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出埃及记生命读经 · 第129篇

祭司的衣服（十四）

The priestly garments (14)
1读经： 出埃及记二十八章三十节；利未记八章八节；民数记二十七章二十一节；申命记三十三章八至十节；以斯拉记二章六十三节；撒母耳记上二十三章六节，九至十二节；二十八章六节。
1Scripture Reading: Exo. 28:30; Lev. 8:8; Num. 27:21; Deut. 33:8-10; Ezra 2:63; 1 Sam. 23:6, 9-12; 28:6
2在前面的信息里我们指出，乌陵乃是豫表基督这个发光体，因着油─那灵，藉着祭坛─十字架─的火而焚烧。我们也看见，土明是豫表基督这位成全者。基督就是土明，是为着铭刻与完成的字母。今天许多基督徒里面没有清楚、明确地刻着基督。可是，就算我们对基督有扎实的经历，并有基督清楚的铭刻，我们还是不彀完全。因此，我们需要基督加到我们里面来作我们的完全。在本篇信息里，我们要进一步来看乌陵 和土明今天的应用。
2In the foregoing messages we pointed out that the Urim is a type of Christ as the illuminator burning with oil, the Spirit, by fire from the altar, the cross. We have also seen that the Thummim typifies Christ as the perfecter. As the Thummim, Christ is the alphabet for inscription and completion. Many Christians today do not have Christ inscribed into them in a clear, definite way. But even if we have the definite experience of Christ and the clear inscription of Christ, we still are not complete. Therefore, we need Christ to be added to us to be our completion. In this message we shall go further to see today’s application of the Urim and the Thummim.
今天的应用
Today’s application
3胸牌里十二块透亮的宝石表明基督要藉着圣徒们来照耀，好显明神的旨意，圣徒们就该是透亮的。假设胸牌上的十二块宝石不是透亮的，而是暗淡的，并且宝石上没有刻着甚么，也没有光来照耀，那么宝石就是暗淡无光的，没有铭刻，也没有光的照耀。在这种情况之下，要用胸牌来寻得神的旨意、神的引导是不可能的。这就是今天大多数基督徒团体的光景，糢糊不清、没有铭刻，也没有光。很可能这也是一些地方教会的光景。
3The twelve transparent stones in the breastplate indicate that the saints should be transparent in order for Christ to shine through them so that God’s will may be shown. Suppose the twelve stones on the breastplate had been opaque instead of transparent. Furthermore, suppose nothing had been inscribed on any of the stones and no light was shining. Then the stones would have been opaque, without inscription, and without the shining of light. In such a case it would be impossible to use the breastplate to find out God’s will, God’s leading. This is the situation in most Christian groups today. There is no transparency, inscription, or light. It is very possible that this may be the situation of some local churches.
4许多年前我在中国大陆访问过一些所谓的教会。在我看来，这些团体里的每一个人 都是暗淡无光的，完全没有变化，也不彀透亮。此外，也少有基督铭刻到这些圣徒的里面。他们名义上好像有基督，然而他们非常缺少对基督的经历。不但如此，他们中间也没有光。他们所需要的乃是一种非常基本、初步的帮助。神的旨意无法藉着他们来显明。
4Many years ago in mainland China I visited some so-called churches. It seemed to me that everyone in these groups was opaque, altogether lacking in transformation and transparency. Furthermore, little of Christ had been inscribed into the saints. It seemed they had Christ in name, but they were very short of the experience of Christ. Moreover, there was no light among them. What they needed was a very basic, elementary kind of help. God’s will could not be made known through them.
5如果你照着我们在这些信息里面所说的，来看今天大多数基督徒的光景，你就会晓得，信徒的光景多半不是透亮的，而是暗淡无光的，实际上等于没有基督的铭刻，没有光的照耀，反而有黑暗。
5If you consider the condition of the majority of Christians today according to what we have covered in these messages, you will realize that in most cases with the believers there is opaqueness instead of transparency. There is virtually nothing of the inscription of Christ. Instead of the shining of light, there is darkness.
6倘若我们成为一个地方教会，要被神当作胸牌来使用的话，我们都必须是透亮的， 也必须有基督铭刻到我们里面。这意思是说，我们必须对基督有一些明确的经历，作为神的属灵字母。我们对基督的经历不可糢糊不清，反倒该是清楚而明确的。然而，大多数基督徒中间的光景，包括我们在内，却与此大相迳庭。
6If as a local church we would be used by God as a breastplate, we all must be transparent, and we must have Christ inscribed into us. This means that we must have some definite experiences of Christ as the letters in God’s spiritual alphabet. Our experience of Christ must not be vague. Rather, it should be clear and definite. However, the situation among most Christians, including us, is very different from this.
