Giving Glory to Christ and to God

Peter and John go to the temple to pray at about the ninth hour (3p.m.). While they are there in Acts chapter three they find a man lame from birth sitting at the gate Beautiful asking for alms and money. Verse six reads that Peter said to the man “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk”. The man immediately gets up and his ankles and knees are strengthened. He begins to run and jump around praising God who had healed him. Notice the man did not praise Peter and John who had been the vessel through which he was healed but the man knew he was healed through God, so he went to the source as we should and praised God.

As the man is running and jumping around a crowd gathers together to see what had been done for the man. Peter, seeing all the people, says in verse twelve “Why do you marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?” Peter does not take the glory for himself and neither does John. Both men give the glory and the praise to its rightful owner and that is God. Peter saw his opportunity to give God the praise and he saw the opportunity to teach the people about Jesus the Christ. Peter saw his Jesus window, the window into the minds of the people by which the words of God can enter, and he used it to praise God.

There are times that we really do great things for other people. And, it is so very easy for us to take all the glory. If you're anything like me, it is really nice for someone to congradulate you on an achievement or something good you have done. When things like that happen we need to thank God and thank him for allowing those things to come to being. If you preach a good lesson during a church service, those really aren't your words in the first place, they're all Gods. If you do fine work at the office, you put in the time but, God gave it to you. God gives us our skill and determination to accomplish the tasks we are presented with. Let us remember the God who gives us everything and give everything to him.