第二週•週二

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晨興餧養

來十二 2『望斷以及於耶穌，就是我們信心的創始者與成終者；祂爲那擺在前面的喜樂，就輕看羞辱，忍受了十字架，便坐在神寶座的右邊。』

詩二七 4『有一件事，我曾求耶和華，我仍要尋求；就是一生一世住在耶和華的殿中，瞻仰祂的榮美，在祂的殿裏求問。』

〔在希伯來十二章二節，〕望斷，原文指轉離其他各種目標，以專一的注意力注視。百米競賽的跑者，不顧別的事物，只專心注視目標。保羅在這節似乎是說，『希伯來弟兄們，不要站着考慮觀望。要從基督以外的事物轉過來，而專心注視祂。…』希伯來的信徒必須望斷他們環境中一切的事物，望斷他們老舊的宗教—猶太教，望斷猶太教的逼迫，望斷一切屬地的事物，好望斷以及於，以達到這位現今在諸天之上，坐在神寶座右邊的耶穌（希伯來書生命讀經，六七七頁）。

信息選讀

舊約的聖徒不過是信心的見證人，但耶穌乃是信心的創始者與成終者。創始者也可譯爲起始者，開創者，首領，開拓者，先鋒。…我們若把這些名稱加在一起，對於耶穌是信心的創始者，就可以得到一個適當的定義。…我們需要耶穌作信心的創始者，因爲照我們天然的人，我們沒有信的能力，我們憑自己沒有信。那叫我們得救的信，乃是我們從主所得寶貴的信（彼後一 1）。當我們仰望耶穌，祂這賜生命的靈（林前十五 45）就將祂自己，將祂信的成分，灌輸到我們裏面；這樣，自然而然的，有一種信在我們裏面升起，我們就有信心相信祂。

這不是出於我們自己，乃是出於那將自己作信的成分，分賜到我們裏面，替我們信者的。因此，乃是主自己作我們的信。我們是因着祂作我們的信而活，是因着祂的信（加二 20），不是因着我們自己的信。

耶穌是信心的創始者和起始者，主要是就着祂在地上的生活和所行的路程說的。…祂所過的生活是信心的生活，所行的道路是信心的道路。在祂的生活和道路上，祂開創了信心。所以，祂是信心的創始者。…耶穌是開拓者和先鋒，開了信心的路。…祂的生活乃是開闢的生活，就是開闢信心之路的生活。祂無論往那裏去，好像都有高山大水攔阻祂。但祂一步一步的，開闢信心的路。我們若以這種眼光讀四福音，就會看見這位信心的起始者耶穌，一直在開闢信心的路，像建築高速公路的人移高山、平深谷一樣。祂旣開闢了信心的路，祂也就是這信心之路上的開拓者和先鋒。

耶穌是信心的開拓者和先鋒，也是信心的首領和元帥。祂開了信心的路，並作了先鋒，領先開拓這路。因此，祂這位元帥能帶我們隨着祂的腳蹤，走完信心的路。祂一生在地上的行徑裏，作了信心的創始者；又在榮耀裏，在天上的寶座上，作了信心的成終者；當我們仰望祂時，祂就將所創始並成終的信心，傳輸甚至注入我們裏面。…得救的信心不是出於我們，乃是神所賜的。〔以弗所二章八節清楚的告訴我們，〕那叫我們得救的信，並不是出於我們，乃是我們從神所得的恩賜。神是信心的源頭和賜與者，我們乃是這神聖恩賜的領受者。神把一個東西放在我們裏面，這就成了我們的信（希伯來書生命讀經，六六一至六六四頁）。

參讀：提摩太後書生命讀經，第七篇。

WEEK 2 — DAY 2

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Morning Nourishment

Heb. 12:2 Looking away unto Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down on the right hand of the throne of God.

Psa. 27:4 One thing I have asked from Jehovah; that do I seek: to dwell in the house of Jehovah all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of Jehovah, and to inquire in His temple.

[In Hebrews 12:2] the Greek word translated “looking away unto” means “to look with undivided attention by turning away from every other object.” The runners in a race, such as the hundred yard dash, turn away from everything else and look at the goal with undivided attention. In this verse Paul seems to be saying, “Hebrew brothers, do not stand there considering and looking around. You must turn away from everything other than Christ and look to Him with undivided attention”…The Hebrew believers had to look away from all the things in their environment, away from their old religion and its persecution, and away from all earthly things, that they might look unto Jesus, who is now seated on the right hand of the throne of God in
the heavens. (Life-study of Hebrews, 2nd ed., p. 550)

Today’s Reading

The saints of the old covenant were only the witnesses of faith, but Jesus is the Author and Perfecter of faith. The Greek word translated “Author” may also be rendered “Originator,” “Inaugurator,” “Leader,” “Pioneer,” “Forerunner.”…If we put all these titles together, we have an adequate definition of Jesus as the Author of faith. We need Jesus as the Author of faith because, according to our natural man, we do not have any believing ability. We do not have faith by ourselves. The faith by which we are saved is the precious faith that we have received from the Lord (2 Pet. 1:1). When we look unto Jesus, He as the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45) transfuses us with Himself, with His believing element. Then, spontaneously, a kind of believing
arises in our being, and we have the faith to believe in Him.

This faith is not of ourselves but of Him who imparts Himself as the beliving element into us that He may believe for us. Hence, He Himself is our faith. We live by Him as our faith; that is, we live by His faith (Gal. 2:20), not by our own.

Jesus is the Author and the Originator of faith mainly in His life and in His path on earth…The life He lived was a life of faith, and the path He walked was a path of faith. In His life and path He originated faith. Hence, He is the Author of faith. Jesus, being the Pioneer and the Forerunner, has cut the way of faith…His life was a cutting life, a life that cut the way of faith. Wherever He went, it seems that there was a mountain or a river frustrating Him. But step after step, He cut the way of faith. If we have this view in reading the Gospels, we will see that the very Jesus who is the Originator of faith was always cutting the way of faith, closing the gaps and removing the mountains like the builder of a highway. Since He has cut the way of faith, He is also thePioneer and Forerunner on the pathway of faith.

As the Pioneer and the Forerunner of faith, Jesus is also the Leader and Captain of faith. He has cut the way of faith and, as the Forerunner, has taken the lead to pioneer it. Hence, He, as the Captain, can carry us through the pathway of faith in His footsteps. As we look unto Him as the Originator of faith in His life and in His path on earth, and as the Perfecter of faith in His glory and on His throne in heaven, He transfuses and even infuses us with the faith that He has originated and perfected. The saving faith is not of ourselves; it is the gift of God…Ephesians 2:8 tells us clearly that the faith through which we were saved is not of ourselves. We have received it as a gift from God. God is the source and Giver of faith, and we are the recipients of
this divine gift. God has put something into our being that becomes our faith. (Life-study of Hebrews, 2nd ed., pp. 538-540)

Further Reading: Life-study of 2 Timothy, msg. 7