Manna issue 75 - Editorial 編輯的話
by Sharon Chang
Growth—science tells us—delineates the living and nonliving.
All living things grow; the non-living do not. A
pebble does not grow up to become a rock and then a
mighty boulder. But little acorns become tender saplings
and, in time, great oaks. Newborns become adolescents,
adults, and eventually the aged.
科學告訴我們 - 成長可用來區分一件物體有沒有生命。
所有的活物都會生長；而沒有生命的物體就不會生長。
一個小石頭並不會長成大岩石和巨石塊。
但一顆小小的橡樹果實卻會長出嫩芽來，在一些時間之後，就長成一棵大橡樹。
新生兒長到青少年，再來成人，到最後年紀漸增成為長者。
Generally, when physiological growth is accompanied
by intellectual, emotional, or social development, we
say that the person has matured. In particular, parents
hope that children do not just grow, but mature because
then, these offspring will make the right choices to give
themselves a good life.
一般來說，生理上的成長會伴隨著智力，情緒和社會經歷的發展一齊展開，所以我們會說，這個人變成熟了。
特別是，父母會希望小孩不只是長大，並且也能變得成熟，讓所有下一代都可以作出正確的決定，能夠好好生活下去。
Growth and maturity are just as indispensable in the
spiritual sense. Before we came to know Christ, we were
dead in sin. But the Lord Jesus’ sacrifice has given us
life anew. Since we are spiritually living, then we ought
to spiritually grow. And like any anxious parent, the
heavenly Father hopes that we not only grow but attain
spiritual maturity for there is much at stake. The mature
will know the right path to take towards eternal life. The
immature are easily led astray and quickly devoured by
the evil one.
在屬靈方面，成長和成熟都是雙雙不可或缺的。
在我們認識基督之前，我們會死在罪中。
但是主耶穌的捨已，讓我們的生命得到更新。
即然我們的靈命可以存活，那麼我們就要讓靈命也能成長。
就像任何焦慮的父母一樣，天上的父親也希望，我們不只可以成長，也能靈命成熟，因為有許多事情是需要小心謹慎的。
有了成熟，才會知道面對永生問題的時候，該如何選擇正確的道路。
而不成熟的狀態，就很容易被吸引偏離真道，很快地就會被惡者所吞吃。
But precociousness is sometimes mistaken for maturity.
A child who dresses like an adult and parrots adult speech
is still not a true adult. So what is true spiritual maturity?
How can we attain it?
但是就早熟而言，有時候相對於真正的成熟來說，某些方面是錯誤的。
一位小朋友穿得像大人，像鸚鵡般模仿大人說話，這並不是真的長大了。
所以，什麼是靈命真正的成熟長大了呢？
我們要怎麼作才能達到靈命的成熟呢？
The writers in this issue tell us that the marks of maturity
are seen in how we live our lives. The spiritual infant
is self-centered, but the spiritually mature understands
God’s will and willingly submits to God’s higher purpose,
even if he has to suffer disadvantage and loss. Such a
true spiritual adult demonstrates his reverence for God
in concrete ways—he lives peaceably with man, showing
genuine love towards all, particularly those who are often
overlooked. Importantly, he recognizes that it is not life
on earth but eternal life that is most precious. Hence,
he proactively fulfills Jesus’ commission to preach the
gospel of salvation wherever he goes. In short, the true
spiritual adult conforms to the image of Christ, bearing
good fruits to glorify God and edify man.
本期有許多作者會告訴我們，真正成熟的記號，是要看我們是如何過生活。
屬靈上的嬰兒是以自我中心的，但是靈性成熟的人，會了解神的旨意，願意臣服在神更高深的目的之下，即使是必須要承受一些不利的後果和損失。
這種真正靈性成熟的人，會用正確的方式展現出對神的敬畏 - 與人和平相處，對所有人都懷有真愛，由其是特別對於那些容易被忽略的人都能加以關懷。
重要的是，他能認知到，屬世的生活是不重要的，而永遠的生命才是最珍貴的。
因此，他會主動積極地去完成耶穌所交託的使命，無論到那裡去都會廣傳得救的福音。
總之，真正靈性成熟的人，會符合耶穌的形象，能多結好果子來榮耀神，並且造就別人。
Attaining spiritual maturity—much like the physical—
takes time, the right conditions, and consistent care.
Lifelong spiritual cultivation is indispensable if we want
to grow as a Christian. We must remove the thorns of
complacency and hypocrisy lest these choke our faith.
We must grow deeper roots of faith by studying God’s
word and through sincere prayer and godly living. It is
often tempting to judge our closeness to God by how
many miracles He has performed through our hands. We
are so focused on the strong wind, earthquake, and fire
that we forget to listen to His still small voice (cf. 1 Kgs
19:11–12). As an adult, we must seek not just the height
of spiritual experiences but the depth of communion with
God. Connected to and rooted in God, we will never lack
in spiritual vitality, strength, and courage. Instead, we
shall mature “… to a perfect man, to the measure of the
stature of the fullness of Christ” (Eph 4:13).
要達到靈性上的成熟 - 就像肉體上的成熟一樣 - 都需要經過一些時間，並且有良好的生長環境和不斷的呵護。
假如我們想要成長為一個基督徒，那麼終身的靈修是不可缺少的。
我們要除去自滿和虛偽的荊棘，以免這些東西阻礙了信心的成長。
也必須要透過學習神的話語，虔誠的禱告和合乎神樣式的生活模式，來深入札下信心的根基。
透過看看有多少神蹟是神藉我們的雙手來執行，這樣用來判別我們與神有多親近，聽起來很吸引人。
我們通常只是專注在外在表面的災難，像強風，地震和大火，卻忽略了要能夠安靜下來，聆聽神在這安靜中所發出的微小聲音 (cf. 王上 19：11-12)。
身為成年人，我們必須不只尋求靈裡體驗的高度，也必須要和神有靈裡溝通的深度。
與神連結，深根於神，我們將不會缺乏靈性的活力，力量和勇氣。
反過來看，我們一定要變成熟 "...得以長大成人，滿有基督長成的身量"(弗 4：13)。
小頁 markvmax@hotmail.com
歡迎主內同靈來信加入英翻中的事工
目前英文嗎哪雜誌為二個月出版一刊
每位譯者會是二個月翻譯一篇英文稿
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