荣耀主名
吴霞 传道
经文:马太21:1-11节
这一周是纪念主耶稣为我们受难,被钉,受苦,埋葬,复活的日子,今天是受难周的第一日,我们的主一步一步走向各各他,走向S字J。今天是主耶稣骑驴荣耀地进入耶路撒冷圣城。星期一:洁净日(太21:12-17)星期二:权柄的教训(太21:27-23:39)星期三:阴谋陷害耶稣(太26:1-5)星期四:最后的晚餐(太26:17-29)星期五:耶稣基督受难(太27:47-56)星期六:耶稣被葬坟墓(太27:57-66)星期天:耶稣基督复活。在这一周,让我们有更多的安静,默想,更多亲近主,思考当如何作,才能使主名得着当得的荣耀呢?
一.忍耐等候,荣耀主名
这只驴何时栓在那里,圣经并没有明说,这只驴一直在默默等候,等候主来用他,等候主来骑它荣耀地进入耶路撒冷。如圣经赛40:31所记:“但那等候耶和华的,必从新得力……”“等候我的必不致羞愧。”(赛49:23)等候神是我们必须学习的功课,也是很难学习的。当我们遭遇危险患难、受人欺侮或渴望得到一样好处却总是得不到时,无法忍耐等候神;当我们不等候神的时候,忙乱慌张,魔鬼撒旦就来引诱我们去做很多头脑清醒时绝对不会做的事情,引诱我们到罪恶和祸患中,失去神的祝福和恩典。
扫罗王从一种极好的地步坠落到极坏的地步,诱使他堕落的第一步,并非其它的罪,而是不等候神,没有忍耐等候,自己擅自献祭,被神废弃了王位。亚伯拉罕渴望得一个儿子,好承受神的应许,但他的妻子已经绝了生育的盼望,他没有再等候,却听了妻子的话,纳了夏甲为妾。结果造成了以撒的后裔犹太人和以实玛利的后裔阿拉伯人,几千年来相争不断,残杀不断,这也是没有等候神的应许,按自己的方式行事的恶果。
许多时候,我们为了暂时的好处,采取了神不喜悦的方法和手段,虽然可能有一些暂时的功效,但却因此招来了无穷的祸患和痛苦。因此,在我们的生活中,无论大事小事,一定要学习等候神才能荣耀主名。
二.谦卑顺服,荣耀主名
主为何不骑马,而骑驴呢?因驴谦卑顺服,主的名得荣耀。“神阻挡骄傲的人,赐恩给谦卑的人。”(雅4:6下)宇宙间的第一个罪就是骄傲——当天使长骄傲地想与上帝同等时,就堕落成了撒但。人类历史上第一个罪也是骄傲,当亚当夏娃想吃分别善恶树上果子的时候,就是有了骄傲的心了——想有与上帝一样的智慧。惟有当我们谦卑下来的时候,才能看到人的无知和神的荣耀。
有位外国牧师在监狱中探访犯人,传福音,却时常被捉弄。有次,甚至被泼了一身的粪便。牧师不但没有生气,反而很慈爱的对捉弄他的那人说:“上帝爱你。”那个犯人顿时非常羞愧,谦卑了下来,才觉得自己是多么的无知,而神是那样的荣耀。
莫勒在见证中提到,他在完全的顺服之后,才成为一个终生快乐的人。弟兄姐妹们,你们有没有完全顺服神呢?
这只驴愿意顺服主,栓在那里等候主,愿我们也谦卑顺服,让神用救恩的红线,爱的金线,望的银线将我们栓在S字J上,让主得到当得的荣耀。
三.感恩赞美,荣耀主名
我们常因为一些琐事无法感谢赞美神,如同以色列人一般。哈巴谷书1:1-4节,先知向神质问了许多问题,当神叫他向列国观看时,他豁然开朗了——永恒的神在万国中默默地掌权,所以在各样艰难困苦当中,他都赞美神。(参哈3:17-19)
着名学者沙亨利家曾遭劫,他不但不难过,反而写下一段感恩的话:我要感谢神,因为(1)我从未被抢劫过;(2)他们虽然抢了钱,但没有伤害我的命;(3)我的资财并没有被抢光;(4)我是被抢的,不是抢人的。所以凡事都要感谢主。
其实,我们该感谢的太多了!我们生活在地球上,曾缴过房租、地租吗?我们可曾购买过人生的入场券吗?可曾预定过阳光,函购过月色吗?对于我们每一秒都在使用的空气,我们纳过税吗?如果要用金钱计算,一个人要献出多少金钱,才能购买神的恩典呢?可是神的恩典却是白白地赐给我们,我们真是当感谢赞美神!
