Tuesday, 5th April 2022
Rev Daniel Xi An Poon
Section One V1-15 No Longer the Same
God is love and He is interested in responding to the people He loves. God wants to interact with us but a lot of time we don’t see it and we don’t hear it. V2-3 ‘Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth! For the Lord has spoken: I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against Me; the ox knows its owner and the donkey its master’s crib; but Israel does not know, my people do not consider.’ Everyone is seeking love, but everyone seeks it differently. We must see God’s Wonderful Works in our loves, He has already created and prepared everything we need, but are we really seeing and listening to Him? Instead, we rebel against Him, and we make something else our god instead of the One True God.
V4 ‘Alas, sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a brood of evildoers, children who are corrupters! They have forsaken the Lord, they have provoked to anger the Holy One of Israel, they have turned away backward.’ When was the last time we come to God without a list? We also want God to do this and to do that for us, but we forgot to simply enjoy the presence of God, we have turned away from God. We focus on ‘doing’ and ‘rules’, yet we cannot see the love of God and how much He wants to build an intimate relationship with us. Our hearts are full of judgement and criticism, because we have not experienced the love of God.
V9 ‘Unless the Lord of hosts had left to us a very small remnant, we would have become like Sodom, we would have been made like Gomorrah.’ God’s love has never changed, but people have changed and became different from when we were first created. He does not want us to focus on working hard because He does not need us to do anything for Him, but He wants us to show our willing heart and to respond to His love by action. We work hard not because we have to but because we love Him.
V11 ‘To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me? Says the Lord. I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed cattle. I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs or goats.’ God does not need anything from us, but by offering we show our attitude towards Him. He is always watching and waiting. Do we give thanks offering when God gives us the opportunity to serve Him? When we learn to give thanks, we will be restored to the image God has first created us to be, we will be more joyful and thankful, and we will have more ability to carry out the work of God.
V14-15 ‘Your New Moons and your appointed feasts my soul hates; they are a trouble to Me, I am weary of bearing them. When you spread out your hands, I will hide My eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood.’ When we realise our attitude is not right, we must make it right in front of God and in front of people. Be willing to repent and return, admit our sins, and make it right with God wholeheartedly. Every time when we pray and when we come before God, we must come with the fear and trembling, to be serious about every opportunity we can serve God and we can come before Him.
Section Two V16-20 Quickly Return
V16-17 ‘Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes. Cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, rebuke the oppressor; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow.’ Again and again, God reminds us to preach the Good News. This also responds to Isaiah 61, where we received the Mark of God and the Authority of God to go out for Him.
Section Three V21-31 God will Intervene
V21 ‘How the faithful city has become a harlot! It was full of justice; righteousness lodged in it, but now murderers.’ We become murderers when we don’t share the Good News to others. Because we block the way for them to eternal life. We must treasure every opportunity we are given to guide people on the right path with the Word of God and His Teachings.
V27-28 ‘Zion shall be redeemed with justice, and her penitents with righteousness. The destruction of transgressors and of sinners shall be together, and those who forsake the Lord shall be consumed.’ God is still at work, do we willing to be the good and faithful servants? Let go of what we are holding onto tightly, stop being the murderers, let us fish for people, disciple the nation, and let the Good News spread to the end of the earth!
