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Stay in the Place of Your Calling

2021-08-10 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Corinthians 7:17-24.  Let’s go!

1 Corinthians 7:17-24 (NIV)
17  Nevertheless, each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him. This is the rule I lay down in all the churches.
18  Was a man already circumcised when he was called? He should not become uncircumcised. Was a man uncircumcised when he was called? He should not be circumcised.
19  Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing. Keeping God’s commands is what counts.
20  Each one should remain in the situation which he was in when God called him.
21  Were you a slave when you were called? Don’t let it trouble you–although if you can gain your freedom, do so.
22  For he who was a slave when he was called by the Lord is the Lord’s freedman; similarly, he who was a free man when he was called is Christ’s slave.
23  You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men.
24  Brothers, each man, as responsible to God, should remain in the situation God called him to.

On verses 17-24:  I suspect that there may have been a tendency in the church in Corinth to chase after certain experiences, whether it was the experience of getting circumcised (v18-19), which some Christians falsely believed was necessary in order to be truly saved,

大卫想为耶和华建殿

2021-08-10 in , /by

〈撒母耳记〉下 7:22  主耶和华啊，祢本为大，照我们耳中听见，没有可比祢的，除祢以外再无神。

阅读经文：〈撒母耳记〉下 7:1-29

从世人的眼光来看，大卫虽然不完美；但是从神的眼光来看，他真的是很合神心意的人。假如一个人有好几个孩子，有的做大官，有的发大财，有的乐善好施，但是只有一个会要求父母和他一起住。你想哪个孩子最合父母的心意呢？这就是大卫的过人之处，大卫从来不会隐藏他对神的爱。在他所做的诗歌里，充满了对神的敬畏和爱慕。以致于当他住在王宫里，看到神的约柜在会幕中，他就心里难过：我怎能住得比神更好呢？

这时先知拿单说话了，这样的心意，神岂有不喜悦之理？你想神建殿吗？你就去做吧。拿单是先知，但是先知的话能不能代表神的话？那晚，神向拿单显现，让他知道神有不同的意思。这件事让我们明白，任何人都不可自以为自己的意思就是神的意思，即使有先知的恩赐也不行，总要向神求问才行。我们认为好的事，不一定就是神要我们做的事。而神以为不好的事，神却要我们去做。这两者之间不是看事情是好事还是坏事，而是看神对你有什么心意，要你做什么。

最明显的就是撒母耳为以色列人立王之事，撒母耳知道神不喜悦以色列立王，可是神却要撒母耳为以色列人立王，所以撒母耳就为以色列人立王。这就是顺服，不是看你觉得这事当不当做，该不该做，而是神要你做什么，你就做什么。神不要你做什么，你就不要去做。所以，建圣殿是一件大大的好事，连先知听了都觉得太好了。但是神说，我不要大卫建圣殿。大卫就不建，但他开始存钱，买材料，为建殿的工作做准备。大卫没有哭着吵著非做不可，神说了，他就顺服。

大卫两次迎约柜

2021-08-09 in , /by

〈撒母耳记〉下 6:22a  我也必更加卑微，自己看为轻贱。

阅读经文：〈撒母耳记〉下 6:1-23

大卫做以色列王不久，就想到要把约柜从俄别以东运到大卫的保障。大卫王攻下耶布斯之后，就将其改名为耶路撒冷，又称为大卫之城 或锡安的保障，大卫的保障，是今日耶路撒冷城圣殿区古城墙以南的一个山头。这件事表明了他对神的爱，和他心中是何等敬畏神，因为他把神的同在看得第一重要。

扫罗做王四十年，从来没有想过约柜。扫罗只要有祭司和以弗得，好像护身的神符跟着他就行了。扫罗把神看成是他的仆人，是听他命令的；但是大卫不同，大卫经常寻求神的心意，全心全意爱神。大卫不是完人，他在很多事上有过失，在许多事上有软弱，他有些事不合我们对完人的标准，但是他爱神。就像彼得说的：「爱能遮掩许多的罪」(彼前:8)。所以当我们在看人时，不要检视过度，因为我们都不完美。但是我们心里把神放在什么位置上，那是神所重视的。正如你若结婚了，你把配偶放在什么位置上，那也是你的配偶会计较，你也会计较的一件事。

