晨興聖言-信徒(一)-(W07-1)

第七週 • 週一

W07-d1-ch

晨興餧養

羅九21   窯匠難道沒有權柄,從同一團泥裏,拿一塊作成貴重的器皿,又拿一塊作成卑賤的器皿麼?

  23   且要在那些蒙憐憫、早豫備得榮耀的器皿上,彰顯祂榮耀的豐富。

 

〔保羅的〕十四封書信總歸可用一個辭來表達:『敞開的器皿』。神要一個敞開的器皿。保羅在羅馬九章二十三節告訴我們,神把我們造成『蒙憐憫、早豫備得榮耀的器皿』。然後在林後四章七節說,『我們有這寶貝在瓦器裏。』這兩處經文可視為我們經歷基督與召會的基本祕訣。你也許聽過許多篇論到基督與召會的信息,但如果你不曉得你必須是一個敞開的器皿,基督與召會還是沒有路。…敞開的器皿就是不作甚麼,只是一直敞開,好得着充滿。經過種種過程的神—三一神、包羅萬有的靈、複合的靈—在這裏等候得着一個入口,好進到你裏面去。祂進到你裏面有多少,在於你向祂敞開有多少(李常受文集一九八○年第一冊,三二六頁)。

信息選讀

我們是器皿,不是工具或武器—我們乃是容器。按照羅馬九章,我們盛裝憐憫、尊貴和榮耀〔21、23〕。這憐憫、尊貴和榮耀,實際上就是三一神。在我們的經歷起初的階段,三一神是我們的憐憫;在長進的階段,祂是我們的尊貴;在完成的階段,祂是我們的榮耀。現今我們享受我們的神作憐憫,多少也享受祂作尊貴。當主耶穌回來時,我們要完全被帶進尊貴,也要被帶進榮耀裏。那時我們要被三一神充滿,不僅作我們的憐憫,也作我們的尊貴和榮耀。

憐憫是神搆得最遠的屬性。憐憫比恩典搆得更遠,因為憐憫達到可憐且不配得恩典的景況。…何等美妙!神的憐憫不在於我們的光景是否美好。反之,神的憐憫顯示在人可憐的光景裏。臨及我們的是神的憐憫。…我們需要看見神憐憫的寶貴,為此讚美祂,並為此作見證。從前我們是遠離神的罪人;現今我們與包羅萬有的基督是一。何等的憐憫!我們是盛裝三一神作憐憫的器皿!

保羅在寫羅馬九章時,他的思想完全被神的憐憫佔有。他說,『這不在於那定意的,也不在於那奔跑的,只在於那施憐憫的神。』(16)我們是信徒,我們在召會生活中,這全然在於神的憐憫。因為一切都在於神的憐憫,我們在自己裏面就一無可誇。我們能同主往前,不在於我們的定意或奔跑,乃在於神的憐憫。…我們容易改變,總是刻變時翻。所以,我們不該信靠自己,乃該信靠神的憐憫。我們讚美主,我們是蒙憐憫得尊貴和榮耀的器皿。我們現今盛裝祂作憐憫,將來我們也要盛裝祂作尊貴和榮耀。

我們是蒙憐憫得尊貴和榮耀的器皿,照着神主宰的憐憫蒙祂揀選(11~16)。…作蒙憐憫的器皿,不是我們揀選的結果;這起源於神的主宰。…祂的主宰是祂揀選的基礎。

在十五節,保羅引用主的話:『我要向誰施憐憫,就向誰施憐憫。』因着神的憐憫,別人對福音沒有反應,我們卻有反應;別人拒絕接受關於基督是生命的話,我們卻接受;別人退去不走主恢復的路,我們卻走這條路。關於福音、生命的職事和召會生活,神在祂的主宰裏,都已憐憫了我們。所以,我們必須為着祂主宰的憐憫讚美祂(新約總論第五冊,一四三至一四五頁)。

參讀:羅馬書生命讀經,第二十二、五十八、六十三篇;創世記生命讀經,第十、八十三至八十四篇。


WEEK 7 — DAY 1

W07-d1-en

Morning Nourishment

Rom. 9:21 Or does not the potter have authority over the clay to make out of the same lump one vessel unto honor and another unto dishonor?

            23 In order that He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He had before prepared unto glory.

The summary of [Paul’s] fourteen Epistles may be expressed in just two words: open vessel. God wants an open vessel. In Romans 9:23 Paul tells us that God created us as vessels of mercy unto glory. Then in 2 Corinthians 4:7 he says that “we have this treasure in earthen vessels.” These two verses may be considered as a basic secret to our experience of Christ and the church. You may hear a lot of messages on Christ and the church, yet if you do not realize that you have to be an open vessel, Christ and the church still have no way…An open vessel is doing nothing but keeping itself open to the filling up. The processed God—the Triune God, the all-inclusive Spirit, the compound Spirit—is here waiting for an opening to get into you. How much He would enter into you depends upon how much opening you would give Him. (CWWL, 1980, vol. 1, “Perfecting Training,” p. 241)

Todays Reading

As vessels, we are not instruments or weapons—we are containers. According to Romans 9, we contain mercy, honor, and glory [vv. 21, 23]. This mercy, honor, and glory are actually the Triune God. In the initial stage of our experience the Triune God is our mercy, in the progressing stage He is our honor, and in the completing stage He is our glory. At present we are enjoying our God as mercy and somewhat as honor. When the Lord Jesus comes back, we shall be fully brought into honor and also into glory. Then we shall be filled with the Triune God not only as our mercy but also as our honor and glory.

Mercy is the most far-reaching of God’s attributes. Mercy goes further than grace, for mercy reaches into a situation that is pitiful and unworthy of grace…How wonderful that God’s mercy does not depend on our being in a good condition! Rather, God’s mercy is shown in man’s pitiful condition. It is God’s mercy that has reached us…We need to see the preciousness of God’s mercy and praise Him for it and testify concerning it. Once we were sinners far from God; now we are one with the all-inclusive Christ. What a mercy! We are vessels containing the Triune God as mercy.

When Paul wrote chapter 9 of Romans, his thought was fully occupied with God’s mercy. He says, “It is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy” (v. 16). It is altogether a matter of God’s mercy that we are believers and that we are in the church life. Because all is of God’s mercy, we have nothing to boast of in ourselves. Our going on with the Lord is a matter not of our willing or running but of God’s mercy… We are changeable, constantly fluctuating. Therefore, we should not trust in ourselves but in God’s mercy. We praise the Lord that we are vessels of mercy unto honor and glory. We now contain Him as mercy, and we shall contain Him as honor and glory.

As vessels of mercy unto honor and glory, we were chosen by God according to His sovereign mercy (vv. 11-16)…Being a vessel of mercy is not the result of our choice; it originates with God’s sovereignty…His sovereignty is the basis of His selection.

In Romans 9:15 Paul quotes the Lord’s words, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy.” Because of God’s mercy we responded to the gospel when others did not respond, we received a word about Christ as life when others refused to receive it, and we took the way of the Lord’s recovery when others drew back from taking this way. Concerning the gospel, the ministry of life, and the church life, God, in His sovereignty, has had mercy on us. Therefore, we must praise Him for His sovereign mercy. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 1183-1185)

Further Reading: Life-study of Romans, msgs. 22, 58, 63; Life-study of Genesis, msgs. 10, 83—84

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