The Second Most Important Man In Your Life
The Second Most Important Man In Your Life
- Greg Waybright
- Romans 5:12-15
- Made New - A Study in Romans
- 40 mins 7 secs
- Views: 850
Study Notes
Made New: The Second Most Important Man in Your Life
Romans 5:12-15, 20-21
We come today to a passage of Scripture in Romans 5 that has some of the most challenging statements in all the Bible to understand and apply. The Apostle Paul wrote it and, as I was preparing this message for you, I began to wonder whether it might have been about a text like Romans 5:12-21 that the Apostle Peter would later write, “Our dear brother Paul writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of matters related to salvation. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand… (2 Pet 3:15-16).” I say, “Amen.”
I think the best place for me to start is to remind you of what our series in Romans 5-8 is about. As Peter said in that letter, Paul wrote in Romans about our salvation. In Rom 1-4, the Apostle Paul wrote about the only way we human beings can be saved from sin is through a gift of God that comes through faith in the Lord Jesus. Then, what Romans 5-8 is about is how faith in Jesus not only leads to you being “justified”, (Paul’s word for God declaring us forgiven and right with God on the basis of faith in Jesus), but also to what Paul called in 5:9, to our completed salvation! As Pastor Tim Peck said last week, the word salvation in Romans is about our lives someday becoming completely right – our lives being conformed to the image of Christ.
You see, Jesus doesn’t save you from your past sins to leave you in sin. No, genuine faith in Jesus actually changes you. So, this Lent season, we’re going through a very important part of God’s Word that tells you the process by which this change happens. In other words, if you come to church today knowing that you need your life to change, how does that transformation flow out of believing in Jesus?
I’m calling our series Made New. That title itself evokes a big question, i.e., “Why do I have to be made new by someone else?” Why can’t I just make a decision to change my own life? The Bible’s answer is, quite simply, “Because you can’t.” Not on your own.
So, that’s what I want to talk to you about today. I know it doesn’t sound all that encouraging. But, I don’t think there are many things more important for us all to come to grips with than this if we ever will understand the good news we call “the gospel”.
This point struck me in a new way this past Wednesday evening in a meeting many of us had with Mayra Nolan, who gives pastoral leadership to our community outreach here at LAC. We were talking about our local church and Mayra said, “We all need and want affirmation. But, there are times when we must ask, ‘What is missing? What’s not what it should be? What’s wrong?’”
That’s what Rom 5:12-15 forces us to do. I’ve been praying fervently about what God wants us to wrestle with us from this passage and I think it is this: Where are you stuck in your life? It might be that you’re still trying to live life without God -- and know some things are messed up and need to change. Well, I’ll tell you now: You need to bring God into your life by placing your faith in Jesus. That’s where change starts.
And, for many of us here (probably most of us), perhaps the question is more like: Where are you stuck in your walk with God, in your spiritual growth? The Bible promises that, when you invite Jesus into your life, God will begin a process of actually making all things new in your life. Do you ever ask “Why is it taking me so long to get spiritually better?” So, that’s what we’ll consider in today’s message. I want to talk to you about us – about being human – and why so many of us come to church today with a longing to do what is right and, at the same time, find ourselves unable to do it.
The Second Most Important Man in Your life -- Here’s how Paul begins in Rom 5:12: Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned –
Look at the beginning and the end of that verse. At the beginning, you see the word “therefore” and, as the quip says, “When you see a ‘therefore’, you must find out what it’s there for.” This “therefore” looks back to 5:1-11 and all the blessings that come when you place your faith in Christ, including the promise of God to save u completely, to make all things in our lives. This certain hope (cf., v. 2) comes to us because of the love of God for us. This promise of being made new is made certain because, when we believe in Jesus, we are actually united to Jesus Christ. We often speak of this to children as bringing Jesus into our hearts. Paul says, “therefore” this identity with Christ changes us for the good -- “just as” our relationship to the one who introduced sin into this world, i.e., Adam, has gotten us into this mess we’re in.
Then, notice also the last thing in v.12, the dash. Paul says, the ability of one person (Jesus) to change the lives of all who believe in him is like the way that one man (Adam) brought sin and death into the lives of all people. But, after Paul says that, then he stops. That’s what the dash at the end of the verse is about. It’s as if Paul realizes that people don’t really know what he’s talking about. He senses that people need to hear more about the problem that we are in because we are a part of a fallen people going all the way back to Adam. Paul says, “Death came to all people because all sinned…” He stops as if to ask, “You do know that all human beings are fallen and sinful and that all of us die and are separated from God; you know that, don’t you?”
