You are those who have continued with Me in My trials —Luke 22:28
It is true that Jesus Christ is with us through our temptations, but are we going on with Him through His temptations? Many of us turn back from going on with Jesus from the very moment we have an experience of what He can do. Watch when God changes your circumstances to see whether you are going on with Jesus, or siding with the world, the flesh, and the devil. We wear His name, but are we going on with Him? “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more” (John 6:66).
The temptations of Jesus continued throughout His earthly life, and they will continue throughout the life of the Son of God in us. Are we going on with Jesus in the life we are living right now?
We have the idea that we ought to shield ourselves from some of the things God brings around us. May it never be! It is God who engineers our circumstances, and whatever they may be we must see that we face them while continually abiding with Him in His temptations. They are His temptations, not temptations to us, but temptations to the life of the Son of God in us. Jesus Christ’s honor is at stake in our bodily lives. Are we remaining faithful to the Son of God in everything that attacks His life in us?
Are you going on with Jesus? The way goes through Gethsemane, through the city gate, and on “outside the camp” (Hebrews 13:13). The way is lonely and goes on until there is no longer even a trace of a footprint to follow— but only the voice saying, “Follow Me” (Matthew 4:19)
你繼續與主同行麼？
我在磨煉之中，常和我同在的就是你們。 （路二十二28）
我們受試探的時候，主耶穌與我們同在，這是不錯的。可是，他受試探時我們與他同行麼？不少人一經驗到主為我們成就什麼之後，就不再與他往前行了。注意神把你的環境轉移，看你是否仍與主耶穌同行，還是與世界為友，隨從肉體與魔鬼。我們佩戴著他的徽號，可是有沒有與他同行？ [從此他門徒中多有退去的，不再和他同行。 ]耶穌在一生中不斷受到試探；那末，神兒子在我們裡面的生命，也會不斷受試探。我們現在的生活是否與耶穌同行？
我們會有保護自己的念頭，以為應該躲避一些神安排在我們周圍的東西。千萬不可！神所安排的際遇，不管是什麼，我們都必鬚麵對；同時在他的試探裡，要與他不斷同行。那些試探不是對我們而發，乃是對他，對我們裡面神的兒子而發的。耶穌基督的尊榮，係於我們這肉身上，我們是否持守對神兒子的忠貞？
你不斷與主同行麼？這條路要經過客西馬尼園、城門口，直到營外；這道路孤單寂寞，你不會再看見任何足跡，只剩下一個聲音說：[跟從我。 ]
祈禱◆主啊，為著這個清晨，我能享有與你相交這個珍貴權利，我讚美你；願你今天在我裡面動工，以致我可以[立志行事……為要成就你的美意]。
Showing posts with label Temptation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Temptation. Show all posts
September 19, 2014
September 18, 2014
His Temptation and Ours
We do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin —Hebrews 4:15
Until we are born again, the only kind of temptation we understand is the kind mentioned in James 1:14, “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” But through regeneration we are lifted into another realm where there are other temptations to face, namely, the kind of temptations our Lord faced. The temptations of Jesus had no appeal to us as unbelievers because they were not at home in our human nature. Our Lord’s temptations and ours are in different realms until we are born again and become His brothers. The temptations of Jesus are not those of a mere man, but the temptations of God as Man. Through regeneration, the Son of God is formed in us (see Galatians 4:19), and in our physical life He has the same setting that He had on earth. Satan does not tempt us just to make us do wrong things— he tempts us to make us lose what God has put into us through regeneration, namely, the possibility of being of value to God. He does not come to us on the premise of tempting us to sin, but on the premise of shifting our point of view, and only the Spirit of God can detect this as a temptation of the devil.
Temptation means a test of the possessions held within the inner, spiritual part of our being by a power outside us and foreign to us. This makes the temptation of our Lord explainable. After Jesus’ baptism, having accepted His mission of being the One “who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29) He “was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness” (Matthew 4:1) and into the testing devices of the devil. Yet He did not become weary or exhausted. He went through the temptation “without sin,” and He retained all the possessions of His spiritual nature completely intact.
他的試探與我們的試探
因我們的大祭司，並非不能體恤我們的軟弱，他也曾凡事受過試探，與我們一樣，只是他沒有犯罪。 （來四15）
未重生之前，我們唯一的試探是雅各所說的：[各人被試探，乃是被自己的私慾牽引誘惑的。 ]可是重生之後，便被提升到另一範圍的試探，就是面對主所受的試探。主耶穌受的試探對我們並不吸引，再人性中全無地位。主的試探與我們的試探是兩個完全不同的領域，直等到我們重生了，成為他的弟兄。主耶穌的試探不是人的試探，乃是神成為人的試探。我們重生之後，神的兒子在我們裡面成形，他在我們的肉身生命中，面對他昔日在地上所面對的。撒旦並不引誘我們去做壞事，乃是要我們失去神藉重生放進我們裡面的生命，就是在神手中成為貴重合用的潛能。它並不是要引誘人犯罪，乃是要改變人的觀點。惟有聖靈才可以偵察出這是魔鬼的試探。
試探是外在勢力對人的考驗，要攻擊人性中所擁有的。這就解明了主耶穌所受的試探。耶穌受洗之後，接受了除去世人罪孽的責任，神的靈就立即把他放在魔鬼的考驗場裡。不過他沒有被打倒，他經過試探，卻沒有犯罪，仍然保持他人格的完整。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，對於與你一同守望、與你一同經歷試探的意義，我所了解的是何等膚淺。願你在今天早上吸引我靠近你，以你的大能使我專注於你，直至我的生活言談只為了你。
Until we are born again, the only kind of temptation we understand is the kind mentioned in James 1:14, “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” But through regeneration we are lifted into another realm where there are other temptations to face, namely, the kind of temptations our Lord faced. The temptations of Jesus had no appeal to us as unbelievers because they were not at home in our human nature. Our Lord’s temptations and ours are in different realms until we are born again and become His brothers. The temptations of Jesus are not those of a mere man, but the temptations of God as Man. Through regeneration, the Son of God is formed in us (see Galatians 4:19), and in our physical life He has the same setting that He had on earth. Satan does not tempt us just to make us do wrong things— he tempts us to make us lose what God has put into us through regeneration, namely, the possibility of being of value to God. He does not come to us on the premise of tempting us to sin, but on the premise of shifting our point of view, and only the Spirit of God can detect this as a temptation of the devil.
Temptation means a test of the possessions held within the inner, spiritual part of our being by a power outside us and foreign to us. This makes the temptation of our Lord explainable. After Jesus’ baptism, having accepted His mission of being the One “who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29) He “was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness” (Matthew 4:1) and into the testing devices of the devil. Yet He did not become weary or exhausted. He went through the temptation “without sin,” and He retained all the possessions of His spiritual nature completely intact.
他的試探與我們的試探
因我們的大祭司，並非不能體恤我們的軟弱，他也曾凡事受過試探，與我們一樣，只是他沒有犯罪。 （來四15）
未重生之前，我們唯一的試探是雅各所說的：[各人被試探，乃是被自己的私慾牽引誘惑的。 ]可是重生之後，便被提升到另一範圍的試探，就是面對主所受的試探。主耶穌受的試探對我們並不吸引，再人性中全無地位。主的試探與我們的試探是兩個完全不同的領域，直等到我們重生了，成為他的弟兄。主耶穌的試探不是人的試探，乃是神成為人的試探。我們重生之後，神的兒子在我們裡面成形，他在我們的肉身生命中，面對他昔日在地上所面對的。撒旦並不引誘我們去做壞事，乃是要我們失去神藉重生放進我們裡面的生命，就是在神手中成為貴重合用的潛能。它並不是要引誘人犯罪，乃是要改變人的觀點。惟有聖靈才可以偵察出這是魔鬼的試探。
試探是外在勢力對人的考驗，要攻擊人性中所擁有的。這就解明了主耶穌所受的試探。耶穌受洗之後，接受了除去世人罪孽的責任，神的靈就立即把他放在魔鬼的考驗場裡。不過他沒有被打倒，他經過試探，卻沒有犯罪，仍然保持他人格的完整。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，對於與你一同守望、與你一同經歷試探的意義，我所了解的是何等膚淺。願你在今天早上吸引我靠近你，以你的大能使我專注於你，直至我的生活言談只為了你。
September 17, 2014
Is There Good in Temptation?
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man . . . —1 Corinthians 10:13
The word temptation has come to mean something bad to us today, but we tend to use the word in the wrong way. Temptation itself is not sin; it is something we are bound to face simply by virtue of being human. Not to be tempted would mean that we were already so shameful that we would be beneath contempt. Yet many of us suffer from temptations we should never have to suffer, simply because we have refused to allow God to lift us to a higher level where we would face temptations of another kind.
A person’s inner nature, what he possesses in the inner, spiritual part of his being, determines what he is tempted by on the outside. The temptation fits the true nature of the person being tempted and reveals the possibilities of his nature. Every person actually determines or sets the level of his own temptation, because temptation will come to him in accordance with the level of his controlling, inner nature.
Temptation comes to me, suggesting a possible shortcut to the realization of my highest goal— it does not direct me toward what I understand to be evil, but toward what I understand to be good. Temptation is something that confuses me for a while, and I don’t know whether something is right or wrong. When I yield to it, I have made lust a god, and the temptation itself becomes the proof that it was only my own fear that prevented me from falling into the sin earlier.
Temptation is not something we can escape; in fact, it is essential to the well-rounded life of a person. Beware of thinking that you are tempted as no one else–what you go through is the common inheritance of the human race, not something that no one has ever before endured. God does not save us from temptations–He sustains us in the midst of them (see Hebrews 2:18 and Hebrews 4:15-16).
