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The Difference Between Having Questions and Unbelief

2022-12-07 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Mark 8:1-13.  Let’s go!

Mark 8:1-10 (NIV)
1  During those days another large crowd gathered. Since they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said,
2  “I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat.
3  If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance.”
4  His disciples answered, “But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?”

On verses 1-10:  Like when Jesus fed the five thousand in Mark 6, here we see:

– It was Jesus’ heart of compassion for the people, not the desire to put on a show, that led Jesus to feed the people.  Out of the heart the mouth speaks, and out of the heart ministry happens.  It all begins with the heart.  No wonder Proverbs 4:23 tells us to guard our heart, for it is the well spring of life.

謙卑在神面前

2022-12-06 in , /by

傳道書 5:1   你到神的殿要謹慎腳步，因為近前聽勝過愚昧人獻祭，他們本不知道所做的是惡。

閱讀經文：傳道書 5:1-2

1你到神的殿要謹慎腳步，因為近前聽勝過愚昧人獻祭，他們本不知道所做的是惡。2你在神面前不可冒失開口，也不可心急發言。因為神在天上，你在地下，所以你的言語要寡少。

在所羅門王的時代，聖殿是非常神聖的地方，只有祭司才能進去。老百姓只能到聖殿的院子裡去獻祭和參與敬拜。祭司要進聖殿服事之前，一要用獻祭潔淨自己，二要用水洗濯潔淨自己，鞋子要留在殿外，和今日回教徒敬拜一樣。亞伯拉罕有兩個兒子，一是大兒子以實瑪利，二是應許之子以撒。以撒也有兩個兒子：以掃和雅各。雅各就是後來以色列十二支派的父親，他們後來成為敬拜耶和華的族裔。以實瑪利和以掃的後代，他們也曾經跟著亞伯拉罕和以撒學習敬拜，後來在傳承中變成伊斯蘭教，也就是回教，因此有許多崇拜的儀式和猶太教非常相似，例如進殿敬拜時脫鞋，還有類似割禮的習俗。

Let The Deaf Hear, Let The Mute Speak

2022-12-06 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Mark 7:31-37.  Let’s go!

Mark 7:31-35 (NIV)
31  Then Jesus left the vicinity of Tyre and went through Sidon, down to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis.
32  There some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged him to place his hand on the man.
33  After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue.
34  He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means, “Be opened!”).
35  At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly.
 
On verses 31-35:  At first glance, to us reading these verses today, the steps Jesus took to heal this deaf and mute man might seem strange.  But keep in mind that Jesus would often touch people as a part of healing them.  He would often look to heaven while praying.  He would sigh out of compassion and sometimes frustration.  So perhaps it’s just the spitting part that throws us off.  One theory is that using saliva was common in ancient healing stories.  Another theory is that before speaking the words “Ephphatha!”, Jesus was using actions and sign language to tell this man that Jesus was about to heal him; that way this man would know what Jesus was about to do and have the opportunity to believe that Jesus could do it.

God’s Heart for People of Every Nation

2022-12-05 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Mark 7:24-30.  Let’s go!

Mark 7:24-30 (NIV)
24  Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret.
 
On verse 24:  Jesus goes into Gentile territory, visiting the city of Tyre.  Whereas the Pharisees and teachers of the law would be concerned about becoming ceremonially by getting close to Gentiles, Jesus had no such concern.  The fact that Mark places this passage right after the passage where Jesus declares all foods clean suggests that just as there was no food that could not be eaten, so people of all cultures are loved by God and God does not discriminate based on culture or race. 

Perhaps because Jesus had taught and healed people from Tyre before (see Mark 3:8-10), Jesus could not keep his presence in Tyre secret. 

