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4. Manna issue 82 - Moses Returns to Egypt (I) 摩西回歸埃及(I)

Strength to face the unknown by
trusting in God’s plan and timing.

信靠神的計劃和時間，讓自已有面對未知的力量 

Adapted from sermons by Aun-Quek Chin—Singapore

節錄自新加坡 陳恩國傳道講道

Infinity vs. Infinity

無限對比無限

“For man also does not know his
time” (Eccl 9:12a).

12原來人也不知道自己的定期。
(傳 9：12)

Few phrases exist in our vast literary
canon that can scare the modern man
as much as the seven words above.
Pulsating in all of us is the urge to
tame the unpredictable randomness
stretched out before us. All of history
has been a documentation of our
efforts to satisfy this primitive urge
to know our time. In this digital
age, more than ever, we are terrified
of losing our tight grip over the
minutest aspect of our lives, and even
our deaths. Tellingly, the advent of
wearable virtual-reality technology
brings this point home: we now even
wish to conquer, and create, the
worlds we inhabit. Every advancement
in technology and science, from the
life-support machine to the field of
genetic studies, is modern man’s
indignant reply to Solomon: You are
wrong, we do know our time, and in
fact, we can even control it.

在我們這麼大本，這麼文學優美的聖經裡面，
其中存在的句子，很少能像上面存在的7個字，
可以讓現代人產生那樣的害怕。
我們所有人都有這種衝動，
想要把那麼橫置在我們面前，
那種無法捉摸，各人所會面對的隨機情況，加以馴服。
所有的歷史，都已經成為了一種歷史記載，
紀錄了我們努力想要滿足自已原始的渴望，想要了解自已時代。
在這數位時代，我們會比以前更加害怕，
自已會失去生活中，每一個微小面向的控制，
甚至也害怕自已不能控制死亡。
很明顯地，穿戴式虛擬實際科技的實現，
把這種情況帶到家中來：
甚至現在，我們希望可以克服，創造，自已所處的世界。
每一種科技和科學的進展，
維持生命的裝置，到基因領域的研究，
就是現代人對所羅門王的言論，憤憤不平的回覆：
你是錯的，我們知道自已的時間，
事實上，我們甚至能加以控制。

But perhaps the great teacher did
not mean to frighten, only to warn.
What Solomon understood, as
taught to him by God, was that
some things will always be beyond
man’s reach. Wielding the full force
of statistical science in our hands, the
most man can ever hope for is not to
reduce randomness, but to prepare
for it. The only certainty is death.

但是或許這偉大的老師不是想要驚嚇我們，只是想給我們一些警告。
所羅門王為神所教導，所了解的一些事情是，
總有某些事情就會是超過人類所能理解的。
運用我們手上統計科學全力所得的是，
對一般大部份的人而言，永遠只能期待的，
不是去減少我們所會面對的隨機性，
而是準備好去面對這隨機性的發生。
唯一確定的就是死亡。

In stating that terse but bleak truth,
Solomon warns us of the Christian
who struts down the streets of life
expecting to always know what lies
ahead—what comes round the corner
may surprise him, and send him
flailing headlong into a crisis of faith.
So if false optimism is not the answer,
surely we cannot simply accept the
terrifying status quo! Even the most
veteran church-going Christian
can attest to the soul-wrenching
experience of living in this state of
constant uncertainty. Every tomorrow
harbors untold horrors: Will I still have
my job? What will the prognosis be?
What will happen to my child?

當談到那精簡又冷酷的真理之時，
所羅王警告我們基督徒，
當我們昂首闊步走在生命的道路上，
總期待能知道我們在未來所會面對的事情 -
那些即將來到的事情，或許會嚇到我們，
帶給那些魯葬的人一連結打擊，形成信仰的危機。
若錯誤的樂觀想法不是正確的答案，
那麼可以確定的是，我們一定不能接受目前恐怖的現狀！
在這樣持續的不確定性之中，
即使是最資深常會去聚會的基督徒，
都能見証自已在生活中有很多需要心力掙扎的經驗。
每一個明天都隱藏著還沒揭開的恐怖：
我還能保住自已的工作嗎？
所能預測得到的事情到底為何？
我們的小孩會有事嗎？

While Solomon does not have any
easy answers, Ecclesiastes 3:11 gives
us piercing insight into our struggle
with this existential anxiety:

雖然所羅門王並沒有給我們任何簡單明瞭的答案，
傳道書三章11節，給了我們打破目前那些所存在煩惱洞入的領悟：

He has made everything beautiful
in its time. Also He has put eternity
in [man’s] heart, except that no one
can find out the work that God does
from beginning to end.

