日期： 02/08/09

經文：歌羅西書 1:15-23

講題：超越一切的基督

主旨：因基督是一切之主，順服祂必定是信徒生命的標誌。

引言：

我記得曾經在對話裡向朋友提及另一位朋友，因為似乎好一陣子沒見著他，沒想到對方的回答竟出乎我意料之外：「喔！他決定去一個摩門教會，不會再來了。」聽到這樣的回答，我們大概會想，這種事情怎麼會發生？難道他不知道摩門教信仰是什麼嗎？但是轉念一想，問題應是 : 我們知道我們相信的是什麼嗎？

過去的幾週我們談論到與神的連結。當我們認識了耶穌基督，我們便與祂有了連結。但是，我們對於我們所連結的這位神又有多少認識呢？這就像是我們被問到自己對於配偶有多少認識一樣。耶穌基督問祂的門徒們：「人們說我是誰？」「你們說我是誰？」過去的兩千年裡，人們還在問：基督是誰？為什麼這個問題重要到可以在數個文化間亙古流傳？這個問題的答案將決定我們與祂的關係，也將決定我們對摩門教、耶和華見證人會、以及伊斯蘭教信仰的回應。那基督到底是誰？

今天的經文可以算是聖經中最重要、最崇高、最豐盛的一段，也是許多聖經學者牧師公認，每每當他們試圖去教導、解釋這段經文的時候，往往越發感到自己的渺小和侷限。是以，今天我們要讓這段經文自己直接對我們說話，讓我們浸濡在其中，就此體驗它的光榮和偉大。我們在這段經文裡會看到一個信仰核心的真理 : 因基督是一切之主，順服祂必定是信徒生命的標誌。

I•  我們順服基督因祂是創造的主。

摩門教相信基督與天父是分開的，是由天父和天母所創造的聖靈嬰孩。耶和華見證人會不相信基督是神，在祂來到世上之前，祂是天使長米迦勒。伊斯蘭教相信基督是神派遣到世上不同文化和國家裡，那十二萬四千位先知當中的一位；祂是處女所生但非神的兒子，是無罪但不是神。聖經如何說呢 ? 保羅在第 15 節中寫道：「這愛子是那看不見的 神的形象，是首先的，在一切被造的之上。」這告訴我們基督和神的本質相同。祂是神。如果我們看見祂，便是看見了神。你想知道神是什麼樣子的嗎？看看基督變得以知曉。這也是約翰在約翰福音 1 ： 18 當中說的：「從來沒有人見過 神，只有在父懷裡的獨生子把他彰顯出來。」

基督同時也是首先。首先的意思就是「最優先的、最被尊敬的」。所以當保羅稱基督為所有受造物當中的長子，他指的是那至高無上的光榮應歸給耶穌基督。

第 16-17 節：「 16 因為天上地上的萬有：看得見的和看不見的，無論是坐王位的，或是作主的，或是執政的，或是掌權的，都是本著他造的；萬有都是藉著他，又是為著他而造的。 17 他在萬有之先；萬有也一同靠著他而存在。」告訴我們，身為神，基督也是萬有之先？為什麼？因為祂創造了天和地、以及天地當中的所有一切。祂是所造一切萬物的主宰，包括的我們的政府。我們或許不認同某些政府或領導人，但有一件事，就算我們無法領悟箇中奧妙，卻仍值得我們謹記在心：耶穌基督是天上帝上萬有的主宰。

我們固然可以把很多的講章看做這節經文的應用，但今天我要請大家特別注意的重點是科學。在前陣子總統的就職典禮致詞當中，他提倡把科學回到該有的地位，這樣的說法贏得科學界的喝采。我們有沒有想過什麼才是適當的地位？那麼之前它又去了哪裡？

現代科學開始於十八世紀初期，其中心信念是一位有秩序的神創造了一個有秩序的世界；是以人類可以尋求管理宇宙的種種規律和法則。科學的目的在於發現並瞭解這個被創造的世界，當然也包括了人類身體的功能。透過這樣對許多事物的觀察和發現，我們開始瞭解體內各種細胞和核酸（ DNA ）的運作方式，進而開發了多種新的藥物和醫療技術來治療人類的疾病。在開始的時候，現代科學可以算是在神的創造之下。然而，進入十九、二十世紀之後，科學和人類的理性思考的地位被大大提升，從歸服神到高於神，而後漸漸地把神從科學的範疇裡給徹底地移除了。

