Aeneas and Dorcas - The Greatest Miracle (Acts 9: 32-43)

Welcome: In this episode, we'll explore Acts 9:32-43, where Peter performs two remarkable miracles: healing a paralyzed man named Aeneas and raising a woman named Tabitha (Dorcas) from the dead. As we delve into these powerful stories, we'll uncover truths about God's limitless power and grace, calling us to faith and action in our own lives.

Study Notes:

Scripture Reading: Acts 9:32-43

1. Peter in Lydda and Joppa:
   • Peter heals Aeneas, who had been bedridden for eight years. With a simple command, “Jesus Christ heals you,” Aeneas immediately gets up.
   • Peter is then summoned to Joppa where Tabitha, a beloved disciple known for her good works and charity, has died. Surrounded by mourning widows, Peter prays and commands her to rise, and she opens her eyes, alive again.
2. Key Themes:
   • God's Power and Grace: Both miracles emphasize that it is Jesus Christ who heals and resurrects, not Peter, demonstrating God's power working through His apostles.
   • Faith in Action: These stories are not just historical accounts but living testimonies that call us to exhibit our faith through actions and trust in God's power.
   • Witness to God's Power: The miraculous healings led many to believe in the Lord, highlighting how visible acts of God in our lives can lead others to faith.
3. Application:
   • Transformative Power of Faith: The greatest miracle is the transformation that God brings into our lives. This transformation is a powerful testimony to others, demonstrating the reality of God's work in us.
   • Living Out Our Faith: Acts of kindness and charity, like those performed by Tabitha, are essential expressions of our discipleship and faith. Our daily actions should reflect the love and grace of God.
   • Enduring Trials with Joy: Trusting God through trials and demonstrating patience and joy in difficult circumstances can be a powerful witness to others, showing them the supernatural strength and peace that come from God.
4. Personal Reflection:
   • Consider how God has worked in your life and how you can be a witness to others through your actions and faith.
   • Reflect on how you can serve others in your community, following Tabitha's example of good works and charity.
   • Think about the ways you can trust God more deeply in your trials, allowing His grace to give you peace and joy.

I hope today's episode encourages you to trust in God's power and to let His work in your life be a testimony to others.

Feel free to download our study notes and reflection questions for this episode from our Patreon and if you have any questions or would like to share how this episode has impacted you, please reach out to us on our social media channels or communicate with me directly on Patreon.

Reflection Questions:

1. How have you experienced God's transformative power in your own life?
2. In what ways can you serve others in your community, following Dorcas's example?
3. How can you demonstrate joy and patience in your current trials, relying on God's grace?

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Transcript

Aeneas and Dorcas - The Greatest Miracle.  (Acts 9:32-43)

Transcript:

 Suppose I asked you to name the greatest miracle in the life of Christ or maybe even the Acts of the Apostles. Would it be the healing of a lame man, giving sight to a blind woman, casting out demons, or raising someone from the dead? When I pose such questions, I like to include "none of the above" or "all of the above" to see how people answer. How would you answer? Let's think about this today.

Imagine the scene: Peter, the rock upon which Christ promised to build His church, traveling through the regions, performing miracles that leave communities in awe. 

In today’s passage we find Peter in Lydda and Joppa, where two miraculous events unfold. He heals Aeneas, bedridden for eight years, with a simple command, “Jesus Christ heals you. Then, in Joppa, Peter is summoned to the bedside of Tabitha, a beloved disciple known for her good works and charity, who has just died. Surrounded by weeping widows, Peter prays and commands her to rise, and she opens her eyes, alive again. 

Today we are going to look at these powerful stories, but not just as historical accounts; they are living testimonies of God's limitless power and grace, calling us to faith and action in our own lives. In todays episode….

Turn with me to Acts 9:32.

32 As Peter travelled about the country, he went to visit the Lord’s people who lived in Lydda. 33 There he found a man named Aeneas, who was paralyzed and had been bedridden for eight years. 34 “Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and roll up your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up. 35 All those who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord.

36 In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor. 37 About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. 38 Lydda was near Joppa; so, when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, “Please come at once!”

