第七週 · 週五

w07d05-ch

📖晨興餧養

約六63 『賜人生命的乃是靈，肉是無益的；我對你們所說的話，就是靈，就是生命。』

林前十五45 『經上也是這樣記着：「首先的人亞當成了活的魂；」末後的亞當成了賜生命的靈。』

林前十五章四十五節說得很清楚，那成了肉體的主耶穌（約一14），在復活之後，藉着復活成了賜生命的靈。因着祂是賜生命的靈，祂纔能成為我們的生命和生命的供應。我們接受祂這位釘死並復活的救主時，賜生命的靈就進到我們裏面，將永遠的生命分賜給我們（約翰福音生命讀經，二二二頁）。

📖信息選讀

很多人對約翰六章六十三節的領會不正確，以為肉表徵人性同人的性情。按上下文，這裏的肉是指物質身體的肉，與前幾節所說主的肉是可喫的一樣。猶太人無法明白主怎能把祂的肉給他們喫。他們以為，主要把祂物質身體的肉給他們喫（52）。他們沒有正確領會主的話。對他們而言，這話甚難（60）。到了這時，主說，賜人生命的乃是靈，肉是無益的。換句話說，主告訴他們，祂要成為靈。祂不會實際的在肉體裏，乃要從肉體變化形像成為靈。因此，主在六十三節加以解釋，祂不是要把祂物質身體的肉給他們喫；這肉，就是人身體的肉，是無益的。至終，祂所要給人的乃是賜生命的靈，就是祂在復活裏的自己。

你所接受的是在肉體裏的基督，還是成為那靈的基督？使徒保羅說，有人從前按着肉體認過基督，如今卻不再這樣認祂了（林後五16）。現在他們認識基督是那靈（三17）。…我們現今所接受的基督，並不是在肉體裏的基督，乃是那是靈的基督。…在祂復活的晚上，祂來到門徒們那裏，向他們吹氣說，『你們受聖靈。』（約二十22）。那就是祂復活後的自己，因為祂在復活後變化形像成了那靈。祂不再在肉體裏，像祂在釘十字架以前那樣。如今祂是那靈，因此他們必須受那靈。在祂受死以前，當祂在肉體裏的時候，祂所能作的只是與門徒同在，並在他們中間，但不能在他們裏面；現在成了那靈，祂就很容易在我們裏面了。

今天我們對主無須有形的接觸。因着祂是那靈，我們能在裏面接觸祂這靈。祂乃是賜生命的靈。祂既是那靈，我們就能接受祂，喫祂，以祂為我們的食物。…當我們接受主耶穌，我們就得到賜人生命的靈。…當我們呼喊：『哦，主耶穌』，我們便接受了那靈。我們呼求的是主耶穌，領受的卻是那靈。為甚麼？因為主耶穌今天就是那靈。我們呼求耶穌的名，就得到那靈，這事實有力地證明主耶穌今天乃是那靈。無論誰說，『主耶穌』，他就是在靈裏（林前十二3）。耶穌是名，那靈是人位。那靈就是耶穌的人位。在這一點上，我們需要讀約翰十四章二十六節：『但保惠師，就是父在我的名裏所要差來的聖靈，祂要將一切的事教導你們，並且要叫你們想起我對你們所說的一切話。』父在子的名裏差保惠師，就是聖靈來。那靈是在子的名裏被差來的。…那靈就是耶穌的人位。因此，我們既有名，又有人位。得着那靈的最佳途徑就是呼求主耶穌的名。每當你呼喊：『哦，主耶穌』，你就得着這人位，這人位就是那靈。每當我們呼求主耶穌的名，我們就得着那靈。那靈就是親愛的主耶穌的人位（約翰福音生命讀經，二二二至二二四頁）。

參讀：約翰福音生命讀經，第十六篇。

WEEK 7 — DAY 5

Morning Nourishment

John 6:63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words which I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.

1 Cor. 15:45 So also it is written, “The first man, Adam, became a living soul”; the last Adam became a life-giving Spirit.

After resurrection and through resurrection, the Lord Jesus, who had become flesh (John 1:14), became the Spirit who gives life, as is clearly mentioned in 1 Corinthians 15:45. It is as the life-giving Spirit that He can be the life and life supply to us. When we receive Him as the crucified and resurrected Savior, the Spirit who gives life comes into us to impart eternal life to us. (Life-study of John, 2nd ed., p. 189)

Today’s Reading

Many people understand John 6:63 incorrectly, thinking that the flesh signifies humanity with its human nature. According to the context, the flesh here refers to the meat of the physical body, the same as in the previous verses where the Lord said that His flesh was edible. The Jews could not understand how He could give His flesh for them to eat. They thought that He would give them the meat of His physical body (v. 52). They did not understand the Lord’s word rightly. To them it was a hard word (v. 60). At this point, the Lord said that it is the Spirit who gives life and that the flesh profits nothing. In other words, the Lord told them that He would become the Spirit. He would not be literally in the flesh but would be transfigured from the flesh into the Spirit. Thus, in verse 63 the Lord explained that what He would give them to eat would not be the meat of His physical body; the meat, which is of the flesh, profits nothing. What He would give eternally would be the Spirit who gives life, who is Himself in resurrection.

Have you received Christ in the flesh or as the Spirit? The apostle Paul says that formerly some knew Christ in the flesh, but now they know Him in the flesh no longer (2 Cor. 5:16). Now they know Christ as the Spirit (3:17)… The Christ we now receive is not the Christ in the flesh but the Christ who is the Spirit…On the evening of His resurrection, He came to His disciples and breathed into them, saying, “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20:22). That was Himself after His resurrection, for after His resurrection He was transfigured into the Spirit. He was no longer in the flesh as He was before His crucifixion. Now He is the Spirit; therefore, they had to receive the Spirit. Before His death, when He was in the flesh, all He could do was be with and among His disciples, but He could not be in them. Now, as the Spirit, it is easy for Him to be within us.

Today we do not need to contact the Lord physically. Since He is the Spirit, we can contact Him as the Spirit within us. He is the life-giving Spirit. Since He is the Spirit, we can take Him and feed upon Him as our food. When we receive the Lord Jesus, we get the Spirit who gives life…When we call, “O Lord Jesus,” we receive the Spirit. We call on the Lord Jesus, but we receive the Spirit. Why? Because the Lord Jesus today is the Spirit. The fact that we get the Spirit when we call on the name of Jesus is a strong proof that the Lord Jesus is the Spirit today. Whoever says, “Jesus is Lord,” is in the Spirit (1 Cor. 12:3). Jesus is the name, and the Spirit is the person. The Spirit is the person of Jesus. At this point we need to read John 14:26: “The Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things and remind you of all the things which I have said to you.” The Father sends the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, in the name of the Son. The Spirit is sent in the name of the Son…The Spirit is the person of Jesus. Thus, we have both the name and the person. The best way to get the Spirit is to call on the name of the Lord Jesus. Whenever you call, “O Lord Jesus,” you receive the person, and the person is the Spirit. Whenever we call on the name of the Lord Jesus, we get the Spirit. The Spirit is the person of the dear Lord Jesus. (Life-study of John, 2nd ed., pp. 189-191)

Further Reading: Life-study of John, msg. 16