第三篇 用起初的爱来爱主，享受主作生命树，并成为金灯台作耶稣的见证，为着建造那作神永远经纶之目标的新耶路撒冷
Loving the Lord with the First Love, Enjoying the Lord as the Tree of Life, and Being the Golden Lampstand as the Testimony of Jesus for the Building Up of the New Jerusalem as the Goal of God's Eternal Economy
读经：启二1~7，弗六24，提后一15，林后十一2~3，约十四21、23，二一15~17
壹 在启示录二章七节，生命树是指钉十字架（由树，就是木头所含示─彼前二24）并复活（由神的生命所含示─约十一25）的基督；今天祂是在召会中，这召会的完成乃是新耶路撒冷，在其中这位钉死并复活的基督将是生命树，滋养神所有的赎民，并作他们的享受，直到永远（启二二2、14，参出十五25~26）。─引用经文
I. In Revelation 2:7 the tree of life signifies the crucified (implied in the tree as a piece of wood—1 Pet. 2:24) and resurrected (implied in the life of God—John 11:25) Christ, who today is in the church, the consummation of which will be the New Jerusalem, in which the crucified and resurrected Christ will be the tree of life for the nourishment and enjoyment of all God's redeemed people for eternity (Rev. 22:2, 14; cf. Exo. 15:25-26).
贰 在亚西亚的众召会，包括在以弗所的召会，离弃了使徒保罗许配的职事（提后一15，林后十一2~3）；因此，我们看见在大约二十六年之后，使徒约翰写信给在以弗所的召会时，他们已经离弃了起初的爱，并失去了对基督作生命树的真正享受（启二4~5、7）：─引用经文
II. The churches in Asia, including the church in Ephesus, had turned away from the apostle Paul's betrothing ministry (2 Tim. 1:15; 2 Cor. 11:2-3); thus, we see that approximately twenty-six years later, when the apostle John wrote the epistle to the church in Ephesus, they had left their first love and lost the genuine enjoyment of Christ as the tree of life (Rev. 2:4-5, 7):
一 真正的新约职事总是挑旺我们用起初的爱来爱主耶稣，加强我们单纯地吃并享受基督这生命树作我们生命的供应─林后十一2~3，三3~6。
A. The genuine ministry of the New Testament always stirs us up to love the Lord Jesus with the first love, strengthening us in the simplicity of eating and enjoying Christ as the tree of life for our life supply—2 Cor. 11:2-3; 3:3-6.
二 用起初的爱爱主，就是在凡事上让主居首位，居第一位，受祂的爱困迫，在我们的生活中尊祂为一切，并接受祂作一切─启二4~5，西一18下，林后五14~15，可十二30，诗七三25~26。
B. To love the Lord with the first love is to give Him the preeminence, the first place, in all things, being constrained by His love to regard and take Him as everything in our life—Rev. 2:4-5; Col. 1:18b; 2 Cor. 5:14-15; Mark 12:30; Psa. 73:25-26.
三 保罗在给以弗所人之书信的结语乃是以恩典祝福“一切在不朽坏之中，爱我们主耶稣基督的人”（六24）；以弗所书一再用“在爱里”这一富有情意的辞句（一4，三17，四2、15~16，五2）。─引用经文
C. Paul's concluding word in the Epistle to the Ephesians is a blessing of grace to "all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ in incorruptibility" (6:24); in the book of Ephesians the phrase in love, which is rich in feeling, is used repeatedly (1:4; 3:17; 4:2, 15-16; 5:2).
四 以弗所书的目标是要把我们带进爱，就是神内在的本质里，好叫我们享受是爱的神，并在这甜美的神圣之爱里享受祂的同在，而像基督一样地爱别人─一15，二4，三19，五2、25，六23，参约壹四16~19。
D. The goal of the book of Ephesians is to bring us into love, God's inner substance, that we may enjoy God as love and enjoy His presence in the sweetness of the divine love and thereby love others as Christ did—1:15; 2:4; 3:19; 5:2, 25; 6:23; cf. 1 John 4:16-19.
五 在以弗所的召会在爱主的事上失败了；这失败成了历代召会失败的主因─太二四12，可十二30~31，参但七25。
E. The church in Ephesus failed in the matter of loving the Lord; such a failure became the main reason for the failure of the church throughout the ages—Matt. 24:12; Mark 12:30-31; cf. Dan. 7:25.
