Monday, 6th March 2023
Rev Daniel Xi An Poon
Section One V1-6 Pay Attention to Listen to the Word of God
V1-2 ‘My son, pay attention to my wisdom; lend your ear to my understanding, that you may preserve discretion, and your lips may keep knowledge.’ King Hezekiah was in a dark time; therefore he sought the wisdom of Kins Solomon, and was determined to find the light. Today we are also living in darkness, we are so often indulged in the things of the world, and we don’t see God in our lives. God is the God of generations, He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and as the followers of God, we are blessed. Every day is the day of blessings, and every day is the day of victory, as long as we walk in the way of God, His Word is the light of our path and the lamp to our feet. God is the living water, He is guiding us, and when we are willing to be planted by the streams of water, He will provide us everything we need to walk through today.
Exodus 28:2-3 says, ‘And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty. So you shall speak to all who are gifted artisans, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron’s garments, to consecrate him, that he may minister to Me as priest.’ Here God tells us that wisdom are from Him, it’s not what we can earn but what He will fill us with. He will cloth us with wisdom, and by listening and paying attention, we can hear everything He say to us that is full of wisdom. Every word comes from our mouth will also be coming from the wisdom of God, not from this world.
Deuteronomy 4:6 also says ‘Therefore be careful to observe them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes, and say, surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ So why is it so important to pay attention and to listen? We don’t like to be disciplined, we don’t like to be corrected, but a lot of time, when our authority is talking to us, we are receiving the wisdom and understanding from above. Let us learn to listen, not only what we want to hear, but also things we don’t like to listen. God wants us to listen to Him, not to ourselves and not to this world. King Solomon was talking to his son, because he wanted his son to receive blessings. Our Heavenly Father also wants us to receive blessings, but He knows that we are looking at ourselves more than we should, therefore He wants us to listen.
V3-4 ‘For the lips of an immoral woman drip honey, and her mouth is smoother than oil; but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword.’ The Lord’s Prayer says, ‘may Your Kingdom come on earth as it is in Heaven’, God wants us to walk out the Will of God, to carry out the works of the Heaven, not of this world. On the other hand, if we don’t pay attention to listen, then it’s easy to fall into the dark world, the sinful thoughts, the own lustful desires, and we will begin to think that the things of this world are good. Jesus used the Word of God to overcome all temptation, therefore today we must listen so we will not fall into the snares of the devil.
Section Two V7-14 Walk in the Word of God
V8 ‘Remove your way far from her, and do not go near the door of her house.’ The way we must choose is to stay away, stay away from the things we desire in this world, the things that stop us to hear God’s Word. God does not want us to suffer, but anything that is not promised by God, anything that doesn’t belong to us, we must not greed for it. Be satisfied with what God has given to us, our possessions and our gifts. Gifts are from God, we must see that all gifts we have are from God, do not make assumptions, and do not believe in the inner vows, but to really see the gifts God has given to us are good. So how do we know what are the gifts from God? Our gifts should help us to fish for people, and to disciple the nation for God. Our gifts should not make us the slaves of Egypt and to stay in the world, unable to enter the Promised Land.
V11-12 ‘And you mourn at last, when your flesh and your body are consumed, and say: How I have hated instruction, and my heart despised correction!’ We must strive to live out the purposes of God for us, things that count in the eternity. So, what do we focus on? Do we want the things of the world that will perish or the things in the eternity? Do not wait until it’s too late to repent, do not wait until we are too tired and too weary. Then we will realise that we should have listened to the instruction and the correction. We are the people of the Kingdom of God, therefore choose life, choose the Word of God, and choose to stay away from the wicked, the sinner, and the scornful.
Section Three V15-23 Focus on the Word of God
V15-16 ‘Drink water from your own cistern, and running water from your own well. Should your fountains be dispersed abroad, streams of water in the streets?’ To we want to receive the world, or do we want to receive God Himself? We must choose life, choose the drink the living water, which has been prepared by God for us. He has prepared the abundant streams of water for us, but then why do we drink from the streets? Why do we choose the world, instead of God?
V17-18 ‘Let them be only your own, and not for strangers with you. Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice with the wife of your youth.’ God is our only source; do we see God’s blessings are for us to be satisfied? God’s Will is for us to be fruitful, do not see our children as our burdens, and do not let our children be our god. God will bless us with children, therefore, we must see God’s purpose for us to have children and to have a family. All blessings are from God, the autumn rain and the spring rain are from God, all we have should help us to receive God more and to serve God more. God’s blessings will be with us and our generations to come.
