二月九日

　『耶穌卻一言不答。』（馬太福音十五章廿三節）

　『祂…必…默然愛你。』（西番雅書三章十七節）

　一個受苦的神的孩子讀到這兩句話，或許會希奇。你正在渴望主安慰的聲音『你們可以放心』（約十六章卅三節)，或者『不要怕，因為我與你同在』，可是等了許久，一點得不著甚麼，『耶穌卻一言不答』。

　當神聽見我們哀聲哭訴的時候，祂的心十分難受，因為祂看見我們還是這樣軟弱、這樣急躁，還不能懂得祂不答的美意，我們的目光還是這樣短視。

　主的不答，並非是拒絕，乃是表示祂的默許和深深的同情。

　失望的基督徒阿，『你為何憂悶？』（詩四十三篇五節）即使祂靜默不答，你『還要稱謝祂』。讓我們聽一個故事，並仔細領會裏面的教訓。

　一個基督徒夢見三個同作肢體的姊妹跪著禱告。她看見主漸漸走近她們。當祂走到第一個姊妹面前，祂臉上帶著榮光和愛，俯下身去，用十分溫柔、十分甜蜜的聲音安慰她、勉勵她。

　隨後祂走近第二個姊妹身邊，只伸出祂的手來在她額上一按，點點頭走了。

　最末後，當祂走過第三個姊妹那裏，祂一聲不響，連看都不看，就去了。那個作夢的基督徒自言自語的說道：『第一個姊妹，一定靈命十分深，所以主很愛她；第二個姊妹也不錯，可是不及第一個；第三個姊妹，一定在甚麼事情上得罪了主，深深地傷了主的心，所以主不屑睬她。

　『我不知道她究竟作錯了甚麼？為甚麼主對待她們有這麼大的不同呢？』當她正在猜疑之間，主站在她旁邊說：『無知的婦人！你完全誤會我。那第一個跪著禱告的女人最軟弱、最幼稚。她時刻需要我的扶持與眷顧，否則她在我的窄路上簡直一步都不能行。她時刻需要我的愛和幫助，否則她就會失敗、跌倒。

　『那第二個跪著禱告的女人較好得多，她有較強的信心和較深的愛，我能夠信任她在無論甚麼環境中因我而站住。

　『那第三個跪著禱告的女人，（就是我似乎不去注意，把她略過的那一個，她的靈命最高、最深，她的信心和愛心最大、最強，我正用一種猛烈的方法訓練她，為著她將來最高、最聖潔的事奉。

　『她已經完全認識我，完全信任我，她不需要能聽、能見、能摸、能感覺的幫助。她不因我所安排給她的環境而喪志、灰心、跌倒。雖然理由不能通過，天性不能順服，她還是絕對順服我，因為她知道我的用意是為她將來永遠的榮耀，我所作的，她如今雖然不知道，後來必明白。

　『我默然愛她，因為我愛她的心不是言語所能表達的，也不是人心所能領會的。』

　如果你知道祂默然的奧祕，讚美祂，祂就會『行奇妙的事』（出卅四章十節），因為每一次祂收回恩典，就是要你更認識、更愛那賜恩者。—選


“He answered her not a word.” (Matt. 15:23.)

It may be a child of God is reading these words who has had some great crushing sorrow, some bitter disappointment, some heart-breaking blow from a totally unexpected quarter. You are longing for your Master’s voice bidding you “Be of good cheer,” but only silence and a sense of mystery and misery meet you---“He answered her not a word”

God’s tender heart must often ache listening to all the sad, complaining ccries which arise from our weak, impatient hearts, because we do not see that for our own sakes He answers not at all or otherwise than seems best to our tearblinded, short-sighted eyes.

The silences of Jesus are as eloquent as His speech and may be a sign, not of His disapproval, but of His approval and of a deep purpose of blessing for you.

“Why art thou cast down, O…soul?” Thou shalt yet praise Him, yes, even for His silence. Listen to an old and beautiful story of how one Christian dreamed that she saw three others at prayer. As they knelt the Master drew near to them.

As He approached the first of the three, He bent over her in tenderness and grace, with smiles full of radiant love and spoke to her in accents of purest, sweetest music.

Leaving her, He came to the next, but only placed His hand upon her bowed head, and gave her one look of loving approval.

Th third woman He passed almost abruptly without stopping for a word or glance. The woman in her dream said to herself, “How greatly He must love the first one, to the second He gave His approval, but none of the special demonstrations of love He gave the first; and the third must have grieved Him deeply, for He gave her no word at all and not even a passing look.

“I wonder what she has done, and why He made so much difference between them.” As she tried to account for the action of her Lord, He Himself stood by her and said: “O woman! How wrongly hast thou interpreted Me. The first kneeling woman needs all the weight of My tenderness and care to keep her feet in My narrow way. She needs My love, thought and help every moment of the day. Without it she would fail and fall.

“The second has stronger faith and deeper love, and I can trust her to trust Me however things may go and whatever people do.

“The third, whom I seemed not to notice, and even to neglect, has faith and love of the finest quality, and her I am training by quick and drastic processes for the highest and holiest service.

“She knows Me so intimately, and trusts Me so utterly, that she is independent of words or looks or any outward intimation of My approval. She is not dismayed nor discouraged by any circumstances through which I arrange that she shall pass; she trusts Me when sense and reason and every finer instinct of the natural heart would rebel;-because she knows that I am working in her for eternity, and that what I do, though she knows not the explanation now, she will understand hereafter.

“I am silent in My love because I love beyond the power of words to express, or of human hearts to understand, and also for your sakes that you may learn to love and trust Me in Spirit-taught, spontaneous response to My love, without the spur of anything outward to call it forth.”

He “will do marvels” if you will learn to mystery of His silence, and praise Him, for every time He withdraws His gifts that you may better know and love the Gilver. --- Selected.

http://www.myrock.com.tw