神已經讓萬事物各按其時成為美好。
而且祂還把永生的想法放在人的內心，
此外，沒有人可以發現神的工作，
可以從頭到尾了解神的工作。

This verse holds the key for the
Christian paralyzed by fear of the
unknowable future, and disheartened
by life’s setbacks: wait for God’s time
to come.

對那些受到未知未來驚嚇，
受到生活中挫折而灰心的基督徒而言，
這個經節正是最主要的關鍵：
等候神的時間來到。

What is God’s time? God’s time
is not an alternate dimension. It is
also not a distant future when all
sufferings will cease and everything is
predictably perfect. God reveals to us,
through Solomon’s handsome prose,
that “God’s time” is the eternity He
has given us—the profound human
awareness of, and unquenchable
thirst for, beauty and goodness that
has no end. This consummate clarity
comes with having a relationship with
the infinite God.

到底神的時間是什麼意思呢？
神的時間不是一種替代的宇宙空間。
也不是一種遙遠的未來，
那時一切受苦的事都會停止，萬事都可完全預測。
神透過所羅門精美的文筆，向我們揭露，
"神的時間"就是祂給我們的永恆，
就是人們最深入的認知，是人最難以止息的渴望，
又美又好，而且沒有終止。
這至高的領悟，是隨著與無限的真神建立關係而所得。

Oddly, the verse marries this
empowering fact with a sombre
reminder of our overwhelming
ignorance in light of God’s omniscience.
Why? Because, in Christianity,
faith buoyed by knowledge and
experience is important. But, as our
current anxieties prove to us, we will
never know or experience enough,
especially about our futures, to give
us peace. Therefore, our only solace
is in a faith that is comfortable with
all uncertainties because it is intimate
with one certainty: that trust in God
and His word is all we need. Solomon,
again, helps us with a summary in
Proverbs 19:21: “There are many
plans in a man’s heart, nevertheless
the Lord’s counsel—that will stand.”
If worldly chaos seems endless, then
God intends for us to fight endlessness
with eternity, infinity with infinity.

奇怪的是，在神的無所不知之下，
這經節伴隨著已經實現預言的事實，
但其中又帶著一絲絲隱晦的提醒，談到我們極度的無知。
為什麼？因為用知識和體驗來支持信仰是重要的。
但是，就像我們自身現在還存在著焦慮，就向我們証實，
我們的求知和體驗，是永遠不會滿足的，
特別是我們對於關於未來的事情，
會因為我們明白了而得到內心的平安。
所以我們唯一的安慰，就是在信仰上，
因為信仰和唯一件必然之事有緊密的關系：
那就是，在我們一切所需的事上，信靠神和聖經。
再一次，所羅門王在箴言19章21節，幫我們作了一個總結：
21人心多有計謀；惟有耶和華的籌算才能立定。
若是世上的混亂情況是永無止盡的，
那麼神要我們作的，就是用永恆來與無止盡的混亂爭戰，無窮無盡。

Of course, such things are easy to
say, but often hard to do. Which is
why we turn our eyes to Moses, to
a time before the advanced scientific
and technological achievements we
now enjoy, to see how Christians
today can live full lives by holding on
to the promise of God’s time.

當然，這樣的事情，說的很容易，但卻難很行。
這也是為什麼，我們把眼目轉向摩西，
來看看在我們享受高度科學及科技成就出現之前的時代，
今日的基督徒要如何，經由持守神的應許，
可以活出全部基督徒該有的生活模式。

All in Good Time 一切都發生在適當的時間

Although Moses possessed an
impressive organizational mind, what
truly made him excel as the chosen
messenger of God had less to do with
his clear-headed planning and more
with his trust in God’s time over his
instincts.

雖然摩西具有讓人敬佩的組織頭腦，
但真正讓他超過眾人，成為神所揀選的傳訊者，
和他有清楚頭腦的規劃一點也沒有關係，
更多是因為他信賴神的時間，勝過自已的直覺。

The first thing Moses did after his
famous encounter with God at the
burning bush was to plead with Jethro,
his Midianite father-in-law: “Please
let me go and return to my brethren
who are in Egypt, and see whether
they are still alive” (Ex 4:18b).

