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快乐的结局

2022-04-10 in , /by

〈约伯记〉42:5   我从前风闻有祢，现在亲眼看见祢。

阅读经文：〈约伯记〉42章

你有没有设想过，有一天神会面对面和你对话？每次想到这个问题时，我的第一个反应就是想到耶稣呼召彼得时，他跪在耶稣面前说：“主啊！离开我，我是个罪人！”但是耶稣不但没有离开他，反而呼召彼得跟随祂。2014年10月，在以色列Ashdod城市举辨的一场福音音乐会，圣灵在其中大大的作工，有525位犹太人站起来决志信主，接受耶稣为弥赛亚。在其他犹太人福音事工中，从来没有如此大规模的犹太人同时信主。究其原因，是因为有许多人向耶稣祷告后，疾病得到医治。

有一位犹太妈妈向耶稣祷告说：“如果祂是弥赛亚，请医治在家卧病不起的小孩”，结果回到家中，她的小孩竟然在厨房做菜，病已经完全好了，她问小孩得痊愈起床的时间，刚好正是她向耶稣祷告的时候，后来她们全家都信主了。有位以色列福音差会的宣教士说，在英国对犹太人宣教十几年之间，仅1-3个人秘密信主。因此有这样多人同时决志信耶稣，是一件神蹟。除了疾病得医治之外，也有很多人在梦里见到耶稣，因而信主。在回教徒里也有许多类似的见证。至于你，是怎样从风闻有神，到亲眼看见神？

约伯原就是个敬虔的人，到此时他完全相信他所敬拜的是又真又活的神。我们都像约伯一样，虽然相信，但究竟会有人的迷惑。我们用各样的理由让自己有信心，我们说不凭眼见只凭信心，但是假如没有与神接触的亲身体会，光是头脑的相信，是远远不够的。我们都必须从风闻有神，进入亲眼看见神，我们的信心才能扎实在耶稣身上，有根有基。

In Case You’re Tested By This

2022-04-10 in /by

Hi GAMErs!
 
Today’s passage is Acts 12:11-25.  Let’s go!

Acts 12:11-12 (NIV)
11  Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I know without a doubt that the Lord sent his angel and rescued me from Herod’s clutches and from everything the Jewish people were anticipating.”
12  When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying.
 
On verses 11-12:  Peter now realizes that the deliverance from prison he was dreaming about was actually real.  His first instinct is to go to the house of Mary, mother of John-Mark, where many are praying for him.  Peter wants those praying for him to see for themselves the incredible deliverance God made possible for him, knowing how much encouragement that would bring to them. 

Acts 12:13-16 (NIV)
13  Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer the door.
14  When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!”
15  “You’re out of your mind,” they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.”
16  But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished.
 

水族之王

2022-04-08 in , /by

〈约伯记〉41:11   谁先给我什么，使我偿还呢？天下万物都是我的。

阅读经文：〈约伯记〉41章

在神的形容中，有一些是我们从来没看过的事，例如“动物的口中发出烧着的火把与飞迸的火星，从牠鼻孔冒出烟来，如烧开的锅和点着的芦苇，牠的气点着煤炭，有火焰从牠口中发出”。这种动物或情景我们在电影的特效中看过，但不曾想到那是真的。但是在〈约伯记〉的最后四章里，我们知道神描述一些自然界的常见事物，并非象征性的说法。约伯和他的朋友们都明白神在说些什么，因此我们可以很大胆地推论，在约伯的时代有一些生物是我们现在看不到的，已经绝种了。

圣经教师杰夫哈理逊指出Leviathan/希腊文drakon/希伯来文称其为tannin(复数tanninim)。在希伯来文的字根tanan是指这些动物会发出咆哮的声音，所以是咆哮的野兽。在七十士译本里译为drakon，那就是英文dragon(龙)的字源。若牠是水栖爬行动物时，其希腊名是Keetos，复数是Keetee，指的是一种大型海怪。在早期讲希腊语的基督徒认为，那条吞下约拿的keetos便是一种巨大的，类似恐龙的两栖爬行动物。所以牠可以上到海岸附近，把约拿吐在旱地上。Leviathan在圣经里也译为拉哈伯。