今天，當我們說要讓科學回歸到正當的地位，真正的意思指的是我們要把科學視為生活的王，讓科學家們為人類決定什麼是對人類最好的選擇。然而，身為基督徒科學家，我們的想法有所不同，是吧？是的，科學可以有很大的影響力，也可以帶來許多利益，但是它仍是歸屬於基督的主宰之下。就拿胚胎幹細胞研究作例子，引用總統的說法，這個議題的複雜程度，超過我的權限，不由我來分說。然而，身為基督徒，尤其是我們當中在生命科學領域從事研究的人，我們應該花點時間來討論、思想一下，從聖經的角度如何看待這樣的倫理議題。在我們成為基督徒之前，我們被實用主義和計畫經費左右，但是現在我們認識了基督，便要開始學習透過神的眼光去看生命。對人類有益的事並不一定是對的事。讓科學回到屬於它的地方，指的是使我們的思維和研究方式順服於神的帶領。

II•  我們順服基督因祂是教會的主。

第 18 節：「他是身體的頭，這身體就是教會。 …… 」耶穌基督是高於教會的。教會是所有信徒的集合，不受時間和空間的限制。不管我們在哪裡，只要我們是信徒，我們就是祂的教會的會員，祂的肢體。這也包括了像我們教會這樣的地方教會。耶穌基督不只是普世教會的頭，也是我們教會的頭。牧師、長老、執事們都不是教會的頭。唯有基督世教會的頭。這表示什麼？

如果祂是主宰、是頭，那我們的步調和次序便是由祂而來。我們應該要不斷地問這樣的問題：「耶穌基督希望這個教會做些什麼、成為什麼樣的教會？我們的異象、計畫和課程是不是符合聖經的世界觀？」基督希望祂的教會，能在他們的異象、計畫和課程當中，對這個破碎的世界彰顯祂的華美、聖潔、公義、榮耀和愛。

如果基督是這個教會的頭，當衝突發生時我們應該如何因應？如果我們在工作時遇上了麻煩，我們會如何處理？通常我們會報告給主管知道。那麼若是地方教會遇上了麻煩的事該怎麼處理？我們當中的一些人或許會說，把事情交給主任牧師處理。那主任牧師又該怎麼呢？是的有些事是需要我知道的。但我認為我們都應該學著把問題帶到基督的面前，當我們禱告，神會指示、幫助我們如何為眼前的問題找到適當的解決之道。我記得以前有一位聖路易教會的會友曾與我分享：「每當我看到教會的問題，我都先禱告。有時候，透過禱告，神便動工解決了問題。其他的時候，神使用我做為解決問題的工具。也有些時候，在經過多次禱告之後，我會向牧師或其他領導人提出我的顧慮和想法。」

我們都需要被提醒，基督是教會的頭。牧師們也需要被提醒，他們不是教會的頭，基督才是。

III•  我們順服基督因祂是使人與神和好的主。

     第 20-22 節：「 20 並且藉著他在十字架上所流的血成就了和平，使萬有，無論是地上天上的，都藉著他與 神和好了。 21 雖然你們從前也是和 神隔絕，心思上與他為敵，行為邪惡， 22 但現今 神在愛子的肉身上，藉著他的死，使你們與 神和好了，為了要把你們這些聖潔、無瑕疵、無可指摘的人，呈獻在他面前。」 讓我簡短的解釋一下這段經文。神在太初創造天地萬物，以及人類的時候，所有的事物在祂眼中都是美好。一切都非常完美。神和人之間的關係也十分良好，祂是在所有的受造物至上為主。但是在亞當和夏娃明知故犯地犯了罪之後，所有正常、完美的一切都變得不再正常、不再完美。人和神之間的關係也從此破碎，敵對狀態取代了和諧。我們與神分離，我們的思想也與祂相對，我們的行為變得邪惡，我們變成了祂的仇敵。兩千年前，耶穌基督，神的獨生子，道成肉身來到世上。祂把我們身上的罪移到祂自己身上，替我們死在十字架上，為的是重建神和人、人和人、人和自己、及人和自然之間的和平關係。祂來，是為了使神和祂的受造之物之間能夠和好，重建在當初創造的時候所預設的良好關係。第 18b 節提到祂來到世上最終極的目的：「 …. 好讓他在凡事上居首位。」祂的目的是為了挽回我們，替我們付本是我們應付的贖價，讓我們可以再次回到神的面前，讓祂可以重新在我們的生命當中掌權。然而，「基督是主」到底代表了什麼？

