晨興聖言-信徒(一)-(W08-3)

第八週 週三

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晨興餧養

太四16   那坐在黑暗中的百姓,看見了大光;並且向那些坐在死亡的境域和陰影中的人,有光出現,照着他們。

 九11~12 法利賽人看見,就對耶穌的門徒說,你們的老師為甚麼和稅吏並罪人一同喫飯?耶穌聽見,就說,強健的人用不着醫生,有病的人纔用得着。


主利用法利賽人提出問題的機會,非常甜美的啟示祂自己是醫生。在馬太九章十二節,我們看見主回答法利賽人的問題說,強健的人用不着醫生,有病的人纔用得着。主告訴法利賽人,這些稅吏和罪人是病人,主對他們不是審判官,乃是醫生,是醫治者。屬天國度的王,在祂盡職為着國度呼召人跟從祂的事上,是作醫生,不是作審判官。審判官的審判是按着公義,醫生的醫治是按着憐憫和恩典。那些被祂作成屬天國度子民的人,乃是患麻風(八2~4)、癱瘓(5~13,九2~8)、發燒(八14~15)、鬼附(1628~32)、患各樣疾病的(16)以及受人藐視的稅吏並罪人(九9~11)。若是祂作審判官,臨到這些可憐的人,他們就都會被定罪、被棄絕,沒有一個彀資格、被選上並蒙呼召,成為屬天國度的子民。然而祂來盡職是作醫生,醫治、恢復、點活並拯救他們,使他們能重新構成祂屬天的新公民,給祂用以在這敗壞的地上,建立祂屬天的國。主這裏的話,含示自義的法利賽人,不領會他們需要主作醫生。他們認為自己很強健,因此被自義蒙蔽,不曉得自己是有病的(馬太福音生命讀經,三六八至三六九頁)。

信息選讀

新王〔基督〕那為着諸天之國的職事,不是憑屬地的權能,乃是憑屬天的大光開始;這光就是王自己作生命的光,照在死亡的陰影中。主作光開始盡職事時,並沒有展示能力和權柄。祂和普通人一樣行走在海邊。但祂在加利利海邊臨到〔彼得、安得烈、雅各和約翰〕時,像大光一樣照在他們身上,照在黑暗、死亡的境域和陰影中。…施浸者約翰是大磁石,但主耶穌是最大的磁石。祂照在這四個門徒身上時,他們就受吸引,並且被俘擄。他們立刻撇下工作而跟從了這小小的拿撒勒人。

路加五章記載彼得蒙召時主行了神跡,馬太四章卻沒有記載。然而在馬太四章,有吸引頭四個門徒的大光。這吸引不是來自主耶穌的所作,乃是來自祂的所是。祂是大光,是大磁石,有吸引人、俘擄人的能力。祂這樣吸引並俘擄了頭四個門徒。因着主的所作而跟從主的人,沒有一個會是可靠或忠信的。可靠的人乃是那些被主的所是抓住的人。彼得、安得烈、雅各和約翰在海邊被吸引、被俘擄,不是因看見主的所作,乃是因領悟主的所是。因着他們已經被吸引、被俘擄,他們就成為主耶穌忠信到底的跟從者。最終,他們都因着跟從屬天之國的王而殉道了。

不僅如此,主耶穌呼召這四個門徒時,祂不是開始一個運動或革命,乃是為着諸天之國的建立吸引門徒歸祂自己(馬太福音生命讀經,一七七至一七八頁)。

參讀:馬太福音生命讀經,第十二、二十七篇。

WEEK 8 — DAY 3

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Morning Nourishment

Matt. 4:16 “The people sitting in darkness have seen a great light; and to those sitting in the region and shadow of death, to them light has risen.”

   9:11-12 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to His disciples, Why does your Teacher eat with the tax collectors and sinners? Now when He heard this, He said, Those who are strong have no need of a physician, but those who are ill.

The Lord took the opportunity given Him by the Pharisees’ question to give a very sweet revelation of Himself as the Physician. In Matthew 9:12 we see the Lord’s reply to the Pharisees’ question: “Those who are strong have no need of a physician, but those who are ill.” The Lord was telling the Pharisees that these tax collectors and sinners were patients, sick ones, and that to them the Lord was not a Judge but a Physician, a Healer. In calling people to follow Him for the kingdom, the King of the heavenly kingdom ministered as a Physician, not as a Judge. A judge’s judgment is according to righteousness, whereas a physician’s healing is according to mercy and grace. Those whom He made people of His heavenly kingdom were lepers (8:2-4), paralytics (vv. 5-13; 9:2-8), the fever-ridden (8:14- 15), the demon-possessed (vv. 16, 28-32), those ill with all kinds of diseases (v. 16), despised tax collectors, and sinners (9:9-11). Had He visited these  itiful people as a Judge, all would have been condemned and rejected, and none would have been qualified, selected, and called to be the people of His heavenly kingdom. However, He came to minister as a Physician, to heal, recover, enliven, and save them so that they might be reconstituted to be His new and heavenly citizens, with whom He could establish His heavenly kingdom on this corrupted earth. The Lord’s word here implies that the self-righteous Pharisees did not realize that they needed Him as a Physician. They considered themselves strong; hence, blinded by their own self-righteousness, they did not know that they were ill. (Life-study of Matthew, pp. 311-312)

Todays Reading

The new King’s ministry for the kingdom of the heavens began not with earthly power but with heavenly light, which was the King Himself as the light of life, shining in the shadow of death. When the Lord began His ministry as light, He made no display of power and authority. He walked upon the seashore as a common person. But as He came to [Peter, Andrew, James, and John] by the Sea of Galilee, He shined upon them like a great light, shining in the darkness and in the region and shadow of death…John the Baptist was a great magnet. But the Lord Jesus is the greatest magnet of all. As He shined upon those four disciples, they were attracted and captured. They immediately forsook their jobs and followed this little Nazarene.

In Matthew 4 there is no record, as in Luke 5, of any miracle being done by the Lord when Peter was called. However, in Matthew 4 there was the great light that attracted the first four disciples. This attraction came not from what the Lord Jesus did; it came from what He was. He was a great light, a great magnet, with the power to attract people and to capture them. In this way He attracted and captured the first four disciples. No one who follows the Lord because of what He does can be trustworthy or faithful. The trustworthy ones are those who are caught by what the Lord is. Peter, Andrew, James, and John were attracted and captured at the seashore not by seeing what the Lord did but by realizing what the Lord was. Because they had been attracted and captured, they became faithful followers of the Lord Jesus unto the end. Eventually, they were all martyred because they followed the King of the heavenly kingdom.

Moreover, when the Lord Jesus called these four disciples, He did not start a movement or a revolution. Rather, He attracted the disciples to Himself for the establishment of the kingdom of the heavens. (Life-study of Matthew, p. 146)

Further Reading: Life-study of Matthew, msgs. 12, 27

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