11. Manna issue 65 - The Church and Evangelism 教會與傳福音
Recall the Past. Measure the Present. Take Action for the Future.
反省過去，衡量現在，未來行動
Adapted sermon from Singapore 節錄自新加坡講道
“And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature’”
(Mk 16:15).
15他又對他們說：你們往普天下去，傳福音給萬民（萬民：原文是凡受造的）聽。
(可 16：15)
Evangelism is the command of the Lord Jesus Christ
—we have heard, read and said this countless times.
We know all the evangelism-related passages by heart,
perhaps even in English, Chinese, Greek and more.
But more importantly, what have we done about it?
傳福音是主耶穌基督的命令，
—我們已經聽過、讀過、談過這件事無數次。
我們已熟記所有與傳福音有關的經文，
甚至可能是英語、漢語、希臘語或更多語言等等。
但更重要的是，我們為此做了些什麼事？
This article considers evangelism from three aspects:
本文從三個方面探討傳福音：
Where did we come from?
Where are we now?
Where should we go?
我們過去來自哪裡？
我們現在立於何處？
我們應該往哪裡去？
I. THE SPIRIT OF EVANGELISM PAST 過去傳福音的精神
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you;
and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.
(Mt 28:19–20)
19所以，你們要去，使萬民作我的門徒，奉父、子、聖靈的名給他們施洗
（或作：給他們施洗，歸於父、子、聖靈的名）。
20凡我所吩咐你們的，都教訓他們遵守，我就常與你們同在，直到世界的末了。
(太 28：19-20)
This mandate of Christ to the church is commonly known as the 'great commission'.
It starts with a powerful command—“Go!”
Fellowship in the Lord is a blessing.
After all, the warm, fraternal and godly atmosphere of the apostolic church summarized in Acts 2:42
is often held up as an ideal that the true church today should strive for,
and invest effort to sustain.
But Jesus' intention is also for us to take concrete action,
"Go and make disciples of all nations".
This is the explicit command for evangelism.
In fact, to make disciples is the very reason the church exists.
基督給教會的使命，通常被稱為“大使命”。
它以一個強有力的命令開始—“出發！”
主裡門徒的身份是一種祝福。
畢竟，使徒行傳 2 章 42 節中，歸納了使徒教會溫暖、友愛和虔誠的氛圍，
通常被高舉，作為今日真教會應該努力奮鬥的理想，
並且要投入更多的心力持續下去。
但耶穌的本意，也是要我們採取具體行動，
“去出，使萬民成為我的門徒”。
這是傳福音明確的命令。
事實上，召募門徒正是教會存在的理由。
There are some who say that we are
“only a pastoral church”.
There are at least two erroneous concepts in this sentence.
Firstly, this statement implies that pastoral work
– loving and tending the sheep and lambs
– is all that the church needs to do.
For such people, evangelism is nothing more than maintaining a presence
or a prominent profile in their current community.
But Jesus 'statement here is more unequivocally active
—He want us to "Go".
有些人會說，我們“只不過是一個需要牧養的教會”。
這句話裡，至少有兩個錯誤的想法。
首先，這句話暗示牧養工作，
—愛護綿羊和小羊，
—就是教會所需要做的一切事。
對這樣的人來說，傳福音只不過是繼續保持存在，
或在他們目前社區中，保有知名度。
但是耶穌在這裡的聲明是，更加毫不含糊的積極主動，
—祂要我們“走出去”。
Secondly, there aren’t any 'pastoral only' churches.
What is the ultimate goal of pastoral work?
It is to make disciples, teaching them all (emphasis added) that Jesus has commanded.
So every person who calls himself or herself a disciple of Jesus Christ
must keep all of the commandments,
which includes the commandment to "Go and make disciples".
In short, pastoral work and evangelism must go hand in hand.
