Entries by

Justice, Compassion and Jesus My Kinsman Redeemer

2022-07-24 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 25:1-10.  Let’s go!

Deuteronomy 25:1-3 (NIV)
1  When men have a dispute, they are to take it to court and the judges will decide the case, acquitting the innocent and condemning the guilty.
2  If the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall make him lie down and have him flogged in his presence with the number of lashes his crime deserves,
3  but he must not give him more than forty lashes. If he is flogged more than that, your brother will be degraded in your eyes.

On verses 1-3:  Here we see God’s heart for justice when people are charged with crimes.  God wants to make sure that: 

– the innocent are acquitted (v1)
– the guilty are convicted (v1)
– the punishment fits the crime (v2) and 
– the punishment is appropriate and not degrading to the person being punished (v3). 

安全感

2022-07-22 in , /by

箴言19:24   懒惰人放手在盘子里，就是向口撤回他也不肯。

阅读经文：箴言19:24-26

24懒惰人放手在盘子里，就是向口撤回他也不肯。 25鞭打亵慢人，愚蒙人必长见识；责备明哲人，他就明白知识。 26虐待父亲、撵出母亲的，是贻羞致辱之子。

第24节：懒惰人放手在盘子里，就是向口撤回他也不肯。

「懒惰人放手在盘子里，就是向口撤回，他也不肯。」(箴言19:24) 懒惰的人不一定是偷懒，而是贪而无厌，以致错失判断。将手放在食物盘子里，有时是拿多了，还想再拿更多，忘了拿食物的目的，是为了吃。如果嘴巴吃不了那么 多，手在盘子里取再多也没有用，不过是变成垃圾。但是我们经常要抓更多，取更多，而忘了自己吃的量有限。变成看重取的过程，忘记吃的目标。

我们经常在「吃到饱」的餐厅里，看到有些人一直取肉、拿菜。劝他们吃多少，拿多少，若不肯听劝，是另类的懒惰。吃东西、赚钱、争取权力，够了，就要停。不要成为在争取上积极；在享有上贫穷。

我也有这弱点，每年愁明年没钱作研究计划，总想多争取些。二十多年来，每年习惯性的发愁，很少享受拥有经费的喜悦。教授的头衔，像是乞丐的盘子，取这盘子到处向人求食物，自己没有吃到什么。这背后就是没有安全感。（张文亮教授）

God’s Compassionate Heart

2022-07-22 in /by

Hi GAMErs! 
 
In Deuteronomy we get to see different layers to God’s heart.  Today’s passage, Deuteronomy 24:10-22, lets us in on another big layer to the heart of God.  Let’s go!
 
Deuteronomy 24:10-22 (NIV)
10  When you make a loan of any kind to your neighbor, do not go into his house to get what he is offering as a pledge.
11  Stay outside and let the man to whom you are making the loan bring the pledge out to you.
12  If the man is poor, do not go to sleep with his pledge in your possession.
13  Return his cloak to him by sunset so that he may sleep in it. Then he will thank you, and it will be regarded as a righteous act in the sight of the LORD your God.
14  Do not take advantage of a hired man who is poor and needy, whether he is a brother Israelite or an alien living in one of your towns.
15  Pay him his wages each day before sunset, because he is poor and is counting on it. Otherwise he may cry to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty of sin.
16  Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their fathers; each is to die for his own sin.

On verses 10-22:  Why does Moses say not to go into the house of someone you’re lending money to in order to get what they are offering as a pledge (v10)?  Why instead wait outside and let the borrower bring the pledge out to you (v11)?  It’s to protect the dignity and honor of the person you’re lending to, so as not to embarrass them unnecessarily in front of their family.

The Protecting Heart of God

2022-07-21 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 24:1-9.  Let’s go!

Deuteronomy 24:1-4 (NIV)
1  If a man marries a woman who becomes displeasing to him because he finds something indecent about her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house,
2  and if after she leaves his house she becomes the wife of another man,
3  and her second husband dislikes her and writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house, or if he dies,
4  then her first husband, who divorced her, is not allowed to marry her again after she has been defiled. That would be detestable in the eyes of the LORD. Do not bring sin upon the land the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance.

