0302 你感受到主所施的痛苦了嗎？
第三次對他說：「約翰的兒子西門，你愛我嗎？」《約翰福音21:17》
你曾感受到主在你的本體，你生命最深處、最敏感的地方所造成的痛苦嗎？魔鬼從不會在那裡造成痛苦，罪或人類的情感也不能。除了神的真道，沒有什麼能切入我們本體的那一部分。 彼得很憂愁，因為耶穌第三次問他說：「你愛我嗎？」然而，他醒悟到一個事實，他個人生活的中心是獻身於耶穌。然後他開始明白耶穌耐心詢問的意義，彼得心中沒有留下任何疑慮；他再也不能被欺騙了；也不需要激情澎湃的回應，不需要立即採取行動或情感展示。對他來說，那是一個啟示，他意識到自己真的有多麼愛主，他滿懷驚訝地只是說：「主啊，你知道所有的事…。」彼得開始明白他真的有多愛耶穌，且沒有必要說：「看看這個或那個，是我的愛的證明。」他發現自己的眼睛是如此專註於耶穌基督，以至於他看不到天上地下的別人。但直到主的那些尖銳、刺痛的問題問到時，他才知道。主的問題總是向我自己揭示真實的我。
哦，耶穌基督對彼得的耐心、直接和技巧是何等奇妙！我們的主從來不問問題，直到時機成熟。在我們每個人的一生中很稀罕地但可能有這麼一次，祂會把我們逼到牆角，用祂尖銳的問題傷害我們。然後我們會意識到我們對祂的愛遠超過我們言語所能表達的。
來自章伯斯的智慧
神不會不顧我們的環境而促進我們的靈性生活，而是在我們的環境中，通過我們的環境來促進我們的靈性生活。《不知往何處去》
0302 Have You Felt the Pain Inflicted by the Lord?
He said to him the third time, “…do you love Me?” —John 21:17
Have you ever felt the pain, inflicted by the Lord, at the very center of your being, deep down in the most sensitive area of your life? The devil never inflicts pain there, and neither can sin nor human emotions. Nothing can cut through to that part of our being but the Word of God. “Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, ‘Do you love Me?’” Yet he was awakened to the fact that at the center of his personal life he was devoted to Jesus. And then he began to see what Jesus’ patient questioning meant. There was not the slightest bit of doubt left in Peter’s mind; he could never be deceived again. And there was no need for an impassioned response; no need for immediate action or an emotional display. It was a revelation to him to realize how much he did love the Lord, and with amazement he simply said, “Lord, You know all things….” Peter began to see how very much he did love Jesus, and there was no need to say, “Look at this or that as proof of my love.” Peter was beginning to discover within himself just how much he really did love the Lord. He discovered that his eyes were so fixed on Jesus Christ that he saw no one else in heaven above or on the earth below. But he did not know it until the probing, hurting questions of the Lord were asked. The Lord’s questions always reveal the true me to myself.
Oh, the wonder of the patient directness and skill of Jesus Christ with Peter! Our Lord never asks questions until the perfect time. Rarely, but probably once in each of our lives, He will back us into a corner where He will hurt us with His piercing questions. Then we will realize that we do love Him far more deeply than our words can ever say.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
God does not further our spiritual life in spite of our circumstances, but in and by our circumstances. –Not Knowing Whither, 900 L