Entries by

The Mark of a True Friend (Plus, You Are Royalty Because of Jesus’ Blood)

2019-06-24 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Chronicles 3:1-24.  Let’s go!

1 Chronicles 3:5 (NIV) 
5  and these were the children born to him there: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan and Solomon. These four were by Bathsheba daughter of Ammiel.

On verses 1-9:  In these verses the Chronicler lists the names of David’s sons.  Notice that Solomon was the youngest of the sons born to Bathsheba, who originally became romantically involved with David in an extramarital affair.  Yet God still chose Solomon to be the next king of Judah.  Once again it goes to show that God does not discount you because of your background.

Notice also that the third son that Bathsheba bore to David was called Nathan.  This is interesting, given that it was the prophet Nathan who rebuked David for murdering Bathsheba’s first husband Uriah and committing adultery with Bathsheba.  Apparently David so appreciated Nathan’s courage to speak the hard truth into David’s life that he named his third son with Bathsheba after him.

末世的徵兆(下)

2019-06-24 in /by

馬太福音24: 10_19_末世的徵兆(下)

10 「那時，必有許多人跌倒，也要彼此陷害、彼此恨惡， 11 且有好些假先知起來，迷惑多人。 12 只因不法的事增多，許多人的愛心才漸漸冷淡了。 13 唯有忍耐到底的，必然得救。 14 這天國的福音要傳遍天下，對萬民作見證，然後末期才來到。

15 「你們看見先知但以理所說的『那行毀壞可憎的』站在聖地——讀這經的人須要會意—— 16 那時，在猶太的，應當逃到山上； 17 在房上的，不要下來拿家裡的東西； 18 在田裡的，也不要回去取衣裳。 19 當那些日子，懷孕的和奶孩子的有禍了！

末世的徵兆還有以下三點：

五．基督徒受逼迫（9-10節）基督徒怎會受逼迫？那是因為信仰的緣故。近代如著名的王明道，倪柝聲等，就是為了信仰緣故而坐牢；倪弟兄是死在牢獄中，王弟兄過了27年牢獄生涯。主的話又應驗了。

六．不法的事增多，人的愛心漸漸冷淡（12節）這是治安的問題。筆者居於美國德州曉士頓，本來這裏的治安是勝過紐約，芝加哥，洛杉磯等大城市的，但近年已追上了，變壞了，白天也亮起紅燈了，特別是華人被搶劫的數字往往是首屈，因為知道華人身上常有現款帶着。據報道，美國各大城市治安的壞，刑事案的高，監牢獄的滿等，都在節節上升着。這又應驗了主的預言。

God Loves to Use the Least Likely

2019-06-23 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Chronicles 2:1-55. Let’s go!

1 Chronicles 2:1-4 (NIV) 
1  These were the sons of Israel: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, 
2  Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad and Asher. 
3  The sons of Judah: Er, Onan and Shelah. These three were born to him by a Canaanite woman, the daughter of Shua. Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the LORD’s sight; so the LORD put him to death. 
4  Tamar, Judah’s daughter-in-law, bore him Perez and Zerah. Judah had five sons in all.

On verses 1-55:  Here the Chronicler continues to list the ancestors of King David, and eventually, of Jesus Christ, starting with Israel’s sons in verse 1 all the way to David in verse 15. 

When I read these verses, it strikes me how the family that gave rise to David King of Judah and eventually Jesus Christ was, from a human perspective, the type of family that no one would expect to give birth to a king. 

First, you have Abraham and Sarah, the grandparents of Israel, who were not supposed to have children in their old age.  Both Abraham and Sarah wavered in their faith.  Abraham lied.  Sarah doubted.  Both of them even agreed to execute a sinful strategy to “help God accomplish His plan” by having Abraham sleep with their maidservant Hagar.  Yet, even when they were faithless, God was faithful to His promise to give them a son of their own called Isaac.

末世的徵兆(上)

2019-06-23 in /by

馬太福音24: 3_9_末世的徵兆

3 耶穌在橄欖山上坐著，門徒暗暗地來，說：「請告訴我們，什麼時候有這些事？你降臨和世界的末了有什麼預兆呢？」 4 耶穌回答說：「你們要謹慎，免得有人迷惑你們。 5 因為將來有好些人冒我的名來，說：『我是基督』，並且要迷惑許多人。6 你們也要聽見打仗和打仗的風聲，總不要驚慌，因為這些事是必須有的，只是末期還沒有到。 7 民要攻打民，國要攻打國，多處必有饑荒、地震， 8 這都是災難的起頭。 9 那時，人要把你們陷在患難裡，也要殺害你們；你們又要為我的名被萬民恨惡。

當主耶穌和門徒第三次到耶路撒冷的時候，門徒見到聖殿的雄偉壯觀，就指給耶穌看，以為耶穌也會附和他們，將聖殿稱讚一番，不料耶穌卻說：“你們不是看見這殿宇嗎？我實在告訢你們，將來在這裏，沒有一塊石頭留在石頭上不被拆毀了。”（2節）正是一盤冷水對頭淋。主耶穌這句預言，在三十多年後就應驗了。主後70年，猶太人因反抗羅馬人，羅馬將軍提多就帶領了五萬大軍攻打耶路撒冷，將城攻破，血流成河，並且焚燒聖殿。不知他們用了甚麼化學燃料，聖殿竟然燒了七天七夜才熄滅，因為高溫的緣故，聖殿中所有的金子都被燒溶化了，金子的溶液漫流至聖殿各處，羅馬兵丁為了要挖取黃金，便將聖殿完全拆毀，沒有一塊石頭留在石頭上不被拆毀，完全應驗了主的話。

