作者Right Revd Dr Jo wells 主教 那時,上來過節禮拜的人中,有幾個希利尼人。他們來見加利利伯賽大的腓力,求他說,先生,我們願意見耶穌。腓力去告訴安得烈,安得烈同腓力去告訴耶穌。耶穌說,人子得榮耀的時候到了。我實實在在的告訴你們,一粒麥子不落在地裡死了,仍舊是一粒.若是死了,就結出許多子粒來。愛惜自己生命的,就失喪生命.在這世上恨惡自己生命的,就要保守生命到永生。若有人服事我,就當跟從我.我在那裡,服事我的人,也要在那裡.若有人服事我,我父必尊重他。 我現在心裡憂愁,我說甚麼才好呢?父阿,救我脫離這時候,但我原是為這時候來的。父阿,願你榮耀你的名。當時就有聲音從天上來說,我已經榮耀了我的名,還要再榮耀。站在旁邊的眾人聽見,就說:打雷了.還有人說,有天使對他說話。耶穌說,這聲音不是為我,是為你們來的。現在這世界受審判.這世界的王要被趕出去。我若從地上被舉起來,就要吸引萬人來歸我。耶穌這話原是指著自己將要怎樣死說的。 我想告訴大家,坐在前排的這些弟兄姊妹,今日踏出接受堅振禮的一步,是他們人生之中最好的決定。事實上,不管你是甚麼人,亦不論何時何地,跟隨耶穌,永遠都是最佳決定。 或者我們可以運用想像力,將今日預備接受堅振禮的弟兄姊妹,置身在上耶路撒冷過節的群眾中間。在擠擁的群眾當中,有幾個人亦同樣踏出一步,想要尋找耶穌的門徒腓力。比較令人意外的是,這幾位是希利尼人。儘管他們是外邦人,不能和猶太人一齊慶祝踰越節,他們卻願意採取主動,以莫大的勇氣去問腓力,他們可不可以去見耶穌。他們並非決定跟隨耶穌,至少在這一刻還未決定,但他們不怕公開表達對耶穌的好奇之心。他們有心追求,亦不怕承認,於是就開口提問,由此啟動了一串連鎖反應:他們問腓力,腓力去問安得烈,安得烈又和腓力一齊去問耶穌。這令我想起小熊維尼作者緬恩(A. A. Milne)的一首打油詩,開頭幾句是這樣的:國王問王后,王后又去問牛奶女工:「可不可以給我們一點牛油,讓國王塗在麵包上?」詩歌接著說,有人建議國王不如改吃柑橘醬,但國王卻是個老古板,堅持非吃牛油不可。他說:「我只是想要一點點牛油而已。」同樣地,不知道「求見主面」這個要求,是否太過分?究竟有無可能實現? 我在想,大家今日來到這裡,是否也是希望求見耶穌?不論你是最近信主,或者返教會已有幾十年,又或者對於教會根本全無認識,我都盼望你今日能夠抱著開放的態度,以好奇甚至渴慕的心情,來到求見耶穌,來到發掘更多。因為崇拜的意義,本來就是如此。 希利尼人究竟可不可以去見耶穌呢?耶穌自己給了答案。他沒有助手或主教侍從代為擋駕,只有親自接招。然則,我們從他的回答學會了甚麼?看到了甚麼?如果希利尼人只是想拿耶穌的簽名、與名人自拍selfie上載IG、然後回家向朋友炫耀一番,他們的收穫可以說是超乎預期。不過,這位名人與其他名人有點不同。耶穌首先提到人子要得榮耀,但是轉頭又將榮耀與死亡相提並論。耶穌亦都表明,門徒的生命若要發揮任何影響力,單是見見耶穌並不足夠,必須要跟隨他才可以。他們不能只是拍攝一張照片,然後把它存在雲端置諸不理。他們不能只來參加堅振禮,亮一下相,然後就隱形不知所終。要真真正正的見到耶穌,就要一直留在耶穌身邊,不論日子順逆,都要不離不棄,並且要知道,如此跟隨耶穌,是一件光榮的事。不是為名、不是為利,而是為了真正重要的榮耀,就是來自上帝的榮耀。第26節這樣說:若有人服事我,就當跟從我.我在那裡,服事我的人,也要在那裡.若有人服事我,我父必尊重他。 然後,耶穌將他的論述重點,由原則轉移到具體,由所有人轉移到他自己。我們將會見到的,不單是耶穌的外表,我們更加能夠看到他的內心世界。我們看到了甚麼呢?原來耶穌心裡憂愁,不知道自己能否承受得了,能否保持忠心,不論順逆都不會離開上帝。大家明白嗎?凡是耶穌要求我們去做的,沒有一樣不是他自己已經親身經歷過的,這就是道成肉身的意義。各位朋友,大家即將要委身跟隨耶穌,作出人生最好的決定。大家的心情可能戰戰兢兢,但這樣的委身也表明了莫大的勇氣。我想指出,大家要跟隨的這一位耶穌,已經向你以至向所有人,完全敞開自己。耶穌同凡人一樣會過節,就好似我們,假若能夠買到門票,都會希望參加節日盛會。然而,見到耶穌,原來就等同見到上帝,可以感受到上帝的心腸,不單歡迎猶太人,也歡迎希利尼人;對於敬虔人和邊緣人,同樣包容接納。更加重要的是,上帝的心腸,隨時預備為這個需要上帝的世界而破碎,落在地裡而死,結出許多子粒,為的是將羞辱化為榮耀,幫助我們真正看見,帶給我們愛的確據,讓我們知道,在上帝內心深處,對我們的愛是何等長闊高深。 原來,親眼見主,也包括親眼見證他的痛苦。不過,痛苦並不是結局。親眼見主,也包括親眼看見主的榮耀。不過,不是風和日麗在水上行走的那種榮耀,而是在風暴中飽受打擊的榮耀。忍受苦難本身就是一種榮耀;苦難的另外一面就是榮耀。今日的福音經課,以希利尼人求見耶穌作為開始,演變成一則關於榮耀的信息,既指向過去的榮耀,亦指向未來的榮耀。經文說:有聲音從天上來說,我已經榮耀了我的名,還要再榮耀。有人以為這是雷聲,也有人以為是天使說話。顯然,並非人人都能領略上帝的聲音。但耶穌卻肯定這是上帝的說話,既帶有審判,亦帶有歡迎世人的確據。他說:我若從地上被舉起來,就要吸引萬人來歸我。 這道理不是人人都能明白。即使是正在講道的我,亦不能完全明白。今日預備接受堅振的弟兄姊妹,就算不完全明白也沒有關係。但是我們應該緊記今日福音經課的教訓:人人都可以求見耶穌,沒有需要害怕。不論人生前路如何,我們若跟隨耶穌到底,最終見到的將會是榮耀。我在開始的時候說,這是你一生中的最佳決定,原因正在於此。 Now among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. 21They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, ‘Sir, we wish to see Jesus.’ 22Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. 23Jesus answered them, ‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honour.
