01- 创世记

/in /by
Read more

Praise God BEFORE the Miracle Happens

/in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Acts 16:25-40.  Let’s go!

Acts 16:25-36 (NIV)
25  About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.
26  Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody’s chains came loose.
27  The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped.
28  But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”
29  The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.
30  He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
31  They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved–you and your household.”
32  Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house.
33  At that hour of the night the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his family were baptized.
34  The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God–he and his whole family.
35  When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: “Release those men.”
36  The jailer told Paul, “The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.”

On verses 25-36:  Here we see why God allowed Paul and Silas to be flogged and imprisoned. It wasn’t because God was cruel, distant or indifferent. Rather God allowed this painful situation so that Paul, Silas and everyone in the prison with them could witness God’s incredible saving power. Not only did God save his servants from prison, but even more God used the situation so that a jailer and his family could receive Jesus and be saved from hell.  (By the way, notice also that the jailer and his family got baptized immediately after they placed their faith in Jesus. They didn’t wait or delay to obey Jesus’ command to get baptized. Have you gotten baptized in obedience to God’s command?)

Read more

智慧人必承受尊荣

/in , /by

〈箴言〉3:35  智慧人必承受尊荣，愚昧人高升也成为羞辱。

阅读经文：〈箴言〉3:30-35

30人未曾加害于你，不可无故与他相争。31不可嫉妒强暴的人，也不可选择他所行的路。32因为乖僻人为耶和华所憎恶，正直人为他所亲密。33耶和华咒诅恶人的家庭，赐福于义人的居所。34他讥诮那好讥诮的人，赐恩给谦卑的人。35智慧人必承受尊荣，愚昧人高升也成为羞辱。

所罗门王说：“人未曾加害于你，不可无故与他相争”。毕德生牧师在The Message里的译文是：Don’t walk around with a chip on your shoulder,  always spoiling for a fight.　意思是不要老是脸长长的，好像有人对不起你，跟你过不去，或是欠了你好多钱，动不动就生气的意思。我们虽然不可能见人就笑，但是也不要常常给人看脸色。学习和颜悦色的方法，最好是每天早上洗脸时，对着镜中人说：“耶稣爱你，我也爱你”。连说三次，你的表情就会松弛下来，不再那么紧张，甚至笑得出来了。说话的声音调低一点，非必要时，不要大声叫。这样对你的血压有好处，也比较不会喉咙痛。可以在说话前先深呼吸再讲，慢慢就会习惯了。

“不可嫉妒强暴的人，也不可选择他所行的路” 。Don’t try to be like those who shoulder their way through life.   Why be a bully? 可能很多人说他不会做这样的傻事，强暴的人值得嫉妒吗？实际上，对于那些比我们强，不断被老师欣赏或升职的同事，经常有人在背后说他们的坏话，很少人他们是凭本事，反而更多人会说那些人会旁门走道，以致得到师长或上司的青睐。毕德生牧师认为那是一种霸凌的现象，借着自己的力气或强势或财富，夺走原不属于他的。这样的人，虽然大家口头上诋毁，但也有人会非常羡慕，进而嫉妒，以致学习。以为世间就是这样，不横行霸道，就得不到想要的。所以有人说，要先学做人，才能把事情做得好。因为不懂怎样做人，只想借着一些方法或势力拿到自己所要的，却往往会失去更多。

Read more

与人相处的智慧

/in , /by

〈箴言〉3:27   你手若有行善的力量，不可推辞，就当向那应得的人施行。

阅读经文：〈箴言〉3:27-29

27你手若有行善的力量，不可推辞，就当向那应得的人施行。28你那里若有现成的，不可对邻舍说：「去吧，明天再来，我必给你。」29你的邻舍既在你附近安居，你不可设计害他。

「你手若有行善的力量，不可推辞，就当向那应得的人施行」（27节）。当我们未与耶稣建立关系时，罪性使我们以自我中心，不懂施予。唯有基督十字架的原则雕塑我们，教我们倒空，懂得舍己和施予。与人建立关系最重要的是懂得帮助人。在不义的管家的比喻里（路16：1－13），虽然那管家用了不正确的方法去帮助人，说到底他是想借着帮助人结交朋友的。圣经也常教导我们肯施予是基督徒的记号，爱便是立志将好处给别人，若果人人有爱而又肯施予，社会便得享太平。