7如果我们蒙主光照，并背负主权益的担子，我们就会被神子民中间的光景所困扰。我们愈想到圣徒和教会的情形及光景，我们就愈有负担。我们对于不彀透亮、没有铭刻、没有光的情形会深表关切。
7If we have been enlightened by the Lord and if we are bearing the burden of the Lord’s interests, we shall be troubled by the situation among God’s people. The more we consider the situation and condition of both the saints and the churches, the more burdened we shall be. We shall be deeply concerned about the lack of transparency, the lack of inscribing, and the shortage of light.
得着主对教会的引导
Receiving the Lord’s leading concerning the church
8今天要应用带有乌陵和土明的胸牌，也需要领头的人把圣徒们和基督带在胸前，好明了圣徒的光景，以及基督为着神的引导而有的完全。在每一个地方教会中，都该有一班领头的人，把圣徒们和基督带在胸前。这些领头的人需要看见主的照耀，也需要读圣徒们，然后他们才能彀得着主对当地教会的引导。
8Today’s application of the breastplate with the Urim and the Thummim also requires that the leading ones bear the saints and Christ on their hearts so that they may know the condition of the saints and the completion of Christ for God’s leading. In every local church there should be a group of leading ones who bear the saints and Christ on their heart. These leading ones need to see the Lord’s shining and read the saints. Then they will be able to receive God’s leading concerning the church in their locality.
神说话的方式
God’s way of speaking
9神藉着带有乌陵和土明的胸牌来说话的方式，与我们所盼望的正好相反。神不是藉着发亮的宝石来说话，而是藉着变暗的宝石来说话。这意思是说，神是藉着消极的光景来说话。按正常的情形来说，胸牌里的十二块宝石都在乌陵的照耀之下。忽然间刻着某个名字的宝石变暗了，这块宝石变暗就是神即时的说话。我们天然的观念会以为，神藉着胸牌说话是来自发亮的宝石。事实上，祂乃是藉着忽然之间变暗的宝石来说话。
9God’s way of speaking through the breastplate with the Urim and the Thummim is the opposite of what we would expect. God speaks not through the stones that are shining, but through stones that become dark. This means that God speaks through negative situations. Normally the twelve stones in the breastplate were under the shining of the Urim. Suddenly a piece inscribed with a certain name would become dark. This darkening of a particular stone was God’s instant speaking. Our natural concept would be that God’s speaking through the breastplate came from the stones that were shining. Actually, He spoke through the stones that suddenly became dark.
10保罗的书信以及主耶稣达与亚西亚七个教会的七封书信都是根据这个原则写的，它 们不是根据教会里积极的事情写的，而是根据教会消极的光景写的。我们以保罗写给哥林多人的头一封书信为例，如果没有哥林多教会中消极的事情，哥林多前书恐怕就写不出来了。保罗照着他对哥林多消极的光景所读出来的，写了这封书信。他思想那种光景，就晓得要写甚么了。虽然他的著作是基于消极的事情，但在这封书信里，他却把积极的东西─基督的丰富─服事给教会。
10Paul’s Epistles and also the seven epistles of the Lord Jesus to the seven churches in Asia were all written according to this principle. They were written according to the negative situation of the churches, not according to the positive things found in the churches. Take, for example, Paul’s First Epistle to the Corinthians. If there were no negative things found in the church in Corinth, I doubt that 1 Corinthians would have been written. Paul wrote this Epistle according to his reading of the negative situation at Corinth. By considering that situation, he knew what to write. But although his writing was based on the negative things, in this Epistle he ministered positive things — the riches of Christ — to the church.
11今天基督徒中间的难处乃是因著有太多的黑暗，神就无法来暴露黑暗。当每样东西 都在黑暗里，我们就很难指出那一件东西是在黑暗里。假设房间里的天花板上有许多排电灯，如果所有的灯都在照耀，我们就很容易找出变暗的那一盏。这说明了神如何 藉着胸牌来说话。一块宝石变暗了，就是神即时的说话。
11The problem among Christians today is that because there is so much darkness, there is no way for God to expose darkness. When everything is in darkness, it is difficult to point out a particular matter that is in darkness. Suppose in a room there are many rows of lights on the ceiling. If all the lights are shining, it will be easy to find one that becomes dark. This illustrates how God spoke through the breastplate. The darkening of a particular stone was God’s instant speaking.
