becoming

對我來說，復活日所帶來的，確實是「震撼」而不是其他。門徒和婦女懼怕和懷疑的反應，或者是小信和懦弱的表現，卻是合情合理，甚至是必須的。在復活中，神的心意是要我們的生命被徹底的「搖陷」一下。懼怕和懷疑正是神所預期。相反，胸有成竹和不渝的堅持，卻與整個復活的記述格格不入。復活的基督不需要我們的信心和勇氣來成就；卻是告訴我們，生命中還是有很多的地方需要神的「震撼」來把那些小信和懦弱的雜質搖動乾淨。

孫牧在復活日的講道（1,2,3,4），正好說明這個道理：

So the first Easter did not begin with joy and hope naturally. “Great shock” from God broke through the darkness and woke up the whole world. With stone tolled away and tomb emptied, God declares that He has created a new world with new order. From now on life must be different. Because of the Resurrection, life is accountable only to the Lord of life, neither might or power, nor sin or death.

On this Easter morning, may the almight God shock us once again and remove our stone and raise our lost hope and power that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. May the Lord who has conquered death work within us that we may live a different life to witness the Shock and the Life.

可有留意三色「拿破崙」雪糕是Neapolitan，而不是 Napoleon？
我就一直以為是Napoleon（那位法國皇帝），於是不知將三色雪糕也讀作 Napoleon。

是近兩年，才發覺原來是Neapolitan，不是Napoleon。

再查一查，才知道雪糕與拿破崙，甚至法國，全扯不上關係！Neapolitan，是說明這雪糕製作人的「可能」來源地—意大利的那不勒斯（Naples）。

記住啦，下次要戴眼食（雪）糕！

[link]

Michael Pahl from Three Hills, Alberta, wrote a nice little piece on what’s so good about “good friday”?

隨著使徒們，教會被差遣—
帶著天國的福音，教會被差遣
使萬民作門徒；
叫飢餓的飽足；
宣告奉基督的名字，
凡悔改相信的，
必得著罪的赦免和新生的確據。
昭告我們這世界是屬於神的。
在一個離開神的世界，
無數人面對迷亂的抉擇，
這使命正是我們存在的中心，
因為我們在宣告一個能拯救的名字。

耶穌基督的管治覆蓋整個世界。
跟從這主就是在一切的地方中事奉祂，
並不隨波逐流，
如光在黑暗中，
如鹽於腐朽的世界裡。

Contemporary Testimony: 44-45 [我的翻譯]

第五幕：昭告君王的喜訊：教會的任務
第一場：由耶路撒冷到羅馬（使徒行傳與保羅）

Mar 16 2008

神與聖經 課堂錄音:

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

筆記:

1. 投影筆記(pdf)
2. 覆習問題(pdf)

下週經文（請自選一組）：

1. 經文1：弗1-2 章
2. 經文2：以弗所書全卷；西1 章
3. 經文3：以弗所書全卷；腓立比書全卷；哥羅西書全卷

Author, poet, pastor and professor Eugene Peterson talks about the importance of story. Peterson is joined host Dean Nelson in Part 2 of the 2007 Writers Symposium by the Sea, sponsored by Point Loma Nazarene University. Series: “Writer’s Symposium By The Sea” [4/2007]

[HT:littleho]

我開始明白，當耶穌講述聽眾難明的道理時，為何總是愛用比喻。

這個短片也是個比喻，是「大筵席比喻」的一個變種。

Only when I saw Jocelyn holding a paper palm leaf in her little hand on Sunday, I realized I have forgotten that yesterday was actually Palm Sunday. Coming home feeling a bit guilty, I came across this fantastic Palm Sunday sermon by Kim Fabricius over at Faith & Theology. Just read the final paragraph and you will know what I mean:

…you’re supposed to be a preacher, and isn’t the whole point of the sermon to make it easier to understand God, to increase our faith, so that we can go back to the world feeling edified, uplifted, and ready to share the Good News? Not today it’s not. Today I can’t help you. This week no one can help you. Come Friday, not even God – especially not God – can help you. And come Saturday, God himself is lying in a tomb. Emptiness. Zero. Nothing. But might it be a pregnant emptiness, a significant zero, a silent nothing that yet says everything? (after Alan E. Lewis). We shall have to wait till Easter. Only then shall we learn that this Week is Holy, and its Friday Good. Only then may we just find a new faith rising from the old faith that I pray you will lose today.

Read the whole thing here.