Acts 14:8–10: “And at Lystra a man was sitting who had no strength in his feet, lame from his mother’s womb, who had never walked. This man was listening to Paul as he spoke, who, when he had fixed his gaze on him and had seen that he had faith to be made well, said with a loud voice, ‘Stand upright on your feet.’ And he leaped up and began to walk.”
Observation: It had just been said of Paul and Barnabas that everywhere they went they continued to preach the Gospel. In this instance, they were heard by a lame man whom they proceeded to heal.
Application: At his healing, the crowd went wild, claiming that Paul and Barnabas were gods come to earth, and then they began making sacrifices to them. Appalled, Paul and Barnabas pled with the people to turn from such vain, meaningless things, and to trust instead in the God Who had made the heavens, the earth, the seas, and all they contain.
If the people had even limited understanding of the world around them, this simple miracle done for the lame man would not have seemed so extraordinary. Instead, they could have known God had been constantly visible to them through the good things He faithfully provided such as nourishing rain, harvests yielding bountiful produce, and hearts overflowing with gratitude for life itself.
Because they had not been attentive to the awesome works of God, they found themselves desperate to worship the men Paul and Barnabas, even giving them names for Greek gods. Such demonic doctrine is the natural outflow of men seeking to satisfy their longing to belong to a god who is powerful, yet not wanting to gaze upon the one who is All-Powerful.
Today we could credit such desperation to the demonic doctrine of evolution; blobs of nothing becoming sophisticated life forms as the result of random chance. Those who have bought into such deception today would be just as astonished to see a lame man walk as were these residents of Lystra. But for those who know God, who have some insight into His character, such astonishment has long since disappeared, replaced by hearts overflowing with gratitude for yet another demonstration of His unending love and unequalled power.
Prayer: Lord, thank You for this reminder that in You reside all authority and power. You Who created everything I can see, maintain life itself with your Word, and You have full ability to work amazing miracles in my life. Father, I don’t want to be blind to all You are doing in the world around me. Awaken me. Bring me to attention. Strengthen my focus on You, that I might become more fully aware of the miracles You perform all around me each day.”