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出埃及记生命读经 · 第44篇

喝生命的水（二）

Drinking the Water of Life (2)
1读经：出埃及记17:3上，6；约翰福音7:37-39;4:10,14；哥林多前书3；启示录21:6;22:1-2,17；使徒行传2:17上，21。在本篇信息中，我们要来看圣经中所启示喝生命水的路。我能作见证，我花了三十年以上的时间来找如何饮活水的路。在前一篇信息中我曾指出，尽管我传讲了许多喝活水的事，但我自己却不知道该怎样喝。最后，我必须问自己：『你传讲了那么多的喝活水，但是你知道怎样喝么？』我必须承认我没有喝的路。我觉得我要赶紧找出正确喝活水的方法。若是我释放了一篇喝活水的信息之后，有人问我怎样喝，我该怎么办？假设有人到你这里来说：『我信基督是活水，我渴慕祂。请告诉我怎样喝这活水。』你如何答覆这样的问题呢？
1Scripture Reading: Exo. 17:3a, 6; John 7:37-39; 4:10, 14; 1 Cor. 10:4; 12:13, 3; Rev. 21:6; 22:1-2, 17; Acts 2:17a, 21 10:4; 12:13, In this message we shall consider what is revealed in the Bible concerning the way to drink the water of life. I can testify that I have spent more than thirty years to find out how to drink the living water. In the foregoing message I pointed out that although I preached a great deal about drinking of the living water, I myself did not know how to drink. Eventually, I had to ask myself, “You preach so much about drinking, but do you know how to drink?” I had to admit that I did not have the way to drink. I came to realize the urgency of finding out the proper way to drink. What would I do if, after a message on drinking the living water, someone were to ask me how to drink? Suppose someone approached you and said, “I believe that Christ is the living water, and I am thirsty for Him. Please tell me how to drink of this living water.” How would you answer such a question?
2圣经中神圣的奥秘并不是都清楚、明白地启示出来。有时候因著神的智慧，祂以相当隐藏的方式来启示祂的奥秘。这些奥秘记载在圣经里，也启示在圣经里，但它们不是完全公开的。比方说，圣经吩咐我们要相信，但它没有告诉我们要怎样信。我多年传福音，告诉人要相信主。每当有人问我怎样信，我就答不上来了。如果有人问你怎样相信主耶稣，你要怎么说？难道你要以道理的方式告诉那人，信道是从听道来的么？如果你光叫他相信，若是别人问起你怎么相信时，你怎么办？这个问题最好的答案乃是我们藉著呼求主耶稣的名而相信主。我们在信主的事上，不该把复杂的答案给还没有得救的人。不要想去解释，藉著信我们就进入与主生机的联合里。这样的解释只会叫他们糊涂。告诉那些要相信主的人，只要开口呼求：『哦，主耶稣。』相信主的法子就是呼求祂的名。
2Not all the divine secrets in the Bible are revealed in a clear and evident way. In His wisdom sometimes God reveals His secrets in a way that is rather hidden. These secrets are recorded in the Bible and revealed in it, but they are not altogether open. For example, the Bible commands us to believe, but it does not tell us how to believe. For years in preaching the gospel I have told people to believe in the Lord. Whenever someone has asked me how to believe, I have been troubled. What would you say if someone asked you how to believe in the Lord Jesus? Would you tell that person in a doctrinal way that faith comes by hearing? If you simply tell him to believe, what will you do if you are asked how to believe? The best answer to this question is that we believe by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus. To the unsaved we should not give complicated answers about how to believe. Do not try to explain that by believing we enter into an organic union with the Lord. Such explanations will only confuse them. Tell those who want to believe in the Lord to simply open their mouths and call, “O Lord Jesus.” The way to believe in the Lord is to call on His name
3圣经如何没有告诉我们如何相信，照样，它也没有告诉我们如何饮生命的水。圣经只有说，我们若渴了，就当到主这里来喝。倘若我们到主面前问祂怎样喝，祂会说：『你若是口渴的话，就尽管喝罢。』我们藉著喝来学习喝。因此，喝的法子有点像信主的法子。喝的方法与相信的方法不尽相同，但很相近。当我们思想怎样喝，我愿意以简单而实际的方式述说我这三十多年来查考所学到的。这样的话是对信主的人说的，不是对不信的人说的。
3Just as the Bible does not tell us how to believe, so it does not tell us how to drink the water of life. The Scripture simply says that if we are thirsty we should come to the Lord and drink. If we go to the Lord and ask Him how to drink, He may say, “If you are thirsty and want to drink, just drink.” We learn to drink by drinking. Thus, the way to drink is somewhat like the way to believe in the Lord. The way to drink is not exactly the same as the way to believe, but it is close. As we consider how to drink, I would like to present in a simple yet practical way what I have learned through more than thirty years of study. This word is given to those who believe in the Lord, not to unbelievers.
