1. Hello listening friends, we are glad you’ve joined us one more time.
亲爱的朋友你好，很高兴你能收听这个节目。
2. It is the desire of our hearts and the prayer of our lips that these messages have been impacting your life.
我们诚心为你祈祷，愿这些信息能造就你的生命。
3. Let me remind you that when I left you last time, I told you that God does not like luke-warm believers.
上次节目结束时，我说到神不喜悦不冷不热的基督徒，
4. God wants full commitment.
神要我们全情投入。
5. Today I want to tell you about what God does with committed people.
今天让我们来看，神如何对待全情投入的人。
6. Again, turn to I Kings chapter 18.
请再翻开列王纪上18章，
7. Elijah said,
以利亚说，
8. I am outnumbered.
如今敌我悬殊。
9. Now to most of us, being outnumbered 2 to 1 is terrible.
对大部份人来说，一个打两个已经够糟的了；
10. 20 to 1 is a disaster of epic proportion,
若要一个对抗二十个，那就惨不忍睹了；
11. but to be outnumbered 850 to 1 is impossible.
但一个对抗850个，简直不可能！
12. To have 850 people saying to you that you are wrong is inconceivable to most of us.
若有850个人都对你说，你错了，那是不可想象的事。
13. This is where Elijah was
以利亚正落在这样的处境中，
14. standing alone in front of the establishment plus the leadership of the country.
他独战群雄。
15. I want to tell you about some of the problems that we are facing in this world today.
今天我们面对世界时，所遇到的一些问题，
16. Our greatest problem in this world is this,
其中最大的麻烦是，
17. we tend to follow the masters of lies.
我们喜欢跟风，
18. We are forever looking at what others are doing and then deciding what we should do.
我们老是跟着潮流走，
19. This does not please God.
神不喜悦我们这样。
20. Social scientists reveal that 75% of teens allowed peer pressure to override their own better judgment,
社会学家指出75%的青少年受同侪牵引，不能独立判断是非，
21. and I believe adults would not do much better.
我想成年人也好不到那儿去。
22. Let us look back at the picture I painted for you on Mt. Carmel,
让我们回到迦密山上的场景，
23. all the odds were on the side of Baal,
很明显的，巴力是占着上风，
24. while Jehweh had all the handicap,
耶和华则处于劣势。
25. but you see, the central condition of the contest is that the God who acts, is God.
然而这场比赛的关键是，有所作为的才是真神；
26. The God who answers is God,
有回应的才是真神，
27. our God is the God who acts,
我们的神是有所作为的；
28. most often he acts in response to his people’s faith,
祂一向都回应信靠祂的人；
29. most often he acts in response to his people’s obedience.
祂一向都回应顺服祂的人。
30. Can you imagine all these confused Israelites coming on top of the mountain,
想想看，这群糊涂的以色列民来到山顶，
31. and there watching what is happening in front of their own eyes?
眼看着所发生的事，
32. They are like many people today who believe that God is there but never have a personal relationship with him.
正如今天许多人相信有神，却没有和祂建立关系。
33. They believe that Jesus died on the cross.
他们相信耶稣死在十字架上，
34. but he is irrelevant and divorced from their daily living.
但耶稣的牺牲和他们每天的生活无关。
35. They may go to church on occasion,
他们偶尔也会去教会，
36. but they may also read the coffee cups and go to fortune tellers.
但他们也去占卜算命。
37. Imagine these people standing there wide-eyed watching for 9 hours how the 850 prophets of Baal called upon Baal with no response.
请想象群众站立在那里9小时，眼睁睁地看着850 个巴力的先知，徒劳无功地呼喊他们的神。
38. I honestly think that the prophets of Baal sincerely believed that Baal would hear them.
我相信巴力的先知是很诚心的，他们真心相信巴力会听他们呼求。
39. There is nothing worse than being sincerely wrong.
然而，诚心却犯错，才是最糟糕的事；
40. There is nothing worse than being a deceived deceiver.
自欺欺人是最可悲的。
41. They could not get Baal to hear them,
他们无法使巴力回应他们，
42. so they started dancing around the alter that they made.
于是他们在祭坛周围手舞足蹈，
43. They were gyrating,
疯狂地旋转，
44. they were jumping up and down,
上下跳跃，
45. they were doing it all to get Baal’s attention, but to no avail.
