作者：Daniel Hyde 译者：骆鸿铭
在这个讨论「预定」的系列中，我希望你们到目前为止已经注意到的其中一件事情是：在提到我们为什么会信和为什么会不信之前，我们必须把我们思想牢牢地扎根在几个基本的、合乎圣经的、福音派的真理上：我们是罪人、上帝是公平的、上帝就是爱。我不仅相信这是一个合乎圣经的方法，我更相信它是明智的做法。对这个教义有太多的误解和嘲弄，我们必须温和地带领人明白这个教义。
One
of the things I hope you’ve noticed so far in this series on predestination is
that before mentioning what we do and don’t believe about it we need to be
firmly grounded in several basic, biblical, and evangelical truths: we are
sinners, God is just, and God is love. Not only do I believe this is a biblical
method, I believe it is wise. There is so much misunderstanding and mockery of
this doctrine that we need to lead into it gently.
在这篇文章中，我想阐述另一个基本真理，这会引导我们进入预定的实际主题：谁被预定，什么是预定，何时预定，为什么预定。基于人的罪，以及神的公平和爱，为什么有些人会信耶稣基督，而有些人却不信呢？以下是对耶稣的呼召的两种回应：
In
this post I want to lay out another of these foundational truths, which is one
that leads us into the actual subject of the who, what, when, and why of
predestination. Given humanity’s sin and both God’s justice and love, why is it
that some believe in Jesus Christ and some don’t? These are the two responses
to Jesus’ call:
信祂的人，不被定罪；不信的人，罪已经定了，因为他不信神独生子的名……信子的人有永生；不信子的人得不着永生（原文作不得见永生），神的震怒常在他身上。（约三18、36）
“Whoever
believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned
already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God…Whoever
believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not
see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” (John 3:18, 36)
耶稣喂饱了五千人（这个数目不包括妇女和儿童）之后，整个群众离开了祂，只有祂的十二个门徒除外，其中一个是犹大（约六）。「为什么」这个问题会引导我们考虑信心及它与预定的关系。
After
Jesus fed the five thousand (this number does not include the women and
children) the entire crowd left Him except for His twelve disciples, and one of
them was Judas (John 6). The question of why leads us into a consideration of
faith and its relation to predestination.
什么是信心？
What
Is Faith?
信心的精髓在约翰福音第三章中可以找到，就是当耶稣提到要信祂的时候。「信」祂就是把你所有的自信、所有的盼望，以及你所有的信赖全部放在祂身上。这是要你整个人投靠耶稣，而不是靠赖自己。
The
essence of faith is found in John 3 when Jesus speaks of believing in Him. To
believe “in Him” is to put all your confidence, all your hope, and all your
trust in Him. It’s putting everything that you are in Jesus and not in
yourself.
我们的信仰前辈把信心称为「接受」福音，或更个人化地说是「拥抱」耶稣（例如，多特信经I.4）。这很重要，因为很多时候，我们会认为信心只是一些头脑体操，或者与一种被称为「上帝」或「耶稣」的空灵事物建立虚无缥缈的连接。但是，「接受」和「拥抱」这两个词背后要传达的是什么思想呢？它们应该唤起个人的感受，因为信心是个人的。当我把信心放在耶稣身上时，这意味着我接受祂和祂为我自己所做的一切。这不是基督教的神学术语，而是约翰之前在约翰福音一章11～12节所说的：「祂到自己的地方来，自己的人民倒不接待祂。凡接待祂的，就是信祂名的人......」这就是信心。这能形容你和耶稣的关系吗？你为自己接待并拥抱祂所有的一切吗？
Our
forefathers spoke of faith as “receiving” the gospel or more personally as
“embracing” Jesus (e.g., Canons of Dort 1.4). This is important because all too
often we can think of faith as just some mental gymnastic you do or an ethereal
connection to an ethereal thing called God or Jesus. But what do the ideas
behind the words “receive” and “embrace” communicate? They should evoke
personalness because faith is personal. When I put my faith in Jesus this means
that I receive Him and all that He is for myself. This isn’t theological
Christianesse, but what John says earlier in John 1:11–12: “He came to his own,
and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who
believed in his name …” That’s faith. Does this describe your relationship to
Jesus? Do you receive and embrace all He is for yourself?
为什么信心是必要的？
Why
Is Faith Necessary?