一 被摆在喝的地位上
I. POSITIONED TO DRINK
4我们这些信徒，已经被摆在喝的地位上。这是喝的科学的第一方面。林前十二章十三节说：『我们不拘是犹太人，是希利尼人，是为奴的，是自主的，都已经在一位灵里浸成了一个身体；也都得以饮于一位灵。』（新译。）藉著受浸我们已被摆在喝的地位上了。只要我们被浸到主里面，我们就有地位来喝活水。我们得救之前远离活水。但我们既得救了，就把我们带回到活水这里，并且把我们摆在饮于活水的地位上。例如，我们会所里有一个饮水机，但要饮这水，我们的口必须在适当的位置上。照样，我们若要饮活水，首先就必须摆在喝的地位上。受浸给了我们这个地位。感谢主，我们都有地位来喝活水。
4As believers, we have been positioned to drink. This is the first aspect of the science of drinking. First Corinthians 12:13 says, “For also in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and were all given to drink one Spirit.” Through baptism we have been positioned to drink. As long as we have been baptized into the Lord, we have the position to drink of the living water. Before we were saved, we were far away from the living water. But now that we have been saved, we have been brought back to the water and positioned to drink of it. For example, there is a drinking fountain in our meeting hall. But in order to drink of this fountain, our mouth must be in the proper position. Likewise, to drink of the living water, we must first be positioned to drink. Baptism gives us this position. Thank the Lord that we all are positioned to drink
二 必须是干渴的
II. THE NEED OF THIRST
5即使把我们摆在喝的地位上，若不是口渴，我们也不会喝。要喝生命水，就必须是渴的。（出十七3上，约七37，启二一6。）今天成百万的基督徒不渴慕主。干渴是何等的可怜！我能作见证，我天天渴慕活水。我若有一段时间不祷告，我就觉得干渴。我们渴慕活水乃是主的一个怜悯，尤其是在许多基督徒不渴慕的时侯，更是如此。我们很多人能作见证，在一天当中，我们觉得里面是干渴的。这个干渴催促我们祷告并来接触主。我们也许简单地说：『主耶稣，我渴慕你，我要接触你。』倘若我们觉得不彀渴慕，就需要祷告说：『主阿，加增我里面的渴慕。』我们都需要这样来渴慕主。
5Even though we have been positioned to drink, we shall not drink unless we are thirsty. To drink the water of life there is the need of thirst (Exo. 17:3a; John 7:37; Rev. 21:6). Millions of today’s Christians are not thirsty for the Lord. What a mercy it is to be thirsty! I can testify that day by day I am thirsty for living water. If I do not pray for a certain period of time, I become conscious of my thirst. It is a mercy that we are thirsty for the living water, especially when so many Christians have no thirst. Many of us can testify that during the day we are conscious of the thirst within us. This thirst causes us to pray and to contact the Lord. In a simple way, we may say, “Lord Jesus, I am thirsty for You, and I want to contact You.” If we sense that our thirst is not adequate, we may need to pray, “Lord, increase the thirst within me.” We all need such a thirst for the Lord
三 到主这里来
III. COMING TO THE LORD
6我们也需要到主这里来。在约翰七章三十七节主耶稣邀请干渴的人到祂这里来喝。同样地，那灵和新妇也发出来喝活水的呼召。（启二二17。）即使把我们摆在喝的地位上，我们也觉得干渴，我们还需要一再地来到主面前。我们需要不断地，甚至一天二十四小时都来到主面前。倘若我们告诉主，我们要终日到祂这里来，祂定规会答应我们的祷告。告诉主说：『主，我要不断地到你面前，我要每天二十四小时到你面前来，即使在睡眠的时候，也要到你面前来。』不论我们作甚么，都可以藉著呼求主来到祂面前。每当我们呼求主耶稣的名，我们就来到祂面前。
6We also need to come to the Lord. In John 7:37 the Lord Jesus invites the thirsty ones to come to Him and drink. In like manner, the Spirit and the bride send forth the call to come and drink of the living water (Rev. 22:17). Even though we have been positioned to drink and are thirsty, we still need to come to the Lord again and again. We need to come to the Lord continually, even twenty - four hours a day. If we tell the Lord that we want to come to Him all day long, He surely will answer our prayer. Tell the Lord, “Lord, I don’t want to stop coming to You. I want to come to You twenty-four hours a day, even when I am asleep.” No matter what we are doing, we may come to the Lord by calling on Him. Whenever we call on the name of the Lord Jesus, we come to Him.
