| 2020 Prayer Week Sermon” |
2020年祷告周讲道 |
| David Livingston January 5, 2020 |
大卫·利文斯顿 2020年1月5日 |
| Luke 18:1-8 |
路加福音18:1-8 |
| 1 And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. 2 He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. 3 And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ 4 For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’” 6 And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge says. 7 And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? 8 I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” |
1 耶稣对他们讲一个比喻，论到人必须常常祈祷，不可灰心。 2 他说：“某城里有一个法官，不惧怕 神，也不尊敬人。 3 那城里有一个寡妇，常常来到他那里，说：‘求你给我伸冤，使我脱离我的对头！’ 4 他多次不肯，后来心里说：‘我虽然不惧怕 神，也不尊敬人， 5 只是因为这寡妇常常来麻烦我，就给她伸冤吧，免得她不断地来缠扰我。’” 6 主说：“你们听听这不义的法官所说的话吧。 7 难道 神不会为昼夜呼吁他的选民伸冤吗？ 难道 神会耽误他们吗？ 8 我告诉你们，他要快快地给他们伸冤。然而人子来的时候，在世上找得到这种信心吗？” |
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| Introduction |
引言 |
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| Today is the first of two the Sundays of Prayer Week. For decades the sermons that start the New Year have been about Scripture (God’s voice to us) and Prayer (our voices back to him). Scripture and Prayer, and more specifically, God’s promises to us in Scripture and God’s Spirit in us prompting and perfecting our praying . . . these are His ordained way for God’s supernatural grace to flow into our lives so that we may be distinguished in this world as His children. |
今天是祷告周两个主日的第一个。几十年来我们新年的讲道总是从经文（神对我们说话）和祷告（我们回应神）开始。经文和祷告，或更具体地说，神在经文中对我们的应许和神的灵在我们里面催促我们祷告并使我们的祷告完全。这些是祂所命定的方式，神的超自然恩典注入我们的生命以便我们作为祂的儿女在这个世界上分别为圣。 |
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| And so, this morning we begin on our knees before God in prayer, asking in particular that God would give us a greater heart for prayer in 2020 . . . souls/inner beings, as Jesus intended, that always pray and do not lose heart . . . Let’s bow your heads as ask for His help to be this kind of persistent prayers, “Father for . . . |
因此，今天早上我们跪在神面前以祷告开始，特别地祈求神赐予我们在2020年有一个更加迫切祷告的心。灵魂/内在，如耶稣所指的，常常祈祷而不灰心。让我们低下头，祈求神帮助我们持续不断地这样祈祷：天父， |
| • My own and other’s personal needs |
我自己和他人的个人需要 |
| • More power for godly living in the Holy Spirit |
在圣灵里更有能力敬虔生活 |
| • Greater progress in the spread of the gospel here at home and toward the world’s unreached and unengaged peoples |
在这里，在家里，乃至在世界上的福音未及未达之民那里福音的传播有更大的进展 |
| • Doing all for the greater glory of Your Holy Name! Amen. |
我们所做的一切为你的圣名得着更大荣耀！阿们！ |
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| Perseverance described . . . |
坚持不懈是指…… |
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| To persevere at something implies, on the one hand, an admirable character quality, namely, it connotes a person who simply refuses to be discouraged. Persistent failure, doubts, and difficulties do not conquer such an individual, but rather, there is in such men and women what amounts to a steadfast, dogged pursuit of whatever the prize, the goal, the objective may be. Such persevering souls in this admirable sense are the kind of patient and courageous people who can rise to heroic stature. There is nothing of the coward in them . . . they stand to their post in obedience to their duty! |
于某事上坚忍意味着，一方面，是一种值得敬佩的品格，亦即，它意味着一个人拒绝灰心丧志。不断的失败、疑惑和困难都打不倒这样的人，这样的男人或女人身上表现出来的是百折不挠，穷追不舍地奔向目标。这种值得敬佩的坚忍灵魂是那种有耐心和毅力的人，可赢得英雄般的声望。他们里面没有怯懦……他们屹立不倒，服从使命。 |
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| On the other hand, such die-hard, hold-out people can just as easily seems to us (and actually be) quite disagreeable and downright annoying pests. They aren’t heroic . . . instead, they’re stubborn and immoveable and obstinate. They bother us like . . . |
另一方面，这种死硬派，绝不让步的人也很容易让我们觉得（实际上也是）不易相处、固执己见的讨厌鬼。他们不是英雄，而是顽固不化、愚顽不灵。他们让我们厌烦，就像…… |
| • a pestering neighbor who comes knocking at your door at midnight, asking for a favor, long after you’ve gone to bed, or |
一个烦人的邻居在半夜里你上床睡觉很久以后来敲门求你帮忙 |
| • a irritating woman who won’t leave us alone with how she is being victimized, harping on having been cheated, demanding her “day in court,” and fraying our nerves with her constant insistence that we look at the compelling evidence she presents in pleading for justice! |
一个恼人的妇人，总是不停地向我们唠叨她如何受害，喋喋不休地说她如何被骗，不断地要求申辩的机会，坚持不懈地折磨我们的神经，要求我们看她呈上的确凿证据以伸张正义。 |
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| Perseverance personified . . . |
坚持不懈的代表人物 |
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| But speaking of compelling evidence, Jesus used exactly those two unlikely characters to persuade us that they are in fact role-models to become like in our praying. |
但说到确凿的证据，耶稣恰恰用这两个看似不可能的人物来劝诫我们应该在祷告实践中学习这两个人的好榜样。 |
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| Jesus introduced them in two parables in Luke’s Gospel. Both parables have the same interpretation which the Lord made explicit in this morning’s text: Luke 18:1. “And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lost heart.” To reinforce this intended effect on his disciples (and on us) Jesus made his stories more easily memorable by creating a set of hypothetical people in each parable. In each, there is a clash between just two characters: |
