1891.1 苦难的祝福

shiyi18

作者：J. Hudson Taylor。
" 耶和华所赐的，耶和华所夺的；耶和华的名是应当称颂的"--约伯记第21章。在对第一篇诗篇的几次冥想中，我们都谈到了 "有福的繁荣"。但神的所有交易都充满了祝福：他是好的，并且行善，只行善，并且不断地行善。以主为牧者的信徒可以肯定地说，正如诗篇第二十三篇所说的那样，"良善和怜悯必终生跟随我，我要住在耶和华的殿中，直到永远；"或者，采用修订版的旁注，"只有良善和怜悯必跟随我。" 因此，我们可以肯定，逆境的日子和繁荣的日子都是充满祝福的。信徒不需要等到他看到上帝对他施舍的原因时才感到满意；他知道万事都互相效力，使爱上帝的人得益处，而且上帝的所有交易都是一位慈爱的父亲的交易，他只允许暂时是痛苦的，以达到无法用不那么痛苦的方式实现的结果。神的智慧和信任的孩子在磨难中欢欣鼓舞，"知道磨难使人忍耐"，经验和希望--一种 "使人不觉得羞耻的希望；因为神的爱藉着所赐给我们的圣灵，流传在我们心里"。约伯的历史充满了启发性，应该教给我们许多具有深刻意义和巨大利益的教训。约伯的面纱从看不见的世界中被揭开了，我们了解到我们伟大的对手的力量，但也了解到他在没有上帝我们的父亲的允许下的无能。
在第一章第8节中，上帝亲自向他的仆人作了见证。"有一月，189 1.
中国的百万人口。
地上没有一个人像他一样，是个完全正直的人，是个敬畏上帝，避开邪恶的人。
在第二章第三节中，祂重复了同样的见证，并补充说："虽然你感动我反对他，要无缘无故地消灭他，但他仍然坚持这个正直。" 没有什么比这更能证明上帝的恩典使约伯过上的生活了：就他的生命和精神而言，降临在他身上的责罚被宣布为是无缘无故的。让我们感谢上帝，使约伯在很久以前就能过上讨上帝欢心的生活并得到他反复称赞的恩典是不变的，而且我们也可以通过它过上使我们必须面对的上帝满意的生活。撒旦经常会在悲伤和考验的时候骚扰信徒，让他认为上帝对他很生气--这是对某些未知罪行的惩罚，许多本来可以享受的舒适和安慰可能因此被蒙蔽。我们难道不能从神的话语中看到，他就像一位高兴的父亲，乐于鼓励健康的儿子进行一些需要艰苦努力和精心训练的运动壮举？或者，鼓励他通过长期艰苦的学习来准备一个困难的文学考试，知道他将从他的成就中获得荣誉和永久的好处？因此，我们的天父乐于把一个值得信赖的孩子托付给他，在这个考验中，他可以为上帝带来巨大的荣耀，通过这个考验，他将获得永久的心灵成长，并为自己和他人带来祝福。以亚伯拉罕为例。神是如此地信任他，以至于他不惧怕召唤他的仆人献出他的爱子。在约伯的例子中，不是撒旦在约伯的问题上挑战神，而是神在挑战大敌，指责弟兄的人，在他的性格中找出任何缺陷，或在他的生活中找出失败。在每一种情况下，恩典都取得了胜利，在每一种情况下，耐心和忠诚都得到了丰厚的回报；但关于这一点，稍后再说。撒旦的回答是值得注意的。他不需要问 "哪个约伯？"或 "他住在哪里？
" 他已经考虑过上帝的仆人，显然知道他的一切。他怎么会如此熟悉这位上帝的忠心之人呢？可能是这样来的：那些显然是在撒旦控制下的邪恶的从属灵，曾试图用普通的方法来诱惑这位族长，但没有成功。可能是向一些主要的邪恶势力报告他们的不成功，这些人也尝试了他们的恶魔之术，但没有成功地引导约伯偏离他的正直。最后，伟大的宿敌自己也发现，他自己所有的努力都不能有效地骚扰和误导上帝的爱徒。他发现在他周围，在他的仆人周围，在他的房子周围，在他所有的每一面，都有一道篱笆，这道篱笆是如此坚固，以至于他无法突破，如此高，以至于他像一头咆哮的狮子，无法跃过，也无法在上帝保护的圈子里带来灾难。住在这样的保护之下是多么幸福的事啊！约伯的手所做的工作，在他看来是 "不可能的"。约伯的手所做的工作有了进展，他的物质在这块土地上增加了，他成为东方所有男人中最伟大和最优秀的。因为在那一天，神在很大程度上（尽管不是唯一的）通过赐予世俗的祝福来表明他的认可。
难道现在就没有类似的精神祝福可以享受吗？感谢上帝，有的。每一个信徒都可以像约伯一样安全地得到保护和充分的祝福，尽管可能不是以同样的方式，但约伯可以从敌人的力量中解救出来，并被保存在一个完美和平的魅力圈中。. 让你们的节制[你们的温柔，或屈服]为众人所知。主就在眼前"。不是指 "抵抗邪恶的力量 "和 "维护自己的权利"，而是指你屈服的精神，相信主会为你维护所有真正对你有利的东西；而且在任何情况下，他都在身边，很快就会对他的命令给予充分的回报。最后，"凡事都要谨慎，凡事都要藉着祷告和祈求，存着感恩的心，把你们的要求告诉神。神那超乎万物的平安，必藉着基督耶稣保守你们的心。" 为什么信徒们常常不能享受这种应许的祝福呢？难道不是因为我们没有做到无忧无虑，没有做到凡事以感恩的心祷告祈求在神面前？我们可能会把十个困难中的九个带到他面前，并试图自己处理第十个困难，而那一个小困难，就像一个小漏水点，使船只干涸，对整个船只是致命的；就像城墙上的一个小缺口，它给敌人的力量提供了入口。但如果我们满足了这些条件，他肯定是信实的，而不是我们必须保持我们的心和思想，我们的情感和思想，我们会发现它们为我们保持。我们既不能制造也不能保持的平安，本身就会像守卫一样守住并保护我们，而忧虑和烦恼将徒劳地进入。