根据维基百科：恐龙（Dinosauria）是在1842年由英国古生物学家理查·欧文（Richard Owen）正式提出，欧文把恐龙总目定义为蜥形纲（Sauropsida）的一个独特部族或亚目，包含当时在英国与世界各地发现的恐龙。Dinosauria这名词衍化自古希腊文，δεινός/deinos意为「恐怖的」或「极其巨大的」，σαύρα/sauros意为「蜥蜴」。欧文在命名时，考量到牠们的牙齿、利爪、巨大体型、以及其他令人印象深刻的恐怖特征，因此命名牠们为「恐怖的蜥蜴」。中文的恐龙一词，源自日本的翻译「恐龙（恐竜）」，最初由中国地质学家章鸿钊提出，后来在中文地区广泛使用。

Living the Dream

2022-04-08 in /by

Hi GAMErs!
 
Today’s passage is Acts 12:1-10.  Let’s go!

Acts 12:1-3 (NIV)
1  It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them.
2  He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword.
3  When he saw that this pleased the Jews, he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
 
On verses 1-3:  James, the brother of John and one of the original twelve disciples, is martyred for his faith, put to death with the sword by King Herod.  Seeing how the killing of a Christian leader was seemingly gaining him favour with other people in his kingdom, King Herod decides to seize Peter with plans to put him on trial and to execute Peter just like he did James.  Herod thought that living to please others, even if it meant doing evil and murderous deeds, would benefit him.  Soon, however, we’ll discover that the very tendency in him to want esteem and worship from others would result in his undoing.  Living to please others doesn’t result in life but death.
 
Acts 12:4-5 (NIV)
4  After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover.
5  So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.

河马或恐龙

2022-04-07 in , /by

〈约伯记〉40:19   牠在神所造的物中为首，创造牠的给牠刀剑。

阅读经文：〈约伯记〉40章

当神出现之后，又问了那么一大堆问题，我想约伯可能快吓晕了。我们有时像约伯一样，觉得神为什么不回答，为什么神这样待我，为什么神不指明祂的意思，我们问啊问的，结果神出现了，反问我们一大堆问题。这时你会不会很想找个洞躲起来。我们好像理直气壮，义气填胸，但是真要面对神时，才会发现自己什么都不是，什么都不会，什么都不懂，所以当神叫约伯回答祂的问题时，约伯只好说：“我是卑贱的，我用什么回答你呢？只好用手摀口。我说了一次，再不回答；说了两次，就不再说。”

神太大，我们太渺小；但是神的爱和宽容使我们忘了自己的地位。像一个不懂事的小孩竟敢在大庭广众之下，躺在地上又哭又闹，就为了让父母就范。所以当我们又哭又吵又闹时，会以为神不听祷告，以为神不在我们身边，其实神一直在等我们冷静下来。神要让人懂得祂对我们的爱，但是祂是有主权的神，祂的旨意是不可废弃的。所以我们最好不要挑战祂的权威。

有的父母觉得要和孩子们打成一片，做孩子们的朋友，陪他们一起长大。但有一位牧师指出，父母倘若失去父母的威严，就没有办法引导自己的孩子了。父母的威严能使孩子有安全感，相信他们有能力可以保护孩子们。父母若失去威严，那么孩子怎样尊重你呢？神的威严并不影响我们认识祂的爱，同样的，父母的威严也不是用来彰显自己的地位，而是要让孩子知所进退，明白父母的教导和引领都是为了他的好处。这样孩子才会相信父母的话，尊重父母的意见。虽然父母不像神那样知道一切，但是父母在屈身拥抱孩子时，陪他们戏耍时，不要忘记自己是父母。

When The Holy Spirit Is At Work

2022-04-07 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Acts 11:19-30.  Let’s go!

