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April 25, 2009 Bright Saturday of the Resurrection of Christ our God and the Feast of the Apostle and Evangelist Mark
The account of the healing of a lame man in Acts challenges you to consider what sort
of healing is most important. It reveals three signs of perfect soundness: 1) firmly holding
Apostolic truth; 2) drawing strength from God, and 3) trusting yourself to the Name of the Lord
Jesus.
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Acts 3:11-16 (2/25) Apostle for the Saturday of Bright Week
This Perfect Soundness: Acts 3:11-16, especially vs. 16: "...Yes, the faith which comes through
Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all."
Some years ago a worthy servant of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ, lost the physical battle
against spinal injuries sustained in an ambulance accident. He was a Paramedic attending a
patient in an ambulance. Being thrown violently around when the ambulance was forced off the
road by a city dump truck, he began his subsequent and losing battle for life that lasted over a
year. His faith, hope, and love as an Orthodox Christian illumined all around him during his
ordeal - fellow Christians, hospital workers, colleagues in the fire department, and many, many
others.
Almost totally paralyzed by major injuries, despite many prayers, but unlike the lame man, this
servant of God was not physically healed in this life. However, the Lord He loved and trusted
gave him a higher, more "perfect soundness." Let the account of the lame man and the death of
the worthy Paramedic challenge you to consider the highest form of healing: both men, reveal
three signs of perfect soundness: 1) they held Apostolic truth firmly; 2) they drew strength from
God in weakness, and 3) they steadfastly believed in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
In Acts, St. Luke records two important reactions to the healing of the lame beggar: "...the lame
man...held on to Peter and John," and "...all the people ran together to them in the porch which is
called Solomon's..." (vs. 11). Although he was cured of serious physical disability, even more
significantly, the lame man's heart was deeply healed. In Acts 3:1-8, the Evangelist describes
how the man sprang up, stood, and entered the Temple with the Apostles, "...walking, leaping,
and praising God" (vs. 8). To this description is added in the present reading, that he "held on" to
Peter and John. Touched by the power of the Name of the Lord Jesus, he held fiercely to the
Apostles, from whom he gained the knowledge of the most true and deep healing.
The same was true of the Paramedic. As his bodily strength drained away, he held firmly to the
Apostolic truth he knew. As a result, that message radiated from his life to all who met him.
People are drawn to those who know the Truth in their lives. Beloved, hold on to the Faith you
have received from the All-glorious Apostles, "...the true Faith, worshiping the undivided
Trinity...." God is seeking to heal you also. May you never let Him go!
Numerous times during the Paramedic's battle to survive, his physical condition suddenly would
ebb away until all were certain he would not survive. Time after time, he rallied again - and even
progressed. At one point, he was able to move from acute care to rehabilitation, and then to the
small hospital in his home town. From the time he was injured, he displayed a remarkable inner
strength, a mighty resolve to recover, so that he might provide again for his wife and three
children. He was marked by inner spiritual strength, like the lame man in the Acts account (vs.
16). All around knew that Christ Jesus was the source of strength in both men. Our Lord has the
capacity to pour His strength into your weakness to make you strong of heart and soul. Pray with
St. Simeon the Translator, "Make firm my knees, and my bones likewise."
God gave both the Paramedic and the lame man at the Temple gate unwavering faith in the
Name of the Lord Jesus Christ. St. Peter describes the healing of the lame man with special
reference to the Lord: "And His Name, through faith in His Name, has made this man strong..."
(vs. 16). The Name of the Lord, His sovereign power and authority, can heal you also, but, as St.
Peter points out, you must meet the power and dominion of God with responding faith (vs. 16).
Pray for healing faith in the Name of Christ - to receive His perfect soundness.
O Christ my God, strengthen my weak soul and body and heal me by Thy grace.
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