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The Touch of Your Hand

2022-11-09 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Mark 1:40-45.  Let’s go!

Mark 1:40-42 (NIV)
40  A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”
41  Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!”
42  Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured.
 
On verses 40-42:  When the leper cried out to Jesus for help, Jesus showed that he was full of compassion as well as the power to heal.  What touches me most is the way Jesus healed this leper: he touched him. 

神那測不透的奇妙

2022-11-09 in , /by

箴言30:19   就是鷹在空中飛的道，蛇在磐石上爬的道，船在海中行的道，男與女交合的道。

閱讀經文：箴言 30:18-20

18 我所測不透的奇妙有三樣，連我所不知道的共有四樣， 19 就是鷹在空中飛的道，蛇在磐石上爬的道，船在海中行的道，男與女交合的道。 20 淫婦的道也是這樣，她吃了把嘴一擦，就說：「我沒有行惡。」

在這世上有哪些事讓你想不透呢？你再想想，就會發現不止是三樣或四樣。所以亞古珥是拋磚引玉，要讓我們思想神的作為何等超乎人的智慧，人的罪性又何等愚妄自欺。“我所測不透的奇妙”，《現代中文譯本》譯為：神祕莫測的事，《思高譯本》譯為：令我稱奇的事，《呂振中譯本》譯為：奇妙事超乎我的智力之外。

我們現在有Discovery （探索頻道）出的視頻，向我們解釋很多生物界的奇妙現象。但是以前的人沒有這樣方便的管道，因此要想破頭也無法明白。有個人住在香港一間公寓的37樓，經常會看到大麻鷹在空中盤旋。經過長期的觀察，他發現麻鷹的飛行方法很像一隻紙鳶。

螞蟥世代

2022-11-08 in , /by

箴言30:15   螞蟥有兩個女兒，常說：「給呀！給呀！」有三樣不知足的，連不說夠的共有四樣。

閱讀經文：箴言 30:15-17

15螞蟥有兩個女兒，常說：「給呀！給呀！」有三樣不知足的，連不說夠的共有四樣，16就是陰間和石胎，浸水不足的地，並火。(新譯本：就是陰間、不能生育的婦人、水源不足之地和總不說『夠了』的火。)17 戲笑父親，藐視而不聽從母親的，他的眼睛必為谷中的烏鴉啄出來，為鷹雛所吃。

螞蟥世代

「螞蟥有兩個女兒，常說，給呀給呀。」(箴言三十：15)

螞蟥是水蛭，吸血維生，經常在溪流、水田等潮溼的地方活動。吸血的方式是口部有兩個吸孔，貼住動物或人的表皮，從微血管吸血。螞蟥吸血容量，可到身體的4-5倍，能將身體吸到脹起來。吸一次血，可維持2-3個月的食物量，甚至撐半年，再等下一次的機會。

上 帝在此提醒我們，與人相處，不是像螞蟥，將人吸乾，自己得飽足。有些媒體就像螞蟥，抓到一個人，將其吸乾，毀了對方才放掉，媒體的暴力本質，比所放的暴力 節目更血腥。可怕的是，觀眾也像螞蟥推導媒體朝這方向去，變成一堆螞蟥在吸媒體，媒體又去找獵物，供大家病態式的取樂，情緒性的滿足。

Face Time with the Father

2022-11-08 in /by

Hi GAMErs!  

Today’s passage is Mark 1:29-39.  Let’s go!

Mark 1:29-31 (NIV)
29  As soon as they left the synagogue, they went with James and John to the home of Simon and Andrew.
30  Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told Jesus about her.
31  So he went to her, took her hand and helped her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them.
 
On verses 29-31:  In Mark 1:21-22, we saw Jesus’ power to teach God’s Word.  In Mark 1:23-27 we saw Jesus’ power to drive out evil spirits.  Now in Mark 1:29-34 we see Jesus’ power to heal the sick, beginning with Simon’s mother-in-law.   
 
Notice how Simon’s mother-in-law responded after Jesus healed her: “she began to wait on them” (v31), that is, to serve Jesus and his team.  The same should be our response to Jesus as well after we witness and experience Jesus’ power in our lives.  May we not be consumers who just keep wanting more and more things from Jesus, treating him like our servant.  Rather, like Peter’s mother-in-law, may our response be to serve Jesus and His followers rather than always wanting to be served.

The G.O.A.T.

2022-11-07 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Mark 1:21-28.  Let’s go!

Mark 1:21-22 (NIV)
21  They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach.
22  The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law.

On verses 21-22:  Jesus was far more than just a teacher, but what a teacher he was.  There was something about Jesus’ teachings that carried weight and “authority” that other teachers of the time did not have (v22).  Not only did Jesus amaze people with His teachings when Jesus walked this earth, but two thousand years later no one else’s teachings have ever come close to having the impact that Jesus’ teachings have had and still have.  When it comes to our sins, Jesus is our sacrificial lamb, and when it comes to teaching humanity, Jesus is the G.O.A.T. (greatest of all time).  So when you open your Bible and read Jesus’ teachings, remember that you are reading the most precious, brilliant and powerful teachings that there have ever been. The most important and powerful words you can cling to are Jesus’ words.

