3月1日 毫不放松的问话

你爱我吗？（约二十一17）

彼得这时不再宣告什么了（参太二十六33-35）。人天然的性情总喜欢扬声宣告；但当耶稣基督的问话一针见血时，才显露那人爱的品质。彼得对耶稣的爱，是人本性中爱一个好人的那种爱。那是属于性情里的爱，这也许会深入人的个性里，但并不触及人的内里。真爱是从不宣告什么。耶稣说：“凡在人面前认我的。”承认他的爱不单凭口里所说的话，也凭所行的一切。

除非主的话刺破我们的假面具，否则神的话根本进不到我们里面。神的话刺伤比罪的刺伤更厉害，因为罪使感觉迟钝。但主的话却加强我们的感觉，以致他的刺伤比任何我们所能意想到的刺伤更痛。这痛不单是一般性的，而是更深入的，对准人内心的。主的话刺透我们，将灵与魂分开，再无虚假可以存留。对主的问话，我们不能用感情来敷衍。主直接对你说话时，你不能只说好话，那痛太厉害了。刺痛使任何事物都不再算一回事了。主的话在他儿女身上的刺痛，是不会有错的；刺痛的地方，正是启示的重要开端。

祈祷◆噢，主啊，愿你在今早驱散一切云雾，愿晴朗、猛烈和满有生气的阳光普照大地。

March 1: The Undeviating Question

“Lovest thou Me?” John 21:17

Peter declares nothing now (cf. Matthew 26:33-35). Natural individuality professes and declares; the love of the personality is only discovered by the hurt of the question of Jesus Christ. Peter loved Jesus in the way in which any natural man loves a good man. That is temperamental love; it may go deep into the individuality, but it does not touch the centre of the person. True love never professes anything. Jesus said – “Whosoever shall confess Me before men,” i.e., confess his love not merely by his words, but by everything he does.

Unless we get hurt right out of every deception about ourselves, the word of God is not having its way with us. The word of God hurts as no sin can ever hurt, because sin blunts feeling. The question of the Lord intensifies feeling, until to be hurt by Jesus is the most exquisite hurt conceivable. It hurts not only in the natural way but in the profound personal way. The word of the Lord pierces even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, there is no deception left. There is no possibility of being sentimental with the Lord's question; you cannot say nice things when the Lord speaks directly to you, the hurt is too terrific. It is such a hurt that it stings every other concern out of account. There never can be any mistake about the hurt of the Lord's word when it comes to His child; but the point of the hurt is the great point of revelation.