耶稣在路加福音的两个比喻里引入这两个人。主对这两个比喻有同样的解释，这清楚地显明在今天早上的经文里：路加福音18:1。“耶稣对他们讲一个比喻，论到人必须常常祈祷，不可灰心。”为了强调祂期望对门徒（也对我们）所达到的效果，耶稣在每个比喻中创造了一对假想的人物，让故事容易记住。每个故事中，都有两个人物的冲突： |
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| 1. The Aggravating Friend & His Put-Upon Next-door Neighbor |
1.让人恼火的朋友和被他盯上的邻居 |
| 2. The Heartless Judge & the Helpless Widow |
2.无情的法官和无助的寡妇 |
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| Good stories have tension and conflict in them, and Jesus is the best story-teller. So, both stories are a battle of wills. Since they are about prayer, you’d expect that one person is asking for something and the other is holding out. |
好的故事都有张力和冲突，耶稣是最擅长讲故事的人。所以，两个故事讲的都是两个意志之间的争战。既然它们和祷告有关，你就该预期其中一个人在求什么，而另一个人提供什么。 |
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| The Neighborly Tug-of-War |
邻居拉锯战 |
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| Turn to chapter 11 for a look at the parable about a “neighborly tug-of-war” where we’re introduced to our first prayer-model. Observe in . . . |
请翻到第11章，看“邻居拉锯战”的比喻，这向我们介绍了第一种祷告模式。请观察： |
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| • vs. 1 that Jesus’ own personal example of praying provoked a request that produced one of the great teaching texts on prayer in the whole Bible: “Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of the disciples said to him, ‘Lord, teach us to pray, as John [the Baptist] taught his disciples.’” |
第1节，耶稣自己祷告的榜样引发了门徒的请求，从而带出整部圣经关于祷告最伟大的经文之一：“有一天，耶稣在一个地方祈祷，祈祷完了，有一个门徒对他说：‘主啊，求你教导我们祷告，像约翰教导他的门徒一样。’” |
| • Vss. 2-4 here is Jesus’ template or model for praying . . . the 6-petition “staple prayer” the Christian church has memorized and recited now for two millennia since! Can you count the six desires? God’s name, kingdom, will . . . and our bread, forgiveness and guidance. Next comes . . . |
2-4节，耶稣讲了祷告的模板或模型，就是基督教会2千年来记忆背诵的6项主要祷告请求。你能数出6种欲望吗？神的名、国度、旨意……和我们的饮食、赦罪和带领。接着是…… |
| • Vss. 5-8 Here he is, Jesus’ parabolic “point-man” for persevering prayer: “And he said to them, ‘Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him; and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’? I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence (rudeness, presumption, disrespect, nerve, boldness) he will rise and give him whatever he needs.’” So, here’s the strange comparison Jesus was willing to make: he is willing to risk us momentarily seeing God as the “put-upon, justifiably aggravated neighbor” who is being imposed upon, and you and I need to become God’s “aggravating midnight trouble-makers”! Our prayers need to give God no rest. According to . . . |
5-8节，这是耶稣关于持续不懈祷告的比喻中的尖兵人物：“耶稣又对他们说：“你们当中，谁有朋友半夜去找他，说：‘请你借给我三个饼， 6 因为我有一个朋友旅行来到我这里，我没有甚么可以招待他。’ 7 而他却在里面回答：‘不要麻烦我，门已经关好了，孩子也跟我在床上了，我不能起来拿给你。’ 8 我告诉你们，即使不因为他是朋友而起来给他，也会因为他厚颜地直求，而起来照他所需要的给他。”所以，这里是耶稣所要作的奇怪比较：祂宁愿冒着风险让我们暂时把神当作“被央求，被惹恼的邻居”，而你和我需要成为“恼人的夜半扰邻者”！我们的祷告要不给神喘息的机会。根据…… |
| • Vss. 9-10 they are to become a non-stop i) asking till we receive, ii) seeking till we find, and keep on knocking till God gets up, opens the door, and gives us what we refuse to be denied. But then, the picture shifts totally from neighbors to family in . . |
9-10节，祷告变成无何止的1）祈求，直到我们得着，2）寻找，直到我们寻见，不停地叩门，直到神起来开门，把我们死乞百赖所求的给我们。然后画面从邻居转向家里…… |
| • Vss. 11-13 Now, God is no longer our neighbor; He’s our Father, and the best of Fathers, far better than any and all human dads. Even bad dads give good things to their children when they ask. But God is not a bad dad. Jesus wants us to feel hopeful when we pray, to overcome our skepticism about prayer or our impatient inclination to give up. Look at the last half of v. 13: “ . . . how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” |
11-13节，现在神不再是我们的邻居，而是我们的父亲，最好的父亲，远远好于任何一个人类父亲。哪怕是坏爸爸也把好东西给孩子，只要孩子们求。但神不是个坏爸爸。耶稣要我们在祷告的时候感到充满希望，克服我们关于祷告的疑惑或缺乏耐心，总想放弃。请看第13节的后半：“何况天父，岂不更把圣灵赐给求他的人吗？” |
| i. He is our great, “How much more God”!, He is our . . . |
i.祂是更好的，“何况”祂是我们的…… |
| ii. “Heavenly Father”, and He alone has what only God can give, namely, He will give us the . . . |
ii.“天父”，只有祂拥有神所能赐予的，就是说，祂将赐我们…… |
| iii. Holy Spirit . . . Jesus is portraying his Father as saying, “Please children . . . ask me, even risk pestering me . . . give me no rest till I give you what you most need from Me . . . so much more than bread to set before an unexpected guest or a fish or an egg to feed a hungry child . . . indeed, “how much more”, the Holy Spirit in all His varied Counseling, Comforting, Convicting, Companioning presence in your heart, your home, all along your pathway . . . in all your days and for the whole of your lifetime conscious experience! Come to me even like that desperate neighbor in the night! You’ve got my fatherly promise: I don’t ignore my children. I will give you what you ask for, or something better, though not necessarily easier, if you will keep on trusting me”. |