四 求主
IV. ASKING OF THE LORD
7我们要喝活水的话，就必须求主赐下这水。在约翰四章十节主对撒玛利亚妇人说：『你若知道神的恩赐，和对你说给我水喝的是谁，你必早求祂，祂也必早给了你活水。』
7To drink the living water we need to ask the Lord for this water. In John 4:10 the Lord said to the Samaritan woman, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that says to you, Give Me a drink, you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water
五 呼求主
V. CALLING ON THE LORD
8虽然我们已经被摆在喝的地位上，但我们也可能很干渴，虽然我们来到主面前求祂，但直到我们呼求主的名，我们才是真正地喝到祂。（徒二21。）在林前十二章我们找著喝的秘诀。十三节说3我们都得以饮于一位灵，而三节告诉我们，若不是在灵里，也没有能说主耶稣的。（新译。）喝那灵就是喊『主耶稣』。每当我们这样呼求主名的时候，我们就自然而然地喝了活水。
8Although we have been positioned to drink and we may be thirsty and although we may come to the Lord and ask of Him, we do not actually drink until we call on the name of the Lord (Acts 2:21). In 1 Corinthians 12 we find the secret of drinking. Verse 13 says that we all have been made to drink of one Spirit, and verse tells us that no one can say Lord Jesus except in the Holy Spirit. To drink the Spirit is to call “Lord Jesus.” Whenever we call on the name of the Lord in this way, we spontaneously drink the living water.
9在林前十二章我们看见水就是那灵，因为十三节说到饮于一位灵。饮于那灵的路就是呼求主名。我们若是干渴，只要一呼喊『主耶稣』，我们就立刻饮于那灵。我们的呼求就是我们的饮。根据林前十二章三节，我们一呼喊『主耶稣』，我们就在灵里。我能作见证，每当我从灵里深处呼求主，我有信心，也有感觉，我是在灵里接触主。1保罗在帖前五章十七节说到不住的祷告，多年来我不清楚保罗这样的话。我希奇怎么可能不住地祷告。现在我看见只要藉著不断地呼求主名，就能不住地祷告。在林前十二章喝那灵的秘诀也是不住祷告的秘诀。我们既能不住地呼求主，我们就可能不住地祷告。除了睡觉的时侯以外，我们都能不断地呼求主名。也许呼求主最终会成为我们生活的一部分，连睡觉的时候我们也会呼求祂。每当我们呼喊『主耶稣』，我们里面深觉主真是在灵里与我们合一。
9In 1 Corinthians 12 we see that the water is the Spirit, for verse 13 speaks of drinking of the one Spirit. The way to drink of the Spirit is to call on the name of the Lord. If we are thirsty and call “Lord Jesus,” we immediately drink of the Spirit. Our calling is our drinking. According to 1 Corinthians 12:3, when we call “Lord Jesus,” we are in the Spirit. I can testify that whenever I call on the Lord from deep within my spirit, I have the conviction and the consciousness that I am in the Spirit touching the Lord. For many years I was troubled by Paul’s word in Thessalonians 5:17 about praying without ceasing. I wondered how it was possible to pray unceasingly. Now I see that we can pray unceasingly simply by calling on the name of the Lord Jesus continually. The secret of drinking the Spirit in 1 Corinthians 12 is also the secret of praying without ceasing. Since we can call on the Lord unceasingly, it is possible for us to pray without ceasing. Except when we are asleep, we can continually call on the Lord’s name. Perhaps calling on the Lord will eventually become such a part of our living that we shall call on Him even when we are asleep. As those who seek the Lord and thirst for Him, we should continually call on His name. Whenever we call “Lord Jesus,” we have the sense deep within that the Lord is truly one with us in spirit.
