August 9, 2026: Acts // Get Up (Acts 9:32-43)

Luke’s larger story moves from obscure fishing towns toward Jerusalem, where Jewish religious hope and political hope meet around temple, sacrifice, and the longing for a king. Jesus enters that city while people expect a conquering king, one who will defeat enemies through force and finally bring peace. The myth of redemptive violence insists that peace comes when the good guys crush the bad guys, whether through Marduk, Pharaoh, Rome, or modern forms of justified war. Jesus refuses that script. Jesus absorbs violence at the cross, rises three days later, and becomes King not by taking life but by bringing life through resurrection.

Acts then flips Luke’s geography. The Holy Spirit sends witnesses from Jerusalem to Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth, repeatedly falling on people assumed to be outside the kingdom. Peter’s healing of Aeneas and raising of Tabitha stand at the hinge where the story turns toward the Gentiles. Luke’s unusual choice to name these two people may carry the cultural weight of Aeneas and Dido from Rome’s origin story, a story shaped by conquest, merciless violence, and empire.

The names Aeneas and Tabitha, meaning deer, may remind Luke’s first readers that even people tied to the machinery of empire can become its victims. Joppa adds another layer, since Jonah fled from there rather than carry God’s word to Gentiles, and since Rome would later slaughter the city’s people in the name of peace. Resurrection therefore speaks into trauma that is not abstract or far away. The gospel says, “Get up.” Jesus heals those who are hurting, calls those in privilege and pain alike, and speaks good news over Jews and Gentiles, insiders and outsiders, victims and perpetuators of empire.

Tabitha gives resurrection a very practical shape. Tabitha is the only woman explicitly called a disciple in the feminine form, and her resurrected life looks like making clothes for widows, practicing charity, seeing need, and doing something about it. The call to “get up” is not only about life after death. The call to “get up” is an invitation to live now as people whose small acts of care become life for others.

Rachel Beckwith’s story gives that same picture in a child’s life. Her decision to donate hair and give up birthday gifts for clean water became a legacy that brought water to tens of thousands. God takes ordinary acts of charity and multiplies them in ways that may never be seen. The church becomes a place where people needing care can ask and where people living resurrection can show up with what they have.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Jesus rejects redemptive violence The myth of redemptive violence keeps promising that stronger force will finally secure peace. Jesus exposes that lie by receiving violence at the cross rather than returning it. His resurrection declares that God’s kingdom does not need to mirror the kingdoms that kill in order to survive. [05:39]
• 2. Resurrection speaks into present wounds The command “Get up” carries the sound of Jesus’ resurrection into Aeneas’s paralysis and Tabitha’s death. Resurrection is not distant comfort detached from wounded lives, historical trauma, or the wreckage of empire. Jesus speaks life now and will speak life again in eternity. [25:19]
• 3. Tabitha shows what discipleship looks like Tabitha’s life was not built around grand religious performance. Her discipleship took shape in clothing widows, meeting practical needs, and leaving a legacy of care visible to her community. Resurrection life becomes believable when love takes concrete form. [26:51]
• 4. Small acts can carry great life Rachel Beckwith’s simple decision to give what she had became water for thousands of people. God does not require a person to begin with a large platform, perfect resources, or a dramatic plan. The kingdom often multiplies a small act offered with clear-eyed love. [30:34]
• 5. The church practices resurrection through care The church remains a place where people bring real needs and others respond with meals, presence, time, and practical help. Care may feel like a small ask, but faithful presence can hold more weight than anyone initially knows. The call to get up often begins by simply showing up.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [00:49] - Luke’s Geographic Story
• [02:25] - Jerusalem and the Hope for a King
• [03:25] - The Myth of Redemptive Violence
• [05:39] - Jesus Absorbs Violence and Rises
• [07:06] - Witnesses to the Ends of the Earth
• [09:01] - Peter Heals Aeneas and Raises Tabitha
• [11:12] - Why Luke Names Aeneas and Tabitha
• [15:08] - Rome’s Story of Empire and Violence
• [20:44] - Joppa, Jonah, and Gentile Mission
• [23:02] - Joppa’s Tragedy and Resurrection Hope
• [25:19] - The Gospel Says Get Up
• [26:51] - Tabitha’s Practical Resurrected Life
• [28:07] - Rachel Beckwith’s Legacy of Care
• [31:48] - The Church Shows Up for Neighbors
• [34:32] - Church, Get Up