iii.圣灵……耶稣把祂的父描绘成：“请孩子们祈求我，哪怕冒着纠缠我的风险，不停地来打扰我，直到我把你们最需要从我这里得到的东西……何止是不速之客面前的面包，或是给饥饿孩子吃的鸡蛋……真的，“何况”圣灵，祂各样的咨询、安慰、确信、在你心中和家中一路同行的陪伴……在你一切时日乃至一生中经历祂。来向我求，甚至像那半夜恳求的邻居！你们已经得到了我作为父亲的应许：我不会不管我的孩子们。我将赐予你们所祈求的，甚至更好，虽然未必更容易，只要你们一直信靠我。” |
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| But what if the stakes we are facing in prayer are higher than the story of this late-night ruckus in the neighborhood? What if the issue isn’t a matter of simple hospitality, but one of life and death, and the tension isn’t whether or not we’ll get something to feed an unexpected guest, but whether I and my household will survive? |
要是我们在祷告中所面对的是比故事中夜半扰邻更急迫的事情呢？要是事情不仅仅是关乎款待客人，而是生死悠关，并且问题不仅仅是我们拿什么给不速之客吃，而是关系到我和我全家能否存活？ |
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| Such is the seriousness of persevering prayer as we meet with . . . |
这就是持续不懈祷告的严肃性，当我们遇到…… |
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| A Heartless Judge and the Helpless Widow |
一个无情的法官和无助的寡妇 |
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| Luke 18:2-3 “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ For a while he refused . . . ” |
路加福音18:2-3“某城里有一个法官，不惧怕 神，也不尊敬人。 3 那城里有一个寡妇，常常来到他那里，说：‘求你给我伸冤，使我脱离我的对头！’ ” |
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| With this economy of words Jesus painted a desperate and despicable picture. On the one hand, here is a judge who is this widow’s only hope. Yet, he’s the last sort of man who should ever sit in judgment of others because he’s neither godly nor kind, with no time for anyone but himself. And on the other hand, repeatedly irritating him is a woman, already second-class no doubt to him, and a defenseless widow at that, with no husband to protect her against an adversary who has unjustly victimized her. |
耶稣惜墨如金地描绘了一幅绝望与卑鄙的画面。一方面，这里有个法官是这个寡妇的唯一指望。然而他既不敬神，也不仁慈，对人的疾苦不闻不问，只顾自己。另一方面，不断打扰他的是一个寡妇，她对他而言无疑是低人一等的，作为一个无助的寡妇，她没有丈夫来保护免受冤家对头的欺负。 |
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| What does she having going for her? Nothing but her persistence; yet what she has she uses, not to cry for vengeance, but only for justice. So that, (v. 4) “. . . afterward he [the judge] said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’” And see how v. 6 begins: Jesus breaks into the story to make unmistakable what he was driving at from the start: the immense value, power and necessity of prayer that is insistence and persistent, pestering and clamoring, unrelenting and forceful, avid and annoying, and only a hair’s breath just short of demanding . . . “importunate” (as the KJV rendered it) until God answers. “Hear what [even this godless, heartless} unrighteous judge says. And [learn by infinite comparison from the One who is absolutely nothing like that little judge . . . ] will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night. Will he delay long over them? I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily.” |
她还能有什么办法呢？除了坚持不懈，她别无所有。而她所用的手段，并不是呼求报仇，只是要公正。因此（第4节）“他……后来心里说：‘我虽然不惧怕 神，也不尊敬人， 5 只是因为这寡妇常常来麻烦我，就给她伸冤吧，免得她不断地来缠扰我。’”再看第6节如何开始：耶稣闯进故事中，把故事的意图说得清清楚楚：祷告的巨大价值、能力及必要性就在于执著坚定、不离不弃、死乞百赖、大声疾呼、不屈不挠、竭尽全力、如饥似渴、不厌其烦、一息尚存央求不止……“胡搅蛮缠”（正如英皇钦定本所用的词），直到神应允。“你们听听这[不敬神不仁义]不义的法官所说的话吧。 [神与这小法官没有一丝相似之处，从这无限的对比中知道] 难道 神不会为昼夜呼吁他的选民伸冤吗？ 难道 神会耽误他们吗？ 我告诉你们，他要快快地给他们伸冤。” |
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| Like Parable # 1 this is another “how much more” persuasive argument. If this disreputable, unjust judge could be worn down by the tenacious, tireless, stubborn, dogged, determined pleadings of this helpless woman whom he cares nothing for, how much more will God, who, by comparison, is perfect in character and who elected us in love before the foundation of the world to be His children, speedily give us what we need, IF AND WHEN we call on him “day and night,” like the widow did with the heartless judge. |
正如第一个比喻，这里是又一个“何况”式的说服论证。如果这个声名狼藉、不公不义的法官尚且能被一个他漠不关心的无助寡妇坚韧不拔、不知疲倦、坚持不懈、穷追不舍、坚定不移的求告搞得招架不住，更何况神，相比较而言，在品格上完美纯全，祂在创世之前就因着爱而拣选我们作祂的儿女，祂要快快地赐予我们所需要的，只要我们“日日夜夜”求告祂，就像那寡妇对无情的法官所做的那样。 |
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| The Relation of Prayer to Faith |
祷告与信心的关系 |
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| One final point to make about these parables before turning to some applications: It is the relationship of our prayers to our faith . . . and particularly this kind of prayer, namely, persistent prayer, and the crucial question of whether our faith, like persistent prayer, is itself persistent. Is the kind that lasts . . . that endures . . . that perseveres . . . and therefore, ultimately the kind that saves? It is only that kind of faith that will matter when Jesus comes back. When Jesus returns will he find us, you and me, exercising saving, enduring faith toward him? Jesus asked that very question of his disciples as he finished telling them this parable about persistent prayer; see the second half of v. 8: “Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” |
