The holiness required for entry into the Temple in Jerusalem required that the would-be worshipper was not only pure spiritually but also physically intact. Not a thing missing; no missing limbs or fingers and toes.
The man who sat begging at the Gate Beautiful was a cripple from birth, which made him an outsider to all that took place inside the Temple courts.
To a Jew, that meant exclusion, not only from Israel’s three main Feasts but also the myriad of everyday activities that took place in the outer court inside the Gate, where worshippers gathered to discuss the Law and its application to everyday life. Exclusion made one an Outsider, and the sight of the cripple laid daily at the Gate Beautiful was a visible reminder to every clean and complete Jew about to enter into the Temple of the ugly reality of life outside.
This was the setting for the first miracle to be recorded in “The Acts of the Apostles” and its significance should not be overlooked, for to do so puts the reader of the Book of Acts in a role not unlike those who, in their haste to enter the Temple through the Gate Beautiful, bypassed the beggar.
Some no doubt paused on hearing his cry for alms to drop a coin into his cup to clear their consciences in preparation for serious worship. Personal purity was a prerequisite in the approach of every Jew to worship.
Given that Jesus would himself have passed by the crippled beggar on his way into the Temple through The Gate Beautiful — hearing him but not healing him — is significant in that Jesus never acted impulsively but did only what “saw” his heavenly Father doing. This emphasises our Lord’s obedience and excludes the thought of omission on his part. Jesus never overlooked anyone: the crippled beggar had been a miracle in waiting!
Most Christians are familiar with the details in Acts 3 of what took place that day. So, I’ll put it into three main points:
1. The healed man ENTERED WITH PETER AND JOHN INTO WORSHIP — “Walking, leaping, and praising God.” Not every person the Lord Jesus heals through us will do so. Some will be so preoccupied with the miracle that they will head in other directions: home to family and friends. Which is understandable, but entering into worship with those the Lord used is the better response.
2. The healed man HELD TO PETER AND JOHN IN RELATIONSHIP. (Acts 3:11) While giving God all the glory for your healing, cling to those He used to heal you because you need an ongoing relationship with those God used to bring about extra changes in your life.
3. The healed man STOOD TOGETHER WITH PETER AND JOHN IN WITNESS (Acts 4:14). Seeing the well-known, lifelong cripple standing with Peter and John made the ministry of the two apostles as undeniable as the miracle itself.
So, there you have it: From Outsider to Insider — in Leaps and Bounds! “Way to Go!” as we used to exclaim back in the 1980s. We’ll say so again — and very soon — when such miracles occur in Main Street or The High Street as people come and go about their daily pursuits. Think empty wheelchairs on busy streets. Maybe we, whom the Lord will use, will again not just walk into worship but leap and praise God as we enter The Beautiful Gate — the Name of Jesus — and into a more biblical way of worship!