12今天基督徒的光景很不正常，没有光，却有黑暗。结果，神几乎没有办法来说话。要显明黑暗，首先必须有光的照耀。如果房间里没有光，就无法把黑暗显明出来。但所有的灯都在照耀的时候，有一盏灯变暗了，就马上是显而易见的。这个黑暗就表示 有些事情错了。如果在一个教会里，事情错了，很容易就发现出来，那个教会就是正常的。但如果在一个教会里，不能发现到甚么事情错了，就表示那里的教会是在黑暗里。当黑暗猖狂的时候，消极的事情就不可能暴露出来。为此，光是不可少的。在光的照耀之下所暴露的，就是神的说话。藉着事情变为消极，神来说话。这种消极的光 景就表明缺少基督。我们这样来读消极的光景，就晓得神的引导了。然后在我们所在的地方，我们就会晓得神要我们作甚么，然后我们就该跟随祂的引导。
12The situation of Christians today is abnormal. Instead of light, there is darkness. As a result, God has hardly any way to speak. In order for the darkness to be made known, there must first be the shining of light. If there is no light in a room, there is no way for darkness to be shown. But when all the lights are shining, it immediately becomes apparent when a certain light becomes dark. That darkness is an indicator that something is wrong. If in a certain church things that are wrong are easily found out, that church is normal. But if in a particular church it is not possible to find out what is wrong, this is an indication that the church there is in darkness. When darkness prevails, it is not possible for negative matters to be exposed. For this, light is necessary. What is exposed under the shining of the light is God’s speaking. God speaks through things becoming negative. This kind of negative situation is an indicator of the shortage of Christ. By reading the negative situations in this way, we come to know God’s leading. Then in our locality we shall know what God wants us to do, and we should then follow His leading.
决断与供应
Judgment and supply
13藉着胸牌所得的引导总是与决断有关。这意思是说，主是以消极的光景来藉着胸牌说话。如果这种说话只是藉著积极的光景，就不需要决断了，因为每件事情都是积极而正当的。但因着主的说话是藉着消极的光景，这样的说话就是一种决断。 使徒保罗是一个真正照耀的人，在保罗的照耀之下，黑暗就被暴露了出来。保罗有些书信是照着黑暗、照着教会里圣徒消极的光景写的。因着保罗看见哥林多教会里的一些黑暗面，这些黑暗面乃是神决断的字母，保罗就能彀写出哥林多书这本决断书来 。但随着这封书信里所有的决断，却有许多积极的东西，就是把基督的丰富服事给哥林多的信徒。这便是神说话的方式。不论在旧约里，还是在新约里，神的说话都是根据消极的光景，然而却有基督的丰富作为祂子民的供应。
13The leading obtained through the breastplate always involves a judgment. This means that the Lord’s speaking through the breastplate is through negative situations. If this speaking were only through positive situations, there would be no need of judgment, for everything would be positive and justified. But because the Lord’s speaking is through negative situations, that speaking is a judgment. The Apostle Paul was one who was truly shining. Under the shining of Paul, the darkness was exposed. Paul wrote certain of his Epistles according to the darkness, according to the negative condition, of the saints in the churches. Because Paul saw certain dark areas in the church in Corinth, areas that were letters of God’s judgment, Paul could write Corinthians as a book of judgment. But along with all the judgment contained in this Epistle, there are many positive things: the riches of Christ ministered to the believers at Corinth. This is God’s way of speaking. Both in the Old Testament and the New Testament, God’s speaking is according to the negative situation, yet with the riches of Christ as the supply for His people.
需要对基督有充分的经历
The need for the adequate experience of Christ
14如果教会要成为决断的胸牌，就必须履行一些条件。首先，我们需要被变化而透亮 。然后作为属灵字母的基督，必须清楚而明确地铭刻到我们里面来。这就是对基督有充分的经历。
14If we as the church would be the breastplate of judgment, we must fulfill certain requirements. First, we need to be transformed and transparent. Then Christ as the letters of the spiritual alphabet must be inscribed into us clearly and definitely. This is to have the adequate experience of Christ.
