As we observe the Holy Spirit-filled activity of the early Christian leaders, it is clear that the Holy Spirit was leading them to imitate Christ in their ministries. We saw how Stephen asked for forgiveness for those who were stoning him, even as Jesus forgave those who were crucifying Him. In the text for this week, Acts 9:32-43, we see Peter carrying out the work of Christ in ways that were remarkably similar to those of Christ.
First, Peter encountered a man named Aeneas who was paralyzed and had been bedridden for eight years. Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you; get up and make your own bed.” Aeneas immediately got up. We are reminded of what Jesus said when he healed the paralyzed man who was lowered through the roof: “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home” (Lk. 5:24). In that case also, the man immediately stood up, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God. After Jesus healed this man, we read: “Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God” (Lk. 5:26). After Aeneas was healed, we read: “And all who lived at Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord” (Ac. 9:35). In our service to Christ, it should always be said, “Like Master, like servant!”
Then Peter was told of the death of Tabitha (Dorcas), a woman “excelling in acts of kindness and charity which she did habitually” (Ac. 9:37). Peter went into the room where they had placed Dorcas’s body, knelt down, and prayed. “He said, ‘Tabitha, arise.’ And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter, she sat up” (Ac. 9:40). We think again of an event from Jesus’s ministry, when He healed the daughter of the synagogue leader, Jairus. Jesus “took her by the hand and said to her, ‘Talitha koum!’ (which means ‘Little girl, I say to you, get up!’). Immediately the girl stood up and began to walk around. At this they were completely astonished” (Mk. 5:42). Luke wrote that when Dorcas came back to life, “ It became known all over Joppa, and many believed in the Lord” (Ac. 9:42). A strong lesson here is that when Peter was led by the Holy Spirit, he acted like Jesus. We will do the same!
Paul summed it up this way: “Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ” (1 Cor. 11:1).
-Al Gary
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