晨興聖言-...主的恢復之中心負擔...(W5-4)

第五週■週四

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晨興餧養

詩二十3『願祂記念你的一切素祭,悅納你的燔祭。〔細拉〕』

利六11『隨後要脫去這衣服,穿上別的衣服,把灰拿到營外潔淨之處。』

一16『…壇的東面倒灰的地方。』

神悅納燔祭,就將它燒成灰。詩篇二十篇三節…『悅納』一辭,原文實意爲『轉成灰』。…一般人不以灰爲令人喜悅之物。然而,對我們獻燔祭的人,灰的確是令人喜悅,甚至是寶貴的,因爲這是一個記號,使我們有把握,我們的燔祭已經蒙神悅納了。

『悅納』一辭,原文不只可繙作『轉成灰』,也可繙作『悅納如同脂油』,『使之成爲脂油』,以及『成爲脂油』。神悅納我們的燔祭,不僅是將供物轉成灰,也是悅納這供物如同脂油;對祂來說,脂油乃是甜美、可喜悅的。

燔祭被燒成灰,就是說神滿足了,所以我們可以安心。我們若領會這點,就會看見我們基督徒的生活中該有很多灰。

灰不是要丟掉的,乃要倒在壇的東面,(利一16,六10,)這是放灰的地方。東面是日出之處。將灰倒在壇的東面,實際上含示復活。(利未記生命讀經,六八至六九頁。)

信息選讀

〔我們在利未記六章十一節〕這裏…看見,灰不是丟掉的。這指明我們該寶貝向神所獻燔祭的結果。我們絕不該將這結果扔掉。…〔十一節表明〕在處理燔祭的灰(結果)時,是莊嚴的。在神眼中,我們燔祭的結果是受重視的,乃是細緻、純潔、潔淨的。因此,祭司把灰拿到營外時,要穿上莊重的衣服,莊嚴的把灰拿走。這教導我們要看重燔祭的結果。

成爲全時間者,乃是把自己獻給神作燔祭。這應當有,也必須有一個結果。我們不該輕看這結果,以爲不重要,反該重看它。我們作燔祭的結果,將完成神新約的經綸。我們這些全時間的人所作的,不僅是傳福音拯救罪人、建立地方召會、教導聖經、或幫助人在生命和真理上長進。我們所作的必須終結於基督身體的建造,這身體乃是要來之新耶路撒冷的小影。

我們所作的實際上並不尋常,但對世人來說算不得甚麼。在他們看來,我們所作的不過是灰。然而,神重視這些灰,因爲這些灰至終要成爲新耶路撒冷。你曾領會過這些灰,就是燔祭的結果,會成爲要來的新耶路撒冷麼?我是這樣領會,也這樣相信。我相信我會在那裏,並且我所作的,會成爲那城的一部分。新耶路撒冷是我們的定命,也是我們的目的地。

燔祭的灰怎能成爲新耶路撒冷?灰指明基督之死的結果,是把我們帶到盡頭,就是使我們成爲灰燼。但基督的死帶進復活。在復活裏,灰成爲建造新耶路撒冷的寶貴材料—金、珍珠和寶石。這三種寶貴的材料都是來自灰的變化。我們被消減成灰,就把我們帶進三一神的變化裏。(利未記生命讀經,六九、二五○至二五一頁。)

參讀:利未記生命讀經,第六至七、二十三篇。

WEEK 5 — DAY 4

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Morning Nourishment

Psa. 20:3 May He remember all your meal offerings and accept your burnt offering. Selah

Lev. 6:11 Then he shall take off his garments and put on other garments and carry the ashes outside the camp to a clean place.

1:16…Toward the east, in the place of the ashes.

For God to accept the burnt offering is for Him to turn it to ashes… The Hebrew word translated “accept” in Psalm 20:3 actually means “turn to ashes.” Ordinarily people do not regard ashes as something pleasant. However, to us who offer the burnt offering, ashes are indeed pleasant, even precious, because they are a sign which gives us the assurance that our burnt
offering has been accepted by God.

The Hebrew word rendered “accept” can be translated not only as “turn to ashes” but also as “accept as fat,” “make fat,” and “be as fat.” For God to accept our burnt offering means not only that He turns it to ashes but also that He accepts it as fat, something that is sweet and pleasing to Him.

For the burnt offering to be turned to ashes means that God is satisfied and that we therefore may be at peace. If we understand this, we shall realize that in our Christian life there should be a lot of ashes.

The ashes were not thrown away. Instead, they were put to the east side of the altar (Lev. 1:16; 6:10), the place of the ashes. The east side is the side of the sunrise. Putting the ashes to the east side of the altar is actually an allusion to resurrection. (Life-study of Leviticus, pp. 57-58)

Today's Reading

[In Leviticus 6:11] once again we see that the ashes were not thrown away. This indicates that we should treasure the result of our offering of the burnt offering to God. We should never throw it away. Verse 11…signifies the stateliness in handling the ashes (the result) of the burnt offering. In God’s eyes, the result of our burnt offering is highly regarded. It is fine, pure, and clean. Thus, in carrying the ashes outside the camp, the priest wore stately garments and carried the ashes in a stately way. This teaches us to have a high regard for the result of our burnt offering.

To become a full-timer is to offer ourselves to God as a burnt offering. Concerning this, there should be and must be a result. We should regard this result and not despise it or consider it insignificant. The result of our being a burnt offering will be something that carries out God’s New Testament economy. What we do as full-timers is not merely to preach the gospel to save sinners, to establish local churches, to teach the Bible, or to help people to grow in life and in truth. What we do must result in the building up of the Body of Christ, which is a miniature of the coming New Jerusalem.

What we are doing is actually extraordinary, but to the worldly people it is nothing. To them what we are doing is ashes. However, God has a high regard for these ashes. Eventually these ashes will become the New Jerusalem. Have you ever realized that the ashes, the result of the burnt offering, will be the coming New Jerusalem? I realize this, and I believe it. I believe that I will be there and that what I am doing will be part of that city. The New Jerusalem is our destiny and our destination.

How can the ashes of the burnt offering become the New Jerusalem? Ashes indicate the result of Christ’s death, which brings us to an end, that is, to ashes. But Christ’s death brings in resurrection. In resurrection, the ashes become precious materials—gold, pearls, and precious stones—for the building of the New Jerusalem. All three precious materials come from the transformation of the ashes. When we are brought to ashes, we are brought into the transformation of the Triune God. (Life-study of Leviticus, pp. 58, 211)

Further Reading: Life-study of Leviticus, msgs. 6-7, 23

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