So, in vv. 12-18a, the Apostle pulls away from telling us that a connection to Jesus will change your life to telling us our problem, i.e., why we desperately need a savior like Jesus in order to be changed.
This problem Paul speaks of – of our lives being affected by our ancestors, is something many of us in the Western world, like the USA, find hard to understand. We rarely think about the interconnectedness of all human beings. Paul takes us back to Genesis 3 when Adam sinned and he says that, what Adam did continues to affect us all. We here in the Western world are such individualists that we hardly have a place in our brain to grasp this. But, if I were preaching today in Nairobi, Kenya, or Bangkok, Thailand or in Kerala State, India, I wouldn’t have to say much about this. Most people outside the Western world already understand this truth very well. But, of course, I’m preaching in Pasadena, CA so I have to stop and address this.
I’ve decided to let Dr. David Kasali who has served in Congo and Kenya, one of the graduates of the school I used to preside over, help me with this. Dr. Kasali wrote, “Westerners may wonder how the sin of one individual could bring such devastation to so many while the death of another could bring such blessing to so many. Paul uses the examples of Adam and Christ to illustrate the principle of corporate solidarity, in which the actions of one person affect the lives of all their relatives. An African from a community-based society in which ‘one is because others are’ can easily follow Paul’ explanation, for we share the belief of Paul’s Jewish community that the actions of one person affect all the others.” (Then, he provides examples from his society.)
Dr. Kasali goes on, “Paul contrasts the acts and roles of Adam and Jesus. Adam was the head of the human community so that when he sinned, he brought God’s judgment on all humanity… We sinned in Adam because he was our representative. The punishment for his sin was death and that is why death came into the world that God created (5:14). Adam’s sin continues to affect the whole of the human family today. We are born without a personal knowledge of God, without God walking and talking with us. All of us in the human family live under a reign of death. These are things we in Africa understand very well.”
Do you notice that Paul makes this point about our solidarity with Adam as if he just assumes that everyone will agree with him? In our society, we read this passage and then have to write volumes of material to try to explain it. But most people who have lived in this world have known there are bonds that tied all human beings together. Most people understand that humanity could rightly think of itself as a family tracing the lineage all the way back to our first parents.
Let's face it. There are bonds that tie all human beings together. These are things that go beyond genetic ones like skin color, eye shape and height. We see it every day in our own nuclear families. I see my children replicating my strengths and weaknesses. And reason compels me to believe that such links go as far back as they could be traced ‑‑ all the way to the earliest human beings.
I know this point of our connectedness to Adam and to all who have gone before us raises difficult questions in our minds. For example, does this mean that we are all born guilty because of the sin of Adam. Many Christians have answered yes. Many other Christians have said no – that what the Bible means is not that we’re born guilty but that we’re born corrupted by the sin in the human family. By that, they usually have meant that, the moment we are able to make a moral decision, we who are human make the wrong one.
Even Calvin and Hobbes in one of Bill Watterson’s comic strips wrestled with this: The young boy Calvin asks his animal friend Hobbes, “Do you think babies are born sinful? That they come into the world as sinners?” Hobbes replies, “No, I think they’re just quick studies.”
I am not going to try to address all the debates about these verses with you in my few moments from the pulpit. Instead, what I want you to grasp today is the main point the Bible makes here, i.e., that there is no way you can change yourself. You and I (and every person of every age everywhere) are so deeply affected by sin that Paul simply declares that all of people have sinned and that death comes because of sin. Not one of us is immune to it.”
This is our inheritance, and, let me tell you now, daily experience simply proves the point Paul makes. Sin’s impact is seen everywhere – among the rich and poor, in prisons and in universities, in our great-grandparents and our great grandchildren and everyone in between, among everyone who came before and everyone who comes afterward...
When Adam sinned, sin entered into the human race. That’s why, for some who are here, Adam is the most important man in your life. You and I need to be set free from this. (Next week, we’ll see how to have a new Lord, a new representative and thereby to shove Adam down to #2.)
