牧者心聲
沒有別的路
周曉暉牧師
2024 年 4 月 6 日 / 7 日
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「憑信，他離別吾珥，因信，全然奉上愛子⋯⋯」或許你也唱過這首詩歌〈因著信〉，歌詞是取材自希伯來書。希伯來書就是用這些信心英雄人物的典故，勾勒出基督徒的一生猶如一趟長途旅程。
原來基督徒在世，就像是旅行寄居的人。浪跡天涯，多姿多彩，但箇中也有艱辛，也會遇上危難。身處凶險時局與環境，有人或會因而倒退，不願續行天路。因為，妥協看起來比堅持容易。
希伯來書約在公元 60 至 70 年之間寫成，佚名的作者教導和提醒身處羅馬的猶太基督徒和外邦信徒（此書可能是一篇傳閱的講章）。當時正值羅馬皇帝尼祿的統治，史料顯示連羅馬人自己也認為他是一名暴君。尼祿將羅馬城被大火嚴重焚毀的事件，嫁禍給城中的基督徒，並下令捉拿、折磨、殘殺他們，局部展開羅馬帝國對基督徒的逼迫，基督信仰不受社會歡迎。為此，有信徒公開離棄基督信仰。這些人並不是否定神，他們仍希望有離罪成聖的途徑。這時，因著耶路撒冷城的聖殿還存在（第二聖殿後來在公元 70 年才被毀），故此其中的獻祭禮儀連同猶太信仰內的各式飲食潔淨規條，便成為壓逼下可走的妥協路。於是，有的人選擇重投猶太信仰，從此不再宣認耶穌基督。
希伯來書大量引用舊約去論證、說明和傳講耶穌基督的超越性，祂成就了舊約所預告的；耶穌基督就是終極的拯救之道。比起舊約中任何高超、特別的人物，例如傳達神話語的天使、出埃及時作為子民和神之間的中保摩西、大祭司亞倫，還有舊約律法中的獻祭、贖罪祭中的羔羊等等事物，耶穌基督是比這一切都更美好、更尊貴、更超凡、以及完全。祂已經在十字架上，為人打通了一條又新、又活、持續、終極的出路。終極就是沒有別的路，舊的沒用，將來也不會有另外的。
詩歌〈因著信〉結尾的歌詞是這樣寫：「憑信，我們懷著憑據；因信，同尋著了應許；憑信，能夠發現在世間只是寄居，朝更美家鄉走回去！」而希伯來書告訴我們，由始至終，「信」是指我們「信靠」昨日、今日、直到永遠都不變改的主耶穌。換句話說，我們不是因著心中的一點信念，而是有憑據地跟隨這位可信的群羊大牧人走這一生的旅程。
“By faith, he left Er; because of faith, he sacrificed his beloved son…” You may be familiar with this Chinese worship song (“Because of Faith”), the lyrics of which come from the Book of Hebrews. Using the stories of the heroes of faith, Hebrews shows that the Christian life is like a long journey.
Christians on earth are like sojourners on a foreign land. Roaming far and wide can be colorful but not without adversities and crises. In difficult times and environments, some may falter and are reluctant to continue to walk on the heavenly path. Compromise seems easier than persistence.
The Book of Hebrews was written around 60 to 70 AD. It may have been a sermon circulated among the churches. It carries exhortations and reminders from an anonymous writer to the Jewish Christians and pagan believers in Rome. The Roman emperor then was Nero, a tyrant according to historical records by writers including those from Rome. He watched Rome badly burn and blamed the great fire on the Christians in Rome, ordering the arrest, torture, and execution of Christians. That started the Roman empire’s persecution of Christians. The Christian faith was not welcome in society. That caused some Christians to publicly forfeit their faith. These people were not against God. They still hoped for a channel by which they could be sanctified. At that time, the temple was still in Jerusalem (the second temple was not destroyed until 70 AD). Thus, the temple’s sacrificial rites along with the food cleansing rules in Judaism became a choice for compromise amid the persecution. Some chose to rejoin the Jewish religion and no longer profess their faith in Jesus Christ.
The Book of Hebrews cites the Old Testament extensively to support its assertions, illustrations and proclamations about the superiority of Jesus Christ and that He fulfilled the prophecies of the Old Testament. The Book points out that Jesus Christ is the ultimate salvation. Compared with the noble and special characters in the Old Testament such as herald angels, Moses the mediator between God and His people in Exodus, the High Priest Aaron as well as the sacrifices under the Old Testament laws and the lamb in the atoning sacrifice, Jesus Christ is better, nobler, more superior and He is perfect. On the cross, He has made for man a new, living, lasting and ultimate way out. It is ultimate, meaning there is no other way. The old ones are obsolete. There will not be any new ones in the future.
The song “Because of Faith” concludes with these lines: “By faith we have the assurance; Because of faith we have the promise; By faith we realize we are exiles on earth heading towards a better home!”
The Book of Hebrews tells us that all along, “faith” means “trust” in the Lord Jesus who is the same yesterday and today and forever. In other words, we are not relying on the faith in our hearts but we follow with assurance the trustworthy Chief Shepherd of the flock to walk this journey of life.
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