Tuesday, 25th October 2022
Rev Daniel Xi An Poon
We are the ones being called to enter the Promised Land, we must believe that the road God prepares for us in front of us is not leading to a desolate land, but the Promised Land. Jesus also told us that we will do greater things than He, but we must go, step out, preach the Gospel, and disciple the nation. Moses was teaching the Israelites about God’s Goodness, He did not want them to go astray, and He had already given all the commandments for them to follow. God is doing the same for us, we don’t always have to learn from our own failures, because God does not want us to fall. Before we take the step, God has already laid out life and death in front of us. It’s our choice that determines if we will receive blessings or curses.
Section One V1-5 Not Only by Sight
There are many people, who might feel things, hear things, or dream about things, but they might not really have the Word of God. It’s easy for us to believe what they say, because they seem to know a lot of things about us. Furthermore, they may say things that please us and fulfil our desires. The world is full of temptations and God allows these temptations to come to our lives to test us, so we will really learn how to love God with our heart and soul. This is the concept of the Tree of Life, the core values of the Kingdom of God, to humble, to obey, to deny ourselves, and to benefit others.
We follow God and we follow our authority not for them to recognize us, and not for something in exchange. We must see into our heart, what is our intention to follow God? If there is anything in our life that is unpleasant to God, we must get rid of it, do not let it become a tumour, which affects us to enter the Promised Land, and worse, leads us to death.
Section Two V6-11 Not Only by Emotions
People who are closer to us may also lead us to sin, even though we love them, and we care about them, we must stand firm in the Word of God. The things of this world will appear good in front of our eyes, and we will not think that the people, who are close to us, will hurt us. But when our decisions are blinded by our emotions, the world will tempt us to go away from God. It’s not the people we love that harm us, but the worldly values and our sinful desires that lured us away from the Promised Land.
Do not let our children or our spouse become more important than our God. We’d think that it’s much easier to hear from them than to hear from God, when they stop following God, it’s easy for us to also stop following God and to follow our desires for this world. When Jesus called Peter, he had a wife and a family at the time, he did not only leave his boat, his career, but also his family. God does not want us to leave our family, but we have to put our priority in the right place. May God help us to differentiate what is from God and what is not from God and make every decision in our life wisely.
Can we see that God is love? Do we know our identity as the children of God and not orphans? When we really know who we are, we will no longer be affected by our emotions or by the emotions of others. No one can ever really understand us except for God, some people may speak words to us that we like to hear, but it does not mean they are speaking the truth. What is our intention to follow God? Be alert and listen carefully, don’t let emotions affect us following the truth path.
Section Three V12-18 Not Only by Authority
There are many people, who don’t follow God and who don’t belong to God. Some of them might have already become Christians, but still don’t follow God. We tend to follow those, who seem successful and who has authority. Be careful to listen, because not every teaching with a Bible verse is from God. The things that come from this world may make us feel good and encouraged, but we follow God not by the authority of this world. Every teaching we hear, we must discern, and if there is anything displease God, we must get rid of it straight away, so we can set our lives apart as holy for God.
Let us put God first, people next, then the earth. He is our Creator and He is our Father, we love Him must not only by sight, not only by emotions, and not only by authority.
申命记 13 – 要尽心尽性爱神
2022年10月25日 星期六
潘锡安牧师
我们如那些以色列人一样预备进入应许之地，神所预备给我们的不是枯干的路，而是得地为业的路。耶稣曾告诉我们不要害怕，因他已经胜过这个世界。面对前面的路，我们的态度如何？是否有很多小剧场？对于世上那些“未得之民”，神的心意是要我们得地为业，这也是主耶稣在升天前嘱咐门徒的“你们要去，使万民做我的门徒”。神没有要我们去战死沙场，而是让我们得到世世代代的祝福。神是良善的天父，他不会故意让他的儿女跌倒而学习人生的功课。在我们出发前，神已经将生与死、祝福与咒诅陈明给我们。老摩西嘱咐下一代的以色列人要尽心尽性爱神，这是跟从神的关键所在。
一、v.1-5 不单凭眼见跟从
V1-3 “先知”或“做梦的”很容易“有感动”听到或看到一些东西，他们讲出来的事情似乎“很准”，正好讲中我们所期待的。我们所跟从的本来是亚伯拉罕、以撒、雅各的神、是给我们十诫的神。然而，那些先知会带我们“去随从你素来所不认识的别神”。如今有些讲员在讲道的时候极少讲神的话，却引用很多世界上有名望的人所说的话。我们不要因为看到别人行神迹奇事就跟从他们。神不是阿拉丁神灯，我们也不要用事情成就来当做信神的条件。让我们在这样的试验中尽心尽性地去爱神。
V4 我们随从那些先知和做梦的，因为他们满足我们里面的欲望，让我们觉得舒服。然而真正的跟从神是要“敬畏他，谨守他的诫命，听从他的话，事奉他，专靠他”，也就是生命树气息：谦卑顺服、舍己利他。我们跟从神，是因为我们觉得被爱、被尊重、有自我价值、或者生活越来越好吗？不要将信仰当成一场交易，不然如果祷告没有蒙应允、或者因为权柄一句教导的话我们就会失望、受伤。
V5 在神的眼中，这是一种“恶”，就如肿瘤、癌细胞一样会让人死亡，所以我们要这不属神的“肿瘤”治死，以免这恶散发，让我们无法在应许之地存活。
二、v.6-11 不单凭情感跟从
V6 这里所提到的人是跟我们很亲近的人，他们让我们跟他们一起去做的事不是神要我们做的事，而是世界上的事。神国的核心价值是先神后人再大地，世界告诉我们要先管好自己。我们是否用照顾儿女当做不去教会、不事奉神的借口？我们的配偶也可能影响我们跟从神的心。我们并非不管不顾我们的家，而是当我们觉得配偶在拖我们的后腿让我们也不想继续向前行的时候、或者觉得神国的服事影响了我们的家庭时间时，我们要反思我们的先后次序。我们是否真的将神放在第一位，还是有如孤儿一样渴望从别人身上得到爱？真正能满足我们的只有天父，所以不要认为家人服事神就会被神“抢走”自己所爱的人。“如同你性命的朋友”就是那些很了解我们、讲话让我们觉得什么都好的人，我们要谨慎，不要让他们的话语影响自己的信心。若别人所讲的不是我们从圣经上所学到的真理，而是跟随世界的潮流让我们满足自己的心愿，我们就不要跟从。
V7-11 真正引诱我们不是外面来的人，而是从我们中间出来的人。他们让我们偏离神的教导，想要神满足我们，而不是专心跟从他。
三、v.12-18 不单凭势力而跟从
V12-13 “匪类”就是不属神的人。他们说“我们”，说明这些人并非外邦人，而是在我们当中、神家中的人。我们在教导的时候，是否因为看到其他大教会很“成功”，所以大量引用这些有名的牧师的言论、跟从人的理论、方法，而不是单单教导、跟从神的话语？
V14-18 在迦南地得地为业的过程中，神百姓本来可以在攻城之后获得财物，但这个“匪类”的城中一切财物，神都要他的百姓毁灭。我们看到别的大教会的牧者时是否变得很低微甚至摇尾乞怜？不要将人的东西看得比神更大，从人而来的话语若只是让我们觉得舒服却与神一贯来的教导不符，我们就要完全的除去。我们跟从神，就要单单因为爱他而跟从他，因他是良善、爱我们的的父。
Zion Bread of Life Christian Church 
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