第六週

那擺在基督前面的喜樂與那擺在我們前面的喜樂

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詩歌：詩616

讀經：來十二2，西二15，啓十九7 ～ 9，尼八10 下

【週一】

壹 耶穌，就是我們信心的創始者與成終者，爲那擺在前面的喜樂，『就輕看羞辱，忍受了十字架』—來十二2：

一 主愛召會，爲召會捨了自己—弗五25。

二 主在十字架上，爲我們的罪獻上自己作祭物，擔當多人的罪，爲信徒成爲罪，趕出這世界的王，並審判這世界，且是一粒麥子，落在死裏以釋放神聖的生命—來九28，彼前二24，林後五21，約十二24，31。

【週二】

三 歌羅西二章十五節描繪在基督釘十字架的時候所進行的爭戰：

1 基督釘十字架的時候在作工完成救贖；父神在作工審判罪。

2 同時，執政的和掌權的也忙着企圖阻撓神與基督的工作—15 節。

3 執政的和掌權的是那些作撒但部屬，爲他作工的邪惡天使，墮落天使—弗二2。

4 神審判罪的時候，邪惡的執政者和掌權者也在場，並且非常活躍，羣集在釘十字架的基督四周，緊緊圍逼—西二15：

a 他們若沒有緊緊圍逼，神就無法將他們脫下。

b 『脫下』這辭指明執政的和掌權的非常接近，像我們的衣服和身體那樣接近。

5 神旣將執政的和掌權的脫下，就把他們公然示眾，羞辱他們，並仗着十字架向他們誇勝—15 節。

【週三】

貳 那擺在我們前面的喜樂，乃是新郎主耶穌，祂要來迎娶那將自己豫備好了的新婦—啓十九7 ～ 9：

一 新婦的成熟—7 ～ 9 節，弗四13 ～ 15：

1 團體的新婦得以豫備好，是在於得勝者生命的成熟—啓十九7，來六1，腓三12 ～ 15，弗四13。

2 變化是我們在天然的生命裏新陳代謝的改變，而成熟是我們被那改變我們的神聖生命所充滿—來六1。

二 新婦的建造— 太十六18， 弗二21 ～ 22， 四15 ～ 16：

1 神的建造乃是神心頭的願望和神救恩的目標—一5，出二五8，參一11，四十2 ～ 3，34 ～ 35。

2 主恢復的目標是要恢復基督作我們的生命和一切，使我們能被建造—弗三8，四16。

3 神的建造乃是三一神團體的彰顯—提前三15 ～16，約十七22，弗三19 下，21。

【週四】

三 新婦的義—啓十九7 ～ 9，太五20，二二11 ～ 13：

1 基督作我們主觀的義，住在我們裏面，爲我們過一種能得神稱義，一直蒙神悅納的生活—五6，20。

2 與神和人都是對的生活，必定是神作我們日常生活中的彰顯—林後三9，弗四24，西三10。

3 基督從眾聖徒活出，作他們主觀的義，成爲他們的婚筵禮服—啓十九8。

4 馬太二十二章十一至十三節裏的婚筵禮服，表徵在日常生活中我們所活出來並藉我們彰顯出來的基督，成爲我們超凡的義—五20，啓三4 ～ 5，18。

【週五】

四 新婦的美麗—弗五25 ～ 27：

1 作爲新婦，召會需要美麗；以弗所五章的美麗是爲着新婦的獻上。

2 新婦的美麗乃是來自那位作到召會裏面，然後藉着召會彰顯出來的基督—三17 上：

a 我們的美麗單單是基督從我們裏面照耀出來。

b 基督在我們身上所珍賞的，乃是祂自己的彰顯。

【週六】

五 以弗所六章和啓示錄十九章啓示，召會作爲新婦，也必須是擊敗神仇敵的戰士：

1 屬靈的爭戰乃是身體的事；我們是團體的軍隊，爲着神在地上的權益爭戰—十七14，十九14，參提後二4。

2 在以弗所五章，話是爲着滋養，使新婦美麗，但在六章，話是爲着殺死，使召會這團體的戰士能從事屬靈的爭戰—17 ～ 18 節。

3 基督要以作戰將軍的身分，帶着祂的新婦作祂的軍隊，與敵基督在哈米吉頓爭戰—啓十九11 ～ 21。

4 婚禮的禮服就是基督從我們活出，作我們日常的義，使我們不僅有資格參加婚禮，也彀資格參加軍隊，在哈米吉頓的爭戰中，與基督一同和敵基督作戰—太二二11 ～ 12，啓十九7 ～ 8，14。

叁 『耶和華的喜樂是你們的力量』—尼八10下：

一 按照尼希米八章十節，主的喜樂是我們的力量：

1 這不是我們有力量的問題，乃是祂的喜樂托住我們—帖前五16。

2 主的喜樂與環境毫無關係；祂是在神的旨意裏喜樂；認識並遵行神的旨意就有喜樂在其中。

3 我們不該模倣主，乃該接受主的喜樂：

a 我們能得着屬於主的東西，分賜給我們。

b 我們能得着主的喜樂，祂的喜樂要成爲我們的力量。

二 倪柝聲弟兄一生末了，在他所受的苦難中，說，『我維持自己的喜樂』—『倪柝聲—今時代神聖啓示的先見』，一九九頁。

三 『我維持自己的喜樂』指明他實行使徒保羅在腓立比四章四節的話：『你們要在主裏常常喜樂。』

四 藉着神的憐憫和恩典，但願我們都能憑主的喜樂作我們的力量，維持我們的喜樂。

Week Six

The Joy Set before Christ and the Joy Set before Us

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Hymns: 852

Scripture Reading: Heb. 12:2; Col. 2:15; Rev. 19:7-9; Neh. 8:10c

§ Day 1

I. For the joy set before Him, Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith, “endured the cross, despising the shame”—Heb. 12:2:

A. The Lord loved the church and gave Himself up for her—Eph. 5:25.

B. On the cross the Lord offered Himself as the sacrifice for sins, bearing the sins of many, being made sin for the believers, casting out the ruler of this world and judging this world, and as a grain of wheat, falling into death for the release of the divine life—Heb. 9:28; 1 Pet. 2:24; 2 Cor. 5:21; John 12:24, 31.