在转到应用环节之前，关于这些比喻还有最后一个要点：就是我们的祷告与我们的信心之间的关系……尤其是这种祷告，即坚持不懈的祷告，以及我们的信心是否像这种坚持不懈的祷告一样坚持不懈，这是个关键的问题。我们的信心是不是那么持久、坚忍、执著，因此最终是那种得救的信心？当耶稣再来时，只有那种信心才是有用的。当耶稣再来时，祂会不会看到我们，你和我，正向祂持守得救、坚忍的信心？耶稣在说完关于持续祷告的比喻时问门徒的正是这个问题；请看第8节的后半：“然而人子来的时候，在世上找得到这种信心吗？” |
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| And that question ends a discussion about Jesus’ return that began when the Pharisees brought up the subject back in chapter 17, verse 20. Here’s a rapid-fire summary of the intervening verses: |
回顾17章20节，当法利赛人提起那个话题时，那问题就以关于耶稣再来的讨论结束。以下是这些经节的速写： |
| • (20-21) “When is the kingdom of God coming?” Jesus’ answer: “It’s here in your midst . . . (by implication, “I’m the King . . . if only you had eyes to see.” |
（20-21节）“神的国甚么时候来到呢？”耶稣回答：“神的国就在你们里面……（意味着“我是王，你要有眼睛才能看见。”）” |
| • (22-24) But when I, the Son of Man, come it will be no hidden secret, but instead like lightning flashing across the sky. |
（22-24节）但当我，人子，再来时就没有隐藏的秘密，而是像电光划过天空一样 |
| • (26-30) And what will the days be like leading up to the cataclysm? Like the days Noah and of Lot before the flood and before the destruction of Sodom & Gomorrah . . . “Business as usual . . . utterly ordinary: “eating & drinking, marrying and being given in marriage . . . buying and selling, planting and building.” But the day Noah entered the ark, the flood came and destroyed them all . . . on the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all! |
（26-30节）末日灾变快来时是什么样的？就像挪亚的时代和罗得的时代一样，在洪水之前和所多玛及蛾摩拉毁灭之前……人们照常买卖，吃喝嫁娶，买卖，耕种，建造。但当挪亚进入方舟那天，洪水来了，他们全部灭亡。当罗得离开所多玛那天，火与硫磺从天而降，他们全部灭亡！ |
| • (31-37) A solemn warning to avoid perhaps the most terrible threat of all, not the danger of being persecuted or the risk of succumbing to some obvious sinful temptation, but something much more pervasive and seemingly innocent, namely, being like Lot’s wife. And what killed her? The spiritual suicide of over-attachment to her home, to life as it is here and now, the ordinary, routine, comfortable things that she just had to have just one last look at. Somehow what she could see had blunted her heart to the prize of the unseen God. She had lost the battle to remain distinctive as a follower of the God is Israel and become a citizen of the city of Sodom. |
（31-37节）需要避免的严重警告，也许是所有威胁中最可怕，不是受逼迫的危险，或屈从于罪的诱惑，而是更普遍得多，且貌似无辜的情况，亦即，像罗得的妻子一样。是什么杀了她？那是属灵的自杀，她过于贪恋她的家园，贪恋此时此地的生活，日常、平凡而舒适的一切，她只想看最后一眼。她肉眼能见的使她的心迟钝，看不见那不可见之神的奖赏。保持自己分别为圣作一个神的追随者是一场战斗，她失败了，她成了所多玛的居民。 |
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| So, what remedy did Jesus positively prescribe to endure to the end, what therapy for being found with faith and love, and “fire alarm” to alert and awaken us against becoming like Lot’s wife and left behind in judgment? His prescription for persevering faith was persevering prayer. The two stand and fall together . . . daily, earnest, expectant, hopeful, persevering prayer . . . we cannot be saved without it. |
耶稣所开的补救处方是什么？内心保持信与爱的治疗方案是什么？唤醒我们不要像罗得妻子被落在审判中的火灾警报是什么？祂为坚持不懈的信心所开的药方就是坚持不懈的祷告。二者同起同落。日常的、诚恳的、充满期待和盼望的、坚持不懈的祷告……没有它我们就不可能得救。 |
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| Perseverance in practical application |
实际应用中的坚持不懈 |
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| And not I want to frame this morning’s closing applications around the beginning, the middle, and the end of our lives as a journey of persistent prayer, from first bud to fruit-bearing maturity. In fact, it is possible that I’ve been given the privilege of the pulpit this morning just because, at least by age, I’m one of your elders who has lived long enough to belong the senior class, a supposed prayer-veteran with transferrable experiences from my prayer life’s starting, its middle stages . . . and now, a week and a day shy of beginning my 75th year of earthly life, hastening on toward graduation where all of this life’s prayer sessions of faith will come to an end, and my conversations with God will be face-to-face. |
我不想用以我们生命作为持续祷告之旅的开始、中间和结尾作为今天早上结束应用的框架。事实上，我被授以今天早上讲台的殊荣只因我的年龄。我是你们的长老之一，活得够长，属于老年阶层，被认为是个祷告老兵，在我祷告生涯的开始、中间……以及现在，有些可传授的经验。再过一周零一天我就步入75岁，我的生命正在快速走向毕业季，那时此生的信心祷告功课行将结束，我与神的对话很快要变成面对面的方式。 |
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| Among the many biblical pictures God gives us for grasping our status and our calling with him (as sheep, trees, grass & a vapor), here are three such images roughly corresponding to the start, middle and end of a typical earthly life, and to which the calling to persistently pray can easily be connected? We belong to God as i) his children, we’ve been enlisted as ii) his soldiers and we run to the finish line as iii) his marathon-running followers. So, at the start, you must begin as . . . |
神在圣经中给了我们许多象征，让我们掌握我们的身份与呼召（如羊、树、草及朝雾），其中有三个象征大致对应着地上生命的开始、中间和结尾阶段，和持续祷告的呼召也容易关联起来。我们属于神作1）祂的儿女，我们被征募作2）祂的士兵，我们跑终点线作3）祂的马拉松跟跑者。所以，一开始，你们必要作为…… |
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| 1. A Child of God |
1.神的儿女 |
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| My eyes and heart are especially on the youngest people in the room (and in my hearing) right now. Though this applies to all ages because this is a standing and calling which can be obtained in oldest age, with your dying breath, and once received with never end to all the rest of this life and into the eternal ages to come. However, none of us is born a “child of God” in any true spiritual sense. To become a child of God (or a “Christian” in this world) you must intentionally become one, like becoming an engineer or a nurse. |
我的心和眼此时特别落在你们最年轻的人身上（我也在听）。尽管这适用于所有年龄，因为即使最老的人在临死的残喘中也能获得这样的立场与呼召，一旦获得在此最后的余生就不会失去，马上进入即将来临的永生。然而，我们没有人，在何种属灵的意义上，生来是“神的儿女”。要成为神的儿女（或一个“基督徒”在这个世界里），你必须有意地成为其中一员，就像成为一个工程师或护士。 |
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| You must reckon with the reality of the Lord Jesus Christ, be aware of his living presence in your life, not just accompanying you, but confronting you; you must thank him for dying for your sins, and stop disobeying and even defying his claims on you. You must trust him as your Savior and Lord, embracing him as your friend and guide and guardian. It will mean giving up whatever keeps you from him because you realize he is God’s greatest Gift to you and your highest Treasure. |
你必须倚靠主耶稣基督的现实，明白祂的在你生命中的临在，不仅仅是陪伴你，而且监督你。你必须感谢祂为你的罪而死，停止悖逆，不再违抗祂对你的宣召。你必须信靠祂作你的救主和主，拥抱祂作你的良友、向导和护卫。这意味着要放弃任何使你与祂隔离的东西，因为你认识到祂是神赐予你的最伟大礼物，是你最宝贵的财宝。 |
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| Whether all this happens in a memorable experience of crisis and decision or by a gradual process over a period of time or even as a combination of both crises and gradual development, God means for you to know that it certainly has happened and that now you are a different person on the inside than what you once were. |
不管这一切发生在一个可记得的危机和决志的经历，或经过一段时间的逐渐进展，或者是危机及渐进的组合，神的意思是要你知道它确实发生了，现在的你里面是一个新人，和以往不同了。 |
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| Children, from the first time you were taught to recite them till now the serve as Jesus’ model for your daily prayers, the six petitions of the Lord’s Prayer have been designed by Jesus to center your minds and hearts on God’s greatest and on His goodness. [Children, of all ages, but especially the young children, will you repeat them after me? . . . Let’s start with the first three, one at a time . . . and you grown-up children, don’t drown out the little ones]. Here we go . . . On His greatness! [Repeat them after me . . . ] |
孩子们，你们从第一时间就被教导要背诵下来直到现在作为耶稣为你们日常祷告所作的示范的主祷文六项祈求，是由耶稣设计用来让你的心和脑都集中在神的伟大与良善。[孩子们，不管多少年纪，尤其是年轻的孩子们，要不要跟我一起来背诵？让我们从前三项开始，一次一项……你们这些大孩子们，声音不要盖过小孩子们]。好，让我们从祂的伟大开始[跟我背诵] |
| 1. Our Father who art in heaven/hallowed be Thy name, |
1.我们在天上的父，愿人都尊你的名为圣 |
| 2. Thy kingdom come, |
2.愿你的国降临 |
| 3. Thy will be done, |
3.愿你的旨意行 |
| And now the second three, no less about His greatness, but also to bring home to our hearts that we can trust in God’s goodness to us . . . [using “sins” & “sinned” . . .and here we go with #4] |
现在是第二个三项，祂的伟大没有丝毫减少，同时也把我们的心带到神对我们的良善 |
| 4. Give us this day our daily bread, |
4.我们日用的饮食今日赐给我们 |
| 5. And forgive us our sins/ as we forgive those/ who have sinned against us, |
5.免我们的罪，如同我们饶恕所有亏负我们的人 |
| 6. And lead us not into temptation/ but deliver us from evil. |
6.不要让我们落入试探，救我们脱离凶恶 |
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| Children, are you a “child of God”? Have you begun to be saved? If you are not yet, you can be. Jesus in fact wonderfully promised, “Whoever humbles himself like a child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven . . . and “Let the children come to me” (Mt. 18:4). |
孩子们，你是一个“神的儿女”吗？你开始得救了吗？如果你还没有，你可以。事实上耶稣应许说：“凡谦卑像这小孩子的，他在天国里是最大的……”（马太福音18:4） |
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| You can be at peace with God. In your ongoing childlike dependence lies the foundation for a lifetime of praying, praying that begins and ever grows in confidence and power. In secret you can confide in Him as your heavenly Father who will reward you openly . . . you can pour out your heart to him, no longer anxious or doubtful about Him or His willingness to help because you know He is lavishly generous . . . He is the “how much more heavenly Father . . . the speedily giving justice to His elect Father” whom Jesus’ parables have revealed to you! |
你可以和上帝和好。你赤子般的依赖奠定了一生祷告的基础，祷告是开端，也会在信心和能力上不断成长。在暗中你信靠祂为天上的父，祂必公开地奖赏你。你可以向祂敞开心扉，不再担心或怀疑祂是否愿意帮助你，因为你知道祂的爱如潮水倾泄。祂是“何况天父，快快地给祂的选民伸冤”的父，就是耶稣的比喻向你启示的那位父。 |
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| 2. In Mid-Life: A Kingdom Soldier |
2.在中年：一位神国的战士 |
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| By becoming Christians we have walked into a war, and the sooner your realize it the better. And while it is a life of peace with God through His Son, Jesus, a life of safety and protection in the almighty arms and the lavish heart of our heavenly Father, it is also a long-drawn out fight against the world, the flesh and the Devil. You need grace as power against . . . |