Do we see God’s great Works in our lives? Do we lift up God in our everyday life and give thanks God in front of people? We always seek the knowledge of other people, we want what others have, and we fail to see what God has already done for us. When we focus on God, we can see God’s blessings in our lives, in our family, in our career…
V21-23 ‘For the ways of man are before the eyes of the Lord, and He ponders all his paths. His own iniquities entrap the wicked man, and he is caught in the cords of his sin. He shall die for lack of instruction, and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.’ When we focus in the Word of God, the Way of God, be the tree planted by the streams of water, then we will not go astray, we will bear fruits in seasons, our leaves will not wither, and we will be blessed.
箴言 5 – 黑暗中跟从神
2023年3月6日 星期一
潘锡安牧师
本章一开始的“我儿”一词吸引着寻找父爱的孤儿，在黑暗中带下明光。如今的我们似乎对未来看不到盼望，只想过好今天，放纵当下的情欲，因为不知道明天会怎样。我们要跟从神，而不是跟从这个世界或我们自己里面如穷凶猛兽般的情欲？跟从神，我们就知道我们是蒙福的，我们要如一棵树栽在溪水旁，让神带领我们前面的道路。
一、v.1-6 要留心听神的道
V1-2 “智慧”一词出自出埃及记28:3 – 智慧不是我们努力赚取的，而是神“用智慧的灵所充满的”。我们的一切智慧不是从人而来，所以要留心听神给我们所有的话语。“聪明”一词出自申命记4:6，“聪明的言辞”就是神给他的儿女的话语。 有时候我们听权柄的教导或指示时心里很不情愿，因为他们讲的不是我们想要的。所罗门在说这段话时，用的是一个父亲的身份，他希望自己的儿女能领受祝福。同样，我们的阿爸天父也希望我们能蒙祝福，只是我们过于高看自己，唯有神才真知道我们。
V3-6 神显明给我们看的旨意是行在天上的旨意，不是属于这个世界的，是真正对我们好，因此我们要留心听！当我们没有留心听神的话，我们就会掉入这个世界的黑暗和自己的情欲当中。荣华富贵、从人来的爱、我行我素的自由，这些都是世人想要的，但我们要学习耶稣，用神的话语拒绝从撒旦而来的诱惑。
二、v.7-14 要行在神的道
V7 我们“现在”就要听从神的教导，并行在他的话语中。
V8 我们不是高举受苦神学，但当面对不是神给我们的事物时，我们要谨慎。不要让世界影响从神而来的“恩赐”- “恩赐”不是我们用来赢取世界的工具，而是帮助我们得人如得鱼。很多人用所谓的“恩赐”活在为奴为仆的埃及里，以为可以享受地上的财富，然而神看重的是在永恒里的福乐，我们看重的是什么呢？
V9-10 我们本可以在天上聚集财宝，可是我们贪恋地上的财宝，最后在神的审判中站立不住。
V11-14 当我们身心疲惫的时候，我们就会后悔当初没有听从训诲和责备，可惜为时已晚。我们不要藐视神的教导，求神帮助我们行在他的道。
三、v.15-23 要专注于神的道
V15-18 神给我们的活水江河，我们有没有专注于神？神已经为我们预备了“池”和“井”，我们有专注其中吗？我们选择的是什么呢？“不可与外人同用”提醒我们要分别为圣。
V18-19 我们的祝福不是从世界而来，神要我们看重与他的“爱情”，又要看重能“生养众多”是神所赐的福。神给我们的儿女不是包袱，而是他给我们的产业。我们也不要把婚姻或儿女当成我们的“偶像”，只满足自己家庭的需要。我们所有的祝福都是从神而来，当我们愿意先神后人再大地时，就会看见神的祝福和带领在我们的儿女身上。我们一边跟着教会，另外又跟随世界，因为我们总以为外面的更好，无法专注于神借着教会给我们的教导。
V21 我们想跟随世界的路，神就会来“修平”我们。我们最终会筋疲力尽、充满抱怨。
22-23 恶人所走的是死亡的路。唯有专注于神的道路，我们才能如那棵栽在溪水旁大树，按时候结果子，叶子不枯干，凡我们所行的尽都顺利！