越來越光明 14
雷克·喬納
有些人稱基督徒的生命是在兩個悖論之間取得平衡，而生命之路則是兩個悖論之間的張力。聖經中有相互平衡的教導，我們需要保持正道。信心可能非常接近驕傲，而以更大的信心行走會讓我們更接近中間的這條細線。
如果我們不堅持哥林多後書11:3的勸告，這可能看起來很複雜，而且可能變得複雜：“我只怕你們的心或偏於邪，失去那在基督裏所存純一的心，就像蛇用詭詐誘騙了夏娃一樣。”當我們保持專注和委身基督時，一切都將保持簡單和純潔。
正是我們以自我為中心，善惡樹的果子，讓我們不斷地不斷地審視自己，這讓一切變得複雜。我們永遠不會因著看自己而變成主的性情——無論是積極的還是消極的。只有當我們看到祂的榮耀時，我們才會改變。我們確實需要一些自我評估，但要在基督裡成熟，就是減少以自我為中心，多以基督為中心。思考使徒保羅在哥林多前書4:1-4中所寫的：
人應當以我們為基督的執事，為神奧秘事的管家。
並且所求於管家的，是要他有忠心。
我被你們論斷，或被別人論斷，我都以為極小的事；連我自己也不論斷自己。
因為靠自己，我並不知道甚麼，卻也不能因此得以稱義；但判斷我的乃是主。
當我還是一個年輕的基督徒，想成為一名牧師時，我在同一天收到了兩封信——一封指責我控制慾太強，另一封指責我太軟弱和無自信。當我把這兩種對立的意見帶到主面前看何者為真時，祂說：“都是！”
當然，主永遠是對的。我馬上就看出，在某些方面我控制得太多了，而在其他方面，我又過於謹慎和優柔寡斷。祂的真理總是讓我們自由，而只有祂對我說這句話，才開始讓我擺脫生命中的一些極端。那是將近五十年前的事了。今天，我不會聲稱自己在這些方面走得很好，但我認為我正在接近正確的平衡。有些事情需要一生的時間才能在我們身上發揮作用，而這只是在行走在我們今年研究的主題--越來越光明中的問題。
沒有人可以使自己成為應有的樣式。只有主可以，但我們確實可以發揮作用。我們的職責是保持謙卑、受教和可糾正。上面保羅的文字也許是關於如何做到這一點的最清晰和最簡單的陳述。他保持開放和可糾正，但不再自我論斷並相信主會來判斷。這是我們在行走中必須獲得的最大解放之一，尤其是當我們傾向於內省時。
除了一些值得注意的例外，總的來說，西方教會現在可能處於最弱的狀態。有一次，當我與一群參議員和國會議員談論華盛頓需要勇氣時，其中一位後來把我拉到一邊說：“如果我們能在教會裡看到勇氣，我們會在華盛頓看到更多的勇氣。”那是幾年前的事了，從那以後情況沒有好轉。我們想行在越來越接近神的旨意中心，完全不犯錯，但如果我們某些時候犯錯時，我們需要有膽量犯錯。
如果我們做的正確和公義，教會現在應該以其勇氣而聞名。正如我們所讀到的，聖經很清楚，“義人卻膽壯像獅子”（見箴言28:1）。所以，教會缺乏膽量必然表明缺乏公義。當我們想到公義時，我們想到的是行為，但這只是聖經強調公義的一小部分。信心是我們公義的基礎，信心是藉著膽量表現出來的。
隨著改正，我們通過做主認為正確的事來學習保持在義人越來越光明的道路上，我們的膽量就會增加。隨著越來越黑暗，困惑和懷疑也增加，但那些在生命道路上的人將越來越突出。他們將成為唯一真正的希望燈塔，我們必須為將來的巨大豐收做好預備。
Increasing Light, Part 14
Rick Joyner
Some have called the Christian life an acquired balance between two paradoxes, and the path of life a tension between two paradoxes. There are the counterbalancing teachings of Scripture that are needed to keep us in the Way. Faith can be very close to pride, and to walk in greater faith brings us even closer to this thin line between them.
This may seem complicated, and it can become complicated, if we do not hold to the exhortation of II Corinthians 11:3: “But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ.” Everything stays simple and pure as we keep our focus on and devotion to Christ.
It is our self-centeredness, the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge, that has us continually and constantly looking at ourselves, which makes everything complicated. We will never be changed into the Lord’s nature by looking at ourselves—positively or negatively. We are only changed when we see His glory. We do need some self-evaluation, but to mature in Christ is to become less self-centered, less self-focused, and more Christ-centered. Consider what the Apostle Paul wrote in I Corinthians 4:1-4:
Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.
In this case, moreover, it is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy.
But to me it is a very small thing that I may be examined by you, or by any human court; in fact, I do not even examine myself.
For I am conscious of nothing against myself, yet I am not by this acquitted; but the one who examines me is the Lord.
When I was a young Christian trying to be a pastor, I received two letters the same day—one accusing me of being too controlling, the other accusing me of being too weak and unassertive. When I took these two opposing opinions to the Lord to see which was true, He said, “Both!”
Of course, the Lord is always right. I saw right away that in some ways I was too controlling, and in other ways, I was too cautious and indecisive. His truth always sets us free, and just Him saying this to me began to set me free from some extremes in my life. That was nearly fifty years ago. Today, I would not claim to be walking perfectly in these, but I think I am getting closer to the right balance. Some things take a lifetime to work in us, and it’s just a matter of walking in increasing light—our theme for this year’s study.
No one can make themselves into what they should be. Only the Lord can, but we do have a part to play. Our part is to stay humble, teachable, and correctable. Paul’s text above is perhaps the clearest and simplest statement on how to do this. He remained open and correctable, but then no longer examined himself and trusted the Lord to do this. This is one of the greatest liberations we must come to in our walk, especially if we tend to be introspective.
With some notable exceptions, in general, the church in the West may now be in its weakest state. Once when I was speaking to a group of senators and congressmen about the need for courage in Washington, one of them pulled me aside afterward and said, “We would see a lot more courage in Washington if we could see any in the church.” That was years ago, and this has not gotten any better since. We want to walk ever closer to the center of God’s will, and do not want to err at all, yet if we’re going to err in these times, we need to err on the side of boldness.
If we are doing it right and righteously, the church should now be known for its courage. As we have read, Scripture is clear, “The righteous are bold as a lion” (see Proverbs 28:1). So, a lack of boldness in the church must indicate a lack of righteousness. When we think of righteousness we think of behavior, but that is only a small part of the biblical emphasis on righteousness. Faith is the basis of our righteousness, and faith is demonstrated by boldness.
As corrections are made, and we learn to stay on the brighter and brighter path of the righteous by doing what is right in the sight of the Lord, our boldness will increase. As darkness increases with all the confusion and doubt that accompanies it, those on the path of life will stand out more and more. They will become the only real beacon of hope, and we must prepare for the great ingathering this will bring.