作者Revd Angela Sheard, 聖馬田助理牧師 近年來,不少英國公眾人物的傳記受到了大量媒體關注。哈里王子、Britney Spears 和米歇爾·奧巴馬,在過去一年中都出版了自己的自傳,許多體育明星、真人秀名人以及其他許多人也是如此。這些人物在公眾視野中,大多數都有特定的角色身分,但他們的傳記旨在揭示,在他們的公眾形象背後,這些人物的本性是怎樣的?這些自傳試圖探索,傳記主人翁到底是怎樣的一個人。 福音書可以說是一種古老的人物傳記 - 它們旨在探索拿撒勒人耶穌的生平,一位在近東及其他地區以不同原因而聞名的人物。像我們當代的人物傳記一樣,福音書關注人的本性和身份 - 它們試圖探索拿撒勒人耶穌到底是誰。耶穌的生平,由福音書作者馬太、馬可、路加和約翰四位不同的傳記作者記錄下來。今天我們讀的是馬可福音,在這部關於耶穌的傳記中,耶穌改變形象是一個關鍵事件,有助於回答這個問題:“拿撒勒人耶穌是誰?”。 對於“耶穌是誰”這個問題,這個事件告訴我們什麼呢?我們看到神的榮耀通過耶穌顯現出來,他的衣服極其潔白,發出耀眼光芒,摩西和以利亞從天上出現與他交談,神的聲音從一片雲霧中宣告:“這是我的愛子!”。所有這一切給了我們寶貴的信息 - 然而,這個事件並不是孤立發生的。在馬可福音中,變像與耶穌生命中的另外兩個事件息息相關,這些事件之間的聯繫可以幫助我們發掘更多豐富信息,對耶穌的身份有更加全面的了解。 與變像相關的第一個事件是耶穌受洗。在耶穌變像時,耶穌的衣服因神的榮耀而變得耀眼潔白,同樣在耶穌受洗時,天空打開,顯示神的榮耀。在變像中,一片雲從天上降下,而在耶穌受洗時,聖靈彷以鴿子的樣式降臨在耶穌身上。在耶穌受洗和變像時,我們都聽到一個聲音宣告耶穌為“我的愛子”。在變像中,耶穌與先知之一以利亞一起出現 - 而耶穌在受洗時,與一個與以利亞相似的人物,施洗約翰在一起,約翰和以利亞一模一樣地穿著駱駝毛做的衣服,腰間束著皮帶。 與變像相關的第二個事件是耶穌被釘十字架。在耶穌被釘的那一刻,天空沒有打開,但聖殿的帳幕卻撕裂開來。在耶穌受洗和變像時,鴿子和雲降臨,在釘十架時,卻是黑暗籠罩全地。我們聽不到來自天堂的聲音,而是聽到了耶穌自己的聲音和哭喊:“我的神,我的神,你為什麼離棄我?”在這一刻,同樣的先知形象再次在福音書出現,人群大叫:“看哪,他在呼喚以利亞!”最後,在場的一名羅馬百夫長宣告了耶穌的身份:“這個人真是神的兒子!”。 這樣看來,我們有三個相關相連的事件 - 耶穌受洗、釘十字架,以及我們今天紀念的事件,耶穌改變形象。但這些關係如何幫助我們,對於耶穌身份有更加豐富的了解呢?首先,在這三個場景中,我們看到三種非常不同的耶穌形象。前兩個也許更加接近我們對神的兒子的期望- 在耶穌受洗時,我們看到聖靈降在他身上,這也是他傳道事工的開始;而在變像中,我們看到他披戴著上帝的榮光,並與古代的列祖和先知直接交談。但在第三場景中,我們看到最不像神的兒子的樣子 - 無能為力、任人宰割,赤身露體,飽受折磨,最後死在十字架上。 其次,有關誰人宣告和聽到耶穌是神的兒子的信息,這三個場景略有不同。在耶穌受洗時,來自天上的聲音私下對耶穌說:“你是我的愛子”。