其次，並沒有任何“只有需要牧養”的教會。
到底牧養工作的最終目標是什麼呢？
耶穌所吩咐的就是，召募很多門徒，教導他們所有人（重點強調再加重）。
所以每個人，不論男女，若自稱是耶穌基督的門徒，
就必須遵守所有的誡命，
其中包括“出去，召集更多門徒”的誡命。
簡而言之，牧養工作和傳福音必須齊頭並進。
The church that “only pastors” is a moribund organization
which will eventually die.
Consider a family without a breadwinner and living off a bequest.
The parents may be very frugal but the inherited money is still being used up;
so if nothing else is done to bring in ‘new income’,
this family cannot survive.
“只會牧養”的教會，是一個臨近死亡的組織，
最終就會死去。
想想看，一個家庭沒有人來養家糊口，並只靠別人贈予而活。
父母可能很節儉，但留下繼承的金錢還是會被花光；
所以若不採取其他措施來增加“新的收入”，
這個家庭就無法生存下去。
In the context of the church,
new babies born and baptized may not be sufficient to replace old members who die.
So without evangelism, there may be no-one left to pastor in the end.
在教會的環境背景下，
新出生和受洗的嬰兒，可能不足以替代死去的年長信徒。
因此，如果不傳福音，最後可能沒有留下何人有需要牧養。
The Apostolic Spirit[i] 使徒的精神
The apostolic church started with only 120 people in Jerusalem.
Many were women, some were uneducated people
and most had never traveled outside Palestine.
Yet, within a few decades, the gospel was preached throughout the Roman Empire.
What underpinned this extraordinary growth?
In a nutshell, it was passion in responding to the Lord Jesus’ command.
耶路撒冷的使徒教會最初只有 120 人。
許多是婦女，有些是沒有受過教育的人，
大多數的人從未到過巴勒斯坦以外的地方。
然而，幾十年內，福音傳遍了整個羅馬帝國。
到底是什麼幫助產生了這種非凡的增長？
簡而言之，就是有熱心回應主耶穌的命令。
More specifically, there were several salient growth factors.
更具體地說，有幾個顯著的增長因素。
EVERYONE PREACHED 大家傳福音
The apostles preached, the deacons preached and the believers preached wherever they went.
They preached to the masses; to their family members; to their friends;
in fact, they preached to just about anyone who was willing to listen.
They preached in good times, they preached when they were persecuted,
they preached when they were in prison.
Evangelism was the very essence of the apostolic spirit;
almost as if they lived to preach!
眾使徒傳福音，眾執事傳福音，許多信徒無論走到哪裡都傳福音。
他們向群眾傳福音； 給他們的家人； 給他們的朋友；
事實上，他們傳給幾乎所有願意傾聽的人。
順境時他們傳福音，迫害時亦傳福音，
獄中他們也傳福音。
傳福音正是使徒精神的本質。
幾乎就好像是，他們活著就是為了傳福音！
It was no different for the early True Jesus Church.
早期的真耶穌教會也不例外。
THE HOLY SPIRIT WORKED MIGHTILY[1] 聖靈大大作工
After the first downpour of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost,
the church grew from 120 to 3000 members;
and then from 3000 to more than 5000.
Miracles abounded
—the shadow of Peter could heal the sick;
a mere handkerchief from Paul could cast out demons!
在五旬節那日，聖靈的第一次澆灌下來之後，
教會信徒從 120 人增加到 3000 人；
然後又從3000人成長到5000多人。
神蹟比比皆是
—彼得的影子可以醫治病人；
保羅的一條手帕就能趕鬼！
Today, wonders and miracles continue to occur but, compared to the early church,
they are far fewer.
This is correlated to the reduced frequency of our preaching.
今天，奇事和神蹟一直繼續發生，但與早期教會的情況相比，
現在這種神的工作少了很多。
這與我們傳福音頻率的降低有關。
Miracles are a sign for unbelievers
so if we do not preach,
why would God perform a miracle?
The apostolic church understood this;
so BEFORE they asked God to perform miracles,
they first prayed for boldness to speak the Word
(Acts 4:29–30).
