Acts 9:32-43 & Baptisms
Teaching Notes
In Acts 9:32–43, we witness God’s sovereign hand at work, moving His people like pieces on a chessboard to accomplish His redemptive purposes. Just as a master player anticipates every move, God positions His servants—often ordinary people like us—to bring about His plans in the world. In this passage, He uses Peter in powerful ways to demonstrate the gospel’s life-changing power and prepare the way for the message to reach beyond the Jewish world.
As Peter travels from town to town encouraging believers, he encounters Aeneas, a man who had been paralyzed and bedridden for eight years. Peter simply declares, “Jesus Christ heals you,” and immediately Aeneas is restored. This miraculous healing reminds us that Jesus alone is the source of wholeness and freedom. The gospel breaks the chains that hold us captive—whether physical, spiritual, or emotional—and sets us free. As Aeneas’s story spreads, many people in the surrounding area turn to the Lord, showing how one transformed life can ripple outward and draw others to Christ.
Peter is soon called to Joppa, where a beloved disciple named Tabitha (also known as Dorcas) has died. Tabitha was known for her acts of kindness and service, and her death leaves the community grieving. In this moment of sorrow, Peter responds with compassion and faith. He kneels to pray and then calls Tabitha to rise—and she does. This incredible miracle echoes the ministry of Jesus Himself, who raised the dead and showed that He has power even over death and decay. In both miracles, Peter makes it clear that the power belongs not to him but to Christ. Peter is simply a vessel—an instrument in the hands of a sovereign God.
These stories remind us that ministry is not about our strength or ability but about availability—being ready to be used by God in our everyday lives. Peter wasn’t sitting idle; he was faithfully serving, attentive to how God might work through him. And God did far more than Peter could have imagined.
This passage also points us to the heart of the gospel. Just as Aeneas was freed from his paralysis and Tabitha was raised from death, Christ offers us freedom from sin and new life through His death and resurrection. That’s what baptism declares: it’s an outward sign of the inward transformation that happens when we surrender our lives to Jesus. As we are buried in the water, it symbolizes dying to our old way of life; as we rise, it represents being raised with Christ into new life, cleansed and empowered by His Spirit.
At this service, we celebrated that reality with the baptisms of Austin, Casen, Nathyn, and Jennifer—each sharing their unique story of God’s grace. From deep anger and searching for peace, to surrendering in the midst of addiction and brokenness, to rediscovering faith after years of wandering, each testimony was a powerful reminder that Jesus still meets people where they are and transforms lives today.
This chapter of Acts—and the baptisms we witnessed—call us to trust God’s hand at work, even when we don’t understand the whole picture. He is always moving, always redeeming, and always inviting us to be part of His story. And when we place our faith in Jesus, He brings healing, raises us to new life, and sends us out as witnesses so that others, too, might turn to the Lord.
