【049】今日灵粮 Spiritual FOOD TODAY：人的尘世存在包括侍奉神，会持续到神为你安排的计划完成为止。 A Person's Earthly Existence, Including Serving Continues Until God's Plan for You is Fulfilled.

【SCRIPTURE 经文】：侍奉神意味着侍奉他人，遵循福音的教导，爱人如己。这正是耶稣在祂的一生和事工中牺牲生命所成就的。唯有通过侍奉，我们才能真正表达对神的爱，顺服祂的旨意，顺服祂的创造，并彼此相爱。因此，耶稣教导祂的门徒：“ 因为人子来，并不是要受人的服事，乃是要服事人，并且要舍命作多人的赎价。”Serving God means serving others, following the gospel's teachings and loving our neighbors as ourselves. This is precisely what Jesus accomplished in his life and ministry, even at the cost of His life. Only through service can we truly express our love for God, submit to His will and creation, and love one another. Therefore, Jesus taught His disciples: “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (马可福音 Mark 10:45)

【SHARING 分享】: 《今日灵粮 Spiritual FOOD TODAY》 分享的经文是马可福音 Mark 10:45。许多圣经学者认同救主耶稣在今天经文中的教导：“... 为要服事人，并且舍命，作多人的赎价。” 这节经文强调了人在服事神之前不至于死的赎价价值。一位圣经学者解释说，这一概念反映了一种信念，即人的生命与完成神圣的使命息息相关。这一概念意味着上帝对每个人都有特定的计划，他们的尘世存在将持续到该计划完成为止。虽然这一教义并非普遍信奉，但它存在于一些基督教神学中，强调了忠于上帝旨意的重要性。

约翰·派博牧师在他的 “纯粹喜乐 Pure Joy” 专栏中发表了一篇题为 “服事比生命更重要 Serving is More Important Than Life” 的讲道。他引用了使徒行传 Acts 20:24 作为提醒和反思的催化剂。他强调，当基督徒服侍他人时，使徒保罗劝诫我们要效法他： “我不以性命为念，也不看为宝贵，只要行完我的路程，成就我从主耶稣所领受的职事，为神恩惠的福音作见证。”

派博牧师继续解释说，根据新约，“服侍” 是所有基督徒都会做的事。以弗所书 Ephesians 4-12 提到 “成全圣徒，各尽其职” 是牧师的责任，而平信徒则是 “各尽其职” 的人。每个基督徒服侍的方式都不同。服侍并非像长老或执事那样的职分，而是一种致力于彰显基督的生活方式。这意味着要遵循加拉太书 Galatians 6:10 的话： “有了机会，就当向众人行善，向信徒一家的人更当这样。” 无论我们是银行家还是泥瓦匠，这意味着我们的目标都是帮助他人在信仰和圣洁上成长。

完成我们的事工比我们的生命更重要。正是这种信念，让那些献身于此的人的生命如此鼓舞人心。他们中的许多人言行一致，如同使徒行传 20 中记载的保罗一样：完成上帝赋予我们的事工比我们的生命更重要。派博牧师甚至质疑，你是否认为你需要为你的事工而牺牲生命？恰恰相反，你如何舍弃生命，或许才是你事工的基石。耶稣在三十多岁时就献出了自己的生命，这显然是事实。我们不必为完成事工而感到不安；只有上帝知道祂为我们事奉所命定的时间。

亨利·马丁牧师曾言：“如果上帝有工作要我做，我就不会死。” 换句话说，在我的事工完成之前，我不会死。因此，事工比生命本身更重要。祈求慈悲的上帝赐予我们理解，我们在世上的生命在于侍奉上帝，并且会一直持续到上帝为我们安排的计划得以实现。正如派博牧师所言，这个概念可以有多种解读，例如长寿以完成我们的使命，或在去世前经历一段漫长的服务期。它有力地提醒我们，生命是有目的的，充满信仰和服务的人生可以令人充实。它鼓励我们寻求上帝的旨意，拥抱我们的呼召，并带着目标过好每一天。

The Scripture shared in《今日灵粮 Spiritual FOOD TODAY》 is Mark 10:45. Many Bible scholars agree with the Savior Jesus' teaching in today's passage: "... that he might serve and give his life a ransom for many." This verse emphasizes the ransom value of not dying before serving God. One Bible scholar explains that this concept reflects a belief that human life is closely tied to fulfilling a divine mission. This concept implies that God has a specific plan for each person, and their earthly existence will continue until that plan is fulfilled. While this doctrine is not universally held, it exists in some Christian theologies, emphasizing the importance of faithfulness to God's will.

In his "Pure Joy" column, Pastor John Piper published a sermon titled "Serving is More Important Than Life" He quoted Acts 20:24 as a catalyst for reminder and reflection. He emphasized that when Christians serve others, the Apostle Paul exhorts us to follow his example: "I do not consider my life of any account to myself, nor do I regard it as precious to me, but only that I may finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, that I may bear witness to the gospel of God's grace."

Pastor Piper went on to explain that, according to the New Testament, "serving" is something all Christians do. Ephesians 4-12 mentions the "equipping of the saints for the work of ministry" as the responsibility of pastors, while lay people are those who "do the work of ministry." Every Christian serves differently. Serving is not an office like elder or deacon, but a lifestyle dedicated to manifesting Christ. This means adhering to the words of Galatians 6:10: "As we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who are of the household of faith." Whether we are bankers or bricklayers, this means our goal is to help others grow in faith and holiness.

Fulfilling our ministry is more important than our own lives. It is this conviction that makes the lives of those who dedicate themselves to this ministry so inspiring. Many of them practice what they preach, like Paul in Acts 20: completing our God-given ministry is more important than our lives. Pastor Piper even questions, "Do you believe you need to sacrifice your life for your ministry?" On the contrary, how you lay down your life may be the foundation of your ministry. Jesus laid down his life in his thirties, a fact that is clearly true. We need not be complacent about completing our ministry; only God knows the time He has ordained for our service.

Pastor Henry Martin once said, "If God has a work for me to do, I will not die." In other words, I will not die until my ministry is complete. Therefore, ministry is more important than life itself. Pray that a merciful God will grant us the understanding that our life on earth is meant to serve God and will continue until His plan for us is fulfilled. As Pastor Piper suggests, this concept can be interpreted in many ways, such as living long enough to fulfill our mission or experiencing a long period of service before death. It is a powerful reminder that life has purpose and that a life filled with faith and service can be fulfilling. It encourages us to seek God’s will, embrace our calling, and live each day with purpose.

【049】 Whisper Web transfers this sharing from Dr. John King 张皇卿博士 on “今日灵粮 Spiritual FOOD TODAY” at 分享自脸书网站：www.facebook.com/johnking9999 和 and 维克斯站：johnking9999.wixsite.com/website Edmonton, AB, Canada Friday 08.01.2025.