第五週 • 週一
晨興餧養
太十一28~30 凡勞苦擔重擔的，可以到我這裏來，我必使你們得安息。我心裏柔和謙卑，因此你們要負我的軛，且要跟我學，你們魂裏就必得安息；因為我的軛是容易的，我的擔子是輕省的。
在馬太十一章二十八節，…主似乎是說，『凡勞苦擔重擔的，可以到我這裏來得安息。你們宗教徒和屬世的人，凡勞苦擔重擔的，可以到我這裏來，我必使你們得安息。』這真是恩典的話！二十八節所題的勞苦，不僅是指為了遵守律法誡命和宗教規條而努力的勞苦，也是指為了工作成功而奮鬥的勞苦。凡這樣勞苦的，總是擔重擔的。主頌揚父，承認父的道路，並宣告神聖的經綸之後，便呼召這樣的人到祂這裏來得安息。安息不僅是指從律法與宗教，或工作與責任的勞苦並重擔中得着釋放，也是指完全的平安和完滿的滿足（馬太福音生命讀經，四三九至四四○頁）。
信息選讀
〔在馬太十一章〕二十九至三十節有得安息的路。…負主的軛就是接受父的旨意。這不是受律法或宗教義務的規律或支配，也不是受任何工作的奴役，乃是受父旨意的約束。主過這樣的生活，並不在意別的，只在意祂父的旨意（約四34，五30，六38）。祂將自己完全降服於父的旨意（太二六39、42）。因此，祂要我們跟祂學。神的旨意就是我們的軛。因此，我們不能為所欲為；我們乃是負軛的。青年人，不要以為你們是這麼自由逍遙。在主的恢復裏，我們都負了軛。負軛是何等美好！主的軛是容易的，祂的擔子是輕省的。主的軛是父的旨意，祂的擔子是將父旨意實行出來的工作。
這樣的軛是容易的，不是痛苦的；這樣的擔子是輕省的，不是沉重的。容易，原文表明合用；因此是美好、親切、柔和、溫良、容易、愉快，與艱難、嚴酷、尖銳、痛苦相對。
我們盡職事遭受反對時，我們若抵抗，就沒有平安。但我們若不抵抗，而降服於父的旨意，見證反對是出於父，我們魂裏就會得着安息。施浸者約翰不認為他的下監是出於父，所以他沒有安息。他若領悟他的下監是由於父的旨意，即使在監裏，他也必得着安息。基督這位屬天的君王，總是降服於父的旨意，接受神的旨意作祂的分，不抵抗任何事，所以祂一直有安息。我們必須跟祂學，也必須接受這樣的觀點。若是這樣，我們魂裏就會得着安息（馬太福音生命讀經，四四○至四四一頁）。
信徒在他們靈裏翻印祂，照祂的榜樣負祂的軛—神的旨意—並為神的經綸勞苦（太十一29下，彼前二21）。主告訴我們，要跟祂學。跟祂學就是翻印祂，而不是在外面模仿祂。這樣，我們就成了祂的複製和大量的產品。跟祂學的第一個要求是負祂的軛，這軛就是神的旨意。神的旨意必須成為我們的軛，我們必須把頸項擺在這軛之下。七十年前，我還是個青年人，就接受了耶穌的軛。那個軛在已過七十年保護了我。
我們也必須是為神的經綸勞苦的人。世人都在許多事上勞苦擔重擔，他們非常的忙碌。主在呼召這些勞苦的、擔重擔的、沒有安息和滿足的，到祂這裏來，好使祂能賜給他們真正的安息和滿足。安息而沒有滿足不是真安息。我們必須負祂的軛，照着祂的模樣，跟隨祂的腳蹤，為着神的經綸勞苦（李常受文集一九九四至一九九七年第三冊，七○一頁）。
參讀：馬太福音生命讀經，第三十一篇；神人的生活，第十二至十三篇。
WEEK 5 — DAY 1
Morning Nourishment
Matt. 11:28-30 Come to Me all who toil and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.
In Matthew 11:28 the Lord…seemed to be saying, “All of you who toil and are burdened, come to Me and rest. All of you religious people and all of you worldly people who are toiling and are burdened, come to Me, and I will give you rest.” What a gracious word! The toil mentioned in verse 28 refers not only to the toil of striving to keep the commandments of the law and religious regulations but also to the toil of struggling to be successful in any work. Whoever toils thus is always heavily burdened. After the Lord extolled the Father, acknowledging the Father’s way and declaring the divine economy, He called this kind of people to come to Him for rest. Rest refers not only to being set free from the toil and burden under the law or religion or under any work or responsibility but also to perfect peace and full satisfaction. (Life-study of
Matthew, pp. 371-372)
Today’s Reading
In Matthew 11:29 and 30 we have the way to rest…To take the Lord’s yoke is to take the will of the Father. It is not to be regulated or controlled by any obligations of the law or religion or to be enslaved by any work but to be constrained by the will of the Father. The Lord lived such a life, caring for nothing but the will of His Father (John 4:34; 5:30; 6:38). He submitted Himself fully to the Father’s will (Matt. 26:39, 42). Hence, He asks us to learn from Him. God’s will is our yoke. Thus, we are not free to do as we please; rather, we are yoked. Young people, do not think that you are so free or liberated. In the Lord’s recovery we all have been yoked. How good it is to be yoked! The Lord’s yoke is easy and His burden is light. The Lord’s yoke is the Father’s will, and His burden is the work to carry out the Father’s will. Such a yoke is easy, not bitter, and such a burden is light, not heavy. The Greek word rendered “easy” means “fit for use”; hence, good, kindly, mild, gentle, easy, pleasant, in contrast to hard, harsh, sharp, and bitter.
If we are opposed as we minister, and we resist, we will not have peace. But if instead of resisting we submit to the will of the Father, testifying that the opposition is of the Father, we will have rest in our souls. John the Baptist did not regard his imprisonment as of the Father; therefore, he was not at rest. If he had realized that his imprisonment was due to the Father’s will, he would have been at rest, even in prison. Christ, the heavenly King, always submitted to the Father’s will, taking God’s will as His portion and not resisting anything. Hence, He was always at rest. We must learn of Him and also take this view. If we do, we will have rest in our souls. (Life-study of Matthew, pp. 372-373)
The believers copy the Lord in their spirit by taking His yoke—God’s will— and toiling for God’s economy according to His model (Matt. 11:29a; 1 Pet. 2:21). The Lord told us to learn from Him. To learn from Him is to copy Him, not to imitate Him outwardly. In this way we become His duplication and mass production. The first requirement in learning from Him is to take His yoke, which is God’s will. God’s will has to yoke us, and we have to put our neck into this yoke. Seventy years ago as a young man, I took the yoke of Jesus. That yoke has protected me for the past seventy years.
We also need to be those who toil for God’s economy. All the worldly people are toiling and are burdened in many things. They are very busy. The Lord is calling those who are toiling, who are burdened, and who have no rest or satisfaction to come to Him so that He can give them the real rest with satisfaction. The rest without satisfaction is not the real rest. We take His yoke and toil for God’s economy according to His model, following Him in His footsteps. (CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 3, “The God-man Living,” p. 557)
Further Reading: Life-study of Matthew, msg. 31; CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 3, “The God-man Living,” chs. 12—13