The direction of causality is clear.
We do not wait for God to first perform miracles before going out to preach.
The apostolic church preached,
and then God performed miracles.
Similarly, the early True Jesus Church workers preached,
and then God performed miracles.
In short, God works miracles only when we preach.
神蹟是給不信者看的異象，
所以如果我們不傳福音，
神為什麼要創造神蹟呢？
使徒教會明白這一點；
所以在他們祈求神施展神蹟之前，
他們先祈求能有勇氣說出福音
（徒 4：29-30）。
因果關係的方向是明確的。
我們不是等神先施行神蹟，才出去傳道。
使徒教會出去傳道了，
然後神才展現奇蹟。
同樣的，早期真耶穌教會的工人出去傳道了，
然後神才展現奇蹟。
簡而言之，只有當我們傳福音的時候，神才會施行神蹟。
Consistency between believers’ lives and their faith
信徒生活與信仰的一致性
There are many aspects we can learn from the apostolic church
but one stands out as "uniquely TJC".
我們可以從使徒教會學到很多方面，
但有一項特質會特別突而出，而成為“獨一的真耶穌教會”。
“So continuing daily with one accord in the temple,
and breaking bread from house to house,
they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart”
(Acts 2:46).
46他們天天同心合意恆切的在殿裡，且在家中擘餅，存著歡喜、誠實的心用飯，
(徒 2：46)
Such a depiction of the first church mirrors the early church in Taiwan.
The people received the gospel with gladness,
led very simple lives and attended services every single day.
In fact such a life is itself a powerful witness to the gospel
because it shows that we actually practice what we believe.
第一間使徒教會的這種描述，反應了台灣早期教會的情況。
大家歡喜領受福音，
過著非常簡樸的生活，每天都去參加聚會。
事實上，這樣的生活本身就是福音有力的見證，
因為它展現了，我們實際上實行自已所相信的信仰。
However, many of us today are worried over many things
—we are caught up with our studies, our jobs and the world.
Service attendance is relegated to a leisure activity
—something to do as and when we are free.
How then do we expect others to be convinced
when we declare to them that life on earth is transient,
and there is an eternal, more precious life to come?
然而，今天我們許多人都擔心很多事情，
—我們忙於學習、工作和世界的活動。
聚會出勤被調降為休閒活動，
—是有空的時候，可以做些什麼的事項。
當我們向別人宣稱，地上的生命是短暫的，
還有一個永恆的生命，是更寶貴的來世生命時，
那我們如何期望別人能被說服，？
These same three factors were indispensable to the evangelical efforts of the apostolic church.
Paul confirms this:
這三個相同的因素是使徒教會傳福音的努力不可或缺的。
保羅證實了這一點：
“For our gospel did not come to you in word only,
but also in power, and in the Holy Spirit and in much assurance,
as you know what kind of men we were among you for your sake”
(1 Thess 1:5).
5因為我們的福音傳到你們那裡，不獨在乎言語，
也在乎權能和聖靈，並充足的信心，
正如你們知道、我們在你們那裡，為你們的緣故是怎樣為人。
(帖前 1：5)
First is the ‘Word’.
We must open our mouths to preach.
Second is the ‘power of the Holy Spirit’
because it is not our eloquence that moves the hearts of men toward God.
Third, the ‘kind of man we were amongst you for your sake’.
The preacher's conduct must match his faith.
All three factors were present in the apostolic church
as well as the early True Jesus Church.
首先是‘道理’。
我們必須開口傳道。
其次是‘聖靈的能力’，
因為不是我們的口才，使人的心歸向神。
第三，“為了你們的原故，我們是與你在一起的同一種人”。
傳道人的行為必須符合他的信仰。
這三個因素都出現於使徒教會中，
以及早期真耶穌教會的時候。
II. THE SPIRIT OF EVANGELISM PRESENT 福音的精神存在
The next important question is "Where are we now?"
Every church has an 'evangelistic temperature',
which is the sum of our individual evangelistic temperatures.