‘Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—“Father, save me from this hour”? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. 28Father, glorify your name.’ Then a voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.’ 29The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, ‘An angel has spoken to him.’ 30Jesus answered, ‘This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. 31Now is the judgement of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. 32And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.’ 33He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die. I put it to you that the folks sitting on the front rows, those who’ve decided to take the step of confirmation today, are making the very best decision of their lives. The very best decision that anyone can ever make in any circumstances. To follow Jesus. They are those who we might picture jostling in the crowds in Jerusalem. Where a few people –surprisingly they are Greeks – take the step of finding Philip, one of Jesus’ disciples. Even though they’re outsiders at this Jewish festival of Passover, they take the initiative, and with immense courage ask if they might see Jesus. They’re not making the decision to follow – not yet – but they’re going public with their curiosity: they’re honest in their searching, and so they ask. And that sets off a sort-of chain reaction – they ask Philip, Philip asks Andrew, then Andrew and Philip ask Jesus. (Reminded of A.A.Milne poem where the king asks the queen, and the queen asks the dairymaid, ‘could we have some butter for the royal slice of bread?’… In that poem the king first gets offered marmalade instead and ends up having to persist like the original fuddy-duddy, ‘but I would like just a little bit of butter for my bread?’) I wonder, is it too much to ask to see Jesus? Is it possibly possible? I wonder, if you came here today in hope of seeing Jesus? (Whether you’re a brand new disciple or you’ve been hanging out in church for most of your life, or you’ve no idea what church is all about, I hope you came here today with an openness, a curiosity, even eagerness, to see Jesus. To discover more. That’s what worship is all about). Well it’s Jesus who replies for himself. No layers of protection from PAs or chaplains here. He takes the bull by the horns. And what is it we learn, who is it that we see from the reply? Those Greeks got more than they’d bargained for if they just wanted his autograph, the selfie for Instagram, the moment with celebrity. they just wanted to go home and tell friends that they got close to a celebrity. But this celebrity is different. Jesus speaks of glory, and being glorified. But in the next breath he links it to dying. Then he links dying to eternal life. And the necessity of not just seeing but following if their life is to have any impact. They can’t just take the snap and save it on iCloud. They can’t just show up for confirmation and then sail off into the sunset. Seeing Jesus – really seeing Jesus – means staying with Jesus. Sticking with him through thick and thin. And finding in that following true honour. Not fame, not fortune, but what really matters. Honour from God. 26’Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honour.’ And then Jesus moves from the general to the particular, from speaking about everyone – whoever – to speaking about himself. It’s like we get to see not only the outside of Jesus, but the inside of Jesus, his heart. And what do we discover? That his heart is close to breaking and he wonders about his capacity to cope, to be faithful, to hang in there through thick and thin with God. (Do you see, there’s nothing he asks of us that he doesn’t first go through himself? That’s the incarnation for you). Friends, the one to whom you are committing yourself to following, this ‘best decision’ you’re making today, perhaps in fear and trembling and tremendous courage, is with someone who opens himself up to you, to all of us, wholly and completely. And in seeing Jesus – the human being who went to festivals just as we all like to do if we can get a ticket – seeing Jesus turns out to be seeing God, the heart of God which is not only welcoming to Greeks as well as Jews, inclusive to outsiders as well as to religious types, but it’s a heart that is ready to break for a world in need, to fall into the earth and die, to bear much fruit. To turn shame into honour. To help us see. To assure us we are loved. Deeply loved, on the inside. It turns out that Seeing Jesus includes seeing something of his agony. But it doesn’t end there. Seeing Jesus is also about seeing glory. Not the kind of glory that walks on water on blue sky sunny days but the kind of glory that withstands the depths when the storm would seem to be overpowering. The glory that withstands suffering; the glory that shines on the other side of suffering. The revelation here that’s unleashed through a few people asking to see Jesus turns into a message about glory, glory in the past and glory in the future, a voice that clearly not everyone catches – ‘I have glorified it and will glorify it again’. Some think it’s just thunder, others think there’s some angel. But Jesus affirms it as God’s word, a word of judgement as well as the definitive word of welcome. ‘I when I am lifted up will draw all people to myself’. Not everyone gets it. Even as I preach about it I’m aware that I don’t fully get it. It’s ok if those of you being confirmed don’t fully get it. But hear this from today’s gospel: no one should be afraid to ask to see Jesus. And know that what you’ll see, whatever life serves up on the way, what you’ll see if you follow Jesus all the way, is glory. That’s why this is the very best decision of your life.