在摩西在與神，這次在燃燒的荊棘非常著名的見面之後，
他所作的第一件事，就是去求葉忒羅，他米甸人的岳父：
18：求你容我回去見我在埃及的弟兄，看他們還在不在。
(出 4：18b)

A puzzling observation: why did
Moses seek to gain permission from
his father-in-law when he had already
received divine sanction from his
Father-in-heaven to leave for Egypt?

這裡是一個另人感到莫名奇妙的場面：
當摩西已經得到了天父來自上天的認可，
要離開這裡到埃及去，
為何摩西要尋求他岳父的允許呢？

The custom of the ancients was for
a man to seek permission from the
head of his tribe before he set off on a
long journey away from home. Moses
knew that performing this Midianite
tradition was a risk. What if Jethro
denied his request? Moses would no
doubt still be resolved to complete
his mission, but at what cost? Would
Jethro have sought to sabotage his
quest? If his meeting with Pharaoh
did not go to plan, would Moses be
endangering the lives of his family?
Would he lose the land and the people
he had learned to call home? Moses
could not have hoped to predict the
outcome. So why did he take such a
risk?

古老的習俗就是，一個人當他要開始離家遠行的時候，
會尋求族中首領的許可。
摩西知道，照著這個米甸的習俗去作，會有風險存在。
萬一葉忒羅拒絕他的請求，怎麼辨呢？
摩西仍會沒有疑惑地決心去完成他的任務，
但是要付出什麼代價呢？
難道要葉忒羅去破壞他出外拯救以色列人嗎？
若是摩西和法老的見面，並沒有照計劃走，
摩西的舉動會不會影響到他家人的生命呢？
他會不會失去自已深深認知為家鄉的地土和自已的人民呢？
摩西不會想去試著去預計這樣的後果。
那麼為何他會冒這樣的險呢？

Moses understood the first truth
about God’s time: to truly believe in it,
we have to abandon our compulsion
to control everything in our lives, and
take refuge in the only certainty we
need—that God has a plan. How does
this translate in practice?

摩西了解神的時間的第一項真理：
要真的相信它，
我們一定要拋棄自已去控制生活中每一件事的衝動，
只承擔那些我們自已真正需要，且確定的風險 - 神有祂的計劃。
要怎麼把這種想法，轉變成實際的行動呢？

We fear the unknown so much that
we fight for every bit of control we can
possibly get, even if it means souring
friendships or injuring the feelings of
loved ones along the way. This is what
would have happened had Moses, in
all the splendor of his great calling
and mission from God, marched
straight off to Egypt. To Moses, the
numerous risks faded into irrelevance
because he believed that God had His
time and His plan. God would not
allow His work to be compromised by
Moses’ simple desire to be sensitive to
the feelings of his loved ones.

我們很害怕一切的未知，
所以我們會盡可能的努力去得到一切的控制，
即使這一路走下去，會破壞朋友關係，傷害到自已所愛之前的感情。
在摩西承受偉大呼召及從神而來的大使命，
要把以色列人用走的帶出埃及，
所帶來的美麗光環之下，
這可能是過去摩西所會面會到的事。
對摩西而言，所有一切很多的風險，都會變得沒有關係，
因為他相信神有祂的時候和祂的計劃。
神不會讓祂的工作，因為摩西簡單的慾望而受到破壞。
就是摩西會去在意到他所愛之人的感情。

This is a unique kind of patience
that flows from a deep trust in the
divine. Hosea, the prophet renowned
for obeying God’s command to marry
a prostitute, knew firsthand what it
meant to relinquish control to the Lord
and trust fully in His plan, no matter
what. So when Hosea relays sage
advice in Hosea 12:6, telling us to
“[o]bserve mercy and justice, and wait
on your God continually,” we ought
to take it to heart. Hosea is telling us
that waiting on the Lord requires us
to embody certain Christian virtues. It
requires us to be kind and fair, to be a
positive moral influence on the people
we encounter on our walk of faith.

