八月二十八日
點燈的油。（出25:6）。
我的心哪！你需要多少，因爲你的燈沒有油就不能再點了。你的燈芯一冒烟，在黑暗中就得碰壁；若沒有油，燈就滅了。你不能從你的本性中涌出油來，因此你必須到賣油的那裏去爲自己買油，不然你必像愚拙的童女一樣地嘆息：“我們的燈要滅了。”就是聖所裏的燈若沒有油也不能發光；雖然它們是在會幕之中，但它們也得常添油；雖然沒有暴風吹拂它們，但也須常修剪，你的需要也是這樣大。在惡劣的環境中你不能放光，除非另有恩典的新油加給你。
幷非隨便什麽油都可用以服侍主；地裏涌出的大量的礦物油，魚類出的動物油，或是各種核仁所出的植物油，都不能用；只有一種油可用，那就是上等的橄欖油。從人本性中所出的僞裝的恩德，祭司手上來的幻想的恩，以及外表上禮儀的想像的恩，神的聖徒都不能用這些；他知道就是這些油像江河那麽多，神也不喜歡。他只要客西馬尼園的橄欖所壓出的油，他必須從被壓榨的主那裏取油。福音的恩油是清潔沒有渣滓的，因此它發出的光是清楚光明的。我們的教會是救主的金燈檯，若它們要在暗世放出亮光，就必須多用這聖油。我們要爲自己、爲牧師、爲教會禱告，願他們的燈不缺油。真理、聖潔、快樂、知識、仁愛，這些都是聖燈所發出的光綫，但我們自己若不藉著神的聖靈得到這油就不能放出這樣的光來。
August
28
"Oil
for the light." -- Exodus 25:6
My soul, how much thou needest this, for
thy lamp will not long continue to burn without it. Thy snuff will smoke and
become an offence if light be gone, and gone it will be if oil be absent. Thou
hast no oil well springing up in thy human nature, and therefore thou must go
to them that sell and buy for thyself, or like the foolish virgins, thou wilt
have to cry, "My lamp is gone out." Even the consecrated lamps could
not give light without oil; though they shone in the tabernacle they needed to
be fed, though no rough winds blew upon them they required to be trimmed, and
thy need is equally as great. Under the most happy circumstances thou canst not
give light for another hour unless fresh oil of grace be given thee.
It was not every oil that might be used in the Lord's service; neither
the petroleum which exudes so plentifully from the earth, nor the produce of
fishes, nor that extracted from nuts would be accepted; one oil only was
selected, and that the best olive oil. Pretended grace from natural goodness,
fancied grace from priestly hands, or imaginary grace from outward ceremonies
will never serve the true saint of God; he knows that the Lord would not be
pleased with rivers of such oil. He goes to the olive-press of Gethsemane, and
draws his supplies from Him who was crushed therein. The oil of gospel grace is
pure and free from lees and dregs, and hence the light which is fed thereon is
clear and bright. Our churches are the Saviour's golden candelabra, and if they
are to be lights in this dark world, they must have much holy oil. Let us pray
for ourselves, our ministers, and our churches, that they may never lack oil
for the light. Truth, holiness, joy, knowledge, love, these are all beams of
the sacred light, but we cannot give them forth unless in private we receive
oil from God the Holy Ghost.
8月28日清晨甘露
.