感谢神,在这个日子里,让我们更多的学习忍耐等候,谦卑顺服,感恩赞美,使主名得荣耀,我们也更多得着主的祝福和恩典。愿神祝福弟兄姐妹!
Give Glory to God
By Pastor Wu Xia
Bible Verse Reading: Mathew 21: 1-11
This week is the memorial time for Jesus Christ, who suffered and was crucified, tortured and buried, then resurrected for us. Today is the first day of the Week of Suffering, when our Lord headed for Golgotha, where he was to be crucified on the cross. It is also the day when Lord Jesus entered the holy city of Jerusalem on a donkey. Monday: Jesus cleanses the temple (Mathew 21: 12-17); Tuesday: teaching on the authority (Mathew 21: 27-23: 39); Wednesday: the plot to kill Jesus (Mathew 26: 1-5); Thursday: the last supper (Mathew 26: 17-29); Friday: the death of Jesus (Mathew 27: 47-56); Saturday: the burial of Jesus (Mathew 27: 57-66); Sunday: the ressurection of Jesus. During this week, let us have more peace and meditation, and come closer to our Lord, thinking what we shall do to glorify God.
I. Wait with patience, and give glory to God
The Bible did not state clearly when the donkey was tied there. Anyway, this donkey has been waiting patiently for the Lord to use it, for him to mount on it to enter Jerusalem triumphantly. As is written in Isaiah 40: 31: "but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength…" and "those who wait for me shall not be put to shame." (Isaiah 49: 23). Hard though it may be, we should learn to wait for God. Often we get impatient and fail to wait for God when we run into danger or disaster, or when we are insulted or fail to attain our heart's desire. Under such circumstances, we would be overwhelmed by panic, thus Satan would come to tempt us to do what we could not have done when we are sober, therefore, seducing us into evildoing and distress, cutting us off from God's blessings and grace.
The ultimate reason that lead to King Saul's declining from the summit to the abyss is not any other sins, but that he did not wait for God patiently, instead, he offered sacrifice by himself and was deprived of the throne by God. Abraham expected for a son to live to God's promise. However, his wife was too old to bear a child, so instead of waiting for God, he listened to his wife and took her maid Hagar as concubine. Thus, leading to endless fighting and killing between the offsprings of Isaac the Jews and the offsprings of Ishmael the Arabians. This is also the consequence of acting on one's own without waiting for God's permission.
Many times, for some temporary benefits, we take means and methods that are not pleased with God. Though they may have some effect for the time being, they bring about endless distresses and sufferings. Therefore, in our daily life, whenever we encounter significant matters or trivial things, we should learn to wait for God, thus glorifying God.
II. Be humble and obedient, thus giving glory to God.
Why not the Lord rode a horse, but a donkey? Because donkey is humble and obedient, God's name is glorified by it. "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble." (James 4: 6). The first sin in the universe is pride when the head of the angels was so arrogant as to want to be equal with God; hence he was degraded to be Satan. The first sin of human is pride, too. When Adam and Eve desired for the fruit on the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, pride entered their hearts they wanted to be as wise as God. Only when we lower ourselves can we see the ignorance of human and the glory of God.
In Mole's (莫勒) witness, he said that only after he was completely obedient, did he become happy throughout his life. Brothers and sisters, are you perfectly obedient to God?
The donkey was willing to be obedient to God, tied to the tree waiting for Him. May all of us be humble and obedient, letting God tie us to the Cross with the red thread of salvation, golden thread of love, and silver thread of hope. All the Glory to God!
III. Give thanks, praise, and glory to God.
Quite often, like those of Israel, we fail to praise God due to some trifles. In Habakkuk 1: 1-4, the prophet raised a good many questions to God, when God asked him to look at the nations, he got an insight suddenly-the living God is having dominion over the nations quietly, so under all kinds of disastrous circumstances, he should always praise God (Ref. Habakkuk 3: 17-19).
The noted scholar Sha.Henry's (沙亨利) house was once broken into, instead of grieving, he wrote down his grateful words: I should thank God, for first, I had never been robbed before; second, though they robbed me of money, they spared my life; third, my properties are not robbed up, finally, I am the robbed, not the robber. So we should give thanks to God for everything.
Indeed, there are too much for which we should be thankful! Have any of us who live on the Earth ever paid any rent for our dwelling place and the land we use every day? Have we bought the ticket for access to life? Have we booked the sunlight or bought the moonlight by mail? As to the air that we breathed all the time, have we paid any tax? Should all these be charged in money, how much shall we pay for God's grace? Yet, God gives His grace to us freely, shouldn't we give our hearted thanks to God?
Praise God! On this special day, let us learn how to be more patient while waiting for God, how to be humble and thankful, thus glorifying God's name. And may God bestow more blessings and grace on all of us.
(The information above is provided according to the recorded message of the sermon.)
(根据录音整理)