Biblical Places Spiritual Spaces - Temple South Steps Graphics

A Miracle on the South Steps of the Temple

 

The Southern Wall and Steps of the Temple

The Visible Section of the Double Doors

 

The Triple Doors into the Temple

Thousands entered the Temple each day through the Triple Door and Double Door.

The width of the steps were purposely irregular so that the worshipper would have to think about his step as he approached God.

There are rooms and baptismal pools in front of these steps.

One of many mikvas located near the steps.

 

A Miracle on the South Steps of the Temple

 "Faith in miracles must yield ground, step by step, before the steady and firm advance of the forces of science, and its total defeat is indubitably a mere matter of time."       Max Planck 1858-1947

"All the tales of miracles, with which the Old and New Testament are filled, are fit only for impostors to preach and fools to believe."         Thomas Paine  1736-1809

"Miracles do not happen."                                        Matthew Arnold 1822-1888

 Miracle:  an event that cannot be explained according to the laws of nature and is considered to be an act of God or something extremely lucky that would not normally be possible.

Miracles by definition are supernatural events, or the results of extreme chance. For members of the family of God, chance events are rare. Miraculous manifestations of the presence of God are not.  They are common and expected. They are often referred to as “Signs”. They serve a dual purpose of meeting an immediate need, as well as proclaiming who God actually is.

We all have a time in our lives where we need a miracle.

  "Miracles are not contrary to nature, but only contrary to what we know about nature."                       Saint Augustine

 

Remember that Jesus asked His disciples to wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit had empowered them before they went forth as His Witnesses.

Some of the results of this supernatural empowerment include the spiritual gifts that are listed in 1 Corinthians 12 and Romans 12. According to the Bible, these “empowerments” are possessed to some degree by each member of the Body of Christ and are to be used to serve others and bring attention to our Lord Jesus.

This is what happens as Peter and John are walking up to the Temple.

The South Steps and Mt of Olives in the distance.

Peter and John went to the Temple one afternoon to take part in the three o’clock prayer service. As they approached the Temple, a man lame from birth was being carried in. Each day he was put beside the Temple gate, the one called the Beautiful Gate, so he could beg from the people going into the Temple. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for some money.

Peter and John looked at him intently, and Peter said, “Look at us!” The lame man looked at them eagerly, expecting a gift. But Peter said, “I don’t have any money for you. But I’ll give you what I have. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!”

Then Peter took the lame man by the right hand and helped him up. And as he did, the man’s feet and anklebones were healed and strengthened. He jumped up, stood on his feet, and began to walk! Then, walking, leaping, and praising God, he went into the Temple with them.

All the people saw him walking and heard him praising God. When they realized he was the lame beggar they had seen so often at the Beautiful Gate, they were absolutely astounded! They all rushed out to Solomon’s Colonnade, where he was holding tightly to Peter and John. Everyone stood there in awe of the wonderful thing that had happened.      Acts 3:1-11

 Here are the facts of this miracle:

• Peter & John were on their way to worship at the Temple;
• They passed a man who had been born lame, who was over 40 years old, and had been brought to the gate of the Temple to beg for alms for many years;
• Jesus had probably passed this man many times on his way into the Temple;
• With sudden inspiration, Peter proclaimed that God was going to allow this man to walk;
• When he lifted the man by his right hand, the man’s feet and ankles were healed and strengthened;
• The formerly lame man was able to walk and leap, and this resulted in him loudly and unabashedly proclaiming that God had indeed intervened in nature and healed him;
• The crowd at the Temple took notice, and were ‘astonished’.

 The Greek word used in the text for astonished is ekstasis, which means “an ecstasy in which the mind is for a time carried, as it were, out of or beyond itself and lost: great astonishment.”

 Principle: God loves to take us out of our own minds and into His.

Think for a moment. What are some of your deep desires that you long to see fulfilled?

Delight yourself in the LORD;  And He will give you the desires of your heart.   Psalms 37:4

Principle: God wants you to keep on praying. Get out of your mind and into His. Let Him fill you with His desires for your life. Let them become yours. And He will satisfy and fulfill your heart.

Peter sees an opportunity with this miracle and addresses the crowd.  

