牧者心聲
以神為樂
蕭壽華牧師
2025 年 7 月 26 日／27 日
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真理樓辦公室一位教牧同工的房門上，有一節用美麗字體寫的金句：“Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4)「又當以耶和華為樂，他就將你心裡所求的賜給你。」（和修版）我每次經過看見，心中都會有一份欣慰。
近年的新聞報道社會及政經的局勢時，常提及「不確定性」這幾個字，沒錯，這正是現今世界的特徵。沒有人能預測政局的轉變、家庭的變動、身體突然的病患、惡人無端的加害，會怎樣叫我們的日常生活翻天覆地我們又怎能「以神為樂」？主耶穌在地上的日子也是「多受痛苦、常經憂患」，以神為樂的人生，看來不是無憂無慮、常常歡笑、沒有苦困。
以賽亞書五十八章談及禁食與安息日的操練：「你若禁止自己的腳踐踏安息日，不在我的聖日做自己高興的事，稱安息日為『可喜樂的』，稱耶和華的聖日為『可尊重的』，尊敬這日，不走自己的道路，不求自己的喜悅，也不隨意說話；」其中說明人若要經歷安息，便要放下自我，尊重神的旨意，喜悅祂的道路。之後經文立刻帶出一種滿足的人生「那麼，你就會以耶和華為樂。耶和華要使你乘駕於地的高處，又要以你祖先雅各的產業養育你；這是耶和華親口說的。」神親口說明，表示祂確實的應許：人若願意放下自己堅執的平穩安舒、所喜悅的無風無浪生活（這不一定錯），而更願意喜樂地選擇按神旨意生活，以遵行祂旨意為自己的喜樂，神便應許要讓他「乘駕於地的高處」。
詩篇三十七篇指出神清楚知道人心裡所渴求的是甚麼，但祂不容我們強求索取，更不喜悅我們嫉妒惡人，學效他們用惡去得到心中所求，包括正當的渴求。更重要的，人要首先以神為樂，就是「倚靠耶和華而行善」、「安心倚靠耶和華，耐性等候他」，祂就應許將我們心裡所求的都賜下。原來要得到心中所求的途徑，是以神為樂。
事實上，在這個苦罪的世界內，人若要以神為樂，就必然會經歷憂患，但主耶穌留下的見證，卻是「因那擺在前面的喜樂，輕看羞辱，忍受了十字架的苦難，如今已坐在神寶座的右邊」（來十二 2），我們不是沒有患難羞辱，而是輕看苦難，坦然面對，知道這是神對我們的旨意，忍耐行在其中必至終蒙恩！一位年長姊妹百病纏身，終日要處理身體的問題，有人問她為甚麼可以忍耐面對，她說：我以神為樂！
Outside a pastoral staff’s office in Truth Centre hangs a Bible verse in an exquisite typeface: “Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart" (Psalm 37:4). I feel comforted every time I pass by that door.
The word “uncertainty” is very often heard in the news in recent years, whether on the social, political or economic front. Indeed, that is the characteristic of our world today. No one can predict how changes in government, family disruptions, sudden illnesses, or unjustified harm from wicked people might turn our daily lives upside down. As such, how can we "delight in the LORD"? The Lord Jesus on earth was “a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.” A life delighting in God does not seem to be free from worries, always happy, or without hardship.
Isaiah 58 talks about training on fasting and the Sabbath: "If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the LORD's holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words..." It tells us that to experience rest, man must lay down his self, respect God's will, and delight in His way. The passage then immediately describes a life of satisfaction — "then you will find your joy in the LORD, and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob. For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” God speaking with His own mouth means it is a concrete promise of God: If man is willing to lay down his stubborn desire for stability and comfort and the trouble-free life he prefers (which is not necessarily wrong), and is more willing to joyfully choose to live according to God's will, and find his delight in obeying His will, then God promises to make him "ride in triumph on the heights of the land."
Psalm 37 points out that God knows exactly what the human heart desires. Yet, He would not allow us to seek it unduly, nor is He pleased if we envy the wicked or learn from them to use evil ways to get what he wants, including desires for something good. More importantly, man must first delight in the LORD. This means "Trust in the LORD and do good," and "Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him." Then He promises to give us the desires of our heart. The way to receive the heart's desires is to delight in the LORD.
The truth is, in this world of suffering and sin, we will definitely go through hardship and anxiety if we wish to delight in the LORD. But the Lord Jesus has left us an example: "For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:2). We are not without tribulation and shame, but we scorn hardship and face it calmly, knowing this is God's will for us. Persistence in the process will ultimately be met with grace! An elderly sister suffers multiple illnesses and has to tackle health problems all day long. Someone asked her how she could endure all of that. She replied: I delight in the LORD!
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