這是一種獨特類型的耐心，
是一種對上天有深度信賴而產生的。
何西亞先知，這位先知因著遵從神的誡命，而迎聚了妓女為妻，
親自了解到，什麼是放棄一切的控制的意思，
交託給神，完全信賴祂的計劃，不論要付出什麼代價。
所以何西亞先知，在何西亞書12章6節，傳遞了明智的建議，
告訴我們要，
6謹守仁愛、公平，常常等候你的神。
(何 12：6)
我們應該要留心這句話。
何西亞先知所要告訴我們的就是，
等候神這件事，是需要我們把一些基督徒的品德具體實現出來的。
這是需要我們可以仁慈，公平，
在我們的信仰生活行為舉止上，
對所遇到的人，在道德品行上，有正面積極的影響。

Take, for instance, the issue of church
work. Church affairs tend to arouse
intense sentiment because, quite
rightly, many of us take matters of
faith seriously. Breaking sacred tablets,
carelessly striking rocks, delivering
robe-ripping public prayers—
Moses regularly demonstrated how
emotional and affective the journey
of faith can be. As human as Moses
was then, so are we today. So when
we find our ideas and contributions
obstructed by this or that person or
committee, the uncertainty piles on
and, in our frustration, we may lash
out at our co-workers-in-Christ. We
allow our fear of losing control to
dictate actions we later regret, hurting
the harmonious order of God’s church
in the process.

例如，以教會聖工的問題為例。
教會的事情常常容易引起激烈的情緒反應，
因為，毫無疑問的是，
我們許多人都把信仰的事情很認真的看待。
打碎了法版，很粗心地擊打磐石，
常常撕裂長袍為了百姓傷心代禱 - 
摩西時時展現了，在信仰的旅程中，
情緒及情感上的變動是多麼的起起伏伏。
就像摩西那時候是那麼的像人類一般的軟弱，
所以今日我們也是一樣的。
所以當我們發現了自已的想法，或是付出，
因為這個人，或是那個人，或是職務會而受到阻擋，
一切的不確認性卻是越積越多的時候，
在這時我們感到灰心的時候，
我們就可能向外對著在基督裡的同工作，施予鞭打。
我們讓自已因為害怕失去控制，
因而變得作出許多獨裁的行為，
而這些獨裁的行為卻後來讓我們更多後悔，
因為這會傷害了神教會發展中，和諧的程度。

Man is a strong-headed and
quarrelsome animal, and changing is
hard. But to believe in God’s time is to
demonstrate a trusting self-restraint;
as long as we are faithful to God’s
will, we need not charge head-first
against the ordered customs of church
and community. Paul puts it best in 1
Corinthians 14:33, reminding us that
“God is not the author of confusion,
but of peace,” continuing in verse
40 to advise that “all things be done
decently and in order.” If Hosea
and Moses understood that being
respectful, forgiving and, most of
all, patient, would not impede God’s
work but enrich it all the more, then
it would behoove us to do the same.

人類是一種又頑固又愛爭吵的動物，
要改變卻是很難。
但是相信神有神的時候，
就是呈現一種信靠的自制力；
只要我們信靠神的旨意，
我們不必冒冒失失的無頭亂衝，
去對抗那些教會和社區已經形成有秩序的習俗。
保羅在哥林多前書14章33節說的很好，
提醒我們，
33因為神不是叫人混亂，乃是叫人安靜。
(林前 14：33)
接著在40節勸勉說，
40凡事都要規規矩矩的按著次序行。
(林前 14：40)
若何西亞先知和摩西都明白，
要敬畏神，繞恕人，最重要的是，要有耐心，
不會妨礙神的工作，而是會讓聖工變得更多豐富，
那麼對我們而言，作同樣的事情就更加理所當然了。

More Than We Know 比我們所知的更多

The popular historical film Schindler’s
List tells the moving story of a former
pro-Nazi German businessman who
ends up saving over a thousand
Jewish lives during the Holocaust.
It is, as the cliche goes, the story of
an ordinary man doing extraordinary
things in extraordinary times.