1•  個人的生活

與神和好的意思指的是，在我們做的所有事上，都要榮耀神。換句話說，不論我們做什麼，別人都可以因此看到神的美好，說神的好話。這也指的是，在我們的課業、工作、和事業上，都以祂為優先。我們不會做任何讓神臉上無光的事。在我們決定任何事情之前，都會先尋求祂的旨意，做祂以為美的事。在我們選擇主修的科目，或是事業的重心時，會先想到神希望我們做什麼、成為什麼樣的人。祂在我們的家庭生活中也佔有最優先的位置。我們對待家人的方式也要符合祂對我們的教導。祂在我們的社交生活上也是優先，我們對朋友說的話、我們的待人處事和應對進退，在在都要彰顯出神的樣式，好作世人的榜樣。祂是我們時間的主人，我們每天的作息、時間管理方式，都要回應祂。我們是不是有分配我們的時間來擴張神的國度？我們每個禮拜花多少時間在地方教會裡服侍基督？神也是我們經濟的主。打開我們的支票本，我們的經費使用狀況有沒有合乎神的旨意？

2•  個人的情緒 .

與神和好也代表著讓祂掌管我們的個人情緒和性格。我要特別小心來處理這兩個觀念。

我們常常會說，沒有辦法控制自己的感覺。我今天感覺糟透了，你碰上我算你倒楣。這種話聽起來像是我們不需要對自己的感覺負責任一樣。因它的存在，這就肯定他的價值。我們需要記得我們都是墮落了的人，罪已影響了我們生命的每一部份。因此我們有些情緒是醜陋，甚至錯誤的。

我們或許記得休士頓的一位女牙醫，名叫 Clara Harris. 在五年前，她因丈夫有外遇，一氣之下開著她的賓士將他撞死。她不能控制她先生的行為，也不能控制忿怒的來臨，但卻能控制自己的行為。她並未控制自己，目前她正在服 20 年的徒刑。

我時常說有時我們會被別人不能控制的行為或語言引起一些強烈的反面情緒，但我們有責任控制這些情緒的表達。不然的話往往會有一些很可怕的後果。雖然我們不能控制別人的言語或行動，但我們能控制自己情緒的表達。當我們的感覺明顯地違反了神的標準，那就是錯的。當基督是我們的主，我們就要將情緒也降服在祂的主權之下。我們要請祂幫助我們改變，將負向的情緒轉變成正向的情緒，藉此反應祂的神性和榮美。

3•  個人的性情

在個性的分類上，我們有些人是驅動 - 指揮型、有人是影響 - 社交活動型、另一些人是分析 - 思考型、還有一些人是和藹可親 - 聯繫型；我們對於事情的往往有不同的解讀和反應方式。感謝神讓我們如此特別、多樣化。然而，也往往因為多樣化的個性差異導致衝突的產生。當我們在教會裡看到問題的時候，有多少問題是因為教義或聖經教導所造成的？很少很少，並且絕大多數的問題都是我們的個性差異所導致。當我們說，某某人的個性很衝，常常暗指的是那個人的控制欲高，讓人望之生畏。換句話說，我感覺到在很多的狀況裡，我們往往放任自己，去展現某些不受神喜悅的人格傾向，並且我們還說，這就是我，我沒辦法控制；很多時候我們縱容自己的壞性格，讓耶穌基督的主權相形見絀。

