Devotion 1 of 2: Jer 17
One of the sins of Judah that caused God to hand them over to the Babylonians was not keeping the Sabbath (v.19-27). God promised that if they did hallow the Sabbath to do no work in it, their kings, princes, men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem would remain forever (v.24-25)! But if they did not, fire would devour the gates and palaces of Jerusalem (v.27)!
I believe the teaching of the Sabbath rest has deep spiritual significance. It is teaching us to not do things, even for God, by our own thinking and strength, but by being led by and depending on the Spirit! That’s how we should live the Christian life! Rom 8:14 says, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.”
The LDC must be fully mature for God to give it the spiritual authority to do mighty miracles. One characteristic of being mature is to walk in the Spirit. Let’s seek God for this maturity!
デボーション1/2：Jer 17
神がユダをバビロンに引き渡した原因の一つは、安息日を守らなかったからです（19-27節）。神は、もし彼らが安息日を聖別してその日に何の仕事もしないなら、彼らの王、首長、ユダの人々、エルサレムの住民はとこしえに残ると約束されました（24-25節）。しかし、もし彼らがそうしなければ、エルサレムの門と宮殿は火で焼き尽くされるでしょう（27節）。
安息日の休息の教えには深い霊的意味があると思います。それは、たとえ神のためにも、自分の考えや力で物事をするのではなく、聖霊に導かれ、頼ることを教えています。それがクリスチャンとしての生き方なのです！ローマ8:14には、「神の御霊に導かれる人は、だれでも神の子どもです」とあります。
終末教会は、神が強力な奇跡を行う霊的権威を与えるためには、フルに成熟していなければなりません。成熟していることの特徴の一つは、聖霊に従って歩むことです。この成熟のために神を求めましょう！
この箇所の日本語訳はまだありません。英語の原文を表示しています。
Devotion 2 of 2: Acts 17
In v.1-9, Paul went to Thessalonica in Greece, preached in the Jewish synagogue and led some Jews and many Greeks to salvation. But the unbelieving Jews, moved by envy, caused an uproar and attacked the Christians. The LDC will be persecuted in the endtime by AC, but will also be persecuted by lukewarm Christians (symbolized by these unbelieving Jews), who take AC’s mark and worship his image and will urge the LDC to do so, too!
Paul and Silas escaped from Thessalonica and eventually arrived in Athens in v.15. Paul saw many idols so he began preaching Jesus to the people. Japan is similar to ancient Greece because it has 8M gods! Paul was then taken to the Areopagus, a place where people freely discussed new ideas (v.16-21). Paul saw an altar inscribed “To the Unknown God” and immediately declared that Jesus was that God! He used Greek culture to preach Jesus!
Like Paul, let’s also find ways to link the gospel to the everyday lives and culture of the people around us!
— Pastor Elmer Inafuku