10不论在甚么时候，不论在甚么地方，我们都能呼求主。当你受试探要发脾气的时候，你呼求『主耶稣』。不要想压抑你的怒气，要呼求主耶稣的名。倘若你在这样的时候呼求主，活水会征服你的怒气。呼求主实际上就是饮于活水。有些基督徒不赞成呼求主名，宁可安静地接触祂。我不是说我们必须大声地呼喊主名。然而，我愿指出呼求主名在圣经中占有重要的地位。呼求的希伯来字意思是呼喊、呼叫，就是喊出声来。呼求的希腊字意思是呼唤某人，叫某人的名字。因此，根据圣经，呼喊乃是以听得见的方式喊人的名字。祷告可以是安静的，但呼喊却需要是听得见的。主耶稣是活的人位，亲近又便利。我们一呼求祂的名，祂就有回应。
10We can call on the Lord at any time and in any place. When you are tempted to lose your temper, call “Lord Jesus.” Instead of trying to suppress your anger, call on the name of the Lord Jesus. If you call on the Lord at such a time, the living water will cause your anger to be subdued. To call on the Lord truly is to drink of the living water. Some Christians do not agree with calling on the name of the Lord, preferring instead to contact Him quietly. I do not say that we must call on the name of the Lord in a loud way. However, I wish to point out that calling on the Lord’s name does occupy an important place in the Scriptures. The Hebrew word for call means to call out to, cry unto, that is, to cry out. The Greek word for call means to invoke a person, to call a person by name. Hence, to call according to the Bible is to call a person by naming him audibly. Although prayer may be silent, calling is audible. The Lord Jesus is a living Person, near and available. Whenever we call on His name, He responds
11我曾多年是个安静的基督徒。我参加的聚会很安静，几乎连针掉在地上的声音都能听见。但最后我开始照圣经来实行呼求主名。当我们呼喊祂的名，我们就饮于活水。我们已指出，呼求这个字的意思是喊出声来，或呼叫人的名字。介系词『向著』暗示祷告。它指明当我们喊『主耶稣』，我们是在祷告中仰望祂。因此，我们不仅喊主的名，并且也向祂呼喊。当我们喊祂的名时，我们是向祂祷告。假定你开车的时候喊『主耶稣』，这不仅仅是呼求主的名，也是仰望祂并向祂祷告。正确地喝活水乃是呼求主的名。我盼望强调这个事实，不论在甚么时候，在甚么地方，我们都能藉著呼求主来喝活水。多年来我有一个观念，必须正正式式地接触主。我以为在祷告中接触祂以前，必须穿著合式，然后到一个地方，我能站在祂面前或是跪下来。如今我随时随地藉著呼求主都能享受主。当我饮于活水时，甚么形式我都不在意。我只知道每当我呼喊『主耶稣』，不论我在那里，都真正享受到主。
11For many years I was a quiet Christian. The meetings I attended were so quiet that you could almost hear a pin drop. Eventually, however, I began to practice calling on the name of the Lord according to the Bible. When we call His name, we drink of the living water. We have pointed out that the word call means to cry out or to invoke a person by name. The preposition “on” implies prayer. It indicates that as we call “Lord Jesus,” we look to Him in prayer. Thus, we not only call the Lord’s name, but we also call onHim. As we call His name, we pray to Him. Suppose you call “Lord Jesus” as you are driving your car. This is not merely a calling on the name of the Lord, but also a way of looking to Him and praying to Him. To drink the living water in a proper way is to call on the name of the Lord. I wish to emphasize the fact that at any time and in any place we can drink the living water by calling on the Lord. For years I had the concept that I had to be formal in my contact with the Lord. I thought that before I could contact Him in prayer, I had to be properly dressed and then go to a place where I could either stand before Him or kneel down. Now I enjoy calling on the Lord everywhere and at any time. As I drink of the living water, I do not care for formality of any kind. I only know that whenever I call “Lord Jesus,” no matter where I am, I truly enjoy the Lord.
12有时侯我感觉里面担子沉重。也许是在清晨穿衣的时候，我自然而然就开始呼求主的名。何等的享受！何等解我干渴！藉著这样呼求主，我里面得著加力，背负我的重担。有些人仍然认为祷告主、呼求主必须恭敬、虔诚，要在合式的时间，合式的地点来祷告。这是宗教的观念，一点也不实际。主是我们的活水。倘若我们注意礼节、敬虔过于喝活水的话，主会说：『我不要你的虔诚，我要你喝活水；我不要你尊敬我，我要你喝我。尊敬我的路就是喝我。』这与敬虔和重形式的宗教观念是何等的不同！那些严肃地唱『圣哉，圣哉，圣哉』的人喝主并不多。不要注意宗教的形式，让我们说：『主耶稣，我在这里。我不是在圣所里以宗教的方式敬拜你。我在这里藉著呼求你的名来喝你。』
12Sometimes I may become conscious of a heavy burden within me. Spontaneously I begin to call on the name of the Lord, perhaps as I am dressing early in the morning. What an enjoyment! What a quenching of my thirst! By calling on the Lord in this way, I am inwardly strengthened to bear my heavy burden. Some may still think that in praying to the Lord and calling on Him we need to be polite and reverent, praying at a proper time and in a proper place. This is a religious concept and is not at all practical. The Lord is our living water. If we care more for politeness or reverence than for drinking, the Lord would say, “I don’t want your reverence. I want you to drink of the living water. I don’t want you to reverence Me— I want you to drink Me. The way to honor Me is to drink Me.” How different this is from the religious concept of reverence and formality! Those who solemnly sing “Holy, holy, holy” do not drink much of the Lord. Instead of caring for religious formality, let us say, “Lord Jesus, here I am. I am not in a sanctuary worshipping You in a religious way. I am here to drink You by calling on Your name
