Posted by Chester Morton / Wednesday, 2 March 2016 / No comments
Peter's mission to Lydda and Joppa
Peter traveled from town to town in the region visiting the disciples. At a point in his journey, he came to Lydda. At Lydda, there was a man called Aeneas who
was bedridden and paralyzed for eight years.
Peter said to Aeneas, “Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you, rise
and make your bed”. Immediately, Aeneas arose and the people of Lydda and
Sharon who saw this miracle repented and gave their lives to the Lord.
There was a nearby town call Joppa. In this town, there lived a woman called
Tabitha which is translated to mean Dorcas. She was full of good works and acts of charity. For
example, she made tunics for widows. One day, Tabitha fell sick and died. The disciples laid her body in an upper room.
When they heard that Peter was in Lydda which was close to them, the disciples sent a message to Peter to come. When Peter came, the widows were in the upper room with the corpse, crying and showing off some of the clothes Thabitha had made for them while she was alive.
When Peter arrived, he was sent to the upper. He sent all the people outside. After that he knelt down and prayed for Tabitha to rise up. After the prayer, Peter called her
“Tabitha, arise”. Immediately, Tabitha opened her eyes and when she saw Peter, she sat up.
Peter then took her outside and presented her to the disciples alive. The news of
the miracle spread throughout the Joppa and the people who heard about the miracle believed. Peter did not leave immediately. He stayed with the disciples for a while and in the house of Simon the tanner for some days.
LESSONS TO BE LEARNED FROM THE EPISODE
1. Members should be encouraged to care for others like
Tabitha did before she died.
2. The prayer ministry in the Church is important.
3. The gospels should be accompanied by signs and wonders.
4. New members should be added to the church every day.
5. The power of God heals.
6. The story shows that the power of the Holy Spirit can
turn any hopeless situation around.
7. It shows that Jesus can use Christians to perform
miracles.
8. Wealthy Christians must be generous and helpful
especially to those in need as Dorcas did.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STORY OF THE HEALING OF TABITHA OR
DORCAS
1. It was common in those days for people in port cities
like Joppa to have both Hebrew and Greek names. That is why Tabitha was also
called Dorcas.
2. It was also possible that Luke only translated the name
to benefit the Gentile readers.
3. The miracle was the first of such performed by an
Apostle.
4. This was the only time, in the entire Greek New
Testament, that the term disciple was applied to a woman.
5. The account did not mention any sorrowing by a husband
this gives the impression that Tabitha did not have a husband.
SAMPLE QUESTION(S)
1. a. Describe the mission of Peter in Lydda and Joppa.
b. State three
lessons that can be learned from this mission.
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