Author: Dan Liu

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大約公元50年，保羅和同工在腓立比地區停留 (《使徒行傳》16章)，呂底亞和獄卒一家，還有一些當地人都因為他們的見證而改變受洗了。隨後不久，使徒們就起程前往帖撒羅尼迦 (《使徒行傳》17:1)，那麼是誰繼續建立腓立比教會門徒的信心成長呢？除了保羅激勵的講道和個別的特殊經歷外，他們還可以怎樣更加認識耶穌？又從何知道神對他們生命的期望呢？

對我們來說，簡單直接。手指輕輕一滑，就有《新舊約全書》在面前，還有五花八門的工具軟件幫助我們了解生與死、耶穌的復活和早期教會的生活。互聯網上提供了眾多的《聖經》譯本、評論講解和靈修資料，帶領我們每天與神同行。那麼，第一世紀的外邦門徒又有甚麼可以依靠呢？最早的《新約》書信，估計是在公元49年左右^[1]Ben Witherington III, The New Testament Story(Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2004), 48.寫成的《加拉太書》，並且在各地教會傳閱誦讀。可是，在書信還沒有送達之前，這些早期門徒是如何學習耶穌的生命和教導呢？             

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_{^{Bifolio from Paul’s Letter to the Romans, the end of Paul’s Letter to the Philippians and the beginning of Paul’s Letter to the Colossians, from a codex containing the Pauline Epistles. Greek on papyrus. Egypt, c. 200 AD. CBL BP II ff.15&90, University of Michigan, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons}}

In Philippi around 50 C.E., Lydia, the jailer, his family, and the other converts there were transformed by the witness of Paul and his companions during their stay in the city (Acts 16), but as the apostle traveled on to Thessalonica (Acts 17:1), to whom did the Philippian church turn to grow in their faith? After this inspiring experience, how could they learn more about Jesus and how He wanted them to live? 

Continue reading “How Did the Early Disciples Learn about Jesus? (Dan Liu)”

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此文章乃中文譯本。英語原版在此 (Click here for the original English version)

誰是「撒瑪利亞人」？《新約》對他們的描述，能怎樣幫助我們去了解他們？讓我們從耳熟能詳的《約翰福音》第4章耶穌與撒馬利亞婦人的故事開始，他們的對話凸顯猶太人與撒瑪利亞人不少相同或相異的地方：他們有共同的祖先 ——  婦人稱「我們的祖宗」是雅各（4：12），她部分血緣可追溯到亞伯拉罕；而婦人和耶穌相遇的地方就在雅各井（《約翰福音》4：6，《創世紀》33：19，《約書亞記》24：32）。接下來的對話讓我們知道，撒瑪利亞人和猶太人對應當在哪裡敬拜意見不同  ——  猶太人認為必須在耶路撒冷，撒瑪利亞人則一向在撒瑪利亞的基利心山敬拜。最終，撒瑪利亞人與猶太人一樣，都正等待「彌賽亞」的降臨（4：25）。

Continue reading “誰是「撒瑪利亞人」？ (Dan Liu)”

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此文章乃中文譯本。英語原版在此 (Click here for the original English version)

         上一篇文章提到聖靈給予我們方向和動力，達成三個層面的使命：我們歡喜領會何謂「聖靈」所結的的果子（加拉太書5:22-23)；聖靈帶領我們委身傳揚耶穌的信息（使徒行傳8章）；聖靈使肢體互相效力，運用各人恩賜以互補不足（哥林多前書12章；羅馬書12章）。

Continue reading “聖靈：在末後的日子帶來盼望 (Dan Liu)”

Click here for the Chinese edition (此文章乃英語原版。中文譯本按此)

A previous article briefly outlined three areas of mission where the Holy Spirit guides and empowers us. We rejoice that we can understand what “Spiritual” fruit looks like (Gal. 5:22-23), that the Spirit leads us as we embody and proclaim the message of Jesus (Acts 8), and that the Spirit orchestrates our mutual collaboration as we share our Spirit-bestowed gifts with those around us (I Cor.12, Rom. 12).

Continue reading “The Holy Spirit Gives Us Hope in the Last Days (Dan Liu)”

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Click here for the Chinese edition (此文章乃英語原版。中文譯本按此)

     Earlier we traced the Holy Spirit’s leadership of the church in Acts. As we appreciate this larger story, how do we recognize the Holy Spirit leading us at “our” level, in our personal daily lives? How do we, empowered by the Holy Spirit, fit into God’s broader mission in the world? How can we discern when the Holy Spirit is directing us, and when it may just be our interest or desire leading us? (Warning: we probably won’t arrive at the answer as to whether the Holy Spirit wants you to take that particular job or not, but we can understand better some principles that can help guide us.) How can we “walk by the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16)? Let’s seek some answers as to how the Holy Spirit guides us to participate in God’s mission today.

Continue reading “How does the Holy Spirit guide and empower us for God’s mission? (Dan Liu)”