多樣性中的合一
作者：布萊恩和康迪斯-西蒙斯 Brian and Candice Simmons
來源：以利亞名單 https://www.elijahlist.com/words/display_word.html?ID=28757
時間：2023.1.23
翻譯：Kate
轉載/轉寄 請註明出處：國度禱告網
彼此接納，如同神接納我們一樣
神美麗的家庭是驚人的多樣化。許多國家、部落、語言和文化組成了基督奇妙的身體。出於這個原因，教會是我們每個人成熟的機會。我們必須擁抱彼此的獨特性和多樣性。這需要愛和恩典。
我們就像一串葡萄，因為個人的力量不如集體的力量。新酒是在這一簇中找到的。聖靈的祝福和充實是在我們的合一中體驗和流露的。
"耶和華如此說：葡萄中尋得新酒，人就說：不要毀壞，因為福在其中。"（以賽亞書65:8）
"信心軟弱的，你們要接納，但不要辯論所疑惑的事。有人信百物都可吃；但那軟弱的，只吃蔬菜。吃的人不可輕看不吃的人；不吃的人不可論斷吃的人；因為神已經收納他了。"（羅馬書14:1-3）
蠓蟲與駱駝
耶穌曾經打過一個有趣的比方，說吞下蠓蟲與吞下駱駝（見馬太福音23:24）。很明顯，吞下一隻蠓蟲是不愉快的，但它也是無害的。然而，吞下駱駝則是致命的。我們應該理智地對待我們所做的"大事情"。在人際關係中不也是如此嗎？合一、愛和真正的和諧肯定會要求我們每個人"吞下"我們的個人意見和偏好，吞下我們的驕傲。這就是成熟的表現。不成熟會讓我們吹毛求疵，無中生有，以達到自己的目的，證明自己的正確。
意見的問題
你的意見絕對會在某些時候（可能是很多時候）與教會中其他人的意見相抵觸。正是在這些時刻，我們必須放下驕傲、傲慢和自私。做正確的事被高估了；真的是這樣。耶穌流血而死。你肯定可以允許你的信徒同伴的弱點和不同的觀點。以下是關於我們充滿驕傲的觀點的兩段震撼心靈的經文。
"愚人愛慕自己的意見......" （箴言12:15 熱情譯本直譯）。
"愚妄人所行的，在自己眼中看為正直；惟智慧人肯聽人的勸教。" （箴言12:15和合本）
"愚人自以為是，智者肯聽勸誡。" （箴言12:15當代聖經）
"要遠離充滿驕傲的意見，因為它們只會損害你所珍視的合一。不要讓自我推銷隱藏在你們的心中，要以真正的謙卑把別人放在首位，把別人看得比自己更重要。" （腓立比書2:3熱情譯本直譯）
"凡事不可結黨，不可貪圖虛浮的榮耀；只要存心謙卑，各人看別人比自己強。" （腓立比書2:3和合本）
"不要自私自利，也不要貪圖虛榮，只要謙卑，看別人比自己強；" （腓立比書2:3新譯本）
基督教合一的愛的盛宴
耶穌說得很清楚：基督徒將透過他們對彼此的愛來瞭解。祂說："因為你們若以彼此相愛，顯出我對你們同樣的愛，人人就知道你們是我真正的門徒"（約翰福音13:35 熱情譯本）。我們的合一不能被打破，就像家庭成員可以改變他們的DNA一樣。我們是一家人。
就像你第一次來到主面前時，主完全接納了你所有的弱點和不成熟，所以你也被要求接納你的同胞，就像他們一樣......不僅要接納，而且要真正欣賞。我們是一個美麗的、多樣化的、多面的、由許多人組成的身體。讓我們欣賞彼此的獨特性！
耶穌是主和審判官
唯一有權譴責或支持你的人--唯一允許審判你的人--是主耶穌基督，你難道不感激嗎？沒有人，宇宙中的任何一個人，都無權審判你的心。只有耶穌保留審判祂的僕人的權利。而且，哦，祂是一個多麼善良、仁慈和值得信賴的審判官啊！
"你以為你是誰，可以審判別人的家僕？他自己的主人才是評價他是成功還是失敗的人。而上帝的僕人會成功，因為上帝的力量支持他們，使他們能夠站立。
"同樣地，一個人認為某一天比另一天更神聖，而另一個人認為它們都是一樣的。對這種事情有不同的個人信念並沒有錯。因為把某一天看得特別神聖的人是為了尊敬主。關於一個人的飲食也是如此。什麼都吃的人是為了敬重主，因為他感謝神，而有特殊飲食的人是為了敬重主，他也感謝神。
"沒有人為自己而活，也沒有人為自己而死。我們活著的時候，必須為我們的主人而活，在死的時候，我們必須把榮耀歸給祂。所以不管是死是活，我們都屬於我們的主人。正是因為這個原因，受膏者死後又被復活，所以祂成為掌管死人和活人的主神。
"你為什麼要因為你的弟兄或姐妹的飲食而論斷他們，為他們吃或不吃的東西而鄙視他們？因為我們每個人都會輪到站在神的審判台前。正如經上所說 我是永生的神，我實實在在地告訴你們。"萬膝都要在我面前屈膝，萬口都要承認真理，榮耀我！"
"因此，每個人都必須為自己負責，在神面前為自己的生活作出個人的交代"。（羅馬書14:4-12 熱情譯本）
耶穌是人的心的審判者
讚美神，耶穌是在我們交待時與我們同在的人。
"沒有一個人可以向神隱瞞自己的想法，因為我們所做的一切都不是秘密，所創造的一切都不能隱瞞，而是一切都暴露在神的眼前，毫無防備，我們必須向祂交待。
"因此，我們必須在信心中緊緊抓住我們所知道的一切。因為我們有一個偉大的王--上帝之子耶穌基督，祂為我們升上高天，現在同情我們的軟弱。（希伯來書4:13-14 熱情譯本）
因此，正如你不願意在凡人面前毫無遮攔地站在那裡接納審判一樣，你也不應該想毫無遮攔地審判其他人。鬆一口氣吧，因為你知道那位審判你的人也是你的朋友、愛人、救主、代求者、新郎、強者和中保。
基督的多元化身體
神在創造你的時候並沒有打破常規，因為祂甚至沒有使用一個模具。祂在祂的愛心中夢想著你，然後為祂的喜悅創造你。詩人是這樣說的。"在我成為我之前，你就看到了你創造的我是誰！ 在我還沒有看到陽光的時候，你為我計畫的天數就已經記錄在你的書上了"（詩篇139:16 熱情譯本）。
