Manna issue 81 - Becoming a Fully Baked Christian 成為全熟的基督徒
Aiming our life fully towards God. 在我們的生活中，全面看向神
Colin Shek—Sunderland, UK
英國山打崙 石柏曦
My recent experience of clay pigeon
shooting was a very satisfying one.
Take aim, follow the trajectory of the
clay, shoot, and—bam!—watch it
blow up in mid-air. The key is aiming
correctly. If the clay is moving in an
upward trajectory and hangs in the
air, then you cover it with the tip of
the barrel. If it is travelling away from
you at speed, then you have to aim
ahead of it.
最近我的飛碟經驗，是一次很滿足的感覺。
瞄準，跟著碟盤的軌道，射擊，然後碰的一聲！
看著它在半空中爆炸。
秘訣是要有精準的瞄準。
若是碟般的軌道往上飛，會停在半空，你就用槍管的尖端罩住它飛去的方向。
若它以很快的速度遠離你，那麼你要在它飛的路徑前面等它。
The act of aiming for a goal is
something we all do in various facets
of life. Busy professionals have sales
targets and deadlines to meet.
Students have grades to achieve.
Entrepreneurs have profit margins to
maintain and deals to make. Parents
have milestones to monitor their
child’s development.
瞄準目標的動作，是我們在生活上各個方面，都會作的事。
忙碌的上班族要達成銷售目標，要在最後期限之前完成。
學生要完成學業。
企業家有守住產品的利潤，有很多生意要談。
身為父母的，有好幾個階段，要好好看住自已小孩的發展。
When we think of our faith, how
often do we aim for spiritual
objectives? How much do we direct
our lives towards God? And even
when we aim for God, how often
does our aim go askew?
當我們談到自已信仰的時候，
到底我們有多少頻率，會瞄準自已屬靈目標呢？
我們在生活中，到底有多大的程度，會朝向神？
即使當我們面對神的時候，
到底我們有多少頻率我們會把自已的方向走歪了嗎？
Chapter 7 of Hosea contains several
messages which illustrate these
conundrums, and causes us to reflect
on them for ourselves.
何西阿書7章包含了幾個訊息，
舉出了這些難題，讓我們自已可以好好在這些議題上反省。
GOD WANTS US TO DIRECT OUR
LIVES TOWARDS HIM
神要我們在生活中，把自已的方向朝著祂
They return, but not to the Most High;
They are like a treacherous bow.
(Hos 7:16a)
16他們歸向，卻不歸向至上者；他們如同翻背的弓。
(何 7：16a)
During Hosea’s ministry, the people
of God tried to aim for God, but they
did not turn fully towards Him. They
turned, but not upwards towards
God. God likened His people to a
treacherous bow. Imagine shooting
with a treacherous bow. You take aim
at the target and shoot, only to see
the arrow fly into the ground. Similarly,
the people of God, like a faulty bow,
missed the target completely. They
exhibited the signs of repentance and
yet failed to wholeheartedly redirect
their entire lives towards God.
在何西阿的服事期間，神的百姓試著朝向神，
但是他們並沒有完全轉向祂。
他們有轉頭，但卻沒有往上轉向神。
神比喻百姓就像一把翻背的弓。
你瞄準目標，並且發射，
但卻只看到弓箭掉到地上。
同樣的情況，神的百姓，就像壞掉的弓，
完全射不到目標。
他們表示出悔改的跡象，
然而卻不能全心回轉，
再把他們整個生命完全轉向神。
Humans tend to be like this. We aim
to turn to God as our Savior and
Provider. We start off with much
energy and zeal. But over time, we
end up veering away from God.
人很容易就像這樣。
我們打算轉向神，把神當成救主，知道主必預備。
我們一開始就帶著很多的精力和很大的熱心。
但經過一段時間之後，我們最後卻從神那裡轉向了其他的方向。
How many of us have made
commitments to read the Bible from
beginning to end, for instance? How
many of us have found the stories of
Abraham, Joseph, and Moses
extremely exciting, only to see our
interest dramatically tail off when we
hit Leviticus? (We need only to look at
which pages of our Bibles are the
most worn to confirm this!)
