First, the preface mentions that we have now entered another phase, reviewing the foundation of topicwise Bible study. It discusses “let the Holy Spirit to lead our Bible study” and not lying which acknowledges Satan as father. Second, we examine Peter’s miracle of healing a lame man in the name of Jesus Christ. The scripture clearly details the process—please refer to the text for that—while we briefly highlight other points beyond the sequence. These include noting that praise is directed toward God, not toward Peter who performed the miracle. Finally, Peter testified that people must believe in Jesus and urged them to repent. Scripture in other place spoke of entering through the narrow gate and referenced the previously discussed necessity of “let Holy Spirit lead our Bible study” and the corresponding examples. Among the previous discussions also presented an absolutely feasible and practical method.
1. Preface
You may have noticed that we have now entered another phase. We have completed our study of “Faith” based on the Book of Luke, “Hope” from the Book of Revelation, and “Love” from the Book of John, for Christians are called to live in faith, hope, and love. Having also covered the Book of Mark. For the Book of Matthew, its relevant passages frequently cross-reference in the other three Gospels. Thus, we have now largely finished the four Gospels. Moving forward, we need only supplement what remains unaddressed in the Book of Matthew. Truthfully, we cannot possibly exhaust the entire Bible, for God is infinite while humans are finite. He can open our eyes at any moment to reveal more. This is why Paul declared, “If anyone supposes that he knows anything, he has not yet known as he ought to know.”(1 Corinthians 8:2).
We are now entering a new phase: the early history of the New Testament church. In this phase, articles following topicwise Bible study gatherings often include expansions. These expansions may contain knowledge you haven’t noticed, much like the expansion article after Sunday’s (11/30/25) topicwise Bible study. Please visit our website to read these expansion articles. If you encounter logical issues after reading them online, please let me know—my contact information is available on the site. Thank you.
Regarding the topicwise Bible study, we base it on the Christian belief that “both the Old and New Testaments are inspired by God.” Believing in the Triune God—not an ambiguous deity—means recognizing that “what God tells us through Bible is consistent.” Consequently, we “do not discount Bible’s words.” Grounded in these principles, when we interpret Scripture correctly, we discover its profound logical coherence. To interpret Scripture correctly, we must “allow the Holy Spirit to lead us in Bible study.”
For God is not a God who commands one action after another for every our actions. In allowing the Holy Spirit to lead our Bible study, He grants us some freedom to make our own decisions. When we misinterpret or make wrong decisions within this freedom, correction is still necessary. A clear example is found in “1123 Correction: God reveals His existence through objective facts that are visible to others.” Sometimes He leads us step by step on a topic until we see what Scripture truly teaches, as in “1142 True meaning of tithing and don’t acknowledge Satan as father.”
We must emphasize that God is infinite while humans are finite. He can open our eyes anytime, anywhere. Therefore, I can only attest to the truth of the above based on my currently limited experience. Simply put, when I perceive contradictions or errors in Scripture, the Holy Spirit opens my eyes to see where my own mistakes lie. Of course, He holds absolute sovereignty, and this may not occur every single time. Yet for me, it has often been the case.
We acknowledge that the Bible does indeed contain apparent contradictions in its inspired text. When we encounter such apparent contradictions, we should ask what God intends us to notice through this apparent contradiction in His inspiration. We must not deceive ourselves by claiming no apparent contradiction exists—for that would be acknowledging Satan as our father. The Bible clearly states: “…the devil (Satan) …Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”(John 8:44) Sometimes we would rather suffer injustice and remain silent than tell a lie. Remember, “Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. “But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”(Romans 12:19-21) Do not do this merely to heap burning coals on his head. Do not be surprised that such outward actions yield no results—motives that are entirely wrong will never bear fruit. The purpose of such actions is to overcome evil with good.
