A BEGGAR ASKED FOR ALMS AND GOT LEGS
A mentor of mine once advised me, “Be careful what you ask for. God might surprise you with something far greater than you really want.” If, for example, you adopt as the theme song of your Christian journey, “Wherever He leads I’ll go”, be prepared for an assignment that you least expected.
Bob Payne shared with us that, when he prayed a similar prayer, he meant it to the extent that he quit his lucrative job not knowing where God would send him. As we speak, he is in Baghdad in Iraq carrying out yet another assignment in his role on behalf of Experiencing God Ministries as a witness for Christ
Dwight L. Moody the shoe salesman at the age of 30 sold his shoe business to serve God full time as a layman. He had been led to Christ by a Sunday School teacher in the back room of his shoe store, and he had prayed a prayer like Bob’s, yet he was about as uneducated as one could be.
Nevertheless, Moody felt led to preach; he was given a chance by his home church to “give a talk”. After his “talk”, a deacon approached him and suggested, in so many words, that he could best serve God by remaining silent. Someone else chimed in, “You have bad grammar.”
Whereupon Moody observed, “I notice you have good grammar.” “Yes, I do” the man replied. Said Moody, “Well, what are you doing for God?”
Depressed, Moody left the country and wound up in Dublin, Ireland where he heard the protestant evangelist Henry Varley say, “The world has yet to see what God will do with, and for, and through, and in a man fully consecrated to God.”
Muttering to himself, Moody opined, “He said ‘a man’. He didn’t say great man, learned man or smart man. He simply said ‘a man’. Well, I’m ‘a man’. And it’s up to me whether I will or will not consecrate my life to God. I will do my best to be that man.”
Moody preached to more than 100 million people in crusades all over the world. His passion for souls, his humility and his simple yet profound preaching provided opportunity for thousands to be added to the kingdom of God. Indeed, this one man fully consecrated never missed an opportunity to witness for God.
Moody followed a simple rule: Never let an opportunity for ministering in the name of Jesus pass you by. His role models were the two disciples of Jesus, Peter and John, who had given up their fishing business to follow Jesus – Acts 3:1-10 . . .
Three aspects of the Healing of the Beggar we want to pay attention to: The Man . . . The Miracle . . . The Message . . . and from the story in its entirety we can identify eight types of people God chooses to use in the service of His kingdom.
The man who presented the opportunity for ministry had been crippled from birth and, at the age of forty, still had no choice but to ask alms of those who passed by on their way into the Temple. His physical condition may be looked upon as an illustration of our spiritual condition. He had been born crippled, and so were we - spiritually – with our bent toward sinning. This man serves as a reminder of the fact that sin cripples.
There he sat in the shadows of the brilliance and grandeur of a gate plated with gold and decorated with ornamental jewels. Yet, none of that rubbed off on him; the stark contrast only made him feel worse about himself.
A man can make a gate beautiful, but nothing a man can do will make the man beautiful. Only God can do that. Yes, we can do some things on the outside to improve our looks; we can shave, get a haircut and dress up; yet we might still be lame on the inside. Only by the help of God can we clean up our lives and stay well spiritually.
So, the man was like most of us once were, and maybe still are, standing or sitting in the need of prayer . . . God’s help . . . spiritual transformation.
The miracle occurred during a daily routine - in a situation that had been that way day in and day out. (Never underestimate the chance of an opportunity occurring during your daily routine). Like clockwork, the beggar set up shop and people walked by him, around him, or on the other side to avoid him. It was a situation that had become predictable.
It is into such situations that the Lord our God injects himself in the person of one of His witnesses who just so happen to be going that way, not accidentally but providentially. Or, perhaps, accidentally on purpose! The miracle occurred as miracles always do - when God’s people first SEE the opportunity then SEIZE it!
“At once” . . . “Immediately” . . . “Instantly” the man’s feet and ankle bones “were made strong”. God worked in that situation as He does in and through all situations to bring about good to those who love Him and call upon Him. “Filled with joy” is an emotional expression that we all would do well to feel from time to time when good news is received or when good things happen to us!
Resources may be limited, but we never run out of recurring opportunities to speak a word of encouragement or to share the message of hope.
Mr. Beazley was my across-the-street neighbor in Augusta. Raymond sat on his front porch every morning, called out to me as I left to go to the church office, “Good morning, Charles. Remember: With God on your side, how can you lose?”
Oftentimes we say to folks struggling with a problem, “There is nothing that can come into your life today that you and God together cannot handle.”
Eight types of people God uses to do His work are exemplified in this story of the beggar who asked for alms and got legs.
God uses people who: *are doing the right thing . . . *don’t mind being interrupted . . . *pay attention to needs while doing good deeds . . . *inspire hope in others . . . *use what they have at their disposal at that moment . . . *realize that their source of sharing or speaking truth is the Lord God . . . *are willing to do their best and leave to God the rest . . . *give God the glory . . .
It is said that, as Dwight L. Moody and a friend walked down a sidewalk in London late one Saturday night, they saw a drunk on the other side of the street stumbling and tripping over himself. Whereupon Moody remarked to his friend, “Except for the grace of God, there goes Dwight L. Moody.”
By the grace of God, we begin our Christian journey . . . goodness and mercy follow us all the days of our lives . . . we shall dwell in the House of the Lord forever!
“Tis grace hath brought us safe thus far, and grace will lead us home”!
Amazing Grace! And all the people said, Amen!