試探何益？
你們所遇見的試探，無非是人所能受的。 （林前十13）
[試探]一詞地位日益低落，我們很容易把這詞錯用。試探並非等於罪。凡是人，都會遇到試探。若說不會受試探，實在是自貶身價。不過，許多人所受的試探，本是不該受的。這完全是由於我們不肯讓神領我們到一個更高的境地，去面對另一種試探的緣故。
人內在的性向，就是他人的性格，決定他外在所受的試探。所受的試探是配合受試探者的本質，同時也顯出他的潛能。每一個人都有他獨特受試探的背景，試探也會沿著他主要的性向而來。
試探為人所要實現的最高目標，提供了一條捷徑－－並不是我走向邪惡，乃是朝著我認為善的方向走。試探是一些令我一時感到困惑的東西，因我不知它到底是對還是錯。向試探低頭，就是奉情慾為神；也證明過去不是沒有犯這罪，只是不敢做出來。
試探是無可避免的，對一個人的完整生命是不可或缺的。別以為從沒有人像你一樣，受到這樣的試探；你所經歷的，其實是整個人類共有的經歷，並非前所未有。神不會救我們離開試探，他乃是在試探當中救拔我們（來二18）。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，我們對你的認知，被即時的現況所堵塞，產生了窒息的感覺；求你拯救和悅納我們。
The word temptation has come to mean something bad to us today, but we tend to use the word in the wrong way. Temptation itself is not sin; it is something we are bound to face simply by virtue of being human. Not to be tempted would mean that we were already so shameful that we would be beneath contempt. Yet many of us suffer from temptations we should never have to suffer, simply because we have refused to allow God to lift us to a higher level where we would face temptations of another kind.
A person’s inner nature, what he possesses in the inner, spiritual part of his being, determines what he is tempted by on the outside. The temptation fits the true nature of the person being tempted and reveals the possibilities of his nature. Every person actually determines or sets the level of his own temptation, because temptation will come to him in accordance with the level of his controlling, inner nature.
Temptation comes to me, suggesting a possible shortcut to the realization of my highest goal— it does not direct me toward what I understand to be evil, but toward what I understand to be good. Temptation is something that confuses me for a while, and I don’t know whether something is right or wrong. When I yield to it, I have made lust a god, and the temptation itself becomes the proof that it was only my own fear that prevented me from falling into the sin earlier.
Temptation is not something we can escape; in fact, it is essential to the well-rounded life of a person. Beware of thinking that you are tempted as no one else–what you go through is the common inheritance of the human race, not something that no one has ever before endured. God does not save us from temptations–He sustains us in the midst of them (see Hebrews 2:18 and Hebrews 4:15-16).
試探何益？
你們所遇見的試探，無非是人所能受的。 （林前十13）
[試探]一詞地位日益低落，我們很容易把這詞錯用。試探並非等於罪。凡是人，都會遇到試探。若說不會受試探，實在是自貶身價。不過，許多人所受的試探，本是不該受的。這完全是由於我們不肯讓神領我們到一個更高的境地，去面對另一種試探的緣故。
人內在的性向，就是他人的性格，決定他外在所受的試探。所受的試探是配合受試探者的本質，同時也顯出他的潛能。每一個人都有他獨特受試探的背景，試探也會沿著他主要的性向而來。
試探為人所要實現的最高目標，提供了一條捷徑－－並不是我走向邪惡，乃是朝著我認為善的方向走。試探是一些令我一時感到困惑的東西，因我不知它到底是對還是錯。向試探低頭，就是奉情慾為神；也證明過去不是沒有犯這罪，只是不敢做出來。
試探是無可避免的，對一個人的完整生命是不可或缺的。別以為從沒有人像你一樣，受到這樣的試探；你所經歷的，其實是整個人類共有的經歷，並非前所未有。神不會救我們離開試探，他乃是在試探當中救拔我們（來二18）。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，我們對你的認知，被即時的現況所堵塞，產生了窒息的感覺；求你拯救和悅納我們。
April 19, 2014
Beware of the Least Likely Temptation
Joab had defected to Adonijah, though he had not defected to Absalom —1 Kings 2:28
Joab withstood the greatest test of his life, remaining absolutely loyal to David by not turning to follow after the fascinating and ambitious Absalom. Yet toward the end of his life he turned to follow after the weak and cowardly Adonijah. Always remain alert to the fact that where one person has turned back is exactly where anyone may be tempted to turn back (see 1 Corinthians 10:11-13). You may have just victoriously gone through a great crisis, but now be alert about the things that may appear to be the least likely to tempt you. Beware of thinking that the areas of your life where you have experienced victory in the past are now the least likely to cause you to stumble and fall.
We are apt to say, “It is not at all likely that having been through the greatest crisis of my life I would now turn back to the things of the world.” Do not try to predict where the temptation will come; it is the least likely thing that is the real danger. It is in the aftermath of a great spiritual event that the least likely things begin to have an effect. They may not be forceful and dominant, but they are there. And if you are not careful to be forewarned, they will trip you. You have remained true to God under great and intense trials— now beware of the undercurrent. Do not be abnormally examining your inner self, looking forward with dread, but stay alert; keep your memory sharp before God. Unguarded strength is actually a double weakness, because that is where the least likely temptations will be effective in sapping strength. The Bible characters stumbled over their strong points, never their weak ones.
“. . . kept by the power of God . . .”— that is the only safety. (1 Peter 1:5).
絕不可能嗎？
約押雖然沒有歸從押沙龍，卻歸從了亞多尼雅。 （王上二28）
約押在大考驗中站得住，始終對大衛絕對效忠，沒有隨從那野心勃勃、欺世惑眾的押沙龍。但到了晚年，卻跟隨了貪鄙的亞多尼雅。所以要常常提高警覺；有一個人可以這樣倒退，眾人都有這倒退的可能（林前十13）。你過了大難關嗎？現在就要在最小的事上留心。那最不為人注意的小事，要懂得留心。
我們會很隨意的說：[既然經過這樣大的考驗，就不會再回到世俗中去，留戀世事了。 ]不要自以為知道試探的來源；最不可能發生的事，往往是最致命的。在一次重大的屬靈轉變過後，那隱而不露的試探就開始出現了；這不會很昭彰明顯，卻潛藏在那裡，若不警覺，就必把你絆倒。你在烈火的考驗下曾經持守純正，向神忠貞，如今卻要當心暗潮。但不必無病呻吟，內省自疚，對前途恐懼不前，只要保持警覺，在神面前有一種清晰能力。沒有防衛看守，力量就會變弱，那暗潮便會湧入，叫防守崩陷。聖經人物很多都在優點上失敗，而不是在弱點上。
[蒙神能力保守]－－這是唯一安全之方。
祈禱◆主啊，今天我要奉你的名講道；求你使它藉著你的能力而發放。使我的靈魂確實認識你，讓我在所有深入和終極的意義上只專注於你。
Joab withstood the greatest test of his life, remaining absolutely loyal to David by not turning to follow after the fascinating and ambitious Absalom. Yet toward the end of his life he turned to follow after the weak and cowardly Adonijah. Always remain alert to the fact that where one person has turned back is exactly where anyone may be tempted to turn back (see 1 Corinthians 10:11-13). You may have just victoriously gone through a great crisis, but now be alert about the things that may appear to be the least likely to tempt you. Beware of thinking that the areas of your life where you have experienced victory in the past are now the least likely to cause you to stumble and fall.
We are apt to say, “It is not at all likely that having been through the greatest crisis of my life I would now turn back to the things of the world.” Do not try to predict where the temptation will come; it is the least likely thing that is the real danger. It is in the aftermath of a great spiritual event that the least likely things begin to have an effect. They may not be forceful and dominant, but they are there. And if you are not careful to be forewarned, they will trip you. You have remained true to God under great and intense trials— now beware of the undercurrent. Do not be abnormally examining your inner self, looking forward with dread, but stay alert; keep your memory sharp before God. Unguarded strength is actually a double weakness, because that is where the least likely temptations will be effective in sapping strength. The Bible characters stumbled over their strong points, never their weak ones.
“. . . kept by the power of God . . .”— that is the only safety. (1 Peter 1:5).
絕不可能嗎？
約押雖然沒有歸從押沙龍，卻歸從了亞多尼雅。 （王上二28）
約押在大考驗中站得住，始終對大衛絕對效忠，沒有隨從那野心勃勃、欺世惑眾的押沙龍。但到了晚年，卻跟隨了貪鄙的亞多尼雅。所以要常常提高警覺；有一個人可以這樣倒退，眾人都有這倒退的可能（林前十13）。你過了大難關嗎？現在就要在最小的事上留心。那最不為人注意的小事，要懂得留心。
我們會很隨意的說：[既然經過這樣大的考驗，就不會再回到世俗中去，留戀世事了。 ]不要自以為知道試探的來源；最不可能發生的事，往往是最致命的。在一次重大的屬靈轉變過後，那隱而不露的試探就開始出現了；這不會很昭彰明顯，卻潛藏在那裡，若不警覺，就必把你絆倒。你在烈火的考驗下曾經持守純正，向神忠貞，如今卻要當心暗潮。但不必無病呻吟，內省自疚，對前途恐懼不前，只要保持警覺，在神面前有一種清晰能力。沒有防衛看守，力量就會變弱，那暗潮便會湧入，叫防守崩陷。聖經人物很多都在優點上失敗，而不是在弱點上。
[蒙神能力保守]－－這是唯一安全之方。
祈禱◆主啊，今天我要奉你的名講道；求你使它藉著你的能力而發放。使我的靈魂確實認識你，讓我在所有深入和終極的意義上只專注於你。
March 27, 2014
Spiritual Vision Through Personal Purity (2)
Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place . . . —Revelation 4:1
A higher state of mind and spiritual vision can only be achieved through the higher practice of personal character. If you live up to the highest and best that you know in the outer level of your life, God will continually say to you, “Friend, come up even higher.” There is also a continuing rule in temptation which calls you to go higher; but when you do, you only encounter other temptations and character traits. Both God and Satan use the strategy of elevation, but Satan uses it in temptation, and the effect is quite different. When the devil elevates you to a certain place, he causes you to fasten your idea of what holiness is far beyond what flesh and blood could ever bear or achieve. Your life becomes a spiritual acrobatic performance high atop a steeple. You cling to it, trying to maintain your balance and daring not to move. But when God elevates you by His grace into heavenly places, you find a vast plateau where you can move about with ease.
Compare this week in your spiritual life with the same week last year to see how God has called you to a higher level. We have all been brought to see from a higher viewpoint. Never allow God to show you a truth which you do not instantly begin to live up to, applying it to your life. Always work through it, staying in its light.
