2024-03-19 周二 万国都要因祂得福

经文:应许原是向亚伯拉罕和他后裔说的。并不是说,“和众后裔,”像是指着许多人,乃是说,“和你那后裔,”指着一个人,就是基督。(加三16,另译)

赐福给蒙召的人

神应许赐福给亚伯拉罕(创十二2)。这福是甚么呢?这福是神创造的福和救赎的福,包括神所要给人的一切福-神自己以及今世和来世神的一切所有。

加拉太三章十四节给我们看见,这福至终乃是所应许的那灵:“为叫亚伯拉罕的福,在基督耶稣里可以临到外邦人,使我们藉着信,可以接受所应许的那灵。”因为那灵就是神自己,所以这意思就是,神应许要将祂自己当作福,赐给亚伯拉罕。

按照加拉太三章十四节,神赐给亚伯拉罕的应许,乃是神自己要来成为亚伯拉罕的后裔,这后裔要借着成为包罗万有的灵给人类接受,而成为赐给万国的福。神赐福给亚伯拉罕,至终产生基督这独一的后裔,地上万国都要因祂得福。所有在基督里的信徒乃是团体基督的肢体,都包含在这后裔之内,成为承受神应许之福的后嗣。

万国都要因祂得福

神不仅应许祂自己要成为亚伯拉罕的福,也应许使亚伯拉罕成为地上万国万族的福(创十二3)。在祂的呼召里,神从亚当转到亚伯拉罕。这是说祂已经放弃了亚当族类。但在祂的应许里,神藉着亚伯拉罕的子孙-基督,又从亚伯拉罕转回到亚当族类的万族(加三14)。这是非常有意思的。首先,神从亚当转到亚伯拉罕,至终,祂藉着基督又从亚伯拉罕转回到受造的族类。在这新的转向里我们都被神得着了。藉这回转,外邦中一切蒙召的人都被召聚来了。

关于我们对犹太人的态度,让我说一句话:永远不要苦待犹太人。你读历史,会发现在已过二十五个世纪中,从尼布甲尼撒毁坏耶路撒冷直到现在,凡咒诅犹太人的国家、人民、种族或个人,都受了咒诅,但凡祝福犹太人的,都蒙了祝福。在历史上,没有一个国家的元首死得像希特勒那么惨。希特勒这样惨死,是因为他咒诅了犹太人,以致自己受了咒诅。今天美国帮助以色列国,因此美国必定在神赐福之下。这是根据创世记十二章三节神的应许。

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All the Nations of the Earth Shall Be Blessed – Gal. 3:16

To Blessed the Called

God promised to bless Abraham (Gen 12:2). What is this blessing? It is the blessings of God’s creation and redemption, including all that God wants to give man – God himself and all that he has in this age and in the age to come.

Galatians 3:14 shows us that this blessing eventually is the promise of the Spirit: “That the blessing of Abraham might come to the nations in Jesus Christ, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” Since the Spirit is God himself, this means that God promised that he would give himself to Abraham as the blessing.

According to Galatians 3:14, the promise God gave to Abraham was that God himself would become Abraham’s descendant. This descendant would become a blessing to all nations by becoming an all-inclusive Spirit for mankind to receive. God blessed Abraham and eventually produced Christ, the unique descendant, through whom all nations on earth will be blessed. All believers in Christ are members of the corporate body of Christ and are included in this descendant, becoming heirs who inherit the blessings promised by God.

All the Nations of the Earth Shall Be Blessed

God not only promised that he himself would be a blessing to Abraham, but that Abraham would be a blessing to all the families, all the nations, of the earth (Gen. 12:3). In his calling, God turned from Adam to Abraham. This meant that he had given up the Adamic race. But, in his promise, God made another turn from Abraham back to all the families of the Adamic race through Christ, the seed of Abraham (Gal. 3:14). This is very meaningful. Firstly, God turned from Adam to Abraham and, eventually, he turned from Abraham through Christ back to the created race. By this new turn we all were captured. By this U-turn all of the called ones from the nations have been gathered in.

Let me say a word about our attitude toward the Jews. Never mistreat the Jewish people. If you read history, you will find that during the past twenty-five centuries, from the time that Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the city of Jerusalem until now, every country, people, race or individual that has cursed the Jewish people has received a curse. However, whoever blesses the Jewish people receives a blessing. No leader in history died in such a pitiful way as Hitler did. Hitler died in that way because he was cursed for his cursing of the Jewish people. Since the United States is helping the nation of Israel today, surely the United States is under God’s blessing. This is not my opinion. This is according to God’s promise in Genesis 12:3.