During a recent sharing, Pastor D, from a church in East China, exhorts believers to ask Jesus to join them when they face important but difficult moments in life because he is at the party with us and can give us practical help.
Citing John 2, the pastor shared that at the wedding in Cana, Jesus miraculously turned the embarrassment of "running out of wine" into the joy of "enjoying the finest wine." And there were six large stone water pots at the venue for the Jews, who were observant of the law, to perform their washing ceremonies. He explained, "This leads us to ask a question: is having the Christian faith similar to setting up the stone waterpots? Some Christians think that faith is about following the laws and rules, and as long as they have done this, they will be blessed by God to have a safe and smooth life. But just like at the wedding, we may have prepared for everything, but problems still arise and the joy is missing."
"Real faith is about entering into the life of Jesus so that He can be with us at the party. Jesus is so full of life that when we are with Him, we can share His abundance, joy, and holiness. We cannot earn any of this through our efforts. For example, we can have a well-behaved husband or wife who is faithful, hardworking, and without faults, but this does not mean that you are a couple who share an intimate relationship. Is the happiness, sweetness, and joy of love still there? Or have you run out of wine?" he added.
On the other hand, the six waterpots were not completely filled, and in a similar way, the law is like an outer shell where no one really knows how much is inside. But it was the water that was previously in the pots that Jesus turned into the fine wine. He did not abolish the law but fulfilled it, just as He did not empty the pots but brought the wine of heaven, which points to the Holy Spirit, into the water of the law.
After Jesus ascended to heaven, on the day of Pentecost, many people were filled with the new wine of heaven, and they brought this new wine to those who had only "the six stone waterpots" and had to constantly cleanse themselves with water so that more people could see the faith that is alive. From then on, the water became wine, and the new did what the old could not.
"We need the cleansing of water, but we also need the outpouring of the Holy Spirit," he concluded.
- Translated by Joyce Leung
日前，华东一城市教会牧者D牧师讲述了当我们的人生遇上关键却窘迫的时候，要寻求和邀请耶稣，因为祂正与我们同席，祂能切实地给我们帮助。
在“迦拿婚宴”上，耶稣把“没酒”的窘境变成“美酒”的喜乐。其中，摆放着“六口石缸”，专门用于领受摩西律法的犹太人行宗教礼仪。这引发我们反思，会不会有一种信仰就类似“摆放石缸”？我们觉得遵守律法和规矩，就是信仰的全部，如此，便能得到有保障的生活，拥有蒙上帝祝福没有差错的人生。但正如这场婚礼，我们什么都做到了，差错还在，喜乐没了。
真实的信仰的核心是进入主耶稣的生命，让耶稣坐在我们的桌边，祂的生命如此鲜活，与我们同在，一同坐席，带来丰盛、喜乐和洁净的能力。这一切，都不是我们靠自己的努力能得来的。比如，我们可以做一个严守规矩的丈夫或妻子，忠诚、勤勉，没有任何过犯，但这并不代表，我们就可以享受夫妻彼此亲密的关系。酒用完了吗？那幸福、甜蜜、喜乐的爱还在吗？
反观那六口用来洁净的石缸，也是没有装满的。可见，律法就如外壳，里面装了多少实质，只有自己知道。而耶稣要转化先前的水成为现在的酒，祂不是律法的废除者，而是成全者。就像祂没有倒掉原先石缸的水，而是把天国的酒带进地上律法的水中。这天国的酒，就是圣灵。
耶稣离开后，在五旬节那一天，许多人被天国的新酒充满，并将这新酒带到那些只有“六口石缸”，需要用水不断洁净的人群中，让更多人看见鲜活的信仰生命。就是从那时起，水变成了酒，新的成全了旧的所不能够达到的。我们需要从水来的洁净，也需要圣灵来的浇灌。
南方一牧者：拥抱耶稣而非律法，才能得到鲜活的生命
During a recent sharing, Pastor D, from a church in East China, exhorts believers to ask Jesus to join them when they face important but difficult moments in life because he is at the party with us and can give us practical help.
Citing John 2, the pastor shared that at the wedding in Cana, Jesus miraculously turned the embarrassment of "running out of wine" into the joy of "enjoying the finest wine." And there were six large stone water pots at the venue for the Jews, who were observant of the law, to perform their washing ceremonies. He explained, "This leads us to ask a question: is having the Christian faith similar to setting up the stone waterpots? Some Christians think that faith is about following the laws and rules, and as long as they have done this, they will be blessed by God to have a safe and smooth life. But just like at the wedding, we may have prepared for everything, but problems still arise and the joy is missing."
"Real faith is about entering into the life of Jesus so that He can be with us at the party. Jesus is so full of life that when we are with Him, we can share His abundance, joy, and holiness. We cannot earn any of this through our efforts. For example, we can have a well-behaved husband or wife who is faithful, hardworking, and without faults, but this does not mean that you are a couple who share an intimate relationship. Is the happiness, sweetness, and joy of love still there? Or have you run out of wine?" he added.
On the other hand, the six waterpots were not completely filled, and in a similar way, the law is like an outer shell where no one really knows how much is inside. But it was the water that was previously in the pots that Jesus turned into the fine wine. He did not abolish the law but fulfilled it, just as He did not empty the pots but brought the wine of heaven, which points to the Holy Spirit, into the water of the law.
After Jesus ascended to heaven, on the day of Pentecost, many people were filled with the new wine of heaven, and they brought this new wine to those who had only "the six stone waterpots" and had to constantly cleanse themselves with water so that more people could see the faith that is alive. From then on, the water became wine, and the new did what the old could not.
"We need the cleansing of water, but we also need the outpouring of the Holy Spirit," he concluded.
- Translated by Joyce Leung
Pastor Encourages Believers to Invite Jesus into Life's Crucial Moments for Transformation
