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二○二一年十一月十三日/十四日                                                                                                         Click here for English

心靈的連繫與互愛

譚廣海牧師


疫情下,大眾在食肆等狹窄場所中要保持社交距離,這類措施總給人一種彼此疏離的感覺。今天,疫情已略為緩和,我們或會期望弟兄姊妹能像從前那樣復返教會,一起參加實體的崇拜;即使在線上聚會,我們也盼望弟兄姊妹能勤於出席,維持應有的信仰生活,與神與人緊密連結。昔日我們都曾在神的家裡欣然相聚,但如今卻因環境變遷,出現「群體流散」的現象,我們該用怎樣的態度看待及回應呢?

詩人說:「我從前常常和群眾同去,與他們進到神的殿裡,在歡呼和稱謝聲中,大家守節。每逢想起這些事,我的心就感到難過。」(詩四十二 4,新譯本)當時詩人在異域中體會到信仰生活今非昔比,每當信仰受到質疑,他就更覺信仰群體的重要性。詩人知道當自己失去了「歡呼稱謝父神」的敬拜、以及「守節念記主恩」的機會,個人信仰便會遭受根本性的破壞,陷入淡忘神、信仰失落的危機中!

感謝神,藉著差傳年會及69週年堂慶崇拜的信息,我們再次認識北宣的使命宣言:「以神的愛燃點生命,實踐施比受更為有福的生活。」試想想,起飛的航機、和升空的火箭,在地心吸力的自然定律下,若要在瞬間騰空飛升,實在需要極強大的動力,其中的關鍵在於燃點適當的燃料,否則就難以完成起航、著陸、歸返原地的任務。我們的信仰也一樣,基督徒需要一股強大的原動力,才能完成連結生命的任務,而基督信仰的核心是「神愛世人」(約三 16),「耶穌救贖的愛」就是信徒行動的依據。我想,「以神的愛燃點生命」這句話,正好提醒了我們甚麼是連繫心靈的原動力——若不是神的愛,我們就不懂得愛,更不能實踐愛,不能為別人帶來愛心的行動。

教會的生活,與一般社交活動不同,因為我們的心靈能否連繫,不僅取決於心思意念在基督裡的成長,也在乎聖靈的引導與扶助(腓二1-2)。北宣家冬令營舉行在即,願已報名的弟兄姊妹在這豐盛的靈筵中,不但進深認識主,更能建立靈友禱伴的關係。至於沒有參加的弟兄姊妹,我也期盼你們能以北宣為屬靈的家,在關係疏離、群體流散的困境中,抓緊每次實體或線上聚會的機會,學習以神的愛連繫心靈,開展互愛的服事。這是一段敞開生命的歷程,在其中,我們必會經歷許多的驚喜與色彩。







Pastor's Sharing
Knitting Hearts Together and Mutual Love

Rev Samuel Tam

Under the pandemic, the public needs to maintain social distance in cramped places such as restaurants. Measures as such often give people a feeling of alienation. Today, while the pandemic has eased slightly, we may hope that brothers and sisters will return to church like before to attend onsite worship services together. Even if the meetings are conducted online, we also hope that they will attend regularly to maintain the spiritual life as we should and remain closely connected with God and man. We used to be able to meet joyfully in the house of God. Now that the faith community is "dispersed" due to the changes in the environment, how should we perceive and respond to this?

The psalmist says: "These things I remember as I pour out my soul: how I used to go with the multitude, leading the procession to the house of God, with shouts of joy and thanksgiving among the festive throng" (Psalm 42:4). In a foreign land, the psalmist realized that his religious life was not the same again. And every time his faith was challenged, he found his faith community all the more important. The psalmist was aware of the fundamental damage to his personal faith when he could not "shout for joy and praise to God the Father" or when he could not "remember His grace at His festivals." He knew he would be in danger of forgetting God and losing his faith altogether!

Thanks be to God that through the messages in the Mission Conference and the worship service of NPAC's 69th Anniversary, we can learn once again NPAC's mission statement: "To light up our lives with God's love and live out the practice of 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'" Think of it this way. If a plane is to take off or a rocket is to lift off in a split second under the natural law of gravity, a strong thrust is required. The key is to light the right fuel. Otherwise, the mission to set off, land and return can hardly be completed. The same for our faith. Christians need a strong impetus in order to complete their life-connecting mission. And the core of the Christian faith is "God so loved the world" (John 3:16). Jesus' redeeming love forms the basis of our actions. I think "To light up our lives with God's love" rightly reminds us of what the impetus that connects hearts is: If not because of the love of God, we will not know love, not to mention practicing love. We will not be able to take actions of love for those around us.

Church life is different from social activities in general. It is because whether or not our hearts can be connected depends not only on our growth in the mind of Christ but also on the guidance and help from the Spirit (Philippians 2:1-2). The winter camp of the NPAC family is just around the corner. It is my hope that enrolled brothers and sisters at the spiritual feast will not only get to know the Lord more but also build up spiritual and prayer partnerships. For those who are not enrolled, I hope you will cherish NPAC as your spiritual home. I hope that in these times of alienation and community dispersal, you will cherish every opportunity of onsite or online meeting to learn how to knit hearts together with the love of God and carry out the service of mutual love. This will be a journey of opening up our life. In the process, we will surely experience much amazement and color.