Ministry in Word

The Ways and the Paths – Part 4

道与路 – 第四部

Psalm 25:4-7
诗篇25:4-7

“Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teachme, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. Remember, O LORD,your great mercy and love, for they are from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you are good, OLORD.”

「耶和华啊，求你将你的道指示我，将你的路教训我！求你以你的真理引导我，教训我，因为你是救我的 神。我终日等候你。耶和华啊，求你记念你的怜悯和慈爱，因为这是亘古以来所常有的。求你不要记念我幼年的罪愆和我的过犯；耶和华啊，求你因你的恩惠，按你的慈爱记念我。」


When God called Gideon to lead the Israelites to fight the Midianites’ oppression, He reduced Gideon’s men from 32,000 to 300 to face the large army of the Midianites and other enemies. The Bible says that “the Midianties, the Amalekites and all the other eastern peoples had settled in the valley, thick as locusts. Their camels could no more be counted than the sand on the seashore.” (Jdg 7:12) Why would God want Gideon and
the Israelites to be outnumbered like that? God had a very good reason. God told Gideon, “You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands.” He did that so that Israel might not boast against God that her own strength had saved her. (Jdg 7:2) God’s purpose was to change the self-reliance of the Israelites into God-dependence. God’s way to accomplish His purpose was by giving the Midianites a nightmare of their defeat to dishearten them, followed by the noise made by the Israelites causing confusion among the Midianites, leading to their slaughtering one another. Today God also wants to transform us from self-centered independence into a God-centered reliance, trusting Him in all things of our life. His way is by showing us His strength where we are weak, and
by delivering us from impossible situations, so that we know we can trust Him. For the Bible commands us, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” (Pr 3:5-6)

当神呼召基甸来带领以色列人抵抗米甸人的压迫时，神把基甸的人数从32,000减 到300去面对米甸人和其他敌人的巨大军队。圣经说「米甸人、亚玛力人，和一切东方人都布散在平原，如同蝗虫那样多。他们的骆驼无数，多如海边的沙。」〔士7:12〕为何神要使基甸和以色列人与敌人如此众寡悬殊呢？神有很好的理由。神告诉基甸说，「跟随你的人过多，我不能将米甸人交在他们手中。」他这样做是免得以色列人向神夸大，说是他们自己的手救了他们〔士7: 2〕。神的目的是要把以色列人的自我倚靠改变为对神的倚靠。神达成他的目的的方法就是让米甸人梦到他们战败而丧胆，接着用以色列人所发出的声音引起米甸人的混乱，引至他们自相残杀。今日神也要把我们从自我中心的独立改变为以神为中心的倚靠，在我们生活上凡事信靠他。他的方法就是在我们软弱之处向我们显出他的力量，和从绝望的情况中拯救我们，让我们知道我们可以信靠他。因为圣经命令我们说，「你要专心仰赖耶和华，不可倚靠自己的聪明，在你一切所行的事上都要认定他，他必指引你的路。」〔箴3:5-6〕

TEACH BY SHOWING AND GUIDING

以指示与引导来教授

After we understand His purpose, we will then learn His ways, because He has promised to teach us His way. Psalm 32:8 says, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.” If we are willing to learn, we will ask God as King David said, “Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me”. He asked God to teach him God’s ways and paths for life with two different methods: by SHOWING him and by GUIDING him. God is a good teacher; he teaches us by SHOWING us His ways through the Ten Commandments, and through Jesus Christ coming into our world to clarify and demonstrate the ways to live a Godly life. God is a good teacher; he teaches us by GUIDING us through the Holy Spirit, and through His small still voice in all our situations telling us that, “This is the way;
walk in it.” (Isa 30:20-21).

我们了解他的目的後，就要学习他的方法，因为他曾应许要指示我们他的路。诗篇32:8说，「我要教导你，指示你当行的路；我要定睛在你身上劝戒你。」如果我们愿意学习我们就会与大卫王一同说，「耶和华啊，求你将你的道指示我，将你的路教训我！求你以你的真理引导我，教训我」。他求神用两个不同的方法教他神的生命之道路：指示他和引导他。神是一位好老师，他以十诫和藉着耶稣基督到世上来阐明示范过敬虔生活的方法来指示我们他的道路。神是一位好老师，他以圣灵来引导我们，在我们所有的光境中以微小的声音告诉我们，「这是正路，要行在其间。」〔赛30:20-21〕


God teaches us by first laying out what He requires us to do and what He requires us NOT to do. And what does God require of us? The Bible says, “And now, O Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the LORD's commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your
own good?” (Dt 10:12-13) But then knowing our tendency to live out the letter of the law instead of its spirit, missing the intent of the law, Jesus came into this world to SHOW us what it is and how to do it. For Jesus is “the way and the truth and the life” Jn 14:6). Furthermore, God sends the Holy Spirit to GUIDE us giving us personal directions on how to apply His precepts. Let me use the analogy of travel to illustrate
these. Having God’s requirement is like getting the street address, we know what the destination is. Having Jesus’ clarification is like getting the right map, we can find our way to the destination. Having the Holy Spirit in our life is like getting someone who has been there to ride with us and direct us, or having a GPS in our car. These are the ways that God teaches His people His way of life.

神教导我们先认识什麽是他要我们做的和什麽是他不要我们做的。那麽神要我们做什麽呢？圣经说，「以色列阿，现在耶和华─你 神向你所要的是甚麽呢？只要你敬畏耶和华─你的 神，遵行他的道，爱他，尽心尽性事奉他，遵守他的诫命律例，就是我今日所吩咐你的，为要叫你得福。」〔申10:12-13〕但是因为知道我们常常只活出律法字面的意思而非它的精意，错过律法的目的，耶稣来到这世界来指示我们它是什麽和如何去做。因为耶稣「就是道路、真理、生命」〔约
14:6〕。不单如此，神差遣圣灵来引导我们，亲自给我们指示如何应用他的训导。让我用旅行的类推来说明这些。得到神的要求就像得到地址，我们知道目的地是什麽。得到耶稣的阐明就像得到一张正确的地图，我们可以找到去目的地的途径。得到圣灵在我们生活中就有如有一位到过那里的人坐在我们车上来引导我们，或有如车上装了全球卫星定位系统。这些是神教导他的子民他生命之道的方法。

To be continued next week.
下周待续。

May we learn God’s requirements of us through His commandments and statutes. May we imitate Christ in our life and heed the direction of the Holy Spirit in all that we do, so that we may please Him.

愿我们从神的诫命和律令来认识他对我们的要求。愿我们在我们生活上模彷基督 并且在凡事上遵从圣灵的引导，好让我们可以讨神的喜悦。


Tom and Tehwan Tso
仲谋与德菀