最简单地说，信心是必要的，是因为有了它，我们就不会灭亡（约三16），我们会得到永生（第16节），我们会得救（第17节）。换句话说，信心是必要的，因为没有信心，我们会灭亡（第16节），我们会被定罪（第18节），事实上，上帝的震怒常在我们身上（第36节）。
Most
simply, faith is necessary because with it we will not perish (John 3:16), we
will have eternal life (v. 16), and we will be saved (v. 17). In other words,
faith is necessary because without it we will perish (v. 16), we will be
condemned, (v. 18) and, in fact, the wrath of God is already upon us (v. 36).
信靠耶稣是必要的，因为这是我们身为这个抵挡上帝、属于罪人的「世界」的成员，如何为我们罪恶的光景、为我们的邪恶行为和我们即将受到的定罪获得补救的方法。信心如此重要，是因为人非有信，就不能得上帝的喜悦（来十一6）。
Faith
in Jesus is necessary because it’s how we, as members of “the world” of sinners
in opposition to God, receive the remedy for our sinful condition, for our
sinful actions, and for our impending condemnation. Faith is so important
because without it, it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6).
什么是信心的祝福？
What
Are the Blessings of Faith?
当耶稣说信「祂」（约三16）和信「子」（第36节）的时候，祂说的是信心的祝福。这个祝福（blessing，单数词）是指耶稣自己。而福气（blessings，复数词）是耶稣赐给我们的一切。在约翰福音第三中中，耶稣谈到永生的祝福，与永恒的定罪和震怒形成了鲜明的对比。
When
Jesus speaks of believing “in Him” (v. 16) and “in the Son” (v. 36) He is
speaking of the blessings of faith. The blessing—singular—is Jesus Himself. The
blessings—many—are what Jesus gives to us. In John 3 Jesus speaks of the
blessing of eternal life in contrast to eternal condemnation and wrath.
这意味着，通过信心的手段，我们得救脱离某种东西，而进到某种东西里面：脱离定罪、震怒、灭亡，进入到永生里。当我们接待并拥抱耶稣时，祂拯救我们脱离上帝的震怒。正如保罗所说，「现在我们既靠着祂的血称义，就更要借着祂免去神的忿怒。」当我们接受和拥抱耶稣时，他把我们送上永生。正如保罗所说，「因为罪的工价乃是死」——意思是永恒的死亡或定罪——「惟有神的恩赐，在我们的主基督耶稣里，乃是永生」（罗六23）。正如圣诗所说：
This
means that through the means of faith we are delivered from something to
something: from condemnation, wrath, and destruction to eternal life. When we
receive and embrace Jesus He delivers us from the wrath of God. As Paul says,
“Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we
be saved by him from the wrath of God” (Rom. 5:9). When we receive and embrace
Jesus He delivers us to eternal life. As Paul says, “For the wages of sin is
death”—meaning eternal death or condemnation—“but the free gift of God is
eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 6:23). As the hymn says:
我罪孽皆赦免，永远享安宁，
祢长与我同行，安慰引领；
为我明日之盼望，今日之权能，
赐我福乐无量，日日加增。
（译按：出自《祢的信实广大》，Great is Thy Faithfulness）
Pardon
for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine
own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength
for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings
all mine, with ten thousand beside!
信心从何而来？
Where
Does Faith Come From?
有了这个基本的圣经教导，我们准备谈论信心与上帝预定工作的关连。我们可以这样说：如果信心是接待并拥抱耶稣；如果信心如此必要，离开它，我们将永远灭亡；如果我们借着信心领受耶稣基督所有的祝福，那么，这个信心是从哪里来的呢？约翰在他福音书的开头回答了这个问题，他说所有接待基督的人，即所有信祂的人，都会作上帝的儿女（约一12）。他进一步解释了这一点，他说到在他们相信之前发生的事：「这等人不是从血气生的（过去时态），不是从情欲生的，也不是从人意生的，乃是从上帝生的」（约一13）。「从上帝生」是什么意思呢？这是耶稣在约翰福音三章6节中的教导。重生就是从上面生，也就是由上帝亲自赐下的新生。因此，上帝重生的人，就是那些信耶稣的人。
With
this basic biblical teaching under our feet, we are ready to speak of how faith
relates to God’s predestinating work. We can do this by putting it this way: if
faith is receiving and embracing Jesus; if faith is so necessary that apart
from it we will perish everlastingly; and if by faith we receive all the
blessings of Jesus Christ, where does this faith come from? John answers this question
at the beginning of his Gospel when he says all who receive Christ, that is,
believe in Him, become children of God (John 1:12). He explains this further by
stating what happened prior to their believing: “who were born (past tense),
not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God”
(John 1:13). And what does it mean to be “born of God?” That’s Jesus’ teaching
in John 3:6. To be born again is also to be born from above, that is, to be
given new birth by God Himself. Therefore, those whom God gave new birth are
those who believe in Jesus.
