This Spiritual Waimai is a part of a series entitled Mission Accomplished: the mission of Jesus Christ as told by Matthew and now lived out by you and me.
这篇属灵外卖是“完成的使命”系列文章之一，这个由马太福音所述耶稣基督的使命，现在要由你我活出来。
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What kind of fruit can be found in your life?
你的生命中能找到哪种果子？
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On the morning that Jesus was looking for breakfast and found an empty fig tree, he cursed that fig tree for bearing no fruit and headed directly to the temple where He continued His search for fruit. But did He find any?
在这样一个早上，Ye Su本在寻早餐，找到的却是一棵不结果的无花果树，祂咒诅那棵不结果的无花果树，之后直接去了圣殿继续寻找果子。但是祂能找到吗？
A question of authority
一个权柄的问题
Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?” Jesus replied, “I will also ask you one question. If you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. John’s baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or of human origin?” They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ But if we say, ‘Of human origin’—we are afraid of the people, for they all hold that John was a prophet.” So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.” Then he said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”
Matthew 21:23-27 NIV
Ye Su进了殿，正教训人的时候，祭司长和民间的长老来问他说：“你仗着什么权柄作这些事？给你这权柄的是谁呢？” Ye Su回答说：“我也要问你们一句话，你们若告诉我，我就告诉你们我仗着什么权柄作这些事。约翰的洗礼是从哪里来的？是从天上来的？是从人间来的呢？”他们彼此商议说：“我们若说‘从天上来’，他必对我们说，‘这样，你们为什么不信他呢？’若说‘从人间来’，我们又怕百姓，因为他们都以约翰为先知。” 于是回答Ye Su说：“我们不知道。”Ye Su说：“我也不告诉你们我仗着什么权柄作这些事。” 马太福音 21:23-27
The religious leaders were still fuming about the previous day in the temple. Jesus had cleared the temple of the buyers and sellers and was cheered on by young children. The chief priests and elders were not at all happy about this. So that morning they came to Him demanding an answer. As always, they had an ulterior motive. They wanted to find a reason to arrest Him. They asked Jesus about authority and He masterfully turned the conversation on them by asking them about authority – John the Baptist’s authority. If they didn’t accept John the Baptist’s authority, they certainly would not accept Jesus’ authority.
圣殿里的宗教领袖仍旧为前一天发生的事恼火。Ye Su之前把在圣殿做买卖的人都赶了出去，还因此得到小孩子的喝彩。祭司长和长老们却根本并不为此高兴，所以这天早上他们来向祂要一个说法。和往常一样，他们其实别有用心，试图找借口逮捕祂。他们问Ye Su关于权柄的问题，祂巧妙地把对话转到他们身上，问他们关于约翰施洗的权柄。如果他们不接受约翰的权柄，自然也不会接受Ye Su的权柄。
Jesus wasn’t going to tell these religious leaders where He got His authority, but He was going to continue to speak with authority. And then answer the very question He had posed to them.
Ye Su没打算告诉这些宗教领袖祂是从哪里得到祂的权柄，但是祂会继续带着权柄发言，并且还回答了祂自己提出的问题。
“What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’ “ ‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went. “Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go. “Which of the two did what his father wanted?” “The first,” they answered. Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did. And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe him.”
Matthew 21:28-32 NIV
又说：“一个人有两个儿子。他来对大儿子说：‘我儿，你今天到葡萄园里去作工。’他回答说，‘我不去’，以后自己懊悔，就去了。又来对小儿子也是这样说。他回答说‘父啊，我去’，他却不去。你们想这两个儿子，是哪一个遵行父命呢？”他们说：“大儿子。”Ye Su说：“我实在告诉你们：税吏和娼妓倒比你们先进Shen的国。因为约翰遵着义路到你们这里来，你们却不信他；税吏和娼妓倒信他。你们看见了，后来还是不懊悔去信他。” 马太福音21: 28-32
This parable was about working in a vineyard – bearing fruit. Jesus made His message clear: action that leads to fruitfulness was what He desired – not lip service that didn’t go anywhere. After the telling of this parable, Jesus answered for the chief priests and elders the question He asked them. They wouldn’t answer, but He already knew what was in their heart. They did not believe John nor heed his call to repentance. They were obviously the second son in the story who did not join the father’s work in the vineyard. The sinners such as the tax collectors and prostitutes on the other hand were the ones who had repented, believed and got to work in the fruit-bearing kingdom. God wants the fruit.
