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A.S.K.

馬太福音7:7-11_A.S.K.

7 你們祈求,就給你們;尋找,就尋見;叩門,就給你們開門。 8 因為凡祈求的,就得著;尋找的,就尋見;叩門的,就給他開門。 9 你們中間誰有兒子求餅,反給他石頭呢? 10 求魚,反給他蛇呢? 11 你們雖然不好,尚且知道拿好東西給兒女,何況你們在天上的父,豈不更把好東西給求他的人嗎?

在英文裡,祈求是ask, 尋找就是seek,叩門就是knock,這三個字的第一個字母加起來就是A.S.K.,也就是祈求詢問的意思。人在什麼情況下才會祈求,詢問呢?

幾天前我們談到不要為明天憂慮時,說到信徒之所以能不憂慮,不是因為自己很能幹,而是因為我們站在神的應許上,緊緊地抓住神的應許,所以我們有盼望,我們可以不憂慮。今天的經文便是神給我們的應許之一。當我們缺乏時,當我們困惑時,當我們碰到瓶頸時,自己的能力來到盡頭時,主耶穌說:「你們祈求,就給你們;尋找,就尋見;叩門,就給你們開門。 因為凡祈求的,就得著;尋找的,就尋見;叩門的,就給他開門。」

The Best Thing You Can Do When You’re In A Tough Situation

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 1:15-27.  Let’s go!

On verses 15-27:  In response to Adonijah’s actions to exalt himself as the next king, Bathsheba the mother of Solomon boldly gets into David’s presence (v15-16).  Bathsheba reminds David of his previous promise to make Solomon the next king (v17).  She explains how Adonijah has usurped the throne (v18-19), and she looks to David for an answer (v20).  Nathan enters while David and Bathsheba are talking (v22-23).  Nathan similarly lets David know about Adonijah’s actions and looks to the king for clarification on what’s going on (v24-27).
What can we learn from this?  There are three lessons I believe Holy Spirit taught me from this passage:

1. When you’re facing a tough situation, don’t declare war right away or try to solve things by yourself. 

不要把聖物給狗

馬太福音7:6_不要把聖物給狗

6 「不要把聖物給狗,也不要把你們的珍珠丟在豬前,恐怕牠踐踏了珍珠,轉過來咬你們。

本節經文和主耶穌在上文所講的話有連帶關係。上文主耶穌說「不要論斷人」, 本節的意思則是補充說明上文所說的不要論斷人,並非對任何事物不必分別好 歹。反之,我們對於曲直善惡應有清楚的認識而予以適當的處理。

「聖物」(就是一切聖別歸神的物如壇上所獻的祭物)與「珍珠」都是神聖而貴 重的。狗和猪都是猶太人視爲不潔淨的動物。它們對於聖物和珍珠並無辨別的能 力,並不知道它的神聖和貴重,把聖物和珍珠丟給它們,當然不會領受,反而把 它們踐踏了,誤會爲惡意的投擲而轉過來咬你了。

Whoever Exalts Himself Will Be Humbled

Hi GAMErs,

Today we begin the book of 1 Kings.  1 Kings and 2 Kings together chronicle the history of Israel’s monarchs.  The books cover 400 years of history, beginning with Solomon’s ascent to the throne in place of his father David (in approximately 971 B.C.) and ending with the Babylonians’ invasion of Jerusalem and the release of Judah’s king Jehoiachin from prison (in approximately 560 B.C.)  1 Kings and 2 Kings contain some powerful life lessons and leadership insights for us today. 

刺和梁木

馬太福音7:3-5_刺和梁木

3 為什麼看見你弟兄眼中有刺,卻不想自己眼中有梁木呢? 4 你自己眼中有梁木,怎能對你弟兄說『容我去掉你眼中的刺』呢? 5 你這假冒為善的人!先去掉自己眼中的梁木,然後才能看得清楚,去掉你弟兄眼中的刺。

平常很少看到農民在網上發表意見,但是最近加拿大廣播公司放了一則農夫的申訴,因為他覺得有一些自認保護動物,主張素食的激進份子以偏蓋全地指責農民虐待牲畜,若是有小公牛出生,因為沒有利用價值,就把牠們和母牛強迫分開,並置之於死地。這位農民強調,那些激進份子並沒有實地看到他們怎樣愛護他們的牲畜,信口開河,對他們的辛苦視若無睹,令農民都很不滿。