On verses 1-4:  What “indecent” thing could a husband find about his wife that would enable him to divorce her?  It wasn’t adultery or having premarital sex, since both of these meant death (see Deuteronomy 22:20-22).  So the answer to this question is not clear.  That said, whenever you read verses 1 to 4 where Moses allows divorce, always remember what Jesus said about these verses:

计画永远赶不上变化

2022-07-21 in , /by

箴言19:21    人心多有计谋，唯有耶和华的筹算才能立定。

阅读经文：箴言19:21-23

21人心多有计谋，唯有耶和华的筹算才能立定。 22施行仁慈的令人爱慕，穷人强如说谎言的。 23敬畏耶和华的得着生命，他必恒久知足，不遭祸患。

第21节：人心多有计谋，唯有耶和华的筹算才能立定。

最近看到一个朋友的见证，我心里有很多感慨。她有一个女儿，从小就带她到教会；她放弃工作，做全职母亲；家里不看电视，每周都有家庭聚会。父母两人都很爱女儿，以为她将一步步走上“荣（神）耀（父母）之路”。没想到，女儿在高二时交了男朋友，从此茶不思饭不想，只跟他谈话，只听他说话。眼看大学的学测在即，父母都非常着急。更没想到，女儿被男友甩了。这时她又开始听父母的话，在神面前悔改。结果学测放榜时，出乎大家的意料之外，她考上了一间国立大学。原是没指望的，神却恩待了。

我们多少有类似的经历，为自己或为儿女规划，忙到最后，才发现很多细节不在自己的考量之中。台湾企业家郭台铭曾说：“计画永远赶不上变化，变化抵不上客户一通电话。”

所以大卫说：“当将你的事交托耶和华，并倚靠祂，祂就必成全”（诗37:5）。当我们筹谋时，是凭自己的骄傲在行事；若把计划放在神的手中，并倚靠祂，便是有自知之明和智慧了。因为神知道明天，祂知道会有怎样的变化，祂有能力可以掌握一切的变数。

趁有指望管教你的儿子

2022-07-20 in , /by

箴言19:18    趁有指望管教你的儿子，你的心不可任他死亡。

阅读经文：箴言19:18-20

18趁有指望管教你的儿子，你的心不可任他死亡。 19暴怒的人必受刑罚，你若救他，必须再救。 20你要听劝教，受训诲，使你终久有智慧。

第18节：趁有指望管教你的儿子（女），你的心不可任他死亡。Discipline your children while you still have the chance; indulging them destroys them.《The Message》

圣经新译本把这节经文译为：“趁著还有指望的时候，要管教你的儿子；不可存心使他死亡。”换句话说，你不管教儿女，是存心的问题，是故意的，故意使儿女无法得知正路。这是何等大的指责啊！但也有几分贴切。

因为当我观察一些父母带儿女的方式时，发现有些人真的是故意，以放任的心态去让孩子成长。孩子做错事根本不教导，总是觉得他好可爱，长大就懂事了，惹他生气了才骂几句。这样的孩子长大之后，必使父母的心无法安息和喜乐，这叫咎由自取。以懒惰和不负责任的心态去带领儿女，却希望他们长大后能明白事理，这是何等愚昧和一厢情愿的想法。

所以我们若不想儿女朝着毁灭的路上走，就要带领他们走向得生命之路。因为你不教他们，他们好像海棉，看到什么就吸收什么，终会把社会上的垃圾拉一堆回来。那时后悔已经来不及了。所以父母要先把正确的观念放到儿女心中，使他们懂得怎样分辨。因为神是先把儿女放到你怀中的，就是期望你能把好东西教给他，好让他在面对这个社会时，能以自保，知所取舍。所以，做父母的也要先在神面前领受，才能有信心地教养儿女。

Getting to Know God’s Heart

2022-07-20 in /by

Hi GAMErs! 

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 23:15-25.  Let’s go!

Deuteronomy 23:15-16 (NIV) 
15 If a slave has taken refuge with you, do not hand him over to his master. 
16 Let him live among you wherever he likes and in whatever town he chooses. Do not oppress him. 

On verses 15-16:  These verses show God’s heart of compassion toward slaves who have run away from an oppressive master.  Similarly, we were all slaves to sin. but God rescued us and became our refuge, not wanting us to return to our previous master who oppressed us.  

Deuteronomy 23:17-18 (NIV) 
17 No Israelite man or woman is to become a shrine prostitute. 
18 You must not bring the earnings of a female prostitute or of a male prostitute into the house of the LORD your God to pay any vow, because the LORD your God detests them both. 

You Are Worthy Because of Jesus

2022-07-19 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 23:1-14.  Let’s go!

