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Jesus Knows Your Pain and Is Everything You Need

2024-02-22 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Revelation 2:1-7.  As usual, 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!

Revelation 2:1 (NIV) 
1  “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands:

On verse 1:  Starting in chapter 2 John records 7 messages from Jesus that he is told to send to 7 churches in the province of Asia.  The first message is for the church of Ephesus.  Notice how the message is worded “To the angel of the church in Ephesus”.  Who is this angel?  The Greek word for angel here is angellos, which is mostly translated in the New Testament as “angel” but is sometimes translated as “messenger”.  According to some scholars, the two main possibilities for what the “angel” is referring to are: (1) the “angel” refers to an actual angelic being who supernaturally watches over the church; or (2) the “angel” refers to the pastor of the local church, who practically serves as God’s messenger to the church and who would likely be the one to receive and read out to the church this particular message that John had written.

Jesus, Your Caring Shepherd and Tree of Life

2024-02-21 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Revelation 2:1-7.  As usual, 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!

Revelation 2:1 (NIV) 
1  “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands:

On verse 1:  Starting in chapter 2 John records 7 messages from Jesus that he is told to send to 7 churches in the province of Asia.  The first message is for the church of Ephesus.  Notice how the message is worded “To the angel of the church in Ephesus”.  Who is this angel?  The Greek word for angel here is angellos, which is mostly translated in the New Testament as “angel” but is sometimes translated as “messenger”.  According to some scholars, the two main possibilities for what the “angel” is referring to are: (1) the “angel” refers to an actual angelic being who supernaturally watches over the church; or (2) the “angel” refers to the pastor of the local church, who practically serves as God’s messenger to the church and who would likely be the one to receive and read out to the church this particular message that John had written.

上行之詩系列–詩篇第133篇

2024-02-21 in , /by

詩篇133:1 看哪，弟兄和睦同居是何等地善，何等地美！

閱讀經文: 詩篇133篇–踏上第十三級台階–和睦同居

133:1 （大衛上行之詩。）看哪，弟兄和睦同居是何等地善，何等地美！

133:2 這好比那貴重的油澆在亞倫的頭上，流到鬍鬚，又流到他的衣襟；

133:3 又好比黑門的甘露降在錫安山；因為在那裡有耶和華所命定的福，就是永遠的生命。

「弟兄」可以泛指親戚，或彼此關係；「和睦同居」的意思是同住在一起，大家一齊生活。因此此處形容朝聖者為了敬拜上帝，共同往耶路撒冷前進，共同住宿的情況，是非常的美好。詩人以「貴重的油」和「黑門的甘露」作比喻，形容和睦同居的「善（良善、美好、福樂）」和「美（愉悅、快樂、甜美、可愛）」。

詩133:2中「貴重的」與詩133:1的「善」是同一個辭。對當時的人來說，「油」一般是油脂或橄欖油，可用來潤髮、潤膚，對人的身體有滋潤作用。這裡「貴重的油」係指聖膏油（出30:23-25），用來抹會幕、法櫃及一切器具，使這些物成為聖；還有用來膏亞倫和他的兒子，使他們成為聖，可以供祭司的職分（出30:26-30）。聖膏油流到大祭司的鬍鬚及衣襟，浸染衣袍，進到他的身體去，使他完全分別為聖侍奉神。和睦相處可如聖膏油一樣浸透全民族成為聖潔。

上行之詩系列–詩篇第132篇

2024-02-20 in , /by

詩篇132:8 耶和華啊，求祢興起，和祢有能力的約櫃同入安息之所！

閱讀經文: 詩篇132篇–踏上第十二級台階–渇望擁有神

132:1  （上行之詩。）耶和華啊，求祢記念大衛所受的一切苦難！

132:2  他怎樣向耶和華起誓，向雅各的大能者許願，

132:3  說：我必不進我的帳幕，也不上我的床榻；

撒下6章記載大衛把約櫃運進耶路撒冷，撒下7章隨後敘述大衛想要為神建聖殿的想法，以及神應許要為大衛建立家室的事蹟，這些記載是詩篇第132篇的背景。這首詩篇包含兩部分：祈求神記念大衛把約櫃運往耶路撒冷的熱心，因而祝福他的王朝（1-10節）；以及神的回應：應許將成就大衛之約（11-18節）。

詩人逐級上階尋見神，當踏上第十二級台階時，他深深感受到大衛為神（約櫃）尋得居所的迫切渴慕，他的意念從「擁有神的恩待與賜予」轉變成「擁有神」的迫切渴慕，也再次重申神對他百姓的應許與祝福。

Jesus, Conqueror of Death and Your Ever-Present Help

2024-02-20 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Revelation 1:9-20.  As usual, 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!