感謝神，我們的會眾是由多樣化人格特質的一群人所組成。但若是我們讓個人的性情干預神的工作、讓我們不同的性情造成衝突以致傷害他人、讓自己無法體貼他人的感覺和需要、甚而使其他肢體選擇離開教會、遠離神；那就是我們該要反省錯誤的時候。我們應該將個人的性情交到基督的手中讓祂掌權。 孫德生 博士曾說：「應當要自願地、配合地順服在祂的掌權之下。」這不是要我們改變自己的性情，但是透過神的幫助和使能，我們可以為培養聖靈的果實而努力，讓自己擁有 愛心、喜樂、和平、堅忍、仁慈、良善、信心、溫和、和自制。 我們要禱告，以使基督的榮美能透過我們特有的品格展現出來而努力。

當基督是我們的主，我們要獻上我們的所有，包括我們的情緒和性情，讓祂掌權。

結語：

基督是誰？我們說得出什麼是摩門教、耶和華見證人會、及伊斯蘭教的信仰。但我們說不說得出基督是誰？我們怎麼知道誰是真的基督？

我們怎麼知道哪一張百元鈔票是真的？首先要知道一張真的百元鈔票長什麼樣子。它有一條防偽線，右下角的金額會隨著光線而改變顏色、浮水印的圖案和主要的畫像相同等等。你對於真鈔的瞭解越多，你越容易辨別鈔票的真偽。

同樣的概念也可以應用到我們的精神歷程。我們怎麼知道誰是真的基督？就讀讀聖經吧。為什麼讀聖經？因為我們相信那位創造萬物的神透過這本聖經，對人類揭露祂對人類的心意。這也是為什麼上個星期天，我們提到如果我們要瞭解神，就要認真的把祂的話當作一回事。只有透過研讀聖經，我們可以對真的基督有更深入的瞭解。

今天的經文教導我們，基督是神的兒子，祂就是神。祂高過一切受造物，祂是教會的主、是你我的生命的主。因為這個緣故，順服祂是我們信仰的標誌；祂是我們用以評量其他信仰的標準。

Date:   02/08/09

Text:   Colossians 1:15-20

Title:   The Supremacy of Christ

Theme:    Because Christ is above all, submission to Him must be the hallmark of Christian living.

Introduction:

    I remember asking someone about so and so, for I had not seen him for some time. I was quite unprepared for the response, “Oh, he is no longer with us, he’s been going to a Mormon church.” How can this be? Doesn’t he know what the Mormons believe? On second thought, my question instead should be: do we know what we believe?

In recent weeks, we have been talking about Connecting with God. When we come to know Christ, we are connected with him. However, how much do we know this Jesus with whom we are connected? It’s almost like asking how well do we know our spouse? Jesus asked his disciples, “whom do people say I am?” “Whom do you say that I am?” for the last 2000 years, people are still asking: Who is Jesus? Why is this such an important question that it transcends culture and time? The answer to this question will determine our relationship with him. This answer will also determine how we respond to the Mormons, Jehovah Witnesses and the Muslims.

The passage before us is considered by many as one of the most important, majestic and rich in content passages in the bible. It is recognized that any attempt to further explain and preach on this passage, will only reveal the preacher’s smallness and limitations. Instead, we are to let the text speak to us directly, and sink into our minds so we can appreciate its glory and majesty.

    Who is Jesus Christ?

I•  We submit to Christ because He is the Lord of all creation.

The Mormons believe that Jesus is separated from God the father. He was created as a spirit child by God the father and Mother in heaven. The Jehovah's Witnesses believes that Jesus is not God. Before Jesus lived on earth, he was the archangel Michael. Islam believes that Jesus is one of the 124K prophets God sent to different cultures. He was born of a virgin but is not the son of God, sinless but not God. But what does the bible say here? Paul writes in v15, “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.” This tells us that Jesus is the very substance of God. He is God. If you see him, then you have seen God. Do you want to know what God is like? Look at Jesus. This is what John means in John 1:18, “ No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.”

Jesus Christ is also the firstborn. Firstborn means “first in rank and honor”. When Paul called Christ the firstborn over the creation, he meant that the highest honor belongs to Jesus Christ.

V16-17, “ 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” This tells us that being God, Jesus is also lord over the entire creation. Why? Because he created the entire heaven and earth and all that is in it. He is Lord over the created world including the governments. We may not like certain governments or leaders, but it is important to remember, even though we may have difficulty understanding this, Jesus Christ is the lord over all.