上帝從來沒有也永遠不會滿足於一個愛子的版本，即僅僅是某人或某物的複製人。不，祂愛的是真正的你--真正的你--祂將透過祂的恩典把你帶到祂的榮耀中，實現祂的目的。而且，當這一切完成後，你將看起來很像耶穌。
接納恩典者和施恩者
如果我們已經被神的恩典所祝福、覆蓋和授權，難道我們不應該渴望把同樣的恩典給別人嗎？的確，我們應該，而且必須。我們在地球上代表耶穌。我們是祂的身體。我們是祂的活著的書信--祂的書信，供別人閱讀，瞭解上帝的真實面貌。
我們是否好好地代表祂？我們是否向世界展示了一個良善的耶穌，包容了弱者的失敗，掩蓋了許多的罪？還是我們展示的是一個不同的耶穌和不同的福音？
我們必須展示我們所宣揚的恩典--我們的言語、我們的行動，以及我們在神的家庭中的關係。新生兒基督徒在看，我們的孩子在看，世界也在看。
Unity in the Midst of Diversity
Brian and Candice Simmons, Wichita, KS
Jan 23, 2023
Receive One Another as God Has Received Us
God's beautiful family is amazingly diverse. Many nations, tribes, languages, and cultures make up the wondrous Body of Christ. For this reason, the Church is an opportunity for each one of us to mature. We must embrace each other's uniqueness and diversity. This requires love and grace.
We are like a cluster of grapes, because individually we are less powerful than we are collectively. The new wine is found in the cluster. The blessing and fullness of the Spirit are experienced and flow from our unity:
"Here is what Yahweh says, 'As new wine is found in the cluster and someone says, "Don't destroy it, for there is a blessing in it"...'" (Isaiah 65:8 TPT, emphasis mine)
"Offer an open hand of fellowship to welcome every true Believer, even though their faith may be weak and immature. And refuse to engage in debates with them concerning nothing more than opinions. For example, one Believer has no problem with eating all kinds of food, but another with weaker faith will eat only vegetables. The one who eats freely shouldn't judge and look down on the one who eats only vegetables. And the vegetarian must not judge and look down on the one who eats everything. Remember, God has welcomed him and taken him as His partner." (Romans 14:1-3 TPT)
A Gnat versus a Camel
Jesus once gave an interesting analogy about swallowing gnats versus swallowing camels (see Matthew 23:24). Obviously, swallowing a gnat is not pleasant, but it also is harmless. Swallowing a camel, however, is lethal. We should be sensible about what we make a "big deal" out of. Isn't this true in relationships? Unity, love, and true harmony will definitely require each of us to "gulp down" our personal opinions and preferences, swallowing our pride. This is what maturity will do. Immaturity will have us nitpicking and making mountains out of molehills in order to get our own way and prove ourselves right.