~g$te$$eb $lbvex$itx?.
By J. Hudson Taylor.
" The LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the Name of the LORD"—Job i. 21. IN several meditations on the first Psalm we have dwelt on " Blessed Prosperity." But all God'sdealings are full of blessing : He is good, and doeth good, good only, and continually. Thebeliever who has taken the Lord as his Shepherd, can assuredly say in the words of the twentythird Psalm, " Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwellin the house of the Lord for ever ; " or, taking the marginal reading of the Revised Version, " Onlygoodness and mercy shall follow me." Hence, we may be sure that days of adversity, as well as days ofprosperity, are full of blessing. The believer does not need to wait until he sees the reason of God'safflictive dealings with him ere he is satisfied ; he knows that all things work together for good to them that love God, and that all God's dealings are those of a loving Father, who only permits thatwhich for the time being is grievous in order to accomplish results that cannot be achieved in any less painful way. The wise and trustful child of God rejoices in tribulation, " knowing that tribulationworketh patience," experience, hope—a hope that " maketh not ashamed ; because the love of Godis shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us." The history of Job is full of instructiveness, and should teach us many lessons of deep interest andgreat profit. The veil is taken away from the unseen world, and we learn much of the power of ourgreat adversary, but also of his powerlessness apart from the permission of God our Father.
In the 8th verse of the 1st chapter, God Himself bears testimony to His servant: "that there is January, 189 1.
