Ministry in Word

Divine Petition – Part 2
神的祈求 – 第二篇

(Partially based on Charles Spurgeon’s “Morning and Evening” devotional)
(部份根据查理斯.司布真的「早晨与傍晚」灵修作品)

Luke 22:31-32
路加22:31-32

“Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail.”

「西门！西门！撒但想要得着你们，好筛你们像筛麦子一样；但我已经为你祈求，叫你不至於失了信心。」

Continued from Part 1
上接第一篇

James continued to say in chapter 5 verse15, “And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven.” So THIRDLY, our prayer must be offered in faith, for according to Hebrews 11:6, “without faith it is impossible to please God.” We must have faith to offer our prayer that is pleasing to God. In response to a prayer in faith God will heal a person’s physical and spiritual sickness by making him well and forgiving him according to God’s will.

雅各继续在第5章第15节说：「出於信心的祈祷要救那病人，主必叫他起来；他若犯了罪，也必蒙赦免。」所以第三点，我们的祈祷必须出于信心，因为希伯来书11:6说「人非有信，就不能得神的喜悦。」我们必须有信心来作能得神喜悦的祷告。神回应出於信心的祈祷，他要医治一个人肉体与灵魂的病，照他旨意叫他痊愈和赦免他。

And in James 5:16, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.” So FOURTHLY, to be effective our prayer must be offered by us as united repentant sinners. Confessing our sins to each other unites us the believers in repentance.

雅各書5:16说：「所以你们要彼此认罪，互相代求，使你们可以得医治。义人祈祷所发的力量是大有功效的。」所以第四点就是，我们的祈祷若要有功效，我们就必要是同心一意、悔改的罪人。彼此认罪在悔改上联合我们这些信徒。

Why Should We Pray
我们为什麽要祈祷

In this verse James also gives us the reason for us to pray, that is, so that we may be healed physically and spiritually. Our problem may be our physical illness or suffering. Or it may be our spiritual illness that is our sins. God may or may not take away our problem when we pray, but Apostle Paul said that when we pray, “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Php 4:7) When we pray about our problem, God will let us gain a new perspective to see God for who He is and our problem for what it is. He will let us see how great a God He is and how relatively small our problem really is.

在这节经文里雅各也告诉我们祈祷的理由，那就是因此我们可以在肉体和灵性上得医治。我们的问题可能是肉体的病或痛苦，又或者它是我们灵魂的病就是我们的罪。当我们祈求时神或者要或者不要把我们的问题拿掉，但使徒保罗说当我们祈求时，「神所赐、出人意外的平安必在基督耶稣里保守你们的心怀意念。」〔腓4:7〕当我们为我们的问题祈求时，神会让我们得到一个新的观点，可以看到神与我们问题的真相。他要让我们看到他是多伟大的神而我们的问题相形之下实在是多渺小。

James said that the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. However, the Bible says there is none righteous in this world. Maybe James meant that after we confess our sins and repent we take on the righteousness of Jesus. If we, with imputed righteousness not of our own, can have powerful and effective prayer, just think how powerful and effective the prayer of a truly righteous man would be. And this truly righteous man is Jesus who prays for us. Let us see how Jesus prays for us.

雅各说义人祈祷所发的力量是大有功效的。但是圣经说世上没有一个义人。也许雅名的意思是指在我们认罪悔改後我们就得到耶稣的义。如果我们因转移得到不属于自己的义能有大有功效的祈祷，试想一个真正的义人的祈祷会多大有功效。这真正的义人就是为我们祈祷的耶稣。让我们看看耶稣怎样为我们祈祷。

To be continued next week.
下周待续。

May we focus our sight upon Jesus Christ in our daily challenges. May we gain the true perspective that our God is far greater than our problems and that we can rest in Him.

愿我们在我们每日的挑战中定晴在耶稣基督身上。愿我们获得真的观点，知道我们的神是远超过我们的问题而我们可以在他里面安息。

Tom and Tehwan Tso
仲谋与德菀

“The outcome of your faith is the salvation of your souls.” 1Peter 1:9

“信心的果效， 就是灵魂的救恩” 彼得前书1：9