當門徒聽見主如此說時，就暗暗的說：“請告訴我們，甚麼時候有這些事？你降臨和世界的末了，有甚麼預兆呢？”耶穌回答說：“你們要謹慎，免得有人迷惑你們。”（3-4節）然後就告訴他們在祂降臨之前，世界上有下列七種徵兆：　

預言聖殿被毀

2019-06-21 in /by

馬太福音24: 1_2_預言聖殿被毀

1耶穌出了聖殿，正走的時候，門徒進前來，把殿宇指給他看。 2 耶穌對他們說：「你們不是看見這殿宇嗎？我實在告訴你們：將來在這裡沒有一塊石頭留在石頭上不被拆毀了。」

耶穌當時的聖殿是指第二聖殿，是大希律為了討好猶太人而建的。他拆掉了所羅巴伯等人從巴比倫回來後修建的聖殿，在耶路撒冷的聖殿原址重新建造。這工程的計劃始於主前19年，動工約10年後，聖殿可供崇拜和獻祭之用；但大希律仍不斷擴建，直到約主後63年才竣工。在耶穌當時，猶太人稱大希律所建的聖殿工程，己建了46年之久（約2:20）。

在馬可福音裡記載了這事的原委，就是當耶穌從殿裡出來的時候，有一個門徒對他說：「夫子，請看，這是何等的石頭，何等的殿宇！」 所以耶穌才對他說：「你看見這大殿宇嗎？將來在這裡沒有一塊石頭留在石頭上不被拆毀了。」

耶穌是神。人看到的是眼前的輝煌，神卻能看到在那輝煌的背後將要發生的一切。因此當門徒在驚嘆聖殿之美時，耶穌卻己預見聖殿將要臨到的浩劫。

Not Just a List of Names

2019-06-21 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today we begin the book of 1 Chronicles.  The goal of 1 and 2 Chronicles is to give a history of the kingdom of Judah, beginning with King Saul taking his life, David taking over the throne, and then how David is succeeded by his son Solomon and later kings of Judah. 

While the events in 1 and 2 Chronicles overlap with many of the events we read about in 1 and 2 Kings, there are a couple major differences.  The first difference is that 1 and 2 Chronicles focuses only on the kingdom of Judah.  In contrast, 1 and 2 Kings gives a shorter account of both Judah and Israel. 

A second difference is that 1 and 2 Chronicles tend to go into greater detail about certain events in the lives of Judah’s kings.  So the insights we gain from reading 1 Chronicles and 2 Chronicles can be slightly different from, although complementary with, the insights we gain about those same kings as described in 1 and 2 Samuel and 1 and 2 Kings.  It’s similar to how the New Testament contains four gospels, all talking about many of the same events, but from slightly different perspectives which complement one another. 

為耶路撒冷嘆息

2019-06-20 in /by

馬太福音23: 37_39_為耶路撒冷嘆息

37 「耶路撒冷啊，耶路撒冷啊！你常殺害先知，又用石頭打死那奉差遣到你這裡來的人。我多次願意聚集你的兒女，好像母雞把小雞聚集在翅膀底下，只是你們不願意。 38 看哪，你們的家成為荒場留給你們！ 39 我告訴你們：從今以後，你們不得再見我，直等到你們說：『奉主名來的是應當稱頌的！』」

自從大衛建國之後，耶路撒冷就成為以色列長久的都城。神也允許所羅門把聖殿建在這個神親自揀選的地方，希望能和祂的子民歡槳地住在一起。可惜好景不常，從歷代志到列王記，不僅君王不專心敬畏神，百姓也隨從外邦的風俗去拜偶像,惹動神的怒氣。以致於耶路撒冷三番四次被外邦蹂躪，以色列人和猶太人被迫離開家園，嚐盡飄流之苦。這些耶穌都知道。

耶穌也記得，因為列王的悖逆，神的先知一個個在這聖城裡被害，而將來主的門徒也要一個個在這個城裡被殺。原是神所祝福的聖城，卻因為以色列人的罪，被列國侵凌踐踏？這顆神所寶貴的掌上明珠，何竟染滿了劊子手的血跡？何竟沉淪為殺人之城，埋藏了許多神的僕人的鮮血。

Don’t Waste Too Much Time On…

2019-06-20 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Titus 3:9-15.  Let’s go!

Titus 3:9 (NIV) 
9  But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless.

On verse 9:   Whereas focusing on the Gospel is “excellent and profitable for everyone” (v8), quarreling with people who like to talk to cause trouble is “unprofitable and useless” (v9).   When read together, verses 8-9 are Paul saying to Titus:  Focus on what’s important.  Don’t waste your time on what’s not important. 
 
Titus 3:10-11 (NIV) 
10  Warn a divisive person once, and then warn him a second time. After that, have nothing to do with him. 
11  You may be sure that such a man is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.