前兩篇網誌，我們研讀了寫給老底嘉 (Laodicea) 和士每拿 (Smyrna) 教會的信息。本文將探討寫給以弗所 (Ephesus) 教會的信息。這城市的考古遺址，也是 2023年3月的一次國際會議後去拜訪的[1]感謝香港基督教會的支持，讓我和太太能跟許多其他與會成員一起，參與這趟亞細亞眾教會的城市遺跡學習旅程。《啟示錄》中提及的七教會，以弗所是第一個。研讀此信息的背景，對我們這些今天活在香港的門徒必有裨益。
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| ↑1 | 感謝香港基督教會的支持，讓我和太太能跟許多其他與會成員一起，參與這趟亞細亞眾教會的城市遺跡學習旅程 |
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Partial view of Ephesus’ commercial agora site, where the riot (Acts 19:23-29) probably began (Wilson, 2020a) (all photos taken on March 21, 2023 by Elexa Liu).
In two preceding blogs, we studied the Scriptures regarding the messages to the churches in Laodicea and in Smyrna. This blog will explore the message to the church in Ephesus, another city whose archaeological ruins were visited after an international conference in March, 2023.[1] Ephesus was the first of seven churches addressed in the book of Revelation. Studying the context of this message, we will glean lessons for us as disciples living today in Hong Kong.
今年三月，參加了在土耳其伊茲米爾 (Izmir) 舉辦的國際基督教會會議後，與會者參觀了曾經是亞細亞七教會所在地的考古遺址[1]感謝香港基督教會的支持，讓我和太太能跟許多其他與會成員一起，參與這趟亞細亞眾教會的城市遺跡學習旅程。除了老底嘉 (Laodicea) 外，另一個有趣的遺址是士每拿 (Smyrna)，這是現代伊茲米爾在古代的名稱。這篇文章將探討寫給士每拿教會書信的文本及其背景，反思今天身處香港的我們又可以學到什麼。
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| ↑1 | 感謝香港基督教會的支持，讓我和太太能跟許多其他與會成員一起，參與這趟亞細亞眾教會的城市遺跡學習旅程 |
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After a conference of the International Churches of Christ held in Izmir, Türkiye this past March, participants visited archaeological ruins at the sites where the seven churches of Asia once were.[1] Besides Laodicea, another interesting site was that of Smyrna, the name that modern Izmir was known by in antiquity. This blog will explore the background about and the text written to the church in Smyrna and reflect on its lessons for us in Hong Kong today.
代表香港出席海外會議，地點通常都是身處航空樞紐的美國城市。去年春天的會議卻有別於過往，因為是在土耳其的伊茲密爾 (Izmir) 召開。在古代，伊茲密爾被稱為士每拿 (Smyrna)，也就是《啟示錄》2:8-11 中提及的教會所在。會議過後，我有機會去參觀一些城市遺址[1]感謝香港基督教會的支持，讓我和太太能跟許多其他與會成員一起，參與這趟亞細亞眾教會的城市遺跡學習旅程，就是《啟示錄》2-3章中所提到的，古代亞細亞 (Asia) 的七教會。本文將聚焦《啟示錄》所記載的第七間教會 —— 老底嘉 (Laodicea) 教會，希望透過這趟遺跡之旅，加上重新研讀《啟示錄》3:14-22中具有挑戰性的訊息，讓我們今日在香港實踐基督教信仰時，能在知識及信念上有所更新。
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| ↑1 | 感謝香港基督教會的支持，讓我和太太能跟許多其他與會成員一起，參與這趟亞細亞眾教會的城市遺跡學習旅程 |
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Representing Hong Kong at an overseas meeting usually means visiting an American city well-served by an airport hub. This past spring, we convened in a different place: Izmir, Türkiye. In antiquity Izmir was known as Smyrna, the place that lent its name to the church in Revelation 2:8-11. After our formal meetings I had the opportunity to visit some of the city ruins where the seven churches in Asia, mentioned in Revelation 2-3,[1] were located. This article will focus on the church in Laodicea, in the hope that a visit to the ruins and a re-study of the challenging message of Revelation 3:14-22 can awaken understanding and conviction as we practice our Christianity in Hong Kong today.
在今日節奏急促、焦躁不安的生活中，我們似乎無處不在。我們借助現今技術，工作中與客戶面對面的同時，也能無間地「現身」在 Instagram、Facebook 或其他社交媒體平台上，藉著發放最新帖子去分享自身經歷、興趣和負評，隨心所欲地放閃。
從一個會面到另一個會面，我們如何保持頭腦清醒？當我們幾乎無處不在的能力與基督徒的身份有所抵觸時，又會怎樣？不管身處何時何地，《聖經》都能教導我們真誠和心無旁騖地與人共處之道？神與我們同在的榜樣，會提醒和引導我們的生活？我的猜測是，我們都不難承認自己會在很多情況下分心，「人在」但精神或情感上卻不完全「心在」。藉著簡述神的同在或「專注當下」的經文，希望這篇文章會是我們學習如何與神與人共處時「心無旁騖」寶貴的一課。
Alejandro Escamilla alejandroescamilla, Man with smartphone and laptop (Unsplash), CC0 1.0
Today in our fast-paced, restless lives we can be seemingly present everywhere. We can be sitting face to face across from a client at work while simultaneously, with the help of today’s technology, maintain a “presence” on Instagram, Facebook, or other social media platforms, burnishing each with the latest postings of our experiences, interests, and dislikes as frequently as we like.
今時今日，香港普羅市民提及「餐旅服務業」時，腦海中浮現的多是高級餐飲或豪華度假酒店。高檔食肆和酒店被鋪天蓋地的社交媒體所點評，讓我們對餐旅服務的識見與期待，提升到一個新的層次。