Friday, 29th July 2022
Rev Daniel Xi An Poon
At this time, the kingdom of Israel has ended, king Hezekiah was captured, the culture was destroyed, and people started to live in the ways of Babylon. Their next generation was learning the ways of Babylon and they lost their faith in God. They started building their own idols and walking away from God. God will not destroy the idols, because they are created by people. God’s Will for us is good, He wants us to preach the good news, not to focus on the idols.
We thought the idols are stopping us to come to God, we tend to focus on finding the idols in our lives and destroying them, but God’s focus is on us. The hearts of people are far eviler than idols.
Section One V1-4 There’s No One Noble Apart From Him
V1 ‘Come down and sit in the dust, o virgin daughter of Babylon; sit on the ground without a throne, o daughter of the Chaldeans! For you shall no more be called tender and delicate.’ The Israelites lost their kingdom, and they saw the richness in Babylon. We see much richness in the world, we thought that worldly things can make us nobles, but everything in the world will fade away. God wants His chosen ones to see His Name bigger than everything else. God has the power to deliver us, not Babylon, not this world.
Section Two V5-11 There’s No One Merciful Apart From Him
V5-6 ‘Sit in silence, and go into darkness, o daughter of the Chaldeans; for you shall no longer be called the Lady of Kingdoms. I was angry with My people; I have profaned My inheritance and given them into your hand. You showed them no mercy; on the elderly, you laid your yoke very heavily.’ No matter how hard we work for the things of the world, the world cannot give us mercy. We want to win the world with our diligence and hard work, but we will not be able to because there’s no mercy apart from God.
V8-9 ‘Therefore hear this now, you who are given to pleasures, who dwell securely, who say in your heart, I am, and there is no one else besides me; I shall not sit as a widow, nor shall I know the loss of children’; but these two things shall come to you in a moment, in one day: the loss of children, and widowhood. They shall come upon you in their fullness because of the multitude of your sorceries, for the great abundance of your enchantments.’ We rely on the wisdom and knowledge of this world, we only treat God’s Word as a reference. We are not here to win the world, because Holy Spirit comes so we can be convicted by sin, by judgement and by righteousness. We walk astray and not on the path of God, and disasters will come to us.
V10-11 ‘For you have trusted in your wickedness; you have said, ‘No one sees me’; your wisdom and your knowledge have warped you, and you have said in your heart, ‘I am, and there is no one else besides me.’ Therefore evil shall come upon you; you shall not know from where it arises. And trouble shall fall upon you; you will not be able to put it off. And desolation shall come upon you suddenly, which you shall not know.’ We think that our matters are most important, we are selfish, we complain about the previous generation and we don’t teach our next generation. Let us make sharing the Good News our top priority.
Section Three V12-15 There’s No One Reliable Apart From Him
V15 ‘Thus shall they be to you with whom you have laboured, your merchants from your youth; they shall wander each one to his quarter. No one shall save you.’ There’s nothing we can rely on in this world. We receive so much information every day, but nothing can really help us apart from God. All these are useless to us if we don’t align with God.
以赛亚书 47 – 一切都在乎耶和华
2022年7月29日 星期五
潘锡安牧师
本章经文字面上是在跟巴比伦说话，但其实整本以赛亚书都是在对神子民说话。犹大已经国破家亡，百姓被掳到巴比伦，失去了自己的文化、身份，被巴比伦文化影响，就好像当初在埃及为奴为仆的以色列百姓一样，逐渐不认识神，反而慢慢被埃及人同化。以赛亚书作者鼓励犹大百姓，让他们不失去对耶和华神的盼望和跟从，不去拜巴比伦偶像，让他们的心不再定睛在巴比伦的繁荣。我们的神是创造主，除他以外别无他神，神不会追着偶像去处理它们，就好像耶稣来到世上的时候并没有到处去找人“赶鬼”，而是专注在将得救的福音传给我们，因此，我们的重点也是要将福音传扬、门训万民。我们要在神的话语里下功夫，但我们若主次不分，就会失去前面的方向。我们对天国的道理有多渴慕，对永生有多重视？当门徒们明白天国、永生的宝贵之后，愿意为此摆上自己的生命。神不需要对巴比伦的偶像或人说话，因为他们不会听，神真正要对付的是他所拣选的仆人。因我们的心、我们里面的叛逆不信其实比偶像、邪灵更可怕，阻挡了神的作为，所以神要处理我们生命的问题。
一、v.1-4 除他以外别无尊贵
向着世界的人所思所想的其实就是金钱。那些被掳亡国的犹大百姓在巴比伦看到的都是当地的好处。“处女”、“闺女”都是人觉得尊贵的，但神说，这些你们觉得尊贵的都要下来、“坐在地上”。我们看为好的东西最后都要暴露出来，被看见丑陋的一面，因为神要让他的子民看见，“我们救赎主的名是万军之耶和华以色列的圣者”（V4）。巴比伦虽然强大，但是神会为他的百姓报仇，不要看巴比伦眼前的繁华而被蒙蔽，这些都会过去，一切都在乎我们的救赎主耶和华！
二、v.5-11 除他以外别无怜悯
我们不要以为我们为这个世界尽心尽力就会得救，神说除他以外别无怜悯。
V6-7 巴比伦自以为是“列国的主母”，但神说他们对人“毫不怜悯”。巴比伦代表这个世界，我们想要努力赢得这个世界，但他们是不会怜悯我们的，到头来都是虚空。
V10 我们是否靠着自己的聪明、智慧而没有走在神给我们的托付里？我们自以为可以赢得世界，把神的话语当作“参考”。圣灵来不是只给我们参考前面的方向，而是要我们为罪为义为审判自己责备自己。
V11 当我们靠着自己的智慧聪明而没有倚靠神的时候，就会“偏邪”（V10），没有走在神的道路，“因此，祸患要临到你身……所不知道的毁灭，也必忽然临到你身”。在过去的世代，神用许多神迹奇事彰显自己的能力，我们是否将神带给下一代？父母自己吃了苦，于是想努力留财富给下一代让他们不要那么苦，然而，最重要的“财富”是将神的话语教导下一代、让他们到老都不偏离。我们对下一代是否太过溺爱？我们自己是否也没有感恩的心，只在乎自己的事，从父母那里拿东西，却对他们的付出斤斤计较？这是因为上一代没有将圣经的真理、神的大能教导年轻一代。传福音不再是最重要的事，我们只看重先知预言、赶鬼等恩赐能力，花时间“修炼”自己，只是让自己变得更好。新冠疫情已经三年，我们若不明白神的心意，就太可惜了。求神让我们看到生命的脆弱和短暂，让传福音成为我们生命中最重要的事。
三、v.12-15 除他以外无可依靠
我们不要向往世界，不要以为世界会帮助我们成功，我们要知道除了耶和华以外，其他别无所靠。
V12-13a 我们整天好像在赌博一样，想从世界、财富或别人身上得到爱。我们筹划太多，整天想着发财致富、安家置业、拥有权力或得到人的肯定，以致无法安静，最后就“疲倦”了。我们知道自己已经疲劳了吗？唯有跟随神是轻省的。
V13b 现在网路上有很多预测的工具、文章教我们如何做事，但神说这些不能帮助我们，他们连自己都救不了。
V15 那些让我们“劳神的事”都与我们无益。我们若没有对准神，心思意念都在世界上的事，最后只会一场空。神对他的百姓说，除他以外，别无可倚靠的。
我们是否还只在这个世界得到自己想要的东西，是否看这个世界比神更大？求神拿走我们里面为自己紧紧抓住的，学会放手，看到除神以外别无拯救，相信一切都在乎耶和华。