乐善好施也是成熟品格的记号。「你手若有行善的力量」提醒我们施予时要量力而为。若自己没有钱，却想办法借钱予人替人还债；或长时间废寝忘餐地帮朋友，以致疏忽家人或自己的需要，均不是符合圣经原则。我们很多时是「好心做坏事」，我们应求天父赐智慧，去分辨哪些人应该帮忙，哪些人不值得帮忙的便不要帮。好像对于那嗜赌、吸毒的人，我们便不应借钱给他们，因为这样帮他等于害他。

Read more

Have a Healthy Approach to God and Money

/in /by

Hi GAMErs! 

Today’s passage is Acts 16:13-24.  Let’s go!

Acts 16:13-24 (NIV)
13  On the Sabbath we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there.
14  One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message.
15  When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.
16  Once when we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling……

On verses 13-24:  Paul, Silas and their team are now in the city of Philippi.  Here Luke describes two incidents where, while on the way to pray, Paul, Silas and their team have memorable encounters with different people.  The two encounters Luke describes in these verses show us two very different approaches to God and money.

First they meet Lydia, a new convert to Christianity. Lydia was probably a wealthy businesswoman. The fact that she specialized in selling purple cloth suggests that her clients may have been members of royalty. When Lydia receives Jesus Christ into her life, her first inclination is to use the resources she has to serve the church and its leaders.  She opens up her home to them (v15) as well as to other Christians (see v40).

Read more

得智慧之宝贵

/in , /by

〈箴言〉3: 13   得智慧，得聪明的，这人便为有福！

阅读经文：〈箴言〉3: 13-26 

13得智慧，得聪明的，这人便为有福！14因为得智慧胜过得银子，其利益强如精金；15比珍珠宝贵，你一切所喜爱的都不足与比较。16她右手有长寿，左手有富贵。17她的道是安乐，她的路全是平安。18她与持守她的做生命树，持定她的俱各有福。19耶和华以智慧立地，以聪明定天，20以知识使深渊裂开，使天空滴下甘露。

21我儿，要谨守真智慧和谋略，不可使他离开你的眼目。22这样，他必做你的生命，颈项的美饰。23你就坦然行路，不致碰脚。24你躺下，必不惧怕；你躺卧，睡得香甜。25忽然来的惊恐，不要害怕；恶人遭毁灭，也不要恐惧。26因为耶和华是你所倚靠的，他必保守你的脚不陷入网罗。

通常人所想的智慧，大多是解决问题的能力；但是所罗门王所说的智慧，是一种超越。人所想要的智慧，是怎样胜过他人的谋略，应对的能力，解决突发事情的急智，帮助自己脱困的聪明。这些都是人间的小聪明，真正的智慧又是如何呢？

一想到智慧，你会不会想到诸葛亮孔明？他能洞察先机，观人入微，详知天文地理，以致能战无不胜、攻无不克，但是他的左手没有长寿，右手也没有富贵，他的道没有安乐，他的路也没有平安。只落得杜甫两句：“出师未捷身先死， 长使英雄泪满襟”，概括一生。孔明的智慧人人称羡，但是他的结局使人感叹不已。什么才是真正的智慧？

Read more

When God Interrupts Your Plans

/in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Acts 16:1-12.  Let’s go!

Acts 16:1-3 (NIV)
1  He came to Derbe and then to Lystra, where a disciple named Timothy lived, whose mother was a Jewess and a believer, but whose father was a Greek.
2  The brothers at Lystra and Iconium spoke well of him.
3  Paul wanted to take him along on the journey, so he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.

On verses 1-3: Lystra was the city where Paul experienced some of the worst persecution of his life.  He was stoned and almost killed in Lystra (Acts 14:19).  Yet Paul never gave up on Lystra and continued to reach and care for the believers there.  Eventually in Lystra Paul would meet Timothy, who would become one of his dearest sons in the faith and one of his most important teammates.  It goes to show that when you don’t give up on the place God has called you to, great things will happen eventually.  You just need to last long enough to see it.