The Problem of Opinions
Your opinion will absolutely, at some point (and likely many points), contradict someone else's opinion in the Church. It is in those moments that we must let go of pride, arrogance, and selfishness. Being right is overrated; it really is. Jesus bled and died. You can surely allow for the weaknesses and different viewpoints of your fellow Believers. Here are two soul-straightening verses about our pride-filled opinions:
"A fool is in love with his own opinion..." (Proverbs 12:15 TPT)
"Be free from pride-filled opinions, for they will only harm your cherished unity. Don't allow self-promotion to hide in your hearts, but in authentic humility put others first and view others as more important than yourselves." (Philippians 2:3 TPT)
A Love Feast of Christian Unity
Jesus was very clear: Christians will be known by their love for one another. He said, "For when you demonstrate the same love I have for you by loving one another, everyone will know that you're My true followers" (John 13:35 TPT). Our unity cannot be broken any more than family members can change their DNA. We are family.
Just as the Lord fully accepted you when you first came to Him with all your weaknesses and immaturity, so you are also called to accept your fellow Believers just as they are...and not only accept, but actually celebrate. We are a beautiful, diverse, multifaceted, and many-membered Body. Let's celebrate one another's uniqueness!
Jesus Is Lord and Judge
Aren't you so thankful that the only one who is authorized to condemn or uphold you—the only one allowed to judge you—is the Lord Jesus Christ? No one, no person in the universe, has the right to judge your heart. Jesus alone reserves the right to judge His servants. And, oh, what a kind, merciful, and trustworthy Judge is He!
"Who do you think you are to sit in judgment of someone else's household servant? His own master is the one to evaluate whether he succeeds or fails. And God's servants will succeed, for God's power supports them and enables them to stand.
"In the same way, one person regards a certain day as more sacred than another, and another person regards them all alike. There is nothing wrong with having different personal convictions about such matters. For the person who observes one day as especially sacred does it to honor the Lord. And the same is true regarding what a person eats. The one who eats everything eats to honor the Lord, because he gives thanks to God, and the one who has a special diet does it to honor the Lord, and he also gives thanks to God.
"No one lives to himself and no one dies to himself. While we live, we must live for our Master, and in death we must bring honor to Him. So dead or alive we belong to our Master. For this very reason the Anointed One died and was brought back to life again, so that He would become the Lord God over both the dead and the living.
"Why would you judge your brothers or sisters because of their diet, despising them for what they eat or don't eat? For we each will have our turn to stand before God's judgment seat. Just as it is written: 'As surely as I am the Living God, I tell you: "Every knee will bow before Me and every tongue will confess the truth and glorify Me!"'
"Therefore, each one must answer for himself and give a personal account of his own life before God." (Romans 14:4-12 TPT)
Jesus Is the Judge of Men's Hearts
Praise God that Jesus is the one who will be with us when we give an account:
"There is not one person who can hide their thoughts from God, for nothing that we do remains a secret, and nothing created is concealed, but everything is exposed and defenseless before His eyes, to whom we must render an account.
"So then, we must cling in faith to all we know to be true. For we have a magnificent King-Priest, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who rose into the heavenly realm for us, and now sympathizes with us in our frailty." (Hebrews 4:13-14 TPT)
So, just as you would not want to stand uncovered and be subjected to judgment before mere mortals, neither should you want to uncover and judge anyone else. Breathe a sigh of relief, knowing that the One who is your Judge is also your Friend, Lover, Savior, Intercessor, Bridegroom, Strengthener, and Advocate.
The Diverse Body of Christ
God didn't break the mold when He made you because He didn't even use a mold. He dreamed of you in His loving heart and then created you for His delight. The psalmist said it this way: "You saw who You created me to be before I became me! Before I'd ever seen the light of day, the number of days You planned for me were already recorded in Your book" (Psalm 139:16 TPT).
God has never and will never be satisfied with a version of one of His beloved children that is a mere clone of someone or something else. No, He loves the true you—the real you—and He will bring you forth, by His grace, into His glory for the fullness of His purpose. And, when it is all said and done, you will look a lot like Jesus.
Grace Receivers and Grace Givers
If we have been so blessed and covered and empowered by God's grace, shouldn't we desire to also give that same grace to others? Indeed, we should, and we must. We represent Jesus in the earth. We are His Body. We are His living epistles—His letters for others to read and know what God is really like.
Are we representing Him well? Are we showing the world a gracious Jesus who bears with the failings of the weak and covers a multitude of sins? Or are we displaying a different Jesus and a different Gospel?
We must display the grace we preach—in our words, our actions, and our relationships within the family of God. New baby Christians are watching, our children are watching, and the world is watching.