Are we hot, cold, or somewhere in between?
Check your temperature against Chart 1[ii].
Being hot means that our thoughts are always about our Father’s business of saving lives.
On the other hand, being cold means that we are too busy with our own personal business.
We do not feel any urgency to preach.
Many of us invest considerable time in a variety of divine work, but check ourselves:
下一個重要問題是“我們現在的進度如何？”
每個教會都有“傳福音的熱度”，
那就是我們個人傳福音熱度加總的總和。
我們很熱心、冷淡，還是介於兩者之間不冷不熱？
根據圖表 1[ii] 檢查您的熱心。
充滿熱心代表著，我們的心思意念總是關心自已天父拯救靈魂的大業。
另一方面，冷淡就表示，我們太過忙碌於自己的私事。
我們不覺得有任何緊迫要去傳福音。
我們許多人在各種聖工上投入了大量時間，但請檢查一下自己：
·Do we spend an hour each week preaching to our friends?
·我們每週有沒有花一個小時向自已的朋友傳福音？
·Do we spend just half an hour each week,
thinking about whom to preach to,
when to preach and how to preach to?
·我們是否每週只花半小時，
想著要向誰傳福音，
什麼時候去傳福音，怎麼去傳福音？
·If we do not do the above, do we feel guilty?
·如果我們沒有做到以上幾點，自已會感到內疚嗎？
Obstacles to Evangelism 傳福音的障礙
Why do we lag behind the apostolic church and early TJC in evangelistic fervor?
Let us focus on two key reasons.
為什麼我們傳福音的熱心，弱於使徒教會和早期的真耶穌教會呢？
讓我們注意兩個主要原因。
LOST IMPACT ON US: RESURRECTION OF CHRIST AND THE HOLY SPIRIT
對我們沒有影響：基督復活和聖靈
The apostolic church’s evangelistic zeal was fuelled by two factors
—one external, and the other, internal.
The external factor is the tremendous miracle of Christ’s resurrection.
Today, we have heard this fact repeated so often
—Christ is resurrected from the dead
—that we have been inured to its great significance.
But in the apostolic church,
Jesus’ resurrection was a very powerful push factor.
This fact showed that He was God in the flesh.
使徒教會傳福音的熱心，受到兩個因素的激勵，
—一個是外部的因素，另一個是內部的因素。
外部因素是基督復活的偉大神蹟。
今日，我們常常重覆聽到這個事件，
—基督從死裡復活
—我們已經習慣了它的重大意義。
但在使徒教會的時候，
耶穌的復活是一個非常強大的推動因素。
這個事實表明了，祂是道成肉身的神。.
The deaths of globally renowned names
such as Steve Jobs or Michael Jackson make the news for days if not weeks.
People who first heard it could not wait to put the information on Twitter, Facebook etc.
Many who did not even know them personally left condolence messages
—“R.I.P., Steve or Michael”.
Such behavior gives us a glimpse of how impactful the resurrection was to the apostolic believers,
and an understanding of what motivated them to run around to their family and friends,
crying, “He lives! He lives!”
The disciples never expected Him to rise
so when He did and reappeared to them,
it was so life-changing that they just had to tell everyone the message.
全球知名人士的死亡，
例如，史蒂夫·喬布斯或麥可傑克森，新聞死訊即使沒有持續幾周，也能佔據版面好幾天。
第一個聽到這消息的人，都急切地把此訊息發佈到推特、臉書等社群媒體。
甚至許多不認識他們的人，都會留言表示個人的哀悼，
—“R.I.P. 一路好走，安息吧，史蒂夫，或傑克森”。
這種行為給我們看到一眼，復活對使徒時代信徒的影響有多大，
並且了解是什麼促使他們四處奔跑到家人和朋友身邊，
大聲哭喊說：“祂還活著！ 祂還活著！”
門徒從沒想過祂會復活，
所以當祂真的復活了，並再次出現在他們面前時，
這件事很重大如改變人生一般，讓他們不得不告訴每個人這個消息。
The second powerful and internal push factor is the Holy Spirit.
