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Don’t Take Advantage of Other People’s Kindness

2023-07-16 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is 2 Thessalonians 3:6-18.  Let’s go!
 
2 Thessalonians 3:6-15 (NIV)
6  In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we command you, brothers, to keep away from every brother who is idle and does not live according to the teaching you received from us.
7  For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example. We were not idle when we were with you,
8  nor did we eat anyone’s food without paying for it. On the contrary, we worked night and day, laboring and toiling so that we would not be a burden to any of you.
9  We did this, not because we do not have the right to such help, but in order to make ourselves a model for you to follow.
10  For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “If a man will not work, he shall not eat.”

On verses 6-15:  Here Paul addresses another problem in the church at Thessalonica: idleness, or laziness.  Apparently, some Christians in the Thessalonian church were becoming known for freeloading off of others in the church. They were taking advantage of the kindness and generosity of other Christians, frequently getting other Christians to pay for their meals and other material wants/needs instead of getting a job and paying for things themselves.

對利甲族的試驗

2023-07-16 in , /by

耶利米書 35:19   所以萬軍之耶和華以色列的神如此說：利甲的兒子約拿達必永不缺人侍立在我面前。

閱讀經文:  35:1-19

1當猶大王約西亞之子約雅敬的時候，耶和華的話臨到耶利米說： 2 「你去見利甲族的人，和他們說話，領他們進入耶和華殿的一間屋子，給他們酒喝。」 3 我就將哈巴洗尼雅的孫子、雅利米雅的兒子雅撒尼亞和他弟兄，並他眾子以及利甲全族的人， 4 領到耶和華的殿，進入神人伊基大利的兒子哈難眾子的屋子。

當猶大人上至君王，下至百姓都背約時，神要耶利米去見利甲族的人。在整個充滿欺騙的社會裡，神要讓耶利米看到什麼？外子退休前是專門救護早產兒的醫生，看遍了各種不正常或有畸型的嬰兒，所以每次回家看到自己的兒子很健康，心裡的難過和沮喪便稍稍得了安慰。在這裡，有何人何事可以讓神的心稍得安慰？

神要耶利米去試驗利甲族人。其實不必耶利米試驗，這些人根本就不上他的餌。讀了這段經文，我有點擔心，假如在我沒有警戒的時候，是否也會有試驗臨到我？我能不能過關？利甲族的人很相信耶利米，也很尊敬耶利米，全族的人在耶利米的邀請下都跟著去了。當耶利米擺設滿酒的碗和杯時，他們會不會覺得盛情難卻？他們會不會不敢不給耶利米面子，而委屈求全？

宣告自由

2023-07-14 in , /by

耶利米書 34:18  猶大的首領，耶路撒冷的首領，太監、祭司和國中的眾民曾將牛犢劈開，分成兩半，從其中經過，在我面前立約。後來又違背我的約，不遵行這約上的話。

閱讀經文:  34:9-22

9 西底家王與耶路撒冷的眾民立約，要向他們宣告自由，叫各人任他希伯來的僕人和婢女自由出去，誰也不可使他的一個猶大弟兄做奴僕。（此後，有耶和華的話臨到耶利米。） 10 所有立約的首領和眾民就任他的僕人婢女自由出去，誰也不再叫他們做奴僕。大家都順從，將他們釋放了。 11 後來卻又反悔，叫所任去自由的僕人婢女回來，勉強他們仍為僕婢。

有位牧師在碰到一位弟兄時，總會問他好不好？信心如何？那位弟兄總是回答：“上上下下，像廁所裡的馬桶蓋一樣”。這個回答聽起來不斯文，卻很實在。它形容了我們每個人的信心都是起伏不定。就好像西底家王聽到耶利米傳來神說要賜他平安而死的消息，龍心大悅，便聽神的話，與耶路撒冷的眾民立約，向他們宣告自由，叫各人任他的希伯來僕人和婢女自由自去。因為按著律法，這些奴婢在工作六年後，第七年便可重獲自由（出21:2）。但是在猶大歷史上很可能都沒有人遵守這個約定。

西底家希望藉著立約，平息神的怒氣，以確保自己平安不死。王的命令一下，所有立約的首領和眾民就任他的僕人婢女自由出去，誰也不再叫他們做奴僕，大家都順從，將他們釋放了。這是猶大國裡一個很值得記念的時刻，因為他們終於肯聽神的話，做神喜悅的事了。可惜，好景不長，當西底家看到埃及軍隊前來營救，巴比倫軍轉身對付埃及軍，圍城之禍因而暫得緩和，便以為可以靠人的幫助得救，他就悔約了。

When You’re Not Sure What to Believe

2023-07-14 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is 2 Thessalonians 2:13-3:5.  Let’s go!
 