例如，我們之中到底有多少人，
下定決心要把聖經從頭到尾讀一次呢？
我們有很多人都知道，亞伯拉罕，約瑟和摩西的故事非常的有趣，
但是當我們讀到利未記的時候，
卻只看到我們的興趣，戲劇性的逐漸消逝？
(我們只要來看看，到底自已的聖經，有那幾頁是磨損的最利害，就能証實這件事)
Think of how many people start
and fail various dieting plans. How
many people sign up to expensive
annual gym memberships, and stop
going after two months? Starting is
the easy part. Staying on course until
the end is much more difficult. This is
especially true of our faith.
若是來看看，到底有多少人開始各種節食的計劃，但最後卻失敗了。
到底有多少人，加入了昂貴的健身房會員，但二個月之後，就沒有再去了。
要開始什麼活動都是很容易的。
一直有跟著進度，直到課程結束，就真的更加困難。
這種情況對我們的信仰而言，更是貼切。
What God desires is for us to stay
on target towards Him. Of course,
this is not always easy. When I was
shooting clays, for example, I would
miss the target whenever I felt tired.
You would not think that shooting
things could be so tiring, but it is—
focus causes mental strain. And yet
when I put in the extra effort to
concentrate and zone in on my target,
I had the great satisfaction of seeing
the clays smashed to bits in the sky.
神所想要的，就是我們會一直把目標朝向祂。
當然，這不會一直都很容易。
例如：當我在射擊飛碟的時候，
每當我覺得疲勞的時候，我就會錯過射到目標。
你或許無法想像，射擊這件事會這麼的無聊，但真的有夠無聊-
集中注意力的時候，會引起心理上的壓力。
然而，當我們投入更多的努力來集中精神，並且好好瞄準自已的目標，
若是射中了，看到天空上的碟般粉碎，就有很大的滿足。
That is why the Bible encourages us
to be vigilant at all times, and to take
our faith seriously (Mt 26:41; 1 Pet
4:7). This takes effort and stamina (1
Cor 9:24; 2 Tim 4:7). But we can
persevere because we have the grace
and mercy of God propelling us along.
The end result will be worth it: we will
have the ultimate satisfaction of being
counted worthy to stand before God
(Lk 21:36). The end of a thing is
always better than the beginning (Eccl
7:8).
這就是為何聖經鼓勵我們，無論何時都要警醒，
並且認真看待自已的信仰。
(太 26：41；彼前 4：7)
這需要努力及耐力。
(林前 9：24；提後 4：7)
我們可以堅持下去，是因為我們有神的恩典和慈愛，幫助我們一路走下去。
最後的結果將必會很值得：
因為被認為是值得侍立在神的面前，將會有最終極的滿足。
(路 21：36)
8事情的終局強如事情的起頭；
(傳 7：8)
We read in the Book of Hosea that
there are a few specific ways in which
God wants us to be fully directed
towards Him. One of them is holiness.
Do we aim for complete holiness in
our lives? Do we give our whole lives
to be cleansed by God? That is one
area that the people of Israel struggled
with.
當我們在讀何西阿書的時候，
有幾個特別的方面，是神要我們全心朝向祂的。
其中之一就是聖潔。
我們在自已的生活中，有沒有以完全聖潔為目標呢？
我們有沒有把自已全部的生活，讓神的潔淨呢？
這就是以色列百姓一直努力掙扎的其中一方面。
BEING FULLY BAKED 全熟
Ephraim has mixed himself among
the peoples;
Ephraim is a cake unturned.
