Dorcas resurrected

  Acts 9:36-43; 8/6/2023; BCBC/IOUC; Rev. Paul Wang

  Introduction

The way in which Dorcas is recorded in the Bible is similar to the way in which Ananias was described earlier. She was a female disciple.  The difference from Ananias is that she was not asked to do any ministry, but asked her to die and experience the grace of death and resurrection.  Let’s look at the first point:

                                                                  Dorcas is dead

God’s call to man is divided into active and passive, known and unknown. The calling received by Dorcas is passive, and even he does not know it.  First, sickness and death.  It seems to be wronged, as if she died inexplicably. It is really puzzling, isn’t it? Dorcas is an Aramaic word pronounced as Tabith.  It means antelope.  The Bible says she was very active,   even saying that she “did a lot of good and gave a lot.”  Maybe yesterday she was still doing good deeds and helping others, but today she gets sick and dies.  It should be young and died young,   so that everyone shed tears of pity.  In fact, this kind of thing is not uncommon in the past dynasties, but it is not necessarily true that some people view life and death from the perspective of God.   In particular, if a person does not live to be seventy or eighty years old, it seems that he should not die, or even accept dying at a young age.  It shows that our view of life and death may have been swallowed by our culture or tradition, and we lack a perspective from God to look at life and death.

Second, good people can die.  In our traditional concept, it seems that good people should not die.  How could a person who was alive and kicking like an antelope died? What is even more difficult to accept is that Dorca is a godly and good person!  Just ask, who can easily be called a person who “does a lot of good deeds and gives a lot of money”?  Don’t good people deserve good rewards?  Could it be that God fell asleep?  Or did God get it wrong?  In other words, how can God cause a good person to die?  It seems that God is not so righteous!  It seems like I can uphold justice better than God, right?  This is a sense of blind moral superiority that is more righteous than God, and it also comes from Adam and Eve.  As soon as Satan provoked them, the first patriarchs also agreed with what Satan said, as if the life given by God needs to be supplemented with other light.

Finally, the meaning of death.  Without Jesus Christ, without God’s control and grace,    death would consume all meaning in human beings.  But, for Jesus Christ’s sake, death no longer reigns.  Paul said that the sting of death was gone.  Especially for the children of God, even death cannot block the love of Jesus Christ.  On the other hand, Christians are no longer threatened by death, because death cannot take away our peace and joy.  Of course, knowing this truth is a process, especially for the early church at that time, it was still a limited cognition.  At that time, “all the widows stood beside Peter and wept”, which shows that they did not know enough about the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.  Even more incapable of thinking that God will use the death of Dorcas to complete a great drama of death and resurrection through Peter’s service, so that the angels and the world will watch together.  Let’s look at the second point:

                                                                   Peter arrived

Where was Peter then?  The Bible says:  “As Peter traveled about the country, he went to visit the Lord’s people who lived in Lydda. (Acts 9:32)“  Explain that the church in Jerusalem began to leave its comfort zone and go out to preach the gospel through God’s strike.   First, Peter set off again.  At that time, Dorcas was in Joppa, Peter was in Lydda, and Lydda is at the international airport in the capital Tel Aviv today, only ten kilometers away from each other.   It is estimated that it will take about three hours to go back and forth.  Ten kilometers is the distance that the army can travel in about an hour.  The two disciples sent by the Joppa Church have no military training, so it should take an hour and a half to walk ten kilometers.  When the two disciples saw Peter,  they “begged him, come to us quickly and don’t delay.”  It is estimated that Peter should also walk as fast as possible.  The speed is similar, and it is also an hour and a half, which adds up to three hours. It’s a race against time.  What I want to say is that the spiritual life of the disciples is ready to start again and to sacrifice for the Lord.

