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我寧願有耶穌

2024-11-14 in , /by

馬太福音 16:26      人若賺得全世界，賠上自己的生命，有什麼益處呢？人還能拿什麼換生命呢？

「我寧願有耶穌」詩的作者密勒夫人（Rhea F. Miller, 1894-1966）生平不詳，但作曲者謝伯偉（George Beverly Shea, 1909-2013）卻是現代著名的福音聖詩歌唱家。

謝伯偉出生在加拿大，父親是衛理公會牧師，母親虔誠愛主，他雖生長在基督化家庭，常在教會獻詩，卻不肯接受耶穌為救主。大學畢業後在保險公司工作，他有一副嘹亮的歌喉，經常被邀演唱，頗享盛名。

他的母親不住為他靈命禱告，1933年某日，謝伯偉在家練琴時，母親將密勒夫人的詩交給他，希望他能為它譜曲。謝伯偉誦讀後，心受感動，就在琴上記寫曲調，一面彈，一面唱，內心深處自問：「我終日忙碌，到底是為了什麼？我若賺得全世界，賠上自己的生命有什麼益處呢？」那一剎那，是他人生的轉捩點，就此決心將自己奉獻。

Don’t Take God’s Grace for Granted

2024-11-14 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Samuel 25:1-22.  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 Samuel 25:1 (NIV) 
1 Now Samuel died, and all Israel assembled and mourned for him; and they buried him at his home in Ramah. Then David moved down into the Desert of Maon. 

On verse 1:  Chapter 25 begins with the death of Samuel.  It was fitting that all Israel assembled and mourned for their leader Samuel, whom they bury in his hometown of Ramah.

1 Samuel 25:2-11 (NIV)
2  A certain man in Maon, who had property there at Carmel, was very wealthy. He had a thousand goats and three thousand sheep, which he was shearing in Carmel.
3  His name was Nabal and his wife’s name was Abigail. She was an intelligent and beautiful woman, but her husband, a Calebite, was surly and mean in his dealings.
4  While David was in the desert, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep.
5  So he sent ten young men and said to them, “Go up to Nabal at Carmel and greet him in my name.

Forgiving and Trusting Are Not the Same Thing

2024-11-13 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Samuel 24:1-22.  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 Samuel 24:1-4 (NIV)
1  After Saul returned from pursuing the Philistines, he was told, “David is in the Desert of En Gedi.”
2  So Saul took three thousand chosen men from all Israel and set out to look for David and his men near the Crags of the Wild Goats.
3  He came to the sheep pens along the way; a cave was there, and Saul went in to relieve himself. David and his men were far back in the cave.
4  The men said, “This is the day the LORD spoke of when he said to you, ‘I will give your enemy into your hands for you to deal with as you wish.'” Then David crept up unnoticed and cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.

On verses 1-4: What was the significance of David cutting the corner of Saul’s robe?  It showed how easily David could have killed Saul if he wanted to.  This grace and mercy David showed Saul foreshadows the grace and mercy God would show us.  God could easily have killed us in His wrath, yet in His loving self-control, He withheld and instead laid His wrath upon His own Son Jesus so that we could be forgiven and set free.

祂為我開路

2024-11-13 in , /by

但以理書 6:21-22     但以理對王說：「願王萬歲！ 我的神差遣使者封住獅子的口，叫獅子不傷我，因我在神面前無辜，我在王面前也沒有行過虧損的事。」

近代印度的大傳道人孫大信（1889-1933）有次到西藏的拉隆，這個充滿喇嘛教徒市鎮的教長不歡迎基督教，他無法在那裡傳道。但孫大信依著慣例，無論到何處、遇到什麼逼迫，都把傳福音當做他的使命。因此，他馬上被抓並帶去見教長，經過詢問，竟然非法地被判應受極刑。

在舊約時代，耶利米被投入泥水井裡，但以理被投入獅穴，現在孫大信也被投進一口放屍體的空井裡面。刑吏押他到井口，剝去他的衣服，將他推進井裡，因為顛落下去，右臂受到挫傷，在井裡黑天暗地，只有等待著死。井穴里屍臭撲鼻，骸骨累累，充滿了惡臭與死毒，手足所觸摸，莫非腐肉與朽骨，真像一個活獄。在此時此境，他如同十字架上的耶穌，呼求神說：「我的神，我的神，為什麼離棄我？」

Jesus Is the Rock Between You and the Enemy

2024-11-12 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Samuel 23:15-29.  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 Samuel 23:15-18 (NIV)
15  While David was at Horesh in the Desert of Ziph, he learned that Saul had come out to take his life.
16  And Saul’s son Jonathan went to David at Horesh and helped him find strength in God.
17  “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “My father Saul will not lay a hand on you. You will be king over Israel, and I will be second to you. Even my father Saul knows this.”
18  The two of them made a covenant before the LORD. Then Jonathan went home, but David remained at Horesh.