0 評論
作者Revd Dr Samuel Wells 聖馬田堂主任牧師 你覺得你滿足嗎? “滿足什麼?”你可能會説。一切都要得到滿足?如果有一種多數人也經歷過的焦慮,那就是對不足的焦慮。因為經濟發展是依賴於人們認為自己只需要更多。 十誡打破了“一切都不足”這種令人厭煩的假設。看看第八條誡命,不可偷盜。想一想偷竊的心理。”偷竊”是覺得世上的資源是不足的,如若我要得到所需,就必有人因此而受苦。但上帝説:“不可偷盜”。 看看第四條誡命,當守安息日。想想每天工作時的心理。這工作必須完成,且只有我能做到,每個人都依賴我,沒有足夠的時間,這是一個競爭激烈的世界,如果我沒有得到這份合同,機會便會給了其他人,如果我多花一點時間的話這個提案將會很完美,我不夠聰明,只能用努力來彌補。我連週末也不能坐下來休息因為我父母沒有支付我的學費。但違反安息日的命令就等於説這個宇宙中只有一位救世主,那就是我。但上帝説‘你要安息’.. 看看第三條誡命,你不可妄稱上帝的名。想想當我們這樣做時我們的腦海裏在想什麼。當我的言詞似乎未能表達我們內心那強烈及深刻的感覺時。我們便借用上帝的名。我們把神聖貶成廉價的言詞,。每當我們誇大其詞時,也是一樣。我們就是在說真理仍有不足。你不可妄稱上帝的名. 然後是第二條誡命,你不可為自己塑造偶像。這實際上就是覺得上帝還有不足的心理,覺得上帝不夠大,或者至少不夠近 。所以我要創造一個能與我產生共鳴的上帝,一個和我一樣大小的上帝 - 也許是一輛汽車,也許是一份職業,甚至是能告訴我體重的秤。現在我們已經接近問題的核心了。我們有一種恆常的焦慮,因為我們的不足 - 財富的不足,時間的不足,愛的不足,言詞的不足。但問題的核心是我們覺得我們沒有足夠的上帝。我們所唱的詩歌、崇拜、祈禱和一切經歷上帝的時刻,上帝是不足夠。 因此上帝説這些話的那一刻才如此重要。以色列剛離開埃及,就已經開始想像留下來是否會更好。上帝説:‘問題不是我有不足,而是對於你,我是太多了。 你貧窮的想象限制你去理解我。我愛所有受造物,更珍惜你們每一個都是獨特的。你能想象到嗎? ‘不,你不能,可以嗎?你仍然認為我還是不足夠。你變得焦慮,當你焦慮時,你開始想要更多的上帝、更多的錢、更多的東西。我在沙漠裏給你嗎哪,超過你所需要的。你仍然在安息日收集,因為你擔心不足夠。我在沙漠裏給了你水。但你的思緒仍然回到了埃及。如果你能用你的想像,讓我釋放你,帶你進入應許之地。 “但這刻,這裏有一些規則來提醒你什麼是最重要的,我就是你所需要的一切,我的豐盛總是大於你的匱乏。不要有其他上帝:他們越多,我就越少。沒有偶像:它們永遠不能滿足你,並且會令你忘記我是充足的。守安息日:我會給你所需要的時間。照顧你年邁的父母,不可偷竊盜 - 我會給你所需要的一切。不可殺人 - 他們是我給你所有的其中一部分。不要亂用言詞 - 是就說“是” 。不是就說“不是” 對你就已足夠了。 實際上,這取決於第一條誡命和最後一條誡命。你,不安焦慮、貪婪垂涎着他人看似的美好,卻越發感覺貧窮,越發失落,越發自憐,越發困入於自己的想象籠牢中,越發成為奴隸。上帝説,你每一個繁複和美麗的細節不都是我精心所創造,並將你從最黑暗的監獄中釋放出來,即使你最仇視的是你自己也一次又一次地原諒你,並以耶穌來到你中間與你同行。 只有你,只有上帝。面對面。那就是上帝伸出雙手給你十誡的時刻。上帝説:‘你可能會一再跌落去想像及感覺我的不足。很多人也都這樣做。所以這裏有一些禮物。他們會幫助你記住你的自由。他們會挑戰你的想象力並讓你認識到我是一位豐盛的神,給予你超乎所需的豐富,遠遠超過你所渴望或需要的。我創造的星系超過人能看見,我寬恕的深度超過一切罪人的罪 ,我給你在耶穌裏的愛超過你所能理解。 我們從上帝手中接過這份禮物,凝望上帝的面容,我們説:‘願這些誡命永遠成為我心中的恩賜,而非負擔。願他們時刻提醒我,你是獨一真神。是釋放我自由的上帝,請把這些話刻在我的心上,使我永遠不會忘記,你就是我所需要的一切。因為我現在明白,和你在一起,一個就足夠了。” Do you think you have enough? ‘Enough what?’ You may say. Enough anything? If there’s one anxiety most people can share, it’s an anxiety about not having enough. It’s just as well, because the economy depends on people thinking they need just a little bit more.