熱門紀錄影片，辛德勒的名單，
告訴我們另人感動的故事，
一位親納粹的商人，
在對猶太人的大屠殺中，
最後拯救了超過1000人的猶太人生命。
就如俗語所言，這是一個在不平凡的時代裡，
一位平凡的人，所作的不平凡的事蹟。

Moses was one of the first
“Schindlers” of the ancient world.
Before his brush with God at the
burning bush, the only responsibilities
Moses had were to his family and
livestock in uneventful Midian. Then
all of a sudden, the fate of an entire
nation was thrust into the untested
hands of this simple shepherd. Moses
was standing, rod in hand, at the
brink of history. Moses was scared—
of that we can be sure. Though he
trusted in God’s time at first, his
nerves got the better of him. Moses
was probably paralyzed by fear—for
all his fervor and faith, he had yet to
begin the long trek to Egypt. But God
understood. And so on His second
visit to Moses, God reassured him,
“Go, return to Egypt; for all the men
who sought your life are dead” (Ex
4:19). This gave Moses the courage
to return to Egypt.

摩西是古時第一位的"辛德勒"。
在他與神在燃燒的荊棘會面之前，
摩西唯一的責任，就是他在平凡米甸的家庭和牲畜。
然後突然間，整個國家的命運，
就投入在這個平凡牧羊人沒有經驗的雙手中。
摩西站著，手裡拿著杖，站在歷史的另一邊。
摩西是神聖的，關於這一點，我們是可以確定的。
雖然一開始，他相信神有神的時候，
但他的情緒打敗了他。
或許摩西因為害怕而麻痺了 - 他過去一切所有的熱心和信仰，
要他開始一個新的艱苦旅程，回到埃及去。
但神很清楚。
所以神第二次見摩西的時候，再次向他保証，
19你要回埃及去，因為尋索你命的人都死了。
(埃 4：19)
這句話讓摩西有勇氣回到埃及。

This is a heartening depiction of
the second truth about the nature
of God’s time. The concept of God’s
time, while seemingly lofty and highminded,
actually means that God
is heavily involved with our private
insecurities. And because God knows
all our concerns, He never gives us
more than we can handle. Time, as we
know it—coldly measured in minutes
and seconds, months and years—is
unforgiving and cruel in its relentless
onward march. God’s time is different;
God cares about our feelings and
worries, and yearns to help us along.

有關第二個真理，神有神的時候的特質，
這是一個另人鼓舞描述。
神有祂時候的概念，雖然高高在上，理念崇高，
事實上代表的意思是，神深深地介入了我們個人所有不安全的事情。
因為神知道一切我自所求所想，
祂從來不給超過我們所能處理的事情。
就時間而言，我們都知道是以年月分秒的流速冷酷來衡量 -
是無法回頭，殘忍的在其無情的道路上一直向前走著。
神有祂的時候，就比較不一樣了；
神在意我們的感情和一切的煩惱，
很希望在一路上都能幫助我們。

As it was with Moses, just as we are
about to embark on something truly
important in our lives, unexpected
burdens and anxieties may visit us. As
we survey the innumerable problems
before us, we ask the universal
questions of suffering: Why me? Why
now? What next?

就如過去摩西所遇到的一樣，
在我們生活中，當我們將要開始從事一件真的很重要的事情之時，
我們就開始會感到有重擔和煩惱。
當我們開始深入探討這些我們面前無數的問題時，
我們在受苦之時，會問很多共同的問題。
為何是我？為何是現在？接下來會怎麼樣呢？

God had great plans for Moses. He
has great plans for us today (Eph 2:10).
The problem with great plans is that
they often carry too many unknowns.
Somehow, Christians are buoyed by
this constant feeling that they are
meant to do some good in their lives.
What holds many well-intentioned
believers back from rising to the
occasion is the fear of uncertainty.
Often, these are uncertainties about
individual ability: What can I actually
contribute on the missionary trip?
Can I really lead a Bible study? What
if I get a question I can’t answer when
I start preaching? We drown out our
extraordinary calling with our selfperceived
ordinariness.

