Acts 3 "Not Surprised"

Acts 3 – Brandon Hatmaker “Not Surprised”
Tuesday, April 15, 2008



"While the beggar held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon's Colonnade. When Peter saw this, he said to them: "Men of Israel, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus.” – Acts 3:11-13

This was a surprising event to those who saw it. Yet Peter asked the question, “Why does this surprise you?”

He went on to remind them that they should have known these types of things would happen, "Indeed, all the prophets from Samuel on, as many as have spoken, have foretold these days. And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, 'Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.' When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways." (vs.24-25)

God is in the business of doing great things. He’s been doing it from the beginning, and He does it today. In fact, just one chapter prior, we are reminded of the great promises and power of Christ through the Holy Spirit. As children of the King, we have an amazing amount of “untapped” resources in our faith. Our full potential is far from being reached. Not of ourselves, but because of Christ.

We become surprised, when we do not expect. Too easily we forget the place from which we have fallen and been rescued. That was amazing. We easily and often dismiss God’s amazing movement as coincidence or happenstance. We easily take God out of the equation while planning for relational and professional success.

There is a huge difference between being surprised and being amazed. The word used for surprised in this scripture means to “greatly wonder”. When you know it’s an act of God, there is no more room for wonder, just amazement.

When was the last time we set ourselves up to be absolutely amazed by God? When was the last time we responded faithfully to something that took a massive amount of faith, trust, and guts in which God was proven faithful and we were shown a branch that abides in the vine? When was the last time we were truly amazed by His supernatural presence, hand, leading, or movement?

Father, I want to be a part of things bigger than me. As your child, I desire to be amazed but not surprised, by your movement. I pray that you would continue to sharpen and mold me into the man you desire for me to be. I pray that you allow each of us to see your amazing hand and voice that we might not wonder, but instead recognize it as a child recognizes a father’s voice.