Bible Reading

Acts 9:32–43

32 As Peter traveled about the country, he went to visit the Lord’s people who lived in Lydda. [09:24]

33 There he found a man named Aeneas, who was paralyzed and had been bedridden for eight years. [09:30]

34 “Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and roll up your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up. [09:37]

35 All those who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord. [09:44]

36 In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor. [09:51]

37 About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. [10:01]

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!” [10:08]

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. [10:19]

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. [10:33]

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. [10:47]

42 This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord. [10:57]

43 Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon. [10:57]

Acts 1:8

8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. [07:06]

Luke 19:28–40

28 After Jesus had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. [01:55]

29 As he approached Bethphage and Bethany at the hill called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples. [02:02]

30 Saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here.” [02:10]

31 “If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it.’” [02:21]

32 Those who were sent ahead went and found it just as he had told them. [02:25]

33 As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, “Why are you untying the colt?” [02:34]

34 They replied, “The Lord needs it.” [02:46]

35 They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road. [03:08]

36 When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen. [03:13]

37 “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” [03:21]

38 “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” [03:25]

39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!” [03:29]

40 “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” [03:36]

Jonah 1:1–3

1 The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.” [21:15]

2 But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. [21:31]

3 He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord. [21:46]

Observation questions

1. What details show that Aeneas and Tabitha had different needs, but both received the same command: “Get up”? [19:06]
2. What do the widows’ tears and the clothing they show Peter reveal about Tabitha’s place in the community? [10:24]
3. In Acts 9:32–43, what happens in the surrounding towns after Aeneas is healed and Tabitha is raised?
4. How does Acts 1:8 describe the movement of the gospel, and how does Acts 9 begin to show that movement reaching people once seen as outside the center? [07:37]

Interpretation questions

1. Peter tells Aeneas, “Jesus Christ heals you,” rather than drawing attention to himself. What does that reveal about the source and purpose of the healing?
2. Jesus enters Jerusalem as King, but does not take power through force or return violence with violence. How does the cross and resurrection challenge the belief that peace comes when the “good guys” crush the “bad guys”? [05:52]
3. Tabitha is called a disciple and is remembered for making clothes and caring for widows. What does her life suggest about what resurrection life looks like before the final resurrection? [26:38]
4. Jonah fled from Joppa rather than bring God’s word to Gentiles, while Peter remains in Joppa as the gospel is about to move toward Gentiles. What contrast does this create about responding to God’s call? [21:51]

Application questions

1. The world often promises peace through winning, defeating, and getting even. Where is there pressure in your own life to answer hurt, conflict, or fear with a “bigger violence”—whether in words, resentment, online reactions, or relationships? What might it look like to follow Jesus’ different way? [05:00]
2. “Get up” can speak into places of real pain, paralysis, grief, or shame. Is there an area of life where you need to receive Jesus’ invitation to healing and new life rather than believing you are stuck forever? [25:19]
3. Tabitha saw widows’ needs and did something practical. Who is near you right now—a neighbor, coworker, family member, or person in this group—who may need a meal, a ride, a visit, help with a task, or simply someone to listen? [26:51]
4. What is one small act of generosity or care that you already have the ability to offer this week? What might make it easier to take that first step rather than waiting until you have more time, money, or confidence? [31:08]
5. Rachel’s gift began with a simple decision and was multiplied beyond what she could have imagined. When have you seen a small act of kindness make a larger difference than expected? What does that encourage you to offer now? [30:28]
6. The church is a place where people can both ask for care and provide care. Which side is harder for you: asking for help when you need it, or making yourself available to help someone else? Why? [32:09]
7. Jesus heals people so that they can become a healing presence in the world. What would it look like for your home, workplace, or friendships to reflect that kind of resurrection life this week? [35:19]