Acts 16:4-12 (NIV)
4  As they traveled from town to town, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for the people to obey.
5  So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers.
6  Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia.
7  When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to.
8  So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas.

Read more

The Purpose of Prophecy

/in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Acts 15:30-41.  Let’s go!

Acts 15:30-32 (NIV)
30  The men were sent off and went down to Antioch, where they gathered the church together and delivered the letter.
31  The people read it and were glad for its encouraging message.
32  Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the brothers.

On verses 30-32:  Sent by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem, Judas and Silas join Paul and Barnabas on their way back to the church in Antioch.  There, the prophetically gifted Judas and Silas “said much to encourage and strengthen” the Christians in Antioch with their words.

What can we learn from this?  The purpose of prophecy in the church is always to encourage and strengthen the people in the church.  As Paul explains:

–        “But everyone who prophesies speaks to people for their strengthening, encouragement and comfort” (1 Corinthians 14:3)
–        “What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church.” (1 Corinthians 14:26)

Read more

耶和华所爱的

/in , /by

〈箴言〉3:11   我儿，你不可轻看耶和华的管教，也不可厌烦祂的责备。

阅读经文：〈箴言〉3:9-12

9 你要以财物和一切初熟的土产尊荣耶和华， 10 这样，你的仓房必充满有余，你的酒榨有新酒盈溢。 11 我儿，你不可轻看耶和华的管教，也不可厌烦祂的责备。 12 因为耶和华所爱的，祂必责备，正如父亲责备所喜爱的儿子。

〈箴言〉第三章是许多人的最爱，尤其是第5-6节：“你要专心仰赖耶和华，不可倚靠自己的聪明， 在你一切所行的事上都要认定祂，祂 必指引你的路。”人都希知道明天将如何，因此希望得到指引。认识神的人拚命祷告，不认识神的就去算命、求签。这也是许多人背得混瓜烂熟的经文。因为我们常常倚靠自己的聪明去面对世界和人生，经常失败，所以要背这两节经文来提醒自己。但是所罗门王越说越精采。

曾经有一位自认非常属灵的弟兄说：“教会就是不应该收奉献，那是没有信心的表现。牧者不应该叫会众奉献！”他在查经小组里也这样对弟兄姐妹说，听来似乎很有道理，神已经拥有万有，何必要我们的一点小小奉献呢？只要祂把天上的窗户拉开一个小缝缝，我们就吃喝不完了，没有信心的人才会叫人收奉献！这位弟兄在身体上曾经得到神的特别医治，事业家庭也都十分蒙福。因此他认为不用奉献，因为神什么都有，不用我们多事！

Read more

God’s Favourite Way to Deliver a Message

/in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage, Acts 15:13-29, is not the easiest passage in Acts to interpret, but there are some powerful lessons for those willing to dig deeper.  Let’s go!

Acts 15:13-18 (NIV)
13  When they finished, James spoke up: “Brothers, listen to me.
14  Simon has described to us how God at first showed his concern by taking from the Gentiles a people for himself.
15  The words of the prophets are in agreement with this, as it is written:
16  “‘After this I will return and rebuild David’s fallen tent. Its ruins I will rebuild, and I will restore it,
17  that the remnant of men may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who bear my name, says the Lord, who does these things’
18  that have been known for ages.

On verses 13-18:  James, the brother of Jesus and a leader in the church in Jerusalem, continues the discussion about whether Gentile (non-Jewish) Christians should be subject to the law of Moses including Jewish requirements like circumcision.  James acknowledges what Peter had just shared in verses 7 to 11, how Peter had personally seen God choosing Gentile Christians and giving them His Holy Spirit as much as He did Jewish Christians.  While Peter referred to his own personal experience to support the idea that God had chosen believers from among the Gentiles as well, James refers to Scripture, quoting Amos 9:11-12 and showing that there is Scriptural support for the same idea that God had chosen believers from among the Gentiles.

Read more