Revelation 1:9-18 (NIV) 
9  I, John, your brother and companion in the suffering and kingdom and patient endurance that are ours in Jesus, was on the island of Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. 
10  On the Lord’s Day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet, 
11  which said: “Write on a scroll what you see and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea.” 

On verses 9-18:  John is in exile on the island of Patmos for preaching the Gospel (v9 – “because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus”).  On Sunday (“the Lord’s Day”) he is praying deeply and sensing the presence of God (“in the Spirit” – v10) when he hears from behind him a voice like a trumpet telling him to write down on a scroll what he sees.  The voice behind John tells him to send what he writes down to the seven churches in the province of Asia (v11).  When John turns around to see who is speaking to him, he sees someone that he can only describe as “someone ‘like a son of man’” (v13).  One reason is because this person resembles a human being, yet his physical presence is unlike anything an ordinary human being has:  fully white head and hair, eyes like blazing fire, feet like bronze in a furnace, voice like rushing waters, his face like the sun in its brilliance.  He is wearing a robe with a golden sash across his chest (v13) and he stands among seven golden lampstands (v12). 

上行之詩系列–詩篇第131篇

2024-02-19 in , /by

詩篇131:1 耶和華啊，我的心不狂傲，我的眼不高大；重大和測不透的事，我也不敢行。

閱讀經文: 詩篇131篇–踏上第十一級台階-平靜安穩

131:1 （大衛上行之詩。）耶和華啊，我的心不狂傲，我的眼不高大；重大和測不透的事，我也不敢行。

131:2 我的心平穩安靜，好像斷過奶的孩子在他母親的懷中；我的心在我裡面真像斷過奶的孩子。

當時的小孩是在三歲斷奶，這年紀的小孩不會因為飢餓要喝母乳而隨意哭鬧，可以安穩的在母親的懷中獲得滿足。「斷過奶」是一個比喻，也可以泛指孩兒的某個段時間，正如哈拿向丈夫說，「等孩子斷了奶，我便帶他上去朝見耶和華，使他永遠住在那裏。」孩子斷過奶後不會再啼哭，所以131:2這節詩句亦可翻譯為「安靜的小孩與母親一起，我的心真像一個安靜的小孩子。」

詩人用「斷過奶的孩子」來描述他在上帝面前的態度，他擁有那種不汲汲營營、追求供應的安全感，來描述自己的信靠。

Jesus, Your Alpha and Omega

2024-02-19 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today we begin the book of Revelation.  It is easily one of the most intriguing, mysterious, powerful and controversial books in all the Bible.   Revelation was written by the apostle John in approximately 95 A.D. while he was in exile on the island of Patmos for preaching about Jesus.  While on Patmos, John receives multiple visions which he understands to be from Jesus Christ and is told to write them down.  The result is the book of Revelation, a highly significant book that describes what will happen before, during and after the return (second coming) of Jesus Christ.  This book also shows how many Old Testament prophecies will be fulfilled.

Today’s passage is Revelation 1:1-8.  As usual, 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!

Revelation 1:1-2 (NIV) 
1  The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, 
2  who testifies to everything he saw–that is, the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ. 

Jesus Makes the Ordinary Extraordinary

2024-02-18 in /by

Today’s passage is Zechariah 14:12-21.  As usual, 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!

Zechariah 14:12-13 (NIV) 
12 This is the plague with which the LORD will strike all the nations that fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths.
13 On that day men will be stricken by the LORD with great panic. Each man will seize the hand of another, and they will attack each other.
 
On verses 12-13:  Here Zechariah continues to describe what the end times will look like when Jesus the Messiah comes again.  What will happen “on that day” (a phrase repeated 15 times in chapters 12-14)?  In verses 1-11, Zechariah described how the city of Jerusalem will be rescued and transformed.  Now in these verses Zechariah describes what will happen to the nations who tried to attack Jerusalem.  He says their flesh, their eyes and their tongues will rot (v12).  In addition, there will be great panic, and they will seize each other by the hand and attack one another (v13). 

