第七週■週五
晨興餧養
啓三14『你要寫信給在老底嘉的召會的使者，說，那阿們，那忠信真實的見證人，那神創造之物的元始，這樣說。』
16『你旣如溫水，也不熱也不冷，我就要從我口中把你吐出去。』
老底嘉是…走了樣的非拉鐵非。有一天弟兄相愛失去的時候，就馬上變作眾人的意見。這就是老底嘉的意思。…『老』這一個字，在希臘文的意思就是眾人；『底細亞』或者『底嘉』的意思，就是意見。…當非拉鐵非墮落的時候，弟兄就變作眾人，弟兄相愛就變作眾人的意見。…甚麼時候弟兄相愛一沒有，身體的關係一取消，生命上的來往一失去，所剩下的，就是大家的意見。沒有主的意見；大多數通過、投票、舉手而已。非拉鐵非墮落的時候，就變作老底嘉。（倪柝聲文集第三輯第四册，二八三頁。）
信息選讀
啓示錄三章十五節：『我知道你的行爲，你也不冷也不熱；我巴不得你或冷或熱。』…十七節：『因爲你說，我是富足，已經發了財，一樣都不缺；卻不知道你是那困苦、可憐、貧窮、瞎眼、赤身的。』…『你是那困苦、可憐、貧窮、瞎眼、赤身的。』這是主的看法。…屬靈的驕傲是從那裏來的呢？是從已往的歷史來的。曾有一次他們是富足的，他們就以爲今天仍然是富足的。曾有一次主憐憫他們，他們記得那個歷史，而今天卻失去了那個實際。
有一班的人〔是驕傲的人，他們〕從前是非拉鐵非，神的話是遵守的，神的名是沒有棄絕的，可是已往的生命，今天沒有了。…〔他們〕記得〔他們〕是富足，發了財，一樣都不缺，但現在他們是貧窮、瞎眼的！…你們如果要繼續在非拉鐵非的道路上，你們就得學習在神面前謙卑。
老底嘉，就是說起來樣樣都知道，事實上沒有一樣是熱切的。…記得已往時候的光榮，卻忘記了今天在神面前的光景。已過是非拉鐵非，但今天是老底嘉。…主所定規召會的道路，是非拉鐵非。（倪柝聲文集第三輯第四册，二八三至二八五、二八七頁。）
啓示錄三章十八節裏有主對老底嘉召會的勸告：『向我買…。』『買』必須付代價。恢復後又墮落的召會，需要爲她所迫切需要的金子、白衣和眼藥付代價。
首先，主勸老底嘉召會買『火煉的金子』。聖經把我們那運行作工的信（加五6）比喻爲金子，（彼前一7，）並且神聖的性情，就是基督的神性，也是由金子表徵的。（出二五11。）我們乃是藉信有分於神的性情。（彼後一1，4 ～ 5。）恢復後又墮落的召會，對基督有道理的認識，但沒有多少活的信，以有分於基督的神聖元素。她需要付代價，經過火煉的試驗，得着金的信，使她能有分於真金，就是基督自己，作祂身體生命的元素。如此她纔能成爲純金的燈臺，（啓一20，）好建造金的新耶路撒冷。（二一18。）
從經歷上我們知道，當我們有活的信，我們就享受到神聖的性情。並且我們在神聖的性情裏，就必定也有這活的信。因此，這兩樣東西是連在一起的，並且都是由金子來表徵。老底嘉召會需要這金子，就是神聖的性情，藉着基督自己這活的信，而應用並取用。我們若要得着這金子，就必須付代價。（啓示錄生命讀經，二四一、二四三頁。）
參讀：教會的正統，第五至七章、結論。
WEEK 7 — DAY 5
Morning Nourishment
Rev. 3:14 And to the messenger of the church in Laodicea write: These things says the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the beginning of the creation of God.
16 So, because you are lukewarm and neither hot nor cold, I am about to spew you out of My mouth.
Laodicea is a distorted Philadelphia. When brotherly love is gone, Philadelphia immediately turns into the opinions of many. This is the meaning of the word Laodicea…Lao in Greek means “many people,” and dikea or dicea means “opinion.” As soon as Philadelphia becomes degraded, the “brothers” become the “many people,” and its “brotherly love” becomes “the opinions of the many.”…When brotherly love is lost, the Body relationship is lost. The fellowship of life is cut off as well, leaving only the opinion of men. The opinion of the Lord is lost, and the only things left are the vote of the majority, ballots, and the show of hands. Once Philadelphia falls, it becomes Laodicea. (CWWN, vol. 50, “Messages for Building Up New Believers (3),” p. 784)
Todays Reading
“I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot” [Rev. 3:15]…Verse 17 says, “Because you say, I am wealthy and have become rich and have need of nothing, and do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked.”…In the eyes of the Lord, the characteristics of Laodicea are lukewarmness and spiritual pride…Where does spiritual pride come from? It comes from history. Some were once rich, and they think that they are still rich. The Lord was once merciful to them, and they remember their history. But now they have lost that reality.
There is only one group of proud people—those who were Philadelphia and who had once kept God’s word and not denied His name. Yet the life which they once had is lost…They remember that they were once wealthy and had become rich and had need of nothing. But they are now poor and blind! If you want to continue in the way of Philadelphia, remember to humble yourselves before God.
Laodicea means to know everything, but in reality to be fervent about nothing…It remembers its former glory but forgets its present condition before God. Formerly, it was Philadelphia; today it is Laodicea. The Godordained pathway for the church is the way of Philadelphia. (CWWN, vol. 50, “Messages for Building Up New Believers (3),” pp. 784-787)
The Lord’s counsel to the church in Laodicea [is] “…Buy from Me…” [Rev. 3:18]. Buying requires the paying of a price. The degraded recovered church must pay a price for the gold, white garments, and eyesalve, which she desperately needs.
First, the Lord counseled the church in Laodicea to buy gold refined by fire. In the Bible our operating, working faith (Gal. 5:6) is likened to gold (1 Pet. 1:7), and the divine nature of God, which is the divinity of Christ, is typified by gold (Exo. 25:11). We partake of the divine nature of God by faith (2 Pet. 1:1, 4-5). The degraded recovered church has the knowledge of the doctrines concerning Christ but not much living faith to partake of the divine element of Christ. She needs to pay the price to gain the golden faith through the fiery trials that she may participate in the real gold, which is Christ Himself as the life element to His Body. Thus, she can become a pure golden lampstand (Rev. 1:20) for the building of the golden New Jerusalem (21:18).
We know experientially that when we have the living faith, we enjoy the divine nature. And when we are in the divine nature, we surely have this living faith. Hence, these two things are combined and are both signified by gold. The church in Laodicea needs this gold—the divine nature applied, appropriated, by the living faith, which is Christ Himself. If we would gain this, we must pay the price. (Life-study of Revelation, pp. 195-197)
Further Reading: CWWN, vol. 47, “The Orthodoxy of the Church,” chs. 6—9
