Lifestyle Of The Church 基督徒的生活方式
“42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 43 And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. 44 And all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.”
Author: Ps Ben So
For the past few weeks, the five-letter words Covid or Virus have caused chaos to the world with at least 114 countries affected. The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared Covid-19 outbreak a pandemic on 11 March 2020. During this period, our church made some adjustments to stop Sunday services and introduced live streaming so as to protect our members from possible infection. It was a tough decision but I am glad our leadership did so for we now see the repercussions of mass gathering.
In Acts 2, the believers were devoted. They attended the temple or church together, praising God and had fellowship at home. There was daily salvation and a great sense of unity could be seen in the early church. Should the day come that we can no longer congregate in a church building for some reason like Covid19, we need to be intentional to gather in small groups or on a 1-1 basis. We are the church, not the building at 74 Upper Aljunied Road.
Today, with our smart phone, we can do Bible study anywhere and share devotional materials easily. With the advancement of technology, we can do live streaming and make simultaneous conference call via Skype or Zoom- for free. We need to be creative and make use of what is available so that the church can still function no matter what happens.
I ask that brothers and sisters from ECF Holy Word to be united during this period of the virus outbreak. Do not lose hope in our Lord Jesus and continue to intercede for the world. Keep in contact with your fellow church mates and if you meet up, please make sure you are well and observe good personal hygiene. We can overcome this pandemic when everyone does their part to be a responsible citizen.
“42 都 恒 心 遵 守 使 徒 的 教 训 ， 彼 此 交 接 ， 擘 饼 ， 祈 祷 。43 众 人 都 惧 怕 ； 使 徒 又 行 了 许 多 奇 事 神 迹 。 44 信 的 人 都 在 一 处 ， 凡 物 公 用 ； 45 并 且 卖 了 田 产 ， 家 业 ， 照 各 人 所 需 用 的 分 给 各 人 。 46 他 们 天 天 同 心 合 意 恒 切 的 在 殿 里 ， 且 在 家 中 擘 饼 ， 存 着 欢 喜 、 诚 实 的 心 用 饭 ， 46 赞 美 神 ， 得 众 民 的 喜 爱 。 主 将 得 救 的 人 天 天 加 给 他 们 。”
作者：苏振豪传道
过去的几个星期，‘新冠状病毒’已经把世界闹得天翻地覆，至今最少有114个国家受到影响。世界卫生组织已在3月11日把新冠状病毒疫情列为全球性爆发的疫情。在这期间，我们的教会也做出了一些调整，像是把星期天的崇拜改为网上直播，以保护我们的会友，减低受感染的风险。这并非一个简单的决定，但我个人非常庆幸教会领袖们做出这样的决定，因为我们开始看见出席大型聚会可以带来的可怕后果。
在使徒行传第二章里，我们看到信徒们是虔诚的。他们一起崇拜，赞美主名，也一起在家里举行团契聚会。天天都有人得救，而信徒们之间也有着很强的凝聚力。若是有一天，为了某种原因（像是现在的疫情），我们无法再到教堂去一起崇拜的话，我们就必须另想办法，刻意地以小组或是1对1的方式来继续联系。毕竟，我们才是教会。阿裕尼路74号只不过是一栋建筑物而已。
今时今日，智能手机让我们随时随地可以查经及分享灵修内容。科技的发展让我们可以做网上直播；通过像Skype及Zoom的应用程序，我们也可以在网上开会，而且都是免费的。我们必须力求创新，利用科技给我们带来的便利，使教会不论在任何情况下都能继续运行。
我恳求中国布道会的弟兄姊妹们在疫情爆发的期间要更加齐心协力，不要对我们的主耶稣失去信心，反而要继续为世界祷告，祈求上帝的庇佑。我们要继续与教会弟兄姐妹保持联络，若是相约见面的话，一定要确定自己的健康状况良好，并且注意个人卫生。当大家都做好好市民应尽的本分时，我们必定可以战胜疫情。