11月22日 使徒的见证
11月22日，周六
使徒的见证
父差遣子作世人的救主，这是我们见过的，并且现在作见证。凡承认耶稣是神的儿子的，神就住在他里面，他也住在神里面。神对我们的爱，我们已经明白了，而且相信了。神就是爱；住在爱里面的，就住在神里面，神也住在他里面。（约翰壹书4:14-16）
使徒的见证至关重要。什么是“使徒的见证”呢？约翰的意思是说：“最重要的事是认识神。但人怎么能认识神呢？‘从来没有人见过神。’然而，我们所看见、所作的见证就是：耶稣就是神的儿子。”这就是他的教导。
请注意约翰是如何表达的。他不是说他看见了一种异象或主观感动。他说的是：“这是我们见过的。”约翰在书信开头就已经讲得很清楚：“论到太初就已经存在的生命之道，就是我们所听见，亲眼所看见，仔细观察过，亲手摸过的。”虽然没有人看见神，但我们看见了耶稣，而耶稣说过：“那看见了我的就是看见了父。”（约14:9）
换句话说，我信心的根基是建立在使徒真实的看见之上。我相信他们所看见的，而他们把对所看见之事的理解与解释，记录在了四卷福音书中。福音书记录的并非只是单纯的历史事实；它们包含事实，也包含正确的、受圣灵默示的解释。现代学者最终不得不承认这一点。过去有人以为约翰是“讲道”，而马太、马可、路加只是“记载事实”，但其实四卷福音书都是：事实加上解释。前三卷福音书的作者和约翰一样，都相信并且明白耶稣是神的儿子，是世人的救主。他们看见了，也作了见证；换句话说：他们看见了，也解释了。
默想主题：
使徒们把对所看见之事的理解与解释，记录在了四卷福音书中。
麦琴（麦克谦）读经计划进度
家庭敬拜：代上17章，雅4章
个人灵修：拿1章，路6章
November 22, Saturday
THE APOSTOLIC WITNESS
And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to bethe Saviour of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is theSon of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. (1 JOHN 4:14-16)
The apostolic witness is most important. What is it? John, in effect is putting it like this: “The important thing is to know God. But how can I know God? ‘No man hath seen God at any time.’ But we have seen and do testify that Jesus is the Son of God.” That is the statement.
Notice how he puts it. He had not had a vision. What then? Thank God, “we have seen.” He said it all in his introduction: “That which . . . we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life . . . That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you,” said John. No man has seen God, but we have seen Jesus, and Jesus said, “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father” (See John 14:9).
In other words, the apostolic vision on which my faith is grounded is this: It is a belief in that which the apostles tell us they saw, and the explanation of their understanding of what they saw is found in the four Gospels. The statements in the Gospels are not simply objective statements; they are statements plus interpretation, and at long last modern man has come back to see that. They used to contrast John with Matthew, Mark, and Luke. They said that John preached, but that Matthew, Mark, and Luke just gave the facts. But they now have to admit that what all four wrote was facts plus interpretation. Like John, the men who wrote the first three Gospels believed and understood that Jesus is the Son of God and the Savior of the world. They saw and testified; in other words, they saw, and they expounded.
A Thought to Ponder: The explanation of the apostles’ understanding of what they saw is found in the four Gospels.