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Truth is a Person

2023-11-09 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today we’re looking at one of the shortest books in the Bible: it’s 2 John, a letter which is widely believed to be written by the apostle John and written around the same time as 1 John (many scholars say about early 60s AD).   Let’s go!
 
2 John 1:1 (NIV) 
1  The elder, To the chosen lady and her children, whom I love in the truth–and not I only, but also all who know the truth–

On verse 1:  Who is this “chosen lady” that John is writing to?  Many scholars believe that this chosen lady was not an individual but a church community.  This is supported by the fact that there are no proper names given for this chosen lady, John refers to this lady not just in the singular but also in the plural, and the church is called the “bride of Christ” in the New Testament.  Similarly, “your chosen sister” (v13) is probably referring to another church community from which John is writing his letter. 

Since this was a time of heavy persecution of Christians, “chosen lady” and “your chosen sister” may have been secret code words to keep this letter from being detected by persecutors of Christians. 

以敬畏的心归向耶和华

2023-11-09 in , /by

何西阿书3:5  后来以色列人必归回，寻求他们的神耶和华和他们的王大卫。在末后的日子，必以敬畏的心归向耶和华，领受祂的恩惠。

阅读经文:  何西阿书 3:1-5

1耶和华对我说：「你再去爱一个淫妇，就是她情人所爱的；好像以色列人，虽然偏向别神，喜爱葡萄饼，耶和华还是爱他们。」 2 我便用银子十五舍客勒，大麦一贺梅珥半，买她归我。 3 我对她说：「你当多日为我独居，不可行淫，不可归别人为妻，我向你也必这样。」 4 以色列人也必多日独居，无君王，无首领，无祭祀，无柱像，无以弗得，无家中的神像。

你有没有想过，当我们读〈但以理书〉时，为何心里有一种欢悦；但是读〈何西阿〉书时，心里却感到厌烦和沉闷？其实，不止〈何西阿书〉，好像〈耶利米书〉、部份〈以西结书〉和〈以赛亚书〉，都会有一种想逃避的感觉？我自己稍微分析了一下，〈但以理书〉和其他先知书最大的不同，在于其中没有很长的指责和训诲，并且但以理和朋友在惊心动魄的考验之后，总是有极为奇妙的神蹟出现，那就是我们最喜欢的部份。

但是在其他的先知书，我们看到的大多是神对以色列人和列国的责备，先知的生活也总是有点悽惨。神要他们去做的事，大都是我们一般难以接受的。但以理虽然生活在外邦人中间，但是他保守自己的圣洁，也因他保守自己，神也保守他，祝福他。其他先知们也是生活在不圣洁的人群之中，虽然是本国人，神的选民之中，却是被神认为污秽而不圣洁之民。

祢是我的神

2023-11-08 in , /by

何西阿书2:21  耶和华说：那日我必应允，我必应允天，天必应允地。

阅读经文:  何西阿书 2:1-23

1「你们要称你们的弟兄为阿米，称你们的姐妹为路哈玛。2 「你们要与你们的母亲大大争辩，因为她不是我的妻子，我也不是她的丈夫。叫她除掉脸上的淫像和胸间的淫态， 3 免得我剥她的衣服，使她赤体，与才生的时候一样，使她如旷野，如干旱之地，因渴而死。 4 我必不怜悯她的儿女，因为他们是从淫乱而生的。 5 他们的母亲行了淫乱，怀他们的母做了可羞耻的事，因为她说：『我要随从所爱的，我的饼、水、羊毛、麻、油、酒都是他们给的。』

在这一章的上半段里，先知为何要儿女与母亲争辩？有何原因使他如此愤慨地提及他的妻子？在这段里的母亲和儿女代表的是谁？在这一段经文里，有哪些事暗示歌蔑已经又有淫乱之举？荆棘和筑墙又有什么特别的意义呢？

从这段经文里，先知似乎正处在一种非常的痛苦中，不能找他人倾诉，只能和儿女们诉苦。希望儿女在他们妻间做审判者，还给他一个公道。在这里的母亲和儿女显然代表以色列人，因为他们在属灵上的不专一，或者说是离弃神，而导致关系的破裂。神的口气是如此的痛苦，以致于祂要说：“因为她不是我的妻子，我也不是她的丈夫”，就像在说：我们干脆离婚罢了，我不要再做你的丈夫，你也不要做我的妻子。

Confident Because of Jesus

2023-11-08 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is 1 John 5:13-21.  Let’s go! 
 
1 John 5:13-15 (NIV) 
13  I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. 
14  This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. 
15  And if we know that he hears us–whatever we ask–we know that we have what we asked of him.

On verses 13-15:  John writes so that his readers would have confidence in their salvation (v13) and confidence that God hears their prayers (v14-15).  As those who believe in the name of the Son of God, we can have the same confidence as well. 

On verses 16-17:  In addition to being confident that we have eternal life and being confident that God hears our prayers, we can be confident that when we pray for others who confess their sins to us, God uses our prayers to restore and strengthen them.  The sole exception is when a person commits the “sin that leads to death” (v16).

By Water and By Blood

2023-11-07 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is 1 John 5:1-12.  Let’s go!

1 John 5:1a (NIV) 
1  Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God…

On verse 1a:  I love how simple the apostle John makes it sometimes.  If you believe Jesus is the Christ (the Saviour of the world), you are born of God and have life in Him.  Simple.