大卫率领跟随他的众人前往亚比拿达的家。他不是随随便便地前往，而是带着跟随他的人一起前往，好像要去迎接至爱的亲人回家。他们预备了一辆新车，那是一个新时代的开始，已经开始用车运东西，像非利士人送回约柜时一样，让牛拉着新车走。他们把约柜放在新车上，觉得很自豪，大卫和以色列全家用松木制造的各样乐器和琴、瑟、鼓、钹、锣作乐跳舞。亚比拿达和两个儿子乌撒和亚希约都是祭司，乌撒赶车，亚希约在柜前行走。一切都非常美好，但是到了拿艮的禾场，忽然牛失前蹄，乌撒很自然地用手去扶约柜。不料，立即被神击打，死在约柜旁。原本欢乐的气氛一下子变成悲伤痛哭，忧愁不已。为什么耶和华神生气了？

Taking Marriage and Divorce Seriously

2021-08-09 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Corinthians 7:10-16.  Let’s go!

1 Corinthians 7:10-11 (NIV)
10  To the married I give this command (not I, but the Lord): A wife must not separate from her husband.
11  But if she does, she must remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband. And a husband must not divorce his wife.

On verses 10-11:  In 1 Corinthians 7:10-16, Paul is addressing another issue in his church at Corinth: the issue of divorce.  In verses 10-11, Paul reiterates the teaching of the Lord Jesus on divorce from Matthew 19:4-9 and Mark 10:1-10, which is that generally speaking married people are not to divorce. 

Does that mean that divorce is never allowed under any circumstances?  Keep in mind that in Matthew 19 and Mark 10, Jesus says that divorcing (i.e legally dissolving the marriage) and remarrying is permissible in the case of marital unfaithfulness.  Perhaps the reason Paul does not mention this is because Paul is most likely writing this in response to a specific situation, or situations, that he has heard about going on in the church in Corinth.  It could be that the Christians in Corinth were trying to back out of their marriages for immature reasons that had nothing to do with marital unfaithfulness.  So here Paul emphasizes that marriage is a lifelong commitment that is not to be easily dissolved.

大卫做全以色列的王

2021-08-08 in , /by

〈撒母耳记〉下 5:10 大卫日见强盛，因为耶和华万军之神与他同在。

阅读经文：〈撒母耳记〉下 4:1-12

元帅押尼珥死了，以色列王伊施波设死了，两个军长也被大卫杀了。以色列众支派的长老们终于来找大卫，他们举出了三件事来证明他们的诚意。一, 他们和大卫是骨肉的关系，都是雅各的子孙。二, 在扫罗作王时，大卫当战士长，所以是大卫率领以色列人出入。他们承认大卫的领袖地位。三, 撒母耳曾经膏大卫为王，那是神对大卫的应许。因此大卫在希伯仑和他们立约，他们就膏大卫做以色列的王，此时犹大支派和以色列其他的支派终于统一了。大卫没有采取流血的手段，他耐心等待，直到神的时间来临，神亲自感动以色列人来和他立约，成就了和平统一。这是大卫第三次被膏为王。

大卫作王之后，为何要去打耶布斯呢？因为它座落在以色列中央山脉最高处的平台上，海拔在750公尺左右；东边有汲沦溪，西边和南边是欣嫩溪；东南有俄斐勒山，东有摩利亚山，东北有贝西大山，西北有亚克拉山，西南有锡安山，其东还有橄榄山，真正是群山环绕，外敌难以进入，是个易守难攻，交通却四通八达的地方，拿来做首都不正好吗？大卫是个有眼光有异象的政治家，当他挑选上这个地方做以色列国的首都时，他心里已经有了策略，要打造出一个让外敌都不敢侵犯的以色列国。

