Acts 3: Healing at the Temple Gate
Peter and John heal a man unable to walk, and Peter preaches about Jesus.
Acts 3 (WEB)
1 Peter and John were going up into the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour.
2 A certain man who was lame from his mother’s womb was being carried, whom they laid daily at the door of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask gifts for the needy of those who entered into the temple.
3 Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive gifts for the needy.
4 Peter, fastening his eyes on him, with John, said, “Look at us.”
5 He listened to them, expecting to receive something from them.
6 But Peter said, “I have no silver or gold, but what I have, that I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!”
7 He took him by the right hand, and raised him up. Immediately his feet and his ankle bones received strength.
8 Leaping up, he stood, and began to walk. He entered with them into the temple, walking, leaping, and praising God.
9 All the people saw him walking and praising God.
10 They recognized him, that it was he who used to sit begging for gifts for the needy at the Beautiful Gate of the temple. They were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
11 As the lame man who was healed held on to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in the porch that is called Solomon’s, greatly wondering.
12 When Peter saw it, he responded to the people, “You men of Israel, why do you marvel at this man? Why do you fasten your eyes on us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made him walk?
13 The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up, and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had determined to release him.
14 But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you,
15 and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, to which we are witnesses.
16 By faith in his name, his name has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which is through him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.
17 “Now, brothers, I know that you did this in ignorance, as did also your rulers.
18 But the things which God announced by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he thus fulfilled.
19 “Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, so that there may come times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord,
20 and that he may send Christ Jesus, who was ordained for you before,
21 whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God spoke long ago by the mouth of his holy prophets.
22 For Moses indeed said to the fathers, ‘The Lord God will raise up a prophet for you from among your brothers, like me. You shall listen to him in all things whatever he says to you.
23 It will be that every soul that will not listen to that prophet will be utterly destroyed from among the people.’
24 Yes, and all the prophets from Samuel and those who followed after, as many as have spoken, they also told of these days.
25 You are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘In your offspring will all the families of the earth be blessed.’
26 God, having raised up his servant Jesus, sent him to you first to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your wickedness.”
Acts 3 (KJV)
1 Now Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour.
2 And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple;
3 Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple asked an alms.
4 And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him with John, said, Look on us.
5 And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something of them.
6 Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk.
7 And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.
8 And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.
9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God:
10 And they knew that it was he which sat for alms at the Beautiful gate of the temple: and they were filled with wonder and amazement at that which had happened unto him.
11 And as the lame man which was healed held Peter and John, all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon’s, greatly wondering.
12 And when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people, Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness we had made this man to walk?
13 The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go.
14 But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;
15 And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.
16 And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.
17 And now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers.
18 But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled.
19 Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;
20 And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:
21 Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.
22 For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you.
23 And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people.
24 Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days.
25 Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.
26 Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities.
Acts 3 (ASV)
1 Now Peter and John were going up into the temple at the hour of prayer, [being] the ninth [hour].
2 And a certain man that was lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the door of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms of them that entered into the temple;
3 who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked to receive an alms.
4 And Peter, fastening his eyes upon him, with John, said, Look on us.
5 And he gave heed unto them, expecting to receive something from them.
6 But Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but what I have, that give I thee. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.
7 And he took him by the right hand, and raised him up: and immediately his feet and his ankle-bones received strength.
8 And leaping up, he stood, and began to walk; and he entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.
9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God:
10 and they took knowledge of him, that it was he that sat for alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple; and they were filled with wonder and amazement at that which had happened unto him.
11 And as he held Peter and John, all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon’s, greatly wondering.
12 And when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people, Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this man? or why fasten ye your eyes on us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made him to walk?
13 The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Servant Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied before the face of Pilate, when he had determined to release him.
14 But ye denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted unto you,
15 and killed the Prince of life; whom God raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.
16 And by faith in his name hath his name made this man strong, whom ye behold and know: yea, the faith which is through him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.
17 And now, brethren, I know that in ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers.
18 But the things which God foreshowed by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ should suffer, he thus fulfilled.
19 Repent ye therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, that so there may come seasons of refreshing from the presence of the Lord;
20 and that he may send the Christ who hath been appointed for you, [even] Jesus:
21 whom the heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, whereof God spake by the mouth of His holy prophets that have been from of old.