§ Day 2

C. Colossians 2:15 portrays the warfare that took place at the time of Christs crucifixion:

1. In His crucifixion Christ was working to accomplish redemption, and God the Father was working to judge sin.

2. At the same time the rulers and authorities were busy in the attempt to frustrate the work of God and Christ—v. 15.

3. The rulers and authorities are evil angels, fallen angels that are subordinates of Satan working for him—Eph. 2:2.

4. While God was judging sin, the evil rulers and authorities were present and were very active, swarming around the crucified Christ, pressing in very closely—Col. 2:15:
a. If they had not pressed in closely, God could not have stripped them off.

b. The words stripping off indicate that the rulers and authorities were very close, as close as our garments are to our body.

5. In stripping off the rulers and authorities, God made a display of them openly,
putting them to shame and triumphing over them in the cross—v. 15.

§ Day 3

II. The joy set before us is the Lord Jesus, the Bridegroom, coming for His bride, who has made herself ready—Rev. 19:7-9:

A. The maturity of the bride—vv. 7-9; Eph. 4:13-15:

1. The readiness of the corporate bride depends on the maturity in life of the overcomers—Rev. 19:7; Heb. 6:1; Phil. 3:12-15; Eph. 4:13.

2. To be transformed is to be metabolically changed in our natural life, whereas to be matured is to be filled with the divine life that changes us—Heb. 6:1.

B. The building of the bride—Matt. 16:18; Eph. 2:21-22; 4:15-16:

1. Gods building is the desire of Gods heart and the goal of Gods salvation—1:5;
Exo. 25:8; cf. 1:11; 40:2-3, 34-35.

2. The goal of the Lords recovery is to recover Christ as life and everything to us so that we may be built up—Eph. 3:8; 4:16.

3. Gods building is the corporate expression of the Triune God—1 Tim. 3:15-16; John 17:22; Eph. 3:19b, 21.

§ Day 4

C. The righteousness of the bride—Rev. 19:7-9; Matt. 5:20; 22:11-13:

1. As our subjective righteousness, Christ is the One dwelling in us to live for us a life that can be justified by God and that is always acceptable to God—5:6, 20.

2. The living that is right with both God and man must be God as our expression in our daily living—2 Cor. 3:9; Eph. 4:24; Col. 3:10.

3. Christ lived out of the saints as their subjective righteousness becomes their wedding garment—Rev. 19:8.

4. The wedding garment in Matthew 22:11-13 signifies the Christ whom we live out and who is expressed through us in our daily living as our surpassing righteousness—5:20; Rev. 3:4-5, 18.

§ Day 5

D. The beauty of the bride—Eph. 5:25-27:

1. As the bride, the church needs beauty; the beauty in Ephesians 5 is for the presentation of the bride.

2. The beauty of the bride comes from the Christ who is wrought into the church and who is then expressed through the church—3:17a:

a. Our only beauty is the shining out of Christ from within us.

b. What Christ appreciates in us is the expression of Himself.

§ Day 6

E. Ephesians 6 and Revelation 19 reveal that the church as the bride must also be a warrior to defeat Gods enemy:

1. Spiritual warfare is a matter of the Body; we are a corporate army fighting the battle for Gods interest on earth—17:14; 19:14; cf. 2 Tim. 2:4.

2. In Ephesians 5 the word is for nourishment that leads to the beautifying of the bride, but in Ephesians 6 the word is for killing that enables the church as the corporate warrior to engage in spiritual warfare—vv. 17-18.

3. Christ will come as a fighting General with His bride as His army to fight against Antichrist at Armageddon—Rev. 19:11-21.

4. The wedding garment—Christ lived out of us as our daily righteousness— qualifies us not only to attend the wedding but also to join the army to fight with Christ against Antichrist in the war at Armageddon—Matt. 22:11-12; Rev. 19:7-8, 14.

III. “The joy of Jehovah is your strength”—Neh. 8:10c:

A. According to Nehemiah 8:10, the joy of our Lord is our strength:

1. It is not a matter of our having strength; His joy upholds us—1 Thes. 5:16.

2. The Lords joy has nothing to do with circumstances; He rejoiced in Gods will; there was joy in knowing and doing Gods will.

3. We should not try to copy the Lord but receive the joy of the Lord:

a. We can have something of the Lord imparted to us.

b. We can have the joy of the Lord; His joy will be our strength.

B. At the end of his life Watchman Nee said, in the midst of his sufferings, “I maintain my joy”—Watchman Nee—a Seer of the Divine Revelation in the Present Age, p. 182.

C. I maintain my joy indicates that he was practicing the word of the apostle Paul in Philippians 4:4: “Rejoice in the Lord always.”

D. Through the mercy and grace of God, may we all be able to maintain our joy by the joy of the Lord as our strength.