[今日經文 Today’s Reading: 以賽亞 Isaiah 47-49]
24 勇士搶去的豈能奪回？被殘暴者擄掠的豈能得解救呢？25 但耶和華如此說：「就是勇士所擄掠的，也可以奪回；殘暴者所搶的，也可以得解救。與你相爭的，我必與他相爭，我也要拯救你的兒女。
以賽亞 Isaiah 49:24-25
24 Can the prey be taken from the mighty, or the captives of a tyrant be rescued? 25 For thus says the Lord: “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken, and the prey of the tyrant be rescued, for I will contend with those who contend with you, and I will save your children.
許多人被世界擄掠了——包括在教會中長大的下一代。他們被我們這個時代的「勇士」和「殘暴者」擄掠：電子遊戲、色情，以及世俗主義，包括財富、名望和娛樂的誘惑。許多基督徒父母對孩子的得救或對神的奉獻失去了盼望，幾乎放棄了希望。根據研究，北美華人教會的流失率在75%到90%之間，或甚至更高。
然而，我們在以賽亞書中讀到：「就是勇士所擄掠的，也可以奪回；殘暴者所搶的，也可以得解救。與你相爭的，我必與他相爭，我也要拯救你的兒女。」
問題是：我們是在與世界相爭（即對抗世界），還是我們實際上樂於讓孩子被世界迷惑，並最終被世界擄掠——只要我們的孩子長大後能「成功」？不幸的是，甚至許多教會領袖也「屈服」於世界，呼籲基督徒父母接受當前的文化，只要努力與孩子做「朋友」。
但恰恰相反，無論孩子墮落到何種程度，我們都不應放棄努力，帶領他們回到神和祂的道路上。 「與你相爭的，我必與他相爭」！問題是：我們願意起來與世界相爭嗎？基督徒父母和教會早就該向世界宣戰了！神正在等待並渴望拯救我們的孩子，但祂首先等待並渴望父母與世界相爭。所以，永不放棄！相反，請挺身而出，加入搶救我們孩子的戰鬥！
禱告：親愛的天父，請賜給我們勇氣，讓我們敢和世界相爭，無論它看起來多麼強大。也請賜給我們希望，讓我們知道，當我們願意挺身而出，與世界相爭時，你必拯救我們的孩子！奉耶穌的名，阿們！
Many have been captured by the world – many, including those of our next generation who grew up in the church. They have been taken by the “mighty” and the “tyrants” of our day: video games and pornography as well as secularism overall, including the lure of wealth, fame, and entertainment. Many Christian parents have lost hope and have pretty much given up regarding their children’s salvation or dedication to God. According to studies, the dropout rate in North American Chinese churches is in the range of 75-90% or higher.
Nevertheless, we read in Isaiah that “Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken, and the prey of the tyrant be rescued, for I [God] will contend with those who contend with you, and I will save your children.”
The problem is: are we contending with (i.e., battling against) the world, or are we in fact happy to allow our children to become captivated, and ultimately captured, by the world – as long as our children grow up to be “successful”? Unfortunately even many church leaders have “surrendered” to the world and are calling upon Christian parents to accept the current culture as it is and simply aim to be “friends” with their children.
But, to the contrary, let us not give up striving to bring our children back to God and His ways, no matter how far they have fallen. When “we contend with the world, God will contend with those who contend with us”! The question is: are we willing to strive? It is long overdue for Christian parents and for the church to declare a war on the world! God is waiting and wanting to save our children, but He is FIRST waiting for and wanting parents to fight with the world. So, never give up! Instead, rise up and join the battle to save our children!
Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, please give us courage to contend with the world no matter how powerful it may seem to be. Please also give us hope knowing that YOU will save our children – when We are willing to rise up to strive against evil! In Jesus’ name, Amen!
