who are called to ministries of service, or diaconal ministries. The email I received included a prayer for the times in which we live. Ted Dodd, a Diaconal Minister in the United Church of Canada, wrote a prayer with an introduction in which he said
“Easter this year falls on April 4, for those of us who use the Gregorian calendar. After more than a year of pandemic, teamed with the sorrows and suffering of racism, on-going gender based violence, persistent environmental apathy and a myriad of other ills and injuries, we are ready for resurrection. May the Easter appearance stories offer us hope. You, Resurrection God, roll away the stones of injustice and inequality. You, Risen Christ, empty tombs of grief and loss. You, Lord of the Dance, want us to be your Easter people. May we recognize your renewing presence in our work, our lives, and our loves.