2 Thessalonians 2:13-17 (NIV)
13  But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning God chose you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the Spirit and through belief in the truth.
14  He called you to this through our gospel, that you might share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
15  So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter.
16  May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope,
17  encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.
 
On 2:13-17:  In the previous verses, Paul talked about the anti-Christ, “the man of lawlessness”, and how when he comes he will deceive all “those who are perishing…who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness” (v10, 12).  
 

3 Events That Must Take Place Before Judgment Day

2023-07-13 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12.  Let’s go!

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 (NIV)
1  Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers,
2  not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come.
3  Don’t let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction.
4  He will oppose and will exalt himself over everything that is called God or is worshiped, so that he sets himself up in God’s temple, proclaiming himself to be God.
5  Don’t you remember that when I was with you I used to tell you these things?

On verses 1-12:  What is going on in this passage? Apparently Paul’s church in Thessalonica was troubled by some false teaching they had received.  This false teaching concerned “the day of the Lord”, the time when Jesus the Messiah would return and dole out his final judgment on the world.  The Thessalonian church had received false teaching — possibly in the form of a letter, prophecy or report — that the day of the Lord had already come.  To complicate matters, the Thessalonian Christians were told that Paul was responsible for this teaching.

平安的應許

2023-07-13 in , /by

耶利米書 34:4  猶大王西底家啊，你還要聽耶和華的話。耶和華論到你如此說：你必不被刀劍殺死。

閱讀經文:  34:1-7

1 巴比倫王尼布甲尼撒率領他的全軍和地上屬他的各國各邦，攻打耶路撒冷和屬耶路撒冷所有的城邑，那時耶和華的話臨到耶利米說： 2 「耶和華以色列的神說：你去告訴猶大王西底家：『耶和華如此說：我要將這城交付巴比倫王的手，他必用火焚燒。

對神有信心，是一件很容易的事嗎？有次在敬拜時，牧師引用亞伯蘭和羅得選地分遷的故事，他問大家，覺得自己比較像亞伯蘭或羅得？這個問題頗有重量，因為我覺得自己太像羅得了。誰不要水草肥沃的草地去放牧？誰不希望往容易找工作的地區遷移？誰不喜歡生氣盎然的大都會？誰喜歡水草貧瘠的土地？當我們在選擇時，誰會用神的眼光去衡量？誰能像亞伯蘭那樣大器，對神有全然的信心？

因此當神藉著耶利米對西底家發話時，西底家會選擇相信神嗎？巴比倫王攻下了猶大所有的城邑，西底家自知即將成為亡國之君，猶如一隻困獸在做最後的掙扎。他希望神出奇不意殺光敵軍，他希望神像古時一樣，派下天軍火馬為他爭戰，但是當神的作法和他的想法迴異時，他能有信心相信神而順服嗎？

耶和華我們的義

2023-07-12 in , /by

耶利米書 33:16 在那日子，猶大必得救，耶路撒冷必安然居住，祂的名必稱為『耶和華我們的義』。

閱讀經文:  33:10-26

10 「耶和華如此說：你們論這地方說是荒廢無人民、無牲畜之地，但在這荒涼無人民、無牲畜的猶大城邑和耶路撒冷的街上， 11 必再聽見有歡喜和快樂的聲音、新郎和新婦的聲音，並聽見有人說：『要稱謝萬軍之耶和華，因耶和華本為善，祂的慈愛永遠長存！』又有奉感謝祭到耶和華殿中之人的聲音，因為我必使這地被擄的人歸回，和起初一樣。這是耶和華說的。