China's Millions.
none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil
and in the 2nd chapter and 3rd verse, He repeats the same testimony, adding : " still he holdeth fasthis integrity, although thou movedst Me against him, to destroy him without cause." Stronger testi-mony to the life which God's grace enabled Job to live can scarcely be imagined : the chastisementthat came upon him is declared to have been without cause so far as his life and spirit were concerned.Let us thank God that the same grace which enabled Job so long ago to live a life that pleased Godand received His repeated commendation, is unchanged, and that by it we may also live lives that willbe well-pleasing to Him with whom we have to do. Satan would very frequently harass the believer in times of sorrow and trial by leading himtothink that God is angry with him—that this is a punishment for some unknown offence, and manyofthe comforts and consolations that might otherwise be enjoyed may thus be clouded. Do wenotrather see from the Word of God that He is like a glad Father, delighting to be able to encourageastrong healthy son to undertake some athletic feat which will entail arduous effort and careful training?Or, to stimulate him to prepare for a difficult literary examination by a prolonged and toilsome courseof study, knowing he will obtain honours and permanent advantage from his attainments? So, ourHeavenly Father delights to trust a trustworthy child with a trial in which he can bring great glory toGod, and through which he will receive permanent enlargement of heart, and blessing for himself andothers. Take the case of Abraham : God so thoroughly trusted him, that He was not afraid to callupon His servant to offer up his well-beloved son. And here in the case of Job, it was not Satan whochallenged God about Job, but God who challenged the arch-enemy, the accuser of the brethren, tofind any flaw in his character, or failure in his life. In each case grace triumphed, and in each casepatience and fidelity were abundantly rewarded ; but more of this anon. The reply of Satan is noteworthy. He does not need to ask " Which Job ? " or " Where doeshe live ?
" He had considered God's servant, and evidently knew all about him. How came it thathe was so well acquainted with this faithful man of God ? It may have come about in this way : thosesubordinate spirits of evil who are evidently under the control of Satan, had in vain tried ordinarymeans of temptation with the patriarch. Probably reporting their want of success to some of theprincipalities and powers of evil, these likewise had essayed their diabolical arts, but had not succeededin leading Job to swerve from his integrity. Last of all, the great arch-enemy himself had found allhis own efforts ineffectual to harass and lead astray God's beloved servant. He found a hedge aroundhim, and about his servants, and about his house, and about all that he had on every side—an entrench-ment so strong that he had been unable to break through—so high that, going about as a roaring lion,he had been unable to leap over, or to bring disaster within the GoD-protected circle. How blessed it must have been to dwell so protected ! The work of Job's hands was prosperedhis substance increased in the land, and he became the greatest as well as the best of all the menofthe East. For in that day God manifested His approval largely, though not solely, by the bestowaloftemporal blessings.
Is there no analogous spiritual blessing to be enjoyed now-a-days ? Thank God, there is. Everybeliever may be as safely kept and as fully blessed, though, perhaps, not in the same way, as Jobmay be delivered from the power of the enemy, and preserved in a charmed circle of perfect peace.The conditions are simple, and are given us by the Apostle Paul in the 4th chapter of Philippians, v. 4-7," Rejoice in the Lord alway. . . Let your moderation [your gentleness, or yieldingness] beknown unto all men. The Lord is at hand." Notjyowr " power of resistance of evil," and of " maintaining your own rights," but your spirit of yieldingness, believing that the Lord will maintain for youall that is really for your good ; and that in any case, He is at hand, and will soon abundantly rewardfidelity to His command. And lastly, " Be careful for nothing ; but in everything by prayer andsupplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God,which passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." Howisit that believers so often fail to enjoy this promised blessing ? Is it not that we fail to be anxiousfor nothing, and to bring everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving before God ? Wemay bring nine difficulties out of ten to Him, and try to manage the tenth ourselves, and that onelittle difficulty, like a small leak that runs the vessel dry, is fatal to the whole ; like a small breach in acity wall, it gives entrance to the power of the foe. But if we fulfil the conditions, He is certainlyfaithful, and instead of our having to keep our hearts and minds—our affections and thoughts—weshall find them kept for us. The peace which we can neither make nor keep, will itself, as a garrison,keep and protect us, and the cares and worries will strive to enter in vain. (To be continued.)