Acts 3:1. “Now Peter and John were going up to the temple for the time of prayer at three in the afternoon.”
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Peter and John prayed as they knew how — following the practices of a good Jew.
It was not a requirement but a customary practice for the devout to pray three times a day within specific time ranges; shacharit (morning prayer), mincha. (afternoon prayer), and ma’ariy (evening prayer).
It is worth noting the context of this event. The conclusion of the previous chapter of Acts highlighted that “day by day” this new emerging group of Jesus followers were meeting in the Temple grounds and their numbers were literally growing day by day.
Yet Peter and John recognized the importance of prayer, and it was customary to pray in mid-afternoon and they went to the temple for just such a purpose. Their focus was to pray, but that same mindset prepared them to recognize that the Lord had divinely orchestrated them to perform the first healing in their ministry.
We read in Luke 5:17-26 how Jesus began his Galilean ministry by healing a lame man. Thus, Peter’s command to the man “in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk” signified more than just a healing. Rather, it was affirming that Peter and John were living out the same calling, empowered by the same Holy Spirit to do the same works and even greater than Jesus himself (see John 14:12).
Would this have happened had they not gone to the Temple to pray? Probably, but it was undoubtedly their heart toward prayer that prepared them for what they must have known would have a dangerous act — healing on the Temple grounds “in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth” just weeks after the Jewish leaders had Jesus crucified. Yet this healing would begin a series of events that would literally change the world.
PRAYER STARTER…
Heavenly Father, we do not know what today will bring. Your holy word tells us to be ever alert in our hearts with all perseverance, in season and out. As we seek your help to walk circumspectly today, we ask for your strength should we be tested in the time of trial.
(Continue this prayer as the Holy Spirit directs you personally. Remember, he hears our hearts, so simply pour out your heart to Him.)