13已往我鼓励圣徒们每天早晨花时间单独与主同在。虽然我不收回这样的话，但我现在能说，如果你晓得怎样来喝主，你会忘掉想分别一段时间来接触祂的念头。无论我们在那里，无论我们在作甚么，让我们呼求主。早晨我们一醒来，就该藉著呼求主名来喝活水。洗脸和穿衣的时候，我们也能喝活水。我们需要忘掉一切的形式，只关心喝活水。形式只会杀死人。我们所需要的是藉著呼喊主，单纯地把主耶稣接受进来。然后我们将得著活水的供应。
13In the past I encouraged the saints to spend time alone with the Lord every morning. Although I do not call back this word, I now can say that if you know how to drink the Lord, you can forget about trying to set aside a certain amount of time to contact Him. Let us call on the Lord no matter where we are or what we are doing. When we first wake up in the morning, we should drink the living water by calling on the Lord’s name. As we are washing and getting dressed, we can drink the water of life. We need to forget all formality and care for drinking the living water. Forms do nothing but kill. What we need is to take in the Lord Jesus in a pure way by calling on Him. Then we shall have the supply of the living water
14自然而然且不拘形式地呼求主，远胜过以宗教的方式，虔诚、正式、肃穆地就近祂。我宁可听见青年人在赴会所的途中呼求主，也不愿听见唱诗班以宗教的方式唱圣歌。听见圣徒向主呼喊:『主耶稣，我爱你！主，我在这里喝你并享受你。』是何等的美好。这比形式、宗教的礼拜好多了！我晓得这样会使宗教人士震撼。但我知道我所说的是甚么。因著饮于活水，我常常在主里喜乐忘形。我鼓励你们都不断地操练呼求主名。你越呼求祂，就越饮于活水。
14To call on the Lord spontaneously and informally is much better than approaching Him in a religious way with reverence, formality, and solemnity. I would rather hear the young people calling on the Lord on their way to the meeting hall than hear a choir singing anthems in a religious way. How good it is to hear the saints calling out to the Lord, “Lord Jesus, I love You! Lord, I am here to drink of You and to enjoy You.” How much better this is than a formal, religious service! I realize that this may shock the religious people. But I know what I am talking about. By drinking of the living water I am often beside myself with joy in the Lord. I encourage you all to practice calling on the Lord’s name continually. The more you call on Him, the more you drink of the living water
15最近我们一直交通到意见，以及意见在基督徒生活和教会生活中所造成的破坏。彻底对付我们意见的路乃是呼求主耶稣。通常我们意见强的时候，就是停止呼求主的时候。好争论的人很少呼求祂。一位和丈夫闹别扭的姊妹也是这样。她因著不愉快，也许不愿祷告主或呼求主。有时候我题醒这样的姊妹，就算她的丈夫绊倒了她，主耶稣定规没有触犯她。然后我会问她为甚么不愿意向主说话。但常常这位姊妹还是不肯呼求主。因著不呼喊，就喝不到活水。因此，不但没有生命的供应，反而是死亡和干旱。愿我们反对所有这样的死亡。当你受试探要和你的丈夫或是你的妻子争吵时，要藉著呼求主名来饮活水。
15Recently we have been having fellowship about opinions and the damage they cause in both the Christian life and the church life. The way to deal thoroughly with our opinions is to call on the Lord Jesus. Usually when we are strong in our opinion, we stop calling on the Lord. Those who are argumentative seldom call on Him. The same may be true of a sister who is unhappy with her husband. Due to this unhappiness, she may not be willing to pray or call on the Lord. Sometimes I remind such a sister that although her husband may have offended her, the Lord Jesus surely has not. Then I may ask her why she will not speak to the Lord. But often the sister will still refuse to call on the Lord. Because there is no calling, there is no drinking of the living water. Thus, instead of the supply of life, there is death and dryness. Let us stand against all such deadness. When you are tempted to quarrel with your husband or wife, drink of the living water by calling on the name of the Lord
六 藉著相信来接受并取用
VI. RECEIVING AND TAKING BY BELIEVING
16最后，我们喝活水是藉著相信来接受并取用。根据约翰七章三十九节，我们接受作为活水的那灵乃是藉著信入基督。启示录二十二章十七节说到白白取生命的水。当我们呼求主的名，我们就自然而然地接受了活水，也白白的取用了活水。倘若我们呼求主，我们就会有活的信心。我们愈呼求就愈相信，我们愈相信就愈接受并取用活水。
16Finally, we drink the water of life through receiving and taking by believing. According to John 7:39, we receive the Spirit as the living water by believing into Christ. Revelation 22:17 speaks of taking the water of life freely. As we call on the name of the Lord, we spontaneously receive the living water and take it freely. If we call on the Lord, we shall have living faith. The more we call, the more we shall believe, and the more we believe, the more we shall receive and take the living water
17呼求主名解决我们一切的问题。倘若你满了悲伤和忧虑，要呼求主。倘若你失意、沮丧和畏缩，要呼求主。你软弱的时候要呼求祂，刚强的时候也要呼求祂。藉著呼求你就接受并取用活水。
17Calling on the Lord’s name solves all our problems. If you are filled with sorrow and worry, call on the Lord. If you are disappointed, discouraged, or distracted, call on Him. Call on Him when you are weak and when you are strong. By calling you receive and take the living water.
