晨興聖言-挪亞、但以理和約伯...(W5-5)
第五週 • 週五
晨興餧養
約十二24 我實實在在的告訴你們,一粒麥子不落在地裏死了,仍舊是一粒;若是死了,就結出許多子粒來。
羅八29 因為神所豫知的人,祂也豫定他們模成神兒子的形像,使祂兒子在許多弟兄中作長子。
聖經啟示一位奇妙、美妙者—神人耶穌基督。…這就是神成為人,為要使人在生命和性情上(但不在神格上)成為神的奧祕。神與人二者因此被建造在一起,構成到彼此裏面。在基督裏,神構成到人裏面,人也構成到神裏面;神與人已調和在一起,成了一個實體,稱為神人。
神在基督裏正將祂自己構成到人裏面,將祂自己作成人的元素。因此,我們這些人就由神的元素所構成。這意思是,神聖的元素建造到我們人的元素裏,這兩種元素彼此調和。不僅神那神聖的元素構成到我們裏面,人的元素也構成到神裏面。當神的元素構成到我們的人性裏,我們就在生命和性情上(但不在神格上)成為神。當人的元素構成到神裏面,神就成為人。這就是新約中所啟示的建造(撒母耳記生命讀經,二五○至二五一頁)。
信息選讀
基督使祂自己這第一個神人成為一個原型,好大量複製許多弟兄—許多神人(羅八29)。…神與人要成為一個實體,而這一個實體,就是神性與人性的調和。這個調和要終極完成於新耶路撒冷。
在馬太十六章二十四節,主說,『若有人要跟從我,就當否認己,背起他的十字架,並跟從我。』這就是過一種背十字架跟隨基督腳蹤行的生活(彼前二21下)。…林後五章十五節和加拉太二章十九節都給我們看見,在基督裏的信徒,應當向他們自己死,向神活。…保羅說,他與基督同釘十字架(20),好藉着祂復活的大能,模成祂的死(腓三10)。
『因為你們若照肉體活着,必要死;但你們若靠着那靈治死身體的行為,必要活着。』〔羅八13〕你必須在復活裏,靠着那靈治死身體的行為。這就是憑基督復活的大能,模成祂的死。沒有一個在自己天然生命裏的人,能治死他身體的一切行為;但我們這些作原型複製品的神人,能治死身體的行為。我們能認識祂、並祂復活的大能、以及同祂受苦的交通,模成祂的死。
這樣一種向自己死,並向神活的生活,是為使第一個神人基督成形在祂許多的弟兄—許多的神人—裏面,為着建造祂生機的身體,使神永遠的經綸得以完成。基督徒的生活,不在於外表上愛人或在屬人倫理上溫柔忍耐。我們必須天天死(林前十五31)。已婚的聖徒必須向配偶死,學生必須向同學和老師死。我們必須死而活,使許多神人能成為建造的材料,以建造基督的身體,完成神永遠的經綸。
這樣,祂許多(不是全部)的弟兄,許多的神人,藉着祂的死並在祂的復活裏,就能被構成祂的得勝者,結束這時代,並帶進祂國度的時代。這就是我們作基督徒的真正意義。這是一個天天死的生活。…神已經把祂神聖啟示的高峰向我們開啟。祂也把我們放在受苦的環境裏,逼着我們死而活〔參腓三10〕(李常受文集一九九四至一九九七年第二冊,六八至七一頁)。
參讀:約伯記生命讀經,第二十九篇。
WEEK 5 — DAY 5
Morning Nourishment
John 12:24 Truly, truly, I say to you, Unless the grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it abides alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.
Rom. 8:29 Because those whom He foreknew, He also predestinated to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the Firstborn among many brothers.
The Bible reveals a wonderful, marvelous person—Jesus Christ, the Godman… This is the mystery of God becoming man to make man God in life and in nature but not in the Godhead. The two, God and man, are thus built together, constituted into each other. In Christ God has been constituted into man, man has been constituted into God, and God and man have been mingled together to be one entity, which is called the God-man.
God in Christ is constituting Himself into man, making Himself the element of man. Thus, we human beings are constituted with a divine element. This means that a divine element is built into our human element, and the two elements are mingled with each other. Not only is God’s divine element constituted into us—the human element is constituted into God. As the divine element is constituted into our humanity, we become God in life and in nature but not in the Godhead. As the human element is constituted into God, God becomes man. This is the building revealed in the New Testament. (Life-study of 1 & 2 Samuel, pp. 206-207)
Today’s Reading
Christ made Himself, the first God-man, a prototype for the mass reproduction of many brothers, the many God-men (Rom. 8:29)…God and man will become one entity, and that one entity is the mingling of divinity with humanity. This mingling will consummate in the New Jerusalem.
In Matthew 16:24 the Lord said, “If anyone wants to come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.” This is to live a life of bearing the cross in the steps of Christ (1 Pet. 2:21b). Both 2 Corinthians 5:15 and Galatians 2:19 show that the believers in Christ should die to themselves and live to God. Paul says that he was crucified with Christ (v. 20) to be conformed to His death by the power of His resurrection (Phil. 3:10).
“If you live according to the flesh, you must die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the practices of the body, you will live” [Rom. 8:13]. You have to put to death by the Spirit in His resurrection whatever your body does. This is to be conformed to the death of Christ by the power of His resurrection. No one in his natural life can put everything that his body does to death. But we, the God-men, who are the reproduction of the prototype, can. We can know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death.
Such a life of dying to ourselves and living to God is for Christ, the first God-man, to be formed in His many brothers, the many God-men, for the building up of His organic Body that the eternal economy of God might be carried out. The Christian life is not a matter of outwardly loving people or of being meek or patient in our human ethics. We need to die every day (1 Cor. 15:31). The married saints need to die to their spouse. The students need to die to their classmates and teachers. We need to die to live so that the many God-men can become the building material for the building up of the Body of Christ to carry out God’s eternal economy.
Thus, a number (not all) of His brothers, the many God-men, through His death and in His resurrection may be constituted to be His overcomers to close this age and to bring in His kingdom age. This is the real meaning of our being a Christian. It is a life of dying every day…God has opened up to us the high peak of His divine revelation. He also puts us in an environment of sufferings to force us to die to live [cf. Phil. 3:10]. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 2, “The Practical Way to Live a Life according to the High Peak of the Divine Revelation in the Holy Scriptures,” pp. 55-56)
Further Reading: Life-study of Job, msg. 29
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