Friday, 7 May 2021
Title: Jesus is praying for us
By: Ps Cheng Cheung

John 17:9 “I pray for them . . . ”

All of us live our Christian lives in the context of an unholy world. Some face extraordinary temptation amid openly corrupt and morally debased behaviour. One who works in a secular commercial environment is often under tremendous pressure to compromise ethical standards to satisfy the greed of their employers. Christian business owners are tempted to bend legal rules and compliance requirements because it is more convenient. The Christian student often circulates in an environment polluted with crude language, sensuality and even a lack of sexual abstinence.

We have read that James says that religion that is pure and undefiled . . (is) to keep oneself unstained from the world. And Paul, in the context of Christians being the temple in which the Holy Spirit of God dwells, quoting Isaiah, says in 2 Corinthians 6:17 “Therefore ‘come out from their midst, and be separate,’ says the Lord, ‘and touch no unclean thing, and I will welcome you.’ He is advocating that believers not be “mismatched” or “unequally yoked” with non-believers.

Immediately, two questions arise:

(1) What encouragement can we draw from God’s Word that the Lord will enable us to set ourselves apart from the world?

Jesus’s prayer in John 17 shows the Lord’s tender concern for His disciples. And it is not just for the first century disciples, but He prays for all of His disciples through the years, including all present-day believers. Verse 20: “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word” And we can be sure that the Lord is also praying for us, NOW, while He is seated at the right hand of Our Heavenly Father. He prays for our preservation from moral evil (v 11-15), our sanctification (v 17) and our unification (21).

(2) And how are we to l͟i͟v͟e͟ i͟n͟ t͟h͟e͟ w͟o͟r͟l͟d͟ and yet not be o͟f͟ t͟h͟e͟ w͟o͟r͟l͟d͟ ?

It may sound simplistic, but there is no better way than to understand, “man shall not live by bread alone” means, and to resolve to live by His Word daily.

On a personal basis, various struggles, and temptations to “take things easy” in my walk with the Lord used to bother me regularly. Some still do, from time to time. But would you believe me if I shared that since last year, preparation to write the daily devotion caused me to read God’s Word much more intensively and with greater scrutiny and focus than I had in the past? Those portions of scripture and their application to my own life literally came alive!

For example, very honestly, until last year, I had not appreciated Psalms very much. But I sought to understand David’s many struggles and his intimate relationship with God as he expressed himself openly before God. This helped me identify with his many shortcomings and emotions. It also helped me understand why God dealt with David the way He did – with great compassion and yet uncompromisingly. I could identify with David. He is very much a man like you and me. But through his struggles and trials, he drew closer and closer to God. Similarly, I believe you and I would also be able to have an intimate relationship with the Lord and hear His voice and allow Him to guide us daily.

We don’t need to grit one’s teeth and thereby resist the world’s subtle, eroding influence on our own. But we do need to strengthen our spiritual life by feeding on God’s Word. This is what the Lord Himself prayed to the Father: John 17: 15 & 17
“I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but that you keep them safe from the evil one. Set them apart in the truth; your word is truth.”

May we seek to draw close to God daily through His Word.

My Prayer today

Lord Jesus, thank You for praying for me daily. Thank you for upholding me when I am spiritually, emotionally, and mentally weak. Thank You for providing a way of escape whenever I am tempted.
Draw me nearer to You daily. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

星期五，2021年5月7日
标题：耶稣为我们祈求
作者：张祯祥传道
翻译：巫惠如姐妹

约翰福音17:9 “耶稣说了这话，就举目望天说：…”

所有的基督徒都活在一个邪恶的世界。一些人面临巨大的诱惑，因为身旁的人都腐败和道德败坏。一个长期在商业环境中工作的人往往面临巨大的压力，被要求牺牲道德标准来满足雇主的贪婪。基督徒的企业家倾向于扭曲法律规则和合规要求，因为这样做更方便。基督徒学生也经常在语言粗俗、敏感甚至缺乏性禁欲的环境中生存。

我们读到雅各书说纯粹和纯洁的信仰是不让自己受世界玷污。在基督徒为圣灵的殿的背景下，保罗引用以赛亚的话，在林后6:17中说：“你们务要从他们中间出来，与他们分别，不要沾不洁净的物，我就收纳你们。” 他提倡信徒与未信者“原不相配”或“不要同负一轭”。

这马上就出现了两个问题：

(1)若上帝将使我们与世界分别，我们可以从祂的话语中得到怎样的启发呢？

耶稣在约翰17的祈祷表明了上帝对门徒的温柔关怀。不仅是为一世纪的门徒，祂还为祂的门徒祈祷了这么多年，包括所有当今的信徒。第20节：“我不但为这些人祈求，也为那些因他们的话信我的人祈求”，而且我们可以确定，当耶稣坐在天父的右边，祂此时此刻正在为我们祈祷。祂祈求我们脱离属世邪恶的捆绑（11-15节）、因真理成圣（17节）和合而为一（21节）。

(2)我们如何活在世上却不属它呢？

这听起来可能把事情简单化，但除了理解“人不能单靠食物”以及决心每天以祂的话过生活，没有比这更好的方法了。

从个人的角度看，在我过去与上帝同行时，各种“放松点～”的诱惑和挣扎常常困扰我。有些事仍时不时烦着我。但如果我说，从去年开始为了准备写每日灵修，我比过去更密集、更深入地阅读上帝的话，你会相信吗？部分的经文以及生活的应用立即鲜活起来！

例如，说实话，直到去年，我没有特别欣赏诗篇。但我试图理解大卫在上帝面前公开表达自己的许多挣扎以及他与上帝的亲密关系。这帮助我认识到他诸多的缺点和情感。这也帮助我理解为什么上帝会像对待大卫那样，虽怀着极大的怜悯，却也不妥协。我可以认同大卫。他很像你和我。但是通过他的挣扎与患难，他越来越亲近上帝。同样，我相信你和我也能够与上帝保持密切的关系，听到祂的声音，让祂每天指引我们。

我们不需要咬牙切齿，从而抵制世界那不易察觉，侵蚀性的影响。但我们确实需要依靠上帝的旨意来坚固我们的属灵生活。这就是耶稣亲自向天父所求的：

约翰17:15，17 “我不求你叫他们离开世界，只求你保守他们脱离那恶者。求你用真理使他们成圣，你的道就是真理。”

愿我们每天透过上帝的话来亲近祂。

今天的祈祷：主耶稣，谢谢你每天为我祈求。感谢你，当我属灵、情感和精神软弱，你坚固我。谢谢你，当我受诱惑，你必定给我开一条出路。求主每天使我亲近你。奉耶稣的名祷告，阿门。