【双语灵修】对付我们的罪疚DEALING WITH OUR GUILT

利未记 1:1-9

耶和华从会幕中呼叫摩西，对他说： “你晓谕以色列人说：你们中间若有人献供物给耶和华，要从牛群羊群中献牲畜为供物。

“他的供物若以牛为燔祭，就要在会幕门口献一只没有残疾的公牛，可以在耶和华面前蒙悦纳。 他要按手在燔祭牲的头上，燔祭便蒙悦纳，为他赎罪。 他要在耶和华面

前宰公牛。亚伦子孙做祭司的，要奉上血，把血洒在会幕门口坛的周围。 那人要剥去燔祭牲的皮，把燔祭牲切成块子。 祭司亚伦的子孙要把火放在坛上，把柴摆在火上。 亚伦子孙做祭司的，要把肉块和头并脂油摆在坛上火的柴上。 但燔祭的脏腑与腿，要用水洗。祭司就要把一切全烧在坛上，当做燔祭，献于耶和华为馨香的火祭。

星期二

十一月四日

对付我们的罪疚

“‘他要按手在燔祭牲的头上，燔祭便蒙悦纳，为他赎罪。’” - 利 1:4

我有一件不能“引以为傲”的事，就是我曾经是一个不肯承认错误的人。犯错后被人质问时，我第一个反应就是否认、争辩或甚至归咎于别人。我们当中很多人都会这样做。不过，有些人则会感到内疚、陷入羞愧和自我厌恶的状况中，也有些人受了愉悦心态文化的影响，认为这基本上是没有问题的。然而我们的良知却不会轻易放过我们，心灵深处都有一种挥之不去的感受，就是我们达不到要求，甚至连自己的标准也不能达到。

神提供了另一个更好的做法，在利未记开头的几章经文中，我们找到一幅希望和赦免的图画。使用某种祭牲或食物作为祭物，都有不同的作用，按着献祭家庭的入息，献的祭物也可能会不一样。燔祭处理人基本的罪疚；献祭的人按手在公牛、绵羊或雀鸟的头上，那祭牲便代替他全家被宰杀了。这样做覆盖了罪带来的惩罚，而那祭物也成为“献与耶和华为馨香的火祭”，代表神的恩惠和祝福。

当然，就如希伯来书 10:4的解释：“公牛和山羊的血断不能除罪。”那些祭物的作用，是阐明神的羔羊耶稣，将会为我们成为最终的祭物。耶稣的牺牲是蒙神悦纳的祭物，而神的恩惠现今也在照亮我们了！

祷告

满有怜悯的神，我们因祢在救主基督里向我们施展的赦免，欢喜快乐！阿们。

Leviticus 1:1-9

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 4

DEALING WITH OUR GUILT

“You are to lay your hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on your behalf to make atonement for you.”—Leviticus 1:4

I’m not proud of this, but I’m a recovering guilt-denier. When confronted with something that I’ve done wrong, my first reaction is to deny, argue, or even blame others. Many of us do that. Others, however, absorb guilt and get stuck in shame and self-loathing. Still others take their cues from our feel-good culture and deny that there’s anything wrong with us to begin with. But our conscience won’t let us off so easily. Deep down, we all have a nagging awareness that we fall short, even of our own standards.

God offers a better alternative. In the opening chapters of Leviticus we find pictures of hope and forgiveness. Each offering of a type of animal or food served a different purpose, and each sacrifice could be different, depending on a family’s income. The burnt offering dealt with the people’s fundamental problem of guilt. The person laid their hand on a bull, a sheep, or a bird, and the animal would be killed in place of its family. In this way the penalty for sin would be covered, and the offering would make “an aroma pleasing to the Lord,” signifying God’s favor and blessing.

Of course, as Hebrews 10:4 explains, “It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” Those offerings illustrated that Jesus, the Lamb of God, would eventually become the ultimate sacrifice for us. Jesus’ death was an offering pleasing to God, and now God’s favor shines on us!

Merciful God, we rejoice in the forgiveness you extend to us in Christ, our Savior! Amen.