跟隨萬王之王18
我們與神同行的某些面向對品格發展至關重要，了解此幫助我們更禁得起挑戰和爭戰。最重要的是了解我們需要與基督身體確實連結，了解我們在其中的位置，並且在我們被賦予的恩賜和事工中發揮作用。
我們被呼召進入最大的團契─與萬王之王的效忠者一起跟隨祂，他們當中有一些最棒的人，也有一些最艱辛的人，相互提供我們所需要的一切來實現我們的目標。正如約翰壹書四章20節告訴我們：「人若說我愛神，卻恨他的弟兄，就是說謊話的；不愛他所看見的弟兄，就不能愛沒有看見的神。」
學習在基督裡愛我們的同工，特別是那些我們從一開始就不喜歡的人，這是我們在愛中成長的一個方式。正如哥林多前書十三章告訴我們，就算我們擁有各樣的信心、知識、智慧，並且能做偉大的事，卻沒有愛，我們就算不得什麼。
當耶穌被問到末世的預兆，耶穌說的第一件事是「不要受迷惑」（路加福音21:7-8）。每個教會肢體最迫切需要的聖靈恩賜就是分辨的恩賜，卻鮮少基督徒擁有此恩賜，我們常認為分辨不過是懷疑的一種形式。分辨恩賜和其他恩賜一樣是超自然的，之所以賜予我們是因為我們自然的恩賜不足以勝任。
若連使徒保羅都承認「受到撒旦的阻擋」（帖撒羅尼迦前書2:18），我們都應該知道自己不夠聰明到認出魔鬼一切欺騙手段，他有著與人對抗長達幾千年的經驗。雖然魔鬼絕對無法愚弄神，但至少他能輕易愚弄最聰明的人，特別是那些落入驕傲以為任何人都無法愚弄他們的人。
我們都「所知道的有限，先知所講的也有限」（哥林多前書13:9），這意味著沒有人知道一切或能夠看見一切。那即是為何使徒保羅沒有說他有基督的心，而是說我們有基督的心（哥林多前書2:16）。為此緣故，就算最有智慧的、最有知識的，最具先知性的人都需要他人。主將祂的身體結合在一起，使我們彼此需要，好叫我們最終學會彼此相愛。我們若變得像主一樣，我們必須學習去愛，因為「神是愛」。
提摩太前書一章5節說：「但命令的總歸就是愛；這愛是從清潔的心和無虧的良心，無偽的信心生出來的。」我們學習和經歷的一切總歸就是愛，我們若沒有將注意力放在此終極目的上，我們會不斷被次要目標分心並常被帶錯方向。我們若從原本的路線轉向，這也可能是迷惑的一種形式，迷惑不見得都來自仇敵。
腓立比書一章9節陳述：「我所禱告的，就是要你們的愛心在知識和各樣見識(分辨)上多而又多。」所以，「真知識」和「各樣見識(分辨)」只能在那些有愛心的人身上看見。懷疑根源於懼怕或驕傲，而不是愛。我們無法正確分辨任何人，如果我們不愛他們。神甚至愛我們的敵人，渴望他們得救，因此照著神的眼光，也就是「真知識」和「各樣見識(分辨)」來看他們，我們必須要透過愛來這麼做。
許多人無法領會此，因為他們對神的愛有著扭曲的了解，祂的愛可以是最有恩慈和最溫柔的，也可以是最嚴厲的。那即是為何在羅馬書十一章22節告訴我們：「可見神的恩慈和嚴厲」。神的所有道路都高過我們的，祂的愛在許多方面都遠比人類的愛來得大與不同。要領會祂的愛並在其中成長，如以弗所書四章15節所言：「凡事長進，連於元首基督」，在這一章告訴我們要這麼做必須在祂的身體中找到我們的位置，發揮作用。
(摘自喬納word for the week, Week 48, 2021)
Follow the King, Part 18
There are certain aspects of our walk with God that are essential to character development. Understanding this helps make our challenges and battles more tolerable. Of primary importance is understanding our need to be rightly connected to the body of Christ, to know our place in it, and to function there in the gifts and ministries we have been given.
We have been called into the greatest fellowship—to follow the King with His faithful ones. They are some of the best but also some of the most difficult. Together, they provide just what we need to fulfill our purpose. As we are told in I John 4:20, “If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.”
Learning to love our co-laborers in Christ, especially those we may not even like at first, is one way we grow in love. As we are told in I Corinthians 13, we can have all faith, knowledge, and wisdom and do great works, but if we do not have love, it means nothing. The church is full of challenging people, just as we are no doubt challenging to some of them, but we need all to mature in Christ and His love.
When asked about the signs at the end of this age, the first thing Jesus said was “be not deceived” (see Luke 21:7-8). One of the most desperately needed gifts of the Spirit every church body needs is the gift of discernment. Few Christians have this gift, and what we often think of as discernment is just a form of suspicion. The gift of discernment is just as supernatural as the other gifts, which are given to us because our natural gifts are inadequate.
If even the Apostle Paul would admit to having been “foiled by Satan” (see I Thessalonians 2:18), we should all know we are not smart enough to recognize all the deceitful ways of the devil who has had thousands of years of practice against men. The devil can never fool God, but he can easily fool even the wisest people, especially if they have fallen into the pride of thinking it is impossible for anyone to fool them.
We all “know in part, and prophesy in part” (see I Corinthians 13:9), which means no one knows all or can see all. That is why the Apostle Paul did not say he had the mind of Christ but that we together have the mind of Christ (see I Corinthians 2:16). For this reason, even the wisest, most knowledgeable, most prophetic person needs others. The Lord so composed His body that we would need each other, so we would ultimately learn to love one another. If we are to become like the Lord, we must learn to love, because “God is love.”
In I Timothy 1:5 we are told, “But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from a sincere faith.”The goal of all that we learn, and experience is love. If we don’t keep our attention on the ultimate purpose, we will continually be distracted and often misled by lesser purposes. This too can be a form of deception if we are distracted from our course. Deception does not always come from the enemy.
Philippians 1:9 states: “And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in real knowledge and all discernment.” So “real knowledge” and “all discernment” can only be seen by those who love. Suspicion is rooted in fear or pride, not love. We cannot discern anyone accurately if we do not love them. God loves even our enemies and desires for them to be saved, so to see them as He does, which is “real knowledge” and “all discernment,” we must see them through love.
Many cannot comprehend this because they have a distorted understanding of God’s love. His love can be the most kind and gentle and the most severe. That is why we are told in Romans 11:22: “Behold then the kindness and severity of God.” All of God’s ways are much higher than our ways, and His love is far greater and different in many ways than our human love. To comprehend His love and to grow in it we are told in Ephesians 4:15 “grow up in all aspects into Him,” which we are told in this chapter is done by finding our place and functioning in His body.