在我們教會裡以前有伉儷團,有一次在伉儷小組裡,突然有個弟兄說,他不知道為什麼每星期天上教會時,妻子的動作總是特慢,害他經常遲到,不知有什麼辦法可以解決這個問題。他一說完,他的妻子就火了:“你還說我慢?他一個人說走就走,我要幫幾個孩子穿衣穿鞋,根本忙不過來。”然後大家就熱烈地討論起來,原來幾乎每個家庭都有類似的問題。

When People Let You Down

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Timothy 4:9-22.  Let’s go!

On verses 9-15:  Ministry is about serving God but it’s also about working with people.  Because none of us is perfect, you and those you serve with are bound to encounter tension, disagreement and conflict from time to time.  So what should you do?  From these verses we see how a mature leader in God’s kingdom deals with hurt and conflict with fellow servants of God.  In particular here are 3 things I learn from Paul’s example:

1. In all cases, when you have been wronged by someone, you need to extend forgiveness to that person (see verse 16: “may it not be held against them”).  Forgiving that person is not just for that person’s sake. Even more, it’s for your sake, to enable you to move on and not live in the past.  Otherwise, bitterness will start to rob you of peace and poison your life.

不要論斷人

馬太福音7:1-2_不要論斷人

1你們不要論斷人,免得你們被論斷。 2 因為你們怎樣論斷人,也必怎樣被論斷;你們用什麼量器量給人,也必用什麼量器量給你們。

我很喜歡信息聖經這段經文的翻譯:不要挑別人的錯,不要在人家失敗時指責他,批評他的缺點或過失。除非你希望別人也如此對待你,因為這種批判的作風會讓你自食其果。Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults— unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. (MSG)

今天是情人節,這段話正是對我們的人際關係的最佳提醒。在第六章我們讀到很多個人與神的關係,在第七章主耶穌開始教導我們怎樣處理人際關係。人和人都不一樣,即使在同一個家庭裡長大,也會有不同的習慣,不一樣的想法和作風。有的人覺得自己的方法和想法才是對的,而人家的想法和作法和你不一樣就是錯的,那就是衝突和紛爭的開始。

Preach the Word and Have a Heart for the Next Generation

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Timothy 4:1-8.  Let’s go!

2 Timothy 4:6-7 (NIV) 
6 For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. 
7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 

On verses 1-8:  In a very formal way where he even calls on God the Father and Jesus Christ as his witnesses (v1), Paul charges Timothy to preach the Word (v2) — that is, to preach Jesus.  He tells Timothy to preach the Word in season and out of season (i.e. whenever he can). 

不要為明天憂慮

馬太福音6:34_不要為明天憂慮

34 所以,不要為明天憂慮,因為明天自有明天的憂慮。一天的難處一天當就夠了。

在第六章裡,耶穌用許多例子叫我們不要憂慮,不要為明天憂慮。這個道理很容易懂,但是做起來不容易。我們也希望能像天空的飛鳥,野地的花一樣,不用為明天的飲食擔憂,不必為沒有得體的衣著而煩惱。可是生活在這個人組成的社會,怎能逃避得了這樣的憂慮和煩惱呢?

在耶穌的教導裡,祂要我們看到在不憂慮的後面,有一位強大的神要為我們承擔這些憂慮,祂要供應我們的需要。有一位聖經學者用了18個月的時間把《聖經》裡神的應許一一找出來,一共有7486個應許。我們所信的耶和華神是一位賜下應許的神。保羅說:「神的應許,不論有多少,在基督都是是的,所以藉著祂也都是實在的,叫神因我們得榮耀。(林後1:20)」

The Purpose of God’s Word

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Timothy 3:10-17.  Let’s go!

2 Timothy 3:10 (NIV) 
10 You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, 

On verse 10:  The false teachers disturbing Timothy’s church were known for their immoral character (see verses 1-9).  In contrast, Paul sought to show Timothy what a true man of God and a true leader in God’s kingdom looks like — not just in his teaching, but in his lifestyle (“my way of life”), his character (“my…faith, patience, love, endurance”) and his ambition and his reason for living (“my purposes”).