但是正如上面所述，耶布斯是一个很难攻取的地方。当大卫计划要进攻耶布斯时，里面的人嘲笑大卫，要先赶出里面的瞎子和瘸子，意思是说：就凭这些瞎眼的和破脚的，就可以抵挡你们了。在〈历代志〉上11章5节，耶布斯人对大卫说：“你决不能进这地方。”在〈历代志〉上11章6节，大卫征求勇士：“谁先攻打耶布斯人，必作首领元帅”。在〈撒母耳记〉下五章，大卫露了一点打仗的秘密：“当上水沟攻打我心里所恨恶的瘸子、瞎子”。上水沟是何意呢？

Sex and Marriage

2021-08-08 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Corinthians 7:1-9.  Let’s go!

1 Corinthians 7:1-9 (NIV)
1  Now for the matters you wrote about: It is good for a man not to marry.
2  But since there is so much immorality, each man should have his own wife, and each woman her own husband.
3  The husband should fulfill his marital duty to his wife, and likewise the wife to her husband.
4  The wife’s body does not belong to her alone but also to her husband. In the same way, the husband’s body does not belong to him alone but also to his wife.
5  Do not deprive each other except by mutual consent and for a time, so that you may devote yourselves to prayer. Then come together again so that Satan will not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.
6  I say this as a concession, not as a command.
7  I wish that all men were as I am. But each man has his own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that.
8  Now to the unmarried and the widows I say: It is good for them to stay unmarried, as I am.
9  But if they cannot control themselves, they should marry, for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.

In 1 Corinthians 7, Paul replies to a question that his church in Corinth had written him concerning being married, being single and having sex.  The question was probably something like “Is it better for a Christian to stay single or to get married?”  From reading Paul’s question we can learn a few important truths about marriage, singleness and sex:

认识撒旦的工作

2021-08-06 in , /by

在上一篇《认识神的声音》我们提到撒但的第一步，是要以一遍又一遍的谎言与负面思想，占领我们的心，使心成为黑暗掌权的领地；撒但让人类不相信魔鬼，让人失去防御，好进行所有毁坏之事。曾为纽约第三大「撒但祭司」，有「路西法之子」称号的约翰‧拉米瑞拉牧师（John Ramirez）要告诉你，撒但如何在我们生命中进行破坏；他说，人类都只会抱怨神，却不是责怪撒但，这就是撒但的目的。牠的最终目的，就是要你永远离开神。

牠偷走你的身份

亚当与夏娃为上帝所造，撒但（蛇）引诱他们犯罪，偷走他们的「身份」。同样，不管你是不是基督徒，撒但一直试图要拐骗上帝给我们的一切。

我们都拥有一个属于上帝的身份，〈耶利米书〉1:5 提到，「我未将你造在腹中，我已晓得你；你未出母胎，我已分别你为圣。我已派你做列国的先知。 」我们都是神所造的，在出生以前神就知道我们。撒但从我们出生开始，就企图偷走我们的身份。

就像身分证或信用卡被窃，若被盗刷盗用，损失可能需要很长一段时间才能弥补；我们必须谨慎，因为撒但若偷走我们身份，滋事更大。为达目的，牠会透过各种破口进入。

1.从婚姻与家庭

撒但恨恶人类，因为我们是神所造的，且是依著神的形象所造。牠最讨厌的其次是家庭。

拉米瑞拉曾任黑暗祭司（或称巫师）25年，在那时他被训练以巫术，毫无怜悯地破坏家庭，拆毁夫妻与亲子，特别是婚姻关系，经常成为他施法攻击的目标。

Honour God with Your Body

2021-08-06 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Corinthians 6:12-20.  Let’s go!

