第二週■週五

w02d05-ch

晨興餧養

彼前五5 ～ 6『照樣，年幼的，要服從年長的；你們眾人彼此相待，也都要以謙卑束腰，因爲神敵擋狂傲的人，賜恩給謙卑的人。所以你們要謙卑，服在神大能的手下，使祂到了時候，可以叫你們升高。』

在召會裏的每個人，包括長老，都該以謙卑束腰。在彼前一章十三節彼得囑咐我們，要束上我們心思的腰，但這裏他指明我們全人都需要束緊。

這裏的『束腰』，原文源自奴僕的圍裙一辭，指服事時用以束緊寬鬆之外衣者，這裏用作比喻，表徵在服事時穿上謙卑爲美德。這比喻顯然是出於彼得的印象，就是主如何以手巾束腰，降卑自己洗門徒的腳，特別是洗彼得的腳。（約十三4 ～ 7。）（彼得前書生命讀經，三五六頁。）

信息選讀

彼得說，神不但敵擋狂傲的人，也賜恩給謙卑的人。嚴格的說，這恩典是指三一神自己作生命的供應，在謙卑的信徒裏面繁增。…信徒已經得着起初的恩典，但這恩典需要在他們裏面繁增，使他們有分於全般的恩典。神諸般的恩典就如彼前五章十節裏全般的恩典，乃是生命豐富的供應，也就是三一神在多方面供應到我們裏面。（林後十三14，十二9。）神將祂自己當作恩典，當作生命的供應賜給謙卑的信徒。

彼前五章五節的『謙卑』，原文也是卑微的意思，與馬太十一章二十九節者同，那裏主耶穌說，『我心裏柔和謙卑。』…我們不該高舉自己，卻該一直使自己卑微。這樣，我們就會在接受三一神作生命供應的地位上；我們會得着神賜給謙卑信徒的恩典。

〔彼前五章六節〕的『要謙卑』，原文爲被動式，指明神使我們謙卑，這主要的是藉着逼迫的苦難。（10。）然而，這需要我們與神的工作合作；我們必須甘願在神大能的手下被祂作成謙卑、卑微的。因此說『要謙卑』。『謙卑』是被動的，而『要』是主動的。當神行動，在我們身上工作時，我們需要採取主動，讓祂在我們身上工作；採取主動是主動的，讓祂工作是被動的。這就是我們甘願服在神的手下，神的手是有大能爲我們作成一切的。

神也許用逼迫使我們謙卑。…好事臨到我們，我們也許就成爲狂傲的。但苦難或逼迫也許幫助我們謙卑。例如，一位弟兄也許因失業而謙卑。一個學生也許因爲得到的分數比他所期望的低而謙卑。

我們也可能在家庭生活中經歷一些事情，叫我們謙卑。某位弟兄、姊妹的兒女若很傑出，作父母的也許就成爲狂傲的。但兒女若給他們造成問題或難處，這就會使作父母的卑微。同樣，一位青年弟兄的父親若在工作上有非常高的地位，這位弟兄也許就很狂傲。…但假定他的父親是看門的，所受的教育非常有限；這位青年弟兄知道他的父親有這樣卑微的地位，這也許使他卑微。

我們無法使自己謙卑。反之，我們需要神使我們謙卑。〔6。〕然而，神使我們謙卑，需要我們與神的工作合作。這就是說，我們必須甘願在神大能的手下被祂作成謙卑、卑微的。

我們可以說，『要謙卑』是主動而被動的：『要』是主動的，指我們主動要謙卑，『謙卑』是被動的，指神的工作使我們謙卑。雖然神的手有大能，爲我們作所需要的一切，但祂的手仍需要我們的合作。神的工作需要我們的合作。所以，我們需要謙卑。（彼得前書生命讀經，三五七至三五九頁。）

參讀：彼得前書生命讀經，第三十三篇。

WEEK 2 — DAY 5

Morning Nourishment

1 Pet. 5:5-6 In like manner, younger men, be subject to elders; and all of you gird yourselves with humility toward one another, because God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. Therefore be humbled under the mighty hand of God that He may exalt you in due time.

Everyone in the church, including the elders, should gird himself with humility. In 1 Peter 1:13 Peter charges us to gird up the loins of our mind, but here [in 5:5] he indicates that our entire being needs to be girded.

The Greek word for gird here is derived from a noun meaning “a slave’s apron”; such an apron girded up the slave’s loose garments in the service. It is used here as a figure of speech, signifying the putting on of humility as a virtue in service. This figure came evidently from Peter’s impression of how the Lord girded Himself with a towel when He humbled Himself to wash the disciples’ feet, especially Peter’s (John 13:4-7). (Life-study of 1 Peter, p. 296)

Today’s Reading

Peter says that God not only resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. Strictly speaking, this grace refers to the Triune God Himself as the life supply being multiplied in the humble believer…The believers have received the initial grace, yet this grace needs to be multiplied in them that they may participate in all grace. The varied grace of God [1 Pet. 4:10], as the all grace in 5:10, is the rich supply of life, which is the Triune God ministered into us in many aspects (2 Cor. 13:14; 12:9). God gives Himself as grace, as life supply, to humble believers.

The Greek word for humble in 1 Peter 5:5 also means “lowly,” as in Matthew 11:29, where the Lord Jesus said, “I am meek and lowly in heart.”…Instead of uplifting ourselves, we should always keep ourselves low. Then we will be in a position to receive the Triune God as our life supply. We will receive the grace that God gives to humble believers.

The words be humbled [1 Pet. 5:6] are passive voice, indicating being made humble by God, mainly through sufferings in persecutions (v. 10). This, however, requires that we cooperate with God’s operation. We must be willing to be made humble, lowly, under the mighty hand of God. Hence, be humbled. We may say that humbled is passive, but be is active. While God is acting to operate on us, we need to take the initiative to be operated on by Him. To take the initiative is active; to be operated on is passive. This is our willingness to be under the hand of God, which is mighty to do everything for us.

Persecution may be used by God to humble us…When good things happen to us, we may become proud. But suffering or persecution may help us to be humble. For example, a brother may be humbled as a result of losing his job. A student may be humbled by receiving a lower grade than he expected.

We may also experience being humbled in our family life. If the children of a certain brother and sister are outstanding, the parents may become proud. But if the children cause them problems or difficulty, this will make the parents lowly. Likewise, if a young brother’s father has a very high position in his work, this brother may be proud…But suppose his father is a janitor with a very limited education. Knowing that his father has such a lowly position may cause this young brother to be lowly.

We cannot make ourselves humble. Rather, we need to be made humble by God [v. 6]. Nevertheless, God’s humbling of us requires our cooperation with God’s operation. This means that we must be willing to be made humble, lowly, under the mighty hand of God.

We may say that be humbled is active-passive: be is active, pointing to our initiative to be humbled, and humbled is passive, pointing to God’s operation to humble us. Although God’s hand is mighty to do whatever is necessary for us, His hand still needs our cooperation. God’s operation needs our cooperation. Therefore, we need to be humbled. (Life-study of 1 Peter, pp. 297-298)

Further Reading: Life-study of 1 Peter, msg. 33