生命的經歷(六): 天然的厲害

林前二14      然而屬魂的人不領受神的靈的事，…並且他不能明白，因為這些事
是憑靈看透的。


林後三5~6     並不是我們憑自己夠資格將甚麼估計作像是出於我們自己的；我們
之所以夠資格，乃是出於神；他使我們夠資格作新約的執事，這些執事不是屬於字
句，乃是屬於靈，因為那字句殺死人，那靈卻叫人活。


對付己和對付天然，這兩個經歷在屬靈的事上，都占極重要的地位。這不僅和生命
有關係，更是和事奉有關係。己和天然的對付，是我們在神面前事奉的準備。我們
要有合神心意的事奉，己和天然的對付，是絕不可少的（生命的經歷下冊，三○八
頁）。


我們要來看在神的事上，我們天然人的無能、〔不夠資格，〕…我們可能在別的事
上很充裕，但在神的事上卻是缺乏、無能。…墮落人類的靈已經死了（弗二1、5上），
所以在神的事上毫無用處。


今天在基督教里，大多數的事奉不是在魂里就是在肉體裡。這就是為甚麼我們必須
看見，我們天然的人在事奉的事上是無能的。我們要使聖徒們有深刻的印象：我們
的肉體不能服神，也不能得神的喜悅。


然後聖徒們可能會問：『怎樣才是在肉體裡？』我們該告訴他們：『只要你不在靈
里，就是在肉體裡。』


我們應該領悟：在神的事上我們不能信靠我們天然的人。腓立比三章三節保羅說，
『真受割禮的，乃是我們這憑神的靈事奉，在基督耶穌里誇口，不信靠肉體的。』
不信靠肉體就是不信靠我們天然的人。


我們必須學習在一切事上，拒絕我們天然的人，並操練我們的靈。神的救恩使我們
的靈成為我們裡面的人（弗三16）。這含示我們的靈乃是我們的新人位，作我們的
一切。事實上，我們不該活另一個人；我們只該活裡面的人。


我們的靈敬拜、禱告，這靈該在我們基督徒的生活和事奉中，領頭作每一件事（事
奉的基本功課，一四一、一四三、一四五頁）。


新約沒有給我們老舊所是的任何一部分留下餘地。主耶穌的話和使徒保羅的著作說
出在神的經綸里，我們老舊的所是沒有一點該存留。我們需要領悟，神的經綸完全
是一件新造的事。我們老舊的所是必須撇在一旁。


在主的恢復里，雖然我們老舊的所是沒有地位，但以新造的意義而言，我們在教會
中有一席之地。我們這蒙了重生，正在得聖別、被變化、被模成，並得榮耀的人有
其地位，但我們需要看見，我們天然的人沒有地位。


我們沒有一人能說自己已經完全變化了；我們多少仍有些天然。我們需要看見，在
教會生活中，任何天然的事物都沒有地位，但因著我們還在變化的過程中，所以我
們仍不知不覺、不經意的有點天然。


主恢復中的眾教會是基督活的身體的一部分，會自動拒絕任何天然的事（關於長老
職分的基本原則，一四二至一四三、一四九至一五○頁）。


要叫教會得建造，就不能不提起…破碎的問題。你我若是要被建造在一起，你我大
家就都得被破碎。沒有破碎，就沒有建造。你破碎了一點，我也破碎了一點，你我
才能建造在一起。


在教會的建造里，我們天然的每一點也都得經過破碎，才能和別人聯在一起。無論
是我們的幹才，我們的眼光，還是我們的熱心，凡是天然的都是不合用的，都得經
過破碎，然後才能被建造（神的建造，八二頁）。


參讀：事奉的基本功課，第十六、二十課。



English versiom


1 Cor. 2:14 "But a soulish man does not receive the things of the Spirit 
of God,...and he is not able to know them because they are discerned spiritually.
"


2 Cor. 3:5-6 "Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to account anything 
as from ourselves; but our sufficiency is from God, who has also made us 
sufficient as ministers of a new covenant, ministers not of the letter but 
of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life."


    Dealing with self and dealing with the natural constitution are of extreme 
importance in spiritual experience. They are related not only to life but 
also to service. Dealing with self and dealing with the natural constitution 
are preparations for our service to God. If we wish to have the kind of 
service
according to God’s heart desire, dealing with self and the natural constitution 
is a must. (The Experience of Life, p. 253)


    We want to see the impotence, [the insufficiency], of our natural being 
in the things of God....We may be very sufficient in other things, but we 
do not have any sufficiency, competence, or power in the things of God....The 
spirit of fallen mankind has been deadened (Eph. 2:1, 5a), so it is useless 
in the things of God.


    In today’s religion of Christianity, most of the service is either in 
the soul or in the flesh. This is why we have to see the impotence of our 
natural being for our service. We need to impress the saints that our flesh 
cannot be subject to God and cannot please God. Then the saints may ask, 
“What is it to be in the flesh?” We should tell them, “As long as you are 
not in the spirit,you are in the flesh.”


    We should realize that we cannot have any trust in our natural being 
in the things of God. In Philippians 3:3 Paul said, “For we are the circumcision,
 the ones who serve by the Spirit of God and boast in Christ Jesus and have 
no confidence in the flesh.” To have no trust in our flesh is to have no 
trust in our natural being.


    We have to learn to reject our natural being and exercise our spirit 
in everything. God’s salvation makes our spirit the inner man (Eph. 3:16). 
This implies that our spirit is our new person as everything to us. Actually,
 we should not live another man; we should live only the inner man. Our 
spirit
worships, prays, and should take the lead to do everything in our Christian 
life and service. (Basic Lessons on Service, pp. 126-128)


    The New Testament leaves no place for any part of our old being. The 
speaking of the Lord Jesus and the writings of the apostle Paul show that 
in God’s economy nothing of our old being should remain. We need to realize 
that God’s economy is altogether a matter of the new creation. Our old being 
must be put aside. Although there is no place for our old being in the Lord’s 
recovery, in the sense of the new creation there is a place for us in the 
church.There is a place for us as regenerated persons who are being sanctified,
transformed, conformed, and glorified, but we need to see that there is 
no place for our natural man.


    None of us can say that we are fully transformed; we are all still somewhat 
natural. We need to see that in the church life there is no place for anything 
natural, yet because we are in the process of being transformed, we are 
still unconsciously and unwillingly somewhat natural. The churches in the 
Lord’s
recovery, as parts of the living Body of Christ, will spontaneously reject 
anything that is natural. (Basic   Principles concerning the Eldership, 
pp. 120-121, 127)


In order for the church to be built up, we have to touch the matter of being 
broken. If we want to be built together, we all have to be broken. If there 
is no breaking, there is no building. You and I can be built together only 
after you and I both have been broken a little....In the building of the 
church, every natural thing in us must be broken before we can be joined 
with others. Everything natural in us, whether it is our ability, our discernment,
 or our zeal, is unsuitable to be used for the building. We can be built 
only after we have been broken in our natural being. (The Building Work 
of God, pp. 62-63)


Further Reading: Basic Lessons on Service, lsns. 16, 20


- 未完待續

對付我們的天然而活在復活裏