进窄门、走小路 (下)

〈马太福音〉7章13-14节 你们要进窄门。因为引到灭亡,那门是宽的,路是大的,进去的人也多;引到永生,那门是窄的,路是小的,找著的人也少。

祈求、寻找与寻见

  门是要进入的,路是要行走的。如果要进宽门、走大路,不用寻找就可进入;但如果要进窄门、走小路,一定要寻找才能进入。进宽门、走大路的人很多,进窄门、走小路的人很少。耶稣的意思是,要进入永生的人,就要寻找那永生的门,走那永生的路,用心追求、辨别,找到之后要走进去。这扇通往永生的窄门要殷切寻找,才能寻到。耶稣说:「你们祈求,就给你们;寻找,就寻见;叩门,就给你们开门」,这祈求与耶稣要人进窄门有关。

耶稣基督:「我就是门,我就是路。」

  除了耶稣基督,未曾有人说过:「我就是门」这句话。《约翰福音》第十章提到耶稣说:「我就是门」(约10:9),接着《约翰福音》第十四章提到耶稣说:「我就是路」(约14:6)。大凡孔子、释迦摩尼、穆罕默德、大小先知皆未曾说过「我就是门」这句话,这句话唯有耶稣基督说过,「我就是门;凡从我进来的,必然得救,并且出入得草吃」(约10:9)。耶稣是那独一的门,人唯有透过基督才能来到上帝面前,从这门找到真正的路。「我是」(I am who I am),这是上帝的自称,这一位从永恒到永恒的「我是」,就是你所要找的那扇门。耶稣说:「我就『是』道路、真理、生命」,这个「是」是永恒的「是」,这个「是」也是现今的「是」。摩西问上帝:「祢名叫什么?」上帝回答:「我是自有永有的。」(参:出3:13-14)「我是」是上帝的自称,没有任何位格像上帝一样把自己的存在与自己是谁连在一起讲。

How Do You Know If You’re a True Disciple of Jesus

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is John 13:31-38.  Let’s go!

John 13:31-32 (NIV) 
31  When he was gone, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him.
32  If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once.

On verses 31-32:  With Judas now on his way to betray Jesus, Jesus sees Judas’ betrayal as triggering the important process by which Jesus will be handed over to the authorities, crucified, killed, buried, and finally resurrected and glorified.  So Jesus is looking past the betrayal to what the betrayal would lead to, ultimately Jesus being glorified.

What can we learn from this?  Instead of focusing only on the current or soon coming pain or problem you are facing, like Jesus, learn to look past that current or soon coming pain and see that the current or soon coming pain is part of something greater that God is doing down the road.  Like Jesus, though your current lot may be pain and trouble, may you have eyes to see that if you persevere through this difficult time, there will soon be glory waiting for you in the end.

The Disciple Whom Jesus Loves

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is John 13:21-30.  Let’s go!

John 13:21-22 (NIV) 
21  After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, “I tell you the truth, one of you is going to betray me.” 
22  His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant.

On verses 21-22:  Here we once again see Jesus’ humanity.  Jesus is emotionally impacted – “troubled in spirit” (v21) – by the fact that someone he has loved and invested in for 3 years is going to betray him.  From this I learn that God is not stoic and emotionless.  God is full of emotion and has an emotional response to the things we do and say.

John 13:23 (NIV) 
23  One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him.

On verse 23: “[T]he disciple whom Jesus loved” was John’s way of referring to himself, not to boast of his status as compared to other disciples, but to refer to himself, as if to say, “If I’m anything at all, I’m loved by Jesus”.  Rather than pointing to his accomplishments and what he had done, John pointed to the fact that Jesus loved him. 

摩西临终之劝勉

〈申命记〉 31:8 耶和华必在你前面行,祂必与你同在,必不撇下你,也不丢弃你;不要惧怕,也不要惊惶。

阅读经文:〈申命记 〉31:1-29 

想像一个120岁的老人,还可以孜孜不倦地训诲上37天,这需要多大的精力和清醒的头脑啊!摩西之后,我再也找不到第二个像他那样蒙神祝福的人了。虽说人越老,耳越聋,因此讲话声音必然变大,但也不可能像摩西那样有中气,可以传令给两三百万人。教过书的人都知道,有时讲得口干舌燥,力气久久不能恢复,声音都会变得沙哑,甚至咽喉发炎说不出话来。摩西连续讲了37天,可见神若呼召人做事,也必然将足够的能力赐给他。