1 John 5:1b-2 (NIV) 
1…and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well. 
2  This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands.

On verses 1a-2:  Earlier John was saying that one important way that we love God is by loving His children.  Now John is taking it in the other direction: he’s saying that to love God’s children is to love God and carry out His commands.  How is it that we love the children of God when we love God and obey His commands?  Here are two ways that works.

何西阿的儿女

2023-11-07 in , /by

何西阿书1:10a  然而，以色列的人数必如海沙，不可量，不可数。

阅读经文:  何西阿书 1:4-11

4 耶和华对何西阿说：「给他起名叫耶斯列，因为再过片时，我必讨耶户家在耶斯列杀人流血的罪，也必使以色列家的国灭绝。 5 到那日，我必在耶斯列平原折断以色列的弓。」

何西阿娶淫妇为妻，可能有的人会想，既然神要他娶，就娶。只要不理她，也可以过日子。但是我们看到何西阿的顺服是里外合一的顺服。从他和歌篾一个接一个地生孩子，何西阿对歌篾就好像是丈夫对妻子一样，没有亏欠。这就是神要的顺服，不是阳奉阴违，而是表里一致的顺服。

有的人花很多时间来为神辩解，神不会叫人去娶淫妇，或有的说，那是指精神上的淫乱，因为歌篾拜偶像，等等。但是我们还是回到圣经上，看看圣经是怎么说的，好过用自己的意思去猜来猜去，都没个准。

God’s Love Drives Out Our Fear

2023-11-06 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is 1 John 4:13-21.  Let’s go!

1 John 4:13-14 (NIV) 
13  We know that we live in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. 
14  And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.

On verses 13-14:  In other words, the faith that John and his fellow apostles preach is not merely about believing in abstract ideas.  Rather their faith comes with a real experience of God’s Holy Spirit (v13), and their testimony is based on having actually seen this Jesus who was sent from the Father to be the Saviour of the world (v14).  In other words, Christian faith is not simply a bunch of philosophical principles and ideas about metaphysics.  Rather, the Christian faith is grounded in historical fact and is accompanied by a real, life-changing experience of the Holy Spirit. 

何西阿受命

2023-11-06 in , /by

何西阿书1:2b  你去娶淫妇为妻，也收那从淫乱所生的儿女，因为这地大行淫乱，离弃耶和华。

阅读经文:  何西阿书 1:1-3

1当乌西雅、约坦、亚哈斯、希西家做犹大王，约阿施的儿子耶罗波安做以色列王的时候，耶和华的话临到备利的儿子何西阿。

世界上的爱情故事很多，可是像〈何西阿书〉这一本写爱情的书，一开始就令人愕然不已。很多人寻求神祝福的婚姻，求神带领他们找到神为自己预备的配偶。若你是何西阿，神真的为你预备了祂所选给你的配偶，你要不要接受？你会不会接受？我们所期望的配偶都是要与我们匹配的，门户相当的，但是若对方与你不匹配，不门户相当，你还会考虑这个婚姻吗？借着一个婚姻的悲剧，神要让我们明白祂对我们的爱，以及何谓真正的爱情。

在公元八世纪里，神兴起了几位大先知，向北国以色列发言的是阿摩司和何西阿，向南国犹大发言的是以赛亚和弥迦。从人的眼光来看，那并不是一个太差的时代。当时北国以色列的王是耶罗波安二世，南国犹大的王是乌西雅王；在他们当政时，国家都变得富强壮大。

生命册的挑战

2023-11-05 in , /by

但以理书12:2  睡在尘埃中的必有多人复醒，其中有得永生的，有受羞辱永远被憎恶的。

阅读经文:  但以理书 12:1-13

1「那时，保佑你本国之民的天使长米迦勒必站起来，并且有大艰难，从有国以来直到此时没有这样的。你本国的民中，凡名录在册上的，必得拯救。 2 睡在尘埃中的必有多人复醒，其中有得永生的，有受羞辱永远被憎恶的。 3 智慧人必发光，如同天上的光；那使多人归义的，必发光如星，直到永永远远。 4 但以理啊，你要隐藏这话，封闭这书，直到末时。必有多人来往奔跑，知识就必增长。」

〈但以理书〉到尾声了，有点舍不得结束。想到在异国里守住敬虔的但以理，就觉得应该向他看齐，学习他不管在什么环境下都尊主为大的生活方式。不要害怕人言可畏，也不要担心必然受害。我想这就是他大蒙神眷爱的原因之一。主耶稣说，“清心的人有福了，因为他们得以见神”（太5:8）。我想，但以理就是最好的例子了。

在11章40-45节里，我们没有太多讨论。因为大部份圣经学者都认为，那段时间，也就是12章所说的“大艰难”，是指安提阿哥四世的迫害或末世的大灾难，或说是安提阿哥四世末期或主耶稣第二次降临前景。所以在这里给大家做个参考。

How God Shows His Love

2023-11-05 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is 1 John 4:7-12.  Let’s go!

1 John 4:7-12 (NIV) 
7  Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 
8  Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 
9  This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 
10  This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 
11  Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 
12  No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
 
On verses 7-12:  This is one of my favourite passages in 1 John, so much so that when Sharleen and I got married this was the passage we chose to be read at our wedding.  This passage is not just beautifully written; more importantly, it is one of the best summaries you will find in the Bible of what Christianity is all about, teaching us that: