“Many are saying, ‘Oh, that we might see better times!’” This phrase from Psalm 4 was written thousands of years ago, but it could easily have been written just last night. For it seems that no matter your political views, we all are united in one idea; that times could be indeed be better. In this, we are not alone. In fact, it has is part of the human condition. Whether we long for the good old days of the past, or look with hope to the bright future, we all tend to look at the present as a time of strife. It was so then, is so now, and was also true in Jesus’ time.
The crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth was well known in Jerusalem and throughout the land. The authorities thought they had eliminated the problem of this trouble-maker, but they were mistaken. His disciples just won’t let it go; now they are even claiming that he has risen from the dead! Peter and John heal a lame man outside the temple, not by their own power, but in the name of the resurrected Jesus Christ. And the people erupt with the news. Everyone hears the story; it becomes the talk of the town. You can imagine that at this point the Pharisees are thinking, “Oh, that we might see better times!’.
Peter tells the people that this act of healing was done in the name of Jesus, the same Jesus that they handed over to death on the cross. He pulls no punches, telling them that they all are responsible. He addresses not only the scribes and Pharisees, but the people as well. “Jesus, whom you handed over and rejected in the presence of Pilate, though he had decided to release him. But you rejected the Holy and Righteous One and asked to have a murderer given to you, and you killed the Author of life.” In this, Peter lays the blame on all of the people; not just the leaders but the entire Jewish state is responsible.
Sadly, this passage has been used over the centuries to justify hatred of the Jews, to foment anti-Semitism. But that is of course completely invalid. Recall that Peter was a Jew. John and the other disciples were Jews. Jesus was a Jew. When Peter tells the Jews that they are responsible for the death of Jesus, he is not doing this as an outsider; he tells them this as a fellow Jew. He is calling them to account, not because they are Jewish, but because of their actions. This is not anti-Semitism; it is brother showing brother the error of his ways.
He goes on to tell them that the man was healed by the power of the risen Jesus, that faith in Jesus has given the man perfect health, as all can see with their own eyes. This is no mere magician’s trick. The lame man was known by everyone as he sat at the steps of the temple every day. The people know he was lame, and now can see for themselves that he has truly been healed. Peter uses this to demonstrate the power of Jesus and underscores the resurrection. He is essentially saying “You tried to kill him, but God resurrected him and he is more powerful than you can even imagine. Merely by invoking his name, the lame can be healed.”
But that is not all. For the best is yet to come. The healing has gotten their attention. He tells them they are responsible for Jesus’ death, but through his resurrection Jesus has proven he is the Messiah, the Son of God. You can imagine how they must be feeling right bout now. “Oh, that we might see better times!’. For the people now realize that they have killed the Messiah. They likely are waiting for Peter to call down a curse upon them and probably look to the sky for the lightning that will surely destroy them. Peter then says to them, “And now friends, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your rulers. In this way God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, that his Messiah would suffer. Repent, therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out.”
Where they had expected vengeance, they instead are given mercy. He absolves them of their sins and tells them that they actually helped to fulfill God’s plan. Whew, they are off the hook! But it is not quite that simple. For Peter’s absolution also comes with an implicit warning. Though they acted in ignorance before, they are no longer ignorant. They now know that Jesus is the Messiah, so they must repent and turn to God. They cannot live their lives the way they have in the past. For the knowledge of the risen Jesus Christ has altered them and they cannot claim ignorance any longer. Repent, turn from your old ways, think differently than you did in the past. This is their charge.
It is tempting to wonder about the great change in Peter. Can this be the same simple fisherman who denied Jesus three times not so long ago? How did Peter become such a confident speaker and display such wisdom? We turn to Luke’s gospel where Jesus appears to the startled disciples. Once he wishes them peace and helps them to see that it really is him and not some ghost, he begins to teach them. “these are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you – that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem.”
Peter is not acting on his own but is doing exactly what Jesus has charged him to do. He proclaims repentance and forgiveness in Jesus’ name to the nations, and he begins with Jerusalem. Just as Peter did in Jerusalem, God stands ready to do for us, here and now. “Oh, that we might see better times!’ We can see better times. For we know that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God. We know that Jesus the Lord can heal us and heal this world, just as Peter and John healed the lame man. If we can repent and turn to God, then forgiveness will surely flow and we can make the world a better place. A just place, a loving place, a place of peace and forgiveness. And the better times we yearn for, will become today.