2. Peter’s miracle of healing a lame man in Jesus Christ’s name
“Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the ninth hour, the hour of prayer. And a man who had been lame from his mother’s womb was being carried along, whom they used to set down every day at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, in order to beg alms of those who were entering the temple. When he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple, he began asking to receive alms. But Peter, along with John, fixed his gaze (G816) on him and said, “Look at us!” And he began to give them his attention, expecting to receive something from them. But Peter said, “I do not possess silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you: In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene—walk!” And seizing him by the right hand, he raised him up; and immediately his feet and his ankles were strengthened. With a leap he stood upright and began to walk; and he entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God; and they were taking note of him as being the one who used to sit at the Beautiful Gate of the temple to beg alms, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.”(Acts 3:1-10)
The third hour of the afternoon was the fixed time for the third evening prayer offering in Jewish tradition, occurring between 3:00 PM and 5:00 PM. This miracle took place at that hour. The text describes the events clearly. You can examine the sequence of events as narrated in the passage. We now briefly note other points of interest beyond the sequence itself.
The word “fix his gaze” (G816) appears 15 times. When we see this word, we know something significant is about to happen. For example, when Jesus came to Nazareth and read from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah, “…He closed the book, gave it back to the attendant and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed (G816) on Him. And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.””(Luke 4:20-21) This refers to the passage: “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives And freedom to prisoners;
To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD …”(Isaiah 61:1-2) But it does not say, “…And the day of vengeance of our God; …”(Isaiah 61:2) Therefore, Jesus reveals a profound truth: His coming signifies the arrival of the age of grace and salvation. His second coming will undoubtedly be the day of God’s vengeance, consistent with the Psalmist’s declaration: “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; Lovingkindness and truth go before You.”(Psalm 89:14)
Similarly, “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.”(Acts 14:8-10) Miracles are no small matter. However, that miracle differed from this one. The latter occurred because the lame man had faith, while the former makes no mention of the lame man’s faith at all. Peter proactively performed the miracle in the name of the Lord Jesus, demonstrating that the name of the Lord Jesus is mighty. Here it is important to note that in Jewish thought, the “name” represents the entire person. Therefore, “believing in His name” means accepting the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.
Note that here the praise is directed toward God, not toward Peter who performed the miracle. This parallels Jesus healing the blind man. The Scripture records, “And Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has made you well.” Immediately he regained his sight and began following Him, glorifying God; and when all the people saw it, they gave praise to God.”(Luke 18:42-43) For this was the Jewish understanding, as illustrated in this example: “this man (Nicodemus) came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.””(John 3:2) Therefore they praised God.
3. Peter testifies we must believe in Jesus, and thus we must enter through the narrow gate
“While he was clinging to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them at the so-called portico of Solomon, full of amazement. But when Peter saw this, he replied to the people, “Men of Israel, why are you amazed at this, or why do you gaze (G816) at us, as if by our own power or piety we had made him walk? The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified His servant Jesus, the one whom you delivered and disowned in the presence of Pilate, when he had decided to release Him. But you disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, but put to death the Prince of life, the one whom God raised from the dead, a fact to which we are witnesses. And on the basis of faith in His name, it is the name of Jesus which has strengthened this man whom you see and know; and the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect health in the presence of you all. “And now, brethren, I know that you acted in ignorance, just as your rulers did also. But the things which God announced beforehand by the mouth of all the prophets, that His Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled. Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away, in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord; and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you, whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things about which God spoke by the mouth of His holy prophets from ancient time. Moses said, ‘The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brethren; to Him you shall give heed to everything He says to you. And it will be that every soul that does not heed that prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.’ And likewise, all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and his successors onward, also announced these days. It is you who are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ For you first, God raised up His Servant and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways.””(Acts 3:11-26)
Though Peter was speaking, it was clear that John and Peter were together, and the people were looking intently at them. Peter took the lead and spoke on their behalf. His preaching is clearly recorded in Scripture, just as before. Let us briefly mention what the Scripture describes of his preaching.
