Let's Pray: Lord, in our being there is the capacity to always make mistakes. We trust in You to deliver us that we may learn how to reject, how to deny, ourselves. Hymn:499 Oh, what a life! Oh, what a peace! The Christ who's all within me lives. With Him I have been crucified; This glorious fact to me He gives. Now it's no longer I that live, But Christ the Lord within me lives. (Repeat the last two lines of each stanza) Today's Verses and Footnotes: Mark 11:1-26 Key Verses: Mark 8:34 And He called the crowd to Him with His disciples and said to them, If anyone wants to follow after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. Mark 8:35 For whoever wants to save his soul-life shall lose it; but whoever will lose his soul-life for My sake and the gospel's shall save it. Life Supply: Taking up the cross is not a matter of suffering. Instead, it is a matter of applying to our life what Christ has done on the cross to terminate us. Therefore, to take up the cross is to apply this termination to ourselves. Day by day we need to apply such a termination. If we do this, we shall realize not that we are suffering, but that we are terminated, finished, put to an end. Suppose a brother says, "I thank God that, in His sovereignty, He has given me a wife who causes me to suffer and bear the cross. My wife is a cross given to me by God, and now I must bear this cross." This is a serious misunderstanding of what it means to bear the cross. A married brother does not need to learn how to suffer. Rather, he needs to realize that, as a husband, he has already been terminated in Christ and that now he should live as a terminated husband, simply enjoying Christ's termination. Then he may say to his wife, "Dear, I am not trying to be a good husband, to be a kind and gentle husband. I am here as a terminated husband. The more I am willing to experience Christ's termination, the better I shall be as a husband, for then Christ will live in me. As He lives in me, He will be your husband through me." To come after the Lord is to partake of Him, enjoy Him, experience Him, and let Him become our very being. In order to come after the Lord in this way, we need to deny ourselves. We need to apply to ourselves the termination Christ has accomplished on the cross. This means that to bear our cross is to apply Christ's termination to ourselves. When we do this, we become a crossed-out person, not a suffering person. Then we can testify, "I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me." To us, bearing the cross is to remain under the killing of the death of Christ for the terminating of our self, our natural life, and our old man. In so doing we deny our self that we may follow the Lord. (Life-Study of Mark, pp.222-223 ) Questions: 1. What is the meaning of "bearing the cross"? (See Matt. 10:38 note 1) 2. Why do we need to deny the self? (See Matt. 10:39 note 1) 3. How can we have the prayer of faith? (See Mark 11:24; James 1:6-8, 8 note 1) 　 请我们先祷告 主，在我们的所是里，有一个一直犯错的性能。我们信靠你能拯救我们，使我们学习如何拒绝我们的己，如何否认我们的己！ 　 诗歌:378♫ 何等生命！何等平安！ 基督活在我的里面！ 我已与祂同钉十架， 荣耀事实、奇妙救法！ 现在活着不再是我， 乃是基督在我活着！ 　 现在活着不再是我， 乃是基督在我活着！ 　 今日经节及注解： 可十一1～26 重点经节： 可8:34 　 可8:35 于是耶稣叫群众同他的门徒来，对他们说，若有人要跟从我，就当否认己，背起他的十字架，并跟从我。 因为凡要救自己魂生命的，必丧失魂生命﹔凡为我和福音丧失自己魂生命的，必救了魂生命 。 　 生命供应 背起十字架并不是受苦，而是把基督在十字架上为了结我们所作的，应用在我们的生活中。因此，背起十字架，就是把这种了结应用到我们身上；我们天天都需要应用这种了结。我们若这样作，就能领会我们不是受苦，乃是被了结、结束、终结。 假使一个弟兄说，"我感谢神，因着祂主宰的权柄，祂赐给我一个妻子，使我受苦，并背十字架。我的妻子是神赐给我的十字架，我现今应当背十字架。"这是对背十字架严重的误解。 已婚的弟兄不必学习怎样受苦，反而应该看见，他这个丈夫已经在基督里被了结了。现今，他活着应该是一个被了结的丈夫，简简单单的享受基督的了结。然后他会对妻子说，"亲爱的，我并不想作个好丈夫，仁慈温柔的丈夫；我要作个被了结的丈夫。我越愿意经历基督的了结，就越能作个好丈夫，因为这样，基督就会在我里面活着。祂在我里面活着，就会经过我来作你的丈夫。" 跟从主就是有分于祂，享受祂，经历祂，并让祂成为我们的所是。我们要这样跟从主，就当否认己。我们需要将基督在十字架上所完成的了结，应用在我们身上。这意思是说，背起自己的十字架就是将基督的了结应用在我们身上。我们这样作的时候，就成为一个被除掉的人，而不是一个受苦的人。这样，我们就能见证，"我已经与基督同钉十字架；现在活着的，不再是我，乃是基督在我里面活着。" 对我们来说，背十字架乃是留在基督之死的杀死里，以了结我们的己、天然生命和旧人。我们这样作就是否认己，使我们能跟从主。（马可福音生命读经，第二五二至二五四页。） 　 问答: 1、 背起十字架的意义为何？（参读 太十38注1。） 2、 我们为什么需要否认己？（参读 太十39注1。） 3、 我们如何有信心的祷告？（参读 可十一24，雅一6～８，8注1） 　 明天:房角的头块石头 No Longer I but Christ