0511 彼此相愛
有了…又要加上愛眾人的心。《彼得後書1:5, 7》
對於我們大多數人來說，愛是一種模糊的概念；當我們談論愛時，我們不知道我們在說什麼。愛是一個人對另一個人最崇高的偏愛，在屬靈上耶穌要求這種至高無上的偏愛是對祂自己（見路加福音14:26）。最初，當「所賜給我們的聖靈將神的愛澆灌在我們心裡」時（羅馬書5:5），把耶穌放在第一位是很容易的。但是，之後我們必須實踐彼得後書第一章中所提之事來看到它們在我們生活中的實現。
神做的第一件事就是強行除去我生命中的任何不真誠、驕傲和虛榮。聖靈向我啟示，神愛我不是因為我可愛，而是因為祂的本性如此。現在祂命令我對別人表達同樣的愛，說：「你們要彼此相愛，像我愛你們一樣。」（約翰福音 15:12）。祂是在說：「我會帶一些人到你身邊，你無法尊重的人，但你必須對他們展現我的愛，就像我對你一樣。」這種愛，不是對不可愛者的高人一等的愛，而是祂的愛；它不會一夜之間在我們身上就顯現出來。我們中的一些人可能試圖強迫它，但我們很快就感到疲倦和沮喪。
「主…乃是寬容你們，不願有一人沉淪…」（彼得後書 3:9）。我應該審視自己裡面，並記住祂是如何奇妙地對待我。知道神無限地愛我，將會激勵我進入這個世界以同樣的方式去愛人。我可能會因為不得不和一個異常困難的人生活在一起而惱火；但想想看，我與神是多麼不合！我準備好與主耶穌如此緊密地聯結，以至於祂的生命和祂的甜美不斷地通過我傾注出來嗎？無論是自然的愛，還是神的神聖之愛，除非加以培育，否則都不會在我心中保留和成長。愛是自發的，但必須通過紀律操練來維持。
來自章伯斯的智慧
從先例中論證是一件容易的事，因為它使一切變得簡單，但那是一件有風險的事情。給神自由發揮的空間；讓祂隨心所欲地進入祂的宇宙。如果我們將神的工作限制在宗教人士中或某些方式上，我們就將自己置於與神平等的位置。《力圖更佳戰鬥》
0511 Love One Another
…add to your…brotherly kindness love. —2 Peter 1:5, 7
Love is an indefinite thing to most of us; we don’t know what we mean when we talk about love. Love is the loftiest preference of one person for another, and spiritually Jesus demands that this sovereign preference be for Himself (see Luke 14:26). Initially, when “the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit” (Romans 5:5), it is easy to put Jesus first. But then we must practice the things mentioned in 2 Peter 1 to see them worked out in our lives.
The first thing God does is forcibly remove any insincerity, pride, and vanity from my life. And the Holy Spirit reveals to me that God loved me not because I was lovable, but because it was His nature to do so. Now He commands me to show the same love to others by saying, “…love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:12). He is saying, “I will bring a number of people around you whom you cannot respect, but you must exhibit My love to them, just as I have exhibited it to you.” This kind of love is not a patronizing love for the unlovable— it is His love, and it will not be evidenced in us overnight. Some of us may have tried to force it, but we were soon tired and frustrated.
“The Lord…is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish…” (2 Peter 3:9). I should look within and remember how wonderfully He has dealt with me. The knowledge that God has loved me beyond all limits will compel me to go into the world to love others in the same way. I may get irritated because I have to live with an unusually difficult person. But just think how disagreeable I have been with God! Am I prepared to be identified so closely with the Lord Jesus that His life and His sweetness will be continually poured out through Me? Neither natural love nor God’s divine love will remain and grow in me unless it is nurtured. Love is spontaneous, but it has to be maintained through discipline.
WISDOM FROM OSWALD CHAMBERS
It is an easy thing to argue from precedent because it makes everything simple, but it is a risky thing to do. Give God “elbow room”; let Him come into His universe as He pleases. If we confine God in His working to religious people or to certain ways, we place ourselves on an equality with God. Baffled to Fight Better, 51 L