What is the meaning of Acts 3:18? But in this way • Peter has just pointed to the miracle of the healed beggar (Acts 3:6–10) and called Israel to repentance (Acts 3:17). “But in this way” links the present event with God’s larger plan, showing that the unexpected path of suffering and resurrection, not earthly triumph, is the very route God designed. • Similar pivots appear in Romans 5:8—“But God proves His love…”—highlighting God’s surprising methods. • The phrase challenges any expectation that human plans or power brought redemption; it is all God’s way, echoing Isaiah 55:8–9. God has fulfilled • Fulfillment stresses completed action; God has already brought promises to pass in Jesus’ death and resurrection (Acts 2:32–33). • This confirms His sovereignty: “I am watching over My word to accomplish it” (Jeremiah 1:12). • Every detail of Messiah’s mission was under divine control, guarding believers against doubt when they face hardship (Romans 8:28). • Fulfillment also assures that remaining promises—Christ’s return (Acts 1:11) and final restoration (Revelation 21:5)—will likewise be kept. what He foretold through all the prophets • From Genesis to Malachi, a united prophetic voice pointed to a suffering, saving Messiah. – Genesis 3:15 previews a wounded Deliverer crushing the serpent. – Psalm 22 paints crucifixion centuries beforehand. – Isaiah 53 lays out the Substitute bearing our iniquities. • Jesus Himself taught this panorama: “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained…what was written about Himself” (Luke 24:27). • The breadth of testimony—“all the prophets”—underscores that Christ’s passion was no late twist but the central thread of Scripture. saying that His Christ would suffer • “His Christ” points to ownership and appointment: Jesus is the unique, God-sent Anointed One (Matthew 3:17). • Suffering was essential, not optional: “the Son of Man must suffer many things” (Mark 8:31). • Through suffering, He bore the curse we deserved (Galatians 3:13) and opened the way for forgiveness (Hebrews 9:26). • Peter’s audience knew of a victorious Messiah; Peter shows that victory comes through the cross first, crown later (1 Peter 1:11). summary Acts 3:18 declares that the healing outside the temple reflects the grand design God had always promised: by the unexpected path of the cross, He has already accomplished every prophetic word about the Messiah’s suffering. The verse affirms God’s sovereignty, Scripture’s reliability, and the necessity of Christ’s atoning death, assuring us that our faith rests on a plan fulfilled exactly as God said it would be. |
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