On verses 15-18:  When David was hiding from Saul in the desert, Jonathan went to David and helped him find strength in God.  He spoke encouraging words to David and reminded David of God’s calling on his life (v17).  

憐憫

2024-11-12 in , /by

出埃及記 31:18    耶和華在西奈山和摩西說完了話，就把兩塊法版交給他，是神用指頭寫的石版。

出埃及記 34:6-7    耶和華在他面前宣告說：「耶和華，耶和華，是有憐憫有恩典的神，不輕易發怒，並有豐盛的慈愛和誠實。 7 為千萬人存留慈愛，赦免罪孽、過犯和罪惡；萬不以有罪的為無罪，必追討他的罪，自父及子，直到三四代。」

耶和華在西乃山與百姓立約，把律法和誡命頒佈給摩西，且刻在兩塊石版上（出31:18）。因著百姓拜金牛犢的大罪，摩西一怒之下摔碎這兩塊石版，但是神又重新作了兩塊，賜給摩西；同時，神在摩西面前宣告祂的屬性：「耶和華，耶和華，是有『憐憫』有恩典的神，不輕易發怒，並有豐盛的慈愛和誠實，為千萬人存留慈愛，赦免罪孽、過犯，和罪惡，萬不以有罪的為無罪，必追討他的罪，自父及子，直到三、四代。」（出34:6-7）

祭司撒迦利亞預言耶穌的誕生：「…因我們神『憐憫』的心腸，叫清晨的日光從高天臨到我們，要照亮坐在黑暗中死蔭裡的人，把我們的腳引到平安的路上。…」（路1:67-80）

The Right Way and the Wrong Way to Discern God’s Will

2024-11-11 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Samuel 23:1-14.  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 Samuel 23:1 (NIV) 
1 When David was told, “Look, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah and are looting the threshing floors,”

On verse 1:  The name Keilah probably means “fortress”.  Yet the Philistines seemed to have no problem attacking and looting this Israelite city.  This tells me 2 things.  First, the only truly unbeatable fortress is God.  Just as Keilah needed David’s help, all of us, no matter how strong we think we are, need the help of Jesus, the Son of David, to save us.  Jesus alone is the true Keilah, the only impenetrable fortress.  

看不見的看見

2024-11-11 in , /by

約翰一書 5:1      凡信耶穌是基督的，都是從神而生；凡愛生他之神的，也必愛從神生的。

哥林多後書 4:18    原來我們不是顧念所見的，乃是顧念所不見的，因為所見的是暫時的，所不見的是永遠的。

約翰福音 20:29  耶穌對他說：「你因看見了我才信，那沒有看見就信的有福了！」

「愛」讓我們看見（經歷）那不能看見的神。做在最小的弟兄身上，就是做在主身上，「愛人」可以讓我們觀察、體驗那看不見的神；在無助、窮乏的時候，「那雙看不見的手」是我們的安慰、滿足，「被愛」也可以讓我們觀察、體驗那看不見的神。

「凡信耶穌是基督的，都是從神而生，凡愛生他之神的，也必愛從神生的。（約壹5:1）」

神奇妙的恩典不僅讓「看得見的」能看見「那不能看見的」，也讓「看不見的」同樣能看見「那不能看見的」；且讓我們領受視障者的心靈分享：

多數人依賴視覺的經驗習慣，或許唯有黑夜才能體會何謂「看不見」；但對一群視障者來說，卻在看不見中「看見」不同黑夜的風景。

The Damage that Deceit Can Do

2024-11-10 in /by

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 1 Samuel 22:11-23.  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!

For context, let’s start at verse 9.

1 Samuel 22:9-23 (NIV)
9  But Doeg the Edomite, who was standing with Saul’s officials, said, “I saw the son of Jesse come to Ahimelech son of Ahitub at Nob.
10  Ahimelech inquired of the LORD for him; he also gave him provisions and the sword of Goliath the Philistine.”
11  Then the king sent for the priest Ahimelech son of Ahitub and his father’s whole family, who were the priests at Nob, and they all came to the king.

On verses 9-23:  To understand what led to the murder of Ahimelech the priest, his family, 84 other priests as well as the entire town of Nob, we must first go back to verses 9-10 and understand who Doeg was and his role in this situation.

On paper Doeg was Saul’s head shepherd (v7), but his real role was as Saul’s personal assassin, his “closer”.  To me Doeg fits the mold of a classic James Bond henchman, a heartless killer who speaks few words and flexes a lot of muscle, a one-man wrecking crew.