第二週．週五

晨興餧養

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詩四二７『你的瀑布發聲，深淵就與深淵響應；你的波浪洪濤，都漫過我身。』

賽三七３１『猶大家所逃脫餘剩的，仍要往下扎根，向上結果。』

所有的深處，只能因著深處的呼喊纔能有響應。［詩四二7。］淺的東西，永遠摸不著深的；在外面的，也永遠摸不著裏面的。深處只能與深處響應。…別人的深處，只能與你的深處響應。…如果深處沒有東西出來，你得著的幫助就不過是浮淺的。…我們要看見深處的緊要。凡不是從深處出來的，就永遠不能達到深處。你如果不從深處得著益處，得著幫助，你就不能從深處有東西出來。因此，我們如果要在屬靈的事上幫助人，就必須從深處有東西出來。你在神面前如果不往深處去，你就沒有法子得著別人。你的發表如果不是從深處出來的，儘管你能得著別人的情感，你能得著別人的理想，你能使人流淚，你能使人快樂，你能使人一時興奮，但是，你不能摸著人的深處。是深處纔能與深處響應。（倪柝聲文集第二輯第十七冊，五一至五二頁。）

信息選讀

傳道、聽道有一個原則，這原則就在主耶穌所說的那一個撒種的比喻裏面。撒種的時候，有落在路旁的，有落在土淺石頭地上的，有落在荊棘裏的，有落在好土裏的；這給我們看見，傳神話語的時候，人的接受，有四種不同的態度。主耶穌告訴我們，在這幾種不同的情形中，有一種叫作土淺石頭地，上面是土，下面是石頭。種子落在這一種的地上，長得頂快，但是，日頭出來一曬，因為沒有根，就枯乾了。

甚麼是根呢？根是長在下面的。甚麼是葉子呢？葉子是長在上面的。換句話說，看不見的生命叫作根，看得見的生命叫作葉子。許多基督徒的難處就在這裏：看得見的生命雖然有，但是看不見的生命卻少得很。換句話說，人缺少隱藏在深處的生活。…你所有屬靈的經歷如果都是人所知道的，你就沒有根。…如果你所有的經歷都是顯露的，那你所有的都是往上長的，不是往下扎根的。這樣，你就是光有葉子沒有根的人，你就是土淺的人。

在屬靈的生命中，一面我們要看見甚麼叫作基督的身體，就是說，我們要有一個身體的生命；另一面我們也要看見，我個人從主得著來作肢體的那一分是頂個人的，那一點是我個人在神面前得著的，那一點是我在神面前應當守著的。如果不守著，我就失去我作肢體的特點，我在神的面前就沒有特別的用處。神所給你的那一個特點，一顯露，就要枯乾了。

主耶穌在山上的教訓是很特別的，一面祂說，『你們是世上的光。城立在山上，是不能隱藏的，』［太五14，］是公開的；另一面，祂說，『你施捨的時候，不要讓左手知道右手所作的，好叫你的施捨可在隱密中，…你禱告的時候，要進你的密室，關上門，禱告你在隱密中的父。』［六3∼4，6。］一面，…要作基督徒就公開的作基督徒，公開宣告說，我是基督徒；另一面，基督徒有許多的美德，是應當隱藏，不應當顯露的。只有顯在人面前的，沒有隱藏在深處的，這樣的人，是沒有根的，是經不起試煉、經不起試探的。…求神作工在我們身上，使我們能往下扎根。（倪柝聲文集第二輯第十七冊，五二至五四頁。）

參讀：倪柝聲文集第二輯第十七冊，第七篇；第二輯第十八冊，第六十五篇。

WEEK 2 — DAY 5

Morning Nourishment

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Psa. 42:7 Deep calls unto deep at the sound of Your water spouts; all Your waves and Your billows pass over me.

Isa. 37:31 And the remnant of those who have escaped of the house of Judah will again take root downward and bear fruit upward.

Only a call from the depths can provoke a response from the depths [Psa. 42:7] . Nothing shallow can ever touch the depths, nor can anything superficial touch the inward parts. Only the deep will respond to the deep …Others can respond deep within to only what issues from deep within us …If nothing comes from the depths, the help we receive is just superficial. We have to see the importance of the depths. Anything that is not from the depths will never reach the depths of others. If we have never received help or benefit in our depths, we will never have anything issuing from our depths. If we want to render spiritual help to others, something must issue from our depths. If we do not dig deep, we can never gain others. Unless our utterance is from the depths, we will not touch the depths in others, even though we gain their emotions and thoughts and make them cry or be happy or excited for a while. Only deep calls unto deep. (CWWN, vol. 37, p. 37)

Today’s Reading

One principle in preaching and receiving the word is found in the Lord’s parable of the sower. While the sower sowed, some seeds fell beside the way, some on the rocky place, some into the thorns, and some into the good earth. This shows us four different ways for man to receive the word. The Lord Jesus tells us that among these different conditions, one is the rocky place. There is a little earth on the surface, but underneath there are rocks. When the seed falls into this kind of ground, it springs up quickly, but as soon as the sun comes out, withers because of the lack of root.

What is a root? It is growth that occurs beneath the soil. What are the leaves? They are growth that occurs above the soil. In other words, roots are the hidden life, whereas leaves are the manifest life. The trouble with many Christians is that, while there is much apparent life, there is very little secret life. In other words, there is the lack of a hidden life…If all your spiritual life is exposed, you do not have any root…If all your experiences are manifested, then all your growth is upward; there is no downward growth. If this is the case, you are a person who has only leaves without root, and you are on shallow ground.

In our Christian life it is necessary that we learn the meaning of the Body of Christ; we must learn to have a life of the Body. On the other hand, we must learn that the life given to each member of His Body by the Lord is distinctly individual. The measure that has been given to you personally by Him needs to be guarded; otherwise, it will lose its specific character and will be of no particular use to God. If that which has been specially committed to you is exposed, it will wither.

The discourse of the Lord Jesus on the Mount was most remarkable. On the one hand, He said, “You are the light of the world. It is impossible for a city situated upon a mountain to be hidden” (Matt. 5:14). It is open. On the other hand, He said, “When you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be in secret;…when you pray, enter into your private room, and shut your door and pray to your Father who is in secret” (6:3-4, 6). On the one hand, if you are a Christian, you must come right out into the open and make a public profession; on the other hand, there are Christian virtues that you should preserve from the public gaze. The Christian who parades all his virtues before men and who does not have anything in the depth of his being has no root; he will not be able to stand in the day of trial and temptation …May God work in us so that we can take root downward. (CWWN, vol. 37, pp. 37-39)

Further Reading: Watchman Nee, Deep Calls unto Deep (booklet); CWWN, vol. 38, ch. 66