I Samuel 1
Tuesday, 4th July 2023
Rev Daniel Xi An Poon
God loves us, He chose us, no matter where we are and who we are. In difficult times, in deep valleys, He remembers us and He calls us. Elkanah was a man of Ramathaim Zophim, of the mountains of Ephraim, and God has chosen him. His name means ‘God has created’, we want God to create many things for us and to prepare many things for us, but God has already created and He has already prepared before we were born.
God knows everything we are going through, He created us and He has already prepared for us the abundance. In mountains and in valleys, God has prepared. When Jesus was fasting and praying for 40 days, He said men live not by food but by the Word of God. We need to have morning devotion because we must receive the nutrition for our soul and spirit in the beginning of the day. When our soul and our spirit line up with God, then our physical body, our actions, our words, or thoughts will all be from the power and authority of God.
When we receive the Word of God, our spirit will be awaken, and we can be influential. When God speaks then nothing can stop it. We are so easy to worry about how others think and what others say, but we only need to know that God will not put us to shame. God wants us to arise and shine, He will vindicate for us, do we have faith in God?
Elkanah had two wives, Hannah and Peninnah. Hannah had no children, and during that time, having no child is a shameful thing, but the Bible out the name of Hannah before Peninnah. In God’s kingdom the order of first and last is different to what the world sees. The name of Hannah means ‘mercy’ and the name of Peninnah means ‘diamond’, she has many children and was the diamond of the family, therefore she despised Hannah. Whenever the time came for Elkanah to make an offering, he would give portions to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and daughters. But to Hannah he would give a double portion, for he loved Hannah, although the Lord had closed her womb.
Did Elkanah really love Hannah? Or was he doing it out of pity? We don’t know the answer but we know that Hannah was unable to have children so Elkanah took another wife. Are we also like this? When God did not open the door for us then we chose to open our own way. Hannah was feeling shameful and she didn’t see the love from her husband, who took in another wife when she couldn’t have children.
We often don’t want to wait for God, we try to use our own way to achieve what we want to do, we are unwilling to let our spirit align with God. We are unwilling to pray. We think that waiting is a waste of time. In the beginning of July, God is talking to us, He is reviving our spirit and telling us to arise and shine. Let us humble ourselves and follow God. Hannah was being looked down by Peninnah, but we can not blame everything on Peninnah, because if Elkanah did not try to use his own way, then Hannah would not be looked down.
It’s all about us, we should always examine our own lives. Elkanah was blind in his heart, he could not see why Hannah was upset. He didn’t know it was because of him, taking in another wife, that Hannah was weeping and grieving. Elkanah and his wives went to the temple and made offering because it was what they were told to do every year. Elkanah’s spirit did not align with God, he didn’t pray to God, and he didn’t see the Will of God.
When we face problem, we don’t always go to God first. We use our thoughts to control our body. However what did Hannah do, she went into the temple of God and prayed. She aligned her spirit with the Spirit of God. She completely realised her emotions in front of God. What is our attitude when we come to God? There are so many things we want God to do for us, but we are unwilling to express ourselves completely before God.
Hannah had nothing to hide, she gave herself completely to God. We have often wasted our time and wronged our priority, we must align with God first. Let God be the first priority of our lives. Hannah prayed for a child, and she was willing to offer this child to God. She knew everything she had was from God, and she knew the heart of God. The High Priest Eli was not doing the Will of God, but Hannah knew God’s heart and therefore she prayed for a son to serve God.
When we align with God then we can understand the Will of God. Hannah was praying in the spirit, she was praying in tongue, but Eli through she was drunk. Hannah didn’t use her own way to deal with the emotions within her. She let God deal with all the joy and suffering within her. Can we also pray and wait upon God like Hannah? Can we also seek the Will of God?
Eli was the High Priest of God, he was speaking to Hannah in the position of the High Spirit, and Hannah was willing to trust in God. So she left and ate. Are we willing to trust in the authority God has appointed? Without receiving God’s reevaluation, she was able to give all her burdens to God when Eli told her to go in peace. When Hannah went back, she believed the promise of God and she took action. Her spirit received from God and the spirit talked to the body so she took action.
Micah 6:8 tells us ‘He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?’ What does God really want from us? Hannah knew God’s heart, after she he Samuel, she took it seriously to prepare Samuel to serve the temple of God. When Hannah weaned Samuel, she took him to the temple of God in Shiloh, she offered Samuel and worshiped there.
