1. Hello, listening friends.
亲爱的朋友，你好，
2. We welcome you to this last broadcast on the series of messages entitled “Empowered by Praise.”
欢迎你收听今天的节目，这是“从赞美中得力”的系列信息的最后一讲。
3. And I want to begin by saying that I am sure nobody enjoys coming under conviction of sin.
首先，让我告诉你，我相信世界上没有一个人喜欢被定罪，
4. Specially a sin that we don’t want to give up.
尤其是那些我们不愿意放弃的罪。
5. Now, if you are anything like me,
如果你像我一样，
6. you internally fight that conviction.
你就会在你内心里抗拒定罪，
7. You try to justify that sin.
你试着为这罪找理由。
8. And you keep on doing this until you surrender,
你一直这么做，直到你降服，
9. or pay the consequences, and then surrender.
或者是自食恶果后再降服。
10. One way or the other you will surrender if you are a child of God,
如果你是神的儿女，不论如何你都会降服的，
11. because God always wins.
因为神永远是得胜的。
12. I want to tell you a few things about money.
让我们来谈谈关于金钱的事，
13. Money is minted personality.
金钱是人的性格铸造而成的，
14. It is the distillation of your time, energy and labor.
是你的时间精力和劳动积聚而成的。
15. Money is not just something you give,
金钱不但是你所喜爱的，
16. it represents the way you spend your life.
金钱也代表着你如何渡过你的一生，
17. Money therefore is giving yourself back to God.
所以金钱就是你把自己奉献给神。
18. You cannot put yourself in the offering plate.
你不能把自己放在奉献袋里，
19. But when you put your minted personality in the offering plate,
但是当你把代表你性格的钱币放进奉献袋里时，
20. it is going places where people are coming to know Jesus Christ.
这些钱就可以用来带领人认识耶稣。
21. And today, I want to tell you that praise giving and money giving are Siamese twins of praising lifestyle.
今天我要告诉你，献上赞美和奉献金钱，是赞美人生中的双胞胎。
22. Why do I say this?
为什么我这么说呢？
23. Because praising God with your lips and your pocketbook are inseparable.
因为用口赞美神，和你口袋里的钱是分不开的。
24. Praising God only with your mouth is hollow.
单单用口来赞美神是空洞的，
25. Unless it is accompanied by giving up what you value so much.
除非把你看为贵重的，和你的赞美一起献上。
26. King David the songwriter knew how to praise God.
写作诗歌的大卫王懂得如何赞美神，
27. But David did not praise God just in words,
然而大卫不仅用字句来赞美神，
28. but he praised him with his substance,
他更以实质来赞美神。
29. and he gave his all for the building of the temple.
为了建造圣殿，他奉献所有的一切，
30. Today it would be equivalent to half a billion dollars.
大概相当于今天的十亿美元。
31. What was David’s motivation?
大卫的动机是什么呢？
32. In 1 Chronicles 29:3-4 he tells us,
历代志上29章3-4节，他告诉我们：
33. “It is a matter of personal devotion to God.”
且因我心中爱慕我神的殿。
34. For David, singing praises to the Lord was not just mere words,
对大卫来说，歌颂神不仅止于言辞，
35. but they were backed up with sacrificial giving.
而是摆上奉献，表示肯定。
36. Listen to what he said beginning in verse 14 of 1 Chronicles 29,
请看他在历代志上29章14节那里怎么说，
37. “Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand.
因为万物都从你而来，我们把从你而得的献给你。
38. We were aliens and strangers in your sight, as were all our fathers.
我们在你面前是客旅，是寄居的，与我们列祖一样，
39. Our days on earth are like a shadow without hope.
我们在世的日子如影儿，不能长存。
40. Oh, Our God, as for all this abundance we have provided for the temple for your holy name, it comes from your hand.
耶和华我们的神啊！我们预备这许多材料，要为你的圣名建造殿宇，都是从你而来，
41. And all of it belongs to you.
都是属你的。
42. I know my God that you test the heart,
我的神啊！我知道你察验人心，
43. and are pleased with integrity.”