22 Moses indeed said, A prophet shall the Lord God raise up unto you from among your brethren, like unto me. To him shall ye hearken in all things whatsoever he shall speak unto you.
23 And it shall be, that every soul that shall not hearken to that prophet, shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.
24 Yea and all the prophets from Samuel and them that followed after, as many as have spoken, they also told of these days.
25 Ye are the sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with your fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
26 Unto you first God, having raised up his Servant, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities.
Summary
Peter and John go to the temple to pray and meet a man who has been unable to walk since birth, begging at the gate. Peter tells him he has no silver or gold but offers healing in the name of Jesus, and the man stands, walks, and praises God. As an astonished crowd gathers, Peter explains that the healing came not from their own power but through faith in Jesus, the very one the people had rejected. He urges them to repent and turn to God so that times of refreshing may come.
Main Characters
- Peter — Heals the man in Jesus' name and preaches to the gathered crowd.
- John — Accompanies Peter at the temple and shares in the moment.
- The man who was healed — Unable to walk from birth, he now walks, leaps, and praises God publicly.
- The temple crowd — Amazed onlookers whom Peter calls to repentance.
Key Verse
Acts 3:6 (WEB)
But Peter said, “I have no silver or gold, but what I have, that I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!”
Lessons Learned
- What we can offer others in Jesus' name may be worth far more than money.
- God's power, not human ability, is the true source of transformation.
- Pointing people to Jesus matters more than receiving credit ourselves.
- Repentance opens the way to renewal and a restored relationship with God.
- Give what you have, not what you lack. Peter's response to the beggar shows that faithful generosity begins with offering what God has already placed in our hands, not waiting until we have more.
- Miracles point beyond themselves. The healing at the Beautiful Gate was not the destination — it was the doorway to a proclamation about Jesus, the true source of wholeness (Acts 3:16, WEB).
- Deflect glory to God. Peter immediately redirected the crowd's wonder away from himself and John to the risen Christ, modeling the humility that keeps ministry from becoming about the messenger.
- Repentance opens the door to renewal. Peter's call — "Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out" (Acts 3:19, WEB) — presents repentance not as punishment but as the path to times of refreshing.
- Scripture and history converge in Jesus. Peter grounds his sermon in Moses, Samuel, and Abraham, showing that Jesus is not a departure from God's covenant but its fulfillment — a principle that builds confidence in the whole biblical story.
- God's blessing flows through his people to the world. The promise to Abraham — that all families of the earth would be blessed through his offspring — finds its outworking as the apostles carry the gospel outward from Jerusalem (Acts 3:25–26, WEB).
- Peter offered what he had rather than apologizing for what he lacked — what do you have to offer others?
- Why was Peter so careful to direct attention away from himself?
- How does this healing connect to the message Peter preaches afterward?
- What do you imagine “times of refreshing” from the Lord might look like?
- When have you seen God work through a moment of unexpected need?
- Peter offered what he had rather than apologizing for what he lacked — what do you have to offer others? This is a personal application question. Look for responses that move beyond material resources to gifts, time, presence, prayer, or a word spoken in Jesus' name. A helpful follow-up: "What has God placed in your hands right now?" Encourage specificity over generality.
- Peter deflected the crowd's amazement because he understood that the healing came through faith in Jesus' name, not through his own power or godliness (Acts 3:12, 16, WEB). Accepting personal credit would have obscured the gospel message he was about to preach and misrepresented the true source of the miracle.
- The healing served as living proof of the resurrection: if Jesus is dead, his name has no power; if his name made a lame man walk, then Jesus must be alive. Peter uses the undeniable physical transformation to anchor his claim that God raised Jesus from the dead (Acts 3:15–16, WEB), making the miracle inseparable from the sermon.
- This is a reflective and imaginative question — there is no single correct answer. Peter's phrase evokes rest, restoration, and the felt nearness of God (Acts 3:19–20, WEB). Listen for responses about personal renewal, answered prayer, community healing, or spiritual revival. Psalm 85:6 and Isaiah 40:31 offer useful scriptural resonance for further discussion.
- This is a personal testimony question — avoid supplying an answer. Invite participants to share briefly, affirming that God often works through inconvenient or unexpected moments of need. Encourage the group to notice how, in those moments, the encounter opened a door — just as the beggar's need opened a moment of witness and worship (Acts 3:8–9, WEB).