成为基督徒就意味着步入战争，你越快知道这一点越好。一方面这是一个藉着耶稣与神和好的生命，在我们天父全能臂膀保护下的生命，有天父全心爱我们，一方面也是一场漫长的战争，与世界，与肉体，与魔鬼争战。你需要恩典的能力用来反对…… |
| 1. The Flesh: our own inner satanic “second self” of self-serving pride and inclinations is still there. Dragging us down at least in thought and all too often in actual misbehavior. |
1.肉体：我们自己内在属撒旦的“第二自我”自私的骄傲和性向还在那里。至少在思想里把我们向下拖拽，也常常让我们有错误的行为。 |
| 2. The World: with all its multiplying and ever-deepening satanic systems of injustice, two of which we’ve consciously set ourselves to fight as a church for years: the injustices and blatant idolatries of . . . |
2.世界：不义的撒旦体系在不断地增长和深化，其中有两项多年来我们作为教会特别有意识地与之争战：不义和露骨的偶像崇拜： |
| i) taking innocent human life while it is still in the womb |
i）杀害还在胎中的人命 |
| ii) of de-humanizing individuals, families and whole societies of God’s image-bearers into inferior classes on the basis of skin-color, culture, gender, religion or economic status. |
ii）基于肤色、文化、性别、宗教或经济地位把一些上帝形像的承载者在个人、家庭甚至整个社会层面上非人化，把他们归为低等阶级。 |
| 3. The Devil: that powerful and evil intelligence who is always at work orchestrating attacks against us both through the circumstances and conditions around us (the world), and the pride and prejudice within us (the flesh). |
3.魔鬼：那强大而邪恶的精灵总是藉着我们周遭的环境和条件（世界）和我们内在的骄傲与偏见（肉体），向我们发动进攻。 |
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| So, when we became God’s children He simultaneously equipped us to service as soldiers and has sent us to war. And a critical piece of our equipment for the fight is prayer . . . lifelong prayer. Our friend and pastor, John Piper has memorably written that the purpose of prayer is “to accomplish a mission . . . a mission of love—“This I command you, to love one another.” He went on to elaborate, |
所以，当我们成为神的儿女，祂即刻装备我们成为战士，派我们上前线。我们的战斗装备中关键的一个是祷告……终其一生的祷告。我们的朋友和牧师，约翰派博让人印象深刻地写道，祷告的目的是“完成使命……爱的使命——“我把这些事吩咐你们，是要你们彼此相爱。”他继续解释道： |
| “It is as though the field commander (Jesus) called in the troops, gave them a crucial mission (go and bear fruit), handed each of them a personal transmitter coded to the frequency of the general’s headquarters, and said, ‘Comrades, the general has a mission for you. He aims to see it accomplished. And to that end he has authorized me to give each of you personal access to him through these transmitters. If you stay true to his mission and seek his victory first, he will always be as close as your transmitters, to give tactical advice and to send in air cover when you need it.” (Desiring God, p. 146). |
“仿佛战场指挥官（耶稣）呼召部队，给他们一个重要的使命（去，结果子），交给每人一个发报器，调好军官指挥部的频道，然后说：‘同志们，将军交给你们一项任务，要你们完成。为这个目的，他授权给我，让我把这些能直接与他对话的发报器交给你们。如果你忠于他的使命，首先寻求他的胜利，他就像你的发报器那样靠近你，给你战术指导，在你需要的时候给你派来空中掩护。”（《渴慕神》146页） |
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| More Piper sound bites: |
更多派博妙语： |
| • “Life is war . . . . we see repeatedly in Scripture that prayer is a walkie-talkie for warfare, not a domestic intercom for increasing our conveniences. The point of prayer is empowering for missions . . . |
生命就是战斗……我们不断地在经文中看到祷告是战斗中的步话机，不是只为提供方便的家庭内部通话系统。祷告的目的是为宣教使命加油 |
| • “No amount of getting can satisfy the soul until it overflows in giving. And no sacrifice will destroy the soul-delight of an obedience people on a mission of love from God, for which prayer is his strategic provision. [So for our own endurance to the end in loving others and toward the fulfillment of God’s plan for all history . . . ] |
无论获取多少都无法满足灵魂，直到它满溢为奉献。要是一个人顺服于上帝爱的使命，就没有什么牺牲能破坏他灵魂的喜乐，祷告是他的战略供应。 |
| • “What will be the final joy of God’s people? . . . Will it not be the day when our mission is completed and the children of God are gathered in from every people and tongue and tribe and nation—when all causes of sin and all evildoers are taken out of Christ’s kingdom and the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father?” (pgs. 147-8). |
神的子民的最终喜乐是什么？难道不是我们使命完成的那一天，神的儿女被聚集从各民族各方言各支派各邦国而来——当所有罪的原因及行恶者都被移出基督的国度，义者将如同太阳在他们天父的国度里发光吗？（147-8页） |
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| 3. At the End: Runners |
3.最后：长跑者 |
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| Here’s the repeated picture of the challenge/calling before us, not to be downplayed or forgotten especially by us seniors: |
这是不断摆在我们面前的挑战/呼召图景，不容我们低估或遗忘，尤其是对我们老年人而言： |
| • “Let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the founder and perfecter of our faith who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:1b-2). |
我们应该脱下各样的拖累，和容易缠住我们的罪，以坚忍的心奔跑那摆在我们面前的赛程； 2 专一注视耶稣，就是那位信心的创造者和完成者。他因为那摆在面前的喜乐，就忍受了十字架，轻看了羞辱，现在就坐在 神宝座的右边。 （希伯来书12:1b-2） |
| • “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it” (1 Cor. 9:24) |
难道你们不知道，在场上赛跑的人，虽然大家都跑，但得奖的只有一个人吗？ 你们都应当这样跑，好叫你们可以得奖。（哥林多前书9:24） |
| • “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Tim. 4:7). |
