第三週•週四

w03d04-ch

晨興餧養

提前一4『也不可注意虛構無稽之事，和無窮的家譜；這等事只引起辯論，對於神在信仰裏的經綸並無助益。』

      三9『用清潔的良心持守信仰的奧祕。』

我們需要對新約裏信的意義有深刻的印象。…信首先乃是，神是向我們所說的話。我們有神，然後有神作爲說出的話。藉着神的話，並憑着神的靈，我們就在基督裏被神注入。結果，有個東西在我們裏面興起。這就是信。然後信在我們裏面作工，將我們帶進與三一神生機的聯結裏。藉着這生機的聯結，神就不斷的傳輸並注入我們裏面。結果，我們得着神聖的生命和神聖的性情，成爲神的兒子，基督的肢體，和新人的一部分。總和起來，我們成爲神的家，基督的身體，和新人。這就是神在信仰裏的經綸（提摩太前書生命讀經，一六頁）。

信息選讀

提前三章九節…這裏的信仰是客觀的，與一章十九節，提後四章七節者同，指我們所相信的事物，就是那些構成福音的事物。信仰的奧祕，主要的是基督是神的奧祕（西二2），並召會是基督的奧祕（弗三4）。地方召會中的執事爲着主的見證，應當用清潔的良心，以完全的悟性持守信仰的奧祕。…每當長老請執事作某件事，或以某種方式幫助別人，他們就該領悟，他們是在信仰的奧祕裏服事聖徒。這會拔高他們的服事。執事與別人的接觸若是根據神新約的經綸，這就造成很大的不同。

在提前三章九節…清潔的良心就是得了潔淨、沒有攙雜的良心。在主的見證上，要持守信仰的奧祕，需要有這樣清潔的良心。…作執事的要有清潔的良心，就需要照着他們對信仰之奧祕的認識而行動。…作執事的該思想如何對待自己的妻子、兒女和其他的聖徒。然後他也許領悟自己的缺欠，就是他沒有照着信仰的奧祕而活。作執事的首先必須被自己的良心稱義。他的良心甚至向鬼見證，他是照着神新約經綸之奧祕的標準而活。然後他會真正用清潔的良心持守信仰的奧祕（提摩太前書生命讀經，六一至六二頁）。

在提後一章三節保羅說，『我感謝神，就是我接續祖先，用清潔的良心所事奉的神…。』這裏的事奉，卽在對神的敬拜中事奉神（徒二四14，腓三3）。保羅跟隨他祖先的腳蹤，用清潔的良心事奉神。在墮落的時期，我們若要事奉神，就需要有清潔的良心，從一切的攙雜得煉淨的良心。

我確信所有在主的恢復裏，對祂誠實、真實、忠信的聖徒，不但有無虧的良心，也有清潔的良心。在這事上我們不該接受仇敵的謊言。我們越疑惑自己有清潔的良心，就越覺得自己的良心不清潔。我們需要宣告：『撒但，離開我！我有清潔的良心。撒但，你豈不知道我是爲着主，不爲着別的麼？我是爲着主，爲着祂的恢復，爲着祂的召會，並爲着祂的權益。』…不要聽你的疑惑，不要信仇敵的謊言。主的血勝過他。…要學習告訴仇敵：『撒但，你欺騙我彀久了。我不會再信你，我不會讓你扣留我。我是爲着主，並且我有清潔的良心。』（提摩太後書生命讀經，五至六頁）

參讀：提摩太前書生命讀經，第五篇；提摩太後書生命讀經，第一篇。

WEEK 3 — DAY 4

Morning Nourishment

1 Tim. 1:4 Nor to give heed to myths and unending genealogies, which produce questionings rather than God’s economy, which is in faith.

          3:9 Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.

We need to be deeply impressed with the meaning of faith in the New Testament…Faith is first God being the Word spoken to us. We have God and then God as the Word spoken. Through the Word of God and by the Spirit of God we are infused with God in Christ. As a result, something rises up within us. This is faith. Faith then works in us to bring us into an organic union with the Triune God. Through this organic union God is continually transfused and infused into us. As a result, we have the divine life and the divine nature to become God’s sons, members of Christ, and parts of the new man. As a totality, we become the house of God, the Body of Christ, and
the new man. This is God’s economy in faith. (Life-study of 1 Timothy, 2nd ed., p. 12)

Today’s Reading

The faith [in 1 Timothy 3:9], as in 1:19 and 2 Timothy 4:7, is objective. It refers to the things we believe in, the things that constitute the gospel. The mystery of the faith is mainly Christ as the mystery of God (Col. 2:2) and the church as the mystery of Christ (Eph. 3:4). A deacon in a local church should hold the mystery of the faith with full understanding in a pure conscience for the Lord’s testimony. Whenever the deacons are asked by the elders to do a certain thing or to help others in a particular way, they should realize that they are serving the saints in the mystery of the faith. This will uplift their service. It makes a tremendous difference if the deacons’ contact with others is based on God’s New Testament economy.

A pure conscience [1 Tim. 3:9] is a conscience purified from any mixture. To hold the mystery of the faith for the Lord’s testimony, we need such a purified conscience. In order to have a pure conscience, the deacons need to behave according to their knowledge of the mystery of the faith…A deacon should consider how he deals with his wife, his children, and the other saints. He then may realize his shortage, that he does not live according to the mystery of the faith. A deacon must be justified in the first place by his own conscience. He should have a conscience that testifies even to the demons that he lives according to the standard of the mystery of God’s New
Testament economy. Then he will truly hold the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience. (Life-study of 1 Timothy, 2nd ed., pp. 49-50)

In 2 Timothy 1:3 Paul says, “I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers in a pure conscience…” To serve here is to serve God in worship to Him (Acts 24:14; Phil. 3:3). Paul followed in the footsteps of his forefathers to serve God in a pure conscience. In a time of degradation, a pure conscience, a conscience purified from any mixture, is needed if we are to serve God.

I have the assurance that all the saints who are so honest, truthful, and faithful to the Lord in His recovery have not only a good conscience but also a pure conscience. In this matter we should not accept the lie of the enemy. The more we doubt that we have a pure conscience, the more we will feel that our conscience is not pure. We need to declare, “Satan, get away from me! I have a pure conscience. Satan, don’t you know that I am for the Lord and not for anything else? I am for the Lord, for His recovery, for His church, and for His interests.”…Do not listen to your doubts, and do not believe the lies of the enemy. The Lord’s blood prevails against him…Learn to tell the enemy, “Satan, you have been cheating me long enough. I will not believe you
any longer, and I will not allow you to hold me back. I am for the Lord, and I have a pure conscience.” (Life-study of 2 Timothy, 2nd ed., pp. 4-5)

Further Reading: Life-study of 1 Timothy, msg. 5; Life-study of 2 Timothy, msg. 1