Psalm 74: Crucified Faith
Thursday, January 19th, 2012Often God is appealed to remember past events. The faith of the psalmist is that the God who was faithful then, even though things look despairing now, will yet come through. True faith is a crucified faith. The line of attack of the enemy of our souls is to devastate the faith by making it a non Cross-centered faith.
Psalm 43: A Cry of Distress
Saturday, January 7th, 2012Though short, this psalm contains many of the classic elements that are to be found in the whole psalmist hymnody. It is a psalm of lament issuing out of distress, but a kind of psalm that invariably ends with a note of acclamation of God in praise, in recognition, and in celebration.
Psalm 24: Seeking the Lord
Wednesday, January 4th, 2012In other words, the earth and all that dwell on it belong to the Lord because He is the Creator of both. God owns what He originates; it belongs to Him for His own purposes. Imagine announcing to mankind that their little pieces of territory to which they have given their national name are really the Lord’s, and that the nations were established for His own purposes rather than their own. Those that dwell in the nations are dwelling there for God’s sake. This foundational truth will take a profound boldness to proclaim.
The Chosen People
Wednesday, December 21st, 2011Избранный народ —избранный для чего?
Исследование еврейских затруднений
во все более враждебном мире.
Weakness and Foolishness
Wednesday, December 21st, 2011Слабость и глупость
Богу нравится избирать слабые и глупые вещи, посредством которых Он являет святое и славное. К глупости можно добавить несостоятельность и неспособность, а так же другие понятия, которые оскорбительны в этом мире, но нравятся Богу. Бог хочет впечатать это в наше сознание, так же как и то, что путь Царства всецело противоположен пути мира сего.
Psalm 24
Wednesday, December 21st, 2011Псалом 24 – кто станет на святом месте Его?
«Господня –земля и что наполняет ее, вселенная и все живущее в ней»
Интересно узнать, имеет ли церковь правильное понимание того, что говорится в этом стихе о Боге? Это удивительное утверждение и всегда есть возможность, что оно пролетит мимо ушей как некая библейская риторика, приятное для слуха слово, и что его содержание, поэтому, потеряется для нас.
On Adolescence
Wednesday, December 21st, 2011Об отрочестве
Обобщения, вдохновленные статьей «Отрочество – это дар» от 30 апреля из ежедневного чтения Юджина Петерсона
True Ministry
Wednesday, August 31st, 2011今晚我要講的是真正的事奉。我再也沒有辦法想到一個更加迫切的信息。尤其在我們現在所處的時代當中，到處都崛起數之不盡的事工。我尤其對“年青”的事工頗為敏感。我不認為神祂中 像一位有偏見的耆老觀看著年青人興高采烈地舉行聚會。我反而覺得是關乎神的莊嚴，所以當神設立祭司制度的時候，將三十歲定為入職年齡。你能不能想像，人生的頭三十年這樣蹉跎無為，到十九二十歲沒有自己事工嗎？二十一，二十二歲大概已經迫不及待搶閘而出，二十三，二十四歲都急到險些爆炸的地步。年輕人都朝氣蓬勃，精力旺盛，才華橫溢，很有性格，似乎倆能帶給神的國度極大的優勢。倘若，你能夠被釋放出來服事，一定很有衝擊力。但是昔日神卻一律說“不。”當時要等到三十歲才可以開始事奉。連神的兒子，都需要等那麽久。
Tower of Babel
Wednesday, August 31st, 2011讓我們先查看創世紀十一章。我們這裡看到一群對神有一種與生俱來的敵對傾向和性質的人。當時有一群人聚在一起，旨在抬擧自己超越獨一的真神，並且想要名揚天下建立自己的身份和國度。於是他們往東遷徙且定居於示拿的平原。或許他們，也就是羅得，挑選平原為安居之地的這一行動，略微顯出他們的貪心。因為那地適宜農耕。於是這群人將他們挑選定居平原的決定並非基於神的旨意，智慧和選擇，乃是基於目之所睹，心之所慾，來為自己私取優渥的條件和利益。我們有多少人挑選居住的地方時，同樣將自己的決定基於這樣的條件和因素。
Judgment
Wednesday, August 31st, 2011今天我將會多多援引施寧院母（Basilea Schlink）所撰寫小小的一本書叫做君尊的祭司（The Royal Priesthood）。本書本來早已絕版，不知道是否因為我的關係，現在又續版了，好像是一九七一年問世。我覺得你們應該會深深賞識神所賞賜給這位女士的優質文筆。也許你們還記得，當我論到先知性(prophetic)的時候，我使用一個詞叫做神諭性（oracular）。然後我在自稱先知的人當中所尋找的東西，就是在他們的講論箇中有否神諭性的分量(oracular weight).我不知道有沒有辦法當場加以詮釋這個含義爲何。那就是神的神諭，來自至聖所的話語，而你感到那一段話的分量和重量，而其廻響紛起。如果有一個十九世紀的先知為代表，是我可以鼎立舉薦的，那麽非這一位女士莫屬。據悉，她執筆寫作之時河流般地流暢，然後她所撰寫的散文異常美麗動人，其筆之清澈正如其人之品格。其文之作風毫無冗詞贅句，毫無炫耀之嫌，毫無繁縟的之乎者也。其話既簡潔又清晰。我們已經對冗詞贅句習以為常，然後終於可以聽到真知灼見的時候，我們因為久等真知灼見而呆若木雞。如果你有這樣的心態的話，你會淒然錯過。從第一句話開始就必須十分專注，加以思索。於是我要翻到本書的中間，也就是論及審判的部分。我非常欣賞她的地方，就是，身為弱質女流的她並沒有婦人之仁，避而不談審判一題，甚至寫到以色列的時候。她對以色列國和其國民有滿懷敬愛，她也分享到以色列之命定和將來清楚的盼望和期待，可是她毫無畏縮和保留地談到並認清神對以色列必要施行的審判，不管是昔日的歷史或是將來。我非常喜愛她這樣，因為真的很貼近神的心，而我希望我們皆能夠明白這一個事實。她在這裡所提到的是耶和華的日子 ，我會讀一些分段來將我們的靈引入這個主題。
False Prophets
Wednesday, August 31st, 2011一個原本一上帝為中心的文明和社會，最終腐敗，其中一個症狀就是先知和祭司的墮落。這兩個呼召之間有著緊密的關係。另外一處耶利米書5章卅一節前半端說，“ 就是先知說假預言，祭司藉他們把持權柄”。這些聖職員之間有類似兄弟會成員那樣的關係，或許他們曾經確實有呼召，不過隨著時間的推移他們由於不謹守而逐漸流失，以至於最終腐敗，現而達成一種相互的協議，使他們彼此肯定，可是所達成的協議，所肯定的事物卻是謊言，是錯謬的。本來是屬靈形式，後來則流於宗教形式，而其慘重的後果就是國家的道德淪落。祭司如何，人民也如何，先知如何，祭司也如何。所以一定要一再地強調祭司職分之作用在神的教會，神的社會，神的以色列中的主要性和意義重大。
And They Crucified Him
Wednesday, August 31st, 2011我覺得我們，就是我們每一個人，每當拾起使徒行傳的時候，而讀起有關那與初代教會所同在的榮耀都理應倍感慚愧和卑微。相比之下，我們所知最成功的基督教，或是最靈恩、最受稱許、最受鼓掌的，也未免太死氣沉沉，相形見絀，而無法與之相比。