Your growth in grace is not measured by the fact that you haven’t turned back, but that you have an insight and understanding into where you are spiritually. Have you heard God say, “Come up higher,” not audibly on the outer level, but to the innermost part of your character?
“Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing . . . ?” (Genesis 18:17). God has to hide from us what He does, until, due to the growth of our personal character, we get to the level where He is then able to reveal it.
藉著個人品格而得的異象
你上到這裡來，我要……指示你。 （啟四1）
一個人的品格要習於居高，不趨於卑下，才會產生崇高的情操。要是你外在的生活，真與你最崇高的標準相稱，神就會對你說：[朋友，再高攀一點吧。]試探的金律是：[攀高一點。 ]當你升高了，就會碰見其他的試探，這在性質上與從前的不同。撒旦懂得用向上走的策略來試探人，神也是如此，不過效果卻有不同。當魔鬼把你放在高位，是教你對聖潔觀念的標準，固定在人血肉之軀無法忍受的地位上。這就變成屬靈的雜技表演，你只得立穩，卻不敢移動。但當神用恩典把你提升到屬天的境地，他不是找一個頂峰給你攀住，而是讓你有更廣闊的高原，可以任意驅馳。
試以這個禮拜的靈程與去年同一個禮拜作個比較，看看神怎樣領你往高處行。我們都站過高處瞭望，但千萬別讓神給你一種你不能立即活出來的真理。得了真理，總要努力去實現，而且保持在神的光中。在恩典中的長進，不是拿你有沒有後退來衡量，而是對自己現今的屬靈光景有一認知－－即站在哪裡。你聽見神對你說：[上來吧，登高一點！ ]這不是對你個人說，叫你得到更高的位置，乃是對你的品德說的，叫你在悟性上大大有長進。
[我要做的事豈可瞞著亞伯拉罕麼？]神往往要把他所做的向我們隱瞞，直到我們在性情品德上達到一個地步，然後他才向我們顯明。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，賜我在你裡面滿有喜樂。求你為我清楚所有的困惑、迷亂和煩擾，讓我在今天以清楚的目光看見你的道路。
A higher state of mind and spiritual vision can only be achieved through the higher practice of personal character. If you live up to the highest and best that you know in the outer level of your life, God will continually say to you, “Friend, come up even higher.” There is also a continuing rule in temptation which calls you to go higher; but when you do, you only encounter other temptations and character traits. Both God and Satan use the strategy of elevation, but Satan uses it in temptation, and the effect is quite different. When the devil elevates you to a certain place, he causes you to fasten your idea of what holiness is far beyond what flesh and blood could ever bear or achieve. Your life becomes a spiritual acrobatic performance high atop a steeple. You cling to it, trying to maintain your balance and daring not to move. But when God elevates you by His grace into heavenly places, you find a vast plateau where you can move about with ease.
Compare this week in your spiritual life with the same week last year to see how God has called you to a higher level. We have all been brought to see from a higher viewpoint. Never allow God to show you a truth which you do not instantly begin to live up to, applying it to your life. Always work through it, staying in its light.
Your growth in grace is not measured by the fact that you haven’t turned back, but that you have an insight and understanding into where you are spiritually. Have you heard God say, “Come up higher,” not audibly on the outer level, but to the innermost part of your character?
“Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing . . . ?” (Genesis 18:17). God has to hide from us what He does, until, due to the growth of our personal character, we get to the level where He is then able to reveal it.
藉著個人品格而得的異象
你上到這裡來，我要……指示你。 （啟四1）
一個人的品格要習於居高，不趨於卑下，才會產生崇高的情操。要是你外在的生活，真與你最崇高的標準相稱，神就會對你說：[朋友，再高攀一點吧。]試探的金律是：[攀高一點。 ]當你升高了，就會碰見其他的試探，這在性質上與從前的不同。撒旦懂得用向上走的策略來試探人，神也是如此，不過效果卻有不同。當魔鬼把你放在高位，是教你對聖潔觀念的標準，固定在人血肉之軀無法忍受的地位上。這就變成屬靈的雜技表演，你只得立穩，卻不敢移動。但當神用恩典把你提升到屬天的境地，他不是找一個頂峰給你攀住，而是讓你有更廣闊的高原，可以任意驅馳。
試以這個禮拜的靈程與去年同一個禮拜作個比較，看看神怎樣領你往高處行。我們都站過高處瞭望，但千萬別讓神給你一種你不能立即活出來的真理。得了真理，總要努力去實現，而且保持在神的光中。在恩典中的長進，不是拿你有沒有後退來衡量，而是對自己現今的屬靈光景有一認知－－即站在哪裡。你聽見神對你說：[上來吧，登高一點！ ]這不是對你個人說，叫你得到更高的位置，乃是對你的品德說的，叫你在悟性上大大有長進。
[我要做的事豈可瞞著亞伯拉罕麼？]神往往要把他所做的向我們隱瞞，直到我們在性情品德上達到一個地步，然後他才向我們顯明。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，賜我在你裡面滿有喜樂。求你為我清楚所有的困惑、迷亂和煩擾，讓我在今天以清楚的目光看見你的道路。
September 19, 2013
Are You Going on With Jesus?
You are those who have continued with Me in My trials —Luke 22:28
It is true that Jesus Christ is with us through our temptations, but are we going on with Him through His temptations? Many of us turn back from going on with Jesus from the very moment we have an experience of what He can do. Watch when God changes your circumstances to see whether you are going on with Jesus, or siding with the world, the flesh, and the devil. We wear His name, but are we going on with Him? “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more” (John 6:66).
The temptations of Jesus continued throughout His earthly life, and they will continue throughout the life of the Son of God in us. Are we going on with Jesus in the life we are living right now?
We have the idea that we ought to shield ourselves from some of the things God brings around us. May it never be! It is God who engineers our circumstances, and whatever they may be we must see that we face them while continually abiding with Him in His temptations. They are His temptations, not temptations to us, but temptations to the life of the Son of God in us. Jesus Christ’s honor is at stake in our bodily lives. Are we remaining faithful to the Son of God in everything that attacks His life in us?
Are you going on with Jesus? The way goes through Gethsemane, through the city gate, and on “outside the camp” (Hebrews 13:13). The way is lonely and goes on until there is no longer even a trace of a footprint to follow— but only the voice saying, “Follow Me” (Matthew 4:19)
你繼續與主同行麼？
我在磨煉之中，常和我同在的就是你們。 （路二十二28）
我們受試探的時候，主耶穌與我們同在，這是不錯的。可是，他受試探時我們與他同行麼？不少人一經驗到主為我們成就什麼之後，就不再與他往前行了。注意神把你的環境轉移，看你是否仍與主耶穌同行，還是與世界為友，隨從肉體與魔鬼。我們佩戴著他的徽號，可是有沒有與他同行？ [從此他門徒中多有退去的，不再和他同行。 ]耶穌在一生中不斷受到試探；那末，神兒子在我們裡面的生命，也會不斷受試探。我們現在的生活是否與耶穌同行？
我們會有保護自己的念頭，以為應該躲避一些神安排在我們周圍的東西。千萬不可！神所安排的際遇，不管是什麼，我們都必鬚麵對；同時在他的試探裡，要與他不斷同行。那些試探不是對我們而發，乃是對他，對我們裡面神的兒子而發的。耶穌基督的尊榮，係於我們這肉身上，我們是否持守對神兒子的忠貞？
你不斷與主同行麼？這條路要經過客西馬尼園、城門口，直到營外；這道路孤單寂寞，你不會再看見任何足跡，只剩下一個聲音說：[跟從我。 ]
祈禱◆主啊，為著這個清晨，我能享有與你相交這個珍貴權利，我讚美你；願你今天在我裡面動工，以致我可以[立志行事……為要成就你的美意]。
It is true that Jesus Christ is with us through our temptations, but are we going on with Him through His temptations? Many of us turn back from going on with Jesus from the very moment we have an experience of what He can do. Watch when God changes your circumstances to see whether you are going on with Jesus, or siding with the world, the flesh, and the devil. We wear His name, but are we going on with Him? “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more” (John 6:66).
The temptations of Jesus continued throughout His earthly life, and they will continue throughout the life of the Son of God in us. Are we going on with Jesus in the life we are living right now?
We have the idea that we ought to shield ourselves from some of the things God brings around us. May it never be! It is God who engineers our circumstances, and whatever they may be we must see that we face them while continually abiding with Him in His temptations. They are His temptations, not temptations to us, but temptations to the life of the Son of God in us. Jesus Christ’s honor is at stake in our bodily lives. Are we remaining faithful to the Son of God in everything that attacks His life in us?
Are you going on with Jesus? The way goes through Gethsemane, through the city gate, and on “outside the camp” (Hebrews 13:13). The way is lonely and goes on until there is no longer even a trace of a footprint to follow— but only the voice saying, “Follow Me” (Matthew 4:19)
你繼續與主同行麼？
我在磨煉之中，常和我同在的就是你們。 （路二十二28）
我們受試探的時候，主耶穌與我們同在，這是不錯的。可是，他受試探時我們與他同行麼？不少人一經驗到主為我們成就什麼之後，就不再與他往前行了。注意神把你的環境轉移，看你是否仍與主耶穌同行，還是與世界為友，隨從肉體與魔鬼。我們佩戴著他的徽號，可是有沒有與他同行？ [從此他門徒中多有退去的，不再和他同行。 ]耶穌在一生中不斷受到試探；那末，神兒子在我們裡面的生命，也會不斷受試探。我們現在的生活是否與耶穌同行？
我們會有保護自己的念頭，以為應該躲避一些神安排在我們周圍的東西。千萬不可！神所安排的際遇，不管是什麼，我們都必鬚麵對；同時在他的試探裡，要與他不斷同行。那些試探不是對我們而發，乃是對他，對我們裡面神的兒子而發的。耶穌基督的尊榮，係於我們這肉身上，我們是否持守對神兒子的忠貞？
你不斷與主同行麼？這條路要經過客西馬尼園、城門口，直到營外；這道路孤單寂寞，你不會再看見任何足跡，只剩下一個聲音說：[跟從我。 ]
祈禱◆主啊，為著這個清晨，我能享有與你相交這個珍貴權利，我讚美你；願你今天在我裡面動工，以致我可以[立志行事……為要成就你的美意]。
September 18, 2013
His Temptation and Ours
We do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin —Hebrews 4:15
Until we are born again, the only kind of temptation we understand is the kind mentioned in James 1:14, “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” But through regeneration we are lifted into another realm where there are other temptations to face, namely, the kind of temptations our Lord faced. The temptations of Jesus had no appeal to us as unbelievers because they were not at home in our human nature. Our Lord’s temptations and ours are in different realms until we are born again and become His brothers. The temptations of Jesus are not those of a mere man, but the temptations of God as Man. Through regeneration, the Son of God is formed in us (see Galatians 4:19), and in our physical life He has the same setting that He had on earth. Satan does not tempt us just to make us do wrong things— he tempts us to make us lose what God has put into us through regeneration, namely, the possibility of being of value to God. He does not come to us on the premise of tempting us to sin, but on the premise of shifting our point of view, and only the Spirit of God can detect this as a temptation of the devil.