39 Peter went with them, and when he arrived, he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.

40 Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, “Tabitha, get up.” She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up. 41 He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called for the believers, especially the widows, and presented her to them alive. 42 This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed on the Lord. 43 Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon.

(Acts 9: 32-43)

This actual narrative of this passage is straightforward. Peter heals a paralyzed man and raises a woman from the dead. In Lydda, Peter tells Aeneas, "Jesus Christ heals you," emphasizing that the power is from Christ, not Peter. Aeneas immediately gets up and makes his bed, which might seem trivial but that detail is added to highlight the completeness of his healing. The miracle leads many to believe in the Lord.

Similarly, in Joppa, Peter raises Tabitha, a woman known for her charitable deeds. Her resurrection brings many to faith. So this miracle amazing for those who experienced them also demonstrate God's power and lead others who witness them to believe.

The broader lesson here for us to apply is that people need to see God's work in our lives. Physical miracles today are still meant to illustrate the transformation in our lives and can and should be a powerful testimony to the power of God. People are seldom argued or debated into Christianity through logic alone. The true proof of Christianity is its ability to change someone life, and when people see the difference Christ makes in us, miraculous or otherwise, they are drawn to Him.

So, as we read Acts 9, let's remember that the greatest miracle is the transformation God brings to our lives, leading others to faith. 

Let me be more specific. 

All of us encounter trials—that's just part of life. Many of us, even those who know the Lord, will experience these trials like everyone else. But what's different about a Christian walking with the Lord is that we can depend on God's grace to give us peace and even joy in the midst of trials. 

The Bible tells us to "count it a joy when we fall into various kinds of trials and tribulations." So, if you're in a difficult situation and you're trusting the Lord, He will give you the grace to handle it with joy. 

People will notice that and think, "That's not normal. There's something supernatural about you response to that. That's when they ask, "How can you do that? What enables you to respond in that way." Have you ever had that happen to you?

I believe this principle is reflected in our passage today. 

We learn to walk with the Lord and then supernatural things happen, and what I mean by that is not just the miraculous but things like living with joy even in difficult circumstances. When people see this kind of supernatural response in Christians, they are drawn to the Lord.

In Colossians 1, Paul prays for the believers at Colossae, and one of the things he prays for is this.

That you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God, strengthened with all might according to His glorious power, for all patience and long-suffering with joy."

(Colossians 1: 10)

Let me read that again: "Strengthened with all might according to His glorious power." Would you like the power of God? Sure, we'd all like to see the power that raised a paralytic from his bed after eight years. But listen to what Paul says that power does for us: "Strengthened with all might according to His glorious power, for all patience and long-suffering with joy."

How many of you could use some help with patience? That's where God's power comes into our daily lives. Paul says this power enables us to be patient and to do so with joy. That's not natural, and that it why it is supernatural. That's why we need to depend on God's grace to be patient with joy. 

When people see that, they think, that is the kind of witness draws people to the Lord.

In Acts 9, the people saw something supernatural, and they turned to the Lord. 

Now, let's go back to Acts 9 and look at the story of Dorcas.

Dorcas, also known as Tabitha, was a disciple known for her good works and charitable deeds. The text emphasizes that she was a disciple, which is important. There is a distinction in Scripture between being a believer and being a disciple. Dorcas was not only a believer but also a disciple who did good works. Is there a relationship between these things? Absolutely.

To get to heaven, all you need to do is believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. You need to understand that you need your sins forgiven, that Jesus died for your sins and rose from the dead, and you simply depend on Him for your salvation. The Bible says, "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9).

After you become a believer and receive the gift of eternal life, the next step in spiritual development is discipleship. A disciple is a learner. After trusting Christ for eternal life, you want to learn from Him how to live your life. One of the things you learn is to love one another.

I often say that the Bible can be summarized in three words: faith, love, and hope. Trust God, learn to love one another, and hope for the rewards Christ will bring when He returns and when you get to heaven.

Dorcas trusted Christ, became a disciple, and did good works. Good works are not the means to salvation; they are the result of salvation and discipleship. 