但是摩西的体力也不像往昔,他说他不能照常出入了。以前健步如飞,上山下山有如家常便饭,现在只能拄杖缓缓而行。神告诉摩西,他的死期临近了。伟大如摩西,也要面对人生肉体的终结。但是当耶稣在变像山上看见摩西和先知以利亚时,我们就记起神说过的,祂是活人的神,不是死人的神。摩西的肉体会结束,化为尘土,但是他的灵在神那里,永远活着。并且有一天,神也会赐给他一个复活的身体,就像主耶稣复活的身体一样,不会朽坏,可以来去自如,穿墙越壁,不再受时空控制的身体。信主的人也有同样的盼望。

摩西不怕面对死亡,他一步步地把神交给他的工作做好。他召了约书亚,鼓励他,也在众人面前鼓励他:「你们当刚强壮胆,不要害怕,也不要畏惧他们,因为耶和华你的神和你同去,祂必不撇下你,也不丢弃你。」耶稣要面临十字架的酷刑之前,也告诉门徒:「我留下平安给你们,我将我的平安赐给你们。我所赐的不像世人所赐的,你们心里不要忧愁,也不要胆怯。(约14:27)」不要畏惧,不要胆怯,要刚强壮胆,因为主必同行。这就是基督徒的人生,虽然有许多挑战,但是我们必须刚强壮胆地跟随神。因为神永远与倚靠祂的人同在,不会丢下属祂的人,也不会撇下信祂的人。

拣选生命

〈申命记〉 30:19  我今日呼天唤地向你作见证;我将生死祸福陈明在你面前,所以你要拣选生命,使你和你的后裔都得存活。

阅读经文:〈申命记〉 30:1-20

摩西在摩押平原用了37天的时间,把他生平从神得来的律例、典章和教导全部告诉以色列人。虽然知道他们的子孙终有一天会去拜偶像,以致惹动耶和华的怒气,被神抛到万国之中,但是他的话语里依然充满鼓励和盼望。即使,当所有的咒诅都临到他们身上,也不要失了志气,只要尽心归向耶和华神,不管他们在哪里,即使是在天涯海角,神也必将他们从那里招聚他们回来,再次领他们进入迦南地,并且要善待他们,使他们的人数再次多起来。

摩西让我们看到神的性情,在管教里依然有剪不断的深情。但是神也不允许他们随随便便地归向祂,必须要尽心归向神,神就重新把他们招聚回来。这点让我们明白,只是做表面的信徒,是演戏给自己看,对自己的生命一点都没有帮助。神要的是尽心、尽性归向祂的子民,尽心和尽性的表现则在于听从耶和华神的教导,并遵行祂的话。所以人若说自己爱主,相信耶稣,就要看他是口里说说而已,还是真的在生活中力求按著神的教导去做。我们虽然无法一下子就达到神的要求,但是神看的是我们是否有心去做,做得不好,神总是有耐心等我们的。

例如,神说不要以貌取人,也不受贿赂,那么若有人想贿赂你时,能不能拒绝?看到人家长得不好看,是否也要给人一个机会?神说,不可雕刻神像,也不可敬拜假神或天象,我们可以做到吗?不可吃血,奉献十分之一,守安息日,借给穷人,这些可以做到吗?所以摩西说:「我今日所吩咐你的诫命不是你难行的,也不是离你远的。」不是什么难事,问题是我们愿不愿意尊重神而已。

Master and Servant

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is John 13:12-20.  Let’s go!

John 13:12-15 (NIV) 
12  When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. 
13  “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. 
14  Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 
15  I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.

On verses 12-15:  Usually washing the feet of guests was what the lowest servant or slave in the house was expected to do.  Thus it was inconceivable and shocking for the disciples that Jesus, their Lord and Teacher, would bend down and wash their feet.  What was Jesus teaching his disciples in doing this?  Jesus says it himself: “Now that I, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.  I have set an example that you should do as I have done for you.” (v14-15)  Because Jesus, the name above every name and the king above every king, was willing to bend down and take on the role of a servant in the lives of people he loved, so Jesus calls us to do the same.  Humility is putting others ahead of ourselves, all the while being secure in our own worth and value.

