China Ministries International

人有资格给上帝的“管理表現”打分吗?

曼德

最近,美国北卡罗来纳州一公共政策民意调查公司(Public Policy Polling)在抽样调查美国选民对国会两党的评价时, 顺带调查选民们对“上帝的管理表现”的评分,如调查问卷第7至10道问题:如上帝存在,你是否满意祂的表现呢?你是否满意祂在处理自然天灾方面的表现呢?你是否满意祂在管理动物方面的表现呢?你是否满意祂怎样创造宇宙呢?

虽然调查结果表明52%的受访者满意“上帝的表现”,但这样的调查和打分本身是十分荒唐可笑的——被造物有什么资格给造物主打分呢?!正如罗马书8:20:“你这个人哪,你是谁,竟敢向神强嘴呢?受造之物岂能对造他的说:“你为什么这样造我呢”?

不仅在创造上人无份与神强嘴,就是在神对全地和我们的护理上,我们也没有资格与神强嘴。神是拥有绝对主权的神,是按他永恒不变的旨意自行其是的神,在他没有“转动的影儿”(雅各书1:17)。我们对神只有敬畏和顺服的份。神的绝对主权的表现之一,就是神是神自己行为的最终依据,神是神的原因,神没有其他的原因作为他行为的依据,如果有外在于他的第二因成为神行为的依据,那么神就不是最终的世界本体,也就不是神了。正如诗篇115:3:“我们的上帝在天上,都随自己的意旨行事”。也如但以理书4:35:“世上所有的居民,都算为虚无。在天上的万军和世上的居民中,他都凭自己的意旨行事。无人能拦住他手,或问他说,你作什么呢?”。

对神的主权的认知,对中国信徒尤其重要,因为我们长期受儒、道、佛等人本主义观念影响,导致神成为人达到现实好处的工具、神成为人随意指使的奴仆。不是我们敬畏神,而是我们利用神,敬拜神成为拜菩萨、马祖之类,神灵不灵就要看神能否满足我的需求。而实质上,我们信仰的神是一个拥有绝对主权的神,是凭借自己的公义、慈爱的属性自行作为的神,神不会以人的私心杂念作为行为的依据。

在这次评价打分中,也提到自然天灾的问题。且不说当今世界上的很多所谓自然灾害就是人破坏自然的结果,就算自然天灾里有神的旨意,我们这些被造物也只有顺服的份。在神没有做错的事,神所作的一切都是美好的。

神是圣洁公义的,神也是赏善罚恶的,但是神的道路高过我们的道路、神的意念高过我们的意念,神的公义也非人的公义。就像人的公义不同于蚂蚁的公义,在蚂蚁看来不合理的,在人却是合人的理。比如人铺路,不得不把很多蚂蚁洞填平,这在蚂蚁看不近情理,但在人却是合理的。同样,在人看来想不通的,在神有美好的旨意。

正如义人受苦和善恶不能现实报应的问题,也是很多基督徒想不通的难题。伟大的神学家奥古斯丁,他是成年后才信主的。他的母亲莫妮卡是个虔诚的基督徒,为他祷告了几十年。而为什么奥古斯丁当时不信主呢?其中一个原因就是他不明白为什么世界上恶人得不到惩罚,而义人却遭受苦难。为了搞清这个问题,他信了摩尼教,摩尼教讲世界有善神和恶神两个神、善神造成了世界上的很多好事,而恶神是世界上的苦难和罪恶的根源。但两个神就是二元论 、会造成两个标准,人的信仰总是要找到一个终极的一,一套终极的标准,否则会让人无所适从。后来奥古斯丁被圣灵光照,终于信主,他也在他的《上帝之城》一书中回答了,到底为什么世界上很多善不能得善报,很多恶不能得恶报?奥古斯丁这样说:“若神现在公开地刑罚一切的罪恶,如此一来,在最后的审判中就好像没有什么可审判的罪了。相反地,若神没有公开地刑罚任何罪,我们反而会怀疑神的护理”。(见《基督教要义 上》第31页、约翰加尔文着、三联书店2010年3月第一版)所以在现实中肯定是部分善、恶得到报应,而其余的要等到最后审判之日。

这一切正如使徒保罗赞叹神的主权时说的:“深哉!神丰富的智慧和知识。他的判断何其难测!他的足迹何其难寻!谁知道主的心?谁作过他的谋士呢?谁是先给了他,使他后来偿还呢?因为万有都是本于他,倚靠他,归于他。愿荣耀归给他,直到永远。阿们!(罗马书11:33-36)

神的主权让我们明白,我们没有资格给神打分;神的主权也让我们反思自己信仰的真正问题是——当神给我们祝福时,我们信靠他;但当神给我们苦难时,我们还会继续信靠他吗?

