WHEN FAITH IS WHAT YOU NEED
Acts 9:36-43
My brothers and sisters there are times in our lives that we need to examine the faith that we have. Too often our common reasoning stands in the way of our Christian faith. Not only common reasoning, but we allow friends, things, and the lack of foresight to stand in our way, when it is our faith that only matters. I’m reminded of a story that I read about a father and a son who’s house caught afire. His father searched for the boy through the inferno, but could not find him. So he left the house hoping that his son had found his way to safety. But upon arriving outside he saw his son standing on the roof of the house. With stretched out arm he called for the boy, “Jump and I’ll catch you.” the father knew that in order for his son to be saved he had to jump from the building. But the boy could only hear his Dad’s voice and could not see where his Dad was. All he could see was flames and the dense smoke. And seeing this he was afraid to jump from the roof. His father kept calling to him, “I’ll catch you.” But the boy protested, “Daddy, I can’t see you.” Then the father replied, “But I can see you, and that is all that matters.” -Illustrator Unknown
You see this father being who he was, was trying to get his child pass what he saw, to the safety of what he heard. This is what happened in the text. The disciples in Joppa did not allow their reasoning to get in the way of their faith. They believed in the power that was exhibited in Peter. They knew and had heard about the powerful name of Jesus Christ that Peter used in Lydda and I suspect that they knew that if they could get Peter to come to Joppa, he could speak the powerful name of Jesus and life could be restored.
In the previous text we saw Peter making his rounds and there he came upon the saints who dwelt in Lydda. There he found a man named Aeneas who had been bed ridden with the palsy for eight tormenting years. It was this man that was handicapped to the most critical degree. He could not wash himself, feed himself, nor could he take care of his own personal needs without someone helping him. But that was before Peter came to town. When Peter saw him he said, “Aeneas, Jesus Christ maketh thee whole; arise, and make thy bed.” Then the text said, “And he arose immediately.” Now the wonderful results of this miracle was twofold, the first being Aeneas himself being healed and the second being that all the people that dwelt in Lydda and Sharon saw him [speaking of Aeneas] and turned to the Lord. So we learned in that lesson that there is awesome power in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
This lesson takes us even further into Peter’s missionary journey. While he was yet in Lydda, the disciples in Joppa heard that Peter was there and they sent two men with a message desiring Peter to come. The nature of this urgent visit is evident in the preceding verses. The text starts off telling us about a disciple name Tabitha. She was known for her good works. But we found out that she was sick, in-fact so sick that she died. This was the urgent reason for Peter to be summoned. Now while the disciples were elevating their faith by sending for Peter, there were some who was overtaken by grief and was preparing her for her burial.
So let’s see how the disciples faith can prove to be contagious.
First...
1. THEY HAD FAITH WHEN THERE WAS NO HOPE (V.38)
“And forasmuch as Lydda was near to Joppa, and the disciples had heard that Peter was there, they sent unto him two men, desiring that he would not delay to come to them.”
As we look at the text we can see a few disciples showing their faith when there appear to be no hope. The text describes the situation as hopeless. The town’s most liked person had fallen sick and died. I can imagine how grieved they must have been, after all Tabitha or Dorcas as she was called, was known for her good works and almsgiving. Later on in the lesson we will see the widows with tear soaked eyes showing Peter the coats and garments that she had made. They were preparing for the funeral when some of the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda which was not far from Joppa. Now I’m sure that they had heard about the miracle of Aeneas and how Peter called on that miracle working name of the Lord. And with the faith that they had they sent for the man of God to come and maybe he will call on the name of Jesus to raise Dorcas from the dead.
Secondly...
2. PETER’S FAITH PUT HIM IN THE RIGHT POSITION FOR THE BEST RESULTS. (V.40)
“But Peter put them all forth and kneeled down, and prayed; and turning to the body said, Tabitha, arise. And she opened her eyes; and when she saw Peter, she sat up.”
After Peter arrived at Joppa. He found out quickly the nature of the call. They had ushered him into the upper chamber and there he found all the widows weeping the death of Dorcas and showing him the things that she had made for them. I can imagine that Peter was surprised at what he saw, because the text never revealed to us why they called for him in the first place, but when you are a man of God you always come to a situation prepared for the worst. Look here and observe, Peter clearing the room of those who were there. He was most likely getting his marching orders from the Lord and the weeping and wailing was probably a distraction. You see we have to learn that in order for our faith to be in full operation, we need to get rid of all the distractions that are in our way. Then he did what the Lord want us to do in all situations, and that is to get down on our knees and pray. You know we can’t move God until we get into our humble position that touches God’s heart. I often ask, what happened to the times when we the people of God used to get down on our knees. The old saints with rheumatism and all used to get down on their knees and cry out to the Lord. That is what Peter did he got down on his knees and called on the mighty name of Jesus. Then turned and said “Tabitha, arise.” Now if you are saying deja vu, you could be right. Because if we go back 6 verses you would find Peter saying “Aeneas, Jesus Christ make thee well; arise, and make thy bed.” You see Jesus does not what to see us always lying flat on our backs, but he wants us up and moving about telling someone about the Savior.
Finally...
3. THE RESULTS OF GREAT FAITH AGAIN TURNED THE PEOPLE UNTO LORD. (V.42)
“And it was known throughout all of Joppa; and many believed in the Lord.”
When Peter turned back towards Tabitha and told her to rise, she opened up her eyes and sat up. Then he took her by the hand and lifted her up; and called the saints and widows, and presented her to them alive. I can imagine the praise that broke out after seeing that Tabitha was alive and well, and the news spread all over Joppa. But we can see the Lord moving the same way he did in Lydda, we see the use of His name again adding to the faith. In verse 35 of the last lesson we saw both the cities of Lydda and Sharon turning to the Lord as a result of the use of the Lord’s name. Again we see many in Joppa being converted. And it was here in Joppa that the Lord was going to give Peter the vision that led to carrying the gospel to the Gentiles. But what we see as the results for raising the dead is that many believed in the Lord.
If we want to see miracles worked we need to elevate our faith. If you want to see the Lord add to the Church, elevate your faith.
CONCLUSION
Before I take my seat, I need to revisit the illustration I shared earlier. A fire had broke out in the home and the father looked for the son throughout the house. Meanwhile the son found his way to the roof and when the father came out of the burning structure and he saw his son on the roof. He called to him saying “Jump, I’ll catch you.” But the boy could not see his Daddy because of the dark smoke and fire block his view, but he could hear his father’s voice. His father kept yelling, “Jump! I’ll catch you.” and the boy replied “Daddy I can’t see you.” then the father replied “But I can see you, and that is all that matters.” Sometimes when we are in life’s burning building and we can hear the Father saying to us, “Jump! I’ll catch you.” We too would hesitates because we cannot see Him because all we can see is the black smoke of uncertainty, and the fire of fear. But if we would listen closely we would hear the Father say, “It doesn’t matter, I see you.”
When you don’t see the Lord, but hear His voice...Jump.
When doubt blocks your way, but you can still hear His voice...Jump.
When fear engulfs your heart, and you still hear His voice just...
J U M P RIGHT INTO HIS ARMS!!!