He testified to Jesus’ death and resurrection, who is one of the three persons of the Trinity, and that miracles are performed in His name. When he spoke of ‘fulfillment,’ he referred to what Jesus Himself said after His resurrection: “Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them (the two disciples on the road to Emmaus) the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.”(Luke 24:27) Merely understanding is only the beginning, which is why Jesus said to them (including the two disciples on the road to Emmaus), “Now He said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” Then He opened their minds (G3563, original Greek: nous, English: understanding, mind) to understand the Scriptures.”(Luke 24:44-45) They had to have their minds opened by Jesus to understand the Scriptures. Before that, though they read, they did not comprehend—and so it is today.
This word G3563 appears 24 times, and its meaning can be seen in these passages: “For who has known the mind (G3563) of the Lord, or who became His counselor?”(Romans 11:34) and “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind (G3563), so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”(Romans 12:2) and “Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding (G3563) calculate the number of the beast, for the number is that of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six.”(Revelation 13:18)
We know that at that time Jesus opened their minds (nous). Today, Jesus dwells within us through the Holy Spirit. Therefore, only the Holy Spirit can open our minds—it is essential to “let the Holy Spirit lead Bible study.” Previously, in “1168 Life and miracles: Indispensability of Holy Spirit’s leading in Bible study and examples,” we saw an absolutely feasible and practical method. It depends on whether you are willing to invest such time, placing yourself in God’s hands—not merely paying lip service, but taking concrete actions of faith. This is precisely why, at the White Throne Judgment, Christians will be judged by their deeds of faith (cf. Revelation 20:11-13).
We note this statement: “…God raised up His Servant and sent Him to bless you …”(Acts 3:26). One original text version indeed reads this way, but the Chinese Union Version here includes a footnote stating “servant or son,” which aligns with the original text in the Strong’s Concordance. The Concordance reads “his G846 Son G3816 Jesus, G2424).” Considering that “what God tells us through Bible is consistent,” this servant refers to Jesus.
When he said, ‘Moses said’, he quoted this scripture: “The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, you shall listen to him. …I will raise up a prophet from among their countrymen like you, and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. It shall come about that whoever will not listen to My words which he shall speak in My name, I Myself will require it of him.”(Deuteronomy 18:15-19) This is what the New Testament speaks of: “He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”(John 3:18) Therefore, this person is Jesus Christ. Indeed, “…all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and his successors onward, also announced these days.”(Acts 3:24) No wonder, “Thus Samuel grew and the LORD was with him and let none of his words fail. All Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of the LORD.”(1 Samuel 3:19-20)
When he said, “It is you who are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’”(Acts 3:25) This does not refer to physical descendants, but to spiritual descendants. Paul makes it clear: “For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God.”(Romans 2:28-29) Then it says, “For you first, God raised up His Servant and sent Him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked ways.” (Acts 3:26) Isn’t this explicitly giving the Jews an opportunity to turn back? Yes, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”(John 3:16) Yet even now, many Jews refuse to repent and acknowledge Jesus as the Christ. This is like “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; …”(Psalm 23:5) The banquet is set before them. If they sit there and refuse to eat, what else can others do? Only try to persuade them.
The New Testament also says, “I (Jesus) am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.”(John 10:9) Whoever enters through the door is justified by faith. This is what Scripture means when it says, “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”(Romans 5:1) When we enter the right door, we have pasture to eat. But if we refuse to eat it, what can others do? The Scripture plainly states, “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.”(Matthew 7:13-14) How many, after entering the gate, truly enter the narrow gate and allow themselves to be completely led by the Holy Spirit? Is this not what Paul meant when he said, “for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.”(Romans 8:13-14)? Truly, we must “let the Holy Spirit lead our Bible study.”
Please note: This article is based on the Sunday (12/7/25) topicwise Bible study. Unless otherwise specified, verses refer to those in NASB95. Past articles referenced can be found on our website, ‘https://a-christian-voice.com/‘, under ‘On spiritual understanding about life.’
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