缺乏安全感導至失敗

2022-12-05 in , /by

傳道書4:13  貧窮而有智慧的少年人，勝過年老不肯納諫的愚昧王。

閱讀經文：傳道書 4:13-16

13貧窮而有智慧的少年人，勝過年老不肯納諫的愚昧王。14這人是從監牢中出來做王，在他國中，生來原是貧窮的。15我見日光之下一切行動的活人都隨從那第二位，就是起來代替老王的少年人。16他所治理的眾人，就是他的百姓，多得無數，在他後來的人尚且不喜悅他。這真是虛空，也是捕風。

雖然在這段經文裡，所羅門王沒有指出誰是那個貧窮而有智慧的少年人，誰是那個年老不肯納諫的愚昧王，但是根據聖經的記載，所羅門王對於耶羅波安將要拿走以色列十個支派的預言是十分清楚的（王上11:29-40）。他是否也像我們一樣，在年記大時，會自嘲記憶力不行了，變成老頑固了？

在世人眼中，出身是成功的條件之一，貧窮又曾被下在監牢中，簡直就是沒有前途了。但是神讓所羅門王看到，被欺壓的人不一定就沒希望了，因為耶和華神是保護和扶持弱勢者的神。在〈箴言〉廿三章11節說：“不可侵入孤兒的田地，因他們救贖主大有能力”，耶和華神是看顧被欺壓者的神。所以祂能賜給所羅門有大智慧，祂也可以賜給貧窮的少年人有智慧。所以瑪利亞讚美神：“祂憐憫敬畏祂的人，直到世世代代。祂用膀臂施展大能，那狂傲的人正心裡妄想就被祂趕散了。 祂叫有權柄的失位，叫卑賤的升高；叫飢餓的得飽美食，叫富足的空手回去”（路1:50-52）。神憐憫敬畏祂的人。

To Be Truly Clean Before God

2022-12-04 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Mark 7:14-23.  Let’s go!

Mark 7:14-23 (NIV)
14  Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen to me, everyone, and understand this.
15  Nothing outside a man can make him ‘unclean’ by going into him. Rather, it is what comes out of a man that makes him ‘unclean.’
17  After he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him about this parable.
18  “Are you so dull?” he asked. “Don’t you see that nothing that enters a man from the outside can make him ‘unclean’?
19  For it doesn’t go into his heart but into his stomach, and then out of his body.” (In saying this, Jesus declared all foods “clean.”)
20  He went on: “What comes out of a man is what makes him ‘unclean.’
21  For from within, out of men’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery,
22  greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly.
23  All these evils come from inside and make a man ‘unclean.'”
 
On verses 14-23:  The kind of unclean Jesus is referring to here is about being unclean before God.  God is so perfectly holy and pure that nothing impure or “unclean” can stand in His presence.  That’s why the Pharisees and teachers of the law focused so much on cleanliness, washing their hands, their cups and their dishes, all under the belief that those who washed were clean before God whereas those who didn’t were unclean.  Jesus clarifies that it is not what enters a person from the outside that makes him spiritually unclean; rather it is what comes out of that person’s heart – the sin that is already there – which makes him unclean. 

三股合成的繩子

2022-12-04 in , /by

傳道書4:12  有人攻勝孤身一人，若有二人便能抵擋他，三股合成的繩子不容易折斷。

閱讀經文：傳道書 4:7-12

7我又轉念，見日光之下有一件虛空的事。8有人孤單無二，無子無兄，竟勞碌不息，眼目也不以錢財為足。他說：「我勞勞碌碌，刻苦自己，不享福樂，到底是為誰呢？」這也是虛空，是極重的勞苦。9兩個人總比一個人好，因為二人勞碌同得美好的果效。10若是跌倒，這人可以扶起他的同伴；若是孤身跌倒，沒有別人扶起他來，這人就有禍了！11再者，二人同睡就都暖和，一人獨睡怎能暖和呢？12有人攻勝孤身一人，若有二人便能抵擋他，三股合成的繩子不容易折斷。

所羅門王先是擔心自己的財產，一切勞碌所得，卻要留給未曾勞碌的後人，因而日日憂慮，勞苦成為愁煩，連夜間心也不安（傳2:18-23）。現在，他為了那些孤單的人，忙忙碌碌，不以錢財為足而感嘆。所以有錢並不能使人滿足，不管你是否孤單。像所羅門王有妃七百，嬪三百，應該也兒女成群，不孤單了，但是再多的財富也不能使他安心。你的錢財讓你安心嗎？你一生勞碌有目標嗎？我想，這是所羅門王要引導人去思考的主題。

Don’t Put Tradition Over God’s Word

2022-12-02 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Mark 7:1-13.  Let’s go!

