The Formation of Ministry 職事的形成

The Formation of Ministry

The ministry we possess is based on the work that God performs on us. When God brings us through trials, He makes us certain persons. The kind of pathway a man takes and the trials he suffers determine the kind of ministry he has. Paul suffered much, and he was comforted much. He was able to comfort those who needed comfort. Whatever God has done and is doing in us will make us the kind of person we are. That will be our ministry. We can only handle what we ourselves have experienced. A young man can learn to say something, but the words will be somewhat awkward to others' ears. It will be like a Foochow native speaking Mandarin; the Foochow accent will always be there. If we want to serve all men, we have to go through all kinds of trials. The greater the ministry, the greater the trials. C. H. Spurgeon once stated simply, "If you have never wept for sin, you will tell a sinner not to worry about sin; you will tell him that there is no need to weep." This is, of course, the greatest mistake in the whole world. A doctor with little training cannot rush to treat patients. This will not work. He must have experience with an illness before he can treat others with the same illness.

If God's intention is to commit more responsibilities to us, we should not be surprised when we face more trials from different directions. Paul received the greatest ministry. This is the reason 2 Corinthians tells us of his many trials. The most precious book in the entire New Testament is 2 Corinthians. Ephesians is the highest book; it tells us about the Lord. But 2 Corinthians is the most precious book; it tells us about a man who reached the loftiest height, and about the kind of things he saw and attained. Other books do not show us as much about the person of Paul. He was a lofty man. This is the reason God gave him all kinds of revelations and allowed him to be tried materially, psychologically, physically, supernaturally, spiritually, and in things related to the church. Whatever way God leads us, that is the ministry that He will work out in us. The lessons we learn will determine the ministry we have. We should not think that we can receive a cheap ministry from the hand of the Lord. God will never let us go. The discipline of the Holy Spirit is arranging everything day by day. We can never escape this education. It is most foolish for a man to try to run away from God or to circumvent His dealings.

(Spiritual Judgment and Examples of Judgment)

職事的形成

文章日期：2011-08-07 12:43

我們的職事，是根據於神在我們身上工作的結果。當神帶領我們經過某一種試煉時，自然而然就把我們模成那一種的人。人走過甚麼路，受過甚麼試煉，那就是他的職事。保羅多經苦難，就多得了安慰，也能多安慰那些需要安慰的人。神在你身上多作了甚麼，你就成了甚麼樣的人，那就是你的職事。我們所能應付的，都是根據我們所經過的。少年人雖能學講一些話，但那些話總有點不順耳。如同一個福州人說國語，難免有福州話的腔調。你若要服事所有的人，你就要受所有的試煉。職事越大，所受的試煉也必越大。司布真說過一句很簡單的話：『你若沒有為著罪哭過，你就會對罪人說，不要緊，不要哭。』這是全世界最大的錯。一個醫生，若只學了一點，就去給人看病，那是不靈的。必須要自己是病過的人，纔能醫別人的病。
神如果對我們有更大的託付，你就不要希奇祂要多方的試煉你。保羅的職事是職事中最大的，所以，哥林多後書記載，他受了各種最大的試煉。全新約最寶貝的書，是哥林多後書。以弗所書是最高的書，說到主是如何；哥林多後書是最寶貝的書，說到最高的人是如何，他從主那裏看見了甚麼，得著了甚麼。其他卷書就不彀給我們看見，保羅這個人是怎樣的了。他是一個高的人，所以神給了他各種的啟示，也給了他在物質、心靈、身體、超然、屬靈、教會等事上的試煉。神帶你往那條路走，神就要你作那職事；你的功課在那裏，你的職事也在那裏。不要想在神的手裏會有便宜的職事，神總是不放鬆我們。聖靈的管治總是天天安排在那裏，這個教育是我們沒有法子逃脫的。人若想要逃避神，逃避神的對付，那就是最愚昧的了。

書名：屬靈的判定與判定的實例(倪柝聲文集第三冊)　第七篇　判定的實例（三）