於2013-04-30發佈

大使命16

罪的解藥

我們這幾週探討到門徒要從罪和屬肉體本質中得自由;然而,我們無法靠自己的力量從這些事物中得自由。為要討主喜悅,我們需要在意志上想要得自由,並從為世界帶來死亡的事物中得釋放。然而,我們需要神的恩典與能力,才能從這些事物中得自由。

門訓的生命不會持續聚焦在罪與過犯上;不過,真正聖經上的門訓卻是從那裡開始。若沒有對罪的知覺,我們便無法知道自己需要十字架的救贖。有了對罪的知覺,並在聖靈的認罪下,驅使我們來到對罪的唯一解藥─十字架。我們對此的認知越深入明瞭,我們在基督裡的生命也會越強壯。

正如雅各書三章2節告訴我們:『原來我們在許多事上都有過失』(參考雅各書3:2)。所以,我們時而需要來到耶穌十字架前,為著祂的憐憫、恩典與赦免。悔改始於對罪痛悔,一旦我們得到十字架的赦免,我們不需要做其他的事,我們不需要藉苦行來贖罪,或繼續痛悔好讓罪得赦免。耶穌的十字架就足夠了,當我們認為需要多做一些事,就是對耶穌十字架的基本冒犯。當我們覺得需要付上部分代價,基本上我們是在說這個罪神無法承擔,因此我們需要自己付代價。

在痛悔造成我們悔改之後,我們需要向前進。我們不會因為聚焦在罪上而得釋放,正如哥林多後書三章17-18節告訴我們:

主就是那靈;主的靈在哪裡,那裡就得以自由。
我們眾人既然敞著臉得以看見主的榮光,好像從鏡子裡返照,就變成主的形狀,榮上加榮,如同從主的靈變成的。

我們得以改變是藉著注視主的榮耀,而不是注視我們的罪。當我們犯罪時,我們絕不要接受自己沒有犯罪的謊言,而是承認它,走向十字架,然後埋葬『取死的身體』,不讓它死灰復燃。我們是連於基督而被稱義,祂是我們的公義,而不是持續聚焦在罪上,與罪相爭。

然而,會有一段時間需要聚焦在罪上,與罪相爭,每一位新信徒都會經歷此掙扎的時間。許多在基督裡很長一段時間的人仍持續掙扎,是因為他們從沒有好好建造引至十架和基督的堅固悔改根基。接著我們需要定睛在祂身上,而不是回到罪中並聚焦在罪上。當我們回頭看自己,我們將會像彼得一樣。一當他定睛在主身上,他就能夠行在水面上,只要他一聚焦在水上,他便開始沉落。

所以與其繼續聚焦在肉體的工作上,不如讓我們現在就專注在聖靈的果子上,加拉太書五章22-24節告訴我們這些果子就是:

聖靈所結的果子,就是仁愛、喜樂、和平、忍耐、恩慈、良善、信實、
溫柔、節制。這樣的事沒有律法禁止。
凡屬基督耶穌的人,是已經把肉體連肉體的邪情私慾同釘在十字架上了。

我們的生命焦點必須是在聖靈的果子裡成長,那我們要如何做呢?我們要耕種。耕種是在伊甸園中神給人的第一個命令,它仍是我們目的的根基,亦是我們本質的一部份。正如以弗所書四章告訴我們,我們在凡事長進,連於元首基督,此長進是耕種的結果。詩篇卅七篇告訴我們要栽種信心(以祂的信實為糧),意思是我們如何在信心和聖靈的果子裡成長。

我們要如何耕種?正如主在比喻中所教導的,要從尋找能撒種的好土開始。我們就是土,所以什麼樣的土才能結果子?倘若我們沒有這些特質,我們需要擁有。然後,種子一旦種下去,我們需要灌溉,不讓雜草叢生,這些雜草是世界的牽掛和煩惱。接著我們需要看顧它遠離空中的飛鳥,就是撒旦和牠的爪牙。我們必須保護果子直到成熟。

主在祂的比喻所表達的基本重點,就是我們常在祂裡面是刻意而成的。我們必須夠在乎,才能耕種聖靈的果子。倘若我們刻意這樣做,我們會驚奇我們所釘死的老我會不斷復活。要結果子是需要刻意的門訓生活。

(摘自喬納 word for the week, Week 16, 2013)


The Remedy For Sin - The Great Commission, Part 16
Week 16, 2013 
Rick Joyner

We have been discussing sin and the carnal nature from which disciples are getting free. However, we cannot get free by our own strength from these things. It takes our will to want to get free in order to please the Lord and be delivered from what is bringing so much death upon the world. However, we need God’s grace and His power to live free of these things.

The life of discipleship is not one of constantly focusing on sin and our mistakes. However, true, biblical discipleship does start there. Without the consciousness of sin, we do not know our need for the redemption of the cross. It is the consciousness of sin, under the conviction of the Holy Spirit, which drives us to the only remedy for our sin—the cross. The deeper and clearer this is to us, the stronger our life will be in Christ.

As we are told in James 3:2, “We all stumble in many ways.” So we will occasionally need to cast ourselves again at the feet of the cross of Jesus for His mercy, grace, and forgiveness. Repentance begins with remorse for our sin, but then once we have been to the cross for forgiveness, there is nothing else we need to do, no penance that we need to do, or even continued remorse for the remission of our sins. The cross of Jesus is enough. For us to think that we then need to do something more is a basic affront to the cross of Jesus. When we feel that we have to pay part of the price, we are basically saying that this sin is too much for God to bear, and therefore we need to pay for it ourselves.

After the remorse has caused us to repent, we need to move on. We will not be delivered from our sinful nature by focusing on our sins, but as we are told in II Corinthians 3:17-18:

where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 
But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.

We get changed by beholding the glory of the Lord, not by beholding our sins.When we sin, we must not embrace the delusion that we did not sin, but acknowledge it, go to the cross, then bury that “body of death” and do not resurrect it. We are made righteous by abiding in Christ, who is our righteousness, not by constantly focusing on and fighting sin.

However, for a time there will be a focus on and fighting of sin. Every new believer goes through this struggle for a period of time. Many who have been in Christ for a long time continue in it because they never built on the strong foundation of repentance that leads to the cross and to Christ. We then need to keep our eyes on Him, not go back to and focus on the sin. When we look back at ourselves, we will be like Peter who was able to walk upon the water as long as He kept His eyes on the Lord, but as soon as he focused on the water he began to sink.

So instead of continuing to focus on the works of the flesh, let us now focus on the fruit of the Spirit. These we are told in Galatians 5:22-24 are:

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 
gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 
Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 

The focus of our life must be to grow this fruit. So how do we do this? We cultivate. Cultivating was the first command given to man in the Garden, and it is still basic to our purpose and is part of our nature. As we are told in Ephesians 4, we grow up in all things into Christ, and this growing is the result of cultivation. We are told in Psalm 37 to cultivate faith, which is how we grow in faith and all the fruit of the Spirit.

How do we cultivate? As the Lord taught in His parable, we begin by looking for good soil to sow the seed in. We are the soil, so what kind of soil produces fruit? If these are not characteristics that we have, we need to get them. Then, once the seed is planted, we need to water it, and keep the weeds away from it, which are the cares and worries of this world. We then need to guard it from the birds of the air, which in the parable are Satan and his minions. We must protect the fruit until it can mature.

A basic point that the Lord makes in His parables is that what we become in Him is intentional. We must care enough to cultivate the fruit of the Spirit. If we are intentional about this, we will be amazed at how little fighting we have to do with the carnal nature continuing to resurrect itself. Bearing fruit requires an intentional life of discipleship.