大使命 29

從罪中得釋放

當我們擁抱十架，我們如此做是因為我們承認自己有罪，並得著十架是唯一解藥的啟示。唯有透過十架的救贖，我們才能與神和好。

那些說基督教是一個傲慢的宗教，因為它宣稱耶穌是與神和好的唯一道路；事實上，他們才傲慢無比。神的兒子來到地上為我們成為贖價，祂為我們的罪所做的犧牲，我們卻說我們不需要祂的供應，我們自己可以與神和好，還有什麼比這來得更大的驕傲呢？驕傲為撒旦帶來首先的墮落，驕傲也使我們在墮落能力的轄制下。藉著謙卑自己，承認我們需要十字架，我們開始從罪的能力中得釋放。

雖然我們可以立刻重生，在基督裡真正成為新造的人，但要從我們罪惡的本質被改變重建是一個過程。俗話說，你可以很快讓地躦出鼠洞，但要填滿鼠洞卻要花更多的時間。我們很快就可以從罪中得救，但老我的習慣模式可能需要一段時間才能改變。這是做成我們得救工夫的一部份，就像以色列只要一個晚上就能從埃及得釋放，卻要花許多年的時間才能將埃及從人心中除去。

為此緣故，我們立下悔改的根基，正如希伯來書六章1節所言。根基是所有跟隨事物要建造在其上的基礎，根基是你每一天走在其上的，同樣地我們必須擁有一顆謙卑悔改的心與基督同行。這並不意味我們不斷活在罪惡感或罪的意識中，而是我們隨時敞開自己承認生命中悖逆的行為或罪。

一旦我們為一個罪悔改，我們必須相信十架的大能足夠為那罪付上代價。此代表我們不持續為那罪責打自己，那是對十架的侮辱。當我們那樣做時，我們在暗示十架是不夠的，我們還必須為罪付上某些代價。對十架真實的擁抱也釋放我們從罪惡感中得釋放。

從罪中得著終極釋放需要我們從對罪的聚焦上得釋放，取而代之的，我們開始聚焦在主的榮耀上。注視著我們邪惡的本性並不是得釋放的道路；沒錯，我們必須隨時對聖靈的定罪感到敏銳。然而，倘若我們要從罪中得釋放，我們絕不能一直注視罪，而是要注視基督。

話雖如此，總是有人會把事情極端化。正如在彼得後書三章16節關於保羅的教導，彼得寫到：『他一切的信上也都是講論這事。信中有些難明白的，那無學問、不堅固的人強解，如強解別的經書一樣，就自取沉淪。』有些人教導說，一旦我們在基督裡，我們便不再需要悔改。甚至還有人教導說，因為基督已經來了，神不再審判─此教導駁斥新約一大部分，甚至駁斥了基督自己對末世的預言。每一個教導都會被一些人極端化，但生命的道路總在兩個極端之間被找到。 

 (摘自喬納 word for the week, Week29, 2014)

 

Deliverance from Sin - The Great Commission, Part 29
Week 29, 2014
Rick Joyner

When we embrace the cross, we do so because of the conviction of our sin and the revelation that the cross is the only remedy. Only through the atonement of the cross can we be reconciled to God.

Those who say that Christianity is an arrogant religion because it claims that Jesus is the only way to be reconciled to God are, in fact, the arrogant ones. What could be greater pride than to have the Son of God come and make atonement for us, suffering as He did for our sin, and then say that we do not need His provision and that we can be reconciled to God on our own? Pride led to the first fall of Satan, and it is pride that keeps us under the power of the Fall. By humbling ourselves and acknowledging our need for the cross, we begin to be delivered from the power of sin.

Though we can be born again in an instant and truly become new creatures in Christ, changing our nature from sinful to restored is a process. There is a saying that you can get the gophers out quickly, but filling in gopher holes takes much longer. We can be saved from sin quickly, but the habit patterns of the old nature may take a while to change. This is part of working out our salvation. It is like Israel being delivered from Egypt in a night, but it took many years to get Egypt out of the people.

For this reason, we lay a foundation of repentance as we are told in Hebrews 6:1. Now a foundation is what all that follows is built upon. The foundation is what you walk on every day, and likewise we must keep a humble, repentant heart to walk with Christ. This does not mean that we constantly live with guilt or even sin consciousness, but rather we are always open to conviction about any wayward behavior or sin that would emerge in our lives.

Once we repent of a sin, we must then trust the power of the cross to be sufficient to pay the price for it. This means that we do not continue beating ourselves up for it. This is an affront to the cross. When we do this, we are implying that the cross is not enough, and we must pay something for this sin as well. The true embracing of the cross also delivers us from a guilty conscience. 

Ultimate deliverance from sin requires that we are ultimately delivered from being sin focused. Instead we become focused on the glory of the Lord. Looking at our evil nature is not the path to being delivered from it. We must always be sensitive to the conviction of the Holy Spirit. However, if we are going to be delivered from sin, we must not keep looking at the sin, but rather at Christ.       

This being said, there will always be some who will take things to extremes. As Peter wrote concerning the teachings of Paul in II Peter 3:16: “His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction” (NIV). Some people teach that once we are in Christ, we no longer need to repent. Others even teach that since Christ came, God no longer judges—a teaching that refutes a large part of the New Testament and even Christ’s own prophecies about the end of this age. Every teaching will be taken to extremes by some, but the path of life is usually found between them.