Acts 11:19-24 (NIV)
19  Now those who had been scattered by the persecution in connection with Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch, telling the message only to Jews.
20  Some of them, however, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus.
21  The Lord’s hand was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.
22  News of this reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch.
23  When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts.
24  He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.

On verses 19-24:  When Stephen was martyred and persecution broke out on the church in Jerusalem (Acts 7-8:3), the church scattered (Acts 8:4) and some Christians traveled to places like Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch (v19).  Despite not having heard or seen the incredible ways that the Holy Spirit had touched the lives of Gentiles like Cornelius and household in Judea (Acts 10) or what the Holy Spirit did among Samaritans in Samaria (Acts 8), some of these scattered believers also began speaking to Gentiles too about Jesus Christ, in particular Greeks at Antioch, who responded in great numbers (v21).  So the church in Jerusalem sends Barnabas to Antioch, a Gentile city in Syria, to see the work that God was doing there and to encourage the growing church there.  God uses the encouraging presence and uplifting words of Barnabas to add to the work already happening in Antioch, bringing more people to the Lord there. 

鸵鸟之笨，马之威

2022-04-06 in , /by

〈约伯记〉39:17 因为神使牠没有智慧，也未将悟性赐给牠。

阅读经文：〈约伯记〉39章13-30节

从神的创造之物，可以稍微感受到神那奇妙的想像力和幽默感。鸵鸟，是世界现存最大的鸟，有翅膀但不能飞，只能跑，但牠跑的速度很快。鸵鸟的翅膀不能飞，但有保温作用，主要是用来平衡身体，在寒冷天气时覆蓋无羽毛的大腿以保持体温或幼鸟，或交配时展示用。牠的头很小，眼睛很大，有浓黑的眼睫毛，是陆地生物中最大的眼球，仅次于鲸；可以看到3-5公里远。牠们最大的天敌是狮子或猎豹，但因为驼鸟的速度极快，最快速度可达每小时60公里，每步距离可达6至8公尺，可持续奔跑20至30分钟，因此狮子或猎豹往往追牠们追到筋疲力竭。这就是为何牠挺身展开翅膀，就嗤笑马和骑马的人，因为马的速度没有牠快。马的时速大约40-48公里而已。

鸵鸟养殖业有一条金科玉律：没有充足的阳光，雌鸵鸟不会下蛋。一个鸵鸟蛋的重量可以达到13公斤，雌雄鸵鸟轮流昼夜孵化，每次产8-15枚，孵化需时约35-42天。雄鸵鸟只在夜间孵蛋，免得牠鲜艳的羽毛遭来天敌的注意。但有时雌鸵鸟下蛋之后就跑掉，过了一阵子再回来，那时牠的蛋有可能已经被别的动物踩破了。一只鸵鸟可以活30-60年。神赐给鸵鸟有这样多的特质，但是却没有给牠智慧或悟性，因为智慧和悟性是神给人的特殊礼物，给动物的是本能。

神再以马来诘问约伯，实际上不管是鸵鸟或马或鹰雀，我们对牠们的了解都很有限。养殖鸵鸟的人，不一定理解马或鹰雀；养马的也不一定理解鸵鸟或鹰雀，养鹰雀也不一定知道鸵鸟和马的习性。也就是说，我们人穷极一生，也只能了解一种或数种动物；但是神对牠们通通知道。神知道牠们的脾性、需要、造型、特点，等等，因为是神把牠们造成那样独特的生物，各从其类。所以神给马有很大的力气，却又可以被人驯服作为交通工具、劳动、打仗和比赛等等用途，马肉却不好吃。马肉和鸵鸟肉都可食用，却都是〈利未记〉所列为不洁净的动物。

Seek to Understand Before You Criticize

2022-04-06 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Acts 11:1-18.  Let’s go!

Acts 11:1-18 (NIV)
1  The apostles and the brothers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God.
2  So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him
3  and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.”
4  Peter began and explained everything to them precisely as it had happened:
5  “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. I saw something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to where I was.