(Hos 7:8)
8以法蓮與列邦人攙雜；以法蓮是沒有翻過的餅。
(何 7：8)
I do not bake, but from what I
understand, a cake unturned will be
burned on one side, and doughy and
uncooked on the other. No matter
how you look at it, it is inedible. Just
imagine biting into a cake that is halfburned
and half-raw! Israel was just
like this cake—neither a fully holy
nation nor a fully pagan nation. They
were similar to the church in Laodicea
in the Book of Revelation—they were
neither hot nor cold. In Hosea, it was
because the people of God had
assimilated themselves into the
nations around them (Hos 7:8).
我不會烘焙，但若從我所了解的，
餅若沒有翻面，就會一面烤焦，
另一面則還會是半熟的麵團。
無論你是怎麼看待它，它還是不能吃的。
就想像咬一口餅，但它卻是半生半熟！
以色列就像這塊餅一樣，
即不是全然聖潔的國度，也不是全部信異教的國家。
他們就像啟示錄裡面，所說的老底嘉教會 -
他們即不冷又不熱。
在何西阿書裡提到，
這是因為神的百姓和他們四周的國家同化了。
(何 7：8)
As a result, Israel was unfit for
purpose. They were supposed to be
set apart for God, and set apart from
the nations around them (Num 23:9);
they were supposed to be holy, as
God is holy (Lev 18); they were
supposed to glorify God to the
surrounding nations (Isa 49:3). But
the more Israel became like those
nations, the less they could shine for
God.
結果，以色列就無法適得其用。
他們本來要為主分別為聖，
從他們四週的國家分別出來(民 23：9)；
他們本來要聖潔，就像神是聖潔的一樣(利 18)；
他們本來要在四周環繞的國家之中，來榮耀神(賽 49：3)
但是隨著以色列人越變得像這些國家，
他們就越不能為神發光。
We see that God does not like halfbaked
Christians. We are called to be
holy through and through. Of course,
we are all a "work in progress." Like a
well-baked cake, it takes time and
effort to become holy before God, to
be set apart from our sinful ways and
the godless culture around us, to be
dedicated to God and belong to Him.
我們知道，神不喜歡半熟的基督徒。
我們被呼召要成為完完全全的聖潔。
當然，我們大家都是"正在進行的工程"。
就像是已經全熟的餅，是需要花時間和精力，才能在神面前成為聖潔，
從我們罪惡的道路，和我們四周無神的文化風習中分別出來，
可以專為神所用，屬於祂。
So do you want to become a fully
baked Christian in the eyes of God?
To be Christ-like through and
through? There are a few basic
principles that we can follow to realize
this:
所以，你會想要在神眼中，成為一位全熟的基督徒嗎？
完完全全的像基督一樣嗎？
這裡有一些基本的原則，我們可以接著來了解一下：
Abhor sin (Rom 12:9; Eph 5:3–5;
Deut 7:2; 12:2–4; 20:16–18)
憎惡罪
(羅 12：9；弗 5：2-5；申 7：2；12：2-4；20：16-18)
God tells us to really hate all
uncleanness (the godless television
shows that we watch, the godless
media that we engage in, the lustful
thoughts that we have), and to really
hate all covetousness (the desire for
more and more, the envy of others).
The Bible tells us to put to death, by
the Spirit, such sin. In the eyes of God,
these acts are an abomination. The
key to this is to hate sin itself, and not
merely hate the shame that sin brings
(see Gen 3:7–8). That is, to hate the
gratifying nature of sin, rather than
hating the guilt it brings afterwards.
