Entries by meiling

一杯涼水

2019-03-26 in /by

馬太福音10: 40_42 一杯涼水

40 「人接待你們，就是接待我；接待我，就是接待那差我來的。 41 人因為先知的名接待先知，必得先知所得的賞賜；人因為義人的名接待義人，必得義人所得的賞賜。 42 無論何人，因為門徒的名，只把一杯涼水給這小子裡的一個喝，我實在告訴你們：這人不能不得賞賜。」

我有一個侄兒在保利維亞做宣教士，今年要回加敍職一年。昨晚在臉書上看到他登了一則消息，詢問誰有多餘的汽車可以租借用。我的心裡有點酸，同時也為他感到驕傲。這個侄兒非常聰明，在做宣教士之前有一個很好的工作，上司都很欣賞他，正準備給他升遷。沒想到天父更欣賞他，徵召他去全時間服事。

從平常人轉為宣教士，是一個很考驗人的經歷。因為原來可以支付自己的生活費綽綽有餘，還可以這裡奉獻那裡捐助，心裡上自覺不錯，有點驕傲，因為「我是幫助人的」。一旦成為宣教士之後，不但自己賺不了生活費，所有需求全憑信心，全靠他人的奉獻和捐助。這種轉變對於一個意氣風發的年輕人真是很冷酷的考驗，你不再高高在上了，你變成需要幫助的人。我想，這也是主耶穌的經歷，從天上被尊崇的寶座上下來，成為一個窮苦人家的孩子；出來傳道後，也要接受他人的供應，而且還有些來自女人。祂放棄君王的榮耀，甘心成為卑微。

Don’t Pretend In Front of God. Come Clean Before Him.

2019-03-26 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 14:1-20. Let’s go!

1 Kings 14:6 (NIV) 
6 So when Ahijah heard the sound of her footsteps at the door, he said, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam. Why this pretense? I have been sent to you with bad news. 

On verses 1-6:  Jeroboam’s son Abijah is sick, so Jeroboam tells his wife to disguise herself and consult the prophet Ahijah to find out what will happen to the boy.  Up in years, Ahijah was physically blind, but the Spirit of God helped him to discern that the woman coming to see him was Jeroboam’s wife.

What can we learn from this?   Here are three lessons I believe the Holy Spirit taught me from these verses:

得著生命

2019-03-25 in /by

馬太福音10: 34_39 得著生命

34 「你們不要想我來是叫地上太平，我來並不是叫地上太平，乃是叫地上動刀兵。35 因為我來是叫『人與父親生疏，女兒與母親生疏，媳婦與婆婆生疏； 36 人的仇敵就是自己家裡的人』。 37 愛父母過於愛我的，不配做我的門徒；愛兒女過於愛我的，不配做我的門徒； 38 不背著他的十字架跟從我的，也不配做我的門徒。 39 得著生命的，將要失喪生命；為我失喪生命的，將要得著生命。

在這段經文裡耶穌向我們展現了一個出乎我們意料之外的情景。我相信很多人信主都是為了得到從主來的平安和喜樂，沒有人期望生活裡會有更多的紛爭和不安。尤其是耶穌的門徒，其中有不少是當時的奮銳黨，也就是當時的革命黨。他們希望脫離羅馬的統治，再一次恢復馬加比時代，猶太人自治的時期。

但是耶穌說，你們不要想得太美，以為祂來是要叫地上太平。耶穌從來不給人假的希望，祂把一切會發生的事告訴我們，讓我們知道當門徒要付上代價，不當門徒也要付上代價。當門徒雖付上代價，卻會得到永遠的生命；不當門徒也要付出代價，就是失去一切，包括現世的生命和永恒的生命。

從歷史來看，耶穌的話何等真實。歷代的宗教戰爭，有多少假基督之名而行？而在家庭裡，因為跟隨耶穌，也有許多人付出父子生疏，母女生疏，婆媳生疏的代價，因為信仰不同，價值觀不一樣，為了和平共處，不能不生疏，彼此敬而遠之。

Protect Yourself and Your Family Against the Lion’s Attack

2019-03-25 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 13:23-34.  Let’s go!

1 Kings 13:23 (NIV) 
23 When the man of God had finished eating and drinking, the prophet who had brought him back saddled his donkey for him.

