8月13日 窄路难寻
窄路难寻
纵观今日的基督教世界，多的是年深日久的老门徒，却罕见新近蒙恩归信的灵魂。
唯有极少数的余民才会真正拥抱福音。倘若将是否接受基督与祂的福音交由大众投票，难道不会有成千上万的人投票要求除掉基督与福音吗？历史早已预示了在这般悬殊的比例下，未来将会是何等光景。每当神从一个群体中收回祂特别的同在时，总有极少数圣洁之人夹杂在众多不敬虔的人中间。例如，在撒狄仍有几位“未曾污秽自己衣服的”人，但这并未阻止灯台被挪去。他们所得的只是为自己存留的应许：“他们要穿白衣与我同行”，神却未曾承诺要保全整个教会（启3:4）。神可以拆毁一栋房屋，同时又护卫祂在其中寻见的圣徒免受伤害。
少数人的微弱发声很容易被群众的狂热呼喊所淹没；将十几杯美酒倒入一口巨大的酒桶，也几乎品尝不出什么滋味。同样，一小群基督徒余民，有时对拯救周围数以百万计深陷不信的凄惨灵魂也无能为力。当疾病彻底控制了一具衰弱的身体时，即使身体的本能竭尽全力抵抗，也无法治愈疾病，其最大的努力或许只能让生命稍微苟延残喘片刻。因此，少数圣徒若被围困在一个邪恶、藐视基督的世代中，或许能使神稍稍暂缓审判。然而，那些不信之人若自己不愿回转改变，毁灭最终必将无可避免地冲破堤防，将他们吞噬。
纵观今日的基督教世界，多的是年深日久的老门徒，却罕见新近蒙恩归信的灵魂。福音的母腹仿佛已经封闭，无法再借着扎实可靠的归信之工孕育出新的灵魂。当然，你若把那些怀揣美好意愿、接受了几条纯正教义、并以某种新鲜的宗教情感为自己施洗的人全都算上，那么“基督徒”的数量确实庞大。然而，在这个信仰宣认日渐枯萎、圣洁生活愈发软弱的时代，要寻见一个真正悔改归信的人，是何等艰难！
麦琴（麦克谦）读经计划进度
家庭敬拜：撒上3章，罗3章，
个人灵修：耶41章，路10章
AUGUST 13, THURSDAY
THE PATH IS NARROW
Most of Christendom is made up of old disciples, not new converts.
Only a remnant will embrace the Gospel. If it were put to a vote, would not thousands carry the decision to get rid of Christ and His Gospel? History itself prophesies the future of such great odds. Each time God has withdrawn from a people, there have been a few holy ones mingled among the ungodly. Sardis, for example, has several names which had not “defiled their garments,” but the candlestick was removed nevertheless. All they had was a promise for themselves—“They shall walk with me in white”—but no protection was pledged for the whole church (Revelation 3:4). God can pull down a house and at the same time provide safety for His saints whom He finds inside.
A few voices are easily drowned in the screams of a crowd and a dozen cups of wine are hardly tasted in a whole cask. Thus a remnant of Christianity sometimes can do little to save the wretched millions of unbelievers surrounding them. When disease controls a weakened body, nature tries with her utmost strength but cannot heal the sickness—perhaps her best efforts will only prolong life for a while. So then a few saints, shut up in a wicked age of Christ-despising men, may gain a reprieve from judgment. But if the unbelievers themselves do not choose to change, ruin inevitably will break in on them.
Most of Christendom is made up of old disciples, not new converts. The womb of the Gospel has been shut up from bringing forth souls in a solid work of conversion. Of course, if you count those who baptize themselves into new religious feelings with good intentions and wholesome opinions, there are plenty of “Christians.” But in this age of withering professions of faith and an even weaker practice of holiness, it is hard to find a real convert!