四月十一日[mp3_embed playlst=”/downloading/audio/evening/04/0411.mp3″]
经文: 求祢看顾我的困苦、我的艰难、赦免我一切的罪。(诗篇二十五:18)
将我们的忧伤和恳求赦罪的心连结在一起来祷告是好的。我们不应被困苦压倒以致忘记了自己的过犯得罪了上帝。大卫将他的忧伤带到上帝的面前,同时也向上帝承认自己的罪。我们必须将忧伤带到上帝前。即使小小的伤痛也可以带到上帝面前,因为祂数点过你的头发。重大的忧伤也可以交托给祂,因为祂以手托住大海。不论你目前的困难是什么,到祂眼前,你会发现祂能,也愿意解除你的困难。但是,我们也必须将罪带到上帝面前。我们必须将罪带到十字架前。基督的宝血将洗涤一切罪孽并摧毁罪的破坏力量。最后,我们必须以正确的心态将忧伤和罪带到主前。大卫为自己的忧伤所祈求的是:“求祢看顾我的困苦、我的艰难。”接下去确切地恳求:“赦免我一切的罪。”许多在患难中的人会说:“除去我的困苦、我的艰难,鉴察我的罪。”但是大卫呼求:“主啊,至于我的困苦和艰难,我不能指挥祢的大智,只求祢看顾,我将它们给祢。至于我的罪,主啊,我知道必须求祢赦免,我不能再忍受被罪咒诅。”基督徒明白忧伤较罪容易忍受。他能继续背负他的困难,但是绝无法承担过犯的重压。
Evening, April 11
Scripture: “Look upon mine affliction and my pain; and forgive all my sins.”(Psalm 25:18)
It is well for us when prayers about our sorrows are linked with pleas concerning our sins-when, being under God’s hand, we are not wholly taken up with our pain, but remember our offences against God. It is well, also, to take both sorrow and sin to the same place. It was to God that David carried his sorrow: it was to God that David confessed his sin. Observe, then, we must take our sorrows to God. Even your little sorrows you may roll upon God, for he counteth the hairs of your head; and your great sorrows you may commit to him, for he holdeth the ocean in the hollow of his hand. Go to him, whatever your present trouble may be, and you shall find him able and willing to relieve you. But we must take our sins to God too. We must carry them to the cross, that the blood may fall upon them, to purge away their guilt, and to destroy their defiling power.
The special lesson of the text is this:-that we are to go to the Lord with sorrows and with sins in the right spirit. Note that all David asks concerning his sorrow is, “Look upon mine affliction and my pain;” but the next petition is vastly more express, definite, decided, plain-“Forgive all my sins.” Many sufferers would have put it, “Remove my affliction and my pain, and look at my sins.” But David does not say so; he cries, “Lord, as for my affliction and my pain, I will not dictate to thy wisdom. Lord, look at them, I will leave them to thee, I should be glad to have my pain removed, but do as thou wilt; but as for my sins, Lord, I know what I want with them; I must have them forgiven; I cannot endure to lie under their curse for a moment.” A Christian counts sorrow lighter in the scale than sin; he can bear that his troubles should continue, but he cannot support the burden of his transgressions.