Temptation means a test of the possessions held within the inner, spiritual part of our being by a power outside us and foreign to us. This makes the temptation of our Lord explainable. After Jesus’ baptism, having accepted His mission of being the One “who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29) He “was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness” (Matthew 4:1) and into the testing devices of the devil. Yet He did not become weary or exhausted. He went through the temptation “without sin,” and He retained all the possessions of His spiritual nature completely intact.
他的試探與我們的試探
因我們的大祭司，並非不能體恤我們的軟弱，他也曾凡事受過試探，與我們一樣，只是他沒有犯罪。 （來四15）
未重生之前，我們唯一的試探是雅各所說的：[各人被試探，乃是被自己的私慾牽引誘惑的。 ]可是重生之後，便被提升到另一範圍的試探，就是面對主所受的試探。主耶穌受的試探對我們並不吸引，再人性中全無地位。主的試探與我們的試探是兩個完全不同的領域，直等到我們重生了，成為他的弟兄。主耶穌的試探不是人的試探，乃是神成為人的試探。我們重生之後，神的兒子在我們裡面成形，他在我們的肉身生命中，面對他昔日在地上所面對的。撒旦並不引誘我們去做壞事，乃是要我們失去神藉重生放進我們裡面的生命，就是在神手中成為貴重合用的潛能。它並不是要引誘人犯罪，乃是要改變人的觀點。惟有聖靈才可以偵察出這是魔鬼的試探。
試探是外在勢力對人的考驗，要攻擊人性中所擁有的。這就解明了主耶穌所受的試探。耶穌受洗之後，接受了除去世人罪孽的責任，神的靈就立即把他放在魔鬼的考驗場裡。不過他沒有被打倒，他經過試探，卻沒有犯罪，仍然保持他人格的完整。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，對於與你一同守望、與你一同經歷試探的意義，我所了解的是何等膚淺。願你在今天早上吸引我靠近你，以你的大能使我專注於你，直至我的生活言談只為了你。
Until we are born again, the only kind of temptation we understand is the kind mentioned in James 1:14, “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” But through regeneration we are lifted into another realm where there are other temptations to face, namely, the kind of temptations our Lord faced. The temptations of Jesus had no appeal to us as unbelievers because they were not at home in our human nature. Our Lord’s temptations and ours are in different realms until we are born again and become His brothers. The temptations of Jesus are not those of a mere man, but the temptations of God as Man. Through regeneration, the Son of God is formed in us (see Galatians 4:19), and in our physical life He has the same setting that He had on earth. Satan does not tempt us just to make us do wrong things— he tempts us to make us lose what God has put into us through regeneration, namely, the possibility of being of value to God. He does not come to us on the premise of tempting us to sin, but on the premise of shifting our point of view, and only the Spirit of God can detect this as a temptation of the devil.
Temptation means a test of the possessions held within the inner, spiritual part of our being by a power outside us and foreign to us. This makes the temptation of our Lord explainable. After Jesus’ baptism, having accepted His mission of being the One “who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29) He “was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness” (Matthew 4:1) and into the testing devices of the devil. Yet He did not become weary or exhausted. He went through the temptation “without sin,” and He retained all the possessions of His spiritual nature completely intact.
他的試探與我們的試探
因我們的大祭司，並非不能體恤我們的軟弱，他也曾凡事受過試探，與我們一樣，只是他沒有犯罪。 （來四15）
未重生之前，我們唯一的試探是雅各所說的：[各人被試探，乃是被自己的私慾牽引誘惑的。 ]可是重生之後，便被提升到另一範圍的試探，就是面對主所受的試探。主耶穌受的試探對我們並不吸引，再人性中全無地位。主的試探與我們的試探是兩個完全不同的領域，直等到我們重生了，成為他的弟兄。主耶穌的試探不是人的試探，乃是神成為人的試探。我們重生之後，神的兒子在我們裡面成形，他在我們的肉身生命中，面對他昔日在地上所面對的。撒旦並不引誘我們去做壞事，乃是要我們失去神藉重生放進我們裡面的生命，就是在神手中成為貴重合用的潛能。它並不是要引誘人犯罪，乃是要改變人的觀點。惟有聖靈才可以偵察出這是魔鬼的試探。
試探是外在勢力對人的考驗，要攻擊人性中所擁有的。這就解明了主耶穌所受的試探。耶穌受洗之後，接受了除去世人罪孽的責任，神的靈就立即把他放在魔鬼的考驗場裡。不過他沒有被打倒，他經過試探，卻沒有犯罪，仍然保持他人格的完整。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，對於與你一同守望、與你一同經歷試探的意義，我所了解的是何等膚淺。願你在今天早上吸引我靠近你，以你的大能使我專注於你，直至我的生活言談只為了你。
September 17, 2013
Is There Good in Temptation?
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man . . . —1 Corinthians 10:13
The word temptation has come to mean something bad to us today, but we tend to use the word in the wrong way. Temptation itself is not sin; it is something we are bound to face simply by virtue of being human. Not to be tempted would mean that we were already so shameful that we would be beneath contempt. Yet many of us suffer from temptations we should never have to suffer, simply because we have refused to allow God to lift us to a higher level where we would face temptations of another kind.
A person’s inner nature, what he possesses in the inner, spiritual part of his being, determines what he is tempted by on the outside. The temptation fits the true nature of the person being tempted and reveals the possibilities of his nature. Every person actually determines or sets the level of his own temptation, because temptation will come to him in accordance with the level of his controlling, inner nature.
Temptation comes to me, suggesting a possible shortcut to the realization of my highest goal— it does not direct me toward what I understand to be evil, but toward what I understand to be good. Temptation is something that confuses me for a while, and I don’t know whether something is right or wrong. When I yield to it, I have made lust a god, and the temptation itself becomes the proof that it was only my own fear that prevented me from falling into the sin earlier.
Temptation is not something we can escape; in fact, it is essential to the well-rounded life of a person. Beware of thinking that you are tempted as no one else–what you go through is the common inheritance of the human race, not something that no one has ever before endured. God does not save us from temptations–He sustains us in the midst of them (see Hebrews 2:18 and Hebrews 4:15-16).
試探何益？
你們所遇見的試探，無非是人所能受的。 （林前十13）
[試探]一詞地位日益低落，我們很容易把這詞錯用。試探並非等於罪。凡是人，都會遇到試探。若說不會受試探，實在是自貶身價。不過，許多人所受的試探，本是不該受的。這完全是由於我們不肯讓神領我們到一個更高的境地，去面對另一種試探的緣故。
人內在的性向，就是他人的性格，決定他外在所受的試探。所受的試探是配合受試探者的本質，同時也顯出他的潛能。每一個人都有他獨特受試探的背景，試探也會沿著他主要的性向而來。
試探為人所要實現的最高目標，提供了一條捷徑－－並不是我走向邪惡，乃是朝著我認為善的方向走。試探是一些令我一時感到困惑的東西，因我不知它到底是對還是錯。向試探低頭，就是奉情慾為神；也證明過去不是沒有犯這罪，只是不敢做出來。
試探是無可避免的，對一個人的完整生命是不可或缺的。別以為從沒有人像你一樣，受到這樣的試探；你所經歷的，其實是整個人類共有的經歷，並非前所未有。神不會救我們離開試探，他乃是在試探當中救拔我們（來二18）。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，我們對你的認知，被即時的現況所堵塞，產生了窒息的感覺；求你拯救和悅納我們。
The word temptation has come to mean something bad to us today, but we tend to use the word in the wrong way. Temptation itself is not sin; it is something we are bound to face simply by virtue of being human. Not to be tempted would mean that we were already so shameful that we would be beneath contempt. Yet many of us suffer from temptations we should never have to suffer, simply because we have refused to allow God to lift us to a higher level where we would face temptations of another kind.
A person’s inner nature, what he possesses in the inner, spiritual part of his being, determines what he is tempted by on the outside. The temptation fits the true nature of the person being tempted and reveals the possibilities of his nature. Every person actually determines or sets the level of his own temptation, because temptation will come to him in accordance with the level of his controlling, inner nature.
Temptation comes to me, suggesting a possible shortcut to the realization of my highest goal— it does not direct me toward what I understand to be evil, but toward what I understand to be good. Temptation is something that confuses me for a while, and I don’t know whether something is right or wrong. When I yield to it, I have made lust a god, and the temptation itself becomes the proof that it was only my own fear that prevented me from falling into the sin earlier.
Temptation is not something we can escape; in fact, it is essential to the well-rounded life of a person. Beware of thinking that you are tempted as no one else–what you go through is the common inheritance of the human race, not something that no one has ever before endured. God does not save us from temptations–He sustains us in the midst of them (see Hebrews 2:18 and Hebrews 4:15-16).
