Exhortation for 03/04 2007 The God of All Comfort Bro Jack Fallon
2007年3月4日讲道词 赐各样安慰的神 杰克法伦弟兄
Divine
characteristics like love, mercy, grace, are all things that are shown to us in
our lives. Of course, we first receive them and learn of them from
God. But as we develop His character, so we also have learnt to
extend these characteristics to each other - and hopefully also receive them
from one another.
神的诸如爱，怜悯，恩典在我们的生命中都有体现。当然，我们首先是从神那里得到和学习这些。当我们发扬神的品性时，我们也学会了将神的品性延伸到彼此之间 - 当然也希望从他人那里感受到这些品性。
Another of these characteristics is comfort. God comforts us, and as
we start reading his second epistle to the Corinthians, (2Cor 1:3) Paul
describes God as the “Father of mercies” and the “God of all
comfort”. Paul also tells us the reason God comforts us in all our
tribulation. God does this in order that that we may be able to
comfort them who are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are
comforted of God (v3,4). Therefore we are given a practical
education in how we may “Let this mind be in us, as it was in Christ Jesus
(Philippians 2:5).
这些品性中还有一个是安慰。神安慰我们。我们读到给哥林多的第二份封信中（哥林多后书1:3)，保罗将神描述为“发慈悲的父”和“赐各样安慰的神”。保罗还告诉我们神安慰在苦难中的我们的原因。神这样做是“叫我们能用神所赐的安慰去安慰那遭各样患难的人”(哥林多后书1:4). 从中我们得到了实用的教导，如何去‘你们当以基督耶稣的心为心’（腓立比书2：5）
Before we read on in Corinthians, we should consider very carefully another
word that Paul used - tribulation. We know that Paul taught that we
MUST through much tribulation enter the kingdom of God (Acts 14:22) and perhaps
it is worth reminding ourselves that he said it three verses after having been
stoned and left for dead (Acts 14:19). The apostles and martyrs of
the first century gave their lives to witness to us that the miraculous events
recorded in the New Testament really did occur. Why should they have
suffered in that way for what they believed if it was a lie? They
gave their lives in order that we may believe and accept the truth of the
scriptures. However much we may feel we suffer, compared to the
first century believers, we have little to complain out, and by God’s grace, we
will meet those who suffered by giving their lives.
在我们读哥林多书前，我们应该仔细想想保罗用的另一个词—患难。我们知道保罗教导我们“进入神的国，必须经历许多艰难”（使徒行传 14：22）也许有必要提醒我们自己他在被用石头打，“以为他是死了，便拖到城外”（ 使徒行传14：19）还说了三节。一世纪的使徒们和殉教者们用他们的生命为我们见证了记录在新约中的神迹是真实发生的。如果这是一个谎言，他们为什么要为这个信仰受苦呢？为了我们相信和接受圣经中的真理，他们献出了自己的生命。与一世纪的信徒们相比，我们感到自己又受了多少苦呢？我们没有什么可抱怨的，因着神的恩典，我们将见到那些现身的受难者们。
This clear teaching of the apostle Paul is not always understood by all those
in other denominations who would profess to follow Christ. Yet
Christ also himself “though he were a son, yet learned he obedience by the
things which he suffered (Heb 5:8). If Christ was taught obedience
by suffering, should we expect to learn obedience without
suffering? We can see that what Paul is expounding to us in these
first few verses of 2 Corinthians is fundamental to us if we are really going
to develop the mind of Christ. We must suffer: we will be
comforted. Other brethren and sisters will suffer: we must in turn
comfort them also.
使徒保罗的这些教导在其他声称追随耶稣的宗教派别中是不容易理解的。耶稣自己也“他虽然为儿子，还是因所受的苦难学了顺从”(希伯来书5：8). 如果耶稣被教导因所受的苦难学了顺从，我们是不是应该没有苦难而学会顺从？我们可以看见保罗在哥林多后书的前几节解释给我们的是我们发扬基督精神的基础。我们必须受苦难：我们将被安慰。其他弟兄姊妹将受苦难：我们也将轮流安慰他们。
Yet some who profess to be in Christ say this is not so. They say
that to become a believer is to gain the protection and favour of God and fail
to accept that correction is necessary to put the flesh to death so the spirit
can live. In our first reading in Leviticus 10, Nadab and Abihu
offered strange fire before the Lord. In doing this they
deliberately changed what God had said. Let us consider very
carefully what God said, and what he did not say. We do not read of
any complaint by God that these sons of Aaron had disobeyed
him. Rather God spoke about being sanctified and being glorified by
his people. And sanctification means that we should be clean, rather
than unclean, that there should be a difference and a separation between those
that believe God and those who do not believe him.