God loves us, He had mercy on us, when we align with God, we can live out the Tree of Life, not an act but from our true nature. God will prepare, He is merciful, and He will prepare for us.
撒母耳记上 1
2023年7月4日 星期二
潘锡安牧师
V1 以利加拿名字的意思是神已经创造，在他还未出生时，神已经为他预备好一切。 当我们还在母腹中时，当我们经过高山或低谷时，神已经为我们预备。如今我们产生的情绪是因为所面对的人和事吗？当我们的灵先与神对齐时，我们的思想行动才能被灵指引，我们头脑才会吸收神的话语、智慧，才不会情绪高高低低。耶和华神是不会让我们羞愧的神，他让我们兴起发光，我们若相信他，就要大胆的跟从他。
V2-7 以利加拿有两个太太：第一个太太哈拿名字的意思是神的慈悲、怜悯。哈拿没有儿女，在旧约时代是很羞愧的事，然而圣经将哈拿的名字放在以利加拿两个太太的第一个。人通常会把好的东西摆在前面，这样一个被人看不起的妇人，在圣经里却是被认为好的。第二个太太毗尼拿名字的意思是宝石，她有儿女，于是欺负哈拿。以利加拿每年去献祭的时候，先把祭肉分给有儿女的“宝石”毗尼拿。他爱他的妻子哈拿，然而他认为妻子没有儿女是由于“耶和华不使哈拿生育”。这样的爱是否是真的爱呢？我们遇到问题时，是否不愿意等候耶和华神，而是尝试用自己的方法？就好像以利加拿那样，哈拿无法生育，他就找“宝石”来为他生儿育女。遇到不如意的事时，我们却选择逃跑、放弃，用我们的逻辑思想和行动来操控我们的灵，却不愿意等候神，以为“等待”太飘渺，不在乎平时的敬拜祷告。我们要放下自己的思想，谦卑跟从神。以利加拿若是愿意坚守神给他祝福，他也不会让自己的妻子哈拿陷入羞愧。我们要看到是自己生命出了问题，不要只会指责别人。
V8 哈拿哭泣的缘故正是因为自己的丈夫娶了第二个太太，她并没有被这所谓的“爱”打动。
V9-14 以利加拿的灵没有与神对齐，虽然每年都上圣殿，但只是例行公事。他知道哈拿有问题，他却没有向神祷告，哈拿则选择与神对齐，在耶和华神面前完全释放自己。我们来到神面前时，是否只想操控神，而不是先神后人再大地？哈拿将自己一切的情绪交给神，而不是要神处理事情，这就是先与神对齐。哈拿虽然向神求儿子，但她求的是让儿子能“终身归于耶和华”。她先与神对齐，就知道神的心意，所以她的祷告不是为自己要儿子，而是让她的儿子能一生服事神。
V15-16 哈拿没有用自己的方法来处理她心里的小剧场，而是愿意用祷告来寻求神。
V17 耶和华没有亲自跟哈拿说话，但以利站在祭司的位份上对哈拿说话，哈拿就相信了。我们是否愿意相信神所拣选的权柄对我们所说的话呢？哈拿的灵与神对齐，她相信的不是以利，而是他祭司的位份。我们愿意相信权柄背后神所给的位份吗？
V19-20 哈拿相信神，当她的灵有领受，她的身体就行动，与丈夫同房。耶和华所顾念的是真正向他献祭的哈拿而不是那不祷告的以利加拿，于是哈拿就怀孕了。
V21-22 以利加拿其实没有许愿，所以哈拿没有跟他上去。
V23-24 “断了奶”意思是合宜、成熟。神要的不是形式上的“还愿”，而是真正合宜、成熟的献祭。哈拿知道神的心意，所以等孩子到了合宜的时候，她就将孩子献上给神。
我们无论信主多久，我们的灵是否跟神对齐? 当我们与神对齐时，我们就不是故意去行出“先神后人再大地”的事，而是自然而然活出这样的生命。我们要相信耶和华是有怜悯，有预备的！或许我们的过去就像以利加拿那样，如今我们要放下自己的顽梗、不信，全心来信靠神，让神带领我们走当走的路，经历他的丰盛！