0303 祂給我們的使命
你餵養我的羊。《約翰福音21:17》
這就是正在醞釀中的愛。神的愛不是被造的——那是祂的本性。當我們通過聖靈接受基督的生命時，祂就把我們與神連接，使祂的愛在我們身上彰顯出來。內住聖靈的目標不僅僅是將我們與神聯合，更是以耶穌和父合一的方式那樣將我們與天父合一。耶穌基督與父合一是什麼樣的一呢？祂與父是如此合一，以至於當祂的父差祂來這裡為我們傾倒耗盡時，祂是順服的。祂對我們說：「父怎樣差遣了我，我也照樣差遣你們。」（約翰福音 20:21）
由於主尖銳的問題所帶來的啟示，彼得現在意識到他確實愛祂。主的下一個要點是——「將自己傾倒耗盡。不要證明你有多愛我，也不要談論你所得到的美妙啟示，只要『餵養我的羊』」。耶穌有一些非常奇特古怪的羊：有些是蓬頭垢面、骯髒，有些是難對付的或咄咄逼人的，有些是已經誤入歧途！但那都不可能耗盡神的愛，如果我的愛是從我裡面神的靈流出來的，那也不可能耗盡我的愛。神的愛並不理會我天然個性所導致的偏見。如果我愛我的主，我就不該被天然情感所牽引——我必須餵養祂的羊。我們不會被脫離或免除於祂給我們的大使命。要謹防藉著追隨自己天然人類情感、同情心或理解來假冒神的愛，那隻會辱罵和濫用神的真愛。
來自章伯斯的智慧
對神的理智認識可能會在糟糕邪惡的性格中找到。對神的認識和視覺完全取決於一顆純潔的心。品格決定了神對個人的顯現。清心的人得以見神。《聖經倫理學》
0303 His Commission to Us
Feed My sheep. —John 21:17
This is love in the making. The love of God is not created— it is His nature. When we receive the life of Christ through the Holy Spirit, He unites us with God so that His love is demonstrated in us. The goal of the indwelling Holy Spirit is not just to unite us with God, but to do it in such a way that we will be one with the Father in exactly the same way Jesus was. And what kind of oneness did Jesus Christ have with the Father? He had such a oneness with the Father that He was obedient when His Father sent Him down here to be poured out for us. And He says to us, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you” (John 20:21).
Peter now realizes that he does love Him, due to the revelation that came with the Lord’s piercing question. The Lord’s next point is— “Pour yourself out. Don’t testify about how much you love Me and don’t talk about the wonderful revelation you have had, just ‘Feed My sheep.’ ” Jesus has some extraordinarily peculiar sheep: some that are unkempt and dirty, some that are awkward or pushy, and some that have gone astray! But it is impossible to exhaust God’s love, and it is impossible to exhaust my love if it flows from the Spirit of God within me. The love of God pays no attention to my prejudices caused by my natural individuality. If I love my Lord, I have no business being guided by natural emotions— I have to feed His sheep. We will not be delivered or released from His commission to us. Beware of counterfeiting the love of God by following your own natural human emotions, sympathies, or understandings. That will only serve to revile and abuse the true love of God.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
An intellectual conception of God may be found in a bad vicious character. The knowledge and vision of God is dependent entirely on a pure heart. Character determines the revelation of God to the individual. The pure in heart see God. –Biblical Ethics, 125 R