When they were filled with the Holy Spirit,
they were compelled to preach.
Peter told the Sanhedrin,
“We cannot but speak of the things we have seen and heard.”
Rightly, we have no choice but to speak.
But unfortunately, today many of us long-time believers choose not to speak.
第二個強大內在的推動因素是聖靈。
當他們聖靈充滿時，
他們不得不傳道。
彼得告訴公會，
“我們不能不說，自已所見所聞的事情。”
沒有錯，我們別無選擇，只能說出來。
但不幸的是，今天我們許多信主多年的信徒選擇不說話。
New converts, on the other hand, are often very zealous about preaching the gospel.
Asked why, their answer is simple
—because the gospel saves.
This is yet another message that has become trite to us.
But to someone who has just been convicted of the gospel,
it is everything in the world.
They are like the man who had just discovered a pearl in the field.
Overjoyed, he sold everything to buy that field.
另一方面，新受洗的信徒往往非常熱心於傳福音。
詢問原因，他們的回答卻很單純，
—因為福音會拯救人的靈魂。
然而對我們而言，這是另一個已經陳腔濫調的信息。
但是對於剛剛被福音定罪的人，
福音就是世上的一切。
他們就像剛剛在田裡發現了一顆珍珠的人。
喜出望外，他變賣了一切去買下那塊田。
It is therefore critical for us to realign our priorities in our lives.
If we have lost that love of preaching,
we must return to our first love
—to that very moment when we first came into contact with the gospel;
or the time when we first received the Holy Spirit;
or even the time when we first came into contact with God.
Without these two push factors, evangelistic fervor cannot be sustained.
因此，重新調整我們生活事項的優先順序，對我們來說至關重要。
如果我們失去了對傳福音的熱心，
我們必須回到自已最初的愛心，
—回到我們第一次接觸到福音的那一刻；
或我們第一次領受聖靈的時候；
甚至是我們第一次接觸神的時候。
沒有這兩個推動的因素，傳福音的熱情就無法持續下去。
FEAR OF FAILURE 失敗的恐懼
Undeniably, the rate of successful conversion is extremely low.
The amount of time invested and the response obtained frequently do not commensurate.
Our ideal scenario is that people quickly accept whatever we proclaim
and believe the message we preach.
We want to be like Peter at Pentecost
—one single sermon pierces the people’s hearts
so that they crowd around, eager to know,
"What is this that is happening?"
Occasionally, this happens but it is rare.
不可否認，成功受洗轉變信仰的轉化率極低。
投入的時間與獲得回應的數量經常是不相同的程度。
我們理想的場景是，人們很快接受無論我們傳什麼訊息，
並且相信我們所傳的信息。
我們想要像五旬節的彼得一樣，
—一場講道就能扎人心，
所以他們團團圍住，渴望更了解，
“這是正在發生什麼事情？”
偶爾會發生這種情況，但是很少見。
Oftentimes, in order to convert anyone,
we have to work very hard to convince them to change their worldview.
Doing this takes a very long time but we need to learn from Paul at the school of Tyrannus.
He reasoned daily with the people who were there.
通常，為了改變任何人，
我們必須非常努力說服他們，改變他們的世界觀。
這樣做需要花很長時間，但我們需要向推喇奴學房的保羅學習。
他每天都與那裡的人辯論。
Besides the first two, these are three other groups of people we shall meet when we preach.
除了前兩類型的人之外，另外還有其他三種類型的人群，是我們在傳道時會遇到的。
·Athenians: They will talk, reason and engage with you
as if they are very interested in the gospel,
but they are actually more interested in the debate itself.
·雅典人：他們會與你交談、與你理論並與你互動，
就好像他們對福音很感興趣，
但他們實際上對辯論本身更感興趣。
·Jewish multitudes: They are indifferent to whatever you say;
they cannot be bothered
(Luke 7:32).