Certainly we can devote many sermons to the application of these verses, yet this morning I want to call your attention to the issue of Science. In the president’s inauguration address, he called for the return of science to its proper place. This has brought the applause of the scientific community. Have you given thought to what it means by proper place? Or where was it before in the first place?

Modern science began in the early 18 th century. The unifying theme and objective was that an orderly God had created an orderly world. Therefore men could seek orders and laws that governed the universe. The purpose of science was to discover and understand how the created world, including human beings function. Through such observations and discoveries, among many things, we begin to understand how cells and DNA operate thereby inventing new drugs and developing new procedures to cure sicknesses. So in the beginning, modern science was under the Lord of creation. However, as we entered the 19 th and 20 th century, science and human reason began to elevate their positions; from under God to above God, and eventually moved God out of the picture completely. He is no longer there.

Today, when we say ‘bring science to its rightful place’, it really means that we are to let science be the king, let the scientists decide what is best for humankind. But as Christian scientists, we think differently, right? Yes, Science can be powerful and beneficial, but it is still under the lordship of Christ. Take the Embryonic stem cell research as an example. Using the president’s phrase, this complicated issue is beyond my pay grade. However, as Christians, especially those of us in the life science research, we need to spend time to discuss and think through the ethical issues from the biblical perspective. Before we become Christians, we are guided by pragmatics and grant money, but now, having come to know Christ, we must learn to see life through the eyes of God. In the next few years, there will be plenty of grant money for this research. But it is important we remember that what is good is not necessarily right. To bring science back to its proper place is to submit our minds and methods under the Lordship of Christ.

II•  We submit to Christ because He is the Lord of the church.

V18, “And he is the head of the body, the church;…” Jesus Christ is supreme over the church. The church is the gathering of all believers, unlimited by space and time. No matter where you are, if you are a believer, then you are a member of his church, his body. It also includes believers who gather in a local church like this. Jesus Christ is not only the head of the universal church, but also the head of this church. Pastors, elders and deacons are not the head of the church. Jesus Christ and Christ alone is the head of the church. What does this mean?

If he is the Lord, the head, then the questions we should constantly be asking is: “What does Jesus Christ want this church to do and become? Are our visions, projects and programs compatible to the biblical worldview?” In the midst of our visions, projects and programs, Jesus wants His church, this church, to manifest his beauty, holiness, righteousness, glory and love in this broken world.

If Jesus Christ is the head of this church, what do we do when problems arise? If you face problems at work, what do you do? You bring it to the attention of your boss. What happens when there are problems in the local church? Some of you would say, bring it to the senior pastor. How about me? There are issues that you need to bring to the sr. pastor, yet I feel we all need to learn to bring it to Jesus Christ, tell him about it. As we pray, God will show and help us how to be a part of the solution. I remember a former member of the church in STL shared this with me, “Whenever I see a problem in the church, I always pray first. Sometimes, through prayer, God took care of the problem. Other times God used me to help resolve the problem. Then there are times, after much prayer, I would share my concern with the pastor or other leaders.”

We all need to remember that Jesus Christ is the head of this church. Pastors also need to be reminded that we are not the head, but it is Jesus Christ.

III•  We submit to Christ because He is the Lord in Reconciliation .

    Vs. 20-22, “ and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him,… ” Let me briefly explain this passage. When God first created the heaven and earth including men, he saw everything was good. It was perfect. There was perfect relationship between God and man; God was the supreme lord over his creation. But after Adam and Eve deliberately sinned against God, what was normal and perfect now became imperfect and abnormal. The relationship between God and men was broken and hostility took the place of harmony. We were separated from God, our thinking is against him, our behaviors are evil. We had become His enemies. 2K years ago, Jesus Christ, the son of God, entered the world and became man. He took our sins upon himself, died on the cross to make peace between God and men, between man and man, man and himself and between men and nature. He came to bring reconciliation between God and his creation. To restore the creation to what it meant to be when first created. His ultimate purpose, v18b, “….so that in everything he might have supremacy.” His purpose in coming was to redeem us and to bring us back to God so that he will once again claim his lordship over us. What does it mean if Jesus Christ is my lord?