It’s Not All Adam’s Fault – …all sinned (5:12). All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (3:23).
Even though Adam’s sin brought a reign of death and sin to all who follow in his line, that does not mean that we can simply blame all our failings on him – or on our parents and our grandparents who have passed sinful ways on to us. Yes, we are born into a sinful race – but we all personally make choices to do wrong when we face moral choices. That’s the consistent message of the Book of Romans – and of the entire Bible.
In vv. 13-14 & 20, Paul wrote about this to his people, the Jewish people, and to a particular issue they had with this matter of how to live without sin. When they read the books of Moses, many of them said, “Well, of course, after Adam sinned, people continued to sin because they didn’t have the Law of God. That wasn’t given until much later when Moses went on the mountain. But, now, we who are God’s people have the 10 Commandments and all the ways of God based on it. All we need to do is have our parents teach it to us and to have the priests and rabbis teach it and motivate us to obey it and then we’ll be able to live as God means for us to live. The thought, “Do as Dt 6:1-9 says and teach God’s laws from childhood on and we’ll all live well and live long.” Of course, by implication, that means that if people continue to sin, it’s the parents or rabbis fault for not doing their job well – not ours personally.
But, Paul said, “No.” The Bible always said that the Law of God is good but, simply having the Law of God doesn’t give anyone the power to keep it. Having it only points out more clearly to us that we’re not living as God created us to live. That’s what Paul meant in v.20 when he said “the law increases the trespass.” He meant that, when we have God’s Word in our hands and know what God wants us to do and then disobey anyway, it only increases the seriousness of the matter. That point of course, speaks to us who are in church today with Bibles in our hands. We know how God would have us to live but fail to live that way anyway.
Let me illustrate this: Next to the Jr. High School I attended, there was a man who had a beautiful lawn. We could get to school on our bikes faster if we rode through his lawn instead of going around it. Of course, we all knew we shouldn’t ride our bikes on his lawn and destroy it -- but many of us did it anyway. So, one day, we saw that the owner put up a sign, “Do not ride on the grass!” But some students did it anyway. You see, simply having a clear statement of what we should do didn’t give us the power to do what was right. All that it did was confirm that we were doing wrong. So, we do need to know right from wrong. That’s in the Bible. But we also need a new power to do what is right – and stay away from what is wrong.
I’m quite certain that those in Paul’s circle of acquaintances said, “God gave his Law to us. So, Paul, why don’t you just teach us and motivate us better to keep the Law instead of giving us all this difficult teaching?” In our day, you might say, “Hey, Pastor, why delve into all this stuff about what God has to do to save and change us. Why don’t you just remind us of the rules, and then motivate us to do right and to stay away from wrong?” I join Paul is telling you that simply telling you the rules of what is right and wrong will not empower you to do what is right. And the problem is not just that Adam or your parents have sinned and that you’re a victim of that. No, even when we know what is right, you and I choose to do wrong.
This made me think of another Calvin and Hobbes comic strip. In it, Calvin had failed a test. He says to his teacher, “This bad grade you gave me is lowering my self-esteem.” His teacher says, “Then, you should work harder so you don’t get bad grades.” Calvin pauses. Then says, “Your denial of my victimhood is lowering my self-esteem!”
Bottom line – Our human problem is not simply that we are corrupted or born sinful. That is a fact of our human existence. But, it is just as true that you and I choose to sin. So, what do we need? One thing we need is to know how God would have us to live – those things that are right and wrong, moral or immoral. And God’s Word gives us that. But we need more than that. No amount of teaching or motivational preaching will be able to help you keep that law perfectly. You and I need ongoing cleansing. We need the power of God’s work in us that begins when we place our faith in Jesus. We need a new Lord who will be with us and help us live a new life. We need someone who gives us his Spirit, one who can liberate both from the bonds of the past that enslave us and from our own ongoing failures. And, that’s what begins when we receive Jesus.
We’ll continue in the coming weeks to see how the Bible tells us that this renewing work of God happens. But I will stop at that point and call upon us all to respond to what we’ve heard today.
Paul wrote these verses in Romans because he knew that people he loved, the 1st C Jewish people, needed to own up to the reality of their spiritual condition or they could never be “made new”. He knew that both he and they had a their dire need for a savior from being born into a human family bound by sin and a world gone astray. He knew how desperately we all need someone forgive what is in the past and to set us free from so much of it. He knew his people needed someone who could pull them out of their patterns of life so that their futures would be different. And, I preach today to you because I know you and I do too.
