晨興聖言-...主的恢復之中心負擔...(W8-5)

第八週■週五

w08d05-ch

晨興餧養

羅十六16『你們要用聖別的親嘴彼此問安。基督的眾召會都問你們安。』

林前十16『…我們所擘開的餅,豈不是基督身體的交通麼?』

   十二13『…我們…都已經在一位靈裏受浸,成了一個身體,且都得以喝一位靈。』

我們〔在羅馬書〕看見保羅如何設立過召會生活的榜樣,爲着過身體的生活。(十五14 ~十六27。)一個在生命中作王之人的榜樣,頭一項就是傳福音。當我們在神聖生命的管治之下,我們就自然而然的傳福音。

保羅首先傳福音給外邦人,(十五14 ~ 24,)然後把他們帶進基督身體的交通裏,使他們藉着在愛裏供給耶路撒冷聖徒的需要,而與猶太召會有交通。(25 ~ 33。)

在十六章一至二十四節,保羅藉着推薦與問安,就把在他職事下的許多聖徒和許多地方召會聯調一起,爲着在基督身體宇宙的交通中有基督身體實際的生活。…今天,所有接受了洋溢之恩並洋溢之義恩賜的信徒,都需要在神聖的生命中操練生命的約束和限制。(李常受文集一九九四至一九九七年第五册,五六八至五六九頁。)

信息選讀

一個身體,一個宇宙召會,包括所有地方召會。地方召會可能有幾千個,但合起來構成了一個宇宙召會。…保羅在以弗所四章四節說,『一個身體和一位靈。』身體題在靈之前,因爲我們中間的一與身體有關,也是爲着身體的。不僅如此,這一節不僅啓示了身體的獨一性,也表明一個身體是由一位靈所決定的。因着有一位靈,所以有一個身體。…我們必須保守身體獨一的一,因爲身體和靈都是一。

那靈是這一個身體的素質。身體若沒有那靈,就是空洞且沒有生命。四節所說的身體是基督的身體,而基督身體的素質乃是那靈。因此,身體與身體的素質乃是一。

因着靈是一位,所以只有一個身體。再者,這身體只有一個生命的循環,一個交通。這個循環是基督身體的交通。…在組成基督一個宇宙身體的眾召會之間沒有組織,卻有基督身體的交通。…如果眾召會都留在身體的循環和交通裏,就會很健康。然而在人天然的觀念中,要麼就是有組織,不然就是與別人無關。一面,我們在眾召會之間不該有組織;另一面,我們應該敞開和眾召會有交通。但是,有些地方或區域的召會,可能不願意和別的召會有交通。這樣的態度完全是錯的。(新約總論第七册,一六六至一六七頁。)

神聖的交通乃是在基督身體裏生活的實際。歷世紀以來,主一直受阻撓,就是因着缺少交通。在啓示錄二十二章二十節,主耶穌說,『我必快來!』但將近二千年過去,主仍沒有回來。原因乃是信徒持個人主義,都是單獨、有意見、並且製造分裂的。羅馬天主教藉着組織來管制人,但那些脫離了天主教的人卻帶進一個又一個的分裂。…實際上,神聖的交通該管制信徒。

我們在這交通裏受限制。藉着在這交通裏受限制,基督的身體就蒙保守在一裏,職事的工作就繼續往前。(李常受文集一九九○年第一册,四四二至四四三頁。)

參讀:新約總論,第二百九十八篇。

WEEK 8 — DAY 5

w08d05-en

Morning Nourishment

Rom. 16:16 Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you.

1 Cor. 10:16 …The bread which we break, is it not the fellowship of the body of Christ?

         12:13…In one Spirit we were all baptized into one Body…and were all given to drink one Spirit.

We see how Paul set up a pattern of living the church life for the living of the Body life (Rom. 15:14—16:27). The first item in the pattern of one who is reigning in life is the preaching of the gospel. When we are under the ruling of the divine life, we will spontaneously preach the gospel.

Paul first preached the gospel to the Gentiles (15:14-24) and then brought them into the fellowship of the Body of Christ with the Jewish churches through their giving in love to provide for the necessities of the saints in Jerusalem (vv. 25-33).

By his recommendations and greetings in 16:1-24, Paul was blending together many saints and many churches under his ministry for the practical living of the Body of Christ in the universal fellowship of the Body…Today there is the need for all the believers who have received the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness to practice the restriction and limitation in the divine life. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 5, “Crystallization-study of the Complete Salvation of God in Romans,” p. 451)

Today's Reading

The one Body, the one universal church, comprises all the local churches. There may be thousands of local churches, but together they constitute one universal church. In Ephesians 4:4 Paul says, “One Body and one Spirit.” The Body is mentioned before the Spirit because the oneness among us is related to the Body and is for the Body. Furthermore, this verse not only reveals the uniqueness of the Body; it also shows that the one Body is determined by the one Spirit. Because there is one Spirit, there is one Body.. We must keep the unique oneness of the Body because the Body and the Spirit are one.

The Spirit is the essence of the one Body. Without the Spirit, the Body is empty and has no life. The Body in Ephesians 4:4 is the Body of Christ, and the essence of the Body of Christ is the Spirit. Hence, the Body and the essence of the Body are one.

Because there is one Spirit, there is only one Body. Moreover, there is only one
circulation, one fellowship, of life in the Body. This circulation is the fellowship of the Body of Christ. Among all the churches that compose the one universal Body of Christ, there is no organization, but there is the fellowship of the Body of Christ… If all the churches stay in this circulation, in the fellowship of the Body, they will be healthy. However, the natural human thought is either to have organization or to have nothing to do with others. On the one hand, we should not have any organization among the churches; on the other hand, we should be open to have fellowship with all the churches. However, the church in a certain locality or the churches in a particular region may not be willing to have fellowship with other churches. This attitude is absolutely wrong. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 2185-2186)

The divine fellowship is the reality of living in the Body of Christ. The Lord has been frustrated throughout the centuries because of the lack of fellowship. In Revelation 22:20 the Lord Jesus said, “I come quickly,” but it has been nearly two thousand years, and the Lord is still not back. The reason is that the believers are individualistic, independent, opinionated, and divisive. The Roman Catholic Church controlled people by its organization, but those who broke away from Catholicism brought in division after division…Actually, the divine fellowship should control the believers.

We are restricted in this fellowship. By being restricted in this fellowship, the Body of Christ is kept in oneness, and the work of the ministry continues to go on. (CWWL, 1990, vol. 1, “The Triune God to Be Life to the Tripartite Man,” p. 357)

Further Reading: The Conclusion of the New Testament, msg. 298

 

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