試探何益？
你們所遇見的試探，無非是人所能受的。 （林前十13）
[試探]一詞地位日益低落，我們很容易把這詞錯用。試探並非等於罪。凡是人，都會遇到試探。若說不會受試探，實在是自貶身價。不過，許多人所受的試探，本是不該受的。這完全是由於我們不肯讓神領我們到一個更高的境地，去面對另一種試探的緣故。
人內在的性向，就是他人的性格，決定他外在所受的試探。所受的試探是配合受試探者的本質，同時也顯出他的潛能。每一個人都有他獨特受試探的背景，試探也會沿著他主要的性向而來。
試探為人所要實現的最高目標，提供了一條捷徑－－並不是我走向邪惡，乃是朝著我認為善的方向走。試探是一些令我一時感到困惑的東西，因我不知它到底是對還是錯。向試探低頭，就是奉情慾為神；也證明過去不是沒有犯這罪，只是不敢做出來。
試探是無可避免的，對一個人的完整生命是不可或缺的。別以為從沒有人像你一樣，受到這樣的試探；你所經歷的，其實是整個人類共有的經歷，並非前所未有。神不會救我們離開試探，他乃是在試探當中救拔我們（來二18）。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，我們對你的認知，被即時的現況所堵塞，產生了窒息的感覺；求你拯救和悅納我們。
April 19, 2013
Beware of the Least Likely Temptation
Joab had defected to Adonijah, though he had not defected to Absalom —1 Kings 2:28
Joab withstood the greatest test of his life, remaining absolutely loyal to David by not turning to follow after the fascinating and ambitious Absalom. Yet toward the end of his life he turned to follow after the weak and cowardly Adonijah. Always remain alert to the fact that where one person has turned back is exactly where anyone may be tempted to turn back (see 1 Corinthians 10:11-13). You may have just victoriously gone through a great crisis, but now be alert about the things that may appear to be the least likely to tempt you. Beware of thinking that the areas of your life where you have experienced victory in the past are now the least likely to cause you to stumble and fall.
We are apt to say, “It is not at all likely that having been through the greatest crisis of my life I would now turn back to the things of the world.” Do not try to predict where the temptation will come; it is the least likely thing that is the real danger. It is in the aftermath of a great spiritual event that the least likely things begin to have an effect. They may not be forceful and dominant, but they are there. And if you are not careful to be forewarned, they will trip you. You have remained true to God under great and intense trials— now beware of the undercurrent. Do not be abnormally examining your inner self, looking forward with dread, but stay alert; keep your memory sharp before God. Unguarded strength is actually a double weakness, because that is where the least likely temptations will be effective in sapping strength. The Bible characters stumbled over their strong points, never their weak ones.
“. . . kept by the power of God . . .”— that is the only safety. (1 Peter 1:5).
絕不可能嗎？
約押雖然沒有歸從押沙龍，卻歸從了亞多尼雅。 （王上二28）
約押在大考驗中站得住，始終對大衛絕對效忠，沒有隨從那野心勃勃、欺世惑眾的押沙龍。但到了晚年，卻跟隨了貪鄙的亞多尼雅。所以要常常提高警覺；有一個人可以這樣倒退，眾人都有這倒退的可能（林前十13）。你過了大難關嗎？現在就要在最小的事上留心。那最不為人注意的小事，要懂得留心。
我們會很隨意的說：[既然經過這樣大的考驗，就不會再回到世俗中去，留戀世事了。 ]不要自以為知道試探的來源；最不可能發生的事，往往是最致命的。在一次重大的屬靈轉變過後，那隱而不露的試探就開始出現了；這不會很昭彰明顯，卻潛藏在那裡，若不警覺，就必把你絆倒。你在烈火的考驗下曾經持守純正，向神忠貞，如今卻要當心暗潮。但不必無病呻吟，內省自疚，對前途恐懼不前，只要保持警覺，在神面前有一種清晰能力。沒有防衛看守，力量就會變弱，那暗潮便會湧入，叫防守崩陷。聖經人物很多都在優點上失敗，而不是在弱點上。
[蒙神能力保守]－－這是唯一安全之方。
祈禱◆主啊，今天我要奉你的名講道；求你使它藉著你的能力而發放。使我的靈魂確實認識你，讓我在所有深入和終極的意義上只專注於你。
Joab withstood the greatest test of his life, remaining absolutely loyal to David by not turning to follow after the fascinating and ambitious Absalom. Yet toward the end of his life he turned to follow after the weak and cowardly Adonijah. Always remain alert to the fact that where one person has turned back is exactly where anyone may be tempted to turn back (see 1 Corinthians 10:11-13). You may have just victoriously gone through a great crisis, but now be alert about the things that may appear to be the least likely to tempt you. Beware of thinking that the areas of your life where you have experienced victory in the past are now the least likely to cause you to stumble and fall.
We are apt to say, “It is not at all likely that having been through the greatest crisis of my life I would now turn back to the things of the world.” Do not try to predict where the temptation will come; it is the least likely thing that is the real danger. It is in the aftermath of a great spiritual event that the least likely things begin to have an effect. They may not be forceful and dominant, but they are there. And if you are not careful to be forewarned, they will trip you. You have remained true to God under great and intense trials— now beware of the undercurrent. Do not be abnormally examining your inner self, looking forward with dread, but stay alert; keep your memory sharp before God. Unguarded strength is actually a double weakness, because that is where the least likely temptations will be effective in sapping strength. The Bible characters stumbled over their strong points, never their weak ones.
“. . . kept by the power of God . . .”— that is the only safety. (1 Peter 1:5).
絕不可能嗎？
約押雖然沒有歸從押沙龍，卻歸從了亞多尼雅。 （王上二28）
約押在大考驗中站得住，始終對大衛絕對效忠，沒有隨從那野心勃勃、欺世惑眾的押沙龍。但到了晚年，卻跟隨了貪鄙的亞多尼雅。所以要常常提高警覺；有一個人可以這樣倒退，眾人都有這倒退的可能（林前十13）。你過了大難關嗎？現在就要在最小的事上留心。那最不為人注意的小事，要懂得留心。
我們會很隨意的說：[既然經過這樣大的考驗，就不會再回到世俗中去，留戀世事了。 ]不要自以為知道試探的來源；最不可能發生的事，往往是最致命的。在一次重大的屬靈轉變過後，那隱而不露的試探就開始出現了；這不會很昭彰明顯，卻潛藏在那裡，若不警覺，就必把你絆倒。你在烈火的考驗下曾經持守純正，向神忠貞，如今卻要當心暗潮。但不必無病呻吟，內省自疚，對前途恐懼不前，只要保持警覺，在神面前有一種清晰能力。沒有防衛看守，力量就會變弱，那暗潮便會湧入，叫防守崩陷。聖經人物很多都在優點上失敗，而不是在弱點上。
[蒙神能力保守]－－這是唯一安全之方。
祈禱◆主啊，今天我要奉你的名講道；求你使它藉著你的能力而發放。使我的靈魂確實認識你，讓我在所有深入和終極的意義上只專注於你。
March 27, 2013
Spiritual Vision Through Personal Purity (2)
Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place . . . —Revelation 4:1
A higher state of mind and spiritual vision can only be achieved through the higher practice of personal character. If you live up to the highest and best that you know in the outer level of your life, God will continually say to you, “Friend, come up even higher.” There is also a continuing rule in temptation which calls you to go higher; but when you do, you only encounter other temptations and character traits. Both God and Satan use the strategy of elevation, but Satan uses it in temptation, and the effect is quite different. When the devil elevates you to a certain place, he causes you to fasten your idea of what holiness is far beyond what flesh and blood could ever bear or achieve. Your life becomes a spiritual acrobatic performance high atop a steeple. You cling to it, trying to maintain your balance and daring not to move. But when God elevates you by His grace into heavenly places, you find a vast plateau where you can move about with ease.
Compare this week in your spiritual life with the same week last year to see how God has called you to a higher level. We have all been brought to see from a higher viewpoint. Never allow God to show you a truth which you do not instantly begin to live up to, applying it to your life. Always work through it, staying in its light.
Your growth in grace is not measured by the fact that you haven’t turned back, but that you have an insight and understanding into where you are spiritually. Have you heard God say, “Come up higher,” not audibly on the outer level, but to the innermost part of your character?
“Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing . . . ?” (Genesis 18:17). God has to hide from us what He does, until, due to the growth of our personal character, we get to the level where He is then able to reveal it.
藉著個人品格而得的異象
你上到這裡來，我要……指示你。 （啟四1）
一個人的品格要習於居高，不趨於卑下，才會產生崇高的情操。要是你外在的生活，真與你最崇高的標準相稱，神就會對你說：[朋友，再高攀一點吧。 ]試探的金律是：[攀高一點。 ]當你升高了，就會碰見其他的試探，這在性質上與從前的不同。撒旦懂得用向上走的策略來試探人，神也是如此，不過效果卻有不同。當魔鬼把你放在高位，是教你對聖潔觀念的標準，固定在人血肉之軀無法忍受的地位上。這就變成屬靈的雜技表演，你只得立穩，卻不敢移動。但當神用恩典把你提升到屬天的境地，他不是找一個頂峰給你攀住，而是讓你有更廣闊的高原，可以任意驅馳。
試以這個禮拜的靈程與去年同一個禮拜作個比較，看看神怎樣領你往高處行。我們都站過高處瞭望，但千萬別讓神給你一種你不能立即活出來的真理。得了真理，總要努力去實現，而且保持在神的光中。在恩典中的長進，不是拿你有沒有後退來衡量，而是對自己現今的屬靈光景有一認知－－即站在哪裡。你聽見神對你說：[上來吧，登高一點！ ]這不是對你個人說，叫你得到更高的位置，乃是對你的品德說的，叫你在悟性上大大有長進。
[我要做的事豈可瞞著亞伯拉罕麼？ ]神往往要把他所做的向我們隱瞞，直到我們在性情品德上達到一個地步，然後他才向我們顯明。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，賜我在你裡面滿有喜樂。求你為我清楚所有的困惑、迷亂和煩擾，讓我在今天以清楚的目光看見你的道路。
A higher state of mind and spiritual vision can only be achieved through the higher practice of personal character. If you live up to the highest and best that you know in the outer level of your life, God will continually say to you, “Friend, come up even higher.” There is also a continuing rule in temptation which calls you to go higher; but when you do, you only encounter other temptations and character traits. Both God and Satan use the strategy of elevation, but Satan uses it in temptation, and the effect is quite different. When the devil elevates you to a certain place, he causes you to fasten your idea of what holiness is far beyond what flesh and blood could ever bear or achieve. Your life becomes a spiritual acrobatic performance high atop a steeple. You cling to it, trying to maintain your balance and daring not to move. But when God elevates you by His grace into heavenly places, you find a vast plateau where you can move about with ease.