也有宣称在基督里的人说不是这样的。他们说成为一个信徒是为了得到神的保护和恩惠却没有改正那个肉体死亡灵魂永存的观点。在我们读利未记第10章的前几节时，拿答和亚比户在神面前献上凡火。他们这样做是故意改变神的话语。让我们仔细想想神说了什么，没说什么。我们没有读到神抱怨亚伦的不顺从他的儿子们。神说我要显为圣，在众民面前，我要得荣耀。神圣意味着我们应该洁净而不是不洁净。在信奉神和不信奉神人之间是有不同和区别的。
Of course we cannot sanctify and glorify God without obeying
him. But to disobey is our loss, it is the end of us, not by any
means the end of God’s sanctification and glorification.
当然，没有顺服我们不能尊崇和荣耀神。但是不顺从是我们的损失，是我们的末日。却不是神的尊崇和荣耀的结束。
God’s purpose will continue. It is unstoppable. Therefore
God reminds us that He will be sanctified and glorified by his
people. Nadab and Abihu had stopped being part of his people because
they did not believe it was important to listen to God’s word. In
our New Testament reading the God of all comfort is telling us that we will suffer
tribulation, and the positive result of the tribulation that we will suffer is
that we will learn how to comfort one another, just as our Heavenly Father
comforts us.
神的目的将继续。是不会停留的。因此神提醒我们他将由他的民得尊崇和荣耀。拿答和亚比户不再是他的民的一分子了，因为他们不认为听从神的话语是重要的。在新约阅读到神的安慰是告诉我们我们将受苦难，困难的积极结果是我们将受苦，我们将学会彼此安慰，就像我们的天父安慰我们一样。
So now we return with these thoughts to Paul’s teaching in 2
Corinthians. He continues to develop some interesting ideas in how
God instructs us. In 2 Cor 1:5 he tells us that Christ’s sufferings
abound in us. If our service to God is reasonable, Paul tells us
that we present our bodies as living sacrifices (Rom 12:1). No-one
says this is easy, though it can sometimes seem that it is easier for others
than for us. We have considered that it is necessary that Christ’s
sufferings abound in us, and we are obedient, not only in order that we may be
part of God’s people, but also that God may be sanctified and glorified. If
Christ’s sufferings abound in us, it does actually follow that we should be
comforted by Christ. After all, Christ suffered once, he is not
suffering now. Now he is freed from his suffering for all eternity,
but from the suffering he endured in the days of His flesh he learned how to
console us. Now in our turn WE must learn obedience by the things
that WE suffer.
我们现在再回到保罗在哥林多后书里教导的思想。他继续阐述一些有趣的关于神是如何教导我们的观点。在哥林多后书1：5他告诉我们多受基督的苦楚。如果我们对神的侍奉是合理的，保罗告诉我们“将身体献上，当作活祭”（罗马书12：1）.没有人说这是容易的，尽管有时看上去好像对别人比对我们自己要容易些。我们知道多受基督的苦楚是必要的，我们要顺服；不只是因为我们会是神的选民中的一份子，还因为我们要尊崇和荣耀神。如果我们多受基督的苦楚，事实上我们会被基督安慰。终究，基督曾经受苦，现在却不再受苦了。现在他已经永远不再受苦了。在他肉体受苦的那些日子，他学会了如何安慰我们。现在是轮到我们学会顺服，因我们所遭受的苦楚。
In verse 6, Paul has now established the principle and goes on to show how this
works out in ecclesial life. He says if the apostles suffer, it is
for the comfort (consolation) and salvation of the brethren and sisters. He
also says that if the apostles are comforted, then this also is for the comfort
and salvation of the brethren and sisters! This may seem strange at
first, but the answer is simple: Paul’s hope in his brethren and sisters was
steadfast. And in this context he is outlining two aspects whereby
that steadfast hope would be accomplished: the suffering and tribulation that
would develop obedience, and also the resulting consolation that would enable
the suffering to be borne and also develop the characteristics of God in the
one who suffered. Ultimately the sufferer would go on to give
comfort to those around them.