The Ten Commandments dismantle this nagging assumption that there is not enough. Look at the 8th commandment, you shall not steal. Think for a moment about the psychology of stealing. Stealing is saying there isn’t enough in the world and if I’m going to have what I need then someone else is bound to suffer. But God said, ‘You shall not steal’. Look at the 4th commandment, remember the Sabbath day. Think about the psychology of working every day. It has to be done, only I can do it, everybody is depending on me, there’s not enough time, it’s a competitive world out there, if I don’t get this contract someone else will, if I put a bit more time in this proposal will be perfect, I’m not clever enough, I can only make up for it with hard work, my parents aren’t paying for my education so I can sit around all weekend. Breaking the command to rest is saying there’s only one saviour in this universe and it’s me. But God said ‘You shall rest’. Look at the 3rd commandment, you shall not make wrong use of the name of God. Think about what is in our minds when we do so. It’s when the language at our disposal doesn’t seem to convey the strength or depth of feeling in our hearts. So we invoke the name of God. We make the holy into the trivial, and thus impoverish the language. Whenever we exaggerate, we do the same thing. We say the truth is somehow not enough. You shall not make wrong use of the name of God. And then there’s the 2nd commandment, you shall not make yourself an idol. Surely the psychology of this is that God is not enough – not big enough, or at least not near enough. So I shall make a god I can relate to, a god my size – a car perhaps, a career maybe, even the scales that tell me how much I weigh. And now we’re getting nearer the heart of the problem. There’s an abiding anxiety that we don’t have enough – not enough property, not enough time, not enough love, not enough language. But the heart of the matter is that we feel we don’t have enough God. For all our hymns and services and prayers and moments of truth, God is not enough. And that’s why the moment in which God speaks these words is so significant. Israel has come out of Egypt, but is already beginning to wonder if it wouldn’t have been better off staying. God says, ‘The problem is not that I am not enough for you – it is that I am too much for you. Your imaginations are simply too small to comprehend me. I love every creature I have made, but I treasure each one of you as if you were the only one. Can you imagine? ‘No, you can’t, can you. You still fall into thinking I’m not enough. You get anxious, and when you get anxious you start wanting more gods, more money, more things. I gave you manna in the desert, far more food than you needed. You still collected on the Sabbath because you feared there wouldn’t be enough. I gave you water in the desert. But still your thoughts were straying back to Egypt. If only you could let your imaginations go and enter the land I am promising you, and let me set you free. ‘But in the meantime, here are some rules to remind you of what matters most, that I am more than enough, that my abundance is always greater than your scarcity. Have no other gods: more of them means less of me. Have no idols: they will never be remotely enough, and will lead you to forget that I am plenty. Keep the Sabbath: I will give you all the time you need. Look after your aging parents and don’t steal – I will give you everything you need. Don’t kill people – they are part of the everything I am giving you. Don’t misuse language – yes and no will be enough for you.’ Really it comes down to the first commandment and the last. Here are you, anxious, covetous, looking at all the fun they seem to have next door, and all the time feeling more and more impoverished, more and more deprived, more and more sorry for yourself, more and more trapped in your stunted imagination, more and more a slave. And here, says God, am I, meticulously creating you in all your intricacy and beauty, setting you free from the darkest of prisons, forgiving you time and again even when your greatest hatred is for yourself, and coming among you to be your companion in Jesus. Just you, and just God. Face to face. And that’s the moment when God stretches out two hands and gives you the Ten Commandments. God says, ‘You may fall back into thinking or feeling that I am not enough. A lot of people do. So here are some gifts. They will help you remember your freedom. They will challenge your imagination to realise that I am a God of abundance, who gives you more than enough, far more than you could ever want or need, who created galaxies no one may ever see, who has depths of forgiveness no sinner may ever require, who gives you in Jesus more love than you could ever realise.’ And we take the gift from God’s hands, and we look into God’s face, and we say, ‘May these commandments be to me always a gift and never a burden. May they always remind me that you are the one true God who has set me free. Write these words on my heart so I never forget that you are always more than enough. For now I realise that, with you, one is plenty.’ 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. |
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
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