喜悦正直。
44. Now my friend, integrity here means the heart and the mouth are in sync.
亲爱的朋友，这里说的正直，意思就是心口一致。
45. And then David continues,
大卫继续说，
46. “All these things have I given willingly and with honest intent.
我以正直的心，乐意献上这一切物，
47. And now I have seen with joy how willingly your people who are here have given to you.
现在我喜欢见你的民在这里，都乐意奉献与你。
48. Oh Lord God of our fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,
耶和华，我们列祖亚伯拉罕、以撒、以色列的神啊！
49. keep this desire in the hearts of your people forever.
求你使你的民常存这样的心思意念，
50. And keep their hearts loyal to you.”
坚定他们的心归向你。
51. What is David saying here?
大卫的话是什么意思呢？
52. David is saying that your loyalty to God takes place in words and action.
大卫的意思是，对神忠诚，需要言语，也需要行动。
53. The same principle is in 1 Corinthians Chapter 15.
哥林多前书15章也说到这个原则，
54. There Paul talks about the resurrection and heaven.
保罗在那里讲到复活和天堂，
55. And in Chapter 16, verse 1, he said the following,
接着在16章第一节，他这么说：
56. “Now concerning the collection.”
论到为圣徒捐钱。
57. You may ask, “what does heaven have to do with money.”
你大概会问，天堂和钱有什么关系？
58. Paul is saying exactly what the Old Testament is saying,
保罗所说的正符合旧约的教导，
59. that heaven and giving are intertwined.
天堂和奉献是互相交织的。
60. He is saying that you cannot rejoice about the resurrection of your body,
他说，你无法享受复活的身体，
61. when you give very little to the one who gave you everything.
如果你吝啬于奉献给赐你一切的神。
62. Why is there such an inexorable link between praise and giving?
为什么赞美和奉献之间，有这么牢不可破的关连呢？
63. I have three reasons.
有三个理由：
64. First,
第一，
65. giving is proof that you believe God owns everything.
奉献，证明你相信神拥有一切。
66. And if you believe that God owns everything,
要是你相信神拥有一切，
67. how much of what God owns has He gotten back from you?
那么，在祂拥有的万物中，从你这里得回了多少呢？
68. The more you give to God,
你奉献的越多，
69. the more proof that you really believe that everything you have belongs to God.
就越能证明，你真正相信，你所有的一切都是属于神的。
70. If a person is a taker and not a giver,
如果一个人只接受而不付出，
71. that person believes everything he has belongs to him and not to God.
这个人就是相信，一切都是他的，而不是属于神的。
72. If you get angry when God brings you under conviction about giving;
如果你为了神引领你，在奉献方面有罪恶感而生气，
73. if you give only when you are pressured,
如果你只是因为受到压力才奉献，
74. chances are you really do not believe that God owns everything.
很可能你的确不相信神拥有一切。
75. The truth is everything you have is God lending it to you.
事实上，你所有的一切都是神借给你的，
76. And he watches how you manage it.
并且祂要看你怎样管理经营。
77. If you don’t give,
如果你不愿意奉献，
78. then he will not bless you.
神就不会赐福给你。
79. Giving is not only proof that you believe that God owns everything,
奉献，不仅是你相信神拥有一切的证明，
80. but secondly,
第二，
81. giving is a seed for further blessing.
奉献是使福气增长的种子。
82. Beginning in Genesis 8,
从创世记第八章开始，
83. God is the one who started the principle of sowing and reaping.
神创立了种与收的原则。
84. And in 2 Corinthians chapter 9, verses 6 & 8,
在哥林多后书第9章6-8节那里，
85. The apostle Paul confirms this biblical principle.
使徒保罗也肯定这项圣经的原则。
86. He said, “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly.
他说，少种的少收，
87. And whoever sows generously, will also reap generously.”
多种的多收。
88. But listen to the rest of the passage,
请听接下去的经文说：
89. “God is able to make all grace abound to you.”
神能将各样的恩惠，多多的加给你们。
90. So that is all things,
也就是说，所有的东西，
91. and all times,
任何时候，
92. having all that you need,
在你一切的需要上，
93. you will abound in generosity.