·猶太群眾：他們對你所說的無動於衷；
他們跟本不在乎
（路 7：32）。
·Hardcore Jews: They take time and effort to tear down your arguments;
and to put every obstacle in the way of your preaching.
·極端猶太人：他們會花時間且努力抵毀你的論點；
並在你傳道的道路設置一切障礙。
Different countries will have varying proportions of these five types of people.
But for many of us living in developed urban societies,
an additional drawback is that the pace of life is too fast and everyone is busy.
Not only are we too busy to preach to our friends,
many of our friends are too busy to listen to us.
But this fact is no reason to stop preaching;
we just need to work harder than others.
Paul felt that he had to work harder than the rest of the other apostles
because he had to make up for all the time in the past that he had wasted on persecuting Christians.
不同國家這五類人的比例會有所不同。
但對生活於發達城市社會的我們許多人來說，
另一個缺點是生活節奏太快，大家都很忙。
我們不僅太忙而無法傳福音給朋友，
我們許多朋友都很忙，而沒時間聽我們講話。
但這種情況不是停止傳福音的理由；
我們只需要比其他人更加努力工作。
保羅覺得，他必須比其他的使徒更努力工作，
因為他必須彌補過去，浪費在迫害基督徒的所有時間。
Some people blame everything and everyone else for the lack they suffer.
But there are others—like Paul—
who just work harder to overcome their disadvantage.
How will we respond to the difficulty of evangelism?
Do we excuse ourselves with,
"That is why I don't preach, they do not believe."?
Or do we resolve "I must work harder to preach,
to try to make them believe."?
有些人將自己所遭受的損失，怪東怪西和怪罪別人。
但還有些其他人—比如，保羅—
他只更加努力地克服自己不利的情況。
我們會如何應對傳福音的困難呢？
我們是否給自己找藉口，
“這就是為什麼我不傳福音的原因，因為他們不會信。”？
還是我們下定決心“我必須更加努力傳福音，
會試圖讓他們信主。”呢？
Do not worry; there will always be people for us to convert.
Jesus clearly told us to "make disciples".
By inference, there must be disciples for us to make.
So let us hold on to the implicit promise in the Lord’s command and persist in preaching.
不用擔心; 總有人讓我們改變信仰。
耶穌清楚地告訴我們，要“吸收許多門徒”。
由此推論，總會有門徒我們召集。
所以讓我們持守主命令中隱含的應許，堅持傳福音。
III. THE SPIRIT OF EVANGELISM FUTURE 福音未來的精神
What are the key areas to work on for the future?
未來工作的主要區域是那裡？
Personal Evangelism 個人佈道
From the Bible we see that the scope of God's plan moves like a ripple outwards,
i.e. always from near to far.
This means that we should first preach to our family members,
then to friends, then to strangers.
For this reason Jesus told a formerly demon-possessed man,
"Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you"
(Mk 5:19).
從聖經我們看到，神計劃的範圍像漣漪一樣向外擴大移動，
即總是從近到遠。
這代表著，我們應該首先向自已的家人傳福音，
然後是傳給朋友，然後再傳給陌生人。
為此，耶穌告訴一個以前被鬼附的人，
“19你回家去，到你的親屬那裡，將主為你所做的是何等大的事，都告訴他們。”
（可 5：19）。
These close and loved ones should have priority in our evangelistic efforts.
Otherwise, why would God have placed them in our midst?
Preaching to the nearest and dearest is both easy and difficult.
It is easy because we already have a connection with them,
unlike a stranger whom we are meeting for the first time.
The latter does not need to listen to us.
在我們傳福音的努力中，應該優先考慮這些親密慈愛的親友。
否則，神為什麼要把他們放在我們中間呢？
向最親近和最親愛的人傳福音既容易又困難。
這很容易，是因為我們已經與他們建立了關係，
不像我們第一次見面的陌生人。
陌生人不需要聽我們說話。
Notwithstanding, personal evangelism can also be very difficult
because those who are close to us have seen us at our worst.