上行之詩系列–詩篇第130篇

2024-02-18 in , /by

詩篇130:4 但在祢有赦免之恩，要叫人敬畏祢。

閱讀經文: 詩篇130篇–踏上第十級台階-等候救贖

130:1 （上行之詩。）耶和華啊，我從深處向祢求告！

130:2 主啊，求祢聽我的聲音！願祢側耳聽我懇求的聲音！

130:3 主─耶和華啊，祢若究察罪孽，誰能站得住呢？

這首詩是七首懺悔詩之一（6，32，38，51，102，130，143篇）。詩人謙卑地承認遭受痛苦的原因在於他犯了罪，並懇求神赦免他。此處的罪孽意味著整個以色列對神的不順服與叛逆，而不只是指個人的罪過。這首詩始於詩人對救恩的迫切懇求，將焦點集中在全然信靠神的憐恤上（5, 6節），最後以根據神豐盛慈愛而確信赦罪與恢復的信仰告白（7, 8節）來結束。

他一生經歷了如此嚴重的抑鬱症，卻寫下了傳世詩歌《有一活泉》

2024-02-17 in /by

作者：徐彬   區別於過去我寫的的聖詩專欄文章，今天我想以不同尋常的方式，著重通過介紹及評論一個人特殊的患病歷史來認識他的人生及所寫的詩歌代表作。這個人從他22歲起就伴隨著抑鬱症的反復發作，多次試圖自殺，一直到他的晚年。傳記作家稱他的一生“經歷了史詩般的靈魂戰爭”；在他去世後，著名詩人勃朗寧夫人（Elizabeth Barrett Browning）還專門因他的這些特殊經歷而撰寫了一篇感人的長詩。然而，他的人生故事和他所寫的詩歌《有一活泉》（There is a Fountain Filled with Blood/也有譯成“寶血活泉”）卻感動鼓勵了無數同樣身心柔弱的後來人。這個人就是威廉·考伯（William Cowper 1731-1800）。 考伯生於1731年的11月15日。他的家族在那個時代可算得上是令人羡慕的精英階層。祖父斯賓塞·考伯是普通上訴法院的法官；叔祖父威廉.考伯不但做過英國司法部長和首任大法官，而且還被英王冊封成第一代的考伯伯爵（Count Cowper）；父親約翰·考伯擁有劍橋和牛津大學的傲人學位，博士畢業後曾擔任過大伯克漢姆斯特德區的教區長和英王喬治二世的牧師。 然而同樣作為亨利三世和伊莉莎白時代詩人約翰·多恩的後裔，安妮.多恩嫁到考伯家後的命運卻過於悲催。她婚後生了七個孩子，卻只有考伯和他弟弟約翰活了下來，在34歲那年她又因難產而身亡。 母親去世那年考伯才六歲。父親只能將他和弟弟倆人送到一所寄宿學校去就讀。不幸的是一進校門他就受到一位年長同學的肆意欺負，以至於每次遇到那男生他就驚嚇得低下頭，不敢直視對方的眼睛。對此後來他心酸地回憶道，“那時我對那個男生鞋扣的瞭解超過了對他身上的任何部分。” 過早失去母愛和年少遭遇霸凌這兩件痛苦經歷不但成了他少年時代不堪回首的回憶，也給他日後性格的形成帶來了陰影，造成他不自信、渴望被人關愛，以及容易陷入幻想等心理弱點。 10歲那年考伯考上頂尖的著名私校威斯敏斯特公學（Westminster School)。在那裏他最感興趣的是古典文學，並多次因成績優異而獲得了獎學金，並結交了一些志同道合的文友。 1749年考伯如期從威斯敏斯特畢業。早在畢業之前，父親就按家族的願望，為他在著名的“中殿”（The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple）完成了登記註冊。這一機構屬於當時英國三大法律教育、培訓、管理機構之一，其功能相當於後來的律師協會和法學院。同時父親還為他在一家律師事務所安排好了為期三年的見習工作，希望他能夠因此而儘快地熟悉實際業務，成為一名優秀的律師人才。然而儘管如此，考伯的興趣卻一直無法專注在法律上，而是更青睞於他所熱衷的文學。 ▼下圖左是考伯年輕時的畫像；右上是威斯敏斯特公學校舍某處的歷史舊照；右下是現今時期某年該校畢業生的合照 在那段日子裏，唯一讓他感興趣的是每到週末可以到他親叔叔、身為議院大律師的阿什利.考伯（Ashley Cowper）家去消磨時光。但讓人意想不到的是，在那裏他竟和他的堂妹西奧多拉（Theodora […]