隐秘的事属神

〈申命记〉 29: 4 但耶和华到今日没有使你们心能明白,眼能看见,耳能听见。

阅读经文:〈申命记〉 29:1-29

我很佩服摩西啊,一百廿岁的老人了,头脑依旧如此清楚;可见只要神要使用谁,神就能给他有能力完成祂的托咐。但是摩西有一个很深的感叹:「但耶和华到今日没有使你们心能明白,眼能看见,耳能听见。」神在以色列人中四十年的作为,不能使以色列人心里明白,眼能看见,耳能听见。不能心里明白什么?不能看见、听见什么?不能明白耶和华是天上地下唯一的真神,不能看见神作为的奇妙,听见神话语中的奥妙。所以摩西断言,有一天他们的子孙依然会去拜偶像和假神,以致受祸。

摩西说:「我领你们在旷野四十年,你们身上的衣服并没有穿破,脚上的鞋也没有穿坏。」这是一个很大的神蹟。四十年里他们在旷野中,不像我们可以随时去买衣服、买鞋子,但是神保守他们,使他们有穿不破的衣服,穿不坏的鞋子。想想以前的衣服和鞋子真的那么耐穿吗?实在是神在他们身上的特殊恩典。可能有人说,他们那时做衣服和鞋子的原料都是动物的皮革,衣服也是没有基因改造的材料去做的,当然比较好。大家何妨试一试,看看一件皮衣可以穿多少年,但记得要天天穿才行,刮风下雨都要穿。再好的鞋子天天穿着走路,两年不换,看看如何?

其实看看我们自己,两个眼睛用了多少年才开始有问题?两只脚跑了多少年,又跳又蹦的,什么时候才出问题?两只手做了多少事,有的阿婆从小洗衣服洗到老,双手依然。所以,神要成就的事,没有什么不可能的。但是以色列人进了迦南地之后,吗哪就停止不降了,鹌鹑也不飞来给他们伸手可抓而不飞走。这些「神蹟」就不再出现,他们的衣服鞋子也都换新的,让坏该破的都回复自然例了。

Security that Leads to Serving Others

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is John 13:1-11.  Let’s go!

John 13:1 (NIV) 
1  It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.

On verse 1:  I like how other translations translate the second sentence: “having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end” (v1).  In other words, Jesus didn’t just love for a little while.  Rather, he loved until the very end.  May the same be said of you and me, not that we loved God and the people around us for a little while, but even when things got hard, that we loved all the way until the very end.

John 13:2-5 (NIV)
2  The evening meal was being served, and the devil had already prompted Judas Iscariot, son of Simon, to betray Jesus.
3  Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God;
4  so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.
5  After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

避祸秘笈

〈申命记〉 28:58 这书上所写律法的一切话,是叫你敬畏耶和华你神可荣可畏的名。

阅读经文:〈申命记〉 28:15-68

有一则新闻说韩国最有钱的女人,也就是韩航老板的千金,虽然已经四十岁了,但是竟然为了服务员给她的夏威夷豆是装在袋子里,而不是装在盘子上,大发怒火。在2014年的12月5日命令机师一定要飞回机场。结果被判坐牢一年。相片上她泪水滂沱,据说后悔不已。经常会听到有些人因为有一点钱,就这里闹事,那里摆阔,结果都是自己吃亏。可见有钱不一定是福,倘若有钱令人骄傲,且变得无知,那么钱就是祸水了。倒不如少一点钱,可以学习谦卑,避过因骄傲自大引起的大祸。

蒙福的原则很简单,就是顺服并遵行神的律法。遭咒诅的原则更简单,只要不听话,不顺服即可。年过半百有加,我越来越发现神的律法实在太美妙,太完备。人是不怎么有智慧的,往往被情绪和欲望控制,被个性和背景所影响;倘若不是有圣灵在我们心中,一旦顺着情欲行事为人,后果堪虞。不但无法有平安喜乐,后悔和忧虑必然紧紧跟随。总是要事后才知道说错话,做错决定,吃了一萝筐的后悔药。

咒诅便是蒙福的反面。不听从神的话和诫命,会有这样的后果:

你在城里必受咒诅,在田间也必受咒诅。你的筐子和你的抟面盆都必受咒诅。你身所生的,地所产的,以及牛犊、羊羔,都必受咒诅。你出也受咒诅,入也受咒诅。(申28:16-18)

蒙福时,事事有神的祝福;被咒诅时,做什么事都不顺利。好像一天到晚,有人在跟你作对似的。在城里诸事不顺,在家里孩子跟你对着干,连出入都不顺。神要跟行恶的人作对,行恶的意思是指不听从神的话。

Respond with Faith to Jesus

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is John 12:37-50.  Let’s go!

John 12:37-41 (NIV) 
37  Even after Jesus had done all these miraculous signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him.
38  This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet: “Lord, who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”
39  For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere:
40  “He has blinded their eyes and deadened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn–and I would heal them.”
41  Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus’ glory and spoke about him.

On verses 37-41:  John sees the cold-hearted, unbelieving response of many Jews toward Jesus as fulfilling prophecies written by Isaiah about 700 years before.  Quoting Isaiah 53:1 in verse 38 and then Isaiah 6:10 in verse 40, John says that Isaiah spoke wrote these prophecies because he also saw Jesus’ glory.