We are introduced to this lady in Acts 9:36. Her name in Aramaic was Tabitha, which translated to Dorcas in the Greek. If we translated it to English, it would be Gazelle--a beautiful name for a woman who shone with spiritual beauty.
Dorcas, described as being full of good works, died, and was mourned greatly. Peter was called, apparently to offer some comfort to the brethren. Instead, he raised her from the dead, and as the story went out, many believed. But there is more to it than just that.
She was full of good works. (Would anyone describe me that way? Even half full?) What type of good works? The mourning widows showed Peter that practically all they wore was given to them by Dorcas. Widows back then were, almost by definition, destitute. There were almost no jobs that a woman could do. A widow was reliant upon the charity of others. So Dorcas, finding people who could not afford to buy decent clothes for themselves, did what she could for them. She bought cloth and sewed garments for these widows and gave it to them so they would have something decent to wear. That reminds me of something. Here it is:
Mat 25:35-40 "For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I WAS NAKED AND YOU CLOTHED ME, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.' "
Tabitha/Dorcas exemplified the qualities that Jesus said He would be looking for on Judgment Day. She literally clothed those who couldn't afford decent clothes. And notice, it wasn't the great preachers or miracle workers who were raised from the dead; it was a quiet lady who did what she could to help those less fortunate than herself.
When we got to this point the other night in Bible Study, I told my class, "Being a Christian is much more than what we do in here [the church building]. In fact, being a Christian has almost nothing to do with what we do in here. Being a Christian is how we live our lives everyday of the week out in the world." When people saw Dorcas/Tabitha on a day-to-day basis, they knew from her actions that she loved and feared God. What do people think when they see me?
I doubt Peter would have bothered raising me from the dead. What about you?
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