《基督是我們生命的訣要》第十二日 遵基督而行

  

    「你們旣然接受了主基督耶穌就當遵祂而行，在祂裏麵生根建造，信心堅固，正如你們所領的教訓感謝的心也更增長了。」（西二：6，7）

     這裏再一次提到我們的兩種生命，首先說出：「你們旣然接受了主基督耶穌」，這句話包括了悔改，罪愆、藉著耶穌基督的寶血而蒙赦免，成為神的兒女等等。接著就是：「當遵祂而行，在祂裏麵生根」，就像一棵樹一樣，從地下吸收生長結果子所需要的養分。「在祂裏麵建造」表明基督是唯一的根基，「堅固你的信心，使之增長」，每天藉著基督徒的交談和行事可證明他住在基督裏，正如樹根從土壤吸收養分，使其生命不致於中斷，基督徒從基督裏漸漸的接受生命和能力。

     由宗教改革到信心宣告時代，悔改和接受基督是為人所重視，「稱義」和「成為義」等字眼常被人提及，但「成聖」卻少有人問津。罪得赦免，因信耶穌而在神麵前被稱為義的教義為人所重視，但很少可聽到基督內住，我們要在祂裏麵生根。（Heidelbery）的教理問答對於十誡有所解釋，但基督的命令在馬太五章以及約翰十三至十六章中卻隻字不提。

     讓我們一方麵為宗教改革安放了基督真理的根基而感謝神，同時使我們也進到完全的地步，每天遵照基督而行，好叫我們信心增長，經歷豐盛的恩典，與每天以內住的基督為樂，聖經中有句話最能形容真正的虔丈?睿骸敢災Z與神同行」，所以基督徒必須每天效法基督，使信心增長，在主裏擴大。

  “As therefore ye received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and builded up in Him, and stablished in your faith, even as ye were taught abounding in thanks-giving.” –COL. ii. 6, 7.

 Here again we have the two kinds of life. The first is described in the words, “Ye have received Christ Jesus.” That includes conversion, forgiveness of sin through the blood of Jesus Christ, and acceptance as a child of God. Then comes the second, the walk in Christ, “rooted in Him,” as a tree that must each moment receive its life from the earth in order to bear fruit. “Builded up in Him,” who is the only foundation. “Stablished in your faith and abounding in it,” by which each day the Christian by his walk and conversation proves that he abides and lives in Christ. As the roots of a tree receive life uninterruptedly from the soil, so the Christian receives his life and power moment by moment form abiding in Christ.

   In the Confessions of Faith drawn up by the Reformers, prominence is given to conversion, acceptance of Christ. “Justification” and “justified” are words in frequent use. But the word “sanctification” is rarely found. Emphasis is laid on the doctrine of the forgiveness of sin, of faith in Christ as our righteousness before God, but we find little about Christ living in us, and our life being rooted in Him. The Heidelberg Catechism gives the explanation of the Ten Commandments, but Christ’s commands in Matt. v. and John xiii.-xvi. Are hardly mentioned.

   Let us thank God for the Reformation as a time when the foundation truth of a crucified Saviour was laid, but at the same time let us go on to perfection, to a daily uninterrupted walk in Christ wherein we may abound in faith, experiencing the abundance of grace from the fullness there is in Christ for us to enjoy daily. The earliest description of true godliness is in the words:” Enoch walked with God.” So Christians must learn to walk in Christ daily, established in the faith and abounding in it.