神有大計劃給摩西執行。
祂有很多大計劃給今日的我們。
(弗 2：10)
大計劃給帶來的問題就是，
他們常常伴隨著很多的未知。
不知為何，基督徒就時常有這種感覺，
他們使認為要在生活中作一些好事，這種信念所支持著。
而讓許多好意的信徒退縮，不願意在時間到的時候興起，
就是對於未知的恐懼。
大多的時候，都是有關於個人能力上的不確定性：
對於佈道旅行，我到底真的能有什麼可以幫助的地方？
我真的可以帶領查經嗎？
若當我開始傳福音的時候，
萬一遇到了我不會回答的問題時，怎麼辨？
我們用自已自認的平凡，把所得到從神而來的特別呼召給加以扼殺了。

The truth is, we can never predict
whether our gambles will pay off,
like Schindler’s, or if miserable failure
awaits us. But that’s alright, because
believing in God’s time means
knowing is beside the point. What
matters is that God knows, and that
God reveals in His own special way.
God knew the one big thing that
was bothering Moses, and gave him
the chance to regain his confidence
to rise to the call. The tricky part
is how God reveals His grace and
will to us. Humans are naturally
stubborn, and when we choose not
to see something, we close both eyes.
We refuse to accept that God cares
about our talents, and pass up the
opportunity, as Queen Esther almost
did, to serve God when He calls.

事實上，我們永遠不能預測，
自已賭下去是不是能得到回報，
就像辛德勒他所作的事情一樣，
或是有另人感傷的失敗在前面等著我們。
但是這一切都沒關係，
因為想信神有神的時候，
認知這件事是不相關的。
真正重要的是，神才是真正知道的源頭，
而神會用祂自已特殊的方式顯明出來。
神知道困擾摩西唯一一件的大事，
給他有機會再重新得到自已，興起來接受這呼召。
真正另人感覺到特殊的地方，
就是神如何顯明祂的恩典和旨意給我們。
人類本來就是很頑固的，
當我們選擇要忽略某些事物，
就會關閉自已的雙眼。
我們拒絕接受神會關心我們的才能，會給予我們機會，
就像皇后以斯帖幾乎一樣的感覺，
能當神呼召的時候來服事祂。

Therefore, to believe in God’s time
is to believe in three things: firstly,
that God knows more about our own
abilities than we do; secondly, that we
have to be sensitive to God’s calling
through frequent prayer and Biblereading;
and thirdly, when the call
comes, we should have the courage
to rise to meet our destinies. A fear
of the uncertain has no place in the
heart of the Christian who heeds
these words: “Commit your works to
the Lord, and your thoughts will be
established. The Lord has made all for
Himself” (Prov 16:3–4a).

所以，要相信神有神的時候，就是相信三件事。
第一，相信神比我們更了解我們自已的能力；
第二，我們要一定透過時常禱告和讀經，對神的呼召很敏感；
第三，當神的呼召臨到的時候，
我們應該要有勇氣站出來，接受自已的命運。
害怕不確定性這種事，
不應該存在會留心以下這些話的基督徒心中：
3你所做的，要交託耶和華，你所謀的，就必成立。
4耶和華所造的，各適其用；
(箴 16：3-4a)

Another interesting observation is
that Moses surely had more worries
on his mind than the one which
God assuaged. Why was one pithy
consolation enough to bolster Moses?
Because that one divine remark
reminded him that God knew his
anxieties, and that he had no cause
to worry for God was with him every
step of the way. The Christian does
not need to know all his troubles are
gone. Sometimes, all we need is a
little nudge.

另一個讓人感到有趣的場面是，
摩西一定在他的腦之中，
比起神給人的安靜，有更多的憂慮。
為何就是一個簡單的安慰，就能扶持摩西呢？
因為那至高神的回答，提醒了他，
神知道他的煩惱，他沒有必要憂慮，
因為一路走來的每一步，神都與他同在。
基督徒沒有必要知道，自已一切的憂慮都已經消失了。
有時候，我們只需要給人小小一推。

Everyone’s Waiting 大家的等待

Sadly, even in matters of faith there is
no panacea. Believing in God’s time is
not a solution to all our problems. It is
hard work. Most times, waiting is not
enough, because we wait for earthly
time to pass, thinking that God’s plan
has a schedule just like our plans.
This is wrong; God, unlike the clock,
is living. There are two things about
waiting on God’s time that we must
remember.