那美好的仗我已经打过了，当跑的路我已经跑尽了，所持的信仰我已经守住了。（提摩太后书4:7） |
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| Why did Paul include this image of running as his senior, end-stage testimony? Because he wanted Timothy and the Corinthians church to endure to the end and be saved, knowing those are the only ones who will be saved . . . lackadaisical ones like the Corinthians risked being disqualified if they didn’t finish. |
保罗为什么要把这个奔跑的意像放在他生命最后阶段的见证中？因为他想要提摩太和哥林多教会坚忍到底而得救，知道只有坚持到底的才能得救……慵懒的哥林多人要是不能跑完全程，就有被剥夺权利的危险。 |
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| So, fellow seniors, how shall we be found running by faith as |
因此，年长的朋友们，我们如何凭着信心奔跑，作为 |
| • younger olds (65-75) |
年轻老者（65-75岁） |
| • medium olds (75-85) |
中等老者（75-85岁） |
| • oldest olds (85+) |
最老老者（85岁以上） |
| Let’s be found growing old “gracefully”, i.e., fully in the grip of God’s grace. There’s a particular temptation to resists: As there is an irreversible slowing down of all things bodily and mental we must resist the temptation to allow our discipleship to Christ to also slow down. |
让我们“优雅地”变老，就是说，紧紧抓住神的恩典。有一个特别的诱惑需要抵挡：随着我们身心一切机能不可逆转地慢下来，我们必须拒绝让我们向着基督的门徒成长进程也慢下来。 |
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| Doesn’t it appear clear both from OT texts like Psalm 71:5,9,14-18 and 92:12,14 as well as Paul’s testimony that we are to press on in our worship and service to God, and in our pastoral care of others, up to the limit of what we can handle as we decline, while remaining lifelong learners and leaders? |
旧约经文如诗篇71:5,9,14-18及92:12,14，连同保罗的见证难道不是很清楚地表明我们要致力于对神的敬拜与服侍，致力于牧养他人，尽管我们能力下降也要尽最大力量，并且要保持做终身的学习者和带领者？ |
| • Learners: beyond personal devotions, group and doctrinal Bible study |
学习者：超越个人灵修，群组及教义性的查经 |
| • Leaders: meaning “influence”, the relational force whereby we are always shaping other people’s life . . . either for good or not. Wisdom makes plain that those we’re closest and most intimate with we’ll influence (lead) the most, again for good or not. |
带领者：意味着“影响”，我们与他人的关系有一种力量，一直在塑造他人的生命，不管是好还是不好。智慧让我们清楚，与我们最亲近的人总是最受我们的影响（带领），不管是好还是不好。 |
| This church, let alone our broken world, is begging for |
这个教会，更不用说我们这个破碎的世界，正在乞求 |
| good fathers and father figures, |
好父亲和父亲形像 |
| good mothers and mother figures . . . single moms |
好母亲和母亲形像……单亲妈妈们 |
| good brothers and sisters and friends |
好兄弟姐妹和朋友 |
| good support for widows and widowers (think of Jesus’ parable this morning, or his eyes on the widow who gave everything, or his warning against those who love to make long prayers while devouring widow’s houses or the early church’s response to their neglect of the widows . . . ). |
鳏寡孤独的好支持者（想想今天早上耶稣的比喻，或祂的眼目所看的那位献上所有资生的寡妇，或祂警告好作长长的祷告而侵吞寡妇房产，或早期教会对忽视寡妇的反应） |
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| And the race is long and mostly uphill, but . . . |
路程很长，而且几乎都是上坡，但是 |
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| . . . there is every incentive to finish, both from Paul’s warning as well as his glowing prospect of what awaited him and us the moment we cross the finish line: “Henceforth, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me, but also to all who have loved his appearing (4:8). |
有极大的奖赏激励我们完成，从保罗的警告到他所期盼的光辉前景，在我们跨过终点线的那一瞬间：“从此以后，有公义的冠冕为我存留，就是按公义审判的主在那日要赏给我的；不但赏给我，也赏给所有爱慕他显现的人。”（提摩太后书4:8） |
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| J.I. Packer says there is an unimaginably glorious future just ahead: |
巴刻说有一个难以想像的荣耀前景就在前方： |
| “There will be (a) an effectual elimination of evil, (b) an endless extrapolation of good, (c) and ecstatic extension of fellowship with the glorified Christ and glorified Christians, and (d) an eternal enjoyment of God’s glory and beauty in ways that we cannot at present begin to conceive” (Finishing Our Course With Joy, p. 81-2). |
“到时将（a）有效地清除罪恶，（b）无限外推的美好，（c）得荣耀的基督与得荣耀的基督徒之间极乐的团契，以及（d）永恒地享受神的荣耀和荣美，以我们目前无法构想的方式（《荣耀神的夕阳》81-2页） |
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| Pray and keep praying because you are a little child” who can run happily into the joy of your heavenly Father’s embrace. |
祷告，且持续祷告，因为你是一个小孩子，可以高高兴兴地奔跑投入天父怀中。 |
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| Pray and keep praying because the supernatural power to run forward with Christ in the war of love against all our enemies flows through El-Shaddai’s personal transmitter of love, and . . . |
祷告，且持续祷告，因为让我们能与基督在与我们众仇敌争战的爱的战争中一同向前奔跑的超自然力量，就从全能神个人爱的发报器中流淌出来 |
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| Pray and keep praying because our Christian life is a race of faith all the way to the end and without persistent, godly, earnest prayer we will lose heart and not finish the race. |
祷告，且持续祷告，因为我们基督徒的生命是信心的赛跑，直到终了，若没有坚持不懈、敬虔诚恳的祷告，我们就会灰心，不能完成赛跑。 |
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| So, run by prayer, run into God’s loving arms, run faithful soldiers forward with Christ for kingdom justice and righteousness, and keep running you old soldiers . . . |