On verses 1-18:  The circumcised believers in Jerusalem criticized Peter for associating with Gentiles.  So “starting from the beginning” (v2), Peter explains what happened to him: the vision he saw while praying (v5-10), the three men Cornelius sent and who arrived right at that same moment (v11), his meeting with Cornelius (v12-14), the way the Holy Spirit fell on these new Gentile believers as Peter was preaching (v15) and the lessons he learned from these experiences (v16-17).

Notice that before the circumcised believers heard Peter’s perspective, they were critical of him.  After they heard Peter’s perspective, “they had no further objections and praised God” (v18) about the very situation they once criticized Peter for.

Jesus for Every Nation

2022-04-05 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Acts 10:34-48.  Let’s go!

Acts 10:34-35 (NIV)
34  Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism
35  but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right.

On verses 34-35:  Peter recognizes that it was the Holy Spirit who gave him and Cornelius each a vision around the same time and used those visions to bring the two of them together.  Even as he is preaching to Cornelius’ household, Peter himself is realizing that truly God’s heart is for people from every nation.

Acts 10:36-43 (NIV)
36  You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, telling the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.
37  You know what has happened throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached–
38  how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.
39  “We are witnesses of everything he did in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a tree,
40  but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen.

禽兽之性

2022-04-05 in , /by

〈约伯记〉39:1     山岩间的野山羊几时生产，你知道吗？母鹿下犊之期，你能察定吗？

〈约伯记〉38:39-41   母狮子在洞中蹲伏，少壮狮子在隐密处埋伏，你能为牠们抓取食物，使牠们饱足吗？乌鸦之雏因无食物飞来飞去，哀告神，那时，谁为牠预备食物呢？

阅读经文：〈约伯记〉39章1-12节

神以天空万象诘问了约伯之后，再转到万兽的生活。神的问题其实都很基本，对祂而言很基本，但是对人而言，若不经过长久的思考研究和不断地探索，根本无法知其一二。从母狮到乌鸦，神问我们，谁曾为那些野兽的生存操心？有谁注意过牠们的需要？在2015年十月，台湾嘉义县八掌溪出海口沙洲发现有条抹香鲸的尸体，解剖后发现牠的胃部内有大量鱼网和塑胶袋。人类不仅无法照顾到这些神所创造的生物，更成了直接或间接的杀手。现在有许多动物面临绝种，都因为人类的滥杀和贪心。但是神照顾这些生物，不仅为了让人类得以有生存的条件，也因为牠是创造这些生物的主。

所主耶稣说：“你们看那天上的飞鸟，也不种也不收，也不积蓄在仓里，你们的天父尚且养活牠，你们不比飞鸟贵重得多吗？（太6:26）”这最重要的两个字就是：你们的“天父”，父表示生命之来源。我们的父必负起供应我们的责任，正如祂供应祂所创造的一切生命。肉身的父亲或有不足或软弱，但天上的父亲却是一切拥有者。天父向我们要的就是信心，一个孩子对父亲所具有的单纯信心。所以当我们信心软弱时，要走出自己蜗居，看看天上的飞鸟，地上的蚂蚁，甚至那令人厌恶的小强（蟑螂）；神都眷顾牠们，岂能不眷顾你？

你有看过山羊或母鹿生产吗？当小羊或小鹿出生后，挣扎几下就站起来了，虽然摇摇晃晃，但是抖几下就会走动了，比人的婴儿能干多了。羊妈妈和鹿妈妈也不用坐月子，照吃照喝，一切从简。牠们肚子疼痛时，屈一下身就生完了；相比之下，为何人的生产会那么辛苦？不禁要回想到始祖犯罪后，神给女人的咒诅：“我必多多加增你怀胎的苦楚，你生产儿女必多受苦楚。（创3:16）”那是罪在人身上的记号。直到主耶稣来了，这个咒诅才算破解了：“然而，女人若常存信心、爱心，又圣洁自守，就必在生产上得救。（提前2:15）”旧约里许多咒诅，都在新约里变成祝福，都是因为主耶稣的救恩。