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When You Love Someone Enough…

2022-04-28 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Acts 18:12-28.  Let’s go!

Acts 18:12-17 (NIV)
12  While Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews made a united attack on Paul and brought him into court.
13  “This man,” they charged, “is persuading the people to worship God in ways contrary to the law.”
14  Just as Paul was about to speak, Gallio said to the Jews, “If you Jews were making a complaint about some misdemeanor or serious crime, it would be reasonable for me to listen to you.
15  But since it involves questions about words and names and your own law–settle the matter yourselves. I will not be a judge of such things.”
16  So he had them ejected from the court.
17  Then they all turned on Sosthenes the synagogue ruler and beat him in front of the court. But Gallio showed no concern whatever.
 
On verses 12-17:  In the past, in virtually every city where Paul preached the gospel, Paul faced persecution and harassment.  But while Paul was in Corinth, the Lord said to Paul, “Do not be afraid…I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city” (see Acts 18:9-10).  Here in verses 12-17 we see the Lord making good on His promise that no one would harm Paul.  Some Jews start legal proceedings against Paul and bring him to court before the proconsul Gallio, all with the hope of having Paul imprisoned or otherwise punished.  But nothing happens to Paul.  In fact, in court, Paul doesn’t even need to speak to defend himself, for before Paul is able to speak, the proconsul Gallio dismisses the claims of Paul’s opponents and ejects them from the court.

Thank God for Your Aquilas and Priscillas

2022-04-27 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

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

Acts 18:1-3 (NIV)
1  After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth.
2  There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see them,
3  and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them.
 
On verses 1-3:  Paul, Aquila and Priscilla had a lot in common: they had all recently moved to Corinth (Paul from Athens, Aquila and Priscilla from Rome); they were all tentmakers; they were all Jewish by heritage; and there is a good chance that Aquila and Priscilla were already Christians by the time they met Paul.  With so much in common, it made sense to them to go into business together.  Just as Paul had Aquila and Priscilla, thank God for those like-minded people God has placed in your life with whom you can work and do life together.  May you make the most of those relationships and not take them for granted.

飞鸟的急转弯

2022-04-27 in , /by

〈箴言〉6:5   要救自己如鹿脱离猎户的手，如鸟脱离捕鸟人的手。

阅读经文：〈箴言〉6:1-11

飞鸟的急转弯

「如鸟脱离捕鸟人的手。」(箴言6:5)

鸟类是机警的动物，在飞行时遇到危险会急转弯。所以在高速公路上，车子很少撞到鸟类。在乡野，慢慢开车，反而会撞到鸟类。牠们自以为安全，就会失机警。

上帝提醒我们，谨慎自己的言语，免得言过其实；谨慎自己的承诺，超过自己的能力，就成为网罗。日后缠在其间，难以挣脱。我们要谨慎公开的见证，以免日后不 是那样子。我们要谨慎爱情的承诺，以免激情过后难维系。我们不要讲「没问题，这事包在我身上。」、「我保证完成」、「我一定负责到底」、「我支持到底」 等，讲这些话是匹夫之勇，日后成网罗。

对天生热情，喜欢帮助别人的人，要特别小心。有时帮助别人，反而绊倒人，要事先多想一想。主阿，我就是这样的人，请教我急转弯的飞行。（张文亮教授）

信靠主和倚赖主

有人问了一个问题，我们是应该信靠主，还是倚赖主？因为在信靠主时，该做的事，自己还是要努力去做；倚赖主就是我什么都不用做了，上帝，都交给你了，我去玩囉！或睡大觉去！

世界上有一个很有趣的现象，往往越多使用的肢体或技能，它就越发达或越成熟；反之，你一旦不用，它就会越来越衰弱，越来越生疏。你去观察骨折的病人，上了石膏后的脚，三周后拿掉石膏，那部份的肌肉都会萎缩。要再经过锻炼，肌肉才会再长出来。假如你学过第二语言，但是很久没用，你的舌头也会不听使唤了。这是神给人的一个隐形的功课：毋怠惰。

The Reason God Allows Everything That Happens In Your Life

2022-04-26 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Acts 17:16-34.  Let’s go!

Acts 17:16-17 (NIV)
16  While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols.
17  So he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there.

On verses 16-17:  Because Paul was distressed to see so many idols being worshiped in Athens, Paul decided to do something about it.  He begins to preach about Jesus in the synagogue and marketplace of Athens.  When you are distressed by something that you see, don’t just complain about it or be frustrated by it.  With your time and your talents, do something productive in light of it.

Acts 17:18 (NIV)
18  A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.

