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Don’t Worry About What You Can’t Control

2024-04-25 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is John 6:41-51.  I encourage you to read the passage yourself first and see what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help, then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go!

John 6:41-43 (NIV)
41  At this the Jews began to grumble about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.”
42  They said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”
43  “Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus answered.
 
On verses 41-43:  Even after God had given the Israelites in Moses’ time bread from heaven in the form of manna, they grumbled (Exodus 17:3).  When God gave the Israelites the true bread from heaven which is Jesus, what did they do? They grumbled as well (v41, 43).  Now if God can’t please everyone, what makes you think you can please everyone?  Don’t live for the approval of others.  Rather, live to please God. 

不要再犯罪

2024-04-25 in , /by

约翰福音5:1-14  这事以后，到了犹太人的一个节期，耶稣就上耶路撒冷去。2 在耶路撒冷，靠近羊门有一个池子，希伯来话叫做毕士大，旁边有五个廊子， 3 里面躺着瞎眼的、瘸腿的、血气枯干的许多病人。 5 在那里有一个人，病了三十八年。 6 耶稣看见他躺着，知道他病了许久，就问他说：「你要痊愈吗？」 7 病人回答说：「先生，水动的时候，没有人把我放在池子里，我正去的时候，就有别人比我先下去。」 8 耶稣对他说：「起来，拿你的褥子走吧！」 9 那人立刻痊愈，就拿起褥子来走了。

我们的神有怜悯，有恩典，不轻易发怒，且有丰盛的慈爱（诗103:8）；在耶稣里，我们因信称义，罪得赦免，在我们里面充充满满地有恩典有真理（约1:14）。

在基督完全且丰盛的爱中，我们习惯于呼求得怜悯，认罪得赦免，而忽略了恩典要带出的「改变」；耶稣医治病了三十八年的病人（约5:1-14），提醒他：「你已经痊愈了，不要再犯罪…」（约5:14），耶稣赦免行淫被拿的妇人（约8:3-11），也提醒她：「…去吧，从此不要再犯罪了！」（约8:11）

新旧融合作天国的门徒

2024-04-24 in , /by

马太福音13:51-52  耶稣说：「这一切的话你们都明白了吗？」他们说：「我们明白了。」 52 他说：「凡文士受教做天国的门徒，就像一个家主从他库里拿出新旧的东西来。」

马可福音12:38-40  耶稣在教训之间说：「你们要防备文士。他们好穿长衣游行，喜爱人在街市上问他们的安， 39 又喜爱会堂里的高位、筵席上的首座。 40 他们侵吞寡妇的家产，假意作很长的祷告。这些人要受更重的刑罚！」

耶稣时代的文士又称为律法师（太22:35，路10:25，路11:45-52，路14:3），他们是旧约的圣经学者、翻译人和教师，但却又是耶稣的大敌人，耶稣指摘他们的传统令神的道无法彰显（太23章，可12:38-40）。

耶稣用文士受教来比喻熟知旧约律法的人，若他们能接受耶稣传讲的天国福音，且能依循遵行而成为门徒，就好像从库里（原文是宝库、财宝盒，用来收存财物和珍宝的地方）拿出新、旧宝物一样，同时融合旧约的思想和耶稣的教训。

律法师曾质问耶稣最大的诫命？耶稣回答：「你要尽心、尽性、尽意、尽力爱主你的神。」（可12:30，路10:27，太22:37）比较旧约律法的最大诫命（申6:4-9），耶稣增加了「尽意」爱神一项，意(mind)一字在原文可诠释为心思、理解、头脑、悟性。耶稣回应律法师的挑战，提醒他们要尽意（尽智），用心思和悟性明白神的心意，才能完全行出旧约律法所规范的「爱主你的神」。

Seeing Is Not Always Believing

2024-04-24 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is John 6:32-40.  I encourage you to read the passage yourself first and see what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help, then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go!
 
John 6:32-33 (NIV)
32  Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven.
33  For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
 
On verses 32-33:  Keep in mind the context:  Just the day before, Jesus has fed the 5,000 with five loaves of bread (v5-15).  So now the crowd continues to follow Jesus, hoping to get another free lunch from him.  They ask Jesus for another miraculous sign and talk about how their ancestors got to eat bread from heaven in the desert (v30-31).  In this context, Jesus makes two important clarifications:

–  First, it wasn’t Moses who gave the Israelites bread from heaven.  It was God (v32).  Moses was a conduit for that bread, but every good and perfect gift is sourced in your heavenly Father (James 1:17).

随时享有安息日的安息

2024-04-23 in , /by

希伯来书 3:7-11 圣灵有话说：「你们今日若听祂的话， 8 就不可硬着心，像在旷野惹祂发怒、试探祂的时候一样。 9 在那里，你们的祖宗试我探我，并且观看我的作为有四十年之久。 10 所以，我厌烦那世代的人，说：『他们心里常常迷糊，竟不晓得我的作为。』 11 我就在怒中起誓说：『他们断不可进入我的安息。』」

犹太历法的安息日是一周的第七天（一周的第一天是星期日），亦即星期六，而犹太日历的一天是从日落算起，并非从午夜开始，因此，安息日是从星期五的日落到星期六的日落前。

值得思考的是，与神联结、分别为圣是仅限在一周中的一天吗？若「安息日」仅是代表属神的日子，那一周其余的六天，我们的归属在哪里？

希伯来书提及圣灵有话说：「…你们的祖宗试我探我，并且观看我的作为有四十年之久。…我就在怒中起誓说：『他们断不可进入我的安息』（來3:7-11）。」这里的「安息」在希臘原文为Katapausis，是指身体上的「休息」；七十士译本使用这字，說明以色列人经过430年流亡生活，旧的一代尸首倒在旷野，但是新生一代终于回到应许之地（迦南地）永久安居，即「（定居）安息」或「（在某地）安息」之意（诗95:7-11，來3:7-11）。

Don’t Just Focus on the Immediate. Think About Eternity.