This is a timely reminder that our behavior among friends and relatives is crucial to personal evangelism.
儘管如此，個人佈道也可能非常困難，
因為親近人看到了我們最壞的一面。
這及時提醒我們，自已在朋友和親戚之間的行為，對於個人佈道影響重大。
Door-to-door Evangelism 逐家佈道
Personal evangelism is our priority, and door-to-door is a bonus.
It allows us to expand the scope of our networks.
Having our more mature-aged members participate in door-to-door preaching can be an advantage:
people generally respond more politely to them and are more prepared to listen.
We need not know reams of Scripture.
Just be prepared with one or two personal testimonies that we can share with the homeowners.
個人佈道是我們的首要任務，挨家挨戶逐家佈道則是一個額外的好處。
這麼作使我們能夠擴大自已人際網絡的範圍。
若有我們年長的信徒參與逐家佈道可能會有一些好處：
人們通常會比較有禮貌的回應他們，並且更願意傾聽。
我們不需要知道大量的聖經。
只需準備一兩個個人見證，讓我們可以與房主分享即可。
Befrienders 友好的人
Many of us enjoy catching up with brethren after service.
Happily chatting away in our own groups before or after services,
we fail to notice that truth-seekers are left alone to find their way around church,
or to just sit quietly in a pew waiting for service to start.
Little wonder then that some stop coming
because they lack a sense of warmth and belonging.
我們許多人都喜歡在聚會結束後與弟兄姐姐聚一聚敘舊。
在聚會前後，在我們自己的小團體中愉快的聊天，
我們沒有注意到，慕道者獨自在教堂周圍尋找出路，
或只是靜靜地坐在教會長椅座位上，等待聚會開始。
因此難怪有些人不再來了，
因為他們缺乏溫暖和歸屬感。
We need more people to join this group to look out for truth-seekers who are alone,
befriend them, talk to them after service, and make them feel at home.
Befrienders should also keep a lookout for truth-seekers who have stopped coming.
Give them a call just to see how they are.
All these contribute to that sense of familial warmth so prevalent in the apostolic and early church.
我們需要更多人加入這個群體，去照料孤獨的慕道者，
友善對待他們，聚會後與他們交談，讓他們有賓至如歸的感覺。
友好的人還應該留意，有誰是已經停止來的慕道者。
給他們打個電話，看看他們怎麼了。
所有這些行動都有助於，那種在使徒和早期教會很普遍的家庭溫暖感受。
Prayer Group 祈禱小組
Sometimes, truth-seekers may fall seriously ill or face huge problems.
At such times, not only do we need to just tell them to pray,
we should actually go as a group to their homes to pray for and with them.
Such prayer groups can also bring back long-lost sheep to God’s fold
because we help to build bridges between them and God through prayer.
有時，慕道者可能會得到重病，或是面臨巨大的問題。
這個時候，我們不僅需要告訴他們要禱告，
我們實際上應該帶著一個團體到他們的家裡，為他們禱告，並與他們一起禱告。
這種禱告小組也可以將失散多年的羊，帶回神的羊圈，
因為我們以禱告幫助在他們與神之間架起橋樑。
LET GOD’S LOVE INSPIRE YOU 讓神的愛感動你
Evangelism is a command of Christ and so we have no choice but to preach.
Yet even more importantly, evangelism reflects the very nature of God
—love.
We preach because we reflect the very nature of God, best captured in John 3:16:
傳福音是基督的命令，所以我們別無選擇，只能出去傳福音。
然而更重要的是，傳福音反應了神的本性—愛。
我們傳福音是因為我們反映了神的本性，約翰福音 3 章 16 節最能體現這一點：
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son,
that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life”.
“16神愛世人，甚至將他的獨生子賜給他們，叫一切信他的，不至滅亡，反得永生。”
This is the precious central message of the gospel.
But have we grown dull to it?
Are we just happy that we are saved,
unconcerned that millions of people have not yet heard of the deep love of Christ?