Compare this week in your spiritual life with the same week last year to see how God has called you to a higher level. We have all been brought to see from a higher viewpoint. Never allow God to show you a truth which you do not instantly begin to live up to, applying it to your life. Always work through it, staying in its light.
Your growth in grace is not measured by the fact that you haven’t turned back, but that you have an insight and understanding into where you are spiritually. Have you heard God say, “Come up higher,” not audibly on the outer level, but to the innermost part of your character?
“Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing . . . ?” (Genesis 18:17). God has to hide from us what He does, until, due to the growth of our personal character, we get to the level where He is then able to reveal it.
藉著個人品格而得的異象
你上到這裡來，我要……指示你。 （啟四1）
一個人的品格要習於居高，不趨於卑下，才會產生崇高的情操。要是你外在的生活，真與你最崇高的標準相稱，神就會對你說：[朋友，再高攀一點吧。 ]試探的金律是：[攀高一點。 ]當你升高了，就會碰見其他的試探，這在性質上與從前的不同。撒旦懂得用向上走的策略來試探人，神也是如此，不過效果卻有不同。當魔鬼把你放在高位，是教你對聖潔觀念的標準，固定在人血肉之軀無法忍受的地位上。這就變成屬靈的雜技表演，你只得立穩，卻不敢移動。但當神用恩典把你提升到屬天的境地，他不是找一個頂峰給你攀住，而是讓你有更廣闊的高原，可以任意驅馳。
試以這個禮拜的靈程與去年同一個禮拜作個比較，看看神怎樣領你往高處行。我們都站過高處瞭望，但千萬別讓神給你一種你不能立即活出來的真理。得了真理，總要努力去實現，而且保持在神的光中。在恩典中的長進，不是拿你有沒有後退來衡量，而是對自己現今的屬靈光景有一認知－－即站在哪裡。你聽見神對你說：[上來吧，登高一點！ ]這不是對你個人說，叫你得到更高的位置，乃是對你的品德說的，叫你在悟性上大大有長進。
[我要做的事豈可瞞著亞伯拉罕麼？ ]神往往要把他所做的向我們隱瞞，直到我們在性情品德上達到一個地步，然後他才向我們顯明。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，賜我在你裡面滿有喜樂。求你為我清楚所有的困惑、迷亂和煩擾，讓我在今天以清楚的目光看見你的道路。
September 19, 2012
Are You Going on With Jesus?
You are those who have continued with Me in My trials —Luke 22:28
It is true that Jesus Christ is with us through our temptations, but are we going on with Him through His temptations? Many of us turn back from going on with Jesus from the very moment we have an experience of what He can do. Watch when God changes your circumstances to see whether you are going on with Jesus, or siding with the world, the flesh, and the devil. We wear His name, but are we going on with Him? “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more” (John 6:66).
The temptations of Jesus continued throughout His earthly life, and they will continue throughout the life of the Son of God in us. Are we going on with Jesus in the life we are living right now?
We have the idea that we ought to shield ourselves from some of the things God brings around us. May it never be! It is God who engineers our circumstances, and whatever they may be we must see that we face them while continually abiding with Him in His temptations. They are His temptations, not temptations to us, but temptations to the life of the Son of God in us. Jesus Christ’s honor is at stake in our bodily lives. Are we remaining faithful to the Son of God in everything that attacks His life in us?
Are you going on with Jesus? The way goes through Gethsemane, through the city gate, and on “outside the camp” (Hebrews 13:13). The way is lonely and goes on until there is no longer even a trace of a footprint to follow— but only the voice saying, “Follow Me” (Matthew 4:19)
你繼續與主同行麼？
我在磨煉之中，常和我同在的就是你們。 （路二十二28）
我們受試探的時候，主耶穌與我們同在，這是不錯的。可是，他受試探時我們與他同行麼？不少人一經驗到主為我們成就什麼之後，就不再與他往前行了。注意神把你的環境轉移，看你是否仍與主耶穌同行，還是與世界為友，隨從肉體與魔鬼。我們佩戴著他的徽號，可是有沒有與他同行？ [從此他門徒中多有退去的，不再和他同行。 ]耶穌在一生中不斷受到試探；那末，神兒子在我們裡面的生命，也會不斷受試探。我們現在的生活是否與耶穌同行？
我們會有保護自己的念頭，以為應該躲避一些神安排在我們周圍的東西。千萬不可！神所安排的際遇，不管是什麼，我們都必鬚麵對；同時在他的試探裡，要與他不斷同行。那些試探不是對我們而發，乃是對他，對我們裡面神的兒子而發的。耶穌基督的尊榮，係於我們這肉身上，我們是否持守對神兒子的忠貞？
你不斷與主同行麼？這條路要經過客西馬尼園、城門口，直到營外；這道路孤單寂寞，你不會再看見任何足跡，只剩下一個聲音說：[跟從我。 ]
祈禱◆主啊，為著這個清晨，我能享有與你相交這個珍貴權利，我讚美你；願你今天在我裡面動工，以致我可以[立志行事……為要成就你的美意]。
It is true that Jesus Christ is with us through our temptations, but are we going on with Him through His temptations? Many of us turn back from going on with Jesus from the very moment we have an experience of what He can do. Watch when God changes your circumstances to see whether you are going on with Jesus, or siding with the world, the flesh, and the devil. We wear His name, but are we going on with Him? “From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more” (John 6:66).
The temptations of Jesus continued throughout His earthly life, and they will continue throughout the life of the Son of God in us. Are we going on with Jesus in the life we are living right now?
We have the idea that we ought to shield ourselves from some of the things God brings around us. May it never be! It is God who engineers our circumstances, and whatever they may be we must see that we face them while continually abiding with Him in His temptations. They are His temptations, not temptations to us, but temptations to the life of the Son of God in us. Jesus Christ’s honor is at stake in our bodily lives. Are we remaining faithful to the Son of God in everything that attacks His life in us?
Are you going on with Jesus? The way goes through Gethsemane, through the city gate, and on “outside the camp” (Hebrews 13:13). The way is lonely and goes on until there is no longer even a trace of a footprint to follow— but only the voice saying, “Follow Me” (Matthew 4:19)
你繼續與主同行麼？
我在磨煉之中，常和我同在的就是你們。 （路二十二28）
我們受試探的時候，主耶穌與我們同在，這是不錯的。可是，他受試探時我們與他同行麼？不少人一經驗到主為我們成就什麼之後，就不再與他往前行了。注意神把你的環境轉移，看你是否仍與主耶穌同行，還是與世界為友，隨從肉體與魔鬼。我們佩戴著他的徽號，可是有沒有與他同行？ [從此他門徒中多有退去的，不再和他同行。 ]耶穌在一生中不斷受到試探；那末，神兒子在我們裡面的生命，也會不斷受試探。我們現在的生活是否與耶穌同行？
我們會有保護自己的念頭，以為應該躲避一些神安排在我們周圍的東西。千萬不可！神所安排的際遇，不管是什麼，我們都必鬚麵對；同時在他的試探裡，要與他不斷同行。那些試探不是對我們而發，乃是對他，對我們裡面神的兒子而發的。耶穌基督的尊榮，係於我們這肉身上，我們是否持守對神兒子的忠貞？
你不斷與主同行麼？這條路要經過客西馬尼園、城門口，直到營外；這道路孤單寂寞，你不會再看見任何足跡，只剩下一個聲音說：[跟從我。 ]
祈禱◆主啊，為著這個清晨，我能享有與你相交這個珍貴權利，我讚美你；願你今天在我裡面動工，以致我可以[立志行事……為要成就你的美意]。
September 18, 2012
His Temptation and Ours
We do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin —Hebrews 4:15
Until we are born again, the only kind of temptation we understand is the kind mentioned in James 1:14, “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” But through regeneration we are lifted into another realm where there are other temptations to face, namely, the kind of temptations our Lord faced. The temptations of Jesus had no appeal to us as unbelievers because they were not at home in our human nature. Our Lord’s temptations and ours are in different realms until we are born again and become His brothers. The temptations of Jesus are not those of a mere man, but the temptations of God as Man. Through regeneration, the Son of God is formed in us (see Galatians 4:19), and in our physical life He has the same setting that He had on earth. Satan does not tempt us just to make us do wrong things— he tempts us to make us lose what God has put into us through regeneration, namely, the possibility of being of value to God. He does not come to us on the premise of tempting us to sin, but on the premise of shifting our point of view, and only the Spirit of God can detect this as a temptation of the devil.
Temptation means a test of the possessions held within the inner, spiritual part of our being by a power outside us and foreign to us. This makes the temptation of our Lord explainable. After Jesus’ baptism, having accepted His mission of being the One “who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29) He “was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness” (Matthew 4:1) and into the testing devices of the devil. Yet He did not become weary or exhausted. He went through the temptation “without sin,” and He retained all the possessions of His spiritual nature completely intact.
