神究竟认识我多深?
诗篇一三九篇1至12节
1(大卫的诗,交与伶长。)耶和华啊,你已经鉴察我,认识我。
2我坐下,我起来,你都晓得;你从远处知道我的意念。
3我行路,我躺卧,你都细察;你也深知我一切所行的。
4耶和华啊,我舌头上的话,你没有一句不知道的。
5你在我前后环绕我,按手在我身上。
6这样的知识奇妙,是我不能测的,至高,是我不能及的。
7我往哪里去躲避你的灵?我往哪里逃、躲避你的面?
8我若升到天上,你在那里;我若在阴间下榻,你也在那里。
9我若展开清晨的翅膀,飞到海极居住,
10就是在那里,你的手必引导我;你的右手也必扶持我。
11我若说:黑暗必定遮蔽我,我周围的亮光必成为黑夜;
12黑暗也不能遮蔽我,使你不见,黑夜却如白昼发亮。黑暗和光明,在你看都是一样。
信息分享
祂究竟认识我多深?第1节告诉我们,祂认识我的心思,祂明白我做每件事情的动机和原因。第2节指出,我的言行举止和我的意念,祂都晓得。祂细察我的行为(3节);祂知道我想说些甚么(4节),连我说了一些不该说的话,祂都一清二楚。第5节告诉我们,祂早已知悉我们的一生,无论是过去、现在和未来,祂都了如指掌。
诗人如何回应这一切呢?他是否因而惧怕神呢?不。最令人感觉奇妙的是,这位神即使知道我们的一切,祂却依然爱着我们。神并非警察,反之,祂是我们的慈父。
这位神离我们多远?无论我们去到多高或多深,都无法与祂分隔。在祂与我之间,绝无任何东西可以阻隔。连黑暗也不能遮闭我们,使祂看不见我们。然而,我们虽知道自己在祂面前是无法隐藏,却不会因而心生畏惧,反之,这只表示没有东西能在我与神中间造成阻隔,无论我去到那里,或身在何方,我还是一样的靠近神,祂总是在我的身旁。
有甚么东西能使我们与神的爱隔绝?没有,没有任何东西。请记着保罗在罗马书第八章结尾的那段说话。不过,我们必须指出,的确有一样东西会使我们与神的关系出现阻隔──那就是我们生命中的罪。当我们做了不讨神喜悦的事,我们与祂的相交就会蒙上阴影和造成阻隔。可是,当我们向祂认罪,得蒙祂的赦免之后,关系便得以复和。这样的一位神,是否很宝贵呢?祂是我们的神,祂一直以信实待我们,即使连死亡也不能使我与祂分开。让我们为到祂的伟大和慈爱,以及为到祂每天赐予我们的恩典,时刻去感谢祂。
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.