1 Corinthians 6:12-20 (NIV)
12  “Everything is permissible for me”–but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible for me”–but I will not be mastered by anything.
13  “Food for the stomach and the stomach for food”–but God will destroy them both. The body is not meant for sexual immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.
14  By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also.
15  Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never!……

In 1 Corinthians 6:12-20, Paul addresses another form of sexual immorality that was going on in the church: apparently some Christians in his church were sleeping with prostitutes.  In response Paul reminds his church that:

1. We must be careful how we use the freedom that God has given us.  Since we have such easy access to so many activities, we need to ask ourselves, “Is it beneficial to engage in this activity, or does it do more harm than good?  Does engaging in this activity really set me free or does it enslave me?  Is this activity honoring or dishonoring to God?  Does it help me to accomplish God’s purposes for my life or is it distracting me from God’s purposes?” (v12)

伊施波设被杀

2021-08-05 in , /by

〈撒母耳记〉下 4:1  扫罗的儿子伊施波设听见押尼珥死在希伯仑，手就发软，以色列众人也都惊惶。

阅读经文：〈撒母耳记〉下 4:1-12

扫罗在世时生了约拿单、麦基舒亚、亚比拿达、伊施巴力四个儿子，有三个跟着他上战场，留下了幼子伊施波设（在〈历代志〉上第八章33节里称他为：伊施巴力）留京看守。扫罗和三子战死沙场后，押尼珥带着伊施波设逃到约旦河东的玛哈念，立伊施波设为王。但是押尼珥并不尊重伊施波设，仗着自己的势力随意妄为，甚至与扫罗的妃嫔同寝。当伊施波设质问他时，他反而破口大骂。因为他知道自己拥有扫罗家的兵权，伊施波设根本耐何不了他。到最后，他更越过伊施波设和大卫商讨统一。

当约押杀了押尼珥的消息传回扫罗家时，扫罗家的反应从伊施波设到以色列众人的反应是吓得不知如何是好。因为扫罗死后，押尼珥变成扫罗家真正当家的，从来有什么事都是他说了算，现在他死了，大家都不知所措，觉得前途无望，开始各自打算。这就是人的本相，不是吗？当你不再有能力时，跟随的人就会踩你、踏你，然后各自寻求出路，有谁会留下来拉你一把？这也是政治的真面目。而最先离开的，就是原先最靠近你，你最信任的人。

伊施波设的两个军长原本应在此时站出来，但是没想到他们的族人比录人，一听到风声不对就全部开溜了。留下这两个军长巴拿和利甲，他们有何打算呢？他们也像押尼珥一样，想到大卫处讨碗饭吃（为自己谋一官半职），但是又不能空手去，所以就想到了一个最好的礼物，那就是伊施波设的人头。因此相约在一个午后，趁著伊施波设在睡午觉时，没有防备，就杀了伊施波设，取了他的首级。趁着人头还新鲜，他们在亚拉巴走了一夜，走到希伯仑见到大卫王。他们很兴奋地计划著，大卫将会因而给他们什么奖赏啊？

Remember Who You Are and Don’t Lose Sight of the Big Picture

2021-08-05 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Corinthians 6:1-11.  Let’s go!

1 Corinthians 6:1-11 (NIV)
1  If any of you has a dispute with another, dare he take it before the ungodly for judgment instead of before the saints?
2  Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases?
3  Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more the things of this life!
4  Therefore, if you have disputes about such matters, appoint as judges even men of little account in the church!
5  I say this to shame you. Is it possible that there is nobody among you wise enough to judge a dispute between believers?
6  But instead, one brother goes to law against another–and this in front of unbelievers!
7  The very fact that you have lawsuits among you means you have been completely defeated already. Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated?……

On verses 1-11:  In 1 Corinthians 6:1-11 Paul tackles another problem in his church: apparently some of the Christians in his church at Corinth were having such severe conflicts that they were suing each other in court.  Paul writes (and I’m paraphrasing here), “Why do that?  Why air out your dirty laundry in front of others and give Christians a bad name by suing one another — and in front of a non-Christian judge no less!  If you couldn’t resolve this matter between yourselves as Christian brothers, could you not have at least found another Christian brother or sister whom you trust to help mediate this situation?  Shouldn’t you as a Christian rather be wronged and cheated by your fellow Christian than to be suing them in court and dragging Christ’s name in the mud in the process?”