Second, the body was upstairs.  Ever wondered why people parked her body upstairs?    There should be two reasons in general:  one is that they heard that Peter was nearby and could invite him.  Second, we know from the Old Testament that when the prophets Elijah and Elisha raised people from the dead, they were all upstairs.  After Peter arrived, he saw all the widows weeping and showed Peter the “shroud” prepared for Dorcas.  It means, look,  “shroud” has been prepared by us, but we haven’t put it on for her yet.  Please pray for her when you come, we wonder if these “shrouds” are useful?  Frankly speaking, at this moment, except God, no one knows what the “hole card” is?  Through faith and obedience, Peter came to the room where Dorcas stayed, on the second floor.  At this very moment, he needed to be quiet before God, so he told them all to go out.

Finally, get on his knees and pray!  Perhaps Peter also remembered the prayers of Elijah and Elisha, saying:   “Lord my God, let this boy’s life return to him!” (1 Kings 17:21)”  Of course, Peter is more likely to recall that when the Lord Jesus healed the daughter of Jairus, the ruler of the synagogue,  He said to her:  “Talitha koum!” (which means “Little girl, I say to you, get up!”). (Mark 5:41)   At that time, Jesus spoke in Aramaic, according to the transliteration:  “Talitha Cumi”  The difference between Peter’s prayer and Jesus’ prayer is only one letter: “Tabitha Cumi”.  Explain an unchanging truth, that is, our ability to serve comes from imitating the Lord. Let’s look at the third point:

                                                                 Dorcus is alive

Dorcas was raised from the dead, and the New Testament church once again experienced the power of resurrection after the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.  First, Dorcas opened her eyes. When Peter finished praying, the Holy Spirit told Dorcas to open her eyes.  When she saw Peter, she would of course feel strange, so she sat up from the bed.  With a face full of astonishment and doubts, where am I?  Peter couldn’t do without some explanations, saying, by the power of the Lord, you have just been resurrected from the dead!  Peter lifted her up, and called all the saints and widows in, and delivered Dorcas to them alive. How many ancient and modern hopes are gathered in a small room on the second floor!  Not only our Savior Jesus Christ has risen from the dead, but now even sister Dorcas who followed the Lord has also risen from the dead.  What does this explain?  This explains that what we believe in is the true and living Lord!

Second, many people believed in the Lord.  The Bible says: “This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord.(Acts 9.42)”  The signs and wonders experienced by the New Testament churches recorded in the New Testament all point to one purpose, which is to make people believe in the Lord. The Jews at that time asked for miracles, just out of a curiosity-seeking mentality, wanting to find something new.  After the miracle, people can do what they should do, without any change in their life, and they have no interest in the gospel.  Or we can ask ourselves the other way around, when someone believes in the Lord and is baptized, would you be grateful?  Do you care about human souls?  Do you have a feeling for the human soul?  Do you feel hurt when someone dies unbelieving?   What does believing in the Lord mean to you?

In the end, Peter continued to preach.  Peter prayed for Dorcas, served with the Holy Spirit, and once again witnessed the truth of resurrection from the dead. The Bible says: Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon.  (Acts 9:43)  Peter chose to live in the house of Simon the tanner, which is of great significance.  Because in the eyes of the Jews, treating all kinds of animal skins with saltpeter has violated the cleanliness etiquette and does not conform to the Jewish law.  Then he made those who lived in the house of Simon the tanner.   Peter not only stayed, but stayed for many days.  Explain that Peter’s spiritual life has grown, and he can already distinguish the relationship between the gospel and the law.

Conclusion

Thank God!  Through today’s message, God lets us once again witness the power of the Lord’s resurrection.  God can raise His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, from the dead, also choose an ordinary Sister Dorcas to experience the power of the Lord’s resurrection.

Let us pray……

 

Acts 9:36-43

36 In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor.

37 About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room.

38 Lydda was near Joppa; so when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, “Please come at once!”

39 Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.

40 Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, “Tabitha, get up.” She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up.

41 He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called for the believers, especially the widows, and presented her to them alive.

42 This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord.

43 Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon.