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Faith Unlocks God’s Power in Your Life

2020-10-16 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Luke 17:11-19.  Let’s go!

Luke 17:11-14 (NIV) 
11  Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. 
12  As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance 
13  and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!” 
14  When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.

On verses 11-14: Notice that Jesus doesn’t touch the lepers or command their healing out loud. Instead, Jesus simply tells them to go show themselves to the priests. Why? It’s because when a leper was cleansed of his leprosy, he would show himself to a priest who would examine him and if satisfied that the leprosy was gone, would announce that the leper was now reinstated back into society. So when Jesus tells the ten lepers here to go and show themselves to the priests without having touched them or prayed for them, Jesus was expecting these ten lepers to go in faith and rely simply on Jesus’ word alone to heal them. And as they went, they were healed. 

什麼是「上帝的旨意」？

2020-10-16 in /by

當一個人什麼都說：「這是上帝的旨意」，就證明這個人不大懂上帝的旨意。上帝的旨意是除了上帝之外，最大的事。上帝的旨意是永恆的、不變的，連《聖經》裡的使徒及先知們都不敢隨便用這個詞。「上帝的旨意」這幾個字在《聖經》用的數量很少，因為十分嚴謹，我相信一個真正敬畏上帝的人，不會隨便開口閉口講「上帝的旨意」。

「上帝的旨意」與「上帝的引導」

「上帝的旨意」與「上帝的引導」有不同的地方。「上帝的引導」是上帝特別賜給祂的兒女，藉著引導把上帝的兒女帶到上帝的計畫裡，這就是上帝的旨意。上帝的旨意要我們遵行祂的話，上帝的旨意是透過聖靈引導我們，引我們進入上帝的計畫裡。凡被聖靈引導的，都是上帝的兒女（羅8:14-16）。

「永恆的諭令」與「動性的過程」

這樣，「上帝的引導」因人而異，每個時代不同，「上帝的旨意」是每個時代相同的。旨意是在永恆裡面定的，而引導則在時代中執行。我個人把這兩個歸人這兩個名稱：「永恆的諭令」（eternal decree）及「（上帝的旨意）在歷史過程中有效能的運行」（dynamic process）。

上帝永恆的諭令展現了上帝永恆不變的旨意，上帝在歷史之中展開祂的行動，在歷史的程序裡成就祂永恆的旨意。上帝在永恆裡預定在歷史中藉著福音彰顯出誰是祂的兒女，上帝差遣基督進入歷史成全這個計畫，上帝在永恆中要從我們身上得著完全的榮耀，因而在這世界雕塑管教我們，使我們可以成為榮耀祂的器皿。

神的意思原是好的

2020-10-15 in /by

創世記50章19-21節     約瑟對他們說：「不要害怕，我豈能代替神呢？從前你們的意思是要害我，但神的意思原是好的，要保全許多人的性命，成就今日的光景。現在你們不要害怕，我必養活你們和你們的婦人孩子。」於是，約瑟用親愛的話安慰他們。

我相信很少有人看到這個故事的結尾而不動容的。在七個荒年未到以前，安城的祭司波提非拉的女兒亞西納給約瑟生了兩個兒子。約瑟給長子起名叫瑪拿西，因為他說：「神使我忘了一切的困苦和我父的全家。」他給次子起名叫以法蓮，因為他說：「神使我在受苦的地方昌盛。」(創41:50-52)

當約瑟看到可愛的嬰兒時，他終於可以忘記一切的困苦和他的父家。神用這個兒子安慰了約瑟，使曾經籠罩他的黑暗和痛苦都像翻過了一頁，給他有力量去面對光明的前景。這就是瑪拿西的意義。翻頁了，人生翻頁了，約瑟的生命裡再度有了歡笑。第二個兒子的來臨，使約瑟深深感受到神的祝福，神讓他在埃及昌盛。他曾在埃及受苦，但是也在此昌盛。這兩個名字都使他想到「神使我…」，他深深體會到神是他生命的主宰，每一步，每一個環境都是出於神的美意。

Serve with an Attitude of Gratitude and a Heart of Humility

2020-10-15 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Luke 17:1-10.  Let’s go!

Luke 17:1-3a (NIV) 
1  Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come. 
2  It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. 
3  So watch yourselves…

On verses 1-3: From Jesus’ words here we can know that God watches the way we influence others, especially the generation coming after us. Do we encourage others to obey God or to sin against Him? God will hold us accountable for the way we affect the next generation, so let’s be careful to set the best example we can and to offer the best leadership we can by God’s grace.

