一個被斬頭，一個獲營救
使徒行傳十二章1至7節
1那時，希律王下手苦害教會中幾個人，
2用刀殺了約翰的哥哥雅各。
3他見猶太人喜歡這事，又去捉拿彼得。那時正是除酵的日子。
4希律拿了彼得，收在監裡，交付四班兵丁看守，每班四個人，意思要在逾越節後，把他提出來，當著百姓辦他。
5於是彼得被囚在監裡；教會卻為他切切地禱告神。
6希律將要提他出來的前一夜，彼得被兩條鐵鏈鎖著，睡在兩個兵丁當中。看守的人也在門外看守。
7忽然有主的一個使者站在旁邊，屋裡有光照耀。天使拍彼得的肋旁，拍醒了他，說：“快快起來！”那鐵鏈就從他手上脫落下來。
信息分享
耶路撒冷教會能做甚麼呢？他們就同心合意地禱告；結果，彼得在被殺前的晚上，奇蹟般獲救。但你有沒有留意第2節？使徒雅各被斬頭，彼得卻獲得天使營救。神容讓祂的一位使徒被殺，而另一位使徒獲救。
你會怎麼解釋這樣的情形呢？我們只能謙卑在神面前承認：「盡管如此，父啊，我們相信這是出於你的美意。」要接受這個事實並不容易，但這卻是信心之道，相信我們的神絕不會出錯。
這並非宿命，也不是盲目順服。我們的神不單滿有慈愛，還滿有能力。我們大可以信靠祂，接受祂的主權，深信萬事由祂掌管。祂仍有工作在地上需要彼得完成，卻接雅各回天家與祂同在。
世界總是質疑神的這類作為，遠甚其他事情：「這麼好的一個人，神為甚麼讓他死？」他們實質上是在質問：「好人為甚麼沒有好報？」有時候，向神的兒女也很難解釋神的作為，更何況對未信之人。但終有一天，我們必會明白神做每件事的因由。
我們在這一章看見，耶路撒冷教會似乎接受了這個事實，神就繼續祝福他們。對雅各的兄弟約翰來說可能尤為困難；但他只能憑著信心說：「神的道路完全，絕對無可指摘。」
牢記：惟有接受神的道路，內心才得平安。
ONE APOSTLE KILLED, ONE DELIVERED
Acts 12: 1-7
1 Now about that time Herod the king stretched out his hand to harass some from the church.
2 Then he killed James the brother of John with the sword.
3 And because he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to seize Peter also. Now it was during the Days of Unleavened Bread.
4 So when he had arrested him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four squads of soldiers to keep him, intending to bring him before the people after Passover.
5 Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant[a] prayer was offered to God for him by the church.
6 And when Herod was about to bring him out, that night Peter was sleeping, bound with two chains between two soldiers; and the guards before the door were keeping the prison.
7 Now behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the prison; and he struck Peter on the side and raised him up, saying, “Arise quickly!” And his chains fell off his hands.
Message
What could the church do? They turned to united prayer. The result was a miraculous deliverance for Peter the night before he was to be killed. But did you notice the second verse in our reading? The apostle James was beheaded, while Peter was released. God allowed one man to die and the other to live.
How do you explain that? We can only bow before God and say, “Even so Father, for so it seems good in your sight.” That is not always easy but it is the way of faith, believing that our God never makes a mistake.
This is not fatalism. This is not a blind submission to one greater than us. Our God is a God of love as well as a God of power. We can trust Him and accept His sovereignty, His ultimate control. He had more work on earth for Peter but He wanted James Home with Himself.
The world always questions this type of action by God more than anything else. “If he was such a good man why did God let him die?” is their question. Why do bad things happen to good people? It is hard sometimes to explain God's actions even to His children, let alone the world. Someday we'll know the reasons behind what He does.
Here in this chapter, the church seemed to have accepted it all and God blessed them for it. It must have been particularly hard for James' brother John. But he could only say, “As for God His way is perfect or blameless.”
REMEMBER: In accepting God's ways lies the way of peace always.