【读圣经学英语】 一条新诫命

【读圣经学英语】 一条新诫命

约翰福音-John 13 章 33~38节

13:33 孩子们,我还有不多的时候与你们同在,以后你们要找我,但我曾对犹太人说过,如今也照样对你们说,我所去的地方,你们不能到。
Little children, I am still with you a little while; you will seek Me, and even as I said to the Jews, Where I am going, you cannot come, now I say to you also. 
13:34 我赐给你们一条新诫命,乃是叫你们彼此相爱,正如我爱你们,为使你们也彼此相爱。
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 
13:35 你们若彼此相爱,众人因此就认出你们是我的门徒了。
By this shall all men know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another. 
13:36 西门彼得问耶稣说,主啊,你往那里去?耶稣回答说,我所去的地方,你现在不能跟我去,后来却要跟我去。
Simon Peter said to Him, Lord, where are You going? Jesus answered him, Where I go you cannot follow Me now, but you will follow later. 
13:37 彼得说,主啊,我为什么现在不能跟你去?我愿意为你舍命。
Peter said to Him, Lord, why can't I follow You now? I will lay down my life for You. 
13:38 耶稣回答说,你愿意为我舍命么?我实实在在的告诉你,鸡叫以前,你要三次不认我。
Jesus answered, Will you lay down your life for Me? Truly, truly, I say to you, A rooster shall by no means crow until you deny Me three times.

Enlightenment:

Each of us must learn how to love the brothers and sisters by ministering the spiritual foot-washing to them. Sometimes when I come to visit you, you can minister some sort of foot-washing to me by showing your love toward me, and I have to show the same love toward you so that some foot-washing will be ministered to you to cleanse you from the earthly touch. We must do this, otherwise the fellowship between us could not be maintained. Fellowship can be maintained between one another only when love ministers such a foot-washing. Many times I have enjoyed the spiritual foot-washing from quite a number of brothers and sisters. It is impossible to tell you how many times I have experienced this kind of foot-washing. More than twenty-five years ago when I was working with the leading co-workers such as Brother Watchman Nee and others, I received much help by this kind of foot-washing from them. Every time I contacted them, I sensed some sort of foot-washing to keep me clean from the earthly touch. They loved me and showed their love to me by ministering the spiritual foot-washing to cleanse me from the earthly touch.

By putting these principles into practice, we shall see how real they are. You can simply apply them in your home life and in your church life from this very hour. Immediately, you will then minister some sort of foot-washing and wiping to your brothers and sisters. This is what we need. This is the real love that maintains the fellowship among us. It is by this kind of foot-washing and wiping that the spiritual fellowship can maintain the church life. Without it, the church life cannot be maintained, because the fellowship will have been damaged by the earthly touch. We need the spiritual foot-washing to cleanse us from the earthly touch and to keep our spiritual fellowship in a good condition. Then it is possible to realize the church life. If the church life is to be kept fresh, new, pleasant, and living, we continually need this foot-washing. Every local church needs this. In the churches on the West Coast, the Lord has been very gracious to us. Although we have not used the term foot-washing, the Lord has continually kept the church life here fresh and new by the foot-washing with the living water of life. We do not talk about it and we do not use this term, but there has been the reality of foot-washing in the water of life constantly. So, we can boast of His grace that the churches here are ever new, ever fresh, and ever living. In the matter of fellowship, there is no frustration among the saints. Every church needs to pray for this. Then the church will be preserved in newness and freshness.

Peter was in the genuine fellowship with the Lord, and the Lord’s washing did keep him in this fellowship. He was willing to remain in this fellowship with the Lord, but he failed by denying the Lord three times when the Lord was being tried. Peter had the desire to remain in the fellowship, but he did not have the strength to do it, because, before the Lord’s resurrection, His resurrection life had not been imparted into him. To remain in the fellowship of the Lord maintained by the foot-washing requires the strength of resurrection life. We can never do it by our natural man.

亮光

我们每个人都必须学习如何爱弟兄姊妹,给他们属灵洗脚的服事。有时我来看你,你可以表示对我的爱,藉此给我某种的洗脚。我也必须向你表示同样的爱,也给你一些洗脚的服事,洗净你属地接触的污秽。我们必须这样作,不然我们之间的交通就不可能维持。只有在爱中这样给人洗脚的时候,彼此之间的交通才可能维持。

你可以从此刻起,就将这些原则应用在你的家庭生活和召会生活中。立刻你能对弟兄姊妹有某种洗脚和擦拭的服事。这是我们所需要的。这是真正的爱,使我们中间的交通得以维持。藉着这种洗脚和擦拭,属灵的交通就能维持召会的生活。缺了这个,召会生活就不能维持,因为交通会被属地的接触所破坏。我们需要属灵的洗脚,好洗净我们属地接触的污秽,并且保守我们属灵的交通在美好的情况中。这样才可能实现召会生活。召会生活若要保持新鲜、愉快、活泼,我们就不断需要这种洗脚。每个地方召会都需要这个。

彼得真正在与主的交通里,主的洗涤也的确保守他在这交通里。他愿意留在这与主的交通里,但主受审时,他三次否认主而失败了。彼得渴望留在交通里,但他没有力量这样作,因为在主复活以前,祂复活的生命还未分赐到他里面。要留在主的交通里,并且藉洗脚得维持,就需要复活生命的力量。我们绝不能凭天然的人作到。