Church What's In It For Me?

"The Church: What's In It For Me?"

This passage of Scripture is about a man who is a beggar and who also happens to be lame.
The word "lame" is described in Webster's Dictionary as an adjective with the following definitions 1) having a body part and especially a limb so disabled as to impair freedom…(of movement.) marked by stiffness or soreness. 2) lacking needful or desirable substance 3) "SLANG"-not being in the know
I think that all of these definitions fit accordingly to describe the life of this beggar. Yes he did have a problem with his legs (from birth) and has never been able to walk. Also he was lacking a relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ and this left him needing a desirable substance and finally he was definitely NOT in the know.
This passage begins at the temple="the church." Read vv.1-3
Acts 3:1Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the ninth hour, the hour of prayer. 2And a man who had been lame from his mother's womb was being carried along, whom they used to set down every day at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, in order to beg alms of those who were entering the temple. 3When he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple, he began asking to receive alms.
For 35 years this lame man as a part of his daily routine gets up and is carried to the church. He wasn't carried to the church because it was close to his house in proximity. No he was carried there each day for 35 years because he was a beggar and the church was the premium location to solicit people for their money or "alms" as the Bible called it. The man had no job except to show up everyday and beg for money. I'm sure he had the ability to read people and size them up as to who were going to be good givers and who would not give at all. He probably was very dramatic at times on his delivery of sympathetic dialog.
For 35 years this man had a routine. For 35 years he went to the church. He did not go to church he went to the church. Why did he go? Who knows why he went to the same place for 35 years without change (no pun)?
>>>When I was a kid I went to church "religiously" (pun intended) without fail. I had to or else. I grew up in a small country church. I have many fond memories of this church. My uncle led the music, which was played by my Aunt. Out of the small congregation my family made up close to half (11 kids on my Mom's side). I can remember good music, long and loud sermons and cold lemonade. I remember singing in the choir with the adults at a young age. That church had a lot of wonderful people in it and still does today but for me I went because I had to. I didn't know anything else. I didn't know there were any options. It didn't matter if you got anything out of it as long as you were there is what mattered. It was easier for me to get out of going to school than it was for me to get out of church.

Many of us go to the church because we have always gone to church.

As I grew older my family wanted to find a church with a youth group for my sister and me (the other church we WERE the youth group and I guess by default my parents were the youth leaders). So we found a wonderful church with an awesome youth group and a dynamic youth pastor. This is where I really began to experience some Christian living. But the church became an identity for me. I began to use Jesus like and ID card. Everyone around me was Christians so that must mean that I am. I had a really good group of friends at the church. My association with them created an identity for me that I was use on others. "Not me I am a Christian…not me I go to this church or that youth group…not me because I am friends with this person."
Many of us may go to church because of the people that we associate with there. We go because that is where the good people are.
I eventually grew out of the youth group and thus my identity had changed and I had to find another motivation for going to church. For a period of time I stumbled through trying to find the "meaning of life". After a time of personal rebellion I felt like the church needed to offer me more in order for me to be a part of it. Well, I found a church that was fun and dynamic. I saw and experienced things that I didn't know could happen in the church. The music was new and exciting. These were definitely not songs from the Baptist Hymnal. At this church emotions ran high. I began to think that the true Saints of God sang the loudest, danced the longest and raised their hands the highest. It didn't matter what went on their personal lives after the service during that week as long as people saw you "worshipping" on Sunday. I had to keep going to the church to get my Jesus fix. I was going to church to get a "good feeling". (I have later learned I get those same good feelings from watching a movie on TV.)
Many of us go to church for a good feeling or for the way it makes us feel.
See now the lame beggar it not as isolated is he? Let's continue to see how the life of this beggar may be similar to our own.

Read vv.4-6 I have found that often enough we have a procedure or plan of our own for the Lord to follow (just in case He can't come up with anything on his own) and He never uses what we expect Him to. 4But Peter, along with John, fixed his gaze on him and said, "Look at us!" 5And he began to give them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. 6But Peter said, "I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene--walk!"

This case is no different. The beggar is there and he is able to generate dialog between Peter and John. They reply back to the beggar "what do we look like" and the beggar is getting anxious thinking they are going to give him some money. Instead Peter informs the man that they have no money but he will gladly give him what they do have. <>
What is the lame beggar expecting now?
Peter then tells the man in the name of Jesus of Nazareth get up and walk. If we stop the story here we miss out on a remarkable change.
Read vv. 7-9 Peter takes the man by his hand and in doing so the mans feet and ankles begin to heal and strengthen instantly. This is not the great miracle that takes place. This was God healing someone who needed to be healed this happens all the time. 7And seizing him by the right hand, he raised him up; and immediately his feet and his ankles were strengthened. 8With a leap he stood upright and began to walk; and he entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. 9And all the people saw him walking and praising God;
v.8 the lame beggar (at this time he is neither) jumps up, stands up and begins to walk…Think about this, how many people do we know that has had some type of injury or operation in which their limbs have to go through rehabilitation in order to "relearn how to use them". This man has never ever in his life used his feet and legs and all of the sudden he is jumping around and using them with great success.
Finally, the man goes to church walking, leaping and praising God.
Read vv. 10-11 People noticed this man who was committed to praising God. The man had a reason to celebrate because for 35 years he had been going to the church instead of going to church. The people celebrated with him.
10and they were taking note of him as being the one who used to sit at the Beautiful Gate of the temple to beg alms, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. 11While he was clinging to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them at the so-called portico of Solomon, full of amazement.

Now how many of us are still like the lame beggar who now praises God for all He has done and is able to be an example of a life changed by the power of a loving God.

Summing up the Life of the beggar:
Continually lived the same way without result for 35 years.
Always went to the church but never quite went far enough.
Tried to place himself in a position where people would notice him, hoping they could make him better.
Focused his attention on emotions and feelings in order to get what he wanted.
How many of us today are really like this man. Have we played church for far too long? Are we sitting out by the gate waiting for a miracle? Are we here because somebody else made us come? Do we come so that when others see us they think we have got it all together? Or do we come because we like the way church makes us feel and when we leave its back to our same old situation?
Today you can receive your miracle…Remember the miracle wasn't in the healing it was in the walking. For you today your miracle can be walking with the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and beginning a new life with Him.