The Ministry of the Inner Life

You are . . . a royal priesthood . . . —1 Peter 2:9

By what right have we become “a royal priesthood”? It is by the right of the atonement by the Cross of Christ that this has been accomplished. Are we prepared to purposely disregard ourselves and to launch out into the priestly work of prayer? The continual inner-searching we do in an effort to see if we are what we ought to be generates a self-centered, sickly type of Christianity, not the vigorous and simple life of a child of God. Until we get into this right and proper relationship with God, it is simply a case of our “hanging on by the skin of our teeth,” although we say, “What a wonderful victory I have!” Yet there is nothing at all in that which indicates the miracle of redemption. Launch out in reckless, unrestrained belief that the redemption is complete. Then don’t worry anymore about yourself, but begin to do as Jesus Christ has said, in essence, “Pray for the friend who comes to you at midnight, pray for the saints of God, and pray for all men.” Pray with the realization that you are perfect only in Christ Jesus, not on the basis of this argument: “Oh, Lord, I have done my best; please hear me now.”

How long is it going to take God to free us from the unhealthy habit of thinking only about ourselves? We must get to the point of being sick to death of ourselves, until there is no longer any surprise at anything God might tell us about ourselves. We cannot reach and understand the depths of our own meagerness. There is only one place where we are right with God, and that is in Christ Jesus. Once we are there, we have to pour out our lives for all we are worth in this ministry of the inner life.

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內室的事奉

你們是……有君尊的祭司。 （彼前二9）

我們憑什麼資格成為君尊的祭司？是憑救贖。我們有沒有立志放下自己，投身在祭司禱告的職分上？整天只顧審查自己是否合水準，就產生以自我為中心、自怨自艾的基督徒，而不是活潑有力、天真無邪神的兒女。除非我們與神有正確的關係，否則只會掙扎求存，說：[看我打了何等的勝仗！ ]這態度一點也表現不出救贖的奇能。要不顧一切地相信救恩是完全的，然後只照耶穌所說的－－為那半夜來找你的朋友禱告，為聖徒禱告，為萬人禱告。禱告時要知道只有在耶穌基督裡才得完全，不要說：[主啊，我已盡了所能，求你聽我禱告。 ]

到底神何時才把我們從以自我為中心的惡習中釋放出來？我們要對自己厭惡至死，以致神無論說我們什麼，我們也不覺得詫異。我們內心的卑污，實無法可測。只有一處是我們可得完全的，就是在耶穌基督裡。我們進入他那裡，就要竭盡所能作內室得事奉。

祈禱◆願你在今天施福予我們，護衛我們得意念和心靈，抵擋模糊的幻想和虛假的情緒，以及那如幽靈的想像​​，保守我們完全屬你。