Views: 128

Reply to This

Saving Pastor Gong

Please Help Saving jailed Pastor Gong of Huanan Chruch

http://ministrysolar.wix.com/pastor-gong-huanan

~~~

Since Dec 2, 2012, my father Pastor Shengliang Gong had High Blood Pressure and Cerebral Infraction, but he never got the proper medical checkup and adequate treatments. Consequently, my father’s illness got worse and worse. More than once my father almost fell to the ground during last November.

Finally when he got the checkup on November 26th 2013, the doctor said my father’s illness was not very optimistic. He was having Cerebral Infraction, Encephalatrophy, Brain Lesions and Leukoaraiosis, etc. The doctor said that my father needs to have checkup every three months. So we repeatedly requested the prison officials to perform checkup accordingly, once every three months. The prison said that they had one done on April 17th, but refused to release the hospital’s medical treatments records and conclusions to neither my father nor the family members. They would not make any specific statements about my father’s illness. Now, my father and our family have no ideas about the level of his illness.

       Since my father illness, previously we could buy some appropriate medicines for him according to his known conditions pieced together from oral communications of diagnosis, after consulting with doctors. Though this won’t amount to totally healing, it was the only way our family could do for him under the circumstances. But now, as the prison withholding medical records from us, we are unable to know his condition and thus cannot providing suitable medicines for him-the very minimum request was denied of us.

       The inadequate medical treatments within the prison cannot give my father prompt and sufficient treatments. Yet the prison won’t send him to hospitals outside for necessary treatments and regular checkups, causing further serious damages to his health. The prison won’t allow him the fundamental human rights; they also deprive his right to know about his illness condition. The prison as law enforcement agency behaves illegally. Effectively, they are directly pushing my gravely ill father to dead end street of death.

       I appeal to the international communities concerning my father’s health and human rights conditions. Please join us to rally for my father and our family’s rights to medical records and the right to know the situation of my father’s sickness; also his right to have regular medical treatments, thereby saving his life and protect his fundamental rights!!

 

Pastor Shengliang Gong’s daughter: Huali Gong

June 30th 2014

Cell Phone: 13241248388

Han Kou prison department phone number: 027-83556018

Instructor Hanwen Wang: 15327298562

 

 

三化異象
中國福音化
  五十年來,中國大陸的信徒從不到100萬(1949)遽增到八千萬(2000),這是中國五千年來難得的宣教黃金時期;在中國教會裡,也普遍呈現「羊在找牧人」的現象,上帝為中國敞開了大門!現在就是「中國福音化」的關鍵時刻!
教會國度化
  教會是基督榮耀的身體,是一切事工的根柢。今日世界各地的基督教宗派都去中國宣教,如何促使海外教會超越宗派主義,中國教會突破山頭主義,共同營造具有「國度觀」的宣教事工,將是中國教會拓展生根的關鍵時刻!
文化基督化
  1989年「六四」之後,大批的中國知識分子信主,他們承認了理性的局限性,也不再提「反宗教、反帝國主義」,轉而思考基督教對中國現代化有何貢獻?如今正是因勢利導,以基督思想來影響中國文化,以聖經真理來更新中國文化的關鍵時刻!

Persecution Blog

Missionary Pilot Shares The Rest of the Auca Martyrs' Story

Growing up the home of missionary parents in Ecuador, Gene Jordan has always known the story of five men—Nate Saint, Jim Elliot, Ed McCully, Peter Fleming, and Roger Youderian—who gave their lives in the jungle to reach an isolated Indian...

After Arrest, "I Was Terrified"

“Dr. Andrew” is working to share the gospel in the Middle East, but he hasn’t always had a heart to share Christ’s love with Muslims. Growing up in a nominal Christian family, Andrew was harassed by Muslims his whole life....

Being a True Vessel for God's Use

“Brother Matthew” is a pastor and church planter in South Asia, working among Muslims to share the gospel. After threats against his life and an attack on his brother, he was encouraged by family members to leave his country. He...

VOM Radio in Central Asia

"Tanya" is a Christian worker in Central Asia, living and ministering in a country where she must always be cautious about what she says openly and who she says it around. Listen to hear how Christians in the former Soviet...

Nate Saint Memorial School: End of an Era

The end of an era comes next month. In August 1985, I clutched my mom’s hand and squeaked my rubber flip-flopped way down the gravel path from the Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) “base” to the cinderblock Nate Saint Memorial school....

© 2024   Created by China Ministries International.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service