七 喝与敬拜神
VII. DRINKING AND THE WORSHIP OF GOD
18基督徒中间，尤其是在组织的基督教中间的基本难处，是与宗教的敬拜神有关。连许多不信的人也有以宗教的方式敬拜神的观念。凡关心神的人认为他们应当把祂当作大能、超越的一位来敬拜。他们把全能的神当作敬拜的对象。这个观念是他们这个天然人的一部分。因著圣经告诉我们要敬拜神，我们不能说敬拜神的思想是错的。但24我们要如何敬拜祂呢?在约翰四章二十三和二十四节，主耶稣回答撒玛利亚妇人所题关乎敬拜的问题说：『时候将到，如今就是了，那真正拜父的，要用灵和真拜祂;因为父寻找这样的人拜祂。神是灵；所以拜祂的，必须用灵和真拜祂。』（原文。）主的话清楚地启示我们要敬拜神。然而，问题仍然在于如何敬拜祂。犹太人和回教徒有他们敬拜的方式，天主教和基督教各宗派的人也有他们的方式。事实上，所有不同宗教的敬拜方式都是错的。连约翰四章的撒玛利亚妇人对敬拜神的观念也是错误的。主耶稣启示她，正确的敬拜神不是在某个物质的地方；它乃是在我们的灵里。
18A basic problem among Christians, especially among those in organized Christianity, is related to the religious worship of God. Even many unbelievers have the concept of worshipping God in a religious way. Those who care for God think that they should worship Him as the mighty, transcendent One. They regard the almighty God as the object of their worship. This concept is part of their very nature. Because the Bible tells us to worship God, we cannot say that the thought of worshipping Him is wrong. But how are we to worship Him? In John 4:23 and the Lord Jesus told the Samaritan woman, who had raised a question concerning worship, “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and reality; for the Father seeks such to worship Him. God is Spirit; and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and reality.” The Lord’sword clearly reveals that we are to worship God. However, the question still remains concerning how to worship Him. The Jews and the Moslems have their ways of worship, and those in the Catholic Church and in the denominations have their ways. Actually, all the different religious ways of worship are wrong. Even the Samaritan woman in John 4 held a mistaken concept of the way to worship God. The Lord Jesus revealed to her that the proper worship of God is not in a certain physical place; it is in our spirit.
19根据约翰四章，在我们的灵里敬拜神就是饮于祂。不要把神当作你在灵里敬拜的对象。在这个例子中，器官（灵）是对的，但是路还是错了。俯伏在神面前不是敬拜祂的正确方式；喝祂作活水才是。神不要成为我们敬拜的对象。反之，祂来作为活水为了给我们喝。当我们饮祂作生命的水时，就是真正地敬拜祂。用我们的灵饮于主才是真正地拜祂。擘饼聚会是敬拜的聚会。在主的桌子前记念主就是敬拜祂。在这个聚会中敬拜主的方式不是跪下或是俯伏，乃是吃饼喝杯记念祂。吃喝构成真正的敬拜。我们记念主不是运用头脑回想某些事情。我们是藉著吃喝记念祂。藉著吃喝记念主就是敬拜祂。少有基督徒看见神的心意是要把祂自己作到我们里面。大多数的信徒只知道神是神，我们是神所造的，我们堕落了，神因著爱我们差祂的儿子为我们死在十字架上，完成了救赎。真基督徒也懂得基督复活了，差遣圣灵引导我们悔改，使我们相信祂，并接受祂作我们的救主。之后，根据天然的观念，圣经是一本伦理的书，教导信徒在日常生活中荣耀神。最后，基督徒听说他们死后或是主再来以后，他们将永远与主同在。当然圣经有教导这样的事，然而这些教导是肤浅的。它们不是圣经中神圣启示的核仁。神圣启示的核仁乃是神造了我们并救赎我们，目的为著将祂自己作到我们里面，成为我们的生命。我们这些在主恢复里的人，需要在这个启示上看见更完全的异象。如果我们有这样一个完全的异象，我们对敬拜的观念就会因此而规正。三而一的神在我们吃祂喝祂的时候，把祂自己作到我们全人里面。作为我们的食物和活水，祂进到我们里面，与我们有生机地合一。我们藉著吃喝所接受进来的就这样与我们合而为一。它渗入我们的纤维，成为我们生机的组织。我们藉著吃喝所摄取的食物被消化、吸收之后，它就成了我们的组成。因此，我们乃是由我们所吃、所喝之物所组成的。在属灵的领域和肉身的领域中都是如此。藉著吃喝，新妇与那灵成为一。根据启示录二十二章十七节，那灵与新妇说话如同一人，呼召那些口渴的人来喝生命的水。
19According to John 4, to worship God in our spirit is to drink of Him. Do not regard God as an object of worship which you then worship in spirit. In such a case the organ (the spirit) is right, but the way is still wrong. To prostrate ourselves before God is not the proper way to worship Him; to drink Him as the living water is. God does not want to be the object of our worship. Instead, He comes as living water for us to drink. When we drink of Him as the water of life, we worship Him in a genuine way. To drink of the Lord with our spirit is truly to worship Him. The Lord’s table meeting is a meeting for worship. To remember the Lord at His table is to worship Him. The way to worship the Lord in this meeting is not to kneel down or to prostrate ourselves, but to eat the bread and drink the wine in