The word that has come to my mind over and over as I have read these verses is the word strongholds. Centuries of sin in our world have an undeniable effect on all our lives. The Bible speaks of them as the strongholds of the world, the human flesh and the devil. I want you to pull out the prayer-kneelers in front of you. Take a few moments now to ask God to open your eyes to some of those strongholds keeping you from the life that God intends for you. In your family, they may be patterns of abuse, of moral failure, of pride. Acknowledge those things but not just to say that you’re a victim. Know that God is greater than whatever strongholds have been in your past.
Think of the strongholds of the world you have grown up in – those of our own society. Our nation has been afflicted by strongholds related to race and nationality. Has that affected the way you see and treat people? Ask God to show you. Give that to him. In our society, we often rejoice about free enterprise – but we know that this has led so often to greed and materialism. Do you see any of that in yourself? If you live worrying about material things or obsessed by them, you will find yourself in bondage. Give that to him in prayer…
Chinese Study Notes
全新的你:你生命中第二個最重要的人
羅馬書 5:12-15,20-21
今天,我們來看羅馬書第五章的經文。在這章經文中,有一些堪稱整本聖經中最具挑戰性、難以理解並應用的經節。這些章節出自使徒保羅之手。當我預備今天這篇信息的時候,一開始我有些疑慮:使徒彼得後來曾寫道:“就如我們所親愛的兄弟保羅,照著所賜給他的智慧寫了信給你們。他一切的信上也都是講論這事。信中有些難明白的…(彼後3:15-16)”。這個難明白是否就是指羅馬書5:12-21這段文字呢?我對此很贊同。
我認為這篇信息最好的開始,就是提醒大家,羅馬書5-8章中系列講道信息的內容。正如彼得在信中所說的:保羅在羅馬書中寫了人類的救恩。在羅馬書1-4章中,保羅談到,人類能夠從罪中得救的唯一途徑,就是藉著信靠主耶穌而得到神的恩典。
接下來,羅馬書5-8章的主要信息是,在耶穌裏的信心不僅僅使我們得以被稱為“義”(用保羅的話說就是,因著信靠耶穌,神宣告赦免我們並使我們得蒙祂的喜悅),而且也正如保羅在5章9節中所說的,使我們“完全的得救”! 正像蒂姆·佩克牧師上周所說,羅馬書中的救恩一詞的意思是,我們的生命有一天變得完全得稱為義,我們的生命正越來越像基督的樣式。
你看,耶穌並沒有強迫你在脫離過去的罪之後離開罪惡,是你對耶穌真實的信心改變了你。 所以此時,我們正在經歷神的話語的一個非常重要的部分,其中將會告訴你這個變化的過程。 換句話說,如果你今天來到教會,知道你的生命需要改變,那麽信靠耶穌是如何導致這種轉變的呢?
我稱這個講道系列為“更新生命”。 這個標題本身就引起了一個大問題,“為什麽我必須被其他人更新”?為什麽我決定不了自己生命的改變? 聖經的答案很簡單,“因為你不能”,你不具備這樣的能力。
這就是我今天想和大家談論的。 我知道,這聽起來並不令人鼓舞。 但是,如果我們能真正理解我們所稱為“福音”的好消息,那麽我不認為會有比這“福音”更重要、更值得擁有的東西。
在過去的星期三晚上,我們中有許多人與我們的拓展部教牧領袖梅拉·諾蘭一起開會,這個問題從一個全新的角度觸動了我。我們談到當地的教會,梅拉說:“我們都需要肯定。 然而有時我們必須要問:“我們缺少了什麽? 有什麽是違反初衷的? 其中有哪些問題?”