 “Friends, I realize that what you did to Jesus was done in ignorance; and the same can be said of your leaders. But God was fulfilling what all the prophets had declared about the Messiah beforehand—that he must suffer all these things.  Now turn from your sins and turn to God, so you can be cleansed of your sins. Then wonderful times of refreshment will come from the presence of the Lord, and he will send Jesus your Messiah to you again.  For he must remain in heaven until the time for the final restoration of all things, as God promised long ago through his prophets.   Acts 3:17-21                                                                                                        

Peter announces that according to the Jewish prophets of old, Jesus had to die for our sins.  Now it was the responsibility of all to turn from our own sinful paths, and return to a personal walk with the Lord, who will forgive us of all our sins. When we make this decision, we will enter a time of refreshment by being in God’s very real presence.

It is interesting to note that the Greek word for refreshment is “anapsyxis”, which has the sense of refreshment, relaxation from burdensome circumstance, or a state of cheer after a difficult time. (from the Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Sematic Domains). It can also mean "a recovery of breath”.

In the normal course of this life, with all its cares and problems, Peter declares that once we enter into a personal relationship with God, things will change. 

Principle: Jesus, our Lord, will be there to bear our burdens and provide us with cheerful relief, refreshment, and relaxation in this life as well as in the next.  This is one of the practical benefits of being a member of God’s family.

Peter finishes his speech with some cultural connections of Jesus with Moses, Samuel, and Abraham.  These Old Testament characters understood who Jesus is, and spoke about Him, and the effect He would have on mankind.

“Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up a Prophet like me from among your own people. Listen carefully to everything he tells you (Deuteronomy 18:15).’  Then Moses said, ‘Anyone who will not listen to that Prophet will be cut off from God’s people and utterly destroyed.’

“Starting with Samuel, every prophet spoke about what is happening today. You are the children of those prophets, and you are included in the covenant God promised to your ancestors. For God said to Abraham, ‘Through your descendants all the families on earth will be blessed.’ (Genesis 22:18)

When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you people of Israel, to bless you by turning each of you back from your sinful ways.”                                                      Acts 3:22-26

Was this an effective message?  Did Peter connect the dots for his audience? Luke records:

While Peter and John were speaking to the people, the leading priests, the captain of the Temple guard, and some of the Sadducees came over to them. They were very disturbed that Peter and John were claiming, on the authority of Jesus, that there is a resurrection of the dead. They arrested them and, since it was already evening, jailed them until morning. But many of the people who heard their message believed it, so that the number of believers totaled about five thousand men, not counting women and children.            Acts 4:1-4

 Yes, Peter’s message was clear to the religious authorities, who were mostly from the Sadducee party, which did not believe in a future resurrection.  They were incensed that Peter was proclaiming this event through the resurrection of Jesus.  They sent John and Peter to jail.  The crowd however responded positively to Peter’s message, and now over 5000 men, along with many women and children, were members of the Christian community.

 What an event!  What a miracle!  What a harvest!

I have sat many times on the South Steps of the Temple in Jerusalem, in the area where this miracle probably took place, contemplating this event.  The steps of Jerusalem limestone are original in the original location. They are irregular in shape, so that one could not just approach God without thinking about his steps.

It was here that rabbinical schools met, and here also that beggars gathered to collect alms from those entering the Temple grounds for worship.

A group of Randy Smith's disciples in 2006

How many times did Jesus pass by this man born lame who would be just a few years older than Jesus?  Did he pass him by with a smile on his face, knowing what was in store for this invalid in only a short time?  Did he stop and speak with this man, encouraging him that indeed God knew his situation, and cared? Did Jesus hint to him that God had a plan to use him in a way that he could not even imagine?   I can’t help but believe that Jesus did stop to speak with this future disciple; Maybe more than once.

I have spent the past four decades walking with Jesus, involved in discipleship and evangelism ministry.  In these years, I don’t think I have seen even close to 1000 come into the kingdom because of my efforts.

 Yet this man, who often passed his days without much going on, with little hope beyond meeting the needs of today, with thoughts of how God had cursed him from his birth, was used through his faith to bring thousands into the Kingdom.

Somehow, I find great encouragement in that.

 

 

The South Steps are very special to me. I have spent hours there meditating on all those who walk up these steps, and especially my Lord, Savior, and Hero Jesus, and all that God did through them.

In 2006, we did a special dedication ceremony for our daughter Mikaela, who just turned 15, and our son Lukas who would soon turn 14.

Many of our family friends from Maui and Florida were there to lay hand on them and join in this dedication of their lives for the Lord and His purposes.

What an honor it was to dedicate our children at this very historically significant place for any worshipper of Yahweh. It was a special time.

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