Paul says in Galatians, "Through love serve one another." If we truly love each other, we serve one another, which is good work. Ephesians 2:10 also says, "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works." We are saved not by good works but to do good works.

Dorcas trusted Christ became a disciple, and her good works flowed naturally from her discipleship. That's the relationship between faith, discipleship, and good works.

What God ultimately wants from us is to simply do good things for one another and to love one another and credit Jesus for gifting us the motivation in doing this things. Dorcas exemplified this. She trusted Christ, became a disciple, and her life was filled with good works, especially helping the poor. And then, she died.

When the disciples heard that Peter was in a nearby town, about 11 miles away, they sent for him. They said, "Come quickly, we have a situation." 

They had seen him heal a paralyzed man, but now they had something even more challenging. When Peter arrived, Dorcas was already dead and laid out in an upper room. The text says he asked them to leave the room, and he knelt down, and prayed. Why did he send them out? 

My perspective after reading many commentaries on this matter was it was in order to create an atmosphere of faith and focus for him. After praying, he told her to arise, and she did. He then he presented her alive to the people waiting outside.

Verse 42 says, "That it became known throughout all Joppa, and many believed on the Lord." Notice it says they believed on the Lord, not just in Him. That little word on Means they were depending on the Lord, trusting in Him and living it out in their lives, in other words they went from being believers to disciples also.

 This emphasizes the same point I made earlier—something supernatural happened, and it led people to believe.

In one case, people saw a man who had been paralyzed for eight years walking around, which was a clear sign of something supernatural. In Dorcas's case, everyone knew she had died. When they saw her alive, they believed in the Lord because they saw something supernatural.

Let's make some observations about Dorcas. The text tells us that she did lots of good works. What kind of works did she do? Verse 39 says that when Peter arrived, all the widows stood by weeping, showing the tunics and garments Dorcas had made while she was with them. 

It seems she was a seamstress who made clothes for the needy. This was one of her good work.

Many people think giving your life to Christ is a one-time grand gesture, but in reality I believe it's more about consistent, small acts of kindness, like seen here

Giving your life to Christ is not like putting £1,000 on the table and saying, "Here it is, all at once." It's more like giving regularly, generously and willingly all your life.

Small acts of love and service done daily. Dorcas made a tunic here, a garment there, but for us it might be cooking someone a meal, giving them a ride to a hospital appointment. Little things that added up to a life full of good works.

When Peter healed her, people saw the hand of the Lord in what had happened and believed. 

One last observation: verse 43 says Peter stayed many days in Joppa with Simon, a tanner. It helpful to know that Tanners were considered unclean because they dealt with dead animals. The Pharisees would have nothing to do with them. So it's significant that Peter chose to stay with someone in a supposed, “unclean profession,” indicating the inclusiveness of the gospel.

So, to sum up, the real point of these stories is that God's supernatural work in the lives of these people resulted in others coming to the Lord. Both stories end with people turning to the Lord because they witnessed something miraculous.

At the beginning, I said the greatest miracle is people coming to faith. When reading the bible particularly a book like Acts, with one story after another, ask yourself why the author chose to include that particular story. What's the point being made? 

All biblical authors, guided by the Spirit, have a purpose and select material to support their point. When reading Scripture, especially narratives, always ask: what is the point the Lord is making in this book, and how does this episode fit that point?

When you read your Bible start by asking the question what is the point of this book and when you read a particular section you need to ask and how does that fit the overall idea of what the author is trying to do or say.

When you read a particular section of Scripture, you need to ask how it fits into the overall development of what the author is trying to tell us. 

Let’s apply this principle to our passage in Acts. 

What is the point of the book of Acts? Well, as we noted when we began studying this book, Luke says that in his first book (the Gospel of Luke), he wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach. The implication is that Acts is about what the Lord continues to do through the Holy Spirit and through men. So, in every episode in Acts, we should ask: what is God doing here?  Because each episode is meant to demonstrate God's ongoing work, which is very clear in this passage.

