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You Got The King On Your Side

2025-01-23 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 1:28-40.  As usual, I encourage you to open your Bible and read the passage yourself first.  See what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help. Then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go! 

1 Kings 1:28-31 (NIV)
28 Then King David said, “Call in Bathsheba.” So she came into the king’s presence and stood before him.
29 The king then took an oath: “As surely as the LORD lives, who has delivered me out of every trouble,
30 I will surely carry out today what I swore to you by the LORD, the God of Israel: Solomon your son shall be king after me, and he will sit on my throne in my place.”
31 Then Bathsheba bowed low with her face to the ground and, kneeling before the king, said, “May my lord King David live forever!” 
 
On verses 28-31:  Despite the fact that many people had already sided with Adonijah, David decides to install Solomon as the new king in place of David.  By doing this, David was fulfilling a promise he had made to his wife Bathsheba to make Solomon the next king (v29-30). In response, Bathsheba bows before David and blesses him.

我心切切渴慕祢

2025-01-23 in , /by

詩篇 42:1-2

1 神啊，我的心切慕祢，如鹿切慕溪水。
2 我的心渴想神，就是永生神，我幾時得朝見神呢？

詩人說他的心渴想神，切慕神，渴想神的院宇，渴想神的救恩和應許，如同在乾旱疲乏無水之地盼雨一樣。

耶穌說：「人若喝我所賜的水就永遠不渴。我所賜的水要在他裡頭成為泉源，直湧到永生。」（約翰福音4:14）

我的心渴想神，就是永生神；我幾時得朝見神呢？（詩篇42:2）

神啊，祢是我的神，我要切切地尋求祢，在乾旱疲乏無水之地，我渴想祢；我的心切慕祢祢。（詩篇63:1）

我羨慕渴想耶和華的院宇；我的心腸，我的肉體向永生神呼籲。（詩篇84:2）

How to Approach Jesus Your King

2025-01-22 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 1:1-14.  As usual, I encourage you to open your Bible and read the passage yourself first.  See what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help. Then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go! 

1 Kings 1:1-4 (NIV) 
1 When King David was old and well advanced in years, he could not keep warm even when they put covers over him. 
2 So his servants said to him, “Let us look for a young virgin to attend the king and take care of him. She can lie beside him so that our lord the king may keep warm.” 
3 Then they searched throughout Israel for a beautiful girl and found Abishag, a Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 
4 The girl was very beautiful; she took care of the king and waited on him, but the king had no intimate relations with her. 

On verses 1-4:  By this time King David is almost 70 years old and is not in good health.  To help keep him warm, they find a beautiful girl called Abishag to lie beside him and to serve him as his nurse, but not to have sexual relations with him. 

「賜平安」的意念

2025-01-22 in , /by

耶利米書29:11-14

11 耶和華說：我知道我向你們所懷的意念是賜平安的意念，不是降災禍的意念，要叫你們末後有指望。 12 你們要呼求我，禱告我，我就應允你們。 13 你們尋求我，若專心尋求我，就必尋見。 14 耶和華說：我必被你們尋見，我也必使你們被擄的人歸回，將你們從各國中和我所趕你們到的各處招聚了來，又將你們帶回我使你們被擄掠離開的地方。這是耶和華說的。

先知耶利米從耶路撒冷寄信給被擄到巴比倫，飽受屈辱且深陷危難的以色列百姓，說：耶和華說：我知道我向你們所懷的意念是賜平安的意念，不是降災禍的意念，要叫你們末後有指望。你們要呼求我，禱告我，我就應允你們。你們尋求我，若專心尋求我，就必尋見。耶和華說：我必被你們尋見，我也必使你們被擄的人歸回，將你們從各國中和我所趕你們到的各處招聚了來，又將你們帶回我使
你們被擄掠離開的地方。這是耶和華說的。（耶利米書29:11-14）

信主的人應該明白，人陷在「降災禍」事實的背後是神所懷「賜平安」的意念，為叫我們未來有盼望。而這盼望來自我們親近祂，向祂呼求、禱告，且專心尋求祂；祂也歡然應允，必然讓我們尋見。我們親近神，神就必親近我們（雅各書4:8）。

Whoever Exalts Himself Will Be Humbled

2025-01-21 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Kings 1:1-14.  As usual, I encourage you to open your Bible and read the passage yourself first.  See what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help. Then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go! 

1 Kings 1:1-4 (NIV) 
1 When King David was old and well advanced in years, he could not keep warm even when they put covers over him. 
2 So his servants said to him, “Let us look for a young virgin to attend the king and take care of him. She can lie beside him so that our lord the king may keep warm.” 
3 Then they searched throughout Israel for a beautiful girl and found Abishag, a Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 
4 The girl was very beautiful; she took care of the king and waited on him, but the king had no intimate relations with her. 

On verses 1-4:  By this time King David is almost 70 years old and is not in good health.  To help keep him warm, they find a beautiful girl called Abishag to lie beside him and to serve him as his nurse, but not to have sexual relations with him. 