羅馬書5章12-15節告訴我們,必須要如此行。 我一直在熱切禱告,神想要我們從這段經文中得到什麽。我認為是下面的這個要點:你生命中過不去的難關在哪裏?可能就是你還堅持在不信之中生活,可能你知道有些事情被搞砸了,需要改變。 我想告訴你:你需要藉著相信耶穌,而將神帶入你的生命之中。 這才是改變開始之處。
而且,對於在座的許多人(可能是我們絕大多數人)來說,也許這個問題更像是:在你靈命成長的過程中,在你與神同行的道路上,哪些地方使你過不去?聖經承諾過,當你邀請耶穌進入你的生命時,神將開始一個實實在在的、使你生命中的一切更新的過程。你曾經這樣問過嗎?“為什麽在靈命的成長上要花去我這麽長的時間? ”所以,這就是我們今天的信息種所需要去思考的內容。我想和你談談關於我們自己,關於人類,為什麽今天我們中的許多人來到教會,本渴望行正確的事,然而卻發現自己無法做到這一點?
你生命中第二重要的人 - 保羅在羅馬書5章12節是這樣開始的:這就如罪是從一人入了世界,死又是從罪來的,於是死就臨到眾人,因為眾人都犯了罪。
請看這節經文的開始和結尾。 在開始你會看到“因此”一詞,正如諺語所說:“當你知其所以然時,你必須也要知其然。”這裏的“因此”是回顧5章1-11節,當你將自己的信心放在基督裏,所有的祝福,包括神完全拯救你的應許、完成我們生命中一切的事情,以及這必然的希望(參見第2節)都會來到我們身邊,因為神愛我們。這更新的承諾是確切的,因為當我們相信耶穌時,實際上就是與耶穌基督聯合。 我們經常對孩子們說,要把耶穌帶進心中。保羅說:“因此”,與基督的這種認同使我們變得美好,“就像”我們與那將罪引進世界的人(即亞當)的關系,使得我們陷入了我們所處的困境中一樣。
接下來,請留意第12節的結尾,就是那個波折號。保羅說,因一次的過犯(亞當),眾人都被定罪,照樣,因一次的義行(耶穌),眾人也就被稱義得生命了。但是,保羅說完這話之後就停住了。這就是結尾的波折號的意思。保羅似乎意識到,人們其實並不真正理解他的意思。他感覺到,人們需要聽到更多我們所遭遇的問題,因為我們是墮落人類的一部分,又回到亞當的狀況之中。保羅說,“死臨到罪人,因為眾人都犯了罪……”他停下來問:“你們都知道,所有人都犯了罪,我們都被死亡所轄制,與神分離,不是嗎?”因此,在12-18節中,使徒話題一轉,告訴我們,與耶穌的連接會改變我們的生命,也就是說,為什麽我們迫切需要一位如耶穌一般的救主來改變我們。
保羅所提到的,關於我們的生命受祖先影響的問題,是美國這樣的西方國家的人們所難以理解的。我們很少會想到人類之間的橫向聯系。保羅將我們帶回到創世紀第三章,當亞當犯罪之時,他說,亞當所做的一切都繼續要影響著我們所有人。我們生活在西方世界的人們都是個人主義者,我們的頭腦很難理解這一點。但是,如果我今天是在內羅畢,肯尼亞,泰國的曼谷,或是印度的喀拉拉邦講道,我就不用多說了。在西方世界以外的大多數人都很了解這件事。然而當然,我現在是在加州的帕薩迪那講道,所以我必須停下來細講這個問題。
我想請服事於剛果和肯尼亞、又畢業於我所管理過的一所學校的大衛·卡薩利博士來幫我解釋這件事。卡薩利博士這樣寫道:“西方人可能會想,一個人的罪如何能給這麽多人造成這樣的毀壞;另一個人的死又如何能給這麽多人帶來如此的祝福。保羅用亞當和耶穌的例子來說明團體合作原則,也就是說,一個人的行為會影響整個團體的生活。一個來自集體社會為主的非洲人,懂得“團體造就個人”的道理,因此他會很容易理解保羅的解釋,同感於保羅所說的猶太社區的觀念,也就是一個人的行為會影響到其他所有人(接著,他提供了他自己所在社會的例子)。
