你可知把耶穌帶到曠野的並非是撒旦嗎？路加福音第四章說：「耶穌被聖靈充滿，從約旦河回來，聖靈將他引到曠野，四十天受魔鬼的試探。」是聖靈領耶穌到那裡的！為什麼呢？因為到了那時候將發生一些事。而這些有迫切性、壓倒性、擠壓性、和有改進性的事之出現令耶穌啓動了祂的事工。你們當中有多少人知道耶穌在那試探之前並無行過神蹟或做過什麼著名的大事呢？這對我們今天來說究竟當中有著什麼的智慧呢……也許你發現自己現正處於考驗裡，而你認為此乃魔鬼的作為。我想鼓勵你接受這些試煉。如果你在新約中曾讀保羅的書信，我們就會知這些試探已經臨到我們，苦難讓我們為基督的原故去受苦（腓立比書第一章），它們的存在是為要造就我們，塑造我們。停止祈求上帝將你從火難中帶走或拯救出來吧。我們往往是要透過在烈火中，在不易的信仰挑戰裡，或在誘惑裡，才看到上帝是我們的盾牌、是我們的供應者和我們的保護者。倒不如求上主助你在試探之中能準確地看見主，求主加添力量給你去忍受，因為在最後我們將會有獎賞。
身處天堂彼岸的我們是保證會遇上試探和逆境的。而我們怎樣去回應它們，事情就會出現很大的差別。保羅視這些「考驗」為靈命成長的機會。當保羅遇到試探時，他沒有絕望，他會以自己的軟弱為榮，好讓基督的能力可落在他身上（哥林多後書12:9）。讓我們都像保羅那樣選擇信靠上帝，並接受主所賜的恩典，從而在內裡塑造出基督的品格。「不但如此，就是在患難中也是歡歡喜喜的；因為知道患難生忍耐，忍耐生老練，老練生盼望；盼望不至於羞恥，因為所賜給我們的聖靈將神的愛澆灌在我們心裏。」（羅馬書5:3-5）
基督徒的生活當變得艱難時，很易認為此乃是個懲罰，或是因自食其果而成。儘管有可能是這樣，但不一定有直接的相關性。以正確的角度來看待痛苦和苦難對我們的屬靈成長是極其重要的，因為它揭露了我們生命裡的缺點，以及揭示了我們把希望寄托在那些錯誤的地方裡。如此引發我們全然有信心和依賴上帝。聖經告訴信徒要做好準備，並要預計有困難會來，因為它們是會來臨的。更重要的是，它鼓勵我們要在那段時間向上帝求助，因為祂的力量在我們的軟弱中會變得完美，祂的慈愛會給予我們鼓勵，使我們堅強。當我們相信上帝是會透過苦難帶出祂的旨意時，我們就可以對以下兩事充滿信心：首先，我們將經歷到上帝聖靈的大能，這將透過聖靈的果子彰顯在我們的生活中。其次，上帝不會讓任何未經祂許可的事情發生在我們身上，祂不會讓任何最終會給我們帶來毀滅比好處更多的「壞事」發生。或許你一直希望這時候可以消失，但上帝也許正是想要利用它來磨練你的思想、增強你的信心，以及準備你去迎接未來更重大的責任。在新的一年裡，讓我們一同仰望神所賜予我們那可以移山的信心，祈求上帝在磨煉我們改變我們之際，賜予我們有持久力，好使我們都把榮耀歸回給祂。假如我們每次遇試探時都去逃避，那麼我們就無緣見到神的信實了！
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Sharing by Deaconess Michelle Tam
Did you know that it was not Satan that led Jesus into the wilderness? Luke chapter 4 says “Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil.” It was the Holy Spirit that led Jesus there. Why? Because there was something that was going to come out of that time. There was a pressing, a crushing, a squeezing, a refining that was going to launch Jesus into His ministry. How many of you know Jesus did no miracles, no notable works before that testing. What’s the wisdom for us today…maybe you find yourself in a trial right now and you think it’s the devil. I want to encourage you to lean in to these trials. If you read in the New Testament in the letters of Paul, these trials have been granted to us to suffer on behalf of Christ (Philippians 1), they exist to make us and form us. Stop praying for God to remove you or deliver you from the fire. It is in the fire, in the leap of faith, in the temptations that we see God as our shield, our provider and our protector. Ask him instead to help you see Him rightly in the midst of your trials and strengthen you to endure it because there is a prize for us on the other end.
Trials and adversity are a guarantee on this side of heaven. How we respond to them makes all the difference. Paul regarded these “tests” as opportunities to grow spiritually. Instead of despairing when he encountered trials, he said he would glory in his infirmities so that the power of Christ would rest upon Him (2 Corinthians 12:9). Like Paul, let us choose to trust God and accept the grace He gives which results in Christ’s character being formed in us. “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us” (Romans 5:3-5).
When life gets hard as a Christian, it’s easy to think it’s a punishment or a consequence even though it can be at times but may not necessarily have direct correlation. Looking at pain and suffering with the correct perspective is vital for our spiritual growth because it reveals weaknesses in our lives as well as things where we’ve falsely put our hope in. It causes us to be totally reliant and dependent on God. Scripture tells believers to be prepare and to expect hardship because it is coming. More importantly, it encourages us to turn to God during those times because His strength is made perfect in our weakness and in His lovingkindness, He gives us encouragement to strength us. When we trust God to bring about His purposes through the suffering, we can be confident of two things: First, we will experience the power of God’s Spirit which will be manifested in our lives through the fruit of the Spirit. Second, God will not allow anything to happen to us without His permission and He will not let any “bad thing” happen that will not ultimately bring us more good than destruction. Maybe this season you’ve been wishing away is the very season God wants to use to sharpen your mind, strengthen your faith and prepare you for greater responsibilities ahead. For the new year, let us look to God for faith that moves mountains and pray for enduring strength that will refine us and transform us for His glory. We will miss out on seeing God’s faithfulness if we try to escape every test!
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