你都丰富有余。
94. I don’t want you to miss this.
我不希望你错失这些应许，
95. God’s desire for you, his child, is to abound in all things.
神对祂儿女的心意，就是让你凡事丰足。
96. Not just material things,
不仅在物质方面，
97. but everything.
而是所有的一切。
98. He wants you to abound in wisdom.
祂愿意你有充足的智慧；
99. He wants you to abound in knowledge.
祂愿意你有充分的知识；
100. He wants you to abound in grace,
祂愿意你有丰富的恩惠、
101. and in love and mercy.
慈爱和怜悯。
102. He wants you to abound in everything.
祂愿意你凡事丰足，
103. But you are the only one who can block God’s desire for you.
但你是唯一能拦阻神对你实现这心意的人。
104. An Oriental legend goes something like this,
东方有个这样的传说：
105. a potato farmer decided to eat all the big potatoes,
一个种植土豆的农夫，决定把大的土豆都吃了，
106. and use the small ones for seed.
只留下小的作种子。
107. After a few years, potatoes were smaller than marbles.
几年之后，长出来的土豆，只有弹珠那么大。
108. What you sow is what you reap.
你种的是什么，收的就是什么。
109. Consecrated praise and devoted giving go together,
献上赞美的祭，和诚心诚意的奉献，是成双成对的；
110. because together they are going to place you under God’s shower in the sky.
因为他们使你置身与神所降的恩雨之下。
111. Giving and praising acknowledge God’s ownership.
奉献和赞美，表示你承认，神拥有一切的主权；
112. Giving and praising is the seed for further blessing.
奉献和赞美，是使福气增长的种子。
113. Then the third thing is that giving feeds praising,
第三，奉献能孕育赞美，
114. and praising feeds giving,
赞美也能孕育奉献；
115. and they also encourage others to do the same.
又能鼓舞别人照样这么做，
116. It is contagious.
这是有感染性的。
117. And God is calling every one of us to do more,
神呼召我们每一个人都多尽一分力，
118. because there are yet many territories of Satan that need to be conquered for Jesus Christ.
因为我们要为耶稣基督争战，还有许多撒但所占领的领域，需要去征服；
119. There are many more souls to be won.
还有许多灵魂需要抢救。
120. When David gave so generously to the building of the temple,
当大卫为建造圣殿，而慷慨奉献时，
121. others were motivated to give.
鼓励了许多人都乐意奉献。
122. When the Macedonians out of desperate need generously gave,
当马其顿人急迫地需要大量的援助时，
123. the Corinthians were motivated to give.
哥林多人就有了捐献的动机。
124. Just think of the impact each one of us can have.
想想看，我们每一个人所能产生的影响有多大，
125. Our praise and our giving are the greatest impetus to change your world.
我们的赞美和奉献，是改变你的世界的最大动力。
126. But if you have never committed your life to Jesus Christ,
但如果你还没有将你的生命交给耶稣基督，
127. if you have never received the gift of salvation and eternal life,
如果你还没有接受救恩和永生这份礼物，
128. this message is premature for you,
那么，这篇信息对你来说还言之过早，
129. because God wants you before He wants what’s yours.
因为神盼望先得着你之后，才要你所有的。
130. And my prayer today if anyone listening to me,
今天我祈求神，如果在听众当中有哪一位，
131. had never committed his life to Jesus Christ,
还没有把自己的生命交托给耶稣基督，
132. and have not received the greatest gift of all, the gift of eternal life,
也还没有接受最大的礼物，就是永生，
133. that you would do that today.
愿你今天就这么做。
134. Let me lead you in this simple prayer,
让我带领你做一个简短的祷告：
135. Lord Jesus Christ,
主耶稣基督，
136. I acknowledge that I am a sinner by birth,
我承认生来就是罪人，
137. and I am a sinner by practice,
我在生活言行上也是个罪人，
138. and I cannot save myself.
我不能救自己，
139. I believe that you died on the cross for my sin.
我相信你是为了我的罪被钉死在十字架上的。
140. Come into my life.
请进入我的生命，
141. I give you my life.
我愿献上我的生命。
142. In your name Jesus.
奉耶稣的名祷告，
143. Amen.
阿们。
