2024-03-07 周四 基督是以马内利

经文:这一切成就了,为要应验主藉着申言者所说的,说,看哪,必有童女怀孕生子,人要称祂的名为以马内利。(太一22-23,另译)

耶和华的苗和地的果子

在以赛亚四章二节,有关于基督的两面—耶和华的苗和地的果子。在这一对里,有一个比较。“苗”与“果子”相比,“耶和华”与“地”相比。以马内利这名称包含“耶和华”与“地”,因为这名称的意思是神与我们同在,也就是神与人同在。神是永远的,人是出自地的。地的果子是指从尘土所造的人(创二7)。约翰一章一节说,太初有话,话就是神。接着,十四节说,话成了肉体。基督是神,是出自永远的,但祂是人,却是出自地的;所以祂是耶和华的苗,也是地的果子。

神在祂的神性里伸枝扩展到人性里面

耶和华的苗,是耶和华神新的发展,为要藉着祂的成为肉体,得以扩增并开展。基督这耶和华的苗,乃是为使耶和华神在祂的神性里伸枝扩展到人性里面(约一14)。当耶和华神将自己伸枝扩展时,祂乃是在祂的神性里伸枝扩展到人性里。在耶稣出生之前,我们无限的神只存在于祂神性的范围里。在祂成为肉体以前,祂并不具有人性。大约二千年前,神成了肉体。在那成为肉体里,祂在祂的神性里将自己伸枝扩展到人性里。这是不信之犹太人的神,与我们的神之间的不同。他们的神只在神性里,没有任何人性的元素,但我们基督徒所有的神,乃是在神性里,也在人性里的一位。耶稣是成了肉体的神,是完整的神,也是完全的人。

以马内利神与我们同在

“耶稣”这神圣的名称是神所起的。耶稣的意思是耶和华救主,或耶和华救恩。“以马内利”这名,意即“神与我们同在”,是人所称的。照我们对耶稣的经历,我们必须称祂为以马内利,意思就是神与我们同在。我们的耶稣是神而人者。祂是神又是人,是神圣的又是属人的。神在人性里,乃是祂从一个范围到另一个范围的扩展和伸枝。今天我们的神存在于神性和人性这两个范围里。我们的神是神圣的,也是属人的。

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Christ is Immanuel — Matt. 1:22-23

The Shoot of Jehovah and the Fruit of the Earth

There is a pair of aspects of Christ in Isaiah 4:2 – the Shoot of Jehovah and the Fruit of the earth. In this pair there is a comparison. “The Shoot” is in comparison to “the Fruit” and “Jehovah” is in comparison to “the earth.” The title Immanuel includes “Jehovah” and “the earth” because it means God with us, that is, God with man. God is eternal and man came from the earth. The Fruit of the earth refers to a man made from the dust (Gen. 2:7). John 1:1 says that in the beginning was the Word and the Word was God. Then verse 14 says that the Word became flesh. Christ as God came from eternity, but as man he came from the earth, so he is the Shoot of Jehovah and also the Fruit of the earth.

The Branching Out of Jehovah God in His Divinity into Humanity

The Shoot of Jehovah is a new development of Jehovah God for his increase and spreading through his incarnation. Christ as the Shoot of Jehovah is for the branching out of Jehovah God, in his divinity, into humanity (John 1:14). When Jehovah God branched himself out, he did it in his divinity to branch himself into humanity. Before Jesus was born, our unlimited God was existing merely in the territory of his divinity. He did not possess humanity before his incarnation. Approximately two thousand years ago, God was incarnated. In that incarnation, he branched himself out in his divinity into humanity. From the year of Christ’s birth, our God is in both divinity and humanity. This is the difference between the unbelieving Jews’ God and our God. Their God is merely in divinity without any element of humanity, but the God we Christians have is One who is in divinity and in humanity. Jesus is the incarnated God, the complete God and the perfect Man.

Immanuel – God with Us

Jesus was the divine title given by God. Jesus means Jehovah the Savior, or Jehovah the salvation. Immanuel, meaning God with us, was the name called by man. According to our experience of Jesus, we have to call him Immanuel, which means God with man. Our Jesus is the God-man. He is both God and man, both divine and human. For God to be in humanity is his spreading, his branching out, from one territory to another territory. Today our God exists in two territories – divinity and humanity. Our God today is both divine and human.