他的試探與我們的試探
因我們的大祭司，並非不能體恤我們的軟弱，他也曾凡事受過試探，與我們一樣，只是他沒有犯罪。 （來四15）
未重生之前，我們唯一的試探是雅各所說的：[各人被試探，乃是被自己的私慾牽引誘惑的。 ]可是重生之後，便被提升到另一範圍的試探，就是面對主所受的試探。主耶穌受的試探對我們並不吸引，再人性中全無地位。主的試探與我們的試探是兩個完全不同的領域，直等到我們重生了，成為他的弟兄。主耶穌的試探不是人的試探，乃是神成為人的試探。我們重生之後，神的兒子在我們裡面成形，他在我們的肉身生命中，面對他昔日在地上所面對的。撒旦並不引誘我們去做壞事，乃是要我們失去神藉重生放進我們裡面的生命，就是在神手中成為貴重合用的潛能。它並不是要引誘人犯罪，乃是要改變人的觀點。惟有聖靈才可以偵察出這是魔鬼的試探。
試探是外在勢力對人的考驗，要攻擊人性中所擁有的。這就解明了主耶穌所受的試探。耶穌受洗之後，接受了除去世人罪孽的責任，神的靈就立即把他放在魔鬼的考驗場裡。不過他沒有被打倒，他經過試探，卻沒有犯罪，仍然保持他人格的完整。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，對於與你一同守望、與你一同經歷試探的意義，我所了解的是何等膚淺。願你在今天早上吸引我靠近你，以你的大能使我專注於你，直至我的生活言談只為了你。
Until we are born again, the only kind of temptation we understand is the kind mentioned in James 1:14, “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.” But through regeneration we are lifted into another realm where there are other temptations to face, namely, the kind of temptations our Lord faced. The temptations of Jesus had no appeal to us as unbelievers because they were not at home in our human nature. Our Lord’s temptations and ours are in different realms until we are born again and become His brothers. The temptations of Jesus are not those of a mere man, but the temptations of God as Man. Through regeneration, the Son of God is formed in us (see Galatians 4:19), and in our physical life He has the same setting that He had on earth. Satan does not tempt us just to make us do wrong things— he tempts us to make us lose what God has put into us through regeneration, namely, the possibility of being of value to God. He does not come to us on the premise of tempting us to sin, but on the premise of shifting our point of view, and only the Spirit of God can detect this as a temptation of the devil.
Temptation means a test of the possessions held within the inner, spiritual part of our being by a power outside us and foreign to us. This makes the temptation of our Lord explainable. After Jesus’ baptism, having accepted His mission of being the One “who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29) He “was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness” (Matthew 4:1) and into the testing devices of the devil. Yet He did not become weary or exhausted. He went through the temptation “without sin,” and He retained all the possessions of His spiritual nature completely intact.
他的試探與我們的試探
因我們的大祭司，並非不能體恤我們的軟弱，他也曾凡事受過試探，與我們一樣，只是他沒有犯罪。 （來四15）
未重生之前，我們唯一的試探是雅各所說的：[各人被試探，乃是被自己的私慾牽引誘惑的。 ]可是重生之後，便被提升到另一範圍的試探，就是面對主所受的試探。主耶穌受的試探對我們並不吸引，再人性中全無地位。主的試探與我們的試探是兩個完全不同的領域，直等到我們重生了，成為他的弟兄。主耶穌的試探不是人的試探，乃是神成為人的試探。我們重生之後，神的兒子在我們裡面成形，他在我們的肉身生命中，面對他昔日在地上所面對的。撒旦並不引誘我們去做壞事，乃是要我們失去神藉重生放進我們裡面的生命，就是在神手中成為貴重合用的潛能。它並不是要引誘人犯罪，乃是要改變人的觀點。惟有聖靈才可以偵察出這是魔鬼的試探。
試探是外在勢力對人的考驗，要攻擊人性中所擁有的。這就解明了主耶穌所受的試探。耶穌受洗之後，接受了除去世人罪孽的責任，神的靈就立即把他放在魔鬼的考驗場裡。不過他沒有被打倒，他經過試探，卻沒有犯罪，仍然保持他人格的完整。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，對於與你一同守望、與你一同經歷試探的意義，我所了解的是何等膚淺。願你在今天早上吸引我靠近你，以你的大能使我專注於你，直至我的生活言談只為了你。
September 17, 2012
Is There Good in Temptation?
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man . . . —1 Corinthians 10:13
The word temptation has come to mean something bad to us today, but we tend to use the word in the wrong way. Temptation itself is not sin; it is something we are bound to face simply by virtue of being human. Not to be tempted would mean that we were already so shameful that we would be beneath contempt. Yet many of us suffer from temptations we should never have to suffer, simply because we have refused to allow God to lift us to a higher level where we would face temptations of another kind.
A person’s inner nature, what he possesses in the inner, spiritual part of his being, determines what he is tempted by on the outside. The temptation fits the true nature of the person being tempted and reveals the possibilities of his nature. Every person actually determines or sets the level of his own temptation, because temptation will come to him in accordance with the level of his controlling, inner nature.
Temptation comes to me, suggesting a possible shortcut to the realization of my highest goal— it does not direct me toward what I understand to be evil, but toward what I understand to be good. Temptation is something that confuses me for a while, and I don’t know whether something is right or wrong. When I yield to it, I have made lust a god, and the temptation itself becomes the proof that it was only my own fear that prevented me from falling into the sin earlier.
Temptation is not something we can escape; in fact, it is essential to the well-rounded life of a person. Beware of thinking that you are tempted as no one else–what you go through is the common inheritance of the human race, not something that no one has ever before endured. God does not save us from temptations–He sustains us in the midst of them (see Hebrews 2:18 and Hebrews 4:15-16).
試探何益？
你們所遇見的試探，無非是人所能受的。 （林前十13）
[試探]一詞地位日益低落，我們很容易把這詞錯用。試探並非等於罪。凡是人，都會遇到試探。若說不會受試探，實在是自貶身價。不過，許多人所受的試探，本是不該受的。這完全是由於我們不肯讓神領我們到一個更高的境地，去面對另一種試探的緣故。
人內在的性向，就是他人的性格，決定他外在所受的試探。所受的試探是配合受試探者的本質，同時也顯出他的潛能。每一個人都有他獨特受試探的背景，試探也會沿著他主要的性向而來。
試探為人所要實現的最高目標，提供了一條捷徑－－並不是我走向邪惡，乃是朝著我認為善的方向走。試探是一些令我一時感到困惑的東西，因我不知它到底是對還是錯。向試探低頭，就是奉情慾為神；也證明過去不是沒有犯這罪，只是不敢做出來。
試探是無可避免的，對一個人的完整生命是不可或缺的。別以為從沒有人像你一樣，受到這樣的試探；你所經歷的，其實是整個人類共有的經歷，並非前所未有。神不會救我們離開試探，他乃是在試探當中救拔我們（來二18）。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，我們對你的認知，被即時的現況所堵塞，產生了窒息的感覺；求你拯救和悅納我們。
The word temptation has come to mean something bad to us today, but we tend to use the word in the wrong way. Temptation itself is not sin; it is something we are bound to face simply by virtue of being human. Not to be tempted would mean that we were already so shameful that we would be beneath contempt. Yet many of us suffer from temptations we should never have to suffer, simply because we have refused to allow God to lift us to a higher level where we would face temptations of another kind.
A person’s inner nature, what he possesses in the inner, spiritual part of his being, determines what he is tempted by on the outside. The temptation fits the true nature of the person being tempted and reveals the possibilities of his nature. Every person actually determines or sets the level of his own temptation, because temptation will come to him in accordance with the level of his controlling, inner nature.
Temptation comes to me, suggesting a possible shortcut to the realization of my highest goal— it does not direct me toward what I understand to be evil, but toward what I understand to be good. Temptation is something that confuses me for a while, and I don’t know whether something is right or wrong. When I yield to it, I have made lust a god, and the temptation itself becomes the proof that it was only my own fear that prevented me from falling into the sin earlier.
Temptation is not something we can escape; in fact, it is essential to the well-rounded life of a person. Beware of thinking that you are tempted as no one else–what you go through is the common inheritance of the human race, not something that no one has ever before endured. God does not save us from temptations–He sustains us in the midst of them (see Hebrews 2:18 and Hebrews 4:15-16).
試探何益？
你們所遇見的試探，無非是人所能受的。 （林前十13）
[試探]一詞地位日益低落，我們很容易把這詞錯用。試探並非等於罪。凡是人，都會遇到試探。若說不會受試探，實在是自貶身價。不過，許多人所受的試探，本是不該受的。這完全是由於我們不肯讓神領我們到一個更高的境地，去面對另一種試探的緣故。
人內在的性向，就是他人的性格，決定他外在所受的試探。所受的試探是配合受試探者的本質，同時也顯出他的潛能。每一個人都有他獨特受試探的背景，試探也會沿著他主要的性向而來。
試探為人所要實現的最高目標，提供了一條捷徑－－並不是我走向邪惡，乃是朝著我認為善的方向走。試探是一些令我一時感到困惑的東西，因我不知它到底是對還是錯。向試探低頭，就是奉情慾為神；也證明過去不是沒有犯這罪，只是不敢做出來。
試探是無可避免的，對一個人的完整生命是不可或缺的。別以為從沒有人像你一樣，受到這樣的試探；你所經歷的，其實是整個人類共有的經歷，並非前所未有。神不會救我們離開試探，他乃是在試探當中救拔我們（來二18）。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，我們對你的認知，被即時的現況所堵塞，產生了窒息的感覺；求你拯救和悅納我們。
April 19, 2012
Beware of the Least Likely Temptation
Joab had defected to Adonijah, though he had not defected to Absalom —1 Kings 2:28
Joab withstood the greatest test of his life, remaining absolutely loyal to David by not turning to follow after the fascinating and ambitious Absalom. Yet toward the end of his life he turned to follow after the weak and cowardly Adonijah. Always remain alert to the fact that where one person has turned back is exactly where anyone may be tempted to turn back (see 1 Corinthians 10:11-13). You may have just victoriously gone through a great crisis, but now be alert about the things that may appear to be the least likely to tempt you. Beware of thinking that the areas of your life where you have experienced victory in the past are now the least likely to cause you to stumble and fall.
We are apt to say, “It is not at all likely that having been through the greatest crisis of my life I would now turn back to the things of the world.” Do not try to predict where the temptation will come; it is the least likely thing that is the real danger. It is in the aftermath of a great spiritual event that the least likely things begin to have an effect. They may not be forceful and dominant, but they are there. And if you are not careful to be forewarned, they will trip you. You have remained true to God under great and intense trials— now beware of the undercurrent. Do not be abnormally examining your inner self, looking forward with dread, but stay alert; keep your memory sharp before God. Unguarded strength is actually a double weakness, because that is where the least likely temptations will be effective in sapping strength. The Bible characters stumbled over their strong points, never their weak ones.
“. . . kept by the power of God . . .”— that is the only safety. (1 Peter 1:5).