因此，带着祷告奔跑，奔向上帝爱的臂膀中，忠诚的战士，同基督一起奔跑，为了国度的公正公义，年老的战士，请坚持跑下去…… |
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| Appendix: Books to read . . . |
附录：阅读书目 |
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| First, read this year’s little Prayer Week devotional booklet. Read the incentives, one a day, individually as well as in family for persevering prayer. The incentive of . . . |
首先，请阅读今年的祷告周灵修小册子。阅读祷告的激励，一天一篇，个人同时也在家中用于持续的祷告 |
| 1. Seeing God’s beauty |
1.看见神的荣美 |
| 2. Engaging in faith’s first and enduring act |
2.获得信心时的第一个及持续性行动 |
| 3. Following God’s path to maturity |
3.追随神的道路走向成熟 |
| 4. Experiencing that God is always near |
4.体验到神不曾远离 |
| 5. Realizing that God never fails to answer our prayers positively |
5.意识到神从来不会失于应允我们的祷告 |
| 6. Persistent praying reorders our priorities |
6.持续的祷告重整我们的优先顺序 |
| 7. Prayer is communion with our Almighty Father |
7.祷告是我们与全能天父的交通 |
| It is really an amazing thing that God has ordained to include us in running the universe. He really responds to our prayers . . . weaving them into the fabric of causes that He Himself wills to be moved by. We do not pray in vain. He is hearing and responding. He is our Father, our Good Father! |
真正奇妙的事是神命定要让我们和祂一起运行这个宇宙。祂真的回应我们的祷告，把它们编织到原因的纤维中，祂自己愿意被感动。我们祷告不会徒劳。祂在垂听并且回应。祂是我们的父，我们良善的父！ |
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| Second, get Pastor Sam Crabtree’s, Parenting With Loving Correction: Practical Help for Raising Young Children,” and here are a couple of key quotes: |
其次，读山姆牧师的《用爱的纠正来教养：养育小小孩的实际帮助》这里引用关键的几条： |
| “Most importantly, pray for your children. Ask God to make your children receptive to correction. Pray for them by name. Ask God to bind the Enemy of your children. Ask God to put a hedge of protection around them. Point with thanksgiving to the good work of God in your children already. They’re made in his image, and he’s at work in them . . . Aim for your child’s peace and righteousness. Under God’s fatherly care, confirm to your children their belongingness and acceptance in your family. Lay down a robust foundation of affirmation, consistently commending each child for the good things he or she does . . . [and a few pages later] Pray with your child. God will help you pray with myriad texts off the front burner of your devotional life. So keep your devotional life up to date as you press forward in the honor and awesome responsibility of parenting” (pgs. 90, 106). |
“最为重要的是，为孩子祷告。求神让你的孩子变得容易接受纠正。称呼他们的名字为他们一个个祷告。求神捆绑你孩子的仇敌。求神在他们周围树起篱笆墙。以感恩之心数算神已经在你孩子身上所做的善工。他们是照着祂的形像被造的，祂在他们里面作工……为的是你孩子的平安与公义。在神父亲般的照顾之下，向你的孩子保证他们在你家中的归属与接纳。奠定认可和赞同的坚实基础，为每个孩子所做的善事而赞扬他们……[几页之后]和你的孩子一同祷告。神会帮助你在灵修生活的前线中用大量的经文祷告。所以在你努力行使你光荣伟大的教养责任时，你要不断更新你的灵修生活。（90页，106页） |
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| Third, J.I.Packer’s Finishing Our Course With Joy. |
第三，巴刻的《荣耀神的夕阳》 |
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| And finally, go get and read this year’s featured book for Prayer Week by Scottish Pastor Alistair Begg, titled PRAY BIG: Learn to Pray Like an Apostle. Here’s his pastoral exhortation on the very last two pages; he writes: |
最后是今年祷告周推荐书目中英格兰牧师阿利斯泰尔·贝格所著的《祷告大格局：学习像使徒一样祷告》。这本书的最后两页是他的牧者劝勉。他写道： |
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| “When a church is gripped by God’s grace—when its members focus their heart-eyes on Jesus and on eternity; when the buffeting of circumstances don’t shake their hope, and they live for the riches of knowing God rather than the fleeting treasures of this world; when they look to and live out of a power greater than themselves—then the glory of God is revealed in the Bride, just as it is in the Bridegroom. When that grace takes hold of a church community, then the world looks on and says, ‘That is at least worth investigating,’ And then we’re able to tell them this Lord Jesus Christ is a king who will reign forever and ever. |
“当一家教会被神的恩典得着——就是当它的会员将心眼聚焦于耶稣和永恒；当环境的动荡不会动摇他们的盼望，他们为认识神的丰富而活，而不是为这个世界转瞬即逝的财富而活；当他们仰望并且活出比他们自己更伟大的能力——那么神的荣耀就彰显在新娘里面，正如在新郎里面一样。当恩典得着一个教会群体，那么世界就会看着它说：‘至少这个值得研究一下，’然后我们就能够告诉他们这位主耶稣基督是永远掌权的王。 |
| “And then God’s name is praised.” |
“然后神的名就得着称赞。” |
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| Texts |
经文 |
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| 1Thess. 5:15-18 (15) See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. (16) Rejoice always; (17) pray without ceasing. (18) Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” |
帖撒罗尼迦前书5:15-18 15 你们要注意，不管是谁都不要以恶报恶，却要在彼此相处和对待众人这方面，常常追求良善。 16 要常常喜乐， 17 不住祷告， 18 凡事谢恩；这就是 神在基督耶稣里给你们的旨意。 |
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| Col. 4:2-4 (2) Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. (3) At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison—(4) that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak. |
歌罗西书4:2-4 2 你们要恒切祷告，在祷告的时候存着感恩的心警醒； 3 也要为我们祷告，求 神为我们开传道的门，宣讲基督的奥祕（我就是为了这个缘故被捆锁）， 4 使我照着我所应当说的，把这奥祕显明出来。 |
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