另人憂傷的是，即使在信仰的事上，也沒有萬靈丹。
相信神有神的時候，並不就能解決我們一切的問題。
這是很艱難的工作。
大部份的時候，只是等待是不夠的，
因為我們等待世上的時光流逝，
認為神的計劃，就已經計劃好子，就像我們的規劃一樣。
這是錯誤的；神不會像時鐘一樣，神的活著的。
有二件關於等待神的時間來到，是我們一定要記住的。

Firstly, we have to be able to accept
that suffering and problems will not
disappear just because we believe in
God’s eventual deliverance. Moses
could brandish his miracle-rod all he
wanted, but his supernatural feats
could not intimidate the mighty
Pharaoh. Even after their escape
across the Red Sea, miracle after
astounding miracle could not satisfy
the children of Israel. God does not
promise quick and easy solutions.
He delivers us today, and tests us
tomorrow. Some trials in our lives
make sense not because time passes
and they disappear, but because our
belief in God’s bigger plan and time
reveals to us that we needed those
trials to become better Christians.
For instance, Apostle Paul pleaded
bitterly for his thorn to be removed,
and he waited. It was not the passing
of time that helped him make sense
of his pains. It was his belief in God’s
time and plan for him that helped him
understand why he suffered so (2
Cor 12:7), inspiring the unforgettable
Pauline hymn to godly trust: “My
grace is sufficient for you, for my
power is made perfect in weakness”
(2 Cor 12:9b). Therefore, we wait with
a hope not of a paradise on earth, but
of the paradise beyond, and a trust in
the God who dwells there.

第一，我們一定要能接受這件事，
只是因為我們相信神最後一定會拯救，
受苦和問題並不會消失。
摩西想要怎麼揮舞他那行神蹟的手杖，都是他的自由，
但他發揮出來的超能力，並不能嚇到法老。
即使在他越過紅海，逃出來的時候，
一而再，再而三，另人震驚的神蹟接連不斷，
也不能讓以色列的百姓感到滿意。
神並不會同意，就一定給予又快又容易的解決方案。
祂今日救了我們，明日就給我們考驗。
我們生活中的一些考驗，會出現的合情合理，
並不是因為時間過去了，就自動會消失，
而是因為我們相信神有祂更大的計劃，
祂有祂更適合的時間點，才會向我們揭露，
因為我們需要這些試煉，才能變成更好的基督徒。
例如，使徒保羅懇切祈求神，可以拿走身上的一根刺，
然後他就繼續忍耐等候。
並不是隨著時間過去了，他就能理所當然的接受了身上的痛苦。
而是他相信神有祂的計劃和時間，才幫他了解了，
為何他要受苦到這樣的程度，
(林後 12：7)
啟發了保羅那讓人難忘，帶著敬虔及信靠神的讚美詩句：
9他對我說：我的恩典夠你用的，因為我的能力是在人的軟弱上顯得完全。
(林後 12：9b)
所以，我們是帶著盼望在等候著，
並不是期待在世上能找到一個樂園，
而是在天上能找到超越世上的樂園，
至始至終相信住在其中的真神。

Secondly, and what comes as most
surprising, is that as much as we think
we are waiting for God, most times
God is waiting for us. A common habit
of man is to recollect all the events of
his past and play god, thinking, If this
had happened here instead of there, if
that had been postponed till then, then
things would be better. The crucial
difference between our imagination
and God is omniscience. We can
mentally rearrange our past to fit an
ideal chronology, but we do so in the
darkness of our ignorance. We have to
trust that God knows the rightful time
for all things—from the blooming of
a flower, to the death of Jesus (Rom
5:6), everything happens according to
His appointed time. And that means
if something we know to be good,
to be holy, pure and righteous eludes
us, then perhaps the problem is not
the extent of our patience, but how
we fill our time while we wait. When
we seem to be mired in our problems,
unable to make any progress or find
any reprieve despite our earnest
prayers, we ought to remember that
waiting upon the Lord is not to have
a sit-around-do-nothing faith. It
means taking concrete steps toward
becoming a better Christian. Often,
God also wishes to use such tests of
endurance to remind us to lean on
Him as we walk with Him.

