五月四日
人岂可为自己制造神呢?其实这不是神。（耶16：20）
古时以色列人所犯的最大的罪是拜偶像，属灵的以色列人也有这种愚妄的趋向。理番神的星不再发光，妇女不再为搭模斯哭泣，但玛门却仍侵占着它的金牛犊，骄傲的龛仍未弃绝。各种形式的自己都竭力迫使选民屈服在它的权势之下，肉体也尽力搜寻一个可以安置它坛的地方。它们真是无孔不入、无微不至的。溺爱孩子常使信徒犯很多罪，主看到我们过分溺爱他们的时候就为我们悲伤；他们活在世上乃是我们的一大咒诅，正像押沙龙之于大卫一样，他们若被取去，就使我们的家荒凉、冷清起来。若基督徒愿意以荆棘填塞他们的枕头，就让他们溺爱他们所爱的人吧！
他们真算不得是什么神，因为我们愚昧之爱的对象所给我们的福气是很可疑的，他们所给我们的安慰也是很危险的，我们在患难之中他们并不能帮助我们。那末，我们为什么要受虚妄的迷惑呢?我们可怜一位敬拜石偶的外教人，而自己反敬拜金像吗?肉神比木偶有什么强处呢?原则上，罪、愚昧都是一样的，只不过我们比外教人所得的亮光多，所以罪更重，而且罪是它的表面。外教人拜假神，但他并不知道有真神；我们犯了两重罪：我们一方面离弃了活神，另一方面又皈从了偶像。愿主除去我们一切的偶像，因为这是最严重的罪！我的偶像不论有多宝贵，都要从神的宝座前铲除净尽，好敬拜独一的真神。
May 4
“Shall a man make gods
unto himself, and they are no gods.” — Jeremiah 16:20
One great
besetting sin of ancient Israel was idolatry, and the spiritual Israel are
vexed with a tendency to the same folly. Remphan’s star shines no longer, and
the women weep no more for Tammuz, but Mammon still intrudes his golden calf,
and the shrines of pride are not forsaken. Self in various forms struggles to
subdue the chosen ones under its dominion, and the flesh sets up its altars
wherever it can find space for them. Favourite children are often the cause of
much sin in believers; the Lord is grieved when He sees us doting upon them
above measure; they will live to be as great a curse to us as Absalom was to
David, or they will be taken from us to leave our homes desolate. If Christians
desire to grow thorns to stuff their sleepless pillows, let them dote on their
dear ones.
It is truly said
that “they are no gods,” for the objects of our foolish love are very
doubtful blessings, the solace which they yield us now is dangerous, and the
help which they can give us in the hour of trouble is little indeed. Why, then,
are we so bewitched with vanities? We pity the poor heathen who adore a god of
stone, and yet worship a god of gold. Where is the vast superiority between a
god of flesh and one of wood? The principle, the sin, the folly is the same in
either case, only that in ours the crime is more aggravated because we have
more light, and sin in the face of it. The heathen bows to a false deity, but
the true God he has never known; we commit two evils, inasmuch as we forsake
the living God and turn unto idols. May the Lord purge us all from this
grievous iniquity!
“The dearest
idol I have known,
Whate’er that idol
be;
Help me to tear it
from thy throne,
And worship only
thee.”
