從死亡到基督
作者：法蘭西斯-弗朗吉潘 Francis Frangipane
原文來源：以利亞名單 https://www.elijahlist.com/words/display_word.html?ID=28060 
日期：2022.9.25
翻譯：Kate
轉載/轉寄 請註明出處：國度禱告網

耶穌警告祂的門徒，祂即將被釘死在十字架上。祂說："你們中間有一個人要出賣我"（見約翰福音13:21）。然而，門徒們沒有在謙卑的反省中轉向神，而是在門徒中產生了爭論，爭論哪一個是最大的。同時看到自然界和靈界的耶穌對彼得說（顯然祂 "贏得 "了這場爭論）。"主又說：西門！西門！撒但想要得著你們，好篩你們像篩麥子一樣；但我已經為你祈求，叫你不至於失了信心，你回頭以後，要堅固你的弟兄。"（路加福音22:31-32）。

這段經文揭示了對主為什麼允許在我們的生活中發生爭戰的深刻洞察力。耶穌知道，祂的門徒會讓祂失望。然而，祂沒有祈求祂的跟隨者不要經歷失敗；相反地，祂祈求他們不要失的信心。耶穌沒有祈求神讓彼得遠離爭戰，而是祈求彼得透過爭戰進入一個更高的屬靈地位。

我們扭扭捏捏地呼喊，希望神把我們從某些爭戰中拯救出來，但如果我們能夠穿透，到達天堂，真正聽到耶穌，我們可能會聽到祂為我們禱告，就像祂為祂的門徒禱告一樣。

好消息--事實上我們的信心--是，在所有事情上，基督都在為我們禱告。我們將過到爭戰的另一面。是的，有的時候我們會犯罪，會犯嚴重的錯誤；會有驕傲、嫉妒或野心促使我們走向失敗。我可以保證會有這樣的時候，但我也保證耶穌的禱告不會失敗。我們可能會失敗，但基督的代禱會幫助我們度過難關。

舊的本性必須死

門徒們經歷了他們一生中最大的沮喪和灰心。據他們所知，耶穌已經死了，他們沒有為祂辯護。這是祂需要的時刻，而他們卻在睡覺。在耶穌直視著他的情況下，彼得三次否認他曾經認識基督。他們的失敗所帶來的心痛是毀滅性的。這是無法想像的。與耶穌一起被埋在墳墓裡的是他們的盼望、夢想和願望--而他們否認耶穌，在祂的死亡中扮演了一個角色。

失敗。神能用人類的失敗來做什麼，真是令人驚訝。記住，基督說："......撒旦要求允許把你們像麥子一樣篩掉......"（路加福音22:31，直譯）。請牢記這一點。撒旦沒有被允許破壞，而是被允許篩選耶穌的弟子。

我們每個人都有兩個本性：一個是堅硬的外殼，這是一個舊本性；另一個是內在的柔軟性，這構成了我們真正的自我。外在的外殼是當我們是以肉體為中心的生命時，被用來保護我們免受世界的嚴酷。在我們來到基督面前以前，這個"外殼"保護著內在的柔軟，否則它就無法忍受在這個充滿敵意和魔鬼的世界中的生命掙扎。但是，當我們來到基督面前時，這層外殼必須被打破並死去。我們不能依靠肉體的方式來保護我們；我們必須成為以基督為中心。

所以，全能的神允許敵人進攻。撒旦認為牠在摧毀我們，但神說："你能接觸到的只是他的肉體"。神在想："反正我也想把它去除"。

所以爭戰的目的是為了篩選（去除）你的舊本性。當某樣東西被"篩選"時，它被過濾了；有些東西通過篩檢程式，而有些東西則被去除。因此，基督透過在我們的生命中出現篩選時刻，去除我們對肉體本性的信靠。我們的新本性實際上是基督自己在我們裡面的功能體現。關於這場爭戰，你應該知道這一點。神已經定規，只有在你裡面的基督才能存活！只有耶穌的本性才能夠在這場衝突中獲得成功。