remembrance of Him. Eating and drinking constitute real worship. We do not remember the Lord by exercising our mentality to recall certain things. We remember Him by eating and drinking. To remember the Lord by eating and drinking is to worship Him. Not many Christians have seen that God’sin tent i on is to work Himself into us. Most believers only realize that God is God, that we are God’s creatures, that we became fallen, and that out of His love for us God sent His Son to die for us on the cross and to accomplish redemption. Genuine Christians also realize that Christ was resurrected and then sent the Holy Spirit to lead us to repentance, to cause us to believe in Him, and to receive Him as our Savior. Then, according to the natural concept, the Bible is used as a book of ethics to teach the believers to glorify God in their daily living. Finally, Christians are told that, after they die or after the Lord comes back, they will spend eternity with Him. The Bible, of course, teaches such things. However, these teachings are superficial. They are not the kernel of God’sr evelation in the Bible. The kernel of the divine revelation is that God created us and redeemed us for the purpose of working Himself into us to be our life. We in the Lord’s recovery need to see a fuller vision of this revelation. If we have such a full vision, our concept of worship will be regulated by it. The Triune God works Himself into our being as we eat and drink of Him. As our food and water, He enters into us to be one with us organically. What we take into us by eating and drinking becomes one with us in this way. It penetrates our fiber and becomes our organic tissue. When the food we take in by eating and drinking is digested and assimilated, it becomes our constituent. Thus, we are a constitution of what we eat and drink. This is true both in the spiritual realm and in the physical realm. Through eating and drinking, the bride becomes one with the Spirit. According to Revelation 22:17, the Spirit and the bride speak as one to call those who are thirsty to drink of the water of life.
20如果我们看见神的心意是要把祂自己作到我们里面，我们会自动地吃祂、喝祂。母亲们知道婴儿会自动地又吃又喝，不拘任何形式、方法或规条。小孩比大人更会吃。我们的吃喝常常因著太注意餐桌礼节而受到了妨碍。有时候我们愈注意礼节，我们享受的食物就愈少。我听过一位中国大使在德国参加一次正式的国宴，因为他太注意正确的礼仪和餐桌的礼节，所以他一点也没有享受到食物。他把时间花在观察别人在席间如何动作，如何使用餐具。餐桌礼节妨碍他吃东西。小孩子却不像这样。我的小孙女来看我们的时候，她的祖母常常给她东西吃。我的孙女自然而然不拘束地享受她的食物。她是我们该如何少注意形式，多注意吃喝的一个好榜样。
20If we see that God’sin tent i on is to work Himself into us, we shall automatically eat and drink of Him. Mothers know that babies eat and drink automatically, not caring for any forms, manners, or regulations. Infants are better at eating and drinking than adults are. Our eating and drinking are often hindered by all the attention we give to table manners. Sometimes the more we pay attention to manners, the less we enjoy our food. I heard of a Chinese ambassador who attended a formal state dinner in Germany. Because he was so concerned about proper etiquette and table manners, he did not enjoy the food at all. He spent his time watching how others at the dinner conducted themselves and how they used their eating utensils. Table manners kept him from eating. Children are not like this. When my little granddaughter visits us, her grandmother often gives her something to eat. My granddaughter enjoys her food in a spontaneous and informal way. She is a good example of how we should pay less attention to forms and more to eating and drinking.