通奸是不是罪

2022-04-26 in , /by

〈箴言〉5:18   要使你的泉源蒙福，要喜悦你幼年所娶的妻。

阅读经文：〈箴言〉5:1-23

自从2013年台湾前文化部长龙应台于行政院会上的一句「通奸罪是落伍的法律」，让通奸除罪化成为外界讨论焦点。许多人分为正反两方纷纷提出看法。赞成通奸除罪化的人，大多数认为：1.刑事处罚不应介入家庭生活，道德也不应用法律处罚。夫妻两人的婚姻结合，是靠情感维系及彼此经营，不须无限上纲国家介入；2.爱情不能用法律绑住，若想借由通奸罪来限制对方发展，到最后却是惩罚自己，无须用通奸罪来紧守一段不忠诚的婚姻；3.通奸罪形式上看似「性别平等」的男女都罚，但是若从实务操作的面向来看，通奸罪的存在，却实质造成了惩罚更多女性的效果。4.再有一个借口，便是通奸罪「是落伍的法律」，因为有「许多国家」都没有这个刑法了。

反对通奸除罪的一面则认为：1. 婚姻不单只是爱情，对家庭的责任才是婚姻核心，因此通奸罪是维持婚姻稳定的重要规范，让有心无胆的人不敢越界；2.台湾现行法律对已婚妇女已缺乏保障，包括财产的分配、子女的教养权，已对妇女相当不公平，若再将通奸除罪化，另一半配偶就可以为所欲为；3. 通奸罪虽然限制人民的性自由，但这是为维护婚姻、家庭制度及社会生活秩序；4. 由于家庭主妇多为经济弱势的一方，一旦发生丈夫外遇，刑法的存在还可协助配偶请求民事赔偿，对弱势的一方有双重的保障。(内容节录自新头壳线上辩论)　

你呢？同不同意通奸除罪论？参与讨论的，有人认为想废除这条法律的人，无非是小三小四和八卦媒体，还有那些唯恐天下不乱的男人。假如你去访问那些在恋爱中的人，你觉得他们会认为通奸是不是罪呢？假如他们的对象常劈腿，与人约炮，你想他们的恋情还能继续吗？劈腿是和别的异性交往，约炮是指约别人发生不必负责任的性活动。不仅如此，在号称最前进的好莱坞，那些明星家庭的分裂，主因绝大多数是一方不忠诚，有了外遇。

With the Help of Our God, We Dared

2022-04-25 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Acts 17:1-15.  Let’s go!

Acts 17:1-5 (NIV)
1  When they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue.
2  As his custom was, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures,
3  explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead. “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Christ,” he said.
4  Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women.
5  But the Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd.

On verses 1-5:  Here’s further proof that when Paul said, “Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles” (Acts 13:46), Paul was only talking about their mission in the city of Pisidian Antioch but didn’t mean he was giving up on reaching his own Jewish people.  For here in Acts 17:1-4 we see Paul, “as his custom was” (v2), going into the Jewish synagogue, this time in Thessalonica.  There Paul shows through the Scriptures that Jesus is the Messiah and that this Messiah was destined to die and rise again from the grave.  And there, some Jews as well as a large number of Greek men and influential women find faith in Christ.

保守你心

2022-04-25 in , /by

〈箴言〉4:23  你要保守你心，胜过保守一切，因为一生的果效是由心发出。

阅读经文：〈箴言〉4:1-27

做父母的人谁不希望自己的儿女一生平安呢？但是人生的道路何等崎岖，每一个选择都会带我们走往不同的路。因此作为父母的可以给儿女最好的忠告，便是教导他们要保守自己的心胜于一切，因为一生的果效由心发出。这是父母的殷殷教诲，希望儿女持守智慧的道，不要被恶人所乘，以致跌倒。但事实上，现代多数父母怎样教育孩子，完全以他们心中的思念为准，若是情绪不好时，有的父母也会乱来；每个人在成长期都会想试试看，用自己的想法来走自己的路，儿女的想法与父母不同时，就成了不听话的儿女。

心中没有智慧的父母，便无法以智慧教导儿女。我们的价值观及社会观，都已经受到这个社会极大的影响，也受到祖辈的灌输，所以即使知道是智慧，也不一定会跟随。因为我们的想法都很实际，以既得利益为先。凡事都想争第一，都希望自己或孩子比人优秀。所以我们要先省察自己的意念和心思，因为人的意念若只以利益为出发点，很可能到最后得不偿失。就像有一个留学生，去德国留学时，为了省钱，常常不买车票上车。没想到他虽然以最好的学业成绩毕业，找工作时却到处碰壁。他百思不得其解，后来终于有人告诉他，他坐霸王车的记录使许多大公司的主管都觉得此人不可靠，品德上有重大缺失。

因此我们自己要学习智慧之道，走正直的路，保守自己的心，远离恶人的道，才能教导儿女也跟随你的脚步，一生走在平安的路上。

不可行恶人的路，不要走坏人的道。要躲避，不可经过，要转身而去。