Make Your Bed

Acts 9
And Peter said to him, "Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you; arise, and
make your bed."   Acts 9:34


LET IT GLOW

When I arise in the morning, I make up my side of the bed. Later, after he is
up, I make my husband's side of the bed. He thinks it is useless to make a bed,
since we get back into it that night. However, I repeat the chore daily.
(Sometimes  he does help me out.) I say that it keeps the sheets cleaner and
the room looks nicer whenever the bed is made. Did you know a man in the
Bible was told to make his bed? Now there's my basis for doing this: the
Bible tells us to make our bed. (smile)

In verses 33-34, Peter sees a man named Aeneas, who was paralyzed for
eight years. Peter must have had compassion on the man and wanted to help
him. Peter doesn't pretend to heal the man by his own power, but  it is by the
power of Jesus Christ.

The King James Bible says, "And Peter said unto him Aeneas, Jesus Christ
maketh thee whole: arise, and make thy bed. And he arose immediately."
(verse 34)

Only Christ alone can make a person whole, spiritually and physically. The
man must have had faith and known who Jesus was because he arose
immediately. Do I look to Christ for my healing, or do I look for it somewhere
else?


LET IT GROW

Background:
What do we know about Paul before his conversion?

• Saul was his name, but Paul was his Roman name, which means little.
• He was short, probably 4 1/2 feet tall.
• He was from Tarsus, of well-to-do Jewish parents.
• He had a classical Greek education and studied the Jews' Scriptures.
• He approved of Stephen's stoning.
• He was traveling to Damascus with letters of authority to bring back

          disciples and early Christian followers of  "The Way."

• Saul is converted to "The Way" when Jesus blinds him.

          (from Nelson's Illustrated Bible Handbook)

In John 14:6, Jesus saith unto him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no
man cometh unto the Father, but by me."

Jerry Falwell, in Liberty Bible Commentary, says:

         So awesome was the light that Saul fell to the ground recognizing his
     inferiority to the One generating the light. It is the Lord who speaks to him.
     All sin, regardless of its character, affects others, but in its terminal point,
     every sin affects God. Saul thought he was persecuting meaningless
     Christians, instead he was persecuting the Lord God of heaven.

Saul's fellow travelers heard a voice, but saw no man. Saul both saw and
heard Jesus, for He was directing His communication to Saul.

"What a difference three days can make in a man's life. Seventy-two hours
earlier the chances of a Jewish believer addressing the threatening Saul as
"brother" would have been nil. Luke records here that finally after three days
of temporary blindness, Saul has now regained his sight." (by Jerry Falwell)

Saul stayed in Damascus a number of days. In the synagogue Saul preached
Jesus Christ as the Son of God. This is the only mention, in the book of Acts,
of Jesus being the Son of God. Saul recognized Jesus' messiahship and deity.
What a change of heart! What a testimony Paul had!
Did you know that because of all of this, the Jews sought to kill Paul, the one
who wrote many books of the New Testament? (verse 24) Chapter 9 tells us
of the beginning of Paul's ministry. Do I have a testimony to share and he did!


LET IT GO

Look to Jesus for any healings that I need.

Recognize that Jesus is "The Way" for me to live and follow Him.

Share my testimony with others about when I met Jesus.