神告訴我們，要直的厭惡一切不潔之事
(我們看的不敬虔電視節目，我們所參與不敬虔的媒體，我們所有情慾的思想)，
要真正厭惡一切的貪心之事(想要更多，羨慕別人的慾望)。
聖經告訴我們，依靠聖靈治死這樣的罪。
在神的眼中，這些行為是為可憎惡之事。
要作到這事的關鍵，是厭惡罪之事本身，
而不只是討厭罪所隨之而來羞恥的感覺。
(參考，創 3：7-8)
也就是，要能厭惡罪能讓人滿足的特質，
而不是討厭犯罪之後，所帶來的罪惡感。
Adore God, and really aspire to be
more like Him (Mt 5:48; 1 Pet
1:15–16)
讚美神，而且真的很想要可以更像祂
(太 5：48；彼前 1：15-16)
We should appreciate just how
amazing our God is. And with this in
mind, we should strive for the fullness
of Christ (Eph 4:13), and put on the
new man created in God's image (Eph
4:23–25). This requires continuous
effort to imitate Jesus (Eph 5:1; 1 Cor
11:1). The world constantly pressures
us to improve our appearance (to be
more beautiful, slimmer), to advance
our career (to gain more status,
responsibility, pay), and improve our
personality (to be more confident,
witty, happy). But chasing after these
ambitions is like half-baking a cake.
God wants us to be even more
ambitious—He wants us to be more
like Him, because we are created in
God’s image (Gen 1:26–27).
我們應該要感謝神是多麼的奇妙。
若有這種想法在心中，就要努力，滿有基督成長的身量，
(弗 4：13)
穿上以神為形象所造的新人。
(弗 4：23-25)
這就要一直努力來效法耶穌。(弗 5：1；林前 11：1)
這個世界一直摧逼我們，要改進自已的外貌，
(要更漂亮，更苗條)
在職場上要往上爬(得到更高的地位，責任和薪酬)，
改進自已的人格特質(更有自信，機智，快樂)。
但是追逐這些理想，就像是半熟的餅一樣。
神要我們抱持更大的理想 -
祂要我們更像祂，因為我們是照著祂的形象所造。
(創 1：25-27)
Our call to holiness is not a call to a
life of boredom and repression, but a
call to joy, satisfaction, and fulfillment.
Do we have the faith to see this? If
not, then the ideals of the world
would seem a better option to pursue.
Our value, our worth, does not come
from what is on our CV, or payslip, or
online profile. Our value comes from
being cleansed by Christ, by being
redeemed by His blood, and being
made holy in Christ (1 Cor 6:11; 1 Pet
1:18–19; Ex 39:30).
我們被呼召要成為聖潔，並不是被加來過一個很無聊又厭抑的生活方式，
反而要因呼召過得很快樂，很滿足，很充實。
我們有沒有信心可以看到這些盼望呢？
若是沒有，那麼世上的其他很多理想，
將會看起來是更好去追求的選項。
我們的價值，我們的財富，不是來自於在屢歷表上寫了什麼，
薪水單上印了多少數字，或網上個人檔案寫的多好。
我們的價值來自於被基督所潔淨，
被祂的寶血所救贖，在基督裡成為聖潔。
(林前 6：11；彼前 1：18-19；出 39：30)
Once this mindset of complete
holiness is embraced, we can have a
fully baked attitude like that of Paul:
I have been crucified with Christ; it is
no longer I who live, but Christ lives
in me; and the life which I now live
in the flesh I live by faith in the Son
of God, who loved me and gave
Himself for me.
(Gal 2:20)
一旦完全接受這種聖潔的想法，
我們就能有一種完全熟透的態度，就像保羅的態度一樣：
20我已經與基督同釘十字架，現在活著的不再是我，乃是基督在我裡面活著；
並且我如今在肉身活著，是因信神的兒子而活；他是愛我，為我捨己。
(加 2：20)
Fully Baked Evangelism 全熟的福音事工
Have you ever been attracted to the
smell of freshly baked cakes and
freshly ground coffee? Our Christian
lives can have a similar effect of
attraction on others. If we set our
mind on becoming a fully baked
Christian, then we allow the aroma of
Christ to diffuse through us (2 Cor
2:14–15). But if God's people are
mixed with the other nations of the
world, then it becomes difficult—the
aroma that is diffused is not of God,
but of the world. Or worse, the aroma
of God becomes mixed and
contaminated with worldly ones,
which gives those who come in
contact with it the wrong impression
of God. Therefore, we do not need to
be concerned with how to be trendy
or how to fit in. Our focus should just
be on being a well-baked Christian.