In verse 34, Peter said, "It is Jesus the Christ who heals you." In verse 40, it notes that Peter prayed before raising Dorcas from the dead. The passage makes it clear that God is doing these things, not Peter. This is part of why these stories are included—they show what God is doing through the apostles by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Besides looking at the broader context of the book, we also need to examine the immediate context of a passage. 

Why was this story chosen and placed here, in the midst of a 30-year span of events depicted in the book? The answer lies in the introduction to what happens next, especially noted in the last line of our passage: "Peter stayed many days in Joppa with Simon, a tanner."

Tanners were considered unclean because they dealt with dead animals this meant that tanners lived on the outskirts of towns. By the way a Jewish woman could break an engagement if she found out her fiancé had ever been a tanner. 

By staying with Simon the tanner, God was supernaturally softening Peter’s heart, breaking down his prejudices. This is crucial because, in the next chapter, Peter will have to overcome even greater prejudice to bring the gospel to Gentiles. 

Up until this point, only Jews and Samaritans (who were half-Jewish) had come to Christ. Chapter 10 introduces the inclusion of Gentiles into the church for the first time.

Some suggest that the miracle God performed in Peter—changing his heart—was greater than the miracles God performed through Peter. This highlights for us again that the greatest miracle of all: is salvation.

The greatest miracle is not physical healing or resurrection, but what God does in us when He saves us.

Raising someone from the dead is spectacular, but it is mainly meant to serve the purpose of leading people to see God's power and ultimately to their salvation. 

Salvation is the greatest miracle because it demanded the greatest price: the death of God's Son. God can resurrect someone with His power, but saving a sinner required the sacrifice of His Son.

Salvation also has the greatest result, in that it's eternal. The paralyzed man likely got sick again and eventually died. Dorcas would of course eventually die again. These miracles were temporary, but salvation is eternal. Salvation gives God the greatest glory because it fully manifests His character—His power, compassion, and grace.

Healing demonstrates God's power. Raising someone from the dead shows His power and compassion. But salvation reveals the full extent of God's love, mercy, and justice. 

In the Gospel of John, it says that the Holy Spirit will take what is Christ's and make it known to us, glorifying Christ. Thus, salvation glorifies God more than any other miracle because it shows who He is in the fullest sense.

But let me tell that salvation also demonstrates: God’s justice. Salvation manifests not just God's compassion but also His grace. Grace is not just unmerited favour; it’s undeserved favour. We didn't merit anything to get these blessings; in fact, we deserved the opposite. Yet, God saved us anyway. That’s undeserved grace.

I submit to you that what God really wants is to see people come to His Son so He can save them and glorify Himself by being both just and merciful at the same time. That is the greatest miracle. This story indicates that that’s the miracle God wants to work through us.

In our age of television and constant entertainment, we crave the sensational. We want to see something spectacular. In biblical terms, the Jews sought signs, and the Greeks sought wisdom. Today, we want to be entertained. If someone can claim to heal people publicly, it can draw a crowd. If someone could raise a person from the dead, it might even make the news. But that’s not what God is primarily about. God is about drawing us to Himself, bringing us to His Son. He wants us to live lives that demonstrate His grace and power so others will see Christ and be attracted to Him.

We are called to be the salt of the earth, creating a thirst for God in others. God wants us to be patient with joy, which is not a natural reaction. It takes God's glorious power to be patient and joyful, especially in difficult circumstances. 

If we trust the Lord in whatever is going on in our lives, we will have peace and patience, and God’s power will be evident in us. People will look at us and see something extraordinary. When they ask what it is, we can tell them it’s the grace of God.

On a cold winter day, Scottish historian and Christian philosopher Thomas Carlyle was sitting near his fireplace when the the new pastor of the nearby church came in. He invited him in and they sat by the fire. After they exchanged a few words, the young pastor asked the philosopher, “What do you think our community needs more than anything else?” Without hesitation, Carlyle answered, “What our community needs more than anything else is a man who knows God experientially.” 

The world needs Christians who know the power of God, but who know it personally, not just words on a page written 200 years ago but words written personally on the heart of that person. And that is the greatest need and the greatest miracle, I trust you too have experienced it.