跳出以自我為中心的人生

2022-11-07 in , /by

箴言30:10  你不要向主人讒謗僕人，恐怕他咒詛你，你便算為有罪。

閱讀經文：箴言 30:10-14

10你不要向主人讒謗僕人，恐怕他咒詛你，你便算為有罪。11有一宗人，咒詛父親，不給母親祝福。12有一宗人，自以為清潔，卻沒有洗去自己的污穢。13有一宗人，眼目何其高傲，眼皮也是高舉。14有一宗人，牙如劍，齒如刀，要吞滅地上的困苦人和世間的窮乏人。

新譯本： “不要向主人誹謗他的僕人，恐怕他咒詛你，你就判為有罪。有一種人咒詛父親，又不給母親祝福。有一種人自以為清潔，卻沒有洗去自己的污穢。有一種人眼目多麼高傲，他們的眼睛，長在頂上。 有一種人牙如劍，齒如刀，要吞滅地上的困苦人和世人中的貧窮人。

在這段經文裡，亞古珥讓我們看到五種人，這五種人有一個共通的特點，便是自私自利和自以為是，應該可以說就是以自我為中心。第一種人向主人誹謗他的僕人，也就是打小報告。這種人覺得別人做得不好，深怕主人不知道，便打小報告，要讓主人以為他很為主人著想。他也是僕人，但是要踩著別人的脊樑往上爬，不是靠實力，而是靠告發他人，以贏取上司的喜悅。他在背後踩人，人家自然討厭他，咒詛他。在神的面前，這種人算為有罪。

Don’t Get Stuck in “Preparation Mode”

2022-11-06 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today we begin the Gospel of Mark.  Though the author does not identify himself in this gospel, early church writers unanimously claim Mark (also known as John Mark – see for example Acts 12:12, 25) as the author, which in some respects would be a strange choice if it were not true.  Mark was a close co-worker of Jesus’ disciple Peter, whom Peter even calls “my son” (1 Peter 5:13).  Thus many scholars believe that Mark wrote his gospel based at least in part on the eyewitness testimony of Peter.  It is also believed by many scholars that Mark wrote this gospel while in Rome between approximately 57 and 63 A.D. (although some scholars have suggested an earlier date).  Shortly after this Emperor Nero would begin his severe persecution of the church in Rome, which as tradition holds is where Peter eventually would die a martyr’s death.

Many scholars agree that the gospel of Mark was probably the first of the New Testament gospels to be written and was an important reference book for Matthew and Luke to refer to when they wrote their gospels.

Today’s passage is Mark 1:1-20.  Let’s go!

亞古珥求兩件事

2022-11-06 in , /by

箴言30:8  求祢使虛假和謊言遠離我；使我也不貧窮也不富足，賜給我需用的飲食。

閱讀經文：箴言 30:7-8

7我求你兩件事，在我未死之先不要不賜給我：8求你使虛假和謊言遠離我；使我也不貧窮也不富足，賜給我需用的飲食。9恐怕我飽足不認你，說：「耶和華是誰呢？」又恐怕我貧窮就偷竊，以致褻瀆我神的名。

托爾斯泰曾經寫了一個寓言收在《呆子伊凡》這本故事集裡，名字叫做〈魔鬼與農夫〉。話說有個老魔鬼看到人的生活實在太幸福了，便想去擾亂一下，盡盡做魔鬼的本份。他派了一個小魔鬼去打一個農夫，因為那個農夫每天殷勤工作，所得卻甚少，卻十分快樂滿足。

小魔鬼就去把農夫的田地變硬，讓農夫挖土挖得很辛苦。但是農夫並未因此而抱怨，只是更殷勤地敲打地，小魔鬼失敗地走了。大魔鬼派第二個小魔鬼去，小魔鬼心想農夫不怕工作辛苦，但是沒有體力就不行了吧？於是牠偷走農夫的麵包跟水。沒想到農夫找不到麵包跟水，說：“不曉得哪個可憐的人比我更需要那塊麵包跟水？如果這些東西就能讓他得溫飽的話，那就好了。”於是小魔鬼又逃走了。

Keep Going to the End

2022-11-04 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Daniel 12:1-13.  (For those of you who own a printed GAME booklet, please note that we will begin the Gospel of Mark 1:1-20 tomorrow.)  Let’s go!

Daniel 12:1 (NIV)
1  “At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people–everyone whose name is found written in the book–will be delivered.

On verse 1:  Chapter 12 continues the message that the angel was giving to Daniel in chapter 11.  The angel notes that “at that time” (meaning the end times) there will be great distress unlike anything that has ever been seen, but that “everyone whose name is found written in the book” (likely meaning those written in God’s book of life in Revelation; see for example Revelation 21:27) will be delivered from that time of distress.  Verse 1 suggests that the archangel Michael will play a role in protecting and delivering those people whose names are written in the book.  How does one get their name written in God’s book of life?  By believing that Jesus died on the cross for our sins.

生命在神的話中成長

2022-11-04 in , /by

箴言30:5   神的言語句句都是煉淨的，投靠祂的，祂便做他們的盾牌

閱讀經文：箴言 30:5-6

5神的言語句句都是煉淨的，投靠祂的，祂便做他們的盾牌。6祂的言語你不可加添，恐怕祂責備你，你就顯為說謊言的。

5 Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him.6 Do not add to His words, Lest He rebuke you, and you be found a liar..(NKJV)

The believer replied, “Every promise of God proves true; he protects everyone who runs to him for help. So don’t second-guess him; he might take you to task and show up your lies.” 《The Message》

你有沒有想過，為何有那麼多人把他們的生命投資在一本《聖經》之上？神的話為何那樣特別？當世人都在為自己的生活汲汲忙碌時，卻有一批神所揀選的人，情願挑燈日攻夜戰，逐字翻譯神的話語，讓他們的青春年華在書桌旁一點一滴地消失。為了使神的話語可以深入到每個族群，這些人必須遠離家鄉和親人，去陌生的環境裡學習適應當地的生活，當地的語言，從而把自己已有的希伯來文、希臘文和英文等學識應用在翻譯上面。這樣的工作，沒有雄厚的經濟報酬，反而都是清茶淡飯，才能維持每日的基本所需。