你是不是曾經被新出爐的麵包和新研磨的咖啡，
他們所帶出的氣味所吸引呢？
我們基督徒的生活，對別人而言，也能有同樣吸引的效果。
若我們立下心志要成為全熟的基督徒，
那麼就是允許基督的氛芳從我們身上散發出去。
(林後 2：14-15)
但是，若神的子民和世上其他國家混在一起，
那麼要這樣作就很困難 -
所散發的氣味不是來自於神，而是來自世界。
或者更糟的是，神的氛芳混雜了，
沾染了世上的味道，讓碰到此種氣味的人，有了對神錯誤的印象。
所以，我們不要去想要如何跟上潮流，融入世界。
我們專注的目標，只應該是要成為一個全熟的基督徒。
Israel was a half-baked cake. God
wants us to be fully baked, fully holy,
fully cleansed, and fully His.
以色列是一塊半熟的餅。
神要我們成為全熟，完全神聖，
完全清潔，完全屬於祂。
HAVING A SETTLED HEART
TOWARDS GOD
全心向著神
Ephraim also is like a silly dove,
without sense—
They call to Egypt,
They go to Assyria.
Wherever they go, I will spread My
net on them;
I will bring them down like birds of
the air.
(Hos 7:11–12a)
11以法蓮好像鴿子愚蠢無知；他們求告埃及，投奔亞述。
12他們去的時候，我必將我的網撒在他們身上；我要打下他們，如同空中的鳥。
(何 7：11-12a)
Israel was like a silly dove: totally
flaky, never settling down, never
committing. Sometimes Israel went to
Egypt to form an alliance, other times
they went to Assyria. All the while
they ignored God as their true Provider
and Protector. Because of Israel’s
adulterous ways, God brought His net
of judgment upon them, wherever
they decided to go.
以色列就像笨鴿：完全說話不算話，
永遠不想安定下來，永遠不想負責任。
有時以色列跑去埃及尋求聯盟，
換個時間，他們又跑去亞述。
從頭到尾他們都忽略神會為他們預備，保護他們。
因為以色列不專一的原故，無論他們決定往那裡去，
神就把審判的網羅撒向他們。
We are sometimes just like Israel.
We, too, have our idolatrous
tendencies. We, too, can be quite
flaky before God, never settling our
hearts on Him. Instead, we go from
one idol to another, never fully putting
our trust in our true God. Often we
try to find fulfillment and security by
worldly methods: pursuing the latest
trends, money, career, self-image,
fleshly gratification.
我們有時候就像以色列人一樣。
也會有我們自已崇拜偶像的傾向。
我們也會在神面前，非常的不可靠，
從來沒有把自已的心放在神身上。
相反的，我們從一種偶像，過渡到另一種偶像，
從來沒有完全把自已的信任放在我們真正的神身上。
很多時候，我們想用世界上的方法，來試著找到實現的機會或是得到安全保障：
追尋著最新的潮流，金錢，工作，自我形象及肉體的滿足。
As a result, we become like a silly,
senseless dove flying from one thing
to another. The world tells us that we
need more—more money to have a
better quality of life, more possessions
and entertainment to enjoy life, more
status to be respected, more trendiness
to fit in. But the Bible tells us that we
need less. It tells us that our life is not
judged by the possessions we
accumulate (Lk 12:15). It tells us to be
content (1 Tim 6:6–8). If there is
anything we do need more of,
however, it is trust in God (1 Tim
6:17).
