10月1日
超升的領域
耶穌帶著彼得、雅各、約翰暗暗地上了高山……(可九2)
我們都有過山上的經歷--從神的觀點看事物,於是就想留在那裡不再下來。可是,神絕不容許我們留在那裡。屬靈生命的考驗,是看你下山以後的能力。若只有上山才有能力,那就有點不對勁了。在神的山上,固然好極了,但上山的目的,是叫人以後下來到被魔鬼轄制的人中間,把他們向上推。我們不是為山峰、晨曦、美景而造,那些只是感性的時刻。我們乃是為山谷而造,為那日常平凡的事而造,為要考驗我們的能力。屬靈的自私總是盼望可以重演山上的經歷,以為只要留在山上,就可以說話生活如天使一般。其實,高峰的生活是例外的,在與神的相交中有它的作用;但必須當心,別讓屬靈的自私把高山的經歷視作唯一去追求的東西。
我們常以為凡事都是為教導我們,但其實比教導更好的,就是使凡遭遇的變成我們的個性。山頂的經歷不是要教導我們,乃是要塑造我們。“這事有什麼用處?”這樣問有很大的危險。屬靈的事不是這樣計算的。山頂上的經歷是罕有的,是神為特別的目的而設的。
祈禱◆主啊,我最渴望的,是在你裡面生根建造--以神為中心,專注於神,熱心於神和愛神。我的靈魂何等渴望認識你,並且得著平靜。
October
1 The Sphere Of Exaltation
“Jesus
leadeth them up into a high mountain apart by themselves.” Mark 9:2
We have all
had times on the mount, when we have seen things from God's standpoint and have
wanted to stay there; but God will never allow us to stay there. The test of
our spiritual life is the power to descend; if we have power to rise only,
something is wrong. It is a great thing to be on the mount with God, but a man
only gets there in order that afterwards he may get down among the
devil-possessed and lift them up. We are not built for the mountains and the
dawns and aesthetic affinities, those are for moments of inspiration, that is all.
We are built for the valley, for the ordinary stuff we are in, and that is
where we have to prove our mettle. Spiritual selfishness always wants repeated
moments on the mount. We feel we could talk like angels and live like angels,
if only we could stay on the mount. The times of exaltation are exceptional,
they have their meaning in our life with God, but we must beware lest our
spiritual selfishness wants to make them the only time.
We are apt
to think that everything that happens is to be turned into useful teaching, it
is to be turned into something better than teaching, viz., into character. The
mount is not meant to teach us anything, it is meant to make us something.
There is a great snare in asking – What is the use of it? In spiritual matters
we can never calculate on that line. The moments on the mountain tops are rare
moments, and they are meant for something in God's purpose.