16 And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.
16 And His name,
In biblical parlance, a person’s “name” represents the essence of his character. Luke spoke of the name of Jesus at least 33 times (Acts 2:21, 38; 3:6, 16; 4:7, 10, 12, 17-18; 5:28, 40-41; 8:12; 9:27; 15:26; 21:13; etc.). There is no ground for salvation other than Jesus Christ.
through faith in His name,
Peter and John expressed faith in the name of Jesus, the foundation of salvation. The faith here is not that of the lame man but of Peter and John, who trusted God to heal the man. The disabled person did not understand enough to exercise faith when God healed him. Faith on the part of the apostles was necessary for the man’s healing. To appeal to the “name” was an appeal to the Person.
has made this man [the disabled man from birth] strong,
The very “name” Israel rejected was the person who healed the lame man.
whom you see [perception] and know.
People in Peter’s audience saw for themselves that God healed the lame man. It was plain for all present to see.
Yes, the faith which comes through Him
Jesus was the source or catalyst for the faith that healed the lame man. Biblically, faith is not the primary value, but the object of faith is foremost, the extant promises of God in Scripture.
has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.
“Soundness” carries the idea of whole healing. God freed the lame man from any defect in his legs.
PRINCIPLE:
Faith in faith is not adequate faith.
APPLICATION:
Jesus’ name is no magical formula. His names represent His person, presence, and character. What He represents is still active on earth in time. He is still active on earth, working His plan in human hearts. Salvation is only for those who “call upon His name” (Acts 2:21, 38).
It was not the faith of the lame man that healed him, for he was not aware of what was about to happen. Faith in faith is not adequate faith. This man came to faith after his healing. Faith requires an object. Biblically, there is no divorce of reason from faith. Biblical faith understands the facts of the gospel and Bible and trusts in those facts. Faith is reliance on God’s promises. Biblical faith is not fideism, the idea that faith is independent of reason. Faith rests on propositions from God (Acts 18:27-28; 19:8; 1 Th 5:21; 1 Pe 3:15).
