12月23日

標　　題：屬靈的檢驗

經　　節：耶穌的智慧和身量，並神和人喜愛祂的心，都一齊增長。（路加福音二章52節）

我們習慣以許多方式來衡量自己的進展。在學校有考試，在工作場合有考績，身體的健康狀況也有醫生檢查。然而，我們可能從未衡量自己靈性的成熟及社交的成長。當耶穌由嬰兒、幼童、青少年到成年，神與人喜愛祂的心，隨著祂的身量一齊增長。人們愈認識耶穌，他們愈信任祂。他們愛慕祂的智能和感激祂的憐憫。同樣地，當耶穌與天父的關係繼續成長，祂一直討天父的歡喜。

使徒保羅說，當他剛信主的時候，他的行為好象屬靈的嬰孩。然而，當他的信心漸漸成熟時，他的行為開始像屬靈的成人（哥林多前書十三：11）。在作嬰孩的時候，言行像嬰孩並無不妥，但竭力進到完全的地步，是每個信徒的責任（希伯來書六：1）。

當你初信主之時，不總是知道如何以靈裡成熟的方式與人相交。你可能與嫉妒、憤怒或不饒恕奮戰。但是，當你與基督同行的時間愈久，應該愈會像祂一樣與人相交。當你與基督的形像愈一致，天父愈滿意你的順服，就像天父滿意祂的愛子一樣。偶爾衡量自己的靈命是有助益的。評估靈性成長的好方法，是詢問身邊成熟的基督徒，自己的言行是否顯露出靈性的成熟。求神評估你的靈性是否成熟，是絕對有必要的。不完全與神相交的關係，永遠不會使你滿足的。

The Wisdom of Spiritual Checking

And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men. (Luke 2:52)

We are accustomed to having our progress measured in many ways. We are given tests in school, evaluations at work, and physical examinations by our doctors. Yet we may never measure our spiritual or social growth. As Jesus grew from an infant to a child to a youth to an adult, he “increased in stature” with God and men. The better people knew Jesus, the more they trusted Him. They admired His wisdom and appreciated His compassion. Likewise, as Jesus grew in His relationship with His heavenly Father, He continued to please Him.

The apostle Paul said that when he was a new Christian, he behaved as a spiritual child, but as he matured in his faith, he began to act like a spiritual adult (1 Cor. 13:11). There is nothing wrong with acting like a baby when you are an infant, but it is the obligation of every believer to strive for maturity (Heb. 6:1).

When you are a new believer, you will not always know how to relate to others in a spiritually mature way. You may battle with envy, anger, or unforgiveness. But the longer you walk with Christ, the more you should relate to others as He does. As you are conformed to the image of Jesus Christ, your heavenly Father will become increasingly satisfied with your obedience to Him, as the Father was with His Son. It is helpful for you to measure the progress in your spiritual life from time to time. A good way to evaluate your spiritual growth is to ask mature Christians around you if your actions reveal spiritual maturity. It is imperative that you ask God to evaluate your spiritual maturity and that you never become satisfied with less than a fully developed relationship with God.