在第6节，保罗建立了在教会生活中起作用的原则。他说如果使徒受苦楚，是为了弟兄姊妹的安慰和拯救。开始这似乎有些怪，但是回答是简单的： 保罗对弟兄姊妹的希望是坚定的。在这篇文章中他概述了两个方面，坚定的希望会实现：苦难会促进顺服，结果是安慰，这使得苦楚能被承受，并在受苦楚的人那里发展神的品性。最终受苦难者会带给周围的人们安慰。
We must develop an awareness of the needs of our brethren and sisters if we are
to be able to learn this lesson and apply it in our lives. This
calls for the sacrifice of self, not indulgence of self. If we are
continually indulging self, then how can we have learned anything
different? None of us needs to suffer in order to practise
self-indulgence. We need to suffer in order to empathise with others
who suffer.
如果我们能够学会这一课并把它用在我们的生活中，我们就能知道我们的弟兄姊妹的需求。这将唤起自我牺牲，而不是放任自我。如果我们肆意放纵自己，我们怎能学会不同的东西？我们没有人为了实践自我放纵而需要受苦。我们是为了同情那些受苦的人而去受苦。
In these few verses that we have already considered, the Greek word for
suffering and consolation has been used ten times. Paul now
continues to develop his theme. In another place when he catalogues
the things he suffered for Christ he says “he speaks as a fool” yet he did it
to make a point to those he addressed. Similarly now, he is making a
point. It was expedient for the Corinthians not to be ignorant of
his sufferings and those of his companions, their trouble, and how they were
pressed out of measure… until they despaired of life itself. When we
consider all the things that we have suffered, do we yet consider that we have
learned enough to feel that we could help someone who had suffered like Paul?
在这几节中我们已经看到，希腊词苦楚和安慰已经被用了10次。保罗现在继续发展这个主题。在另外一个地方当他罗列他为基督受的苦楚时说“他像一个傻瓜一样说话”他对听众建立了一个论点。现在相似的，他在建立一个论点。对于哥林多人这是有利的，他们不会忽略他和他的同伴们受的苦楚，麻烦，压力 ... 直到他们对生命本身绝望。当我们想到我们受苦的这些事情，我们难道不能学会去感受像保罗那样受苦的人吗？
Perhaps we do not consider that we have learned enough to comfort the apostle
in an active way. Ye he had learned enough to take comfort from the
brethren and sisters who he was responsible for teaching, in a passive
way. This is what he said in the middle of verse 6. It
was the consolation and salvation of those Paul wrote to in Corinth that
allowed Paul to endure that ‘same suffering’, that is his own
suffering. So we see this cycle works. When we learn the
lessons from suffering we learn consolation, salvation, and steadfast hope.
也许我们没有想到我们已经学了足够多了以积极的方式去安慰使徒。我们也以被动的方式从授课的弟兄姊妹那里学会了接受安慰。这是他在第6节中段中说的。保罗写给哥林多的信中提到的安慰，拯救使得保罗承受着“同样的苦楚”，这是他自己的苦楚。所以我们看见了这个循环的工作。当我们从苦楚中学到安慰，拯救和坚定的盼望。
In verse 14 Paul describes the fellowship that we share: ‘we are your
rejoicing, even as you also are ours in the day of the Lord
Jesus’. We may not be able to do the things that Paul did. We may
not be able to endure the same things. But by sharing the
consolation of the sufferings of Christ with each other as we journey to the
kingdom we can help each other and strengthen each other to complete the
journey. We do not need to be everything that the apostle Paul was
to do this; we just need to be with our brother or sister when they need
us.
在第14节中，保罗描述的我们分享的团契：‘我们是你的欣喜，就如你在我们中，在主耶稣的日子里’。我们也许做不到保罗所做的事情。我们也许不能忍耐同样的事情。但是籍着与他人分享耶稣的苦楚，在我们前往神国的旅途上，我们彼此帮助鼓励走完这个旅程。我们不需要做使徒保罗所做的每一件事情；我们只需要在我们的弟兄姊妹需要我们的时候和他们在一起。
Even the miserable comforters that were Job’s friends managed that much when
they sat down with him for a week because they saw his grief was very
great. What they did after that can be read as an example of how not
to do the things of which Paul is exhorting (or comforting) us. They
did not speak the thing that was right, and they did it in a vindictive way
that indulged their own righteousness at Job’s expense, for they said how much
more wicked he was than they were. The God of all comfort was not
well pleased with these miserable comforters, and we have much to learn from
the Book of Job if we are to understand how to put into practice the teaching
of the apostle Paul here.
