五旬节十七

到水深之处

——路加福音五章四至七节

西门和他的伙伴劳碌终夜，一无所获，但依从主的话把船开到“水深之处”，就网住了许多鱼。

先知以西结在异象中有过一次趟水的经历。从圣所出来的水往东流去，开始只到他踝子骨，而后到膝，再后到腰，最后水便成河。只是在这水深之处，以西结才看到两岸有极多的树木，这些树的叶子永不枯干。果子永不断绝。

神的儿女在属灵的道路上，不能老是停留在水浅之地，而要逐步进入水深之处。为了寻找生命的源泉，我们必须来到神的圣所；但为追求生命的丰满，我们却又必须“离开”圣殿。离殿愈远，河水愈深；并且只有在“水深之处”，我们才能为主结果累累，得鱼甚多。

Pentecost 17

Luke 5:4-7

Out into the deep

  Simon and his companions toiled through the night without catching anything, but obeying Jesus’ command to “put out into the deep,” they caught many fish in their nets.

  The prophet Ezekiel had a vision in which water issued from the temple towards the east. At first, it was only ankle-deep, then knee-deep, then up to the waist. Finally, it became a river. Only when he ventured out into the deep could he see that the banks of that river were lined with trees whose leaves would never wither and whose fruit would never fail.

  In the course of our spiritual journey, as children of God, we cannot always stay in the shallows. We must go ever deeper. In seeking the source of life, we must come to God’s temple, but to find the fullness of life, we must leave the temple behind. The further we go, the deeper the river. Only “out into the deep” can we gather more fruit for God. Only “out into the deep” will we catch more fish.