QT 15/09/2024 Sun. Philippians 3. Strive towards the more valuable. 努力追求那更有价值的.
QT 15/09/2024 Sun. Philippians 3. Strive towards the more valuable.
http://www.esvbible.org/phi3
When we hit a dead end in life, God has more doors opened to you than you think. Life is still worth living to its fullest, if we "forget" what lies behind as Paul has put it (Phi 3:13). Indeed, we see Paul, in prison, but he was still "straining forward" (Phi 3:13):
He encouraged people to rejoice (Phi 3:1);
He focused on their spiritual welfare-exhorting them to look out for the "dogs", evildoers, mutilators of the flesh (Phi 3:2) and enemies of the cross" (Phi 3:18);
He persuaded them, using his own impeccable record (Phi 3:4-7), that he valued the worth and supremacy of Christ, and not the futility of his own past religious life. Be truly forward looking (Phi 3:21).
REFLECTION: Are you young or old? It doesn't matter. There might be those whose ages are young but their speeches prove that they are old. On the other hand, there are those who are old but still smell of the fresh breeze of a beautiful field when you talk to them. Be around them and you get refreshed.
APPLICATION: Recognise our struggles, but behave like citizens of heaven (Phi 3:20), because we already are. Await the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, "who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body" (Phi 3:20-21).
Facing the opponents of the gospel, we need to bear in mind that (1) righteousness comes from faith in Christ. Paul saw the inability of his pre-Christ religion to obtain favour before God (2) Rejoice in the LORD always, even as we warn others who wish to reduce the abundant life in Christ down to a few rules to hold (3) you have to let go of what you used to hold dearly but now have the surpassing privilege of getting to know Christ.
These privileges are of high value, yet easily forgotten as we live out the "dusty roads" of life on earth. That's the reason we call direct reminders through regular attendance at church services, diligent participation in the Bible classes provided and regular fellowship and honest evaluation of where we are now and how to move forward.
星期日 2024年9月15日 今日读经：腓立比书3章. 努力追求那更有价值的.
http://m.bbintl.org/bible/ncv/Phl/3/
当我们走投无路时，神会为你开启更多的扇门，那是超乎你预料的。生命是值得认真去过的，如果我们如保罗所说的“忘记”背后(腓3:13)。确实，我们看到保罗在监狱里，但他仍然“努力面前”(腓3:13):
他鼓励人们要喜乐(腓3:1)；
他专注在他们的属灵生命--呼吁他们要提防那些“狗”、那些作恶的、提防那些行割礼的(腓3:2)和十字架的仇敌(腓3:18)；
他劝告他们，用自己无可挑剔的记录(腓3:4-7)，说他把耶稣基督视为至宝和至上的，而不看自己过去虚荣的宗教生活。好好地向前看(腓3:21)。
反思：你是年轻的还是年老的？这都无所谓。或许会有一些人年纪轻轻的，但他们的言论却说明他们是老的。但另一方面，也有一些年纪大的，但是当你和他们谈天时却能嗅到美丽的青草地的芬芳。常与他们在一起，你就会感觉清新。
应用：认清我们的挣扎，但却要像天上的公民(腓3:20)，因为我们已经是公民了。等待救主，主耶稣基督，祂将“改变我们这卑贱的身体，和他荣耀的身体相似”(腓3:20-21)。
面对福音的反对者，我们需要牢记：（1）公义来自对基督的信心。保罗看到了他在基督之前的宗教生活无法在神面前获得喜悦 （2）我们要靠主常常喜乐，正如我们警告那些希望把基督里的丰盛生命简化为几条规则的人一样。（3）你必须放下你过去所珍视的，但现在却有了认识基督的超乎寻常的特权。
这些特权具有很高的价值，但当我们在这 “尘土飞扬的道路 ”上生活时，却很容易会忘记。这就是为何我们需要通过定期参加教会聚会、勤奋参加提供的圣经课程、定期团契和诚实评估我们现在所处的位置以及如何前进来直接提醒自己的原因。