在變像時,來自雲的聲音對一小群門徒、彼得、雅各和約翰說:“這是我的愛子。你們要聽他!”在這一刻,不單是耶穌,他的一群門徒同時得到上帝告知,耶穌真正的身份是誰。然而,在釘十字架時,耶穌的身份並不是由上帝揭示的,這甚至不是由他的門徒揭示的。 相反,是由一個外邦人、一個羅馬百夫長,在這個公開的場景中,對觀看耶穌被處死的群眾揭示。這個最不可能被釘十架的彌賽亞,被最不可能辨認到他的人認出了 - 百夫長不是猶太人,反而是一個隸屬判處耶穌死刑的羅馬侵略者政權的軍官。這個最初只有耶穌知道的信息,到現在竟然可以被所有人宣告、讓所有人聽到。但作為2000年後聽到這個信息的人,我們又應該如何回應我們自己的生活呢? 為了幫助我們思考,我們可以觀察到變像故事前後,耶穌正在反覆告訴他的門徒,他必須受苦,他將被殺害,他將會復活。正是這一系列事件,為他的門徒提供了一個模範,讓他們明白應該怎樣回應。耶穌告訴門徒和人群:“若有人要跟從我,就當捨己,背起他的十字架來跟從我。因為凡要救自己生命的,必喪掉生命;凡為我(和福音)喪掉生命的,必得著生命。” 我們即將迎來大齋期(四旬期)的開始,這是為我們重溫耶穌的死亡和復活而準備的40天。在大齋期前的主日,耶穌變像提醒我們,耶穌曾經受洗、被釘在十字架上和復活,是神的兒子;變像事件也向我們展示了我們應該如何在生活中回應。基督的傳記也是我們自己的傳記。通過我們自己的洗禮,我們已與基督一同埋葬,並知道我們也將在末日分享他的復活。我們的洗禮也標誌著我們公開承認信仰,作主門徒,接受耶穌的邀請,捨棄自我,背起他的十字架來跟隨耶穌。在大齋期即將開始的時候,我不禁會想想,捨棄自我背起十架,對我們日常的生活有什麼意義。通過祈禱、禁食、幫助有需要的人、閱讀聖經、領受聖餐以及許多其他靈性實踐,耶穌邀請我們進入我們世界的苦難中,深知確信我們也將被帶入他在變像中顯現的復活榮耀中。 In recent years, lots of media attention has been given to biographies of various famous people in British public life. Prince Harry, Britney Spears and Michelle Obama have all written their own autobiographies over the previous year as have many sporting stars, reality TV celebrities and many others besides. Whereas most of these people have been in the public eye in a particular role, their biographies seek to uncover what the essence of the person is underneath their public persona – they seek to explore who the person really is.