On verses 23-32:  Earlier in verses 21 and 22, the older prophet gives the younger prophet a word from God that the younger prophet has defied God’s command by eating and drinking when God specifically told him not to eat and drink during his trip (v21-22).  Notice the younger prophet’s response in verse 23: there is no indication that the younger prophet repented or felt remorse for what he did.  It seems like he just got on his donkey and proceeded to go home as if everything was normal.  Notice what happens next to the younger prophet: “As he went on his way, a lion met him on the road and killed him, and his body was left lying on the road, with both the donkey and the lion standing beside it.” (v24)

面子

2019-03-24 in /by

馬太福音10: 32_33 面子

32 凡在人面前認我的，我在我天上的父面前也必認他； 33 凡在人面前不認我的，我在我天上的父面前也必不認他。

上個星期天我們小組聚會，請了一位宣教士鄭伯海牧師來分享他們在厄瓜多爾的事工。厄瓜多爾是一個位於南美洲西北部的國家，北與哥倫比亞相鄰，南接祕魯，西濱太平洋，與智利同為南美洲不與巴西相鄰。鄭牧師在分享時，我心裡浮起一個問題，為什麼有的人可以放棄自己的事業或工作，還有大半生的青春，去一個遙遠，生活習慣背景文化都不一樣的地方宣揚耶穌基督的福音，而有的人連邀請朋友來參加教會聚會的勇氣都沒有？

有的人可以站出來為福音爭戰，為福音入獄，為福音犠牲性命，有的人連在大眾前做飯前禱告都不敢？

當保羅說，「我不以福音為恥，這福音本是神的大能，要救一切相信的，先是猶太人，後是希臘人。(羅1:16)」為何他會特別提到他不以福音為恥？因為在當時的社會上，保羅放棄了他在社會上的地位，為了福音甘願成為階下囚，被人丟石頭，被人驅逐，經過船難，逃過謀殺，等等。福音彷彿成了他的生活裡的咒詛，讓他不能享受平凡人追求的安逸生活、聲名地位，以及榮華富貴。而這正是一般人所逃避的，因為他們不想失去保羅所丟棄的。

Be Careful, Not Gullible

2019-03-24 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 13:11-22.  Let’s go!

1 Kings 13:18-19 (NIV) 
18 The old prophet answered, “I too am a prophet, as you are. And an angel said to me by the word of the LORD: ‘Bring him back with you to your house so that he may eat bread and drink water.'” (But he was lying to him.) 
19 So the man of God returned with him and ate and drank in his house. 

On verses 11-19:  In these verses the man of God from Judah is on his way home when he is met by a “certain old prophet living in Bethel” (v11).  Having heard from his sons about the impressive feats this younger prophet from Judah was involved in, the old prophet finds this younger prophet and invites him to come to his house and eat.  Initially the younger prophet refuses, saying that God has told him not to eat or drink (v16-17).  But when the old prophet says that he too is a prophet and that an angel told him to bring the younger prophet back with him to eat and drink, the man from Judah goes with the old prophet and eats and drinks with him.  Little did the man from Judah know that the old prophet was lying.  

你們比許多麻雀還貴重

2019-03-22 in /by

馬太福音10: 26_31 你們比許多麻雀還貴重

26 所以不要怕他們，因為掩蓋的事沒有不露出來的，隱藏的事沒有不被人知道的。 27 我在暗中告訴你們的，你們要在明處說出來；你們耳中所聽的，要在房上宣揚出來。 28 那殺身體不能殺靈魂的，不要怕他們；唯有能把身體和靈魂都滅在地獄裡的，正要怕他。 29 兩個麻雀不是賣一分銀子嗎？若是你們的父不許，一個也不能掉在地上。 30 就是你們的頭髮，也都被數過了。 31 所以，不要懼怕，你們比許多麻雀還貴重。

在這短短的六節經文裡，你能找出幾個「怕」字？讀這段經文時，覺得耶穌好心疼跟隨祂的人。好像明知山有虎，偏向虎山行，其實主耶穌也捨不得跟隨祂的人受苦，所以祂要讓我們不要怕。

第一個不要怕，是不要怕那些罵主和門徒的人。他們罵主趕鬼是靠著別西卜(魔王)，當然也會罵耶穌的跟隨者，甚至因而陷害他們。就像罵引用聖經的人是製造仇恨的人，等等。但是他們在背地裡所說的話，所設計的壞事都會顯露出來，證明他們才是別西卜的跟隨者。

第二個不要怕，是不要怕只能傷害我們肉體的人，該怕的是能把身體和靈魂都滅在地獄裡的，那便是耶和華神。世人或撒旦多只能害死我們的身體，但是主會給我們一個復活的身體和永遠的生命，誰也不能奪去。

Faith in the Lord = Real Power

2019-03-22 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 13:1-10.  Let’s go!

1 Kings 13:2 (NIV) 
2 He cried out against the altar by the word of the LORD: “O altar, altar! This is what the LORD says: ‘A son named Josiah will be born to the house of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests of the high places who now make offerings here, and human bones will be burned on you.'”

On verses 1-10:  King Jeroboam is now deeply entrenched in idolatry.  An unnamed prophet from Judah appears before Jeroboam while Jeroboam is offering an idolatrous sacrifice.  This unnamed prophet predicts that one day a young man named Josiah will be born to the house of David and “will sacrifice the priests who now make offerings here” (v2); in other words, the prophet predicts that this young man Josiah would put an end to idolatry in Israel.  Approximately 290 years after this prophecy is made, a young man Josiah is indeed born to the house of David, becomes king of Judah, and puts an end to idolatry in his land (See 2 kings 23).