大使命 5
試煉是通往神國度的入口
我們的神偉大美好到我們要用永恆的時間來讚嘆，所以最好現在就開始！因為首要的誡命便是愛祂超越一切，我們是否成功的終極議題取決於我們愛神的多寡。因此，這應是我們生命中最大的擺上。
因為神是所有創造中最蒙愛的，所以我相信若不更多愛祂，我們無法看見祂或學習與祂相關的事物。因此，我認為身為福音的使者，我的終極目的是為了描繪祂、顯明祂，並傳揚祂到一個地步，人們想要尋求祂。因為大使命一開始便在表達祂權柄的範圍，此權柄是包羅萬有的，所以我們必須從這裡開始。
正如我們曾討論過，祂國度的範圍包括整個宇宙，自然領域和屬靈領域，暫時不包括地球。祂的國即將來到地上，但此時還沒有擴展到全地。祂的權柄是在天地之上，但祂的國度尚未來到地上，此意謂此時祂只在地上行使有限的權柄。那限制是由我們來設定，容我解釋一下。
約翰壹書五章19節告訴我們，目前『全世界都臥在那惡者手下。』詩篇廿四篇1節告訴我們『地和其中所充滿的，世界和住在其間的，都屬耶和華。』所以雖然目前地是在惡者手下，它卻是屬於主的。主擁有『天上地下所有的權柄』（參考馬太福音28:18），祂可以從惡者手中拿回地球，祂卻還沒有這樣做，為什麼呢？祂還沒拿回地上的權柄是為著我們的緣故。
怎麼會是為著我們的緣故，而使全地臥在惡者手下呢？這顯然是個好問題。對那些接受基督教只為得祝福，使生活更好更容易的人而言，可能很難瞭解此答案。即便如此，聖經中有非常清楚的答案。主一復活後立刻得著權柄綑綁撒但，並將牠丟入火湖，接著祂就可以得著地上的權柄，使大家的生活好過些。祂那時為何不這樣做呢？因為祂並不想讓我們的生活太容易，時候還沒有到。事實上，祂反而想要我們的生活艱困一些，祂想要我們經歷試煉。
對那些接收以人為中心、自我為中心與『祝福我』福音的人而言，這聽起來像是異端，但真正的福音確實是天上地下所有受造物最大祝福的門戶，聖經有一處證實此，可以作為保羅所陳述的最佳總結，記載在使徒行傳十四章22節：『我們進入神的國，必須經歷許多艱難。』
艱難或試煉是通往神國度的入口，主有遠比讓我們生活好過些更高的計畫。當祂的國降臨，日子會比我們所能領會的更輕省與更榮耀，但目前祂正在尋找心完全屬於祂，不計一切代價事奉祂，甚至放棄今生的生命也在所不惜的人。這些人在要來的日子配得與祂一起掌權，甚至與祂一起承受產業，成為神的兒女。
這就是保羅在腓立比書三章14節提到向著標竿直跑，是要得著『從神來的崇高呼召』，在經文中他認為自己還沒得著。保羅所說的不是救恩或永生，他一相信耶穌十字架救贖他的那刻就有這些了。他在接近生命尾聲時看見一個崇高的呼召，此呼召可能連最偉大的使徒保羅都不認為自己得著了。若你對他所說的有任何疑問，請閱讀腓立比書三章全部。
在未來幾週，我們會一點一點揭開，雖然在這段經文及許多其他經文清楚顯示有一崇高呼召，卻太過模糊而無法在許多方面具體化。很多開始領受的人也走向極端，我們並不想要那樣做。這通常是我們試圖將神只顯示一部份的東西，帶出合理結論的結果，因為神所顯示的那一部份是我們現在所需要知道的全部。即便如此，非常重要的是我們能得著祂已顯示的部分，這將是我們所尋求的事。
(摘自喬納 word for the week, Week 5, 2013)
Trials Are the Gateway to the Kingdom -
The Great Commission, Part 5
Week 5, 2013
Rick Joyner
Our God is so big and so wonderful we will be marveling at Him for all of eternity, so it is good to get started! Because the first commandment is to love Him above all things, the ultimate issue by which it will be determined if we are successful human beings or not will be by how much we love God. Therefore, this should be the greatest devotion of our lives.
Because God is the most lovable Being in all of creation, I am convinced that we cannot see Him or learn anything about Him without loving Him more. Therefore, I consider my ultimate purpose as a minister of the gospel to be describing Him, revealing Him, and preaching Him in a way that would compel people to seek Him. Because The Great Commission begins with expressing the scope of His authority, which is all-inclusive, we must begin with this.
As we have discussed, the scope of His kingdom includes the entire universe, the natural and spiritual realms, with the temporary exception of planet earth. Here His kingdom is coming, but it does not extend over the entire earth at this time. His authority is over all in heaven and the earth, but His kingdom has not yet come to the earth, which means that He only exercises limited authority on the earth at this time. That limit is set by us. Let me explain.
Presently we are told I John 5:19 that “the whole earth lies in the power of the evil one.” Then again, we are told in Psalm 24:1 that “The earth is the Lord’s, and all that it contains, the world, and those who dwell in it.” So the earth is presently in the power of the evil one, but it belongs to the Lord. The Lord has “all authority in heaven and earth” (see Matthew 28:18) and He could take the earth back from the power of the evil one at anytime, but He hasn’t yet. Why? He has not taken His authority over the earth yet for our sakes.
How is it for our sakes that the earth is left in the power of the evil one? That is an obvious and good question. For those who only perceive Christianity as something to bless them and make their lives easier and better, it may be hard for them to ever understand the answer to this. Even so, the truth is very clear in Scripture. The Lord had the authority immediately after His resurrection to bind Satan and throw him into the lake of fire. Right then He could have taken His authority over the earth and made life much, much easier for everyone. Why would He not do this? He did not want to make this life easier for us, not yet anyway. In fact, He actually wants it to be hard. He wants us to go through trials.
This could sound like heresy for those who have bought into the man-centered, self-centered, and “bless me” gospel, but the true gospel that is actually the door to the greatest blessings in all of creation in the heavens or the earth, and the one corroborated by the Scriptures, is better summed up by Paul’s statement in Acts 14:22: It is “through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.”
Tribulations, or trials, are the gateway to the kingdom. The Lord has a much higher purpose than just making life easier for us. It will get easier, and far more glorious than we can yet comprehend when His kingdom comes, but presently He is seeking those whose hearts are fully His, who will serve Him regardless of the cost, even to the giving up of this life. These will be found worthy to rule with Him in the age to come and even be co-heirs with Him as sons and daughters of God.
It was this race that Paul refers to in Philippians 3:14 as “the high calling of God,” which he affirmed in this text that he did not think he had yet attained. Paul was not talking about his salvation, or eternal life, which he had the moment he believed in the atonement of the cross of Jesus for his redemption. He saw a calling so high that near the end of his life, this one who was possibly the greatest of all missionary apostles, did not think that he had yet attained. Read that chapter if you have any doubts that is what he was saying.
We will unpack this a little more in the weeks to come. Though this and many other Scriptures reveal very clearly that there is such a high calling, they are too ambiguous to be very dogmatic about many aspects of it. Many who have started to perceive this have also gone to extremes, and we do not want to do that. This is usually the result of us trying to carry to logical conclusions that which God has only revealed in part, because that part is all that we need to know right now. Even so, it is crucial that we get the part that He has revealed, and this we will seek to do.