破碎是對神的敞開

我們面對衝突時禱告："哦，主啊，不要讓它傷害我。保護我。" 然而，主是在說："傷害你？我的計畫是要殺了你。" 當然，主並不想傷害你的真實自我；然而，祂必須處死虛假和膚淺的外在自我。神要殺死你身上吹噓 "我不會否認主 "的那一部分。只要我們認為自己的肉體沒有能力犯罪，或者在道德上比其它基督徒高明，神就要給撒旦許可，讓牠篩選我們。

沒有破損的外殼性質必須被摧毀。我們外在自我的外殼對神和對他人都是封閉的，必須破碎。爭戰，甚至我們在爭戰中的失敗都會產生破碎。破碎是對神的敞放。一個沒有破碎的生命是神之靈的敵人。

"......一粒麥子不落在地裡死了，仍舊是一粒，若是死了，就結出許多子粒來。" （約翰福音12:24）

如果麥子死了，就會結出果子。我們不死就不能結出真正的、基督般的果子。幾乎就像我們真誠的失敗，與神的恩典混合，在我們身上產生了基督的成功。圍繞著麥粒的外殼不能活，不能生長，不能結出果子。它可以保護麥子，但不能釋放它。穀殼必須為基督的生命而死。

你怎麼知道你是否已經破碎？殼的性質是硬的；靈的性質是軟的。你是否生氣，批評他人或評判他人？那麼你就活在殼裡，它必須死（撒旦很樂意這樣做）。然而，如果你寬容，為那些傷害你的人禱告，並且有愛心，那麼你就是活在基督的生命中；舊的本性被打破，你正在結出果子。

我認為當我們告訴新基督徒："把你的生命交給主，就不會有壞事發生在你身上 "時，他們會受到很大的傷害。我們可能不會這樣說，但我們暗示，1號門後面是永生；2號門後面是永遠的幸福；3號門後面是你內心所渴望的一切。如果你把你的生命交給主，你就能得到這三扇門。你怎麼會出錯呢？我們沒有告訴他們那些陷阱門，以及他們目前所處的位置和他們所期望的獎品之間的爭戰。

詩篇119:71說："我受苦是於我有益，為要使我學習你的律例。"這可能很困難，但我們需要感謝神透過我們的失敗或苦難時期所做的一切。在所有的事中，我們始終應該記得，基督正在為我們代禱。我們將在另一邊出現，不僅更強大，而且還能在別人的特定爭戰中鼓勵別人。

在基督裡得勝：拋開肉體的局限性

"感謝神！常率領我們在基督裡誇勝......"（哥林多後書2:14）。

無論我們經歷了什麼，神都會在那裡"率領我們在基督裡誇勝"。多麼美妙的應許。然而，這些並不是一個不懂爭戰的人說的話。保羅在第一章中報告了他和其它領袖們所經歷的經歷。那是一個可怕的苦難，他們都"......遭遇苦難，被壓太重，力不能勝，甚至連活命的指望都絕了"（哥林多後書1:8，重點是加的）。無法想像他們必須面對的情況。

祂繼續說："......自己心裡也斷定是必死的......" （哥林多後書1:9a）。顯而易見，門徒們確信他們將死得很慘。然而，保羅說，神允許這種情況發生，以便"......叫我們不靠自己，只靠叫死人復活的神"（哥林多後書1:9b）。我們經歷的每一個困難或爭戰，無論多麼激烈，最終都會使我們 "不靠自己，只靠神"。這是神要帶給我們地步。

衝突總是會超出我們的力量。敵人總是把我們推到超越我們個人的、天生的、關於我們將為神走多遠的預設極限。"這是我要愛到什麼程度；這是我要翻臉多少次"。這個考驗殺死了我們人性的極限，直到我們在一切方面都像基督。我們面臨著一個選擇：是成為基督的樣子，還是逐漸萎縮成膚淺的偽君子--停止與神同行的憤怒者，把我們的苦難歸咎於他人。

