大使命17

用和平彼此聯絡

在追尋肢體相交的團契中（koinonia），我們需要給彼此更多的恩典與憐憫。正如我們必須給予在團契中與我們在一些教義或看法上不同之人更多的恩典，我們必須謹記在心他們和我們都在做同樣的事。在我們建立一些信任後，我們可以開始討論一些我們不認同的議題。我們之間信任的橋樑越穩固，就可以承載更大的重量，我們對這些議題的討論也可以更深入。我們擁有健全的聖經智慧，可以教導我們要如何做，其記載在以弗所書四章1-3節：

我為主被囚的勸你們：既然蒙召，行事為人就當與蒙召的恩相稱。 
凡事謙虛、溫柔、忍耐，用愛心互相寬容， 
用和平彼此聯絡，竭力保守聖靈所賜合而為一的心。 

真正的合一從來不需要妥協我們的信念，我們也不應該要求別人妥協他們的信念，只為了與我們合一。聖靈可能會要我們對某些信念保持沈默，直到合適的時機，但那不表示我們妥協了。我們需要竭力『用和平彼此聯絡，保守聖靈所賜合而為一的心』，而竭力需要『凡事謙虛、溫柔、忍耐，用愛心互相寬容 』。

當然，這也是我們在這些基督徒品格中成長的大好機會。最能幫助我們培養這些品格的一件事，就是尋求與那些來自不同教派與運動的人建立關係，特別是我們最無法認同的。我們應該擁有與他們建立橋樑的異象，一個堅固的橋樑可以承載許多重量。你會對這樣做所帶來的成長驚奇不已，最後你不知道會有多感謝並真正愛上這些你不認同的人。有時你甚至會學到他們才是對的，而你是錯的。

當此關係持續下去，你很可能發現你對他們所相信或所做之事的瞭解並不正確。你可能甚至會發現你錯得離譜，但沒有關係。倘若他們是基督徒，那麼我們必須用和平彼此聯絡，保守聖靈所賜合而為一的心。不要讓任何事情偷走你們彼此之間在聖靈裡的和平。 

曾經有一個運動稱為『神的普世教會』（The Worldwide Church of God），多數教會相信那是異端或是異端的一種。當創辦人赫伯特.阿姆斯壯（Herbert W. Armstrong）死後，有一些基督徒與此教派的領袖做朋友，並與他們建立關係，他們建造了信任的橋樑。這引導神的普世教會開始檢視他們的信仰，當他們檢視他們的教義時，他們看見許多與聖經抵觸的事物。於是他們公開悔改，基督的身體擁抱並尊榮他們如此非凡的行動。

在1987年神賜給我關乎末日收割的大異象。我看見耶和華見證人、摩門教與其他類似的團體將會成為大收割的第一階段，然後他們會大大被使用，成為一些最棒的工人。我也看見在末日一些最偉大的領袖與先知來自伊斯蘭教背景。

正如先前曾提到過，我們此時最大的需要之一是以西結紀錄在37章的異象─看見骸骨成為極大的軍隊，賜給他們生命的話語促使他們成為被呼召的樣式。我們是否可以超越人的本相來看他們，好看見他們被呼召的樣式？我們是否可以成為生命話語的器皿，好讓這些話一路協助他們？ 

(摘自喬納 word for the week, Week17, 2014)


The Bond of Peace - The Great Commission, Part 17
Week 17, 2014 
Rick Joyner 

In pursuit of koinonia, we will need to extend grace and mercy to one another. Just as we must extend grace in coming into fellowship with those who we do not agree with in certain doctrines or methods, we must keep in mind that they are doing the same with us. After we have built some trust, we may start discussing issues we disagree on. The stronger the bridge of trust is, the greater the weight that can be carried by it and the deeper we may go with these issues. We have sound biblical wisdom for how we do this in Ephesians 4:1-3:

Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, 
with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, 
being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

True unity never requires that we compromise our convictions. Neither should we require others to compromise their convictions in order to have unity with us. The Spirit may compel us to keep silent about certain convictions until the proper time, but that does not mean that we are compromising them. Preserving the “unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” takes diligence. That diligence requires “all humility and gentleness, with patience showing tolerance for one another in love.”

Of course, this is also a great opportunity for us to grow in these Christian virtues. One thing we could do that might help us the most in cultivating these virtues is to seek to develop relationships with those in other denominations and movements, especially ones with which we most disagree. We should have a vision for building a bridge with them, one strong enough to carry a lot of weight. You will be amazed at how much you can grow by this and how much you end up appreciating and actually loving those with whom you have had disagreements. Sometimes you will even learn that they were right, and you were wrong in a matter.

As this relationship continues, you will likely find that some of your understanding about what this other group believed or practiced was not accurate. You might even find out that it is worse than you thought, but that does not matter. If they are Christians, then we must preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Don’t let anything steal the peace that you have with one another in the Spirit.

There was once a movement called “The Worldwide Church of God” that was believed by much of the rest of the church to be a cult, or at least a sect. When their founder, Herbert W. Armstrong died, there were Christians who befriended some of the leaders of this group and built relationships with them. They built bridges of trust. This led the leaders of the WWCG to start examining their beliefs which caused so much of the rest of the church to consider the WWCG wayward. As they examined their doctrines, they saw many that were in conflict with Scripture. They repented publicly, and the entire movement was embraced and honored by much of the body of Christ for this remarkable act on their part.

In 1987 I was given an extensive vision of the coming harvest. One of the events I saw happening was that the Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, and other such groups would be the first part of the harvest. Then they were going to be used mightily in it, becoming some of the greatest of the laborers. I also saw some of the greatest apostles and prophets in the last days coming out of Islam.

As stated before, one of the greatest needs we have at this time is the vision that Ezekiel had recorded in Chapter 37 of his prophecy—the ability to see in the driest bones an exceedingly great army and to have words of life for them that will cause them to become what they are called to be. Can we see beyond what people are in order to see what they are called to? Can we be vessels of words of life that will help them along their way?