晨興聖言-經歷、享受並彰顯基督(四)(W41-2)
第四十一週.週二
晨興餧養
啟二7 『…得勝的,我必將神樂園中生命樹的果子賜給他喫。』
彼前二24 『祂在木頭上,在祂的身體裏,親自擔當了我們的罪,使我們既然向罪死了,就得以向義活著…。』
約十一25 『耶穌對她說,我是復活,我是生命;信入我的人,雖然死了,也必復活。』
為著正當的召會生活,和召會生活的恢復,也就是為著基督徒生命正確的長大,我們所需要的,不僅是在頭腦裏明白教訓,更是在靈裏喫主作我們生命的糧。(約六57。)即使是聖經上的話,也不該僅僅當作道理教導我們的心思,乃該當作食物滋養我們的靈。(太四4,來五12~14。)在〔啟示錄二章七節〕,主應許要給得勝者喫生命樹的果子,這指回到創世記二章八至九節、和十六節關於神所命定喫的事。在寫給別迦摩召會的書信中,主應許要給得勝者喫那隱藏的嗎哪,(啟二17,)這是指以色列人在曠野喫嗎哪的事。(出十六14~16,31。)在寫給老底嘉召會的書信中,主應許要與給祂開門的人一同坐席。(啟三20。)…這指明主渴望恢復神子民喫正確的食物,就是神所命定,由生命樹、嗎哪、以及美地的出產所豫表的,這一切都是基督在不同方面作我們食物的豫表。(啟示錄生命讀經,一四七頁。)
信息選讀
〔啟示錄二章七節〕這裏的『樹』,原文不是一般所用的字,乃與彼前二章二十四節的木頭同字。在聖經裏,生命樹總是指基督,就是神一切豐富的具體化身,(西二9,)作我們的食物。(創二9,三22,24,啟二二2,14,19。)這裏是指釘十字架(由樹,就是木頭所含示—彼前二24)並復活(由神的生命所含示—約十一25)的基督,今天基督是在召會中,召會的終極完成乃是新耶路撒冷,在其中這位釘死並復活的基督是生命樹,滋養神所有的贖民,直到永遠。(啟二二2,14。)
主對以弗所召會得勝者的應許,是將神樂園中生命樹的果子賜給他喫。生命樹是在神的樂園中。…啟示錄二章七節神的樂園,乃是新耶路撒冷,…今天的召會就是這新耶路撒冷的豫嘗。…現今我們正在享受釘死並復活的基督作…生命樹,成為我們今天在召會中的豫嘗。這種豫嘗的享受,要引我們進入新耶路撒冷,完滿的享受…基督作生命樹,…直到永遠。主應許以弗所召會的得勝者得以喫生命樹,指明他們要在今天的召會生活中喫基督,並在新耶路撒冷中喫祂作生命樹,直到永遠。我們的經歷印證這事。
在新天新地的新耶路撒冷享受基督作生命樹,是所有神的贖民永遠共同的分;然而在要來千年國的新耶路撒冷裏特別享受祂作生命樹,乃是單單給得勝信徒時代的賞賜。如果今天我們在召會中,勝過召會墮落時一切的打岔,並享受基督作生命樹,將來就要得著這樣的賞賜。否則,我們雖然能在新天新地的新耶路撒冷裏,永遠享受基督作生命樹,但在要來的國度裏卻要失去這分特別的享受。
生命樹總是帶我們回到起初。起初沒有別的,只有神自己;起初沒有工作、勞碌、忍耐,只有神自己。在召會生活中,我們需要一再回到起初,把一切都忘記,單單享受神自己作生命樹。(啟示錄生命讀經,一四八至一五一頁。)
參讀:啟示錄生命讀經,第十篇。
WEEK 41 — DAY 2
Morning Nourishment
Rev. 2:7 …To him who overcomes, to him I will give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.
1 Pet. 2:24 Who Himself bore up our sins in His body on the tree, in order that we, having died to sins, might live to righteousness…
John 11:25 Jesus said to her, I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes into Me, even if he should die, shall live.
For the proper church life and the recovery of the church life, that is, for the proper growth in the Christian life, what we need is not merely the mental apprehension of teachings but the eating of the Lord as the bread of life in our spirit (John 6:57). Even the words of the Scripture should not be considered merely as doctrines to teach our mind but as food to nourish our spirit (Matt. 4:4; Heb. 5:12-14). Here in Revelation the Lord promised to give the overcomer to eat of the tree of life. This points back to Genesis 2:8-9 and 16, which concerns the matter of eating ordained by God. In the epistle to the church in Pergamos, the Lord promised the overcomer that he would eat of the hidden manna (Rev. 2:17), which refers to the eating of manna by the children of Israel in the wilderness (Exo. 16:14-16, 31). And in the epistle to the church in Laodicea, the Lord promised to dine with the one who opens the door to Him (Rev. 3:20)… This indicates that the Lord desires to recover the eating of the proper food by God’s people, the food ordained by God and typified by the tree of life, the manna, and the produce of the good land, all of which are types of the various aspects of Christ as food to us. (Life-study of Revelation, pp. 117-118)
Today’s Reading
In Greek the word for tree [in Revelation 2:7], as in 1 Peter 2:24, means “wood”;
it is not the word usually used for tree. In the Bible the tree of life
always signifies Christ as the embodiment of all the riches of God
(Col. 2:9) for our food (Gen. 2:9; 3:22, 24; Rev. 22:2, 14, 19). In
Revelation 2:7 it signifies the crucified (implied in the tree as a
piece of wood—1 Pet. 2:24) and resurrected (implied in the life of
God—John 11:25) Christ, who today is in the church, the consummation of
which will be the New Jerusalem, in which the crucified and resurrected
Christ will be the tree of life for the nourishment of all of God’s
redeemed people for eternity (Rev. 22:2, 14).
The
promise to the overcomers in the church in Ephesus was to eat of the
tree of life. The tree of life is in the Paradise of God…”The Paradise
of God” in Revelation 2:7 is the New Jerusalem…, of which the church is a
foretaste today…We are enjoying the crucified and resurrected Christ as
the tree of life…as a foretaste today in the church. This enjoyment of
the foretaste will usher us into the full taste…in the New Jerusalem for
eternity. The promise of eating the tree of life given to the
overcomers in Ephesus indicates that they will eat Christ in the church
life today and eat Him as the tree of life in the New Jerusalem for
eternity. Our experience confirms this.
The
enjoyment of Christ as the tree of life in the New Jerusalem in the new
heaven and new earth will be the common portion of all of God’s
redeemed people, whereas the particular enjoyment of Him as the tree of
life in the New Jerusalem in the coming millennial kingdom is a reward
given only to the overcoming believers. If we overcome all the
distractions in the church’s degradation to enjoy Christ as the tree of
life in the church today, we will be thus rewarded. Otherwise, we will
miss this particular enjoyment in the coming kingdom, though we will
still enjoy Christ as the tree of life in the New Jerusalem in the new
heaven and the new earth for eternity.
The
tree of life always brings us back to the beginning where there is
nothing but God Himself. There is no work, labor, endurance, or anything
else—only God Himself. In the church life, again and again we need to
be brought back to the beginning, forgetting all other things and
enjoying God Himself as the tree of life. (Life-study of Revelation, pp.
118-121)
Further Reading: Life-study of Revelation, msg. 10
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