從神的角度來看，完美是以我們真正信任基督的程度來衡量的。在面對死亡時，保羅以一種更完美的方式學會了信任 "使死人復活的神"。他在結束對主的讚美時說，祂"......曾救我們脫離那極大的死亡，現在仍要救我們，並且我們指望他將來還要救我們。....." （哥林多後書1:10）。神當時救了我們，祂還會再次救我們。耶穌為保羅禱告，讓他度過難關。結果，保羅能夠用從主那裡得到的安慰來加強和安慰廣大的百姓。

耶穌一定是在為保羅禱告，就像祂為彼得和其它使徒禱告一樣--不是讓他們逃避爭戰，而是讓他們擺脫肉體的限制，找到對神的完美依靠。而且，我的朋友，耶穌正在為你禱告--在你的衝突中，你的信心不會失敗。當你的力量恢復時，你將鼓勵其它人。


From Death to Christ
Francis Frangipane, Cedar Rapids, IA

Jesus warned His disciples about His impending crucifixion. "One of you will betray Me," He said (see John 13:21). Yet, instead of turning to God in humble introspection, an argument actually arose among the disciples as to which one was the greatest. Jesus, who sees both the natural and spiritual realms, addressed Peter (who evidently "won" the argument): "Simon, Simon, behold, satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers" (Luke 22:31-32).

This text reveals a profound insight into why the Lord allows battles in our lives. Jesus knew that His disciples were going to fail Him. Yet, think of this: He did not pray that His followers not experience failure; instead, He prayed that their faith not fail. Jesus did not ask that God would keep Peter from battle, but that Peter would come through the battle into a greater spiritual place.

We squirm and squeal and cry for God to save us from certain battles, but if we were able to pierce through, reach Heaven and actually hear Jesus, we would probably hear Him praying for us as He prayed for His disciples.

The good news—indeed our very confidence—is that, in everything, Christ is praying for us. We will get through to the other side of battle. Yes, there are times when we sin, when we make serious mistakes; when there is pride or jealousy or ambition motivating us toward certain failure. I can guarantee there will be such times, but I also guarantee that the prayers of Jesus will not fail. We may fail, but the intercession of Christ will see us through.

The Old Nature Must Die

The disciples went through the greatest depression and discouragement of their entire lives. As far as they knew, Jesus had died and they did not defend Him. It was His hour of need, and they had slept. With Jesus looking straight at him, Peter denied, three times, that he had ever even known Christ. The heartache they experienced from their failure was devastating. It was unfathomable. Buried in the tomb with Jesus were their hopes, dreams and desires—and they, by denying Him, had played a part in His death.

Failure. It is amazing what God can do with human failures. Remember, Christ said, "...satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat..." (Luke 22:31). Keep this in mind. Satan was not given permission to destroy, but to sift Jesus' disciples. (Photo via Unsplash)

Each of us has two natures: one, a hard outer husk, which is an old nature; the other, an inner softness, which constitutes our true self. The outer husk is that part of us that, while we are flesh-centered beings, is used to protect us from the harshness of our world. Before we come to Christ, that "husk" protects the inner softness, which otherwise cannot endure the struggles of life in this hostile, devil-filled world. But when we come to Christ, the husk must be broken and die. We cannot rely on the way of the flesh to protect us; we must become Christ-centered.

So, the Almighty allows the enemy to attack. Satan thinks he is destroying us, but God says, "All you can touch is his flesh." God is thinking, "I wanted that removed anyway."

So the battle is designed to sift (remove) your old nature. When something is "sifted," it is filtered; something comes through the filter, while something is removed. So Christ comes forth in our lives through the time of sifting, while our trust in our flesh nature is removed. Our new nature is actually Christ Himself manifested functionally within us. You should know this about the battle: God has ordained that only Christ in you can survive! Only the nature of Jesus is capable of prospering in this conflict.