他们竭尽所能地刺激巴力，却毫无反应。
46. Imagine Elijah standing there quietly,
以利亚默默地站在一旁，
47. patiently,
很有耐性的，
48. for 9 hours.
整整九个小时。
49. I don’t know what he was doing during that time,
我不知道当时他在做什么，
50. but by noon time he just couldn’t take it anymore,
但到中午，他实在忍不住了，
51. in verse 27,
在第27节里，
52. he began to taunt them saying,
以利亚讽刺地说，
53. shout louder.
大声点喊吧！
54. Baal is getting hard of hearing lately,
最近巴力的耳朵有毛病，
55. after all, he is a busy god.
他可忙着哪！
56. He is probably on an errand somewhere.
他可能出差去了。
57. Ah, he tires very easily these days.
喔，最近他很容易疲倦，
58. Well, he’s probably taking a nap.
他可能睡着了。
59. Actually there is a graphic Hebrew word here in verse 27,
在27节这里希伯来原文有个词很形象，
60. which means that Baal probably went to the bathroom.
意思是说，巴力大概上洗手间去了。
61. Finally, when they got desperate, they began to cut themselves with knives hoping to provoke Baal’s compassionate response,
最后，他们无计可施，情急之下竟然用刀枪自割自刺，企图博取巴力同情，
62. but to no avail.
却依然无效。
63. Do you ever wonder what King Ahab was thinking?
你猜亚哈王当时怎么想？
64. I imagine he thought to himself,
我猜他会自言自语，
65. but Jezebel told me that Baal was real.
耶洗别不是告诉我巴力很灵的吗？
66. Let me ask you a personal question.
请问你，
67. Does your God honor your trust in him and answer your prayers,
你的神是否尊重你对他的信任，并回答你的祷告？
68. especially when you pray according to his will?
尤其是当你遵照他的旨意祈求时。
69. Listen to me very carefully.
请留心听我说，
70. We all put our trust in something or someone
我们总会有个信靠的对象，
71. if you put your trust in material things,
如果你依赖物质，
72. then your children are empty.
你的孩子就会很空虚，
73. Can your material things fill them?
因为物质不能满足他们。
74. No!
不！
75. I submit to you that your material things will stand there in mockery because they cannot answer.
我告诉你，物质只会玩弄你，却不能满足你的需要。
76. If your god is a god of rationalism that says, I think, therefore I am,
如果你崇拜理性主义，我思故我在，
77. when you confront tragedy in life, can your god answer with the peace that passes understanding?
当意外悲剧发生时，理性之神能否给予你超越理性的平安？
78. Does he answer with a hope that is beyond description?
他能否给予你言语无法形容的希望？
79. No.
不能。
80. I submit to you that you or your rationalism will stand aside in mockery because it cannot answer you.
我告诉你，理性只会嘲笑你，却不能满足你的需要。
81. If your god is sensuality,
如果你追求情欲享乐，
82. when you come to the end of the road and you feel your immortality,
当你走到人生尽头，发觉自己不过是凡人，必有一死，
83. you can cry to your sensuality but the flames have already become dust and ashes,
你向情欲呼求，却已化为灰烬，
84. it will not answer you.
情欲之乐不会回应你。
85. Ccan your god answer you when you cry out to him?
你的神会回答你的呼求吗？
86. My God does.
我的神会，
87. His name is Jesus.
祂名叫耶稣。
88. Call upon him today!
今天就向祂祈求吧！
89. In verse 30,
在30节里，
90. we read that later in the day, Elijah said the following,
后来以利亚说，
91. let me show you how my God works.
到我这里来看我的神，
92. Elijah asked them to come near.
以利亚叫他们靠近他身边。
93. There is no hocus pocus here.
没有花招，
94. There are no smoke and mirrors.
没有障眼法，
95. There is no make believe.
不作假像，
96. There is no slight of hand,
不耍俐落的手法，
97. Our lives are an open book.
我们的生活就像一本翻开的书，一目了然。
98. Come close and see how my God works,
靠近些，看我的神所行的事，
99. and as the sun began to sink into the Mediterranean.
当夕阳渐渐落入地中海，
100. Elijah took 12 stones, each representing one of the 12 tribes of Israel
以利亚取了12块石头，代表以色列的12个支派，
101. he repaired the altar of God.
