从天上赐下的复兴
停留在永恒中
经文
使徒行传五1-16
1有一个人，名叫亚拿尼亚，同他的妻子撒非喇卖了田产，
2把价银私自留下几分，他的妻子也知道，其余的几分拿来放在使徒脚前。
3彼得说：亚拿尼亚！为甚么撒但充满了你的心，叫你欺哄圣灵，把田地的价银私自留下几分呢？
4田地还没有卖，不是你自己的吗？既卖了，价银不是你作主吗？你怎么心里起这意念呢？你不是欺哄人，是欺哄神了。
5亚拿尼亚听见这话，就仆倒，断了气；听见的人都甚惧怕。
6有些少年人起来，把他包裹，擡出去埋葬了。
7约过了三小时，他的妻子进来，还不知道这事。
8彼得对他说：你告诉我，你们卖田地的价银就是这些吗？他说：就是这些。
9彼得说：你们为甚么同心试探主的灵呢？埋葬你丈夫之人的脚已到门口，他们也要把你擡出去。
10妇人立刻仆倒在彼得脚前，断了气。那些少年人进来，见他已经死了，就擡出去，埋在他丈夫旁边。
11全教会和听见这事的人都甚惧怕。
12主藉使徒的手在民间行了许多神迹奇事；他们（或作：信的人）都同心合意的在所罗门的廊下。
13其余的人没有一个敢贴近他们，百姓却尊重他们。
14信而归主的人越发增添，连男带女很多。
15甚至有人将病人擡到街上，放在床上或褥子上，指望彼得过来的时候，或者得他的影儿照在甚么人身上。
16还有许多人带着病人和被污鬼缠磨的，从耶路撒冷四围的城邑来，全都得了医治。
信息分享
我们今天继续思想五旬节的意义。五旬节的另一个果效是让人感到神那超然的神圣。当然，我们也能在教会经验类似的感受，但是当复兴来临时，这种感受要强烈得多。初期教会对神的神圣感觉是那么的强烈，正如今天的经文告诉我们，甚至外面的人也感受得到。我相信在历史上不可能找到任何一次的复兴，是没有那种对神的神圣的超然感受的。美国当年在芬尼（Charles Finney）所带领的复兴时，神圣洁的力量曾经是何等的令人慑服，以致聚会中的五百人同心站立向神呼求说：「神啊！求您拯救我们──否则便毁灭我们吧！」
五旬节的另一个果效是对祷告和读经产生异常强烈的兴趣。在五旬节以前，门徒、犹太人，甚至其他的信徒，显然都花了不少时间祷告和读经，但是在五旬节以后，祷告和读经被提升到一个更重要的位置，甚至门徒同意将管理的责任交给其他人，好让他们自己可以持续专心的去祷告以及研究圣经的话语（徒六2-4）。
在复兴的时候，基督徒发现没有任何活动比祷告和读经更有意义。哪怕是那些在复兴前每天都花时间祷告和读经的人，也都发现他们有一种新的属灵追求和渴慕；他们在阅读圣经的话语时总显得那么爱不释手。正如摩法特（Moffatt）译本所说，他们「停留在永恒当中」（撒上二十一7）。
「基督徒有一种新的属灵追求和渴慕」
进深研究
徒五1-11，八9-25，九31，十2
1. 亚拿尼亚和撒非喇的罪是甚么？
2. 使徒怎么样在教会中维持圣洁？
祈祷
天父，我越思想您所成就的大事，内心就越要呼喊：「亲爱的主，请再为我们成就。」求您保守我不要单单渴望看见非凡的事情，而是懂得领受「平凡」的事情所带来的喜乐。奉耶稣的名祈求，阿们。
Heaven-Sent Revival
Detained before the Eternal
Bible reading:
Acts 5:1-16
1 Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property.
2 With his wife's full knowledge he kept back part of the money for himself, but brought the rest and put it at the apostles' feet.
3 Then Peter said, "Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land?
4 Didn't it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn't the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied just to human beings but to God."
5 When Ananias heard this, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard what had happened.
6 Then some young men came forward, wrapped up his body, and carried him out and buried him.
7 About three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what had happened.
8 Peter asked her, "Tell me, is this the price you and Ananias got for the land?" "Yes," she said, "that is the price."
9 Peter said to her, "How could you conspire to test the Spirit of the Lord? Listen! The feet of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out also."
10 At that moment she fell down at his feet and died. Then the young men came in and, finding her dead, carried her out and buried her beside her husband.
11 Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these events.
12 The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon's Colonnade.
13 No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people.
14 Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number.
15 As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter's shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by.
16 Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed.
Message
Another outcome of Pentecost was an extraordinary sense of God's holiness. Something of this is undoubtedly present in the Church at all times but when revival comes it is greatly heightened. So great was the sense of God's holiness in the early Church that, as our text for today tells us, it was felt even by those who were outside. It would be impossible, I think, to find any revival in history where an extraordinary sense of God's holiness has not been present. During the days of the revival in the United States under Charles Finney the sense of God's holiness became so overwhelming that the entire congregation of 500 rose up as one crying out, "O God, save us - or destroy us."
Yet another outcome of Pentecost was an extraordinary interest in prayer and in the reading of the Scriptures. Prior to Pentecost, the disciples, Jews to a man, no doubt spent a good deal of time in prayer and the perusal of the Scriptures. After Pentecost, however, both prayer and the study of the Scriptures took on a new and greater importance. The disciples agreed among themselves to hand over their administrative responsibilities to others in order that they might give themselves continually to prayer and the study of the Word (Acts 6:2-4).
In revival Christians find no activity more meaningful than praying and reading the Scriptures. Even those who gave time to prayer and daily Bible reading prior to revival find themselves gripped with a new spiritual interest and desire. As they read the Word they discover that they do not want to pull away. They are, as Moffatt translates, "detained in the presence of the Eternal" (1 Sam. 21:7).
"Christians find themselves gripped with a new spiritual interest"
Prayer
Father, the more my mind ponders the great things You are able to do, the more my heart cries out: "Do it again dear Lord." But don't let my desire to see the extraordinary things blind me to the joys of the "ordinary". In Jesus' Name I pray. Amen.
Further study
Acts 5:1-11; 8:9-25; 9:31; 10:2
1. What was the sin of Ananias and Sapphire?
2. How did the apostles maintain holiness in the Church?
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