在祢光中

2025-01-21 in , /by

約翰福音3:19-20

19 「光來到世間，世人因自己的行為是惡的，不愛光倒愛黑暗，定他們的罪就是在此。 20 凡作惡的便恨光，並不來就光，恐怕他的行為受責備；

人在光中無法隱藏自己的影子，或是達官顯要、或是市井小民、或是窮兇惡煞，眾人皆有自己的影子。影子大小會因胖瘦高矮而有差異，然而不變的事實是，距離光愈遠，人的影子一定被拉長，距離光愈近，影子自然就會縮短。

從另個角度來看，影子或許可代表人的陰影，不為人知的黑暗面；人因自己的行為是惡的，不愛光，倒愛黑暗，因為可以將影子隱藏在黑暗中，陰影不被人發現，而免於罪責（約翰福音3:19-20）。

信主的人需要面向光，定睛前方，讓影子落在後面，我們因此可以忘記背後，努力就光；愈靠近光，背後的影子愈小，當光正照我們頭上，影子就縮到最小。

Is Your Worship of God Convenient or Costly?

2025-01-20 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Samuel 24:18-25.  As usual, I encourage you to open your Bible and read the passage yourself first.  See what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help. Then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go! 

2 Samuel 24:18-19 (NIV)
18  On that day Gad went to David and said to him, “Go up and build an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.”
19  So David went up, as the LORD had commanded through Gad.
 
On verses 18-19: Earlier the Lord had sent the prophet Gad to tell David about the punishment for his sin.  3 days later the Lord sends the prophet Gad to tell David how to make things right again. He instructs David to build an altar to the Lord at the very place where the plague would stop: the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite (v18). 

就光行真理，靠神行事

2025-01-20 in , /by

約翰福音3:1-8

有一個法利賽人，名叫尼哥迪慕，是猶太人的官。 2 這人夜裡來見耶穌，說：「拉比，我們知道你是由神那裡來做師傅的，因為你所行的神蹟，若沒有神同在，無人能行。」 3 耶穌回答說：「我實實在在地告訴你：人若不重生，就不能見神的國。」 4 尼哥迪慕說：「人已經老了，如何能重生呢？豈能再進母腹生出來嗎？」 5 耶穌說：「我實實在在地告訴你：人若不是從水和聖靈生的，就不能進神的國。 6 從肉身生的就是肉身，從靈生的就是靈。 7 我說你們必須重生，你不要以為稀奇。 8 風隨著意思吹，你聽見風的響聲，卻不曉得從哪裡來，往哪裡去。凡從聖靈生的，也是如此。」

擁有正統宗教和社會地位的法利賽人尼哥底母夜裡來見耶穌，耶穌對他說：要重生，要從水和聖靈生才能進入神的國，且要順從聖靈的引領（約翰福音3:1-8）。風隨著己意吹向它想要的地方，我們聽見風聲，但不知道它來自何方，又吹向何處；聖靈的引領也是如此，我們雖不知祂來自何方且吹向何處，但是我們可以領受，且要順服，這就重生的生命。

尼哥底母屬於自詡遺傳和堅守律法的法利賽人，耶穌向他說明祂來是要叫一切信祂的都得永生，有如摩西在曠野舉蛇，讓人得醫治，祂說：「神愛世人，甚至將他的獨生子賜給他們，叫一切信他的，不致滅亡，反得永生。…但行真理的必來就光，要顯明他所行的是靠神而行。」（約翰福音3:16-21）

影響力

2025-01-19 in , /by

約翰福音2:23-25

23 當耶穌在耶路撒冷過逾越節的時候，有許多人看見他所行的神蹟，就信了他的名。 24 耶穌卻不將自己交託他們，因為他知道萬人， 25 也用不著誰見證人怎樣，因他知道人心裡所存的。

在我們的世代裡，影響力是個人價值的最高指標，政治人物需要選票，網紅需要粉絲，網購需要訪客流量，實體店面需要排隊人潮，議題評論要看聲量，論文發表要看影響因子，甚至教會興旺、聖靈充滿也看建築、看人數。

當耶穌在耶路撒冷過逾越節的時候，有許多人看見祂所行的神蹟，就信了他的名。耶穌卻不將自己交託他們；因為祂知道萬人，也用不著誰見證人怎樣，因祂知道人心裡所存的。（約翰福音2:23-25）

耶穌的時候，人要看神蹟，但是耶穌捨棄宣揚自己、尋求個人利益的影響力，反而選擇犧牲自己、帶給他人好處的影響力。

耶穌面對希律王正在興建中的聖殿（當時已建了四十六年），祂說：「你們拆毀這殿，我三日內要再建立起來。」（約翰福音2:19）

The Gift of a Conscience

2025-01-19 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Samuel 24:10-17.  As usual, I encourage you to open your Bible and read the passage yourself first.  See what you can glean with the Holy Spirit’s help. Then read the GAME sharing below.  Let’s go! 

2 Samuel 24:10 (NIV) 
10 David was conscience-stricken after he had counted the fighting men, and he said to the LORD, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, O LORD, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing.” 

On verse 10:  In the previous verses we looked at why David calling a census was a foolish thing to do.  Now, after the census is over, David is conscience-stricken and confesses his sin to God.  Your conscience is a great gift from God.  Without a conscience, we would persist hardheartedly in our sin and never turn back.  But when the Holy Spirit touches our conscience, as He did here with David, we can quickly confess our sin and get back on the right track.  It’s no wonder Paul tells Timothy in 1 Timothy 1:19 to hold on to a good conscience.