重修耶和华的祭坛。
102. Do you know why he repaired the altar?
你知道他为什么要重建祭坛吗？
103. He repaired the altar because God’s alter had been torn down out of neglect.
因为耶和华的祭坛已荒废倒塌，所以他修理祭坛。
104. God’s altar had been torn down out of misuse.
耶和华的祭坛因被误用而倒塌；
105. God’s altar had been torn down out of negligence and running after other gods.
耶和华的祭坛因以色列人敬拜别神而荒凉。
106. Can I ask you a personal question?
容许我问你，
107. How is your family altar?
你的家庭祭坛如何？
108. Is it in disrepair?
是否经久失修？
109. How is your prayer altar?
你的祷告祭坛如何？
110. What kind of shape is it in?
处于什么状态？
111. Is it in disrepair out of negligence?
是否常被疏忽而损坏？
112. Out of being busy with other things.
因为忙于生活中的琐事。
113. In contrast to the dry wood that Elijah allowed the prophets of Baal to use, he saturated the wood with water.
以利亚让巴力的先知使用干木柴，他自己却用被水湿透的木柴。
114. He had people carry water all the way out of the Mediterranean Sea all the way up to Mt. Carmel
他叫人从地中海抬水到迦密山顶，
115. about 1500 feet high.
1500呎高的山上。
116. Because you remember there was a drought,
还记得当时正值旱灾之中吗？
117. so they had no way of getting water other than from the Mediterranean.
除非从地中海带水上山，不然他们根本没有水。
118. There were 12 barrels of water which they poured out,
他们倒了12桶水，
119. saturating the wood,
把木柴都淋湿了。
120. just to make sure, Elijah said, go and get four more.
为了让木柴完全湿透，以利亚叫人再浇四桶水。
121. Why did he do that?
为什么他要这么作呢？
122. Why did he saturate the wood and make a trench around the altar?
为什么他不但把木柴淋湿，甚至在坛周围的沟里都倒满了水？
123. He wanted to give all the odds to Baal and all the handicaps to Jehovah.
因为他要巴力获得最大的优势，而让耶和华却处于最不利的劣势。
124. You would do yourself a disservice if you missed the blessing of verse 36.
如果你疏忽了36节所说的福分，实在是你很大的损失。
125. Elijah did all of this in perfect obedience to the Lord,
以利亚完全顺服神的指示而行，
126. so when he prayed publicly, he only prayed a few words.
他公开的祷告，非常简短，
127. Elijah had already prayed privately for three years.
因为三年来，以利亚都在祷告，
128. He did not need to stand up and dance around the alter for hours.
他不需要不断地在祭坛周围手舞足蹈。
129. This is the thing that we often miss in our lives.
我们的生活就经常忽略这件事，
130. It is not the length of ones public prayer that God cares for,
神不在乎我们的公开祷告又多长，
131. but the strength of your prayer.
却看重祷告的能力；
132. It is not the economy of your words in public prayer,
不在乎我们的公开祷告用了多少词汇，
133. but the intensity of your private prayer,
而在于私人祷告时有多迫切，
134. and that is why James 5 said that Elijah was a great man of prayer.
难怪雅各书第五章称以利亚为祷告勇士。
135. Do you know that some of these unbelieving critics have said the following about Elijah
但你可知，那些不信派的人竟然无稽的抨击以利亚，
136. that he must have had one of those magnifying glasses and concentrated the rays of the sun to start a fire?
他们说以利亚一定有面放大镜，可以使阳光聚焦来点火。
137. The Holy Spirit knew that some silly people are going to say that
圣灵早知道愚昧的人会如此诋毁，
138. and that is why he emphasizes two things,
因此祂强调两件事实，
139. not only that the wood was wet,
不但木柴是湿的，
140. but it was also sundown, not sunup.
而且太阳已下山，并不是日出时分。
141. Probably by now, some of you are saying
也许有人会说，
142. why doesn’t God do that now?
为什么现在神不作这样的事了？
143. You have to understand that this was a moment in time in salvation history where everything was at stake.
你必须明白，从救恩的历史来看，这个阶段是个关键时刻，
144. I mean Abraham, Moses, Joshua, David, the Kingdom, everything hung on the balance.
从亚伯拉罕、摩西、约书亚、大卫到王国时期，他们都等着看历史的这一幕如何揭晓。
145. God does not work like that most of the time unless it is a moment of absolute decisive, critical, world-changing times.