第二，最令人驚訝的是，
儘管我們認為自已是在等候神，
大部份的時候，卻是神在等我們。
人都會有個習慣，就是回想自已過去所有的事情，
然後扮演著神的角色，想著，
若這件事情是發生在這裡，而不是在那裡，
若那件事情可以延後在那個時候才發生，
那麼事情就有可能變的更好。
在我們的想象與神之間的最大不同之處，
就是神的無所不知。
在心理上，我們會把自已過去發生的事蹟，
以一種理想的時間表重新安排其發生的時間，
但是我們這麼作的時候，都在自已無知，模模糊糊之間。
我們一定要相信，神知道萬事萬物發生最好的時候- 
從開花的時間，到耶穌死亡的時間，
(羅 5：6)
萬事萬物各按其時而生。
也就是說，這就代表了，
若我們所知的事情是美善的，聖潔的，純潔及公義的，
若這事是與我們相分離，
那麼或許問題本身，就不是我們有沒有耐心，耐心到多少程度的問題而已，
而是當我們等候的時候，是如何來利用自已的時間。
當我們被人看起來，似乎是陷入泥濘的問題之時，
沒有辨法有任何進展，或是找到任何延緩問題的方法，
雖然我們很認真的禱告，
我們要記得，等候神，並不是一種信仰的狀態，只會圍著坐在一起，無所事事。
其意義是要有精確的每一步，朝向成為一個更好的基督徒的道路行走。
常常，神也希望用這種認耐的試驗，來提醒我們，
當我們和祂同行的時候，要依靠祂。

It is impossible to dispute that
Moses’ faith had grown tremendously
after his ten-plague-long encounter
with Pharaoh. Why did God have to
send ten plagues, not one, or five,
or seven? These become redundant
questions when we remember that
trusting in God and His time frees us
from needing to know all the answers.
Likewise, when God withholds the
Holy Spirit from the earnest fortyyear
believer, for instance, we are
understandably puzzled. Perhaps
there are things for that Christian
to learn; perhaps he is not yet truly
hungry for the Spirit; perhaps,
perhaps, perhaps. These speculations
do not matter. What matters is the
eternity within us that remembers—
however long we have to pray on
earth is negligible, for we will gain
infinity in heaven.

摩西與法老，經過了十大災禍之後，
經過這段時間，就說摩信仰已經大大的成長，要爭論這件事是不可能的。
為什麼以前，神要降下十大災禍呢？
不是只降一個，只降五個，或七個呢？
當我們記得信靠神，並且相信神有祂的時候之時，
就讓我們遠離了需要去了解一切的答案，
以上這些問題，就變得很多餘了。
同樣的道理，例如，
當神不讓已經四十歲的信徒得到聖靈，
可以讓人理解的是，大家都會感到很困惑。
或許有一些事情，要讓那個基督徒來學習；
或許他在心中，並沒有真的對得到聖靈感到很迫切；
或許，或許，一切都是或許。
這些猜測都不重要。
真正重要的是，有永生在我們心中，
並且可以記得 -
不論多久我們要在世上禱告，都是微不足道的，
因為我們會在天上得到無限。

Conclusion 結論

“Wait on the Lord,” sings the sweet
psalmist. “Be of good courage, and
He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I
say, on the Lord!” (Ps 27:14).
It may well be that we will never
know our future. When all we need
is a reliable peek into what lies
ahead, our statistics, algorithms, and
machines may fail us. What Moses
has taught us, in his evolution from
faint-hearted to faith-hearted, is
that patience and trust will never
disappoint us. Uncertainty will persist,
but it must not prevail. God has His
time, and it is ordered, not chaotic;
compassionate, not indifferent; active,
not lazy. And as long as we are aware
of the great eternity within us as we
walk our Christian journey, the victory
will be ours.

以色列的美歌者唱著，"等候神"。
"14當壯膽，堅固你的心！我再說，要等候耶和華！"
(詩 27：14)
很有可能，我們永遠不會知道自已的未來。
我們所需要的，就是可以好好看上一眼在我們眼前發生的情況，
我們心中的估算，心理的謀算，那些眼前的工具器械會有不能滿足我們的時候。
而摩西對我們的教導，從他昏沉的內心到充滿信心的變化的過程，
結論就是，耐心和信心永遠不會讓我們失望。
不確定的情況會一直持續著，但不要讓這樣的情況勝過我們。
神有祂的時候，祂的時候也是依著順序的，不是混亂不堪；
要富有同情心，不要變得冷淡；
主動積極而不懶惰。
只要當我們一路走在基督徒的旅行上，
都有注意到在心中有我們偉大的永生，
我們最後就能得到勝利。

“But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like
eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.”
(Isa 40:31)

31但那等候耶和華的必從新得力。
他們必如鷹展翅上騰；他們奔跑卻不困倦，行走卻不疲乏。
(賽 40：31)

小頁 markvmax@hotmail.com

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