絕不可能嗎？
約押雖然沒有歸從押沙龍，卻歸從了亞多尼雅。 （王上二28）
約押在大考驗中站得住，始終對大衛絕對效忠，沒有隨從那野心勃勃、欺世惑眾的押沙龍。但到了晚年，卻跟隨了貪鄙的亞多尼雅。所以要常常提高警覺；有一個人可以這樣倒退，眾人都有這倒退的可能（林前十13）。你過了大難關嗎？現在就要在最小的事上留心。那最不為人注意的小事，要懂得留心。
我們會很隨意的說：[既然經過這樣大的考驗，就不會再回到世俗中去，留戀世事了。 ]不要自以為知道試探的來源；最不可能發生的事，往往是最致命的。在一次重大的屬靈轉變過後，那隱而不露的試探就開始出現了；這不會很昭彰明顯，卻潛藏在那裡，若不警覺，就必把你絆倒。你在烈火的考驗下曾經持守純正，向神忠貞，如今卻要當心暗潮。但不必無病呻吟，內省自疚，對前途恐懼不前，只要保持警覺，在神面前有一種清晰能力。沒有防衛看守，力量就會變弱，那暗潮便會湧入，叫防守崩陷。聖經人物很多都在優點上失敗，而不是在弱點上。
[蒙神能力保守]－－這是唯一安全之方。
祈禱◆主啊，今天我要奉你的名講道；求你使它藉著你的能力而發放。使我的靈魂確實認識你，讓我在所有深入和終極的意義上只專注於你。
Joab withstood the greatest test of his life, remaining absolutely loyal to David by not turning to follow after the fascinating and ambitious Absalom. Yet toward the end of his life he turned to follow after the weak and cowardly Adonijah. Always remain alert to the fact that where one person has turned back is exactly where anyone may be tempted to turn back (see 1 Corinthians 10:11-13). You may have just victoriously gone through a great crisis, but now be alert about the things that may appear to be the least likely to tempt you. Beware of thinking that the areas of your life where you have experienced victory in the past are now the least likely to cause you to stumble and fall.
We are apt to say, “It is not at all likely that having been through the greatest crisis of my life I would now turn back to the things of the world.” Do not try to predict where the temptation will come; it is the least likely thing that is the real danger. It is in the aftermath of a great spiritual event that the least likely things begin to have an effect. They may not be forceful and dominant, but they are there. And if you are not careful to be forewarned, they will trip you. You have remained true to God under great and intense trials— now beware of the undercurrent. Do not be abnormally examining your inner self, looking forward with dread, but stay alert; keep your memory sharp before God. Unguarded strength is actually a double weakness, because that is where the least likely temptations will be effective in sapping strength. The Bible characters stumbled over their strong points, never their weak ones.
“. . . kept by the power of God . . .”— that is the only safety. (1 Peter 1:5).
絕不可能嗎？
約押雖然沒有歸從押沙龍，卻歸從了亞多尼雅。 （王上二28）
約押在大考驗中站得住，始終對大衛絕對效忠，沒有隨從那野心勃勃、欺世惑眾的押沙龍。但到了晚年，卻跟隨了貪鄙的亞多尼雅。所以要常常提高警覺；有一個人可以這樣倒退，眾人都有這倒退的可能（林前十13）。你過了大難關嗎？現在就要在最小的事上留心。那最不為人注意的小事，要懂得留心。
我們會很隨意的說：[既然經過這樣大的考驗，就不會再回到世俗中去，留戀世事了。 ]不要自以為知道試探的來源；最不可能發生的事，往往是最致命的。在一次重大的屬靈轉變過後，那隱而不露的試探就開始出現了；這不會很昭彰明顯，卻潛藏在那裡，若不警覺，就必把你絆倒。你在烈火的考驗下曾經持守純正，向神忠貞，如今卻要當心暗潮。但不必無病呻吟，內省自疚，對前途恐懼不前，只要保持警覺，在神面前有一種清晰能力。沒有防衛看守，力量就會變弱，那暗潮便會湧入，叫防守崩陷。聖經人物很多都在優點上失敗，而不是在弱點上。
[蒙神能力保守]－－這是唯一安全之方。
祈禱◆主啊，今天我要奉你的名講道；求你使它藉著你的能力而發放。使我的靈魂確實認識你，讓我在所有深入和終極的意義上只專注於你。
March 27, 2012
Spiritual Vision Through Personal Purity (2)
Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place . . . —Revelation 4:1
A higher state of mind and spiritual vision can only be achieved through the higher practice of personal character. If you live up to the highest and best that you know in the outer level of your life, God will continually say to you, “Friend, come up even higher.” There is also a continuing rule in temptation which calls you to go higher; but when you do, you only encounter other temptations and character traits. Both God and Satan use the strategy of elevation, but Satan uses it in temptation, and the effect is quite different. When the devil elevates you to a certain place, he causes you to fasten your idea of what holiness is far beyond what flesh and blood could ever bear or achieve. Your life becomes a spiritual acrobatic performance high atop a steeple. You cling to it, trying to maintain your balance and daring not to move. But when God elevates you by His grace into heavenly places, you find a vast plateau where you can move about with ease.
Compare this week in your spiritual life with the same week last year to see how God has called you to a higher level. We have all been brought to see from a higher viewpoint. Never allow God to show you a truth which you do not instantly begin to live up to, applying it to your life. Always work through it, staying in its light.
Your growth in grace is not measured by the fact that you haven’t turned back, but that you have an insight and understanding into where you are spiritually. Have you heard God say, “Come up higher,” not audibly on the outer level, but to the innermost part of your character?
“Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing . . . ?” (Genesis 18:17). God has to hide from us what He does, until, due to the growth of our personal character, we get to the level where He is then able to reveal it.
藉著個人品格而得的異象
你上到這裡來，我要……指示你。 （啟四1）
一個人的品格要習於居高，不趨於卑下，才會產生崇高的情操。要是你外在的生活，真與你最崇高的標準相稱，神就會對你說：[朋友，再高攀一點吧。 ]試探的金律是：[攀高一點。 ]當你升高了，就會碰見其他的試探，這在性質上與從前的不同。撒旦懂得用向上走的策略來試探人，神也是如此，不過效果卻有不同。當魔鬼把你放在高位，是教你對聖潔觀念的標準，固定在人血肉之軀無法忍受的地位上。這就變成屬靈的雜技表演，你只得立穩，卻不敢移動。但當神用恩典把你提升到屬天的境地，他不是找一個頂峰給你攀住，而是讓你有更廣闊的高原，可以任意驅馳。
試以這個禮拜的靈程與去年同一個禮拜作個比較，看看神怎樣領你往高處行。我們都站過高處瞭望，但千萬別讓神給你一種你不能立即活出來的真理。得了真理，總要努力去實現，而且保持在神的光中。在恩典中的長進，不是拿你有沒有後退來衡量，而是對自己現今的屬靈光景有一認知－－即站在哪裡。你聽見神對你說：[上來吧，登高一點！ ]這不是對你個人說，叫你得到更高的位置，乃是對你的品德說的，叫你在悟性上大大有長進。
[我要做的事豈可瞞著亞伯拉罕麼？ ]神往往要把他所做的向我們隱瞞，直到我們在性情品德上達到一個地步，然後他才向我們顯明。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，賜我在你裡面滿有喜樂。求你為我清楚所有的困惑、迷亂和煩擾，讓我在今天以清楚的目光看見你的道路。
A higher state of mind and spiritual vision can only be achieved through the higher practice of personal character. If you live up to the highest and best that you know in the outer level of your life, God will continually say to you, “Friend, come up even higher.” There is also a continuing rule in temptation which calls you to go higher; but when you do, you only encounter other temptations and character traits. Both God and Satan use the strategy of elevation, but Satan uses it in temptation, and the effect is quite different. When the devil elevates you to a certain place, he causes you to fasten your idea of what holiness is far beyond what flesh and blood could ever bear or achieve. Your life becomes a spiritual acrobatic performance high atop a steeple. You cling to it, trying to maintain your balance and daring not to move. But when God elevates you by His grace into heavenly places, you find a vast plateau where you can move about with ease.
Compare this week in your spiritual life with the same week last year to see how God has called you to a higher level. We have all been brought to see from a higher viewpoint. Never allow God to show you a truth which you do not instantly begin to live up to, applying it to your life. Always work through it, staying in its light.
Your growth in grace is not measured by the fact that you haven’t turned back, but that you have an insight and understanding into where you are spiritually. Have you heard God say, “Come up higher,” not audibly on the outer level, but to the innermost part of your character?
“Shall I hide from Abraham what I am doing . . . ?” (Genesis 18:17). God has to hide from us what He does, until, due to the growth of our personal character, we get to the level where He is then able to reveal it.
藉著個人品格而得的異象
你上到這裡來，我要……指示你。 （啟四1）
一個人的品格要習於居高，不趨於卑下，才會產生崇高的情操。要是你外在的生活，真與你最崇高的標準相稱，神就會對你說：[朋友，再高攀一點吧。 ]試探的金律是：[攀高一點。 ]當你升高了，就會碰見其他的試探，這在性質上與從前的不同。撒旦懂得用向上走的策略來試探人，神也是如此，不過效果卻有不同。當魔鬼把你放在高位，是教你對聖潔觀念的標準，固定在人血肉之軀無法忍受的地位上。這就變成屬靈的雜技表演，你只得立穩，卻不敢移動。但當神用恩典把你提升到屬天的境地，他不是找一個頂峰給你攀住，而是讓你有更廣闊的高原，可以任意驅馳。
試以這個禮拜的靈程與去年同一個禮拜作個比較，看看神怎樣領你往高處行。我們都站過高處瞭望，但千萬別讓神給你一種你不能立即活出來的真理。得了真理，總要努力去實現，而且保持在神的光中。在恩典中的長進，不是拿你有沒有後退來衡量，而是對自己現今的屬靈光景有一認知－－即站在哪裡。你聽見神對你說：[上來吧，登高一點！ ]這不是對你個人說，叫你得到更高的位置，乃是對你的品德說的，叫你在悟性上大大有長進。
[我要做的事豈可瞞著亞伯拉罕麼？ ]神往往要把他所做的向我們隱瞞，直到我們在性情品德上達到一個地步，然後他才向我們顯明。
祈禱◆噢，主啊，賜我在你裡面滿有喜樂。求你為我清楚所有的困惑、迷亂和煩擾，讓我在今天以清楚的目光看見你的道路。
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