3月3日 我们属肉体的本性
我们属肉体的本性
它一切的欲望、喜乐、忧虑和惧怕，都被这今世包裹。
全然败坏的心思无法领悟神的事。它一切的欲望、喜乐、忧虑和惧怕，都被这今世包裹，因此全然是属肉体的。正如太阳升起时，虽照亮了地上的万物，却遮蔽了在其之上的诸天；照样，属肉体的理性虽让人的世俗知识显得格外“精明”，却使人对属灵的真理一窍不通。每种受造物都有其合宜的食性：狮子不吃草，马也不吃肉。同理，对属肉体的心来说是“食物”的，对蒙恩的心却是“毒药”；而对蒙恩者看为可口的，对属肉体的人来说却是可憎的。
那么，按这种对“血气”的解读，使徒并非在说你旧性情与新性情之间的争战已经熄火；你从经历中也深知，事实并非如此。“圣灵与情欲相争，情欲与圣灵相争”，这矛盾贯穿了基督徒的一生。即便世间没有魔鬼，你单是抵挡自己内心的败坏私欲，就足以焦头烂额。保罗要你洞察的是：在这场与新生命为敌的战争中，你的旧性情充其量只是个“小兵”；而撒但作为属血气的盟友来到战场，发动了大规模的攻势。牠像一位统帅，集结你里面各种犯罪的倾向，冷酷地训练它们，并将它们编成统一战线，来抵挡你生命中属神的大能。这好比一位君王正在平定治下叛乱的臣民，忽然有一支更强大的外敌加入了叛军并接管了指挥权；此时，君王作战的主要对象便不再是叛民，而是那外敌势力。你看到这属灵的类比了吗？正当基督徒与内在残余的败坏搏斗之时，撒但将牠的势力倾注在这些旧性情余毒上，并夺取了指挥权。可以说，我们的罪是那台发动战乱的机器，而撒但则是那个操纵机器的“技师”。
这种认识应当使我们每个人更加警醒殷勤，务要解除私欲的武装，不给它留下任何可乘之机。
麦琴（麦克谦）读经计划进度
家庭敬拜：出14章，路17章，
个人灵修：伯32章，林后2章
MARCH 3, TUESDAY
OUR FLESHLY NATURE
All its desires, delights, cares, and fears are wrapped up in this present world.
The thoughts of the corrupt mind are incapable of perceiving the things of God. All its desires, delights, cares, and fears are wrapped up in this present world, and are therefore fleshly. Just as the sun hides the heavens above it while revealing the things beneath, so carnal reason leaves the creature in the dark concerning spiritual truths, while enlightening his carnal knowledge most excellently. Every creature has its proper diet: the lion does not eat grass, nor the horse, flesh. Just so, what is food to the carnal heart, is poison to the gracious; and what is tasty to the gracious, is odious to the carnal.
Now according to this interpretation of flesh and blood, the apostle is not saying that the war is over between your old and new natures. You know from experience this is not the case. The Spirit lusts against the flesh and the flesh against the Spirit throughout the whole course of a Christian’s life. Were there no devils, you would still have your hands full resisting the corruptions of your own heart What Paul wants you to see is that your old nature is only a private in the war against your new nature. Satan comes to the battle as an ally of the flesh and launches a massive attack He is the general who marshals your sinful inclinations, exercises them mercilessly, and sends them out as a united front against the power of God in your life. Compare it to the following situation. Suppose that while a king is fighting to subdue his own mutinous subjects, some superior foreign troops should join with them and take command. Then the king no longer fights primarily against his subjects. but against a foreign power. You see the spiritual analogy: Even as the Christian is fighting against his own inner corruptions, Satan joins his power to the residue of the old nature and assumes command It could be said that our sin is the engine, and Satan, the engineer.
This knowledge should make every one of us diligent to keep our lusts unarmed.