第二十六週．週二

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晨興餧養

腓二１２～１３　『這樣，我親愛的，你們既是常順從的，不但我與你們同在的時候，就是我如今不在的時候，更是順從的，就當恐懼戰兢，作成你們自己的救恩，因為乃是神為著祂的美意，在你們裏面運行，使你們立志並行事。』

現在我們必須進一步的問，作我們榜樣的基督在那裏？祂在天上，還是在我們裏面？腓立比二章九節清楚的指明，神已經將基督升為至高。因此，毫無疑問的，作我們榜樣的基督乃是在天上。祂已被高舉到宇宙的至高之處，就是神所在的地方。這與榜樣客觀的一面有關。然而，如果基督只是客觀的在三層天上，今天我們怎麼能彀以祂為我們的榜樣？我們在地上怎麼能彀跟隨那已被高舉，現今在天上的一位？這是不可能的。我們若要以基督為榜樣，這榜樣必須是主觀的。（腓立比書生命讀經，九八頁。）

信息選讀

我們怎麼可能作成我們自己的救恩？〔腓二12。〕如果我們能作成我們的救恩，救恩豈不就是本乎我們自己的行為麼？…既然救恩不是本乎行為，而是本乎恩，保羅吩咐我們作出我們的救恩是甚麼意思？

要了解保羅的話，關鍵在於明白腓立比二章十二節救恩的意義。這裏的救恩並不是指脫離火湖，而是指這封書信前面保羅已經題到的救恩。二章十二節的『這樣』一辭，指明本節保羅的話是前面所說的結果。作成我們的救恩，乃是前面幾節聖經所給我們看見，以基督為我們榜樣的結果。我們的榜樣基督，就是我們的救恩。然而，這個救恩需要由我們作出來。

要在我們的經歷中作成救恩，這個榜樣對我們就不僅是客觀的，還必須是主觀的。這榜樣如果僅僅是客觀的，就不會成為我們所作成的救恩。這裏的救恩，不是我們所領受的救恩，而是我們所作成的救恩。我們所領受的救恩，乃是救我們脫離神的定罪和火湖的救恩；那樣的救恩是無須我們作成的。腓立比書這裏的救恩是另一種救恩，或者說是不同程度的救恩；…二章十二節的救恩實際上是一個活的人位，這個人位就是我們所活、所經歷、所享受的基督。僅僅客觀的榜樣不能這樣成為我們的救恩。救恩是一個活的人位，而這個人位就是我們的榜樣，這事實指明這個榜樣不僅是客觀的，更是主觀的。…我們說這個榜樣是客觀也是主觀的另一理由，乃是和腓立比書是論到經歷基督的這個事實有關。與屬靈經歷有關的事定規是主觀的。基於這個原則，並根據整卷腓立比書的上下文來看，我們的榜樣基督不僅是客觀的，也是主觀、可經歷的。

再者，保羅說到作成我們的救恩之後，接著又說，『因為乃是神為著祂的美意，在你們裏面運行，使你們立志並行事。』（二13。）十三節開頭的『因為』指明神在我們裏面的運行，和我們恐懼戰兢作成我們的救恩有關。是神為著祂的美意，在我們裏面運行，使我們立志並行事。十三節的運行，定規是指十二節的作成。我們承認，我們無法作成我們自己的救恩，我們靠自己的確不能。但是神，就是在我們裏面運行的那位卻能。神既在我們裏面運行，使我們立志並行事，我們就能作成我們自己的救恩。保羅說到神在我們裏面運行，進一步指明基督作榜樣不只是客觀的，也是主觀的。…當我們與神在我們裏面的運行合作時，就是以基督為我們的榜樣。（腓立比書生命讀經，九九至一○二頁。）

參讀：腓立比書生命讀經，第十篇。

WEEK 26 — DAY 2

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Morning Nourishment

Phil. 2:12-13 So then, my beloved, even as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only but now much rather in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who operates in you both the willing and the working for His good pleasure.

Now we must go on to ask where is this Christ who is our pattern. Is He in heaven, or is He in us? Philippians 2:9 says clearly that God has highly exalted Christ. Thus, there can be no doubt that as our pattern Christ is in heaven. He has been exalted to the highest peak in the universe, where God is. This is related to the objective aspect of the pattern. However, if Christ were only in the third heaven objectively, how could we take Him as our pattern today? How could we, who are on earth, follow One who has been exalted and who is now in heaven? It would be impossible. In order for s to take Christ as our pattern, this pattern must be subjective. (Life-study of Philippians, p. 83)

Todays Reading

How is it possible for us to work out our own salvation [Phil. 2:121? If we could work out our salvation, would that not make salvation a matter of our own works?…Since salvation is not of works but of grace, what does Paul mean by telling us to work out our salvation?

The key to understanding Paul’s word is to know the meaning of salvation in this verse. Salvation here is not salvation from the lake of fire. Rather, it refers to what Paul has already said about salvation earlier in this Epistle. The words so then in verse 12 indicate that what Paul says in this verse is a consequence of what has gone before. Working out our salvation is the result of taking Christ as our pattern, as seen in the preceding verses. As our pattern, Christ is our salvation. However, this salvation needs to be worked out by us.

In order for this to be accomplished in our experience, the pattern must be subjective to us as well as objective. If it were only objective, it could not be the salvation worked out by us. The salvation here is not the salvation we receive; it is the salvation we work out. The salvation we receive is the salvation from God’s condemnation and from the lake of fire. There is no need for us to work out that kind of salvation. The salvation here in Philippians is salvation of another kind, or of a different degree…The salvation in 2:12 is actually a living person. This person is the very Christ whom we live, experience, and enjoy. A pattern that is only objective could not be our salvation in this way. The fact that salvation is a living person and that this person is our pattern indicates that the pattern is subjective as well as objective. Another reason for saying that the pattern is subjective as well as objective is related to the fact that the book of Philippians is a book on the experience of Christ. Anything that is a matter of spiritual experience must be subjective. Based upon this principle and upon the context of the book of Philippians as a whole, Christ as the pattern is not only objective but also subjective and experiential.

Furthermore, following his word about working out our salvation, Paul goes on to say, “For it is God who operates in you both the willing and the working for His good pleasure” (2:13). The word for at the beginning of verse 13 indicates that God’s operating in us is related to our working out our own salvation with fear and trembling. God operates in us both the willing and the working for His good pleasure. Surely the working in verse 13 refers to the working out in verse 12. We may confess that we are not able to work out our own salvation. Yes, in ourselves we are not able. But God, the One operating in us, is able. Since He is operating in us both the willing and the working, we can work out our own salvation. Paul’s word about God operating in us is a further indication that the pattern is subjective as well as objective…When we cooperate with God’s operation in us, we take Christ as our pattern. (Lifestudy of Philippians, pp. 84-86)

Further Reading: Life-study of Philippians, msg. 10