1•  Personal Lives. To be reconciled to God means that in everything I do, I will glorify God. That is, causing others to speak well of God. I will not do anything that will dishonor him. In all my decisions, I’ll first seek what pleases him. As I search for a major or career to focus, I’m to explore what he wants me to do and be. He is first in my family life. I am to treat my family members according to his teaching. He is first in my social life. What I say to friends, how I relate to them, must give the world an adequate picture of what God is like. He is the lord of my time. My daily schedule, how I use time, is to reflect his lordship. Do I allocate time to advance his kingdom on earth? How much time a week do I spend in serving Jesus in the local church? He is the lord of my finance. Looking at my checkbook, does it reflect Christ’s lordship over how I spend money?

2•  Emotion. To be reconciled to God, also means that he is to be lord over my emotion and personality. I want to handle these two categories with great care.

    Don’t we often say, I can’t help how I feel. I feel lousy today, too bad you are around me. It appears that because I have such negative emotion, then it legitimizes its presence in life. We need to know that because we are fallen creatures and sin has affected every aspect of our being. Some of our emotions are ugly and wrong, therefore they are to be kept under control.

    We remember a dentist, Clara Harris. 5 years ago, her husband’s affair triggered her anger. In a rage, she drove her Mercedes over him and killed him. She could not control what her husband did, but she could control her expression of anger. She is now serving a 20 year prison sentence. I often say that at times it is difficult for us to control the coming of our strong and negative emotions triggered by events and words that we have no control of. Yet our challenge is to control the expression of such emotions. If not, dire consequences can follow. We may not be able to control what others do or say, but we can certainly control how we express our emotion.     

    When feelings and emotion are clearly in contradiction to God’s standard, then its wrong. When Christ is my Lord, we are to bring our emotion under His lordship. We are to ask him to help us rid and change such feelings into ones that reflect his character and beauty.

3•  Personality Issues. Some of us are Drivers, others are Influencers, Thinkers or Relational. We perceive things differently and act accordingly. We thank God for our uniqueness and diversity. However, its also our various personalities that get us into trouble. As we look at problems in this and other churches, how often are they related to doctrinal or biblical issues? Very, very few. Most if not all, have to do with our personalities. When we say, so and so has a strong personality, it usually means that his personality is dominating and intimidating others. In other words, I feel that very often, we have allowed our particular personality bent to act out in a way that is displeasing to God. And all this time, we say, this is me, I can’t help it. We have let our particular personality overshadow who we are in Jesus Christ.

    We thank God for the diversity in personalities we find in this congregation. But, when we allow our personalities to interfere with God’s work, when our different personalities cause unresolved conflicts, hurting others, making us insensitive to other’s feelings and needs, driving people away from church and from God, then something is wrong. We are to bring our personalities under the lordship of Jesus Christ. In Oswald Sanders’ words, “to voluntarily and cooperatively surrender to His control.” This does not mean we change our personality. But with God’s help and empowerment, we are to make an effort to develop the fruit of the holy spirit within us. That we become more loving, joyous, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle and self-control. Our prayer and objective is to allow the beauty of Jesus Christ shine through our particular personality.

    When Jesus Christ is my lord, I am to subject my entire being, including my emotions and personality to his control.

Conclusion:

    Who is Jesus? We can say what the Mormons, the Jehovah’s Witnesses and Muslim believe. But who do we (you) say Jesus is? How do we know who is the real Jesus?

    (SLIDE) How do we know which $100 bill is real? We need to know what a real bill looks like. It has the security thread, the dollar amount on the right bottom corner will change color under the light and the picture in the water mark is the same as the main portrait. The more you know the real one, the easier it is for you to point out the fake one.

    The same is true with our spiritual journey. How do we know who is the real Jesus? Go back to the bible. Why the bible? Because we believe that the creator God reveals his heart to humans in this bible. This is why last Sunday we mentioned that if we are to know God, we are to take his words seriously. Only by studying this bible, then we will have a better understanding of the real Jesus.

    Today’s passage teaches us that Jesus is the son of God, he is God. He is supreme over the entire creation. He is the lord of this church, and He is also the Lord over your and my life. For this reason, submission to him must be the hallmark of our faith. He is the standard by which all other faith are to be measured against.