第四週 · 週一

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📖晨興餧養

徒二六18 『我差你到他們那裏去，叫他們的眼睛得開，從黑暗轉入光中，從撒但權下轉向神，又因信入我，得蒙赦罪，並在一切聖別的人中得着基業。』

西一13 『祂拯救了我們脫離黑暗的權勢，把我們遷入祂愛子的國裏。』

宇宙中有兩件大事：信救恩與服權柄，即信而順服。聖經給我們看見，罪的定義乃是不法（約壹三4）。…不法就是不服神的權柄，不服神的權柄就是罪。

宇宙有兩個原則：一是神權柄的原則，一是撒但背叛的原則。我們不能一面事奉神，一面又走背叛的路，帶着背叛的靈。背叛的人雖能講道，撒但在那裏笑，因他裏頭有撒但的原則。事奉的對面就是權柄。…我們這班事奉神的人，必須要有一次基本的認識。…人若一次碰着神的權柄，給神打倒，以後眼睛就越過越會明亮，…知道誰是不法（倪柝聲文集第三輯第一冊，一二五至一二六頁）。

📖信息選讀

以賽亞十四章告訴我們，撒但要高舉他的寶座與神同等（13）。這意思是，撒但要侵犯神的主權，要奪取神的權柄，要推翻神的寶座；撒但在宇宙中要設立他自己的國度。到了馬太十二章，主耶穌說到神和撒但這兩個國度〔28、26〕。…在宇宙中有兩個國，…一個是神要設立祂的寶座，通行祂的權柄，一個是撒但要推翻神的寶座，設立他自己的權柄。

聖經一開始就說到權柄的問題，創世記一章給我們看見，神給人一個權柄，管理海裏、空中和地上一切的活物（26）。

我們都知道撒但是用甚麼方法把人偷去，撒但…引誘人背叛神，也就是奪取神的權柄。人犯罪不只是犯了規，更是反叛、背叛神，把神的權柄擺在一邊，不承認神的主權，不讓神在人身上掌權。結果，撒但背叛神，人也背叛神。神所造的第一個受造之物是天使，天使中的天使長率領許多天使背叛了；後來神創造人，人也背叛了（李常受文集一九五七年第二冊，五九五至五九六頁）。

神要受造之物接受祂的權柄，而這兩類受造之物卻都拒絕了神的權柄。…雖然如此，神卻不肯撤退祂的權柄。神可以收回祂的同在，祂絕不收回祂權柄的制度。神的權柄在甚麼地方，神就在甚麼地方有地位。所以神一面維持權柄制度，一面建立祂的國。撒但雖然干犯神的權柄，人也天天干犯神的權柄，天天背叛神，神卻不讓這個背叛繼續下去，祂要設立祂自己的國。聖經中為甚麼稱神的國作諸天的國呢？（太四17，可一15）。…因為背叛不只是世界背叛，連宇宙諸天中的天使都背叛了。

主如何建立神的國呢？…主在地上一切所行的，沒有一樣是不順服的，沒有一樣阻擋神的權柄。主完全順服，完全讓神的權柄通行。…照樣今天召會也要因着順服，而有神權柄的通行，有神國度的彰顯（倪柝聲文集第三輯第一冊，一六二至一六三頁）。

參讀：倪柝聲文集第三輯第一冊，權柄與順服（上編），第一、三、六、九至十一篇。

WEEK 4 — DAY 1

Morning Nourishment

Acts 26:18 To open their eyes, to turn them from darkness to light and from the authority of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.

Col. 1:13 Who delivered us out of the authority of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.

In the universe there are two great things: believing unto salvation and submitting to authority. In other words, to trust and obey. The Bible shows us that the definition of sin is lawlessness (1 John 3:4)…To be lawless is to disregard the authority of God, and to disregard the authority of God is sin.

There are two principles in the universe—God’s authority and Satan’s rebellion. We cannot serve God on the one hand, while taking the way of rebellion with a spirit of rebellion on the other hand. Although a rebellious person can preach, Satan will laugh, because the principle of Satan is there in the preaching. Service is ever attendant to authority…We who serve God must gain this basic understanding at some time…Once a man meets God’s authority and is smitten by it, his eyes will be enlightened…He will know who is and who is not lawless. (CWWN, vol. 47, “Authority and Submission,” p. 115)

Today’s Reading

Isaiah 14 reveals that Satan wanted to exalt his throne to be equal with God (v. 13). This means that Satan intends to violate God’s sovereignty, usurp God’s authority, and overthrow God’s throne; he intends to establish his own kingdom in the universe. In Matthew 12 the Lord Jesus spoke of two kingdoms, the kingdom of God [v. 28] and the kingdom of Satan [v. 26]… There are two kingdoms in the universe…One is God’s establishing of His throne for the exercise of His authority, and the other is Satan’s overthrowing of God’s throne for the setting up of his own authority.

The matter of authority is mentioned in the very beginning of the Bible. Genesis 1 shows that God gave man the authority to have dominion over all the living things in the sea, in the air, and on the earth (v. 26). The way Satan stole man away from God was to seduce man to rebel against God, to usurp God’s authority. When man sinned, he did not merely violate a rule; even more, he revolted against God, rebelled against God, and put God’s authority aside, denying God’s authority and rejecting God’s rule. Just as Satan rebelled against God, man also rebelled against God. The first creatures God created were the angels, among whom the archangel led many to rebel. Later, God
created man, who also rebelled. (CWWL, 1957, vol. 2, “What the Kingdom Is to the Believers,” pp. 426-427)

God desired that His creatures would accept His authority; however, both kinds of creatures rejected His authority…Nevertheless, God did not call back His authority. God can call back His presence, but He will never call back His system of authority. Wherever God’s authority is, God is given a position of prominence. On the one hand, God maintains His system of authority, and on the other hand, He establishes His kingdom. Although Satan rebelled against God’s authority, and although man daily violates His authority by rebelling against Him, God will not let this rebellion continue. He will establish His own kingdom. The Bible calls the kingdom of God the kingdom of the heavens because rebellion is not limited to just the world (Matt. 4:17; Mark 1:15). The angels in the heavens rebelled as well.

How did the Lord establish God’s kingdom?…Whatever the Lord did on earth was entirely based on submission. He did nothing that opposed God’s authority. Everything was in submission, in perfect cooperation with the authority of God…The church today must also allow God’s authority to have a free way and manifest His kingdom through submission. (CWWN, vol. 47, “Authority and Submission,” p. 148)

Further Reading: CWWN, vol. 47, “Authority and Submission,” chs. 1, 3, 6, 9—11