As a result of the apostles’ work, sick people were brought out into the streets on beds and mats so that Peter’s shadow might fall across some of them as he went by. Crowds came from the villages around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those possessed by evil spirits, and they were all healed.
ACTS 5:15–16
The sick man looked around at the others, hundreds of people just like him, lying on their beds and mats in the street. They heard that the apostles had been performing many miraculous signs and wonders among the people, and they had all come to be healed. These apostles were just ordinary people. Jesus spent most of His time teaching and preparing them to carry out His ministry. He seemed to know His time here would be limited. They had all scattered on that dismal day when He was crucified, but there were reports that He had appeared to them several times during the forty days before He ascended into heaven. It was during these visits that He instructed them to go and do what He had been doing (John 20:21): to make more disciples (Matthew 28:19), to preach the good news, and to lay hands on sick people to make them well (Mark 16:15, 18).
People said they had waited in Jerusalem to receive His power for seven long weeks (Acts 1:4). When the Holy Spirit finally came upon them at Pentecost, the apostle Peter gave a courageous speech that compelled three thousand more people to join their cause (Acts 2:41). Even after the religious leaders warned them never to speak or preach the name of Jesus again, the believers prayed for boldness, and God sent His healing power so they could do miraculous signs and wonders in His name (Acts 4:30). They met regularly at Solomon’s Colonnade on the east side of the temple where the apostles continued to preach and perform signs and wonders, in spite of the warning.
This morning, this sick man was among the latest crowd who hoped the apostles would be able to free them from the infirmities that held them captive in their beds. The size of the crowd was daunting; there were so many sick people from the villages all around Jerusalem, all desperate to be made whole. Is it possible for the apostles to touch and heal all of us?
At that moment, he noticed someone stepping through the mats and beds that cluttered the street. Is it Peter? The sun was at his back, casting a shadow in front of him. The sick man blinked, not quite believing his eyes. It looked as though people were jumping up from their sickbeds as soon as they were touched by Peter’s shadow! Can this be happening?
Soon, Peter’s shadow reached him, too, and he felt power rush through his body. Before he could comprehend the miracle, he was standing with the crowd, their mats and beds forgotten, praising the Lord. He was healed. The sickness that had ravaged his body was completely gone. Others had received their sight, had their ears unplugged, and had various diseases healed. Still others stood on legs that were no longer crippled and had demons dispelled. As he looked around, he realized they were all healed. Every single one.
Jesus gave His apostles the power to do miracles, preach boldly, and carry His presence into the world. The religious leaders were amazed, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training except that they had been with Jesus (Acts 4:13). As a result, they were able to confirm the truth of their teaching, attract new believers to the early church, and demonstrate that the power of Jesus was now with them. The apostles never saw Jesus refuse to heal a sick person. They simply followed His teaching and all were healed.
God is still working mightily in His church today, and our mandate hasn’t changed. We are to proclaim the good news of the Kingdom with the same boldness and expectancy as the apostles did. Jesus demonstrated His power through ordinary people who were obedient to His call and relentlessly pursued an intimate relationship with the living God. Through them, He didn’t heal a few. He didn’t heal some. He healed them all.
Praise You, Lord, for making disciples out of ordinary people in order to take Your message of hope into the world. Thank You for trusting all of us to continue doing what You did (John 20:21), to preach the good news to everyone everywhere (Mark 16:15), to lay hands on the sick and make them well (Mark 16:18), to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19), and to be Your witnesses to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8).
Breathe on me, Lord. I receive Your Spirit. I may have no special training, but I carry Your power. Help me to believe and proclaim the Gospel with the same boldness, fervency, and expectancy as the apostles. Help me to always remember that You didn’t just heal some. You healed them all.