21主耶稣与撒玛利亚妇人说话的时候，殿里的祭司正以形式上、系统化、按规定的方式来敬拜神。但那个时候神在那里？祂在殿里与祭司们同在呢？还是在撒玛利亚的井旁与那妇人同在？我们都知道，祂与撒玛利亚的妇人同在。祂是在露天之下遇见她的，远离圣殿和祭坛，没有宗教的形式和仪文。最终，这撒玛利亚妇人饮于活水，并向神献上真实的敬拜。那时对神真正的敬拜不是殿里的祭司所献上的，乃是喝活水的撤玛利亚妇人所献上的。祭司们徒然敬拜神；而撒玛利亚妇人藉著把神喝到她里面，而在实际里敬拜祂。作为活水的那灵注入到她里头。神要真正的敬拜，祂从这位饮于那灵作活水的撒玛利亚妇人得著真正的敬拜。今天的基督徒需要看见真正的敬拜是甚么。有些基督徒定罪那些在主恢复里的人为异端；然而，他们自己是异端，对真理毫无所知。他们和圣殿里的祭司一样，对真实的敬拜一窍不通。在约翰四章主耶稣没有花时间照著旧约的敬拜方式和典型的犹太人谈论。反之，祂和一个不道德、半异教的妇人谈到满足神心意的敬拜。这妇人藉著饮于祂作活水解她的干渴，在灵里敬拜神。因此，神因著她得著了真正的敬拜。这与形式、宗教的敬拜迥然不同！
21At the very time the Lord Jesus was speaking with the Samaritan woman, the priests in the temple were worshipping God in the formal, systematic, prescribed manner. But where was God at that time? Was He in the temple with the priests, or was He with the woman by the well in Samaria? As we all know, He was with the Samaritan woman. He met with her in the open air, away from the temple and the altar, without religious forms and rituals. Eventually, this Samaritan woman drank of the living water and offered real worship to God. At that time the true worship to God was offered not by the priests in the temple, but by the Samaritan woman who was drinking the living water. The priests worshipped God in vain; the Samaritan woman worshipped Him in reality by drinking Him into her being. The Spirit as the living water was infused into her. God was seeking real worship, and He received it from this Samaritan woman who drank of the Spirit as the living water. Today’s Christians need to see what real worship is. They condemn those in the Lord’s recovery as heretical, when they themselves are heretical and ignorant of the truth. Like the priests in the temple, they are blind to what true worship is. In John 4 the Lord Jesus did not spend time talking to typical Jews according to the Old Testament way of worship. Instead, He conversed with an immoral, semi-heathen woman concerning the worship which satisfies God’she art. This woman worshipped God in her spirit by drinking of Him as the water to quench her thirst. Thus, God was worshipped by her in a genuine way. How much different this is from formal, religious worship
22历代以来，大多数基督徒的敬拜就像殿里的祭司一样。只有少数人藉著饮于祂作活水，在灵里真敬拜神。我们在本篇信息中已著重的指出，这就是敬拜祂正确的路。
22Throughout the centuries, most Christian worship has been like that of the priests in the temple. Only a small number have worshipped God in spirit by drinking of Him as living water. But as we have pointed out emphatically in this message, this is the proper way to worship Him
23我们必须承认，我们的聚会方式在下意识里，或是不知不觉地还是非常受宗教背景的影响。我们愈在灵里藉著喝祂作活水，进入对神真实的敬拜，就愈发觉我们的操练是何等的缺乏。靠著主的怜悯，我得以看见神所渴望的敬拜。因著我所看见的异象，我不在意宗教，甚至也不在意我们自己的作法。事实上，我们不需要作法。我们的需要乃是看见我们的神今天经过了道成肉身、为人生活、钉十字架、复活、升天和登宝座的过程，成为包罗万有赐生命的灵，让我们来饮用。祂是这样一位调和的灵，而我们有灵能来饮祂。倘若我们看见这个异象，就是看见圣经中神圣启示的焦点，我们便知道如何来喝主作生命的水。
23We must admit that to a large extent our way of meeting is subconsciously or unconsciously still under the influence of our religious background. The more we enter into the real worship of God by drinking Him as the living water in spirit, the more we shall realize how short our practices have been. By the Lord’s mercy I have come to see the worship God desires. Because of the vision I have seen, I do not care for religion, nor even for our own practices. Actually, we have no need of practices. Our need is to see that our God today has passed through the process of incarnation, human living, crucifixion, resurrection, ascension, and enthronement to become the all-inclusive life-giving Spirit for us to drink. He is such a compound Spirit, and we have a spirit with which to drink of Him. In spirit we are one with Him. If we see this vision, the focal point of the divine revelation in the Bible, we shall know how to drink the Lord as the water of life.