Deuteronomy 23:1-3 (NIV)
1  No one who has been emasculated by crushing or cutting may enter the assembly of the LORD.
2  No one born of a forbidden marriage nor any of his descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD, even down to the tenth generation.
3  No Ammonite or Moabite or any of his descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD, even down to the tenth generation.

On verses 1-3:  Moses lists different conditions that would disqualify a person from entering the assembly where people worship God.  Notice that all these conditions were things that were generally beyond a person’s control — if a man’s genitals were mutilated (v1), or he was born out of wedlock (v2), or he was an Ammonite or Moabite (v3-5).  Similarly, the Bible says that all of us have a condition that disqualifies us from God’s presence: our sin (see Romans 3:9 and Isaiah 59:2).   But praise God that in love He sent Jesus Christ to die on the cross to pay the price for all our sins.  Because of Jesus, regardless of our backgrounds or past history we all are invited to draw near to God.  All because Jesus’ blood cleanses us of our sin, we are qualified to enter God’s presence and worship with His people.

怜悯贫穷的就是借给耶和华

2022-07-19 in , /by

箴言19:17    怜悯贫穷的就是借给耶和华，他的善行耶和华必偿还。

阅读经文：箴言19:15-17

15懒惰使人沉睡，懈怠的人必受饥饿。16谨守诫命的保全生命，轻忽己路的必致死亡。17怜悯贫穷的就是借给耶和华，他的善行耶和华必偿还。

第15节：懒惰使人沉睡，懈怠的人必受饥饿。Life collapses on loafers; lazybones go hungry.《The Message》

有的朋友问我，“信主之后，是不是只要倚靠主，其他什么都不必做了？”大有信主之后，是不是耶稣就会负责我的食衣住行，不愁吃不愁喝的意思！这是有一点奇怪的想法，假如上帝什么都帮你做，那你的四肢或嘴巴，等等，留着装饰用吗？其实，这个社会上真的有一些人什么都不用做，都是倚靠别人帮他做。可是你希望做那样的人吗？

我家附近有一间教会，租借给残障人士敬拜。每个星期天早上都会看到有人推著轮椅，送一些残障人士去做礼拜。我想，就是给你再多的钱和福利，你也不会和那躺坐在轮椅上的人交换位置吧。所以保罗说，要亲手做工（帖前4:11）、总要劳力，亲手做正经事/或译为：留心做正经事（弗4:28）。他更强调：若有人不肯做工，就不可吃饭（帖后3:10）。

因为有能力工作是一种福份，也是极大的恩典。你可能会发现，骨折后在休养期间，那部份的肌肉会萎缩。我们身上的器官大多是如此，你不用它，它就萎缩没用了。大脑也是如此。有人说琴很无情，只要几天不练，手法就生硬退步了。其实每件事情都是如此，喜欢写作而不写的人，笔会生锈，笔是灵感和文思的代表。

勤劳，是人对神的恩赐所表示的感谢；工作，是生命的脊椎骨。沉睡，是一种心灵的懈怠；懒惰，是对自己最大的鄙视，也是对神的不敬，因为浪费神给的一切恩典。让我们看重神赐予我们的一切，好好地使用，过荣神益人的生活。

God and Your Sexual Purity

2022-07-18 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 22:13-30.  Let’s go!

Deuteronomy 22:13-21 (NIV)
13  If a man takes a wife and, after lying with her, dislikes her
14  and slanders her and gives her a bad name, saying, “I married this woman, but when I approached her, I did not find proof of her virginity,”
15  then the girl’s father and mother shall bring proof that she was a virgin to the town elders at the gate.
16  The girl’s father will say to the elders, “I gave my daughter in marriage to this man, but he dislikes her.
17  Now he has slandered her and said, ‘I did not find your daughter to be a virgin.’ But here is the proof of my daughter’s virginity.” Then her parents shall display the cloth before the elders of the town,
18  and the elders shall take the man and punish him.
19  They shall fine him a hundred shekels of silver and give them to the girl’s father, because this man has given an Israelite virgin a bad name. She shall continue to be his wife; he must not divorce her as long as he lives.
20  If, however, the charge is true and no proof of the girl’s virginity can be found,
21  she shall be brought to the door of her father’s house and there the men of her town shall stone her to death. She has done a disgraceful thing in Israel by being promiscuous while still in her father’s house. You must purge the evil from among you.