Believers of the apostolic church and the early True Jesus Church
may not have had all our advantages of education and access to knowledge.
But this they knew
—God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son.
God so loved them.
So they urgently sought to tell their friends and relatives of this wonderful love.
What about the True Jesus Church today?
這是福音寶貴的核心訊息。
但我們是否對此而感到厭煩呢？
我們難道只是因為自已得救而高興嗎？
不關心還有數以百萬的人還沒有聽說過基督的大愛？
使徒教會和早期真耶穌教會的信徒，
可能沒有我們所有教育和獲取知識的優勢。
但他們知道這一點，
—神愛世人，甚至將祂的獨生子賜給他們。
神如此深愛他們。
於是，他們迫切想把這種奇妙的慈愛情告訴親朋好友。
那今日的真耶穌教會要怎麼作呢？
[1] Hence the book of Acts of the Apostles is also known the Acts of the Holy Spirit.
[1] 因此使徒行傳也被稱為聖靈行傳。
[i] In the Apostolic Pattern: The Early True Jesus Church
[i] 使徒模式：早期真耶穌教會
Personal evangelism:
In China, the early workers traveled thousands of miles on foot or by ship.
Occasionally, they went without food and/or shelter.
Yet wherever they went, they would preach, baptize,
and then quickly set up a new church.
Church growth was phenomenal.
In 1920, within a mere nine months,
these workers had set up forty-two new churches;
an average of five churches per month!
Moreover, these new believers would then take the gospel back to their hometowns,
sharing with even more friends and family.
個人佈道：
在中國，早期的工人步行或乘船跋涉數千英里。
有時候，他們沒有食物和住所，或是只有其一。
然而，無論他們走到哪裡，他們都會傳福音、為人施洗、
然後很快建立一個新的教會。
教會的增長是很驚人的。
1920年，在短短的九個月之內，
這些工人建立了四十二個新的教會；
平均每個月五間教會！
此外，這些新的信徒隨後會把福音帶回家鄉，
與更多的朋友和家人分享。
Holy Spirit: The evangelistic services were simple but effective.
Believers went out to the streets, sounding gongs to attract public attention.
They distributed pamphlets that boldly declared:
"The lame walk, the blind see, and the dumb speak".
Many miracles were performed, many received the Holy Spirit, and many were baptized.
聖靈：佈道聚會簡單而有效。
許多信徒出去街頭，敲鑼以吸引大家的注意。
他們分發小冊子，大膽宣告：
“瘸子走路，瞎子看見，啞巴說話”。
行了許多神蹟，有許多人得到聖靈，受洗。
On one occasion, at the end of a spiritual and evangelistic meeting
where they had discussed doctrines and prayed for the Holy Spirit,
almost the entire congregation of a Presbyterian church believed in the doctrines of the true church.
So all they needed to do was to return to their chapel
and change the signboard of the Presbyterian church to the True Jesus Church!
有一次，在一次靈恩佈道會結束時
那時他們在那裡討論教義並祈求聖靈，
幾乎整個長老會會眾都信了真教會的教義。
所以他們所需要做的事，就是回到自已的教堂
並將長老會的招牌換成真耶穌教會！
[ii] Chart 1: The Evangelistic Thermometer—Are You Hot or Cold?
[ii] 圖 1：傳福音的溫度計—你是熱心的還是冷淡的？
HOT: Busy about the Father’s business
·Frequently pray for others
·Take note of lost or straying sheep
·Take time to connect with people
熱心：忙於天父的事務
·經常為別人代禱
·注意丟失或迷路的羊
·花時間與人交流
COLD: Busy about my own business
·Do not spend time to tell others about our faith.
·When opportunities for preaching arise, we tell ourselves, “next time”.
冷淡：忙著自己的事
·沒有花時間告訴別人我們的信仰。
·當講道的機會出現時，我們告訴自己，“下一次”。
小頁 markvmax@hotmail.com
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