靜語中走向神—復興的預備 (卓爾君牧師)
在1857年,住在紐約的耶利米發了上千份的單張邀請人們參加禱告會,從起初的一個人的禱告,發展成5000個禱告團體在紐約,兩年後,來自15000個城市的人在每天中午在市中心參與禱告,千萬的人在主的面前悔改。這一切都來自一個想要祈禱的人開始的,與任何有名的傳道人或者教會無關。只有神才能開始復興!在神降臨我們當中之前,祂非常清楚地表達祂對我們的期望,而這個期望已經寫在聖經幾千年!許多歷代的教會努力地嘗試各式各樣讓教會復興的方式,神學院發展出各式各樣的理論、經營的模式、各種統計研究,討論如何帶來教會增長與復興,但是他們卻忽略了神最明確的期望及最簡單的心意。
我們明明坐在自己座位上,用自己想要的方式、自私地禱告,要求神走向自己,而不是自己走向神,卻還認定自己是順從神的人,只因為所做的是看起來關乎神的事情!真正的走向神不是我們每天有多少次的禱告,不是我們每天做了多少看似屬靈的事情,而是我們所做的是否將榮耀歸給上帝!
約拿書 3:1-10 (和合本)
- 耶和華的話二次臨到約拿說:
- 「你起來,往尼尼微大城去,向其中的居民宣告我所吩咐你的話。」
- 約拿便照耶和華的話起來,往尼尼微去。這尼尼微是極大的城,有三日的路程。
- 約拿進城走了一日,宣告說:「再等四十日,尼尼微必傾覆了!」
- 尼尼微人信服神,便宣告禁食,從最大的到至小的都穿麻衣。
- 這信息傳到尼尼微王的耳中,他就下了寶座,脫下朝服,披上麻布,坐在灰中。
- 他又使人遍告尼尼微通城,說:「王和大臣有令:人不可嘗什麼,牲畜、牛羊不可吃草,也不可喝水。
- 人與牲畜都當披上麻布,人要切切求告神。各人回頭離開所行的惡道,丟棄手中的強暴。
- 或者神轉意後悔,不發烈怒,使我們不致滅亡,也未可知。」
- 於是神察看他們的行為,見他們離開惡道,他就後悔,不把所說的災禍降於他們了。
Jonah 3:1-10 (NIV)
- Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time:
- “Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.”
- Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it.
- Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”
- The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.
- When Jonah’s warning reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, took off his royal robes, covered himself with sackcloth and sat down in the dust.
- This is the proclamation he issued in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let people or animals, herds or flocks, taste anything; do not let them eat or drink.
- But let people and animals be covered with sackcloth. Let everyone call urgently on God. Let them give up their evil ways and their violence.
- Who knows? God may yet relent and with compassion turn from his fierce anger so that we will not perish.”
- When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.