第三週■週六

w03d06-ch

晨興餧養

林後四12『這樣，死是在我們身上發動，生命卻在你們身上發動。』

     十13『我們卻不要過了度量誇口，只要照度量的神所分給我們尺度的度量誇口，這度量甚至遠達你們。』

當我們在主死的殺死之下，祂復活的生命就藉着我們分賜到別人裏面。分賜生命到別人裏面，總是我們接受十字架殺死的結果。（聖經恢復本，林後四12 註1。）

我們不該以爲，保羅這麼屬靈，必定與我們完全不同。甚至他也必須學習受主的限制。譬如，保羅想去羅馬，卻沒有料到他是帶着鎖鍊去的。不僅如此，他告訴羅馬的信徒，他想從羅馬經過，往西班牙去。（羅十五24。）保羅從未去到西班牙，而是帶着鎖鍊到了羅馬。這鎖鍊就是主的度量、主的約束。神的度量不是讓保羅自由的去羅馬，乃是帶他去羅馬作囚犯。保羅的確去了羅馬，但他是在羅馬的監牢裏。這樣的坐牢就是約束。…神是主宰一切的，任何發生在保羅身上的事，都在神的主宰之下。這意思是說，保羅所受的捆鎖和監禁，都是神主宰的約束。保羅願意服在神的度量之下。他不掙扎，也不反抗這約束。（哥林多後書生命讀經，五三一頁。）

信息選讀

主特別喜歡約束年輕人。如果年輕人無心事奉，主會挑旺他們事奉祂。但等他們被挑旺之後，祂又會限制他們。人天然的性情不喜歡這種限制。譬如，在睡覺和活動上，我們也許不喜歡受限制。我們在屬靈上沉睡時，神會來挑旺我們。但我們太活躍的時候，祂就約束我們。我知道有些年輕人因着神這樣對待他們，而向神生氣。一位年輕弟兄可能想在年輕人中間帶頭。如果他帶頭了，他可能又想在召會中作執事或長老。在這些事上，他可能巴望有快速的進展。但神的原則乃是先叫我們快起來，又使我們慢下去；先興起我們來，又使我們降下。當我們下沉時，祂來扶持我們。但當我們上得太高，祂就把我們拉回來。…我們若肯接受神這樣的上上下下，最終我們就能在祂的工作中有用處。

許多年輕人受不了神的上上下下。幾番上上下下，他們就想逃了。他們的態度是：『如果神要我上，就讓我上到諸天之上，留在那裏直等主耶穌回來。如果神要我下，就把我留在底下。我不喜歡上上下下，下下上上。』這種不喜歡神的上上下下，是許多年輕人個性的表現。

神不要我們一直在上，或一直在下。甚至在自然界，日夜的轉換也證實這事。…神創造我們，不會使我們的一日或一夜持續多年之久。這可能是照着我們的路，卻不是照着神的路。

我鼓勵青年聖徒特別要研讀這一段話，〔林後十7 ～18，〕從中學習如何在召會的事奉中行事，並如何在主的恢復裏行動。青年人，你們必須知道自己的尺度、界限。這意思是說，你們必須知道神所量給你們的度量有多少，範圍有多大。這樣的約束和限制，對於我們的肉體是非常實際的對付。我們天然的人喜歡無拘無束。但神知道我們的難處，所以給我們一些限制和約束，好叫我們留在祂所分給我們的度量之內。（哥林多後書生命讀經，五二九至五三○、五三四頁。）

參讀：哥林多後書生命讀經，第五十一篇；認識生命與召會，第十六篇。

WEEK 3 — DAY 6

Morning Nourishment

2 Cor. 4:12 So then death operates in us, but life in you.

       10:13 But we will not boast beyond our measure but according to the measure of the rule which the God of measure has apportioned to us, to reach even as far as you.

When we are under the killing of the Lord’s death, His resurrection life is imparted through us into others. The impartation of life into others is always the issue of our suffering the killing of the cross. (2 Cor. 4:12, footnote 1)

We should not think that Paul was so spiritual that he was altogether different from us. Even he had to learn to take the Lord’s restriction. For example, Paul wanted to go to Rome, but he did not expect to go there in bonds. Furthermore, he told the believers at Rome that he expected to go to Spain by way of them (Rom. 15:24). Paul never went to Spain, and he arrived in Rome in bonds. Those bonds were the Lord’s measure, His limitation. God did not measure out Rome to Paul in a free way. Instead, God led him there as a prisoner. Yes, Paul was in Rome, but he was there in prison. That imprisonment was a restriction…God is sovereign, and whatever happened to Paul was under God’s sovereignty. This means that Paul’s bonds and imprisonment were God’s sovereign restriction. Paul was willing to be subject to God’s measuring. He neither transgressed this restriction nor rebelled against it. (Life-study of 2 Corinthians, pp. 442-443)

Today’s Reading

The Lord is especially interested in restricting the young people. If the young ones do not have a heart to serve the Lord, He will stir them up to serve Him. But once they have been stirred up, He will limit them. Human nature does not like this kind of limitation. For example, both in our sleeping and in our activity, we may not like limitations. When, spiritually speaking, we are asleep, God will stir us up. But when we become too active, He will restrict us. I know some young people who have been offended because God has done this to them. A young brother may want to be a leader among the young people. If he becomes a leader, he may then want to be a deacon or an elder in the church. In these matters he may expect to make swift progress. God’s way, however, is first to speed us up and then to slow us down, first to raise us up and then to lower us down. When we are down, He will lift us up. But when we get too far up, He will lower us down…If we can take God’s ups and downs, we will eventually become useful in His work.

Many young people cannot tolerate God’s ups and downs. After a few of these ups and downs, they want to quit. Their attitude may be, “If God wants me up, then let me go up to the heavens and stay there until the Lord Jesus comes back. But if God wants me down, let me stay down. But I don’t like going up and down, down and up.” This unhappiness with God’s ups and downs is an expression of the disposition of many young people.

God does not want us to be always up or to be always down. Even in nature the alternating of day and night testifies of this…God did not create us so that we would have a day or night that would last for many years. This may be according to our way, but it is not according to God’s way.

I encourage the young people especially to study this portion of the Word [2 Cor. 10:7-18] and learn from it how to conduct themselves in the church service and how to move in the Lord’s recovery. Young people, you must know your rule, your limit. This means that you must know how much God has measured to you, how much He has apportioned to you. This restriction, this limitation, is a very practical dealing with our flesh. Our natural man wants to be without limitation. However, God knows our problem. Therefore, He sets up boundaries and restrictions so that we may stay within the measure that He has apportioned to us. (Life-study of 2 Corinthians, pp. 441, 444-445)

Further Reading: Life-study of 2 Corinthians, msg. 51; CWWL, 1953, vol. 1, “Knowing Life and the Church,” chs. 3, 16