约伯的朋友，那些悲惨的安慰者,他们看到约伯非常悲哀，与他坐在一起一周时间。他们以后的行为是一个与保罗劝勉我们相反的例子。他们没有说正确的事情。他们采用报复的方法纵容他们自己，以约伯的义作为代价，因为他们说约伯比他们还邪恶。神的安慰是不悦纳这些邪恶的安慰者。如果我们能够明白如何将使徒保罗在这里的教导运用到实践中，我们从约伯记中可以学到许多。
In 2Cor 2:1 Paul now draws on his teaching for a practical
example. He does not want to make the Saints at Corinth sad, because
he relies on them for his happiness, and how could he be happy if they were
sorrowful? This is logic that we might do we well to apply to
ourselves sometimes. Do we ever deliberately cause upset to a brother
or a sister? Do we become a miserable comforter? If so,
can the God of all Comfort be pleased with us? Christ taught us to
put down our gift unless and until we were reconciled to our brother. Matt
5:23-24. Remember that Nadab and Abihu sacrificed incorrectly…..
在哥林多后书2：1，保罗把他的教导作了一个实际的例子。他不想让哥林多的信徒们忧愁，因为他的快乐来自他们。如果他们忧愁，他又怎能快乐呢？这是一个有时也适用于我们自己的逻辑。我们是不是故意惹我们的弟兄姊妹不安？我们是不是变成了一个悲惨的安慰者？如果是，全能的神的安慰能悦纳我们吗？耶稣教我们放下自己直到我们被弟兄接受。太5：23-24。记住拿答和亚比户不正确的献祭...
Paul next exhorts the brethren and sisters to extend this comfort to a brother
who has been discouraged by many. No matter that the brother was
originally at fault, now is the time to comfort him and extend love towards him
that the adversary would not get the advantage of him (no, rather of “US” v11) while the ecclesia denied this brother the true fellowship. It has been
rightly said that it can be an offence to be offended! We can be all
the things Paul said in 1 Cor 13:1-2 and if we do not have love, then we are
nothing.
保罗下一步劝勉弟兄姊妹把他的安慰传给一个不被多数人鼓励的弟兄。不管那个弟兄以前作了什么错事，现在是安慰他和给他爱的时候。这样敌人就没有可乘之机。此时教会否认这一位兄弟伙伴关系的时候。 准确的说的它可能造成过错! 我们可以成就所有的事物，保罗在 哥林多前书13:1-2 中说“没有爱，我就算不得什么。”
In a few days we will have a further opportunity to consider these things as we
follow this theme through 2 Cor 7. Paul describes how empathy for
suffering and also comfort passes between believers much as we will now pass
bread and wine amongst ourselves.
在几天之内，我们将会有一个更进一步的机会通过这些事物认识哥林多后书7章这一个主题。 保罗描述信徒之间如何受难以及传递安慰，正如我们现在将要在我们当中传递的面包和酒。
We read 2Cor1:5 “For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our
consolation also aboundeth by Christ”. We started to develop these
thoughts, and as we think of the great suffering that Christ underwent, and
share in his sorrow, he comforts us with the steadfast hope that he can save us
from our sins.
我们读哥林多后书1：5：“我们既多受基督的苦楚，就靠基督多得安慰。". 我们开始发展这些思想，而且当我们想到基督经历的巨大苦难，分担他的悲伤，他用他能解救我们的罪的坚定的希望来安慰我们。
In our first reading Moses promised Israel that they would see the glory of
Yahweh, and they did (Lev 9:6,23). David also spoke of his own glory
and that of the Father (Psa 109 v1, 5), and we have then considered the Lord
Jesus Christ who manifested forth God’s glory to us (John 2:11).
在我们第一次读到摩西答应以色列他们会见到耶和华的荣耀，而且他们做到了(利未记9:6,23) 。大卫也谈到他自己光荣来自父亲 (诗篇109：1,5) , 然后我们思考对我们显示上帝的荣耀的耶稣基督(约翰福音 2：11)。
As we examine
ourselves, let us consider how the God of all comfort educates us by suffering
so that we can learn to comfort each other as Christ comforts us, and help each
other to come to the kingdom and glorify our Father, as we pray now that Christ
is also helping us.
当我们认清我们自己, 让我们思考赐各样安慰的神如何通过苦难教育我们，以便我们能学习同基督安慰我们一样来彼此安慰, 帮助彼此到达神国并且荣耀我们的天父,
当我们祈祷之时基督也正在帮助我们。