2024-04-23 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is John 6:16-31.  I encourage you to read the passage yourself first and see what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help, then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go!

John 6:16-21 (NIV)
16  When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake,
17  where they got into a boat and set off across the lake for Capernaum. By now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined them.
18  A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough.
19  When they had rowed three or three and a half miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water; and they were terrified.
20  But he said to them, “It is I; don’t be afraid.”
21  Then they were willing to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading.

On verses 16-21:  Notice that fear kept the disciples from letting Jesus into the boat, but the moment they heard Jesus’ words, their fear subsided and they were willing to let him aboard.  Like the disciples, don’t be afraid of Jesus, but be “willing to take him into the boat” (v21) with you.

圣灵带领我们在主里面享安息

2024-04-22 in , /by

约翰福音 14:16-18   「我要求父，父就另外赐给你们一位保惠师，叫祂永远与你们同在， 17 就是真理的圣灵，乃世人不能接受的，因为不见祂，也不认识祂。你们却认识祂，因祂常与你们同在，也要在你们里面。 18 我不撇下你们为孤儿，我必到你们这里来。 19 还有不多的时候，世人不再看见我，你们却看见我，因为我活着，你们也要活着。

约翰福音 14:26  但保惠师，就是父因我的名所要差来的圣灵，祂要将一切的事指教你们，并且要叫你们想起我对你们所说的一切话。

信主的人要在主里面得安息，确属不易；当我们生活缺乏时，心中担心神的供应是否足够？当我们工作忙碌时，脑海焦虑何时可以完成？怎能歇下？当我们面对试探时，灵里交战我们的身分、归属？在困难、徬徨、悲伤、失败…的环境中，我们需要帮助、指引、安慰、鼓励…，我们如何得安息？

耶稣在最后的晚餐中，面对心里忧愁、充满疑惑的门徒说：「…我要求父，父就另外赐给你们一位保惠师，叫祂永远与你们同在，就是真理的圣灵，…你们却认识祂，因祂常与你们同在，也要在你们里面。…。」（约14:16-18）

「保惠师」的希腊文为parakletos，是由para（从旁）及kletos（召唤）两个字组合而成，意思是被召唤去从旁提供援助的人，原本指在法庭上提供司法援助的人，后来引申作中保、代求者、帮助者、或某某的代表。

Give Thanks for What You Have and Let God Use It

2024-04-22 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is John 6:1-15.  I encourage you to read the passage yourself first and see what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help, then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go!

John 6:1-5 (NIV)
1  Some time after this, Jesus crossed to the far shore of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias),
2  and a great crowd of people followed him because they saw the miraculous signs he had performed on the sick.
3  Then Jesus went up on a mountainside and sat down with his disciples.
4  The Jewish Passover Feast was near.
5  When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?”
 
On verses 1-5:  Notice that when Jesus sees the crowd, his heart goes out to them and he wants to serve them.  When he sees the crowd, he probably envisions fields ripe for harvest and sheep without a shepherd.  Also, since verse 4 mentions that the Jewish Passover Feast was near, Jesus probably thought, “Let’s have a party with these people.”
 

Moses your accuser, Jesus your Saviour

2024-04-21 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is John 5:41-47.  I encourage you to read the passage yourself first and see what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help, then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go!

John 5:41-44 (NIV)
41  “I do not accept praise from men,
42  but I know you. I know that you do not have the love of God in your hearts.
43  I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not accept me; but if someone else comes in his own name, you will accept him.
44  How can you believe if you accept praise from one another, yet make no effort to obtain the praise that comes from the only God?
 
On verses 41-44:  Interesting.  Jesus seems to be saying that if we’re all about living for people’s praise and approval and are not interested in pleasing God, the result is that we won’t have the love of God in our hearts (v42), we will reject Jesus in favour of others (v43) and have a weak and ineffective faith (“how can you believe” – v44).  In other words, whose praise you live for will greatly impact how much real faith, hope and love you have.

安息是认定神手作的工都甚好

2024-04-21 in , /by

出埃及记 20:8-11

8 「当记念安息日，守为圣日。 9 六日要劳碌做你一切的工， 10 但第七日是向耶和华你神当守的安息日。这一日你和你的儿女、仆婢、牲畜，并你城里寄居的客旅，无论何工都不可做。 11 因为六日之内，耶和华造天、地、海和其中的万物，第七日便安息，所以耶和华赐福于安息日，定为圣日。

旧约圣经记载神在西奈山颁布「十诫」，其中第四条诫命（出20:8-11）明定「当记念安息日，守为圣日。六日要劳碌做你一切的工，但第七日是向耶和华─你神当守的安息日。这一日你和你的儿女、仆婢、牲畜，并你城里寄居的客旅，无论何工都不可做；…」

诫命里接续说明了守安息日的原因：「…因为六日之内，耶和华造天、地、海，和其中的万物，第七日便安息，所以耶和华赐福与安息日，定为圣日。」（出20:11）这里将「六日做工，第七日安息」和「神完成六日的创造，第七日歇了工」联结在一起。

比较创世纪的记载 ：「天地万物都造齐了。到第七日，神造物的工已经完毕，就在第七日歇了他一切的工，安息了。神赐福给第七日，定为圣日；因为在这日，神歇了他一切创造的工，就安息了。」（创2:1-3）这段经文的原文并没有「安息了」和「就安息了」这些字眼。