Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Give It All!

Act 3:1 Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.
Act 3:2 And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple;
Act 3:3 Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms.
Act 3:4 And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us.
Act 3:5 And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them.
Act 3:6 Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.

"What do you give a person that is expecting to receive something that you do not have?"

Many people today are trying to impress people by pretending they have so much, when in fact they have so little!

Trying to keep up with the "Jones" has over burdened many Christian people today. Stress is in abundance and peace of mind is out of reach for those who, instead of trusting God and being content with such as they have, they over-extend themselves through the miracle of plastic today! And then they get another piece of plastic to pay for the previous piece of plastic!

Well, there is a remedy! It's called plastic surgery. "You just take a good pair of sharp scissors and cut those little plastic cards in very small pieces." That's the first step to your recovery.

Next, when you are asked: "Plastic or Paper?" Remember this, choose the paper, the pages of the Word of God, be a doer of the Word and not a hearer only!

God's Word tells us of the consequences of our actions that ignore the Truths of the Bible. But the Bible will always show us the Way out if we are willing to humble ourselves and be willing to do what God says.
Isaiah 1:19 If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:


No matter how far in debt, no matter how deep in error to the Word of God you are, or how hopeless and helpless you might feel, "Rise up and Walk!"

There was a man in the above passage from Acts chapter 3 that had been dependent upon man all of his life for his help. He looked to man to carry him daily to the temple.

Now, when we think of a man going to the temple, we think of someone going to meet with God. But not so in this man's thinking. His mind was on man getting him to the temple, his mind was on man who would be coming by his way, and his mind was on what he would receive from a man to meet his need for the day.

Many today are like the man at the Beautiful Gate (Jesus is that Beautiful gate), they are content to be brought to the Beautiful Gate by the effort of others, but when they are there, they are content to sit outside of the Beautiful Gate to again receive something from those going into the Beautiful Gate!

That Beautiful gate is a type of Christ, Jesus said: "I am the Door!"

John 10:9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
John 10:10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.


This man is like so many today, they are looking to the world for their help and so little today are looking to Christ.

Just because you are a Christian doesn't keep you out of hardships. I encourage you today if you are facing hardships or trials right now, don't make things worse by continuing to look to the world's way of fixing your problem, go to the Door! Jesus!

Acts 3:2 And a certain man lame from his mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple;

Most of those that were going into the temple had the same mentality that the lame man had, they were going because the inventions of man would be there.

But there was a few that God had changed, and He would use to change the lives of others for His glory!


"Just suppose, you are at the gate."

Suppose you are the man at the gate, put yourself in his place, feel his despair, feel his outlook for the next day, the next week, the next year!

What do, you want? You are the man!

What do you want somebody to give to you?

Has your mind been conditioned to only look to a natural man to meet your need?

"Some of you reading this today, you are the man! You are the woman! You are the boy! Or you are the girl that is described here in the book of Acts."

Your whole life has been a life of misery. You may have even put up a good front before others, because you just needed their help.

Listen, we need the help of others at times but we must realize that even the help of others, was a way that God was showing His mercy and grace to us!

What do we really need? "We must come in at the Door!"

A song goes like this that I heard: "Gods got a way that you can't go over....Gods got a way that you can't go under.....Gods got a way that you can't go around it....you must come in at the Door!" That Door is Jesus Christ!

"You see, when true servants of the Lord pass your way, hope will be brought your way!"

I, for a moment , will put myself in that man's place.

I find that I'm in the prime of my age but yet have no strength to do very little for myself. This really is no prime of life for me.

As long as I can remember, my life has been a struggle just to make it. But you know, there have been these people, who have come to me, and carried me to the Gate!

I stay here, I've seen many coming and going for so many years now, who are truly in the prime of their life. I've heard them talking about their financial success, I've heard them talking about the new homes that they have built. They have been going into the Beautiful Gate now for so many years. I've heard so many talk about their families and all the happiness they have. "But I sit at the gate."

But lately, after so many years, there's something going on, I don't really know, but still I sit at the gate. I'm still being carried by someone, I still have a voice, I still ask an alm, but I still sit at the gate.

Well, here I am again today, here I sit at the gate. It about the ninth hour, prayer meeting is about to start.

Oh good, here comes two men now, they're coming right to me. "Please give me your spare change!"

I'm the man now!

The one whom has been carried and daily laid at the gate of the temple! "Please, give me just enough to make it through today!"

But right now, I as I'm looking into the eyes of these men that have said to me: "Look on us!"

All of a sudden, I'm feeling something that I've never felt before in my whole life! Never have I sensed this feeling that I'm feeling right now! Something is about to be given unto me!

I'm hearing this man say very loudly in my hearing that he doesn't have any spare change but yet I'm not disappointed!

I'm hearing this man saying with all honesty that he doesn't have enough, just to help me make it through the day, and still I'm not disappointed by what I'm hearing!

"These men are of a different sort!"

I've been rejected before by men but I know I'm not being rejected by these this time!

I know that this time , something else has to be said to me! I know that I'm not going to be passed by!

Something has happened just recently in this city, in an upper room! The power of God has been poured out upon the people of God!

I know these are truly men of God! I still sit at the gate but I expect something today!

As I hear the words, "Silver and gold have I none", I look beyond the the disappointment of those words and I now hear these words: "but such as I have give I thee:"

"Something is about to happen to me that will for ever change my life!"

In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk!

Act 3:7 And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.
Act 3:8 And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.



You, who are reading this today, don't just sit at the Gate, Jesus is right where you are! He is the Beautiful Gate! The entrance into God's Kingdom!

He, and He alone is the Door that we all must enter to be saved!

Believer in Christ, do you realize the, "such as I have", that is within you?

Eph 1:17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:
Eph 1:18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
Eph 1:19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
Eph 1:20 Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
Eph 1:21 Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:
Eph 1:22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
Eph 1:23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

Col 2:6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:
Col 2:7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.
Col 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
Col 2:9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.
Col 2:10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:


"What do we give?"

We give such as we have!

We give out of that which Christ has given unto us!

Out of His fulness! We are complete in Christ!

Christ is the Head of us, the Church, the Body of Christ.

We are to give Jesus to those around us!

In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.

And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up:

and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.

And he leaping up stood,

and walked,

and entered with them into the temple,

walking, and leaping, and praising God!


What a beginning! When he began to rise up and walk!

What an abundant life! He entered the Door!

Walking, and leaping, and praising God!




What do you give?

Give it all!

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