0823 – Blessed to be a Blessing 蒙福而成为祝福

Job 1:3,9-10 (NKJV) Also, his possessions were seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, five hundred female donkeys, and a very large household, so that this man was the greatest of all the people of the East…. So Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for nothing? Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.Satan testified that GOD blessed the work of Job’s hand and his possessions had increased in the land. And God built a HEDGE around Job, his family and all his possessions.

One of the lessons that we can learn from Job, is his acknowledgment that all the GOOD THINGS that he had possessed was from God. He acknowledged that God was the source of all his material possessions.

Job proved to be a good steward of God’s money. Job used this money to rescue the needy, he cared for the handicapped and the dying, and he brought orphans into his home. He did all of this without tax exemptions or government assistance. He did it out of his love for people with the money that God had blessed him. A lot of good can be done with money and resources to bless and help the poor. In fact, God loves the poor and needy as He preached the Gospel to the poor first! Jesus ministered to the poor and shared the Gospel with them.

The wonderful thing about Job was that he did not cling to his wealth but rather allowed the wealth that God had given him flow through him to bless others. Job was a distributor of his wealth rather than a hoarder of the wealth given to him by God. Therefore, Job had a great testimony in that God saw him as a man of integrity despite his magnificent wealth! Job shunned evil and did good.

Likewise, ICS has done a lot of good work with the money that God has entrusted us with. Money is not evil but value-neutral. We need money to fund the Gospel and good works. It is the love of money and the worship of money that is evil! It is the love of money that has pierced many people with sorrow.

God is happy when we have more than enough as a child of the living God. God has never intended for us to live in lack and poverty. This was revealed in His creation of the garden of Eden where there was absolutely no lack. God is a God who gives and He gave us His best in Jesus Christ because He loves us.

Psalm 35:27 (NKJV) Let them shout for joy and be glad, Who favor my righteous cause;
And let them say continually, “Let the Lord be magnified, Who has pleasure in the prosperity of His servant.”

Sermon Series: Job and I (Part 3)


蒙福而成为祝福

约伯记1:3,9-10他的家产有七千羊,三千骆驼,五百对牛,五百母驴,并有许多仆婢。这人在东方人中就为至大。。。撒但回答耶和华说:「 约伯 敬畏 神,岂是无故呢? 你岂不是四面圈上篱笆围护他和他的家,并他一切所有的吗?他手所做的都蒙你赐福;他的家产也在地上增多。

撒但证明了是上帝祝福了约伯手里的工,他的家产在这片土地上加增。上帝四面圈上篱笆围护着约伯、他的家人和他所有的家产。

我们可以从约伯那里学到的一个功课就是:他承认,他拥有的所有好东西都是来自上帝。他承认上帝是他所有物质财产的来源。

事实证明,约伯是上帝金钱的好管家。约伯用他的钱救助有需要的人,他照顾残疾人、垂死的人并把孤儿带进了家。他做的所有这些都没有免税或政府援助. 他所做的是出于对人的爱,是用上帝祝福给他的钱。用金钱和资源可以做很多好事来祝福和帮助穷人。其实,上帝爱穷人和有需要的人,祂把福音最先传给了穷人!耶稣服事穷人,与他们分享福音。

约伯的了不起之处在于他没有紧抓住钱财不松手,而是允许将上帝赐给他的财富透过他来祝福他人。约伯是上帝财富的分配者,而不是守财奴。约伯因此作了美好的见证,尽管他富甲一方,上帝仍将他视作正直人!约伯避恶行善。

同样,ICS用上帝托付给我们的金钱做了很多的善工。金钱无分善恶,而是中性的,因为我们需要金钱来资助福音和善工。对金钱的贪爱和膜拜才是邪恶!是对金钱的贪爱让许多人被愁苦所刺穿。

作为永生上帝的孩子,当我们丰足时,上帝就快乐。上帝从来没有打算让我们生活在匮乏和贫困之中。从祂创造的伊甸园就可以看出那里完全没有缺乏。上帝是给予的上帝,祂在耶稣基督里给了我们最好的,因为祂爱我们。

诗篇35:27 愿那喜悦我冤屈得伸的欢呼快乐;愿他们常说:当尊耶和华为大,耶和华喜悦祂的仆人平安。

讲章系列:约伯与我(第三部分)