以赛亚书 1 – 无神的世代
2022年4月5日 星期二
潘锡安牧师
一个王朝过去，另一个王朝兴起，无论谁作王，神仍然在讲话。很多时候我们不知道神在讲话，以为他已经不关心现在的我们了，但其实神关心每一个世代，因为神是爱。唯有在神的话语中，我们才看到神的爱和恩典。人穷尽一生，不管多大年纪都在寻找爱，而这位创造天地的主就是爱。以赛亚书给我们传递的就是关于爱、恩典、祝福的信息。
一、v.1-15 再不一样
神在创造人之前花了几天创造世界万物，就是为了他所爱的的人。但是，在一个无神的世代，人不知道、也不想知道神是爱，只用自己的方法来寻找爱。
V2a 天和地要听的是万军之耶和华所说的话。我们是否有在听，还是忙着自己的事？我们不仅要听，还要“侧耳而听”，因为这是非常重要的信息。
V2b-3 我们是否能先神后人再大地？还是“悖逆”我们的神？这个月是穆斯林的斋戒月，他们用一个月的时间去禁食祷告、亲近他们的“神”，甚至会为了他们要守的节期而从工作中请假，而我们呢，是否对主有这样的热情，是否愿意在周日的时候为主分别为圣？我们不以神为神，不去想起神，以为靠自己就可以 成事，这就是“不认识…不留意”我们的神。我们是否愿意在做事前先花时间与神沟通，是否在自己熟悉的工作和日常生活中可以感谢神、看到神的爱？我们渐渐的再不一样，从一开始对神有如“热恋”般的爱到后来只剩下doing的模式。
V4 不要以为自己整天服事上帝就是好的，神在对这些人说：“你与我生疏”。我们祷告时，是否很享受跟神说亲密的话，还是只拿着一个“购物清单”来叫神帮我们做事？我们跟从神，却“往后退步”，再不一样。我们是否愿意鉴察自己的生命？
V6-7 我们全身都是伤口，里面已经千疮百孔，来到教却会只看到要求、规定，根本感觉不到神是爱，心里充满抱怨和批评论断。当我们没有去经历神爱的滋润时，我们的地土就“荒凉”了。我们里面本是一亩良田，如今长满荆棘、野草，看不到天父的花园，只有枯干，所以只是靠着自己的doing去经历神。
V9 天地虽然改变，神的爱永不改变！
V11 奉献本来是爱的回应，就好像一位母亲不会整天追着孩子说自己爱他们然后就要他们给她钱。我们要让人重新感受到神的爱，他们才会愿意回应爱。神需要的不是我们的奉献，只是我们看自己的钱和时间很重要，神就让我们借着献出我们看为重要的东西来表达对神的爱。神并不喜悦那些祭物，因为人给出来的时候心不甘情不愿。
V12 我们在教会没有传奉献袋去跟人讨钱，我们自己是否能在去聚会前愿意因着感恩神而奉献？我们不要看每件事情是必然会发生的，要懂得在生活中的事情看到神，并感恩他。不要因为要做事而抱怨，而要感恩神给我们机会能在教会服事。我们若以为自己做得很多，甚至多过我们的牧者，因而批评论断他们，我们就要为我们做错的事负上代价，愿意带礼物去赔礼道歉。当我们与罪彻底隔绝，神的祝福才临到。
V13 去聚会的时候，我们的心态是什么？当牧师要我们每天一起祷告、找十件事情感恩时，我们是否在心里抱怨？
V14 我们愿意让神来担当吗？我们不愿意，只想靠自己快点解决事情，不愿意举手祷告、敬拜时也不开口唱歌。摩西当初在山上举手到手发麻，要让人扶着他继续举手，如此山下的约书亚才能打胜仗。我们在敬拜、祷告的时候，是否愿意高举双手，是否有谦卑柔和的心？
二、v.16-20 快快地回转
V16-17 “行善”就是做神眼中看为对的事。“解救受欺压的”就是以赛亚书61章第1节所讲的。我们是否因为要传福音而喜乐，还是觉得很难？
V20 “刀剑”就是地狱。这段话是自有永有的耶和华神说的，若不听从，就是被地狱吞灭。
三、v.21-31 神必出手
V21 “凶手”就是杀人流血的，我们可能没有真的“杀人”，但当我们不愿意将福音传给人又在他们进入永生的道路上拦阻他们、不将好东西分享给人，一句话、一个眼神将人推向撒旦那里，我们就是“凶手”。求神帮助我们能珍惜机会，引人归主，得人如得鱼！
V25 我们来到神的面前，领受神的话，是为了炼尽、除净我们里面属世的东西。
V27-28 我们相信神还在做事吗？是否愿意成为忠心又良善的仆人，是否愿意回转，放下杀人的屠刀，让福音广传大地、门训万民？