圭必不離猶大

2020-10-14 in /by

創世記49章8-12節     猶大啊，你弟兄們必讚美你，你手必掐住仇敵的頸項，你父親的兒子們必向你下拜。猶大是個小獅子。我兒啊，你抓了食便上去。你屈下身去，臥如公獅，蹲如母獅，誰敢惹你？ 圭必不離猶大，杖必不離他兩腳之間，直等細羅來到，萬民都必歸順。猶大把小驢拴在葡萄樹上，把驢駒拴在美好的葡萄樹上。他在葡萄酒中洗了衣服，在葡萄汁中洗了袍褂。他的眼睛必因酒紅潤，他的牙齒必因奶白亮。

在〈創世記〉38章裡說了一個有關猶大的故事。猶大是利亞生的第四個兒子。利亞懷孕生流便(魯本)時說：「耶和華看見我的苦情，如今我的丈夫必愛我。」 她又懷孕生西緬，就說：「耶和華因為聽見我失寵，所以又賜給我這個兒子。」她第三子叫利未，因為：「我給丈夫生了三個兒子，他必與我聯合。」 第四次懷孕生子時，她說：「這回我要讚美耶和華。」因此給他起名叫猶大。所以猶大本來是最好的一個名字，意思是「讚美」；可惜被賣耶穌的猶大把這個名字給污染，沒人再敢用此名。

但是當我們看到雅各在最後的祝福裡，他把將來出彌賽亞的支派福份給了猶大。就像神給亞伯拉罕的祝福，亞伯拉罕把祝福傳給以撒，以撒又把祝福傳給雅各，雅各又把祝福傳給了猶大。這條線在舊約裡一直主導下去，直到主耶穌的降生，所以我們來看看猶大的家庭。

猶大年輕時跟一個迦南人的女兒結婚，所以我們可以想見，神若沒有讓雅各把全家人帶到埃及，他們的後代一定都是和迦南人混交的混血兒了。猶大和妻子生了三個兒子，珥，俄南和示拉。猶大為珥娶妻她瑪，但是珥行耶和華眼中看為惡的事，他就死了。在猶太人中有個習俗，哥哥死了若沒留後，弟弟要為了哥哥留後，與嫂子結婚。

Don’t Try to Justify Yourself

2020-10-14 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Luke 16:15-31. Let’s go!

Luke 16:15 (NIV) 
15  He said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the eyes of men, but God knows your hearts. What is highly valued among men is detestable in God’s sight.

On verse 15: What does it mean to “justify yourselves in the eyes of men”? To justify yourself means to do things or say things with the goal of showing God or others how good, righteous and godly you are. 

The Pharisees were famous for justifying themselves. They would boast about the things they had done as a way to show how spiritual they were. They would even point to their wealth as evidence that they were righteous in God’s sight. That is why just prior to this verse Jesus speaks against the Pharisees’ love of money.

Today people try to justify themselves also, whether they realize it or not. For example, when I ask people whether they think they will go to heaven when they die, the conversation will often go like this:

雅各家歡聚一堂

2020-10-13 in /by

創世記46章3-4節     神說：「我是神，就是你父親的神。你下埃及去不要害怕，因為我必使你在那裡成為大族。我要和你同下埃及去，也必定帶你上來。約瑟必給你送終。」

自從約瑟的哥哥們把那件染血的彩衣送到雅各手上，雅各的悲哀就一發不可收拾，因為他失去了和拉結的愛情結晶，那個美好的孩子約瑟。約瑟的哥哥們看到老父蒼然隱泣多年，他們的心裡也不好受。一個隱瞞了十四年的秘密，誰也不敢說。若是被雅各知道他們賣了約瑟去做奴隸，雅各會不會就這樣一路下埃及去找他？雅各怎麼捨得讓約瑟去受做奴隸之苦？

十四年，自從約瑟被賣，沒有一個人過得舒暢，被罪轄制的日子實在苦不堪言。幸好，接著有七年穀物的豐收；但是七年的乾旱也接踵而至。豐收時，誰也不知道苦日子在前面；正好像我們在2019年開心的計劃時，沒有人曉得全球的人在下一年會被一隻病毒禁足。豐收時日容易過，饑荒的時候度日如年。埃及的情形代表了她附近地區也都有類似的氣候。雅各家在迦南也開始擔心糧食的不足，因為迦南地也有饑荒。

