QT 15/01/2025 Wed. Nehemiah 13. Maintenance of Purity.
QT 15/01/2025 Wed. Nehemiah 13. Maintenance of Purity.
READ http://www.esvbible.org/neh13
Worshippers of the LORD need to carefully maintain their relationship with Him by being vigilant not to introduce temptations or compromises that might be brought by non-worshippers into the worshippers' midst.
Nehemiah 13:1-3 and 13:23–29 set out Nehemiah's interaction with foreigners, e.g. those from Ashdod, Ammon and Moab. It was not that true believers or converts from these surrounding nations were disallowed to worship the LORD or barred from community life. Rather, it was more that the behaviours of Ammon and Moab were used by Nehemiah to point out to readers that these foreign nations ultimately had a blue print and ultimate purpose in life that was different from Israel's.
REFLECTION: A different blue print of life brought about from elsewhere not only distracted believers from spiritual growth, these different values might even harm existing believers and their spiritual community, don't you agree?
The text followed with examples of this different value system:
(1) 13:4–9 displayed the illegality of using a large chamber in the house of God for non-designated use by non-authorised persons;
(2) 13:10–14 narrated the failure to keep God's laws in providing for the Levites and singers as they maintained and sustained their worship rites in the house of God. Nehemiah corrected these neglect of the laws of God.
(3) 13:15–22 dealt with not keeping the Sabbath. Trading continued throughout the Sabbath day and throughout the city of Jerusalem itself. Nehemiah commanded that the doors be shut for Sabbath (13:19).
APPLICATION: For the challenges or ridicules that we might face for keeping to God's laws, we courageously obey and pray like Nehemiah, "Remember me, O my God, concerning this, and do not wipe out my good deeds that I have done for the house of my God and for his service" (Nehemiah 13:14 ESV. See similar prayers at 13:22, 29, 31).
QT 15/01/2025 星期三. 尼希米 13. 保持纯洁。
http://m.bbintl.org/bible/ncv/neh/13
敬拜耶和华的人需要小心维护他们与耶和华的关系,警惕不要把非敬拜者可能带来的试探或妥协带入敬拜者中间。
《尼希米记》13:1-3 和 13:23-29 记述了尼希米与外族人(如来自亚实突、亚扪和摩押的人)的交往。这并不是说不允许真正的信徒或来自周边国家的悔改后敬拜耶和华的人的加入,或禁止他们参与群体生活。相反,尼希米用亚扪人和摩押人的行为向读者指出,这些外邦人的生活蓝图和最终目的与以色列人或耶和华真正的敬拜者有很大的不同。
反思:从别处带来的不同的生活蓝图不仅会分散信徒的注意力,影响他们的属灵成长,这些不同的价值观甚至会伤害现有的信徒和他们的属灵群体,你同意吗?
接下来的经文举例说明了这种不同的价值体系:
(1)13:4-9 展示了非授权人员使用神的殿中的大房间的非法性,又储藏不合法的货物。
(2)13:10-14 讲述了执行的人忽视神的律法,没有供应利未人和歌手在神的殿中维持敬拜仪式时的需要。尼希米纠正了这些对神律法的忽视。
(3)13:15-22 涉及不守安息日。在整个安息日和整个耶路撒冷城里,交易都在继续。因此,尼希米命令在安息日关闭城门,禁止买卖(13:19)。
应用:对于我们因遵守神的律法而可能面临的挑战或嘲笑,我们要勇敢地顺服,并像尼希米一样祷告:"我的 神啊,求你因这事记念我,不要涂抹我为我 神的殿和一切敬拜的礼仪所行的忠诚的事(尼希米记 13:14。类似的祷告见 13:22、29、31)。