Reading 1
Acts 9:31-42
The Church throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria
was at peace.
She was being built up and walked in the fear of the Lord,
and with the consolation of the Holy Spirit she grew in numbers.
As Peter was passing through every region,
he went down to the holy ones living in Lydda.
There he found a man named Aeneas,
who had been confined to bed for eight years, for he was paralyzed.
Peter said to him,
“Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and make your bed.”
He got up at once.
And all the inhabitants of Lydda and Sharon saw him,
and they turned to the Lord.
Now in Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha
(which translated is Dorcas).
She was completely occupied with good deeds and almsgiving.
Now during those days she fell sick and died,
so after washing her, they laid her out in a room upstairs.
Since Lydda was near Joppa,
the disciples, hearing that Peter was there,
sent two men to him with the request,
“Please come to us without delay.”
So Peter got up and went with them.
When he arrived, they took him to the room upstairs
where all the widows came to him weeping
and showing him the tunics and cloaks
that Dorcas had made while she was with them.
Peter sent them all out and knelt down and prayed.
Then he turned to her body and said, “Tabitha, rise up.”
She opened her eyes, saw Peter, and sat up.
He gave her his hand and raised her up,
and when he had called the holy ones and the widows,
he presented her alive.
This became known all over Joppa,
and many came to believe in the Lord.
Gospel
Jn 6:60-69
Many of the disciples of Jesus who were listening said,
“This saying is hard; who can accept it?”
Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this,
he said to them, “Does this shock you?
What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before?
It is the Spirit that gives life, while the flesh is of no avail.
The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life.
But there are some of you who do not believe.”
Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe
and the one who would betray him.
And he said, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me
unless it is granted him by my Father.”
As a result of this,
many of his disciples returned to their former way of life
and no longer walked with him.
Jesus then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?”
Simon Peter answered him, “Master, to whom shall we go?
You have the words of eternal life.
We have come to believe
and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”
Meditation: Acts 9:31-42
Jesus Christ heals you. (Acts 9:34)
After Paul’s conversion, the church seems to have enjoyed a bit of a respite, a time of peace and calm. Without one of its chief persecutors, it was able to grow in number as well as in the Spirit. If there were newspapers back then, such dramatic growth would have probably made the headlines. Some pundits may have even wondered what the world was coming to when a ragtag group of fishermen and tax collectors could be hailed as miracle workers.
Peter would have answered such questions by proclaiming that his was a God of power and authority. By healing a paralytic and raising a woman from the dead, he was pointing people to the risen Christ, in whose name he performed all these wonders.
But Peter was not out for headlines. Yes, God used him to make his power known, but also to demonstrate his care and concern for people. He used Peter to show the people how much he could do if they would just turn their hearts to him.
God still wants to demonstrate these same wonders to the people of today. But we need to ask whether we have lost some of our sense of expectation for these wonders. Do we think that the world has become too dark for God to act in it? Do we think that God loves us less than he loved Peter and the others? Or do we think that we are less deserving of God’s time and attention than the first believers?
How quick we are to complicate matters! Simply put, the church grew because God poured out his Holy Spirit upon a thirsty people. It grew because a few people stood in awe of who God was and longed to see him work in the world. They had a passion for evangelizing—and real expectations. They believed that God would bring to completion what he had started in Jesus, and that he would use them to fulfill his plan. May we have that same simple, trusting faith!
“Jesus, I believe that you want your church to grow in number and in power. Come and raise my expectations. I want to see men and women healed. I believe that you can do all things. Come, Spirit, and demonstrate your power, your love, and your compassion!”
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