|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready... |
Growing worse and worse!
越来越糟糕！
By Arthur Pink, “A Fourfold Salvation” 1938
阿瑟·平克所著《四重救恩》1938年
(You will find it helpful to Listen to the Audio, as you read the text below.)
（在阅读下面的文字时，您会发现聆听音频很有帮助。）
By nature we are thoroughly in love with ourselves–but as the Divine work of grace is carried forward in our souls, we come to loathe ourselves.
我们天性上彻底爱着自己——但随着神圣恩典的工作在我们灵魂中推进，我们开始厌恶自己。
Those who have been saved from the penalty of sin, are being made increasingly conscious not only of sin’s polluting presence, but of its tyrannizing power!
那些已经从罪的惩罚中得救的人，不仅越来越意识到罪的污染存在，还意识到它的暴虐力量！
How can we explain the fact, that the more closely he endeavors to walk with God, the Christian finds himself growing worse and worse?
我们如何解释这样一个事实，即基督徒越努力与上帝同行，就越发现自己变得越来越糟糕？
The answer is because of increased light from God’s Word, by which he now discovers heart-filth of which he was previously unaware.
答案是因为从上帝之道而来的光照增强了，通过这光照，他现在发现了以前未意识到的内心污秽。
The sun shining into a neglected room, does not create the dust and cobwebs–but simply reveals them.
阳光照进一个被忽视的房间，并不会制造灰尘和蜘蛛网——而只是揭示了它们。
Thus it is with the Christian. The more the light of the Word searches him, the more he discovers the horrible plague of his heart (1 Kings 8:38), and the more he realizes what a wretched failure he actually is!
基督徒也是如此。上帝之道的光越是搜索他，他就越发现自己内心可怕的瘟疫（列王纪上8:38），也越意识到自己实际上是多么可悲的失败者！
The fact is, dear discouraged soul, that the more you are growing out of love with yourself, the more you are being saved from the power of sin.
事实上，亲爱的沮丧的灵魂啊，你越是不再爱自己，就越是从罪的权势中得救。
Wherein lies sin’s fearful potency? In its power to deceive us.
罪可怕的力量在哪里？在于它欺骗我们的能力。
Our heart lies to us. (Jeremiah 17:9) It did so to Adam and Eve.
我们的心欺骗我们。（耶利米书17:9）它对亚当和夏娃也是如此。
It gives us false estimates of values, so that we mistake the tinsel for real gold.
它给我们错误的价值估计，以至于我们把金箔当成真金。
To be saved from the power of sin, is to have our eyes opened so that we see things in the light of God’s Word–it is to know the truth about things all around us, and the truth about ourselves.
从罪的权势中得救，就是睁开我们的眼睛，以至于我们在上帝之道的光中看事物——这就是知道关于我们周围一切事物的真相，以及关于我们自己的真相。
But further–sin not only deceives, it puffs up, causing its infatuated victims to think highly of themselves.
但更进一步——罪不仅欺骗，它还使人自高自大，导致它迷恋的受害者对自己评价过高。
Sin ever produces pride, self-love, and self-righteousness.
罪总是产生骄傲、自爱和自以为义。
But when God takes us in hand, it is the very opposite–the workings of the Spirit subdue our pride–by giving increasing discoveries of SELF and of the exceeding sinfulness of SIN, so that each one cries out with Job, “Behold! I am vile!” (40:4).
但当上帝接管我们时，情况恰恰相反——圣灵的工作通过让我们越来越发现自我和罪的极度邪恶来制服我们的骄傲，以至于每个人都像约伯一样呼喊：”看哪！我是卑贱的！”（40:4）
Such a one is being saved from the power of sin–its power to deceive and to puff us up with pride!
这样的人正在从罪的权势中得救——罪欺骗我们和使我们骄傲自大的权势！