约翰福音第一章和第三章的最自然的含义就是，不信的原因和过错是在罪人身上，而不在上帝身上，否则祂就不可能是上帝：「上帝就是光，在祂毫无黑暗」（约壹一5）。正如雅各所说，「人被试探，不可说：『我是被神试探』；因为神不能被恶试探，祂也不试探人」（雅一13）。它一定是在我们身上，我们死在过犯罪恶之中（弗二1～3）。在我们天然的状态中，我们就像一只未经训练的狗——狂野，失控，按照本能行事，根据天然的倾向和本性行事。你不需要告诉一只未经训练的狗逃跑，它无论如何都会这么做。脱离了主在我们身上的工作，「训练」我们，使我们对耶稣有信心，否则我们就会像这个样子。
The
natural implication of John 1 and 3 is that unbelief has its cause and fault in
sinful humanity. It cannot be in God or else He cannot be God: “God is light,
and in him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). As James says, “Let no one say
when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God,’ for God cannot be tempted with
evil, and he himself tempts no one” (Jas. 1:13). It must be in us, who were
born dead in trespasses and sins (Eph. 2:1–3). In our natural state we are like
an untrained dog—wild, out of control, acting on instinct and according to its
dispositions and nature. You don’t need to tell an untrained dog to run away,
it does that anyway. This is what we are like apart from the Lord’s working in
us, to “train” us to place faith in Jesus.
另一方面，信心的原由不在我们身上，而是上帝自己。只有上帝使人复活：「然而，上帝......」（弗二4）。在以弗所书二章8～9节中，我们读到：「你们得救是本乎恩，也因着信；这并不是出于自己，乃是神所赐的；也不是出于行为，免得有人自夸。」在腓立比书一章29节中，保罗写道，上帝「赐」恩给我们（和合本作：我们「蒙恩」），「不但得以信服基督，并要为祂受苦。」而路加在使徒行传十三章48节中说，凡「预定得永生的人」都信耶稣。
On
the other hand, faith’s cause is not in us but in God Himself. Only God makes
alive: “But God …” (Eph. 2:4). In Ephesians 2:8-9 we read: “for by grace you
have been saved, through faith, and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift
of God, not of works, so that no one can boast.” In Philippians 1:29 Paul
writes that God has “granted” that we suffer for the sake of Christ as well as
believe in Him, and Luke says in Acts 13:48 that all who were “appointed to
eternal life” believed in Jesus.
因此，有些人被赐予了信心的礼物，而其他人则没有。为什么呢？这当然不是因为孩童从父母那里得到了信心，或者有些成年人比其他人更好。
So,
some are given the gift of faith while others are not. Why? It is certainly not
because children get it from their parents or that some adults are better than
others.
信心的永恒之源
The
Eternal Source of Faith
为什么有些人会信，有些人不信？最终答案在上帝自己身上，祂的信心永恒的来源。在以弗所书第一章中，保罗颂赞神，因为祂赐给我们一切属灵的福气（第3节），这是在这些标题下描述的：预定带来的祝福（4～6节），耶稣基督的救赎工作带来的祝福（7～12节），以及圣灵印记的工作所带来的祝福，保证我们在永恒中的救恩（13～14节）。上帝不仅在创立世界以前就在基督里选择我们（第4节），在爱里预定我们（第5节），使祂得着称赞，而且祂这样做是「按着自己的意旨所喜悦的」（第5节）。上帝对我们永恒的拣选不是武断的、偶然的或随机的，而是按着祂的意旨。
Why
some believe and some don’t finds its ultimate answer in God Himself, the
eternal source of faith. In Ephesians 1 Paul blesses God because He has blessed
us with every blessing (v. 3), described under the headings of the blessing of
predestination (vv. 4–6), the blessing of Jesus Christ’s redeeming work (vv.