卡薩利博士繼續說,“保羅將亞當與耶穌的行為與角色進行了比較。亞當是人類群體的頭,因此當他犯罪的時候,他就將神的審判帶給了全人類……我們在亞當裏犯了罪,因為他代表了全人類。罪的刑罰就是死,正因如此,死亡進入了神所創造的世界(5:14)。直到今天,亞當的罪還在繼續影響著全人類。在我們出生之際,我們不認識神,神沒有與我們交談和一同行走。所有的人都生活在死亡的權勢之中。在非洲,人們非常理解這些事情。
你是否留意到,保羅在談到對於亞當的這個觀點的時候,似乎假定了每個人都會同意他。在我們的社會裏,我們在閱讀這段經文之後,需要大量解釋。然而世間的大多數人都知道,有一股力量將所有的人類連結起來。大多數人都知道,人類認為彼此有統一的血統,要源於我們的始祖。
面對現實吧。人類彼此之間的確有緊密的關聯。我們彼此之間存在著超越膚色、眼睛形狀和身高等遺傳因素的連結。我們每天都會在自己的家庭中看到這一點。我看到我的孩子繼承了我的優點和弱點。我的理性迫使我相信,這樣的連結可以追溯到最早的人類。
我知道,這個與亞當、和先祖連結的觀點,會使我們有很多疑問。例如,這是否意味著我們因著亞當的罪而生來就有罪?許多基督徒的回答是肯定的。也有很多基督徒的回答是否定的,他們認為,聖經的意思並不是說我們生來有罪,而是覺得我們生來就被人類的罪汙染。他們的意思通常是說,當人類有能力做出道德的抉擇的時候,他們總是會做出錯誤的選擇。
就連加爾文和霍布斯都在比爾·沃特森的漫畫中提到:小男孩加爾文問他的動物朋友沃特森:“你覺得嬰兒一出生就有罪嗎?他們一進入世界就是罪人?沃特森回答說,“不是,我覺得他們只是學得特別快。”
我不想在講臺上有限的時間之內和你爭論這些經文的含義。我今天想讓大家理解的,是聖經在這裏所說到的重點,也就是說,你無法改變自己。你和我(也包括每個地方、每個年齡層的每個人)都深深地受到罪的影響,因此,保羅宣告,世人都犯了罪,因著罪就有了死亡。沒有人能得到免疫。
這就是我們的傳承,讓我告訴你,我們每天的經驗就證明了保羅的觀點。罪的影響每日可見 ---- 無論是富人還是窮人,在監獄中還是在大學裏,我們的祖輩還是孫輩,或是兩者之間,是古人還是後來者……
當亞當犯罪之時,罪就進入人間。正因如此,對於在座的某些人來說,亞當是你生命中最重要的人。你和我都需要從其中得到自由。(下周,我們要看看如何擁有一個新的主,代替亞當)。
這不全是亞當的錯 –--世人都犯了罪(5:12)。因為世人都犯了罪,虧缺了神的榮耀(3:23)。
雖然亞當所犯的罪帶來了死亡的轄制,並將罪帶給了他所有的後人,但這並不意味著我們可以把所有的過錯都歸咎於他,或者責怪我們的父母和我們的爺爺奶奶把罪性遺傳了給我們。 是的,我們生來就是進入了一個有著罪性的族類,但是當我們面對道德選擇的時候,我們個人的抉擇都是錯的。 這是羅馬書和整本聖經的一直強調的信息。
在13-14節和20節中,對於這個問題,保羅專門向他自己的民族猶太人寫信,告訴他們,如何過一個不犯罪的生活。 當他們讀摩西五經時,他們中有許多人說:“當然,亞當犯罪之後,人們繼續犯罪,因為他們沒有神的律法。一直到摩西去到山上的時候神才將律法賜下。 但是現在,作為神的子民,我們有十誡和神在其上指示我們當行的一切道路。 我們所需要做的只是讓我們的父母、祭司和拉比將這些教導我們,並激勵我們遵守,然後我們就能夠像神曉喻我們的那樣去生活。 這個想法,“正如申命記6:1-9所說的那樣,教導神的律法要從孩子的童年開始,這樣我們的日子就得以長久。”當
然,這意味著,如果人們繼續犯罪,就是父母或拉比沒能做好他們的工作,而不是我們個人的責任。
但是,保羅說:“不,”聖經一貫都指出神的律法是好的,但知道神的律法,並不能使任何人去遵守它。 它只是清楚地向我們指出,我們沒有像神最初創造我們時那樣活著。 這就是保羅在第20節中所說的“律法叫過犯顯多”,他的意思是說,當我們手中握有神的話語,知道神要我們做什麽,然而卻不服從,就只會增加事情的嚴重性。那當然是對我們這些常去教會、手拿聖經的人所說的。 我們知道神希望我們如何生活,但卻仍然沒有那樣去做。
