五月一日[mp3_embed playlst=”/downloading/audio/evening/05/0501.mp3″]
经文: 我是沙仑的玫瑰。（雅歌二：1）
无论在世上是何等的美丽，在属灵的世界中，耶稣基督的美丽都十倍于它。许多人认为玫瑰是花中最甜美的，但是耶稣在人心中的花园里，比起世上任何花园中的玫瑰都还要美。祂在万人中是最美丽的。祂是太阳，其他的不过是星宿。与祂相比，天空的白昼皆成黑暗，因为主的美丽超越一切。耶稣不仅是玫瑰，且是沙仑的玫瑰──最好中的最好。祂确实是可爱，并且超越一切的可爱。玫瑰是悦人眼目的，其香气更是令人愉快、苏醒人心的。同样地，心灵中的每种感觉都向耶稣存着感激之情。即使回忆祂的爱也是甜美的。拿一朵沙仑的玫瑰，将其花瓣一片片剥下，存放在回忆之罐内，香气将长久存留，充满整个房间。基督能完全满足受过最高教育之心灵的最高鉴赏力。最伟大的香水专家十分满意玫瑰的香味。当心灵达到真正鉴赏力的最高层次时，她将只满足于基督，也将更能欣赏祂。天国所拥有最伟大的莫过于沙仑的玫瑰。人的言语和世上的事物都无法形容祂。地上最佳之美妙组合，只能描述祂丰富的珍贵于万一。赐福的玫瑰啊，永远在心中盛开吧。
Evening, May 1
Scripture: “I am the rose of Sharon.”(Song of Solomon 2:1)
Whatever there may be of beauty in the material world, Jesus Christ possesses all that in the spiritual world in a tenfold degree. Amongst flowers the rose is deemed the sweetest, but Jesus is infinitely more beautiful in the garden of the soul than the rose can be in the gardens of earth. He takes the first place as the fairest among ten thousand. He is the sun, and all others are the stars; the heavens and the day are dark in comparison with him, for the King in his beauty transcends all. “I am the rose of Sharon.” This was the best and rarest of roses. Jesus is not “the rose” alone, he is “the rose of Sharon,” just as he calls his righteousness “gold,” and then adds, “the gold of Ophir”－the best of the best. He is positively lovely, and superlatively the loveliest. There is variety in his charms. The rose is delightful to the eye, and its scent is pleasant and refreshing; so each of the senses of the soul, whether it be the taste or feeling, the hearing, the sight, or the spiritual smell, finds appropriate gratification in Jesus. Even the recollection of his love is sweet. Take the rose of Sharon, and pull it leaf from leaf, and lay by the leaves in the jar of memory, and you shall find each leaf fragrant long afterwards, filling the house with perfume. Christ satisfies the highest taste of the most educated spirit to the very full. The greatest amateur in perfumes is quite satisfied with the rose: and when the soul has arrived at her highest pitch of true taste, she shall still be content with Christ, nay, she shall be the better able to appreciate him. Heaven itself possesses nothing which excels the rose of Sharon. What emblem can fully set forth his beauty? Human speech and earth-born things fail to tell of him. Earth’s choicest charms commingled, feebly picture his abounding preciousness. Blessed rose, bloom in my heart for ever!