7–12), and the blessing of the sealing work of the Holy Spirit that guarantees
our salvation in eternity (vv. 13–14). Not only is God blessed for choosing us
in Christ before the foundation of the world (v. 4) and predestining us in love
(v. 5), but He did so “according to the purpose of his will” (v. 5). God’s
eternal choice of us was not arbitrary, by chance, or random, but was in accord
with His intentional will.
在第11节中，我们再次读到，在基督里，我们获得了「基业」。这是说到我们靠信心拥有基督和祂所有的好处。我们是如何获得这些呢？第11节继续说到：「这原是那位随己意行、做万事的，照着祂旨意所预定的......」（弗一11）当我在和真理与信心搏斗时，这些经文就跃然纸上，出现在我的生命中。保罗不仅说我们拥有基督，因为上帝预定我们要得着基督，而且预定我们得着信心的上帝，也按着他的意旨去行做万事。你看到保罗在说什么了吗？「一切」都是上帝所预定和计划的，包括你对基督的信心。
Again
in verse 11 we read that in Christ we have obtained “an inheritance.” This is
speaking of our coming into possession of Christ and all His benefits by faith.
How did we come to obtain this? Verse 11 continues: “… having been predestined
according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel
of his will.” This was one of those verses that literally jumped off the page
in my life when I was wrestling with truth and faith. Not only does Paul say
that we came into possession of Christ because we were predestined to obtain
Christ, but that the God who predestined us to faith also works out everything
according to His will. Do you see what Paul is saying here? Everything is
ordained and purposed by God, including your faith in Christ.
在时空中软化人心以至于信
The
Temporal Softening Unto Faith
一个常见的异议或误解是：「如果上帝预定了一切，包括信心，那对于这一切就没有必要担心，因为不管怎样，你都对此无能为力。」答案是，在永恒中预定的上帝也是时空当中软化人心的上帝。不是凭我们的信心拣选我们的上帝，也使我们凭信心来到祂面前。
A
common objection or a misunderstanding of this is, “If God predestines
everything, including faith, there’s no need to worry about any of this because
there’s nothing you can do about it anyway.” The answer is that the God of
eternal predestining is also the God of temporal softening. The God who chooses
us apart from our faith enables us to come to Him in faith.
上帝作为信心的永恒源泉，如何使罪人在时空中产生信心？还记得使徒行传十三章48节吗？当我们读到「凡预定得永生的人都信了」时，保罗正在向外邦人传福音。看到其中的关联了吗？你可能会问，「但是，实际上，这种永恒的预定是如何使他们在时间里相信的？在使徒行传第十六章中，保罗向吕底亚传福音，我们读到：「主就开导她的心，叫她留心听保罗所讲的话」（徒十六14）。同一位预定她会相信的上帝，也开导她的心去相信。这就是多特信条说得如此美妙的原因：「上帝所拣选的人无论怎样固执，上帝都按照这个永旨，以恩典软化他们的心，使他们愿意相信」（多特信条I. 6）。
How
does God as the eternal source of faith lead to the temporal faith of sinners?
Remember Acts 13:48? Paul is preaching the gospel to Gentiles when we read, “as
many as were appointed to eternal life believed.” Do you see the connection?
You may ask, “But how, practically speaking, did this eternal appointing lead
to their believing in time?” In Acts 16, Paul preached the gospel to Lydia, and
we read this: “The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by
Paul” (Acts 16:14). The same God who predestined that she would believe opened
her heart to believe. This is why the Canons of Dort says so wonderfully,
“According to which decree He graciously softens the hearts of the elect,
however obstinate, and inclines them to believe” (Canons of Dort 1.6).
上帝要求我们要以信心的管道来领受这个祝福——就是祂的儿子；但祂也是赐予信心、慷慨地软化如石头般刚硬的心，并使那些心倾向于信祂儿子的同一位上帝。对我们这些相信的人来说，这难道不是一个极美妙的保证吗？对我们所认识的那些内心刚硬的人来说，这难道不是一个美妙的应许吗？要我们向这位能够且愿意做这些事的上帝祈祷，这难道不是一种美妙的鼓励吗？
God,
who requires faith as the necessary means of receiving the blessings of His
Son, is the same God who gives that faith by graciously softening stone-hard
hearts and inclining those hearts to believe in His Son. Isn’t this a wonderful
assurance to us who have believed? Isn’t this a wonderful promise to us for the
hard-hearted we know? Isn’t this a wonderful encouragement to pray to the God
who is able and willing to do such a thing?