六 在启示录二章一至七节主给以弗所召会的书信中，有四个主要的点；这四个要点的四个英文字都开始于字母“L”─爱（love）、生命（life）、光（light）和灯台（lampstand）：
F. There are four main points in the Lord's epistle to the church in Ephesus in Revelation 2:1-7; these four main points are four words that begin with the letter l—love, life, light, and lampstand:
１ 我们必须在各方面、在凡事上让主耶稣居首位，以恢复起初的爱；这样，我们就会享受祂作生命树，而这生命会成为生命之光─约八12，弗五8~9、13。
1. We must give the Lord Jesus the preeminence in every way and in everything to recover the first love; then we will enjoy Him as the tree of life, and this life will become the light of life—John 8:12; Eph. 5:8-9, 13.
２ 然后我们就会作为金灯台照耀，作耶稣的见证；否则，灯台就要从我们挪去─启一9~12、20：
2. Then we will be shining as the golden lampstand, as the testimony of Jesus; otherwise, the lampstand will be removed from us—Rev. 1:9-12, 20:
a 金灯台象征三一神─父是本质，化身于子；子是具体化身，借灵彰显；灵则完满地实化并彰显为众召会，而众召会乃是耶稣的见证─出二五31~40，亚四2~10，启一10~12。
a. The golden lampstand symbolizes the Triune God—the Father as the substance is embodied in the Son, the Son as the embodiment is expressed through the Spirit, the Spirit is fully realized and expressed as the churches, and the churches are the testimony of Jesus—Exo. 25:31-40; Zech. 4:2-10; Rev. 1:10-12.
b 在神圣的思想里，金灯台实际上乃是活的、生长的树，有花萼和杏花：因此，灯台描绘具体化身在基督里的三一神，乃是一棵活的、复活的金树─在我们里面、同着我们、借着我们、并从我们里面生长、分枝、发苞并开花，产生光的果子（那灵的果子）；这果子在性质上是善的，在手续上是义的，在彰显上是真实的，使神得以彰显，成为我们日常行事为人中的实际─出二五31、35，弗五8~9，加五22~23，约十二36。
b. In the divine thought the golden lampstand is actually a living and growing tree with calyxes and almond blossoms; thus, the lampstand portrays the Triune God embodied in Christ as a living, golden tree of resurrection—growing, branching, budding, and blossoming in us, with us, by us, and out of us as the fruit of the light (the fruit of the Spirit), which is good in nature, righteous in procedure, and real in expression, that God may be expressed as reality in our daily walk—Exo. 25:31, 35; Eph. 5:8-9; Gal. 5:22-23; John 12:36.
七 吃生命树，就是享受基督作我们生命的供应，该是召会生活中首要的事；基督作生命树“好作食物”（创二9），使我们可以吃祂作我们的享受，并被祂构成，作神的彰显（一26，约六57、63）：─引用经文
G. Eating the tree of life, that is, enjoying Christ as our life supply, should be the primary matter in the church life; Christ as the tree of life is "good for food" (Gen. 2:9) so that we may eat Him for our enjoyment and be constituted with Him for God's expression (1:26; John 6:57, 63):
１ 召会生活的内容在于享受基督─我们越享受基督，召会生活的内容就越丰富；但我们若要享受基督，就必须用起初的爱来爱祂。
1. The content of the church life depends on the enjoyment of Christ—the more we enjoy Him, the richer the content will be; but to enjoy Christ requires us to love Him with the first love.
２ 我们若离弃对主起初的爱，就要失去对基督的享受，并且会失去耶稣的见证；结果，灯台要从我们挪去─启二1~7。
2. If we leave our first love toward the Lord, we will miss the enjoyment of Christ and lose the testimony of Jesus; consequently, the lampstand will be removed from us—Rev. 2:1-7.
３ 爱主、享受主以及成为主的见证，这三者乃是并行的。
3. These three things—loving the Lord, enjoying the Lord, and being the testimony of the Lord—go together.
叁 主的恢复乃是恢复用起初的爱，上好的爱，来爱主耶稣，并恢复吃主耶稣作生命树，为着建造基督生机的身体，就是建造那作神永远经纶之目标的新耶路撒冷─弗四15~16，启二二14：
III. The Lord's recovery is a recovery of loving the Lord Jesus with the first love, the best love, and of eating the Lord Jesus as the tree of life for the building up of the organic Body of Christ, which is the building up of the New Jerusalem as the goal of God's eternal economy—Eph. 4:15-16; Rev. 22:14:
一 我们要享受基督作生命树，就必须一直告诉祂：“主耶稣，我爱你”；如果我们向着主耶稣有火热的爱，让祂在一切事上居首位，我们就会享受祂一切的所是─二4~5、7，林前二9。
A. To enjoy Christ as the tree of life, we must tell Him all the time, "Lord Jesus, I love You"; if we have a burning love toward the Lord Jesus, giving Him the first place in all things, we will enjoy all that He is—2:4-5, 7; 1 Cor. 2:9.
