晨興聖言-為着主的來臨(W4-1)

第四週　週一

 http://morning-revival.twgbr.org/mp3s/2023/1-Chinese-NY/week-04/week4day1.mp3

晨興餧養

太二四45~47　這樣，誰是那忠信又精明的奴僕，為主人所派，管理他的家人，按時分糧給他們？主人來到，看見他這樣行，那奴僕就有福了。我實在告訴你們，主人要派他管理一切的家業。

    馬太二十四章四十五至五十一節論到忠信精明。…忠信是向着主；精明是向着信徒。儆醒是為着被提到主的同在裏；忠信是為着在國度裏掌權（47）。…四十五節所說的家人，指信徒（弗二19），即召會（提前三15）。分糧給他們，意指在召會裏，將神的話和基督當作生命的供應，供應信徒。我們都必須學習，如何按時將生命的供應，供應主的家人。

〔馬太二十四章四十六至四十七節〕裏的有福，是在國度的實現裏，得着管理的權柄為賞賜。對於忠信的奴僕，主在諸天之國的實現裏，要派他管理一切的家業，作為賞賜（馬太福音生命讀經，八一九至八二○頁）。

信息選讀

我們必須按時分糧，就是分配生命的供應給主的子民。不要說別人有教導的恩賜，能教導你神的話，供應你屬靈的食物，但你沒有那樣的恩賜。這裏沒有這樣的思想。所有主的僕人都為着他們的使命，領受了恩賜。

〔有些人〕也許說，在整個基督教裏，他們只看到好的教師向會眾講道。他們從來沒有看過一個聚會有這麼多人站起來說話，…一個接一個站起來，好像爆玉米花一樣。…這正是我們所盼望有的。…這是聖經的教訓（林前十四24、26、29~32）。我們都必須學習盡功用。這就是為甚麼甚至在職事的聚會，我總是喜歡留下半小時給你們『爆玉米花』。不要粘在椅子上。…你必須跳起來說話。你說話就是按時分糧給主的家人。

供應食物的人知道要按時供餐。你若每天供應食物，你就必須作早餐、午餐和晚餐。…早晨應當按時供應早餐。還有，好妻子總是會豫備最好的三明治給丈夫帶到辦公室，作為按時的午餐，並習慣為家人豫備豐盛的晚餐。…同樣，每當我們聚在一起，這就是你按時供應合式的食物給主的家屬的時間。然而，如果我懶惰，沒有讀主的話；如果我在主的話上沒有彀多的殷勤勞苦，就來對你們說話，我就只能供應你們『一杯咖啡和幾個甜甜圈』。烹煮一頓滋養、美味的早餐，需要你的殷勤。…忠信…等於殷勤，懶惰等於怠惰。我們必須殷勤尋求主的話，使我們豫備好，來到聚會時能供應美好的食物。喫的時候就是『按時』；聚會的時候就是『按時』。在主日上午、主日晚上、週二晚上、週五晚上，我們都有指定的時候。聚會的時間，就是指定的時候，我們眾人必須將一些生命的供應，供給神家的人，供給同作信徒的人，就是供給我們的家業。

對於罪人，我們所供應合式的食物，乃是基督的福音。醫院裏的護士知道，他們必須用不同的食物供應病人。不同的食物供應給不同的病人，是為了應付他們特殊的需要。對我們來說也是一樣。全地就是醫院，滿了疾病和各式各樣有病的人。實在說來，甚至召會也是醫院，滿了有病的人。所以，我們必須按時供應不同的話語給他們（李常受文集一九八五年第五冊，六三二至六三六頁）。

參讀：馬太福音生命讀經，第六十三篇；包羅萬有的基督，第六章。

WEEK 4 — DAY 1 

Morning Nourishment 

Matt. 24:45-47 Who then is the faithful and prudent slave, whom the master has set over his household to give them food at the proper time? Blessed is that slave whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. Truly I say to you that he will set him over all his possessions. 

Matthew 24:45 through 51 are concerned with faithfulness and prudence… Faithfulness is toward the Lord, whereas prudence is toward the believers. Watchfulness is for rapture into the Lord’s presence, but faithfulness is for reigning in the kingdom (v. 47). The household spoken of in verse 45 refers to the believers (Eph. 2:19), who are the church (1 Tim. 3:15). To give them food is to minister the Word of God with Christ as the life supply to the believers in the church. We all must learn how to minister the life supply to the household of the Lord at the appointed time. 

To be blessed [in Matthew 24:46-47] is to be rewarded with ruling authority in the manifestation of the kingdom. The faithful slave of the Lord will be set over all His possessions as a reward in the manifestation of the kingdom of the heavens. (Life-study of Matthew, pp. 741-742) 

Today’s Reading 

At the proper time we have to minister food, the life supply, to the Lord’s people. Do not say that others have a gift of teaching to teach you the Word of God and minister spiritual food to you but that you do not have such a gift. There is not such a thought here. All of the Lord’s servants received the gift for their commission. 

Some… may say that in all of Christianity they only saw the practice of good  reachers speaking to a crowd. They never saw a meeting with so many standing up to speak… One after another stands up like popcorn popping, [which] is altogether what we expect to have…This is the Bible’s teaching (1 Cor. 14:24, 26, 29-32). We all have to learn to function. This is the reason that even in a ministry meeting, I always like to leave half an hour for you to “pop up.” Do not just be stuck to your chair…You have to jump up to say something. For you to speak is to minister food to the Lord’s household at the proper time. 

Whoever serves food knows the proper time. If you are serving food every day, you have to make breakfast, lunch, and dinner…The proper time in the morning is breakfast. Also, good wives prepare the best sandwiches for their husbands to bring to the office for lunch at the proper time and are accustomed to preparing a big dinner for their family. In like manner, whenever we meet together, this is one of the proper times, the appointed times, for you to minister the proper food to the Lord’s folks. Suppose, however, that I was sloppy, not reading the Word. If I did not labor adequately in the Word and came to speak to you, I would just be ministering to you “a cup of coffee and some doughnuts.” To cook a nourishing, good breakfast requires your diligence… Faithful… equals diligent, and slothful equals lazy. We must be diligent in seeking the Word so that we could prepare to serve good food when we come to the meeting. The eating time is the proper time, and the meeting time is the proper time. We have the proper time on the Lord’s Day morning, on the Lord’s Day evening, Tuesday evening, and Friday evening. The meeting times are the proper times when we all have to minister some portion of the life supply to our folks, to our fellow believers. 

To the sinners the proper food that we minister is the gospel of Christ. The nurses in the hospitals know that they must serve the patients with different meals. Different food is ministered to different patients to meet their specific needs. It is the same with us. The entire earth is a hospital, full of sickness and full of all kinds of sick people. The church in a good sense is also a hospital, full of sick people. Therefore, we have to minister different words to them at the proper time. (CWWL, 1985, vol. 5, “The Way to Practice the Lord’s Present Move,” pp. 515-517) 

Further Reading: Life-study of Matthew, msg. 63; CWWL, 1961-1962, vol. 4, “The All-inclusive Christ,” ch. 6