神国的显现
我们通常认为君王是那些操政治和军事大权的人，然而君王耶稣却有另一种不同的权能；衪有权能使某些非常糟糕的事情重回正轨。所以，衪以医治病人、使瞎子看见和赶鬼，来代替发动战争。
有一天，一个来自推罗和西顿的迦南妇人来见耶稣。她祈求耶稣的帮助，因为她的女儿被鬼附着，但耶稣却一言不答。当衪的门徒催促耶稣打发她离开时，耶稣说衪奉差遣是来看顾以色列家的羊。然而妇人却和耶稣争辩，她坚持神的良善也会扩展到以色列家以外的人。她当然是对的，耶稣称赞她有大信心，这时她的女儿便立刻痊愈了。
今天是显现节，是庆祝耶稣让世人认识衪是谁的日子。在迦南妇人的故事中，我们看到耶稣也在庆祝这个好消息。衪虽然奉差遣到“以色列家迷失的羊那里去，”然而衪很快便会差遣衪的跟随者到万民之中（马太福音 24:14；使徒行传 1:8），而衪也已经开始告诉他们，这是神的本意（马太福音 8:5-13, 28-34）。
你可能不是现在才恍然大悟神的显现，特别是如果你早已经知道神是爱世人的话（约翰福音3:16）。尽管如此，神的国的显现提醒我们，我们不要小看了这个国度的重要性。
耶稣啊，感谢你把这好消息传给万民，又帮助我们凭信心跟随你的带领。阿们。
马太福音 15:21-28
21耶稣离开那里，退到推罗、西顿的境内去。
22有一个迦南妇人，从那地方出来，喊着说：“主啊，大卫的子孙，可怜我！我女儿被鬼附得甚苦。”
23耶稣却一言不答。门徒进前来求他，说：“这妇人在我们后头喊叫，请打发她走吧！”
24耶稣说：“我奉差遣，不过是到以色列家迷失的羊那里去。”
25那妇人来拜他，说：“主啊，帮助我！”
26他回答说：“不好拿儿女的饼丢给狗吃。”
27妇人说：“主啊，不错，但是狗也吃它主人桌子上掉下来的碎渣儿！”
28耶稣说：“妇人，你的信心是大的！照你所要的，给你成全了吧。”从那时候，她女儿就好了。
Kingdom Epiphany
"The Lord Most High is . . . the great King over all the earth." - Psalm 47:2
We usually think of kings as men who have political and military power. But King Jesus has a different kind of power. He has the power to take certain things that have gone terribly wrong and put them right. So instead of launching wars, Jesus heals the sick, gives sight to the blind, and casts out demons.
One day a Canaanite woman in the region of Tyre and Sidon comes to Jesus. She asks him for help because a demon has hold of her daughter. But Jesus says nothing. When his disciples urge him to send her away, he says that he was sent to tend the flock of Israel. But the woman spars with him, insisting that God's goodness extends beyond Israel. And of course she is right. Jesus commends her for her great faith, and her daughter is healed immediately.
Today is Epiphany, the celebration of Jesus' being made known to the peoples of the world. In the story of the Canaanite woman, we can see Jesus celebrating this good news too. Though he was sent to "the lost sheep of Israel," he would soon be sending his followers to all nations (Matthew 24:14; Acts 1:8). And he had already begun showing them that this was God's intention (Matthew 8:5-13, 28-34).
This may not be an epiphany for you, especially if you already know that God loves the whole world (John 3:16). Even so, it reminds us not to think small when it comes to God's kingdom.
Jesus, thank you for bringing the good news to all nations, and help us to follow your lead, in faith. Amen.
诵读: 骆云秀
片头: 张妙阳
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