神究竟認識我多深?
詩篇一三九篇1至12節
1(大衛的詩,交與伶長。)耶和華啊,你已經鑒察我,認識我。
2我坐下,我起來,你都曉得;你從遠處知道我的意念。
3我行路,我躺臥,你都細察;你也深知我一切所行的。
4耶和華啊,我舌頭上的話,你沒有一句不知道的。
5你在我前後環繞我,按手在我身上。
6這樣的知識奇妙,是我不能測的,至高,是我不能及的。
7我往哪裡去躲避你的靈?我往哪裡逃、躲避你的面?
8我若升到天上,你在那裡;我若在陰間下榻,你也在那裡。
9我若展開清晨的翅膀,飛到海極居住,
10就是在那裡,你的手必引導我;你的右手也必扶持我。
11我若說:黑暗必定遮蔽我,我周圍的亮光必成為黑夜;
12黑暗也不能遮蔽我,使你不見,黑夜卻如白晝發亮。黑暗和光明,在你看都是一樣。
信息分享
祂究竟認識我多深?第1節告訴我們,祂認識我的心思,祂明白我做每件事情的動機和原因。第2節指出,我的言行舉止和我的意念,祂都曉得。祂細察我的行為(3節);祂知道我想說些甚麼(4節),連我說了一些不該說的話,祂都一清二楚。第5節告訴我們,祂早已知悉我們的一生,無論是過去、現在和未來,祂都瞭如指掌。
詩人如何回應這一切呢?他是否因而懼怕神呢?不。最令人感覺奇妙的是,這位神即使知道我們的一切,祂卻依然愛著我們。神並非警察,反之,祂是我們的慈父。
這位神離我們多遠?無論我們去到多高或多深,都無法與祂分隔。在祂與我之間,絕無任何東西可以阻隔。連黑暗也不能遮閉我們,使祂看不見我們。然而,我們雖知道自己在祂面前是無法隱藏,卻不會因而心生畏懼,反之,這只表示沒有東西能在我與神中間造成阻隔,無論我去到那裡,或身在何方,我還是一樣的靠近神,祂總是在我的身旁。
有甚麼東西能使我們與神的愛隔絕?沒有,沒有任何東西。請記著保羅在羅馬書第八章結尾的那段說話。不過,我們必須指出,的確有一樣東西會使我們與神的關係出現阻隔──那就是我們生命中的罪。當我們做了不討神喜悅的事,我們與祂的相交就會蒙上陰影和造成阻隔。可是,當我們向祂認罪,得蒙祂的赦免之後,關係便得以復和。這樣的一位神,是否很寶貴呢?祂是我們的神,祂一直以信實待我們,即使連死亡也不能使我與祂分開。讓我們為到祂的偉大和慈愛,以及為到祂每天賜予我們的恩典,時刻去感謝祂。
HOW WELL DOES GOD KNOW ME?
Psalm 139: 1 - 12
1 O LORD, You have searched me and known me.
2 You know my sitting down and my rising up;
You understand my thought afar off.
3 You comprehend my path and my lying down,
And are acquainted with all my ways.
4 For there is not a word on my tongue,
But behold, O LORD, You know it altogether.
5 You have hedged me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is high, I cannot attain it.
7 Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
8 If I ascend into heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.
9 If I take the wings of the morning,
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
10 Even there Your hand shall lead me,
And Your right hand shall hold me.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall fall on me,”
Even the night shall be light about me;
12 Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You,
But the night shines as the day;
The darkness and the light are both alike to You.
Message
How well does he know me? Verse 1 says he knows my heart and my mind. He understands what makes me do the things I do. Verse 2 says he knows every area of my physical life and he knows my thoughts. He sees my action (v.3). He understands what I am trying to say (v. 4). He knows what I say when sometimes I shouldn't be saying it. Verse 5 says he knows my whole life, past, future and present.
What is the Psalmist's reaction to all this? Does all that make him afraid of God? Never. The wonderful thought is that God still loves us even when he knows all about us. God is not a policeman, he is a loving father.
How near is this God to us? We cannot be separated from him by height or depth. No distance can come between us. No darkness can hide us from him. Yet there is nothing to be afraid of in thinking of this. It simply means that no-one can come between us. No matter where we may travel or live, we will always be just as near to God and he will be just as near to us.
Is there nothing that can separate us from the love of God? No, nothing. Remember Paul's great words at the end of Romans chapter 8. But there is something that can break our fellowship with him. It is sin in our lives. When we do the things that displease him, our fellowship is clouded and broken. But when we confess our sins he forgives us and restores us to his fellowship again. Isn't he a wonderful God? He is our God, and he will be faithful to us until death and even beyond. Let's be thankful to him, our great God and our loving Father, for what he is and what he does for us every day.

