7月15日 圣洁的果效
圣洁的果效
因此，神赐下严肃的命令：“你们要追求与众人和睦，并要追求圣洁；非圣洁没有人能见主。又要谨慎，恐怕有人失了神的恩；恐怕有毒根生出来扰乱你们，因此叫众人沾染污秽”（来12:14-15）。
当基督徒看见另一位信徒的生命闪耀出圣洁的光芒时，他里面的恩典就会欢跃，正如以利沙伯腹中的婴孩听见马利亚的问安就跳动一样。确实，一个圣洁的人足以将生命力注入整个群体；反之，一个仅仅在口头上认信的基督徒，若生活放荡，就会危及所有认识他的人。因此，神赐下严肃的命令：“你们要追求与众人和睦，并要追求圣洁；非圣洁没有人能见主。又要谨慎，恐怕有人失了神的恩；恐怕有毒根生出来扰乱你们，因此叫众人沾染污秽”（来12:14-15）。
狼背上长疮对羊群来说并不危险，因为羊不容易受诱惑去与狼为伍。但如果这毒疮在羊群中蔓延开来，传到那些一同吃喝、祷告、听道、交谈并彼此团契的基督徒中间，就会带来极大的危险和恐惧，因为这极易传染。因此，一个生活散漫的基督徒，比一大群从未认信的人更能有效地成为魔鬼的帮凶。事实上，撒但手里曾攥着一大把罪恶与谬误，却不知如何散播，直到牠找到门路，雇佣那些生活不圣洁的认信者作牠的代理人，将这些罪恶与谬误包装好，分发给其他人。
总而言之，一个人如果不愿在生活中活出圣洁的大能，他在某种程度上就使自己对基督毫无用处。你想为别人代求吗？连不信的主外邦人都懂得，当风暴袭来时，要叫同船的恶人闭嘴，免得神明注意到这恶人也在船上。你是想去安慰忧伤的人，还是想去劝勉朋友呢？别人只会觉得你是在开玩笑，除非你口中所推崇的圣洁，有你自己的圣洁生活作为印证。也就是说，在你劝别人追求圣洁之前，你自己必须先活出圣洁。
麦琴（麦克谦）读经计划进度
家庭敬拜：书22章，徒2章，
个人灵修：耶11章，太25章
JULY 15, WENDESDAY
THE EFFECT OF HOLINESS
Therefore God has given us a strict charge: “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled” (Hebrews 12:14–15).
When a Christian sees holiness sparkle in the life of another believer, the grace within him springs up as the baby in Elisabeth leaped at the sound of Mary’s voice. Truly, one holy man is enough to put life into a whole society; but on the contrary, the looseness of a single professing Christian endangers the entire group of people who know him. Therefore God has given us a strict charge: “Follow peace with all men, and holiness, looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled” (Hebrews 12 14–15).
A scab on the wolf’s back is not dangerous to the sheep because they cannot easily be lured to spend time with him. But if the sore spreads into the flock, among Christians who feed, pray, hear, talk and walk in fellowship together, then there is a great fear and danger it might spread. Thus a careless Christian helps the devil with more efficiency than whole troops who never profess to believe. In fact, Satan had a whole fistful of sins and errors that he did not know what to do with until he found a way to hire unholy professors of the faith as his brokers to recommend and dispense them to others.
In a word, then, the man who will not keep up the power of holiness in his life, in some measure, makes himself useless to Christ. Do you want to pray for others? A heathen could tell an evil man to hold his peace and not let the gods know he was aboard the ship when a storm swept in. Is it comfort you want to speak to a grieving person? Or counsels to a friend? They will think you are only joking until your commendation of holiness is joined by holiness in your own life; that is to say, until you commend it to yourself.