聽到埃及有糧，雅各便叫兒子們下埃及買糧。但是雅各留下了便雅憫，拉結產難時生的兒子，怕他和約瑟一樣遭到不幸。

約瑟的哥哥們到了埃及，見到約瑟，他們臉伏於地，向約瑟下拜。約瑟認得他哥哥們，他們卻不認得他。約瑟想起從前所做的那兩個夢，這夢真的應驗了。他抑制滿心的激動，預備試試他們，便說他們是奸細，來窺探埃及的虛實。這是很可怕的指控，於是他們招出了家裡還有一個弟弟。約瑟原是要知道便雅憫如何。接著約瑟把他們全部下到監裡，又偷聽他們的對話。

The Taming of the Shrewd

2020-10-13 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Luke 16:1-14. Let’s go!

Luke 16:1-8 (NIV) 
1  Jesus told his disciples: “There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 
2  So he called him in and asked him, ‘What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.’ 
3  “The manager said to himself, ‘What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I’m not strong enough to dig, and I’m ashamed to beg– 
4  I know what I’ll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.’ 
5  “So he called in each one of his master’s debtors. He asked the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’ 
6  “‘Eight hundred gallons of olive oil,’ he replied. “The manager told him, ‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred.’ …..

On verses 1-8:  Is Jesus telling this story to encourage us to lie and be dishonest? Not at all. Rather Jesus is highlighting the importance of being shrewd – that is, street smart, wise, strategic, and proactive – when dealing with problems. Often times I find that the reason why an individual, a team, a ministry or an organization is not as effective as they could be is not for a lack of heart, but a lack of wisdom, a lack of what Jesus calls “shrewdness”.

美夢成真

2020-10-13 in /by

創世記41章39-41節   法老對約瑟說：「神既將這事都指示你，可見沒有人像你這樣有聰明有智慧。你可以掌管我的家，我的民都必聽從你的話，唯獨在寶座上我比你大。」法老又對約瑟說：「我派你治理埃及全地。」

約瑟從一個奴隸升到了管家的位置，又從管家跌到了囚犯的地位。問題是，他真的不知道自己究竟錯在哪裡？一個沒有犯錯的人也會被神責罰嗎？他不明白。被兄長們出賣的哀痛還在心裡，又被波提乏不問青紅皂白地下到監牢裡，兄長的絕情無義，波提乏妻子的誣告，主人的黑白不分，讓約瑟哭訴無門。一個沒有身份的奴隸，誰來為你開脫？

有不少藝人被網路覇凌就自殺了，也有人被婆家欺負就自殺了，也有學生在學校被欺負就跳樓了，約瑟比他們都更有自殺的理由，但是他沒有自殺。命運想把他壓榨到社會的最底層，他卻總是努力而爬到最高的地方。

護衛長府裡的監獄都是關王的囚犯，因為神與約瑟同在，他就在司獄的眼前蒙恩，司獄就把監裡所有的囚犯都交在約瑟手下，他們在那裡所辦的事都是經他的手。凡在約瑟手下的事，司獄一概不察，因為耶和華與約瑟同在，耶和華使他所做的盡都順利。(創39:21-23)

因為耶和華與他同在，這是回頭之後的體會。在苦難中，一點恩惠都會給人活下去的勇氣。神就藉著司獄，讓約瑟慢慢又站起來。當我們在逆境時，是否也能體會到神藉著人或環境向我們彰顯的美意？有位在中國被抓的傳道人曾做見證，當他沮喪到覺得無法再撐下去時，神藉著一朵小花讓他體會到神的同在，因而重新有了勇氣。因為耶和華與我們同在，這思想是我們在黑暗中的燈塔。

約瑟在王的監獄裡碰到的都是侍候王的人，因為犯錯所以被關進來。所以他有很多機會可以知道王宮裡的大小事情。接著又有兩個人被關進來，一個是王的酒政，一個是膳長，都是最親近王的人。司獄把這兩個人交給約瑟去伺候，當約瑟看見他們面有愁容時就問候他們。原來他們各做一夢，卻不知何解。

What Happens Next in The Most Famous Story Ever Told

2020-10-12 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Luke 15:25-32.  Let’s go!

Luke 15:25-32 (NIV) 
25  “Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. 
26  So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 
27  ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied, ‘and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ 
28  “The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. 
29  But he answered his father, ‘Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. 
30  But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!’ 
31  “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 
32  But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.'”

On verses 25-32:  What an awesome time we had at Thrive yesterday looking at this passage together. If you missed the message yesterday, I hope you’ll catch it on our THRIVE Podcast, Facebook or Youtube channel.