这个比喻是关乎在葡萄园作工的，也就是结果子。Ye Su的信息很清楚，祂要的是能结果子的行动，而不是只动动嘴皮子的服侍。讲了这个比喻之后，Ye Su替祭司长和长老们回答了祂问他们的问题。虽然他们拒绝回答，但是祂已经知道了他们心里的答案。他们不相信约翰，也不在意约翰关于悔改的呼召。他们明显是故事里的小儿子，并没有在葡萄园与父做工。税吏和娼妓这样的罪人却悔改、相信、在结果子的国度中工作。而shen想要的正是果子。
To make His point even clearer, He told another parable emphasizing how strongly the father desires the harvest of fruit.
为了让祂的观点更清楚，Ye Su讲了另外一个比喻来强调天父有多强烈地渴望果实的收成。
“Listen to another parable: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a winepress in it and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place. When the harvest time approached, he sent his servants to the tenants to collect his fruit. “The tenants seized his servants; they beat one, killed another, and stoned a third. Then he sent other servants to them, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way. Last of all, he sent his son to them. ‘They will respect my son,’ he said. “But when the tenants saw the son, they said to each other, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him and take his inheritance.’ So they took him and threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. “Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” “He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,” they replied, “and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants, who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.” Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: “ ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes’ ? “Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit. Anyone who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.” When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about them. They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.”
Matthew 21:33-46 NIV
“你们再听一个比喻：有个家主，栽了一个葡萄园，周围圈上篱笆，里面挖了一个压酒池，盖了一座楼，租给园户，就往外国去了。 收果子的时候近了，就打发仆人到园户那里去收果子。 园户拿住仆人，打了一个，杀了一个，用石头打死一个。主人又打发别的仆人去，比先前更多，园户还是照样待他们。后来打发他的儿子到他们那里去，意思说：‘他们必尊敬我的儿子。’ 不料，园户看见他儿子，就彼此说：‘这是承受产业的。来吧！我们杀他，占他的产业！’ 他们就拿住他，推出葡萄园外，杀了。 园主来的时候，要怎样处治这些园户呢？” 他们说：“要下毒手除灭那些恶人，将葡萄园另租给那按着时候交果子的园户。” Ye Su说：“经上写着：‘匠人所弃的石头，已作了房角的头块石头。这是主所作的，在我们眼中看为希奇。’这经你们没有念过吗？ 所以我告诉你们， Shen的国必从你们夺去，赐给那能结果子的百姓。 谁掉在这石头上，必要跌碎；这石头掉在谁的身上，就要把谁砸得稀烂。” 祭司长和法利赛人听见他的比喻，就看出他是指着他们说的。 他们想要捉拿他，只是怕众人，因为众人以他为先知。马太福音 21: 33-46
The chief priests and Pharisees knew that Jesus was talking about them in these parables. What if after hearing the stories, they paused, believed and repented? I wonder if Jesus wasn’t just exposing their selfish hearts but also giving them a chance to repent. What would have happened next? It wasn’t out of the realm of possibility. Years later a Pharisee was asked a question by Jesus and he repented and became the Apostle Paul.
祭司长和法利赛人知道Ye Su在这些比喻里面讲论他们。如果在他们听到这些故事之后能停下来、相信并且悔改，会怎样呢？我想，Ye Su可能也不只是要揭开他们自私的内心，或许也是给了他们一个悔改的机会吧。真是如此的话，会怎样呢？这并不是全无可能的。几年以后一个法利赛人被Ye Su提问后就悔改了，并且成了使徒保罗。
Our heavenly Father is looking for fruit, and so is Jesus
我们的天父在寻找果子 Ye Su也是
On that morning on His way into Jerusalem, Jesus was looking for fruit. He looked for it on the fig tree. He looked for it in the temple. He didn’t find it. But He did find it in the lives of sinners who believed and repented and got to work in the kingdom of God. If Jesus came walking up to you one morning looking for some lovely fruit, what would He find?
那天早上，在Ye Su去耶路撒冷的路上，祂在寻找果子。祂在无花果树上寻找，祂在圣殿寻找，都没有找到，却在相信并悔改、在shen的国里作工的罪人中找到了。如果Ye Su在一个早晨向你走来，想要找一些可爱的果子，祂能找到吗？