二 信主就是接受祂作生命，爱主就是享受祂作生命，享受我们所接受的这人位；信是神所赐我们的，要我们用以接受基督作生命；爱是由这美妙的信所发出来的，叫我们在作我们生命的基督里，能活出三一神的一切丰富─彼后一1，来十二1~2上，林后四13，加五6，约一12~13，二一15~17，西三4。
B. To believe in the Lord is to receive Him as life, and to love the Lord is to enjoy Him as life, to enjoy the very person whom we have received; faith is given to us by God so that by it we may receive Christ as our life; love issues out of such a wonderful faith and enables us to live out all the riches of the Triune God in Christ as our life—2 Pet. 1:1; Heb. 12:1-2a; 2 Cor. 4:13; Gal. 5:6; John 1:12-13; 21:15-17; Col. 3:4.
三 我们信主耶稣时所接受的生命乃是一个人位，我们应用并享受这人位唯一的路，乃是用起初的爱来爱祂；作我们生命的主耶稣既是一个人位，我们就必须与祂有新鲜的接触，此时此刻并天天享受祂现今的同在─约十一25，十四5~6，提前一14，林后五14~15，启二4~7，西一18下，罗六4，七6。
C. The very life that we received when we believed in the Lord Jesus is a person, and the only way to apply and enjoy this person is by loving Him with the first love; since the Lord Jesus as our life is a person, we need a new contact with Him to enjoy His present presence at this very moment and day by day—John 11:25; 14:5-6; 1 Tim. 1:14; 2 Cor. 5:14-15; Rev. 2:4-7; Col. 1:18b; Rom. 6:4; 7:6.
四 “你当献上自己来爱主。没有别的路如此有效，也没有别的路如此稳妥、丰富，如此满了享受。你只要爱祂，不要在乎别的事”─雅歌中所描绘的生命与建造，二三页。
D. "Give yourself to love the Lord. No other way is so prevailing, and no other way is so safe, so rich, and so full of enjoyment. Just love Him. Do not care for anything else"—Life and Building as Portrayed in the Song of Songs, pp. 23-24.
五 我们爱祂，祂会向我们显现，并且祂和父要到我们这里来，同我们安排住处（约十四21、23）；因此，我们必须像这样祷告：“主啊，给我看见你的爱，并且用你的爱困迫我，使我爱你并向你活”；“主啊，保守我一直爱你”；我们必须不断地告诉主：“主耶稣，我爱你。主，保守我在你的爱里！求你以你自己吸引我！保守我一直在你可爱和现今的同在里。”─引用经文
E. When we love Him, He will manifest Himself to us, and He and the Father will come to us and make Their abode with us (John 14:21, 23); thus, we need to pray prayers such as, "Lord, show me Your love, and constrain me with Your love that I may love You and live to You"; "Lord, keep me loving You all the time"; we must continually tell the Lord, "Lord Jesus, I love You; Lord, keep me in Your love! Attract me with Yourself! Keep me all the time in Your loving and present presence."
六 我们越爱主，就越在与祂的交通中有祂的同在；我们要内在地在主的恢复里，就要爱主耶稣；我们若不爱主，我们对祂的恢复就了了─歌一1~4，林前二9，十六22。
F. The more we love Him, the more we will have His presence in our fellowship with Him; for us to be in the Lord's recovery in an intrinsic way is for us to love the Lord Jesus; if we do not love Him, we are finished with His recovery—S. S. 1:1-4; 1 Cor. 2:9; 16:22.
七 基于此，我们应当歌唱并祷告：“我爱我主，非用天然之爱；我无可以给你。主，我爱你；这爱全然属你，使我活在你里”（补充本诗歌三三三首，第一节）；“人的心哪，你爱什么？若非基督，无安息。哦，主，求你悦纳我心，上好之爱，来爱你。”（补充本诗歌三三五首，第一节）
G. Based upon this, we should sing and pray, "I love my Lord, but with no love of mine, / For I have none to give; / I love Thee, Lord, but all the love is Thine, / For by Thy love I live" (Hymns, #546, stanza 1); "Something every heart is loving: / If not Jesus, none can rest; / Lord, my heart to Thee is given; / Take it, for it loves Thee best" (Hymns, #547, stanza 1).