Brokenness Is Openness to God

We face conflict and pray, "Oh Lord, don't let this hurt me. Protect me." The Lord, though, is saying, "Hurt you? My plan is to kill you." Of course, the Lord does not want to wound your true self; however, He must put to death the false and superficial outer self. God wants to kill the part of you that brags, "I won't deny the Lord." As long as we think of our flesh as being incapable of sin or morally superior to other Christians, God is going to give satan permission to sift us.

The unbroken husk nature must be destroyed. The shell of our outer selves is closed both to God and to others. There must be brokenness. The battle, even our failure in battle, produces brokenness. Brokenness is openness to God. An unbroken life is an enemy to the Spirit of God.

"...unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains by itself alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit." (John 12:24)

If it dies, it bears fruit. We cannot bear true, Christlike fruit without dying. It is almost as though our sincere failure, mixed with God's grace, produces Christ's success in us. The husk surrounding the wheat kernel cannot live or grow or produce fruit. It can protect the wheat, but it cannot release it. The husk must die for Christ to live.

How do you know whether or not you are broken? The husk nature is hard; the spirit nature is soft. Are you angry, critical of others or judgmental? Then you are living in the husk and it must die (and satan is glad to oblige). However, if you are forgiving, praying for those who have hurt you, and loving, then you are living the Christ life; the old nature is broken and you are bearing fruit.

I think new Christians suffer a big disservice when we tell them, "Give your life to the Lord and nothing bad will ever happen to you." We may not say it that way, but we imply that behind door #1 is eternal life; everlasting happiness is behind door #2; and everything your heart desires is behind door #3. If you give your life to the Lord, you get all three doors. How could you go wrong? We don't tell them about the trap doors and the battles between where they are currently standing and the prizes they expect.

Psalm 119:71 says, "It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I may learn Thy statutes." It may be difficult, but we need to appreciate what God does through our times of failure or affliction. In all things, we should always recall that Christ is interceding for us. We will emerge on the other side, not only stronger but able also to strengthen others in their particular battles. (Photo via Unsplash)

Triumph in Christ: Leaving Behind the Limits of the Flesh

"But thanks be to God, who always leads us in His triumph in Christ..." (2 Corinthians 2:14)

No matter what we go through, God will be there to "lead us in His triumph in Christ." What a wonderful promise. Yet, these were not the words of a man who knew no battle. Paul had reported an experience in the first chapter that he and his co-leaders had passed through. It was such a terrible affliction that they all "...were burdened excessively, beyond [their] strength, so that [they] despaired even of life" (2 Corinthians 1:8, emphasis added). It is impossible to imagine what they must have faced.

He continued, "...indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves..." (2 Corinthians 1:9a). Evidently the disciples were certain they were about to die a terrible death. Yet, Paul said that God allowed this to happened so that "...we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead" (2 Corinthians 1:9b). Every hardship or battle we go through, no matter how fierce, ultimately causes us to "not trust in ourselves, but in God." This is where God seeks to bring us.

The conflict will always go beyond our strength. The enemy always pushes us beyond our personal, inbred, preset limits concerning how far we will go for God: "Here's how far I'm going to love; this is how many times I'll turn the other cheek." The test kills the limits of our humanity, until we are like Christ in everything. We are left with a choice: become Christlike or gradually shrivel into superficial hypocrites—angry people who have stopped walking with God, who blame others for our bitterness.

Perfection, from God's perspective, is measured in the degree we genuinely trust in Christ. In facing death, Paul learned in a more perfect way to trust "God who raises the dead." He concluded his praise of the Lord by saying that He "...delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us..." (2 Corinthians 1:10). God delivered us, then and He will deliver us again. Jesus prayed Paul through. As a result, Paul was able to strengthen and comfort vast multitudes with the very comfort he received from the Lord.

Jesus must have been praying for Paul as He prayed for Peter and the other apostles—not that they would escape the battle, but escape the limits of the flesh and find perfect dependency upon God. And, my friend, Jesus is praying for you—that in your conflict, your faith will not fail. When your strength returns, you will strengthen others.