為甚麽那些沒有我們現在所享有的那一種優勢的粗獷莽漢、漁夫和草民，卻能夠將一個個的城市給翻轉過來，並且翻天覆地？為甚麽我們對這一代的人沒有相應的影響力？依我看，答案在於我們疏忽十字架了，因此而失去復活的能力，我們避而不談十字架一題，更不用説去體驗十字架，因為我們不再相信我們需要爲主受苦，也不再願意為主受苦。捨己的任何形式就是受苦，而我們倒是沒有被鼓勵如此做。
The Holy of Holies
Friday, December 24th, 2010Where then does the prophet (or apostle) get his perspective? What is the basis by which he sees? How does he have his sense of things that puts him in such opposition and contradiction to the world?
The Gifts of the Spirit
Monday, December 20th, 2010In 2 Chronicles 20:1-30, the prophet Jehaziel is moved by the Spirit to prophesy (v.14-17). In this incisive event in the history of Judah, we catch a glimpse of the utter, life-saving consequences of the gifts of the Spirit.
A Famine for the Hearing of the Word
Monday, December 20th, 2010The thought strikes me that the famine is not so much for the lack of speaking as the lack of hearing. I have had the increasing impression that God’s people do not know how to hear the word of God. Or, unlike the Thessalonian converts from paganism, they do not believe that the word they are hearing is indeed God’s word. Therefore, the word is received casually if not indifferently as the word of man, that is to say, without effect.
The Consequences of Failing to Know God
Monday, December 20th, 2010I am, as I am sure you are, heavy-hearted over the recent assassination of Israel’s head of state, Prime Minister Yitzkak Rabin. As tragic enough as it is itself, it seems to foreshadow something of a most solemn kind for Israel’s troubled future. That is, in the justification found for it, “in God,” by an […]
Prophetic Anticipations for the Last Days
Saturday, December 18th, 2010Concern about decaying environmental, economic and political conditions is moving the world toward global unification. Safety and self-interest will likely take precedence over ideological distinctions between nations, just as doctrinal differences between major church bodies will be eclipsed by the overriding interests of peace and unity.
Apostolic and Prophetic Foundations
Saturday, December 18th, 2010As we enter a decade of enormous challenge, uncertainty and shaking, I am assured that the church stands in great need of prophetic and apostolic foundations with men of that calling giving directive voices. How many of us have recognized that we have come to the end of our charismatic, pentecostal and evangelical tethers? Do we have a sense that there is a further dimension which eclipses all that we have known and had hoped in, but we do not know how to identify, or even find it?
True and False Prophets
Friday, December 17th, 2010I trust that you share with me the increasing sense of importance that this subject bears. Up until now, I have borne with some patience and even amusement the number of those who currently label themselves “prophetic” and the popularity that this calling now enjoys, which has been contrary to my own experience. It seemed another one of those “fads” that sooner or later would fade away.
Cautionary Thoughts on the Revival Phenomena
Friday, December 17th, 2010I venture out with some trepidation to raise some questions about a “revival” phenomenon that is already perplexing many. Unlike such previous moves of God as the Welsh Revival, noted from its inception for its unmistakably holy character, the present revival generates mixed reports from unequivocal enthusiasm to those that are dubious, critical and utterly rejecting. Some suggest there is more than one stream with a fleshly counterfeit paralleling the God-given and authentic. Via video tape of the principal and evidently original stream, I have been able to observe things that I find entirely repugnant. Ministers of the word were ostensibly so drunk in the spirit that they were unable to be coherent, railing finally into a collapse from their stupor. I found this entirely unbecoming to the dignity of their professed call, and felt the preached word to he denigrated by joking references to the feeble results obtained by it in comparison to the results procured now by the experiences of the “power” to which they were testifying. In watching some helplessly convulsing in laughter, I sensed that they had been gripped by something beyond their control and was actually causing them a physical pain? Can those manifestations be described as “holy”? On the contrary, they appeared to be irreverent if not indeed demonic and hellish.
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