第八週■週六

w08d06-ch

晨興餧養

弗四11 ～ 12『祂所賜的，有些是使徒，有些是申言者，有些是傳福音者，有些是牧人和教師，爲要成全聖徒，目的是爲着職事的工作，爲着建造基督的身體。』

〔以弗所四章十一節〕那許多有恩賜的人，只有一個職事，就是將基督供應人，以建造基督的身體，召會。這是新約經綸中惟一的職事（林後四1，提前一12）（聖經恢復本，弗四12 註2）。

根據〔以弗所四章十二節的〕文法結構，『爲着建造基督的身體』與『爲着職事的工作』是同位語，指明這兩句話是指同一件事；因此，職事的工作就是建造基督的身體。使徒、申言者、傳福音者、牧人和教師成全聖徒，目的是爲着職事的工作。『目的是爲着』，在原文的意思是，『結果是』，『爲着…目的』，『爲了作…』。這意指成全聖徒的目的，乃是爲着建造基督的身體。十一節那些有恩賜的人，不論作甚麼，只要是職事的工作，就必須是爲着建造基督的身體。然而，這建造不是直接由有恩賜的人完成的，乃是由得着有恩賜之人成全的聖徒完成的（新約總論第十一册，二一○頁）。

信息選讀

職事的工作是成全人者的工作，也是被成全者的工作；建造基督的身體不僅是使徒和其他有恩賜之人的工作，也是所有被成全之聖徒的工作。建造基督身體這獨一的工作，主要的不是由有恩賜者負責，乃是由眾聖徒負責。有恩賜者，包括領頭的使徒，以及眾信徒，甚至包括最小的肢體，兩者一同作工，以建造身體。

有恩賜的人是爲着成全聖徒。有恩賜的人在神聖分賜中成全聖徒，使所有的聖徒都能作新約職事的工作，就是建造基督的身體。有恩賜的人成全聖徒，照着生命樹以生命的供應餧養他們，使他們在生命裏長大（創二9，林前三2、6）。有恩賜的人成全聖徒，使聖徒能作他們所作的，好直接建造基督的身體。使徒對聖徒的成全，是藉着訪問眾召會（徒十五36、40 ～ 41，二十20、31），寫信給眾召會（西四16，林前一2），並指派同工停留在一地成全聖徒（提前一3 ～ 4，三15，多一5）。申言者對聖徒的成全，是藉着教導聖徒將主說到人裏面，在聚會中說話而設立模型，並幫助聖徒藉着晨晨復興、日日得勝過申言的生活（徒十三1，林前十四31，箴四18）。傳福音者對聖徒的成全，是藉着挑旺聖徒在傳福音的靈裏火熱，教導他們福音的真理，訓練他們傳福音，幫助聖徒們被經綸之靈的能力裝備，並設立愛罪人和爲罪人禱告的榜樣（提後四5）。牧人教師對聖徒的成全，是藉着牧養—餧養並保養幼嫩的聖徒，且教導長大的聖徒（徒十一25 ～ 26，十三1）。這成全的結果，乃是我們都達到信仰上並對神兒子之完全認識上的一，達到長成的人，達到基督豐滿之身材的度量（弗四13，參約十七23）。

我們要被成全，就必須注意生命和功用。被成全的路在於在生命裏長大，並能熟練的盡功用。以弗所四章十二節的『成全』一辭，原文的意思也表示使之完全、裝備、供備。成全聖徒就是使聖徒得以完全、得着裝備並得着供備。我們惟有藉着在生命中長大，纔能得以完全（新約總論第十一册，二一○至二一二頁）。

參讀：主今日恢復的進展，第五章。

WEEK 8 — DAY 6

Morning Nourishment

Eph. 4:11-12 And He Himself gave some as apostles and some as prophets and some as evangelists and some as shepherds and teachers, for the perfecting of the saints unto the work of the ministry, unto the building up of the Body of Christ.

The many gifted persons in [Ephesians 4:11] have only one ministry, that is, to minister Christ for the building up of the Body of Christ, the church. This is the unique ministry in the New Testament economy (2 Cor. 4:1; 1 Tim. 1:12).

According to the grammatical construction [of Ephesians 4:12], the phrase unto the building up of the Body of Christ is in apposition to the phrase unto the work of the ministry. This indicates that both phrases refer to the same thing; hence, the work of the ministry is the building up of the Body. The apostles, prophets, evangelists, and shepherds and teachers perfect the saints unto the work of the ministry. The word unto in verse 12 means “resulting in,” “for the purpose of,” or “with a view to.” This means that the perfecting of the saints is for the purpose of building up the Body of Christ. Whatever the gifted persons in verse 11 do as the work of the ministry must be for the building up of the Body of Christ. However, this building up is not accomplished directly by the gifted ones but by the saints who have been perfected by the gifted ones. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 3420-3421)

Todays Reading

The work of the ministry is both of the perfecting ones and the perfected ones; the building up of the Body is the work not only of the apostles and the other gifted ones but also of all the perfected saints. The unique work of building up the Body of Christ is the responsibility not mainly of the gifted ones but of all the saints. Both the gifted ones, including the leading apostles, and all the believers, including even the smallest member, work together to build up the Body.

The gifted persons are for the perfecting of the saints. The gifted persons perfect the saints in the divine dispensing in order that all the saints may be able to do the work of the New Testament ministry, that is, to build up the Body of Christ. The gifted persons perfect the saints by nourishing them according to the tree of life with the life supply for their growth in life (Gen. 2:9; 1 Cor. 3:2, 6). The gifted persons perfect the saints to do what they do for the direct building up of the Body of Christ. The apostles perfect the saints by visiting the churches (Acts 15:36, 40-41; 20:20, 31), by writing epistles to the churches (Col. 4:16; 1 Cor. 1:2), and by assigning their co-workers to stay in certain places to perfect the saints (1 Tim. 1:3-4; 3:15; Titus 1:5). The prophets perfect the saints by teaching them to speak the Lord into people, by speaking in the meetings to set up a model, and by helping the saints to live a prophesying life by being revived every morning and overcoming every day (Acts 13:1; 1 Cor. 14:31; Prov. 4:18). The evangelists perfect the saints by stirring them up to be burning in the gospel-preaching spirit, by teaching them with gospel truths, by training them to preach the gospel, by helping the saints to be equipped with
the power of the economical Spirit, and by setting an example of loving the sinners and praying for them (2 Tim. 4:5). The shepherd-teachers perfect the saints by shepherding—feeding and nourishing the young saints and teaching the growing saints (Acts 11:25-26; 13:1). The result of this perfecting is that we will all arrive at the oneness of the faith and of the full knowledge of the Son of God, at a full-grown man, and at the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Eph. 4:13; cf. John 17:23).

In order to be perfected, we must pay attention to life and to function. The way to be perfected is to grow in life and to become skillful in function. The Greek word rendered “perfecting” in Ephesians 4:12 also means “completing,” “equipping,” and “furnishing.” To perfect a saint is to complete him, to equip him, and to furnish him. Only by growing in life can we be completed. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, pp. 3421-3422)

Further Reading: CWWL, 1989, vol. 4, “The Advance of the Lord’s Recovery Today,” ch. 5