Mark 7:1-13 (NIV)
1  The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus and
2  saw some of his disciples eating food with hands that were “unclean,” that is, unwashed.
3  (The Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing, holding to the tradition of the elders.
4  When they come from the marketplace they do not eat unless they wash. And they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of cups, pitchers and kettles.)
5  So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus, “Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders instead of eating their food with ‘unclean’ hands?”
6  He replied, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written: “‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
7  They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.’

On verses 1-13:  Jesus had no problem with washing your hands before eating per se.  Rather Jesus’ problem was with the Pharisees and teachers and how they put more focus on following their man-made traditions (like “wash your hands before you eat”) than obeying God’s commands.  As Jesus says in verse 8, “You have a fine way of setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!”

勞碌捕風

2022-12-02 in , /by

傳道書4:6   滿了一把得享安靜，強如滿了兩把，勞碌捕風.

閱讀經文：傳道書 4:1-6

1我又轉念，見日光之下所行的一切欺壓。看哪，受欺壓的流淚，且無人安慰；欺壓他們的有勢力，也無人安慰他們。2因此，我讚嘆那早已死的死人，勝過那還活著的活人。3並且我以為那未曾生的，就是未見過日光之下惡事的，比這兩等人更強。4我又見人為一切的勞碌和各樣靈巧的工作，就被鄰舍嫉妒。這也是虛空，也是捕風。5愚昧人抱著手，吃自己的肉。6滿了一把得享安靜，強如滿了兩把，勞碌捕風。

在日光之下，在你的生活裡，你有沒有看到一些事讓你充滿感嘆且無奈？在這裡有幾件事讓年老的所羅門王覺得社會並不是那麼好混的。一是“受欺壓的流淚，且無人安慰；欺壓他們的有勢力，也無人安慰他們”。台灣一直在討論勞工休假的問題，有人舉證有的地方工時太長，有的人連續工作十幾天也沒有休假。不僅開旅遊車的司機因超時工作而出意外，醫護人員也頻頻警告，過長的工時會引起醫護人員的過度疲勞。有的外科醫生連續做手術卅幾個小時，有的實習醫生連續幾天沒有時間睡覺，有的護理人員因為人員短缺，不斷地被強迫加班。這種制度上的不建全造成的欺壓，真的沒有人能夠安慰他們。

生命的氣息

2022-12-01 in , /by

傳道書3:21  誰知道人的靈是往上升，獸的魂是下入地呢？

閱讀經文：傳道書 3:18-22

18我心裡說：「這乃為世人的緣故，是神要試驗他們，使他們覺得自己不過像獸一樣。19因為世人遭遇的，獸也遭遇，所遭遇的都是一樣。這個怎樣死，那個也怎樣死，氣息都是一樣。人不能強於獸，都是虛空。20都歸一處，都是出於塵土，也都歸於塵土。21誰知道人的靈是往上升，獸的魂是下入地呢？」22故此，我見人莫強如在他經營的事上喜樂，因為這是他的份。他身後的事，誰能使他回來得見呢？

對於人類，所羅門王有一種見解：神使人覺得和獸一樣，是出於神的試驗。假如主張進化論的人明白這句話的意思，他們會不會覺得原來聰明反被聰明誤？的確，當我們和動物相比時，有時會覺得牠們和人有許多相似之處，最常見的就是猿和猴子，因為牠們善於模仿，又可以教牠們一些東西，所以很多假設就放在牠們身上。

進化論告訴人說，最高級的人是從一種低等的人進化來的；這種低等的人是從一種動物——如猿人——進化來的；猿人又是從猿猴進化來的；猿猴又是從比它低等的 動物——如青蛙——進化來的；青蛙又是從比牠更低等的生物魚進化來的；而這種低等生物或有機物又是從某種結晶體出來的。總之，他們認為有生命的，是從沒有生命的，自然產生。生命的源頭照達爾文的假設，是“電和蛋白質”組成的。（採自張郁嵐《認識真理》）