讓我來說明一下:在我所就讀的高中旁邊,住著一位男士,他家有一個美麗的草坪。 如果我們騎自行車穿行他的草坪、而不是繞過它,我們就可以更快地到達學校。 當然,我們都知道我們不應該在他的草坪上騎自行車,但是我們很多人都這樣做了。有一天,我們看到屋主掛了一個 “請勿在草地上騎自行車”的牌子,但是有些學生仍然這樣做。 你可以看到,僅憑一個清楚地告訴我們應該做什麽的指示牌,是不會使我們有力量去行正確事情的。 它唯一能做的,就是證實我們做了錯事。 因此我們確實需要從錯誤的教訓中得知什麽是正確的。 這是聖經中的教導。 我們還需要一個新的力量來做正確的事情,並且遠離錯誤。
我相信,保羅所熟識的人們會說,“神將祂的律法賜給我們,因此保羅,你為什麽不教導我們、激勵我們持守律法,而是將這些難以理解的教導告訴我們?”在我們的時代,你可能會說,“牧師,我們為什麽要深究神為要拯救和改變我們所做的這些事情?你為什麽不提醒我們這些規則,激勵我們做正確的選擇、避免錯誤?”我加入保羅的行列,告訴人們,簡單地告訴你對錯的規則,並不能使你做正確的事情。問題並不單單是因著亞當或是你的父母犯罪,你成為受害者,不是的,即使我們知道什麽是正確的,你和我仍然會做錯誤的選擇。
這使我想起加爾文和沃爾森的另一個漫畫。其中,加爾文考試不及格,他對老師說:“你給我的這個壞成績降低了我的自信心。”他的老師說:“那你應當更努力學習,不要讓自己得到壞成績。”加爾文停了一下,然後說:“你否認我的受害,也降低了我的自信心。”
底線----人類的問題,不僅僅是我們被罪所汙染、或是我們生來有罪。那時人類存在的事實。然而,還有一個事實,就是我們會選擇犯罪。那麽我們需要什麽?其中一件事,就是要明白神希望我們如何生活,知道事物的對錯和道德與否。神的話給予我們如此的引導,但是我們不止需要神的話,沒有任何教導或勵誌的講道能夠幫助你完全持守律法,你我需要持續不斷被潔凈。人類的問題不只是簡單的腐敗或與身俱來的罪性。這是人類存在的現實,同樣真實的是,你我會選擇犯罪。我們不斷地需要被赦免,需要有人與我們同行,將我們從過去的捆綁中,和不斷失敗的奴役中釋放出來。這些都是從接受耶穌開始的。
在未來幾周裏,我們會繼續看聖經的教導,以及神更新的工作是怎樣產生的。我先停在這裏,好叫大家來回應我們今天聽到的信息。
保羅之所以寫羅馬書這幾節經文,是因為知道,他所愛的第一世紀的猶太人需要承認他們的屬靈狀況的現實,不然永遠也不能“變成新的”。保羅和猶太人迫切需要一位救主,將人類從罪的捆綁和世界歧途中拯救出來。他知道我們都是何等的需要從以往的罪中得到赦免,從重負中得到釋放。他知道,百姓需要有人將他們從舊有的生活方式中救拔出來,才會有不一樣的未來。我今天所講的信息,也是因為深感你我有同樣的需要。
在讀這段經文時,我的腦海中不斷出現“營壘”這個字。多少世紀以來,世間的罪對我們的生活造成不可否認的影響。聖經所指世界的營壘,就是人的肉體和魔鬼。我希望大家一同來禱告,求神開我們的心眼,使我們能看見,哪些營壘阻攔了我們所當過的生活。在你的家庭中,這也許是虐待的模式,道德敗壞或驕傲。要明白這一切,不只是認識到自己是犧牲品,更要知道,神大過你過往生活中的任何營壘。
想想在你成長世界裏,社會中的營壘。我們的國家飽受種族與民族的痛苦。這些有沒有影響到你看待人們的眼光?求神向你顯明,並交托在神的手中。我們常享受自由企業,但是它也帶來物質和貪婪。你有沒有在自己身上看到這些?如果你為物質所擔憂、所癡迷, 你就會落入捆綁之中。要在禱告中交托給神……
榮耀歸給神,
Greg Waybright 博士
主任牧師