15最近有一位弟兄作见证说，常常领头的人向初信的或青年人说到对基督的经历时，这些领头的人就觉得他们自己对基督并没有清楚而明确的经历。如果我们没有尽力把基督服事给别人，我们就不会觉得对基督的经历是多么缺乏。当我们想要向别人说到 对基督的经历时，我们就会发觉自己还是非常缺少经历。我们对基督很少有真实的经历可以服事给别人。我们这些要牧养圣徒的人，需要对基督有经历，不然我们就缺少服事基督所需要合式的属灵字汇。我们也许要把基督服事给别人，但我们对基督有甚么经历？我们也许多少能彀把圣经教导人，因我们已经研读圣经多年了。但到了要把基督服事给人的时候，我们就有所缺欠了，我们没有多少基督铭刻到我们里面，也许只有一个字母的一部分刻到我们里面。这就是今天许多基督徒的光景。因此，我们很难藉着胸牌来晓得主的引导。
15Recently a brother testified that often, when the leading ones speak to new ones or young ones about the experience of Christ, these leading ones realize that they themselves do not have the clear and definite experience of Christ. If we do not try to minister Christ to others, we may not realize how short we are concerning the experience of Christ. When we try to speak to others about the experience of Christ, we may find that we ourselves are still very short of experience. We may have little of the real experience of Christ to minister to others. As those who would shepherd the saints, we need the experience of Christ. Otherwise we shall lack the proper spiritual vocabulary required for ministering Christ. We may want to minister Christ to others, but what experience of Christ do we have? To some extent, we may be able to teach the Bible, for we may have been reading and studying it for years. But when it comes to ministering Christ, we have a shortage. We do not have that much of Christ inscribed into our being. Perhaps we have only part of a letter inscribed into us. This is the situation of many Christians today. Therefore, it is very difficult to know the Lord’s leading through the breastplate.
16因着缺少变化、不彀透亮、没有铭刻和光照，我们就需要祷告，使我们成为透亮的，有更多的基督刻到我们里面，并经历更多的光照。然后我们会察觉到，即使我们满了基督，我们仍有所缺，因为我们还是缺了一些基督的丰富。这就是带有乌陵和土明的胸牌这幅奇妙图画所表明的。
16Because there is such a shortage of transformation, transparency, inscribing, and enlightening, we need to pray that we may become transparent, have more of Christ inscribed into us, and experience more enlightening. Then we shall realize that, even if we are full of Christ, we still have a shortage, for something of Christ’s riches is still lacking. This is what is indicated by the marvelous picture of the breastplate with the Urim and the Thummim.
认识我们需要更多的经历
Recognizing our need for more experience
17我们由胸牌和乌陵、土明看见两种字母，一种是为着铭刻，另一种是为着完成。如果我们还没有满了基督，我们所需要的就是铭刻。基督必须刻到我们里面，直到我们满了祂。我们满了基督的时候，就认识我们需要完全。因此，如果我们没有满了基督，我们就需要祂作铭刻的字母。但我们满了基督的时候，我们就需要祂作为使我们完 全的字母。像使徒保罗那样满了基督的信徒，都晓得他们仍然需要基督。然而，那些缺少基督的人就不会觉得需要基督了。今天许多不冷不热的基督徒一点不觉得他们多么需要基督。我们有基督铭刻到我们里面的时候，才晓得我们仍然缺少基督，然后我们就会寻求祂作我们的完全。
17With the breastplate and the Urim and the Thummim we see two kinds of alphabets. One kind of alphabet is for inscribing, and the other kind is for completing. If we are not yet full of Christ, what we need is the inscribing. Christ must be inscribed into us until we are full of Him. It is when we are full of Christ that we recognize the need for completion. Thus, if we are not full of Christ, we need Him as the alphabet for inscription. But when we are full of Him, we need Him as the alphabet for our completion. Believers like the Apostle Paul, those who are full of Christ, realize that they still need Christ. However, those who are short of Christ may not sense the need for Christ. Many of today’s lukewarm Christians do not have any realization of how much they need Christ. It is when we have Christ inscribed into us that we realize we are still short of Christ. Then we shall seek Him to be our completion.
18我们能彀说到基督铭刻到我们里面，并使我们完全，的确是主的怜悯，要找到讲论这一点的基督徒并不容易。如今我们所需要的乃是更多的经历，惟有藉着经历，我们才能了解何为基督铭刻到我们里面，以及基督使我们完全。因此，我们都需要为这些事情有更多的祷告。我盼望每一个地方教会都照着出埃及记二十八章里的图画，成为一个胸牌。
18It surely is a mercy of the Lord we can speak about Christ inscribed into us and Christ completing us. It is not easy to find Christians who speak concerning this. What we need now is more experience. Only through experience can we understand what it is to have Christ inscribed into us and to have Him complete us. Therefore, we all need to pray more regarding these things. I hope that every local church will become a breastplate according to the picture in Exodus 28.