結果，我們變成一隻又傻，又不知不覺的笨鴿，
從一件事物又飛到到另一個事物。
世界告訴我們，我們需要擁有更多 -
有更多的金錢才能有好的生活品質，
有更多的財富和娛樂方式，才能享受人生，
有更高的地方，就能得到更多人的尊敬，
所以有很多潮流都要融入。
但是聖經告訴我們，我們需要的很少。
它告訴我們，生命不在乎我們所累積的財富。(路 12：15)
它告訴我們，要知足。(提前 6：6-8)
然而，若有任何事物是我們很需要的，
就是我們需要更信靠神。
For some, it is understandably an
issue of security, like Israel looking to
the other nations for protection. We
might think, If I had a bit more
income, a smaller mortgage, a better
pension, then my future will be
secure. And yet, Jesus said that the
rich man who stored up his riches was
a fool, since that very night his life
would be taken from him (Lk 12:20).
對有些人而言，我們可以理解要有安全感，
就像以色列尋求其他國家來保護他們。
我們或許會想，若是我有多一點收入，
少一點房貸，得到好一點的退休金，
那麼我們未來就有保障了。
然而，耶穌卻說，富人積存財富的行為就像是一個傻瓜，
因為當天晚上，他的生命就會離他而去了。
(路 12：20)
As Christians, we can be over busy.
We work hard for the treasures in
heaven, but we also work hard for the
treasures on earth. We want to
worship God, but we also want to
worship the gods of this world. We
end up flapping like a senseless dove.
God is waving infinite joy and
salvation in front of us, and yet we are
more interested in gratifying our lusts
and desires in the dirt of life. God is
giving us everything, and yet we are
constantly distracted by what is on
offer from Egypt and Assyria.
身為基督徒，我們可能會太過忙碌。
我們為了天上的財寶努力工作，
但是我們也為了世上的財寶努力工作。
我們想要敬拜神，但是我們也想要來拜這個世上的神。
我們直到最後一直搖搖擺擺，像隻笨鴿。
神在我們面前，用無窮的喜樂和救贖來向我們招手，
然而，我們卻對滿足生活在塵土之中的慾望和貪戀。
神給了我們一切，而我們卻一直被埃及和亞述的促銷弄得心不在焉。
And yet, idols are false satisfiers.
True satisfaction can only be found
through God.
然而，偶像都是虛假的滿足。
真正的滿足只能透過神找到。
Being a true Christian in a
consumerist culture today means
having faith, and believing that we
will find true fulfillment, joy, and
identity in God and nothing else (Phil
3:8–9). God does not want us to be
like a senseless bird. Rather, He invites
us to settle in His kingdom and find
rest, to trust in Him from day to day.
要在今日的消費主義文化中，成為一個直正的基督徒，
代表要有信心，相信我們會找到真正的滿足，喜樂，
真正認清神的寶貴，其他一點也不重要。
(腓 3：8-9)
神並不想我們就像一隻笨鳥。
反而，祂邀請我們安居在祂的國度中，
得到安息，每一天都信靠祂。
CONCLUSION 結論
God desires that we strive to direct
our lives towards Him. This takes
effort and sustained focus. But by the
grace of God, He will always guide us.
May we redirect our lives towards
Him and become fully baked
Christians—fully cleansed and holy.
May we seek to be fully settled in the
arms of Christ, rather than being
distracted by the godless culture
around us. And let us rejoice that, in
Christ, we have infinite joy and
salvation.
神所要的，是我們努力把自已生活的目標轉向祂。
這需要努力，持續一直的聚焦在神身上。
但因著神的恩典，祂會一直指引我們。
願我們可以把自已生活的目標再次轉向祂，
成為全熟的基督徒 - 完全潔淨，完全神聖。
願我們可以尋求全面安居在基督的懷抱中，
而不是被圍繞在我們身旁的無神文化弄得心情反反覆覆。
在基督裡，讓我們歡欣鼓舞，因為我們有無限喜樂的泉源和救贖的恩典。
小頁 markvmax@hotmail.com
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