這段經文是當耶利米被囚在王的宮中，護衛兵的院內時，神跟他說的一段話。耶利米此時雖然行動不自由，卻可接見賓客如哈拿篾( 32:8 )和巴錄(32:12 )，又可以處理事務( 32:12 )。根據 32:12 還有其他的猶大人囚在該處，此處這不像是監獄，極有可能是囚禁不必處死之政治犯的軟禁地。因為是在王的宮中，所以王也隨時可以去找耶利米。但是還有更重要的一位，就是神，也可以隨時跟他說話。

就像保羅說的：“誰能使我們與基督的愛隔絕？難道是患難麼？是困苦麼？是逼迫麼？是飢餓麼？是赤身麼？是危險麼？是刀劍麼？然而藉著那愛我們的，在這一切的事上，我們已經得勝有餘了。因為我深信，無論是死，是生，是天使，是掌權的，是現今的事，是要來的事，是有能的，是高，是深，或是別的受造之物，都不能叫我們與神的愛隔絕，這愛是在我們的主基督耶穌裡的（羅8:35/37-39）”。

When Pressure Leads to Growth

2023-07-12 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today we begin our look at 2 Thessalonians, a letter written by Paul to the church in Thessalonica, probably in the early A.D. 50s, soon after he wrote 1 Thessalonians. 
 
Today’s passage is 2 Thessalonians 1:1-12.  Let’s go!

2 Thessalonians 1:1-2 (NIV)
1  Paul, Silas and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
2  Grace and peace to you from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
 
On verses 1-2:  Thessalonica was an important port city, located in what is now modern day Greece.  When Paul started the church there during his second mission trip (Acts 17:1-10), Paul and his team faced dangerous persecution, so much so that Paul and his teammate Silas were sent away for safety reasons.  From this letter we’re about to read, it will become evident that the Christians who remained in Thessalonica continued to face persecution for their faith.

God’s Will for Your Life

2023-07-11 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is 1 Thessalonians 5:12-28.  Let’s go!
 
1 Thessalonians 5:12-13 (NIV)
12 Now we ask you, brothers, to respect those who work hard among you, who are over you in the Lord and who admonish you.
13 Hold them in the highest regard in love because of their work. Live in peace with each other. 
 
On verses 12-13:  This past weekend I got to witness one of our ministry teams at Thrive honouring their team leader and thanking her for her hard work leading them.  It was cool to see verses 12-13 lived out that way.  For how we treat our church leaders is a reflection of our character, maturity and commitment to Jesus and His church. 
 
1 Thessalonians 5:14 (NIV)
14 And we urge you, brothers, warn those who are idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone. 
 
On verse 14:  When you notice other brothers and sisters in the church who may seem idle, timid, or weak in a certain area, be patient with them.  In addition, be sensitive to what they need: in some cases what they may need is a warning, in some cases encouragement, and in other cases other help.  May the Holy Spirit give you a discerning heart to know what those around you need and how best to give it to them.

求告和應允

2023-07-11 in , /by

耶利米書 33:3 你求告我，我就應允你，並將你所不知道、又大又難的事指示你。

閱讀經文:  33:1-9

1 耶利米還囚在護衛兵的院內，耶和華的話第二次臨到他說： 2 「成就的是耶和華，造做為要建立的也是耶和華，耶和華是祂的名，祂如此說： 3 你求告我，我就應允你，並將你所不知道、又大又難的事指示你。

根據《舊約聖經背景注釋》，城被圍攻時，靠近城牆的（平民、王族）住宅都被軍方徵用。有些用作司令部和軍營，有些被拆卸作為加強防禦工事的材料，有些用作臨時醫院和殮房，有些則被拆毀來提供地方增建城樓、護堤、反坡道（counter-ramp）。拉吉的城牆之內發現了反坡道的遺跡，其功用是強化城牆，抵抗敵軍在城外建築的攻城坡道。考古學家又在耶路撒冷俯瞰汲淪溪穀的東坡發現了大量的磚石，相信是巴比倫軍攻城時，梯田之上民居被拆毀的證據。

神以祂奇妙的方式保護耶利米。當城內的糧食逐漸減少，許多人沒有東西可吃時，耶利米因為被囚在護衛兵的院內，所以每天有一個餅吃。