从迷惘到信靠
为甚么将神放在首位?
经文
出埃及记二十1-17
1神吩咐这一切的话说:
2我是耶和华─你的神,曾将你从埃及地为奴之家领出来。
3除了我以外,你不可有别的神。
4不可为自己雕刻偶像,也不可作甚么形像仿佛上天、下地,和地底下、水中的百物。
5不可跪拜那些像,也不可事奉他,因为我耶和华你的神是忌邪的神。恨我的,我必追讨他的罪,自父及子,直到三四代;
6爱我、守我诫命的,我必向他们发慈爱,直到千代。
7不可妄称耶和华你神的名;因为妄称耶和华名的,耶和华必不以他为无罪。
8当记念安息日,守为圣日。
9六日要劳碌作你一切的工,
10但第七日是向耶和华你神当守的安息日。这一日你和你的儿女、仆婢、牲畜,并你城里寄居的客旅,无论何工都不可作;
11因为六日之内,耶和华造天、地、海,和其中的万物,第七日便安息,所以耶和华赐福与安息日,定为圣日。
12当孝敬父母,使你的日子在耶和华─你神所赐你的地上得以长久。
13不可杀人。
14不可奸淫。
15不可偷盗。
16不可作假见证陷害人。
17不可贪恋人的房屋;也不可贪恋人的妻子、仆婢、牛驴,并他一切所有的。
信息分享
我们说过如果懂得将自己的疑问、恐惧、疑惑都带到神的面前,在信心的祷告中与神倾诉,那么教会的问题会减少,同时也会削减个人辅导的需求量。
我们也说过,这并非意味辅导的事工没有份量,正如圣经清楚表明,辅导在每间基督教会里面都应该扮演重要的角色:「弟兄们,我自己也深信,你们是满有良善,充足了诸般的知识,也能彼此劝戒」(罗十五14)。有的时候,虽然我们向神说出了困难和疑惑,但是我们所需要的引导和亮光不一定会直接来自神那里,而可能是来自牧者、朋友或辅导员的话语。
我的意思是,我们必须先学会如何与神倾诉,然后才与别人对话,这是一个属灵原则。为甚么是这么重要呢?因为我们属灵的倚靠必须植根于神而不是于人。我们很容易脱离对神的倚靠,所以任何导致这种脱离的事情都是我们必须加以抗拒的。我们要知道罪的本质是甚么?那不是显而易见的吗?人总是自己寻求解决困难的方法,而不是去寻求、明白神对困难的看法。当然,如果是神清楚地指示我们向祂家庭的另一个成员找寻帮助或建议的话,那当然无可厚非,只是,我们倚靠的根源必须牢牢地固定在神身上。
「找寻自己解决问题的方法,是犯罪的讯号」
进深研究
诗二十七1-14;何二6;赛八17
1. 诗人的劝诫是甚么?
2. 你有多经常地「等候」耶和华?
祈祷
神啊,求您打开我心灵的眼睛,让我看到以自己或以别人为中心的危险性。要从迷惘走到信靠,必须以您为中心。求您帮助我时时刻刻以您为主。阿们。
From Confusion to Confidence
Why put God first?
Bible reading:
Exodus 20:1-17
1 And God spoke all these words:
2 "I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
3 "You shall have no other gods before[a] me.
4 "You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.
5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me,
6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
7 "You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
8 "Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.
9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work,
10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns.
11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
12 "Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
13 "You shall not murder.
14 "You shall not commit adultery.
15 "You shall not steal.
16 "You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
17 "You shall not covet your neighbor's house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor."
Message
We are saying that if we would learn to bring our doubts, our fears and our confusion to God and talk to Him about them in believing prayer, there would be fewer problems in the Church and less need for personal counselling.
This does not mean, as we said, that the ministry of counselling is invalid for, as Scripture clearly shows, it ought to play a vital part in every Christian congregation: "I am satisfied about you, my brethren, that you yourselves are rich in goodness, amply filled with all spiritual knowledge and competent to admonish and counsel and instruct one another also" (Rom. 15:14, Amplified Bible). There will be times when, even though we have spoken to God about our problems and our confusion, the guidance and enlightenment we need will come not directly from Him but through the lips of a minister, a friend or a counsellor.
The point I am making is that we must learn the spiritual principle of having a dialogue with God before we enter into a dialogue with anyone else. Why is this so important? Because our spiritual dependence must be rooted in God and not in anyone else. It is so easy to move away from a sense of dependence on God, and anything that contributes to that must be resisted. After all, what is the essence of sin? Is it not independence - man seeking to find his own solutions to his problems rather than discovering God's perspective on them? Of course, if God directs us to another member of His family for help and advice, then fine. The roots of our dependence, however, must be firmly fixed in Him.
"Seeking our own solutions is a sign of sinful independence"
Prayer
O God, open my eyes to see the dangers of being centred in myself or in others. If I am to move , then I must be centred in You. Help me make You the centre of my life - today and every day. Amen.
Further study
Psalm 27:1-14
Hosea 12:6
Isaiah 8:17
1. What is the admonition of the Psalmist?
2. How often do you "wait" on the Lord?
本文英文版权属 CWR 所有,承蒙允准刊载。
背景音乐版权属 赞美之泉音乐事工 所有,承蒙允准使用。

