Matthew 18:19-20(NKJV) “Again, truly I tell you that if TWO of you on earth AGREE about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.”
There is power in the prayer of agreement when two or more people come together to support one another.
There will be many occasions when we will be faced with persecution, tribulation, adversity, distress, caught between the rock and a hard place since we live in a fallen and broken world. We mustn’t isolate ourselves when we are faced with such a situation. Neither should we isolate ourselves when we are not faced with such challenges because there are others who will need our help, encouragement, and comfort.
Do you know that God has never intended for anyone of us to face life’s challenges alone? He has placed us among the community of believers in a church to love and to be loved. It is important to identify a home church in Shanghai. This home church will be a place where you will receive the feeding of the word of God, pastoral care from the pastors, fellowship with believers and for you to run with the vision of the church.
Most of us in ICS are living in a foreign land away from our relatives. Therefore, it is all the more important for us to have a good support group from the family of believers especially cell group members whom we trust, love and have good fellowship with.
Jesus said, the world will know that you are my disciples if you love one another. It can be inconvenient to love someone other than your family members because it will mean that you will definitely need to go the extra mile. It is going the extra mile to do something for the person including speaking into the lives of the person if necessary. It will take up our time and energy but we can be confident that God is in our midst whenever we are gathered in two or three. It is important to take time to share about the prayer item including what we are believing God for. God is the silent listener of the conversation but He will also prompt us to probe each other regarding what is the word of God we are standing on. Is it a God’s idea or a good idea? There must be honest sharing from the heart to agree in order to have effective prayer as a group. The three strands cord are not easily broken when we are all in faith!
Sermon Series: Spur on One Another
在地上若有两人同心合意
马太福音18:19-20“我又告诉你们、若是你们中间有两个人在地上、同心合意的求甚么事、我在天上的父、必为他们成全。因为无论在那里、有两三个人奉我的名聚会、那里就有我在他们中间。”
当两个或两个以上的人聚在一起互相支持时，同心合一的祷告是有力量的。
因为生活在一个堕落和破碎的世界里，我们会有很多机会面临逼迫、患难、逆境、痛苦，进退维谷和艰难的处境。面对这种情况时，我们一定不要离群索居。当没有面临这样的挑战时，我们更不应该独来独往，因为会有别人需要我们的帮助、鼓励和安慰。
你知道神从来没有打算让我们中的任何人独自面对生活的挑战吗？祂把我们放在教会的信徒群体中彼此相爱。在上海找到一间自己的母会是很重要的。母会是这么一个地方，在那里你将得到神话语的喂养，牧师的牧养，与信徒的团契，使你能快跑跟随教会的异像。
ICS的大多数人都住在远离亲人的异国他乡。因此，对我们来说，最要紧的是要有来自信徒家庭的非常好的支持团队，尤其是那里有我们所信任的、有爱并有很好团契的细胞小组成员。
耶稣说，你们若彼此相爱，世人就知道你们是我的门徒了。爱家人以外的人可能会很不方便，因为这意味着你肯定需要付出额外的努力。为某个人做一些事情，包括在必要时对某个人的生命说话，这就是额外的努力。这将占用我们的时间和精力。但我们可以笃定的是，无论何时，只要我们两三个人聚集，神就在我们中间。重要的是花时间分享祷告事项，包括我们信神的目的。神是对话中沉默的聆听者，但祂也会促使我们彼此探究我们所坚守的神的话语是什么。这是神的主意还是好的主意?为了能作为集体进行有效祷告，必须有真诚的内心分享才能达成一致。当我们都有信心的时候，三股的绳子、不容易扯断。
讲章系列: 互相激励