We Love God!

God: "I looked for someone to take a stand for me, and stand in the gap" (Ezekiel 22:30)

If you want to raise a Pharisee, just follow these simple steps (sarcasm!). 1. Make the Christian home all about rule-keeping (do’s and don’t’s), but never explain to them why we should follow God’s Word. 2. Add your own rules to God’s Word and make them more important than God’s Word. 3. Strictly enforce the rules on your children, but give yourself a pass. 4. Show your children nothing about grace, forgiveness, mercy and love. 5. Preach at them until they are blue in the face (bore them with the Bible) and never listen to what they have to say about God’s Word. 6. Make Jesus a burden rather than a blessing – make God’s Word a bondage rather than a liberation. 7. Give them no opportunity to think spiritually for themselves. 8. Fail to guide them in a spiritual worldview – teaching them how to process life with the Bible. 9. Praise their externals regardless of their motives. 10. Teach them to obey only because they have to and not because they should also want to as God’s commands come from a loving and trustworthy Father. 11. Make your disciple punishment rather than correction. 12. Demand self-reformation, rather than pointing them to Christ-transformation by grace. 13. Teach them to obey you as God rather than to obey God by obeying you. 14. Use Scripture and church as punishment. 15. Never pray for them. 16. Correct them more than you encourage them. 17. Beat your kids into external conformity, often to simply make yourself look good and do nothing to shepherd their hearts.
Randy Smith

Bible – chinese – 新标点和合本 以赛亚书 58

58
真正的禁食
你要大声喊叫,不可止息;
扬起声来,好像吹角。
向我百姓说明他们的过犯;
雅各家说明他们的罪恶。
他们天天寻求我,
乐意明白我的道,
好像行义的国民,
不离弃他们 神的典章,
向我求问公义的判语,
喜悦亲近 神。
他们说:我们禁食,你为何不看见呢?
我们刻苦己心,你为何不理会呢?
看哪,你们禁食的日子仍求利益,
勒逼人为你们做苦工。
你们禁食,却互相争竞,
以凶恶的拳头打人。
你们今日禁食,
不得使你们的声音听闻于上。
这样禁食岂是我所拣选、
使人刻苦己心的日子吗?
岂是叫人垂头像苇子,
用麻布和炉灰铺在他以下吗?
你这可称为禁食、为耶和华所悦纳的日子吗?
 
我所拣选的禁食不是要松开凶恶的绳,
解下轭上的索,
使被欺压的得自由,
折断一切的轭吗?
不是要把你的饼分给饥饿的人,
将飘流的穷人接到你家中,
见赤身的给他衣服遮体,
顾恤自己的骨肉而不掩藏吗?
这样,你的光就必发现如早晨的光;
你所得的医治要速速发明。
你的公义必在你前面行;
耶和华的荣光必作你的后盾。
那时你求告,耶和华必应允;
你呼求,他必说:我在这里。
 
你若从你中间除掉
和指摘人的指头,并发恶言的事,
10 你心若向饥饿的人发怜悯,
使困苦的人得满足,
你的光就必在黑暗中发现;
你的幽暗必变如正午。
11 耶和华也必时常引导你,
在干旱之地使你心满意足,
骨头强壮。
你必像浇灌的园子,
又像水流不绝的泉源。
12 那些出于你的人必修造久已荒废之处;
你要建立拆毁累代的根基。
你必称为补破口的,
和重修路径与人居住的。
守安息日者的报赏
13 你若在安息日掉转+你的脚步,
在我圣日不以操作为喜乐,
称安息日为可喜乐的,
称耶和华的圣日为可尊重的;
而且尊敬这日,
不办自己的私事,
不随自己的私意,
不说自己的私话,
14 你就以耶和华为乐。
耶和华要使你乘驾地的高处,
又以你祖雅各的产业养育你。
这是耶和华亲口说的。

+ 58:13 或译:谨慎