The Gospels are a form of ancient biography – they seek to explore the life of Jesus of Nazareth, someone who would have been known for various different reasons around the Ancient Near East and beyond. Like our contemporary biographies, the Gospels are fundamentally concerned with identity – they seek to explore who Jesus of Nazareth really is. Jesus’s life is captured in four different biographies written by the Gospel writers – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Today we read from the Gospel of Mark, and in this biography of Jesus the transfiguration is a key event which helps to answer that question, ‘Who is Jesus of Nazareth?’. What does this event tell us about who Jesus is? Well, we see the glory of God revealed through Jesus in the dazzling whiteness of his clothing, the appearance from heaven of Moses and Elijah who talk with him, and the voice of God from a cloud declaring ‘This is my Son, the Beloved!’. All this gives us valuable information – however, this event does not happen in isolation. The Transfiguration is connected in Mark’s Gospel with two other events in the life of Jesus, and the connections between these can help us to discover a richer picture of who Jesus is. The first event connected with the Transfiguration is the baptism of Jesus. At the transfiguration Jesus’s clothing becomes dazzling white with the glory of God from heaven, and similarly at the baptism of Jesus the heavens are opened so that God’s glory can be revealed. In the transfiguration a cloud descends from heaven, while at the baptism it is the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove that descends upon Jesus. At both the baptism and the transfiguration we hear a voice declaring Jesus as ‘my Son, the Beloved’. At the transfiguration Jesus appears with Elijah, one of the prophets – and at the baptism Jesus is with an Elijah-like figure, John the Baptist, who exactly like Elijah wears clothing made of camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist. The second event connected with the Transfiguration is the crucifixion of Jesus. At this moment not the heavens but the curtain in the temple is torn open. While a dove and a cloud descended at the baptism and transfiguration, now darkness descends over the whole land. We hear not a voice from heaven but Jesus’s own voice crying out, ‘My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?’. At this moment the same prophetic figure appears again as the crowd shout, ‘Listen, he is calling for Elijah!’. And right at the end, a Roman centurion standing by proclaims the identity of Jesus, ‘Surely this man was the Son of God!’. So, we have a pattern of three connected events – the baptism, the crucifixion, and the event which we celebrate today, the transfiguration. But how do these connections create a richer picture of who Jesus is? Well, firstly in these three scenes we see three very different portraits of Jesus. The first two of these are perhaps more like what we would expect from the Son of God – at the baptism we see one who the Spirit descends upon at the start of his ministry, in the transfiguration we see one who shines with the glory of God and who speaks directly with the patriarchs and prophets of old. But in the third scene we see the most unlikely Son of God – powerless and vulnerable, stripped naked, tortured and executed on a cross. Secondly, the three scenes are subtly different in who gives and receives the key message that Jesus is the Son of God. At the baptism the voice from heaven speaks privately to Jesus – it says, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved’. At the transfiguration the voice from the cloud speaks to a small group of disciples, Peter, James and John – it instructs them, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved. Listen to him!’. In this moment not only Jesus but a group of his disciples are told by God who Jesus really is. At the crucifixion, however, the identity of Jesus is not revealed by God at all. It’s not even revealed by his disciples – rather, it is revealed by a Gentile, by a Roman centurion. It is revealed in a public place, to crowds who are watching Jesus’s execution. In this scene, this most unlikely crucified Messiah is recognized by the most unlikely person – someone who was not a Jew, and someone who was part of the Roman occupying power that had sentenced Jesus to death. The message, which was originally known only to Jesus, is now one which can be proclaimed and heard by all people. But as people who have heard this message 2000 years later, how should we respond in our own lives? To help us here, we might observe that the transfiguration story is surrounded by Jesus telling his disciples that he must undergo great suffering, that he would be killed and that he would rise again. It is this sequence of events which acts as the model for how his followers should respond. Jesus tells the disciples and the crowd: ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it.’ We are approaching the beginning of the season of Lent, 40 days which lead up to our reliving of the death and resurrection of Jesus. On the Sunday before Lent, the Transfiguration reminds us that Jesus is the baptized, crucified and risen Son of God – and shows us how we should respond. The biography of Christ is also our own biography. Through our own baptism, we have been buried with Christ and know that we will also share in his resurrection on the last day. Our baptism also marks the start of our public ministry, in which we are invited to follow Jesus by denying ourselves and taking up his cross. As we approach the start of Lent, I wonder what this might look like in our own lives. Through prayer, fasting, giving to those in need, reading the Scriptures, receiving the sacraments and many more spiritual practices more besides, Jesus invites us to enter into the suffering of our world, in the knowledge that we too will be taken up into the resurrection glory revealed at his transfiguration.
0 評論
發表回覆。 |
講道分享輯錄在聖馬田中文堂分享和講道的文字稿,讓弟兄姊妹能在日常重溫,咀嚼講員所分享的話。 類別
全部
過往分享
五月 2024
封存檔
五月 2024
|