神通常不会这么作，除非这世界正处于转变，决定性的关键时期。
146. For when people saw fire came down from heaven and burnt everything in sight, they fell on their faces and cried and said,
当百姓目睹有火从天降下并烧尽一切，他们都俯伏在地喊着说，
147. the Lord, he is God.
耶和华是神！
148. I want you to listen very carefully please.
请仔细听我说，
149. Great as this event was in Biblical history,
即使这是圣经中伟大的历史事件，
150. but we do not look back to Mt. Carmel for salvation.
但我们并不是从迦密山上得救恩。
151. Why?
为什么？
152. Because we have something greater and better.
因我们有更大更好的，
153. We look back to Calvary.
我们仰望加略山，
154. We look back to the empty tomb.
我们回头看空坟墓，
155. We look to the resurrected, glorified, soon coming back Lord.
我们盼望的是从死里复活，荣耀的，就快要再来的主耶稣。
156. When fire came at the day of Pentecost,
五旬节有火降临，
157. men and women were changed forever and for eternity,
使男男女女的生命彻底改变，永远的改变，
158. and they became filled with the power of the resurrected Christ.
他们被基督复活的大能充满。
159. So we don’t look back to the fire that consumed stone and wood or even water,
因此我们不是回头去看那烧尽石头、木柴和水的火，
160. but to the fire that cleanses us and purifies us.
而是洁净我们生命的火。
161. We don’t look to the fire that consumed the sacrifice,
我们不是看那烧尽祭物的火，
162. but to the fire that consumes us with zeal to declare to the world that Jesus is Lord.
而是挑旺我们向全世界宣告耶稣基督是主的火。
163. How do you think God convinces your neighbor that he is the Lord?
神如何说服你的邻居承认神是万有的主宰？
164. He wants to do it by your deeper and purer inner life that enters in and burns the dross of compromise in your life,
祂是透过你那更深更纯的内在生命，这生命是经过火炼的，已经烧去了与世界妥协的渣滓，
165. by burning that indecision in your life and burning that indifference in your life,
烧去你生命中的犹疑不决和漠不关心，
166. so that you are able to confront your world,
这样，你才能与世俗抗衡，
167. that I may be able to confront my world.
我才能与世俗抗衡。
168. Maybe you are to confront only one person with the claims of Jesus Christ.
也许你只需要向一个人宣讲耶稣基督的福音，
169. God wants to do it through the perceptible change in your life,
神要借着你被改变的生命来成就这事，
170. so that people will say why are you different.
人们看见你就会问，为何你与众不同？
171. He wants to do it by our display of his power in our daily life
神要借着你在每天的生活中彰显祂的大能来成就这事，
172. that we don’t live by sight like the rest of the world but by faith.
世上的人都是凭眼睛所看见的而活，我们却靠信心而活。
173. He wants us to do it so that we see the unseen.
神要我们这么作，因为祂要我们看那眼不能见的；
174. He wants us to do it by our exhibiting such unity of spirit that people will have to say, behold, how they love one another.
神要我们表现出合一，世人就会看到我们彼此相爱；
175. He wants us to do it by our bearing of fruit.
神要我们结出果实，
176. He wants us to do it by our witnessing.
神要我们做见证，
177. He wants us to do it by our zeal and love for the lost,
神要我们为失丧的灵魂表达爱与热诚。
178. and here’s one way you can do it,
你现在可以这么作，
179. say to him,
对神说，
180. Lord,
主啊，
181. lay some person on my heart so that I can pray for that person’s salvation.
求你把需要救恩的人放在我心中，成为我的负担，我好为他祷告。
182. Then when that moment comes that God provides you, you can confront that person.
一旦神给你机会，你就可以向这位朋友传福音了。
183. God called Elijah to confront 850,
神叫以利亚去对抗850人，
184. but that doesn’t mean he necessarily wants you to do the same.
并不表示神也要你去面对这么多人，
185. However, he is calling you and me to confront the enemy, Satan, by confronting one person at a time.
但神要我们抵挡仇敌撒但，也就是去抢救一个一个的灵魂。
186. Then watch how God sends the fire of salvation from heaven to that one person.
就让我们观看神如何降下救恩的火施行拯救。
187. It is my prayer that you will be burdened with that fire tonight
我祈求神降下福音负担的火在你心中。
188. until next time.
下次节目再见，
189. I pray for God’s richest blessing upon you.
愿神大大地赐福给你。
