1. Hello, listening friends. We are glad you have joined us again.
亲爱的朋友，你好，很高兴你今天又能收听我们的节目。
2. We are continuing in the series of messages on the fruit of the Spirit;
我们继续来学习圣灵的果子；
3. and I want to begin, today, by telling you that, if you go to the bookstore looking for a book on patience, you will have a hard time finding one.
首先让我告诉你，如果你去书店想找一本有关忍耐的书，你会发现这十分困难。
4. I tried to find some help somewhere on this subject, but I could not find a book on patience.
我曾试图寻找一些关于这个主题的参考材料，但我找不到一本有关忍耐的书。
5. I have a very good idea why.
我很清楚知道这是为什么。
6. Here is my conclusion:
我的看法是：
7. very few authors feel qualified to discuss this subject; including myself;
因为没有几个作者认为自己够资格来讨论这个题目，包括我在内；
8. and very few people can develop, let alone maintain, patience.
而且也没有什么人能进一步培养耐心，能维持基本的忍耐已经很不错了。
9. Because of all the technological advances, and the fast pace in which we live today, patience is irrelevant.
因为我们今天所处的这个时代，所有先进的科技和生活快速的步伐，都与忍耐无关。
10. Under these conditions, there are no publishers that would want to publish a book on patience because he knows he will not sell it.
在这种情况下，没有出版商愿意出版一本关于忍耐的书，因为他知道，一定会赔本。
11. Here is the real problem:
但真正的问题是：
12. Please listen to me very carefully because I want to speak from personal experience.
请仔细听我说，因为我是根据自己亲身的经验说的。
13. Many Christians are wanting to live the Christian life in the fast lane.
许多基督徒希望加速地活出基督的生命。
14. Not only that, but they bring their impatience to the faith.
不仅如此，他们的信心也缺乏忍耐。
15. We bring it into our lives, just as the world does;
我们如同世人一样，生活中缺乏忍耐；
16. so we want instant prayer answers,
因此我们喜欢速成的祷告，
17. and instant holiness,
急速地成圣，
18. and instant worship, and instant sermons.
急速的崇拜，速成的讲道。
19. Now, let me tell you at the outset, I am not an expert on the subject of patience.
让我一开始就声明，我并不是谈论忍耐的专家。
20. I have some experience with it, but I am not an expert.
我有一些经验，但不是个专家。
21. I often try to remind myself that it took Noah six months to find a parking space for his ark.
我经常提醒自己，挪亚用了六个月来寻找一个能够停放方舟的地方。
22. In fact, let me tell you about a minister who used to live in southern California, in the United States, a number of years ago.
让我讲一件事给你听，有一位牧师，几年前他住在美国的南加州，
23. He was speaking at an all-day conference,
有一次，他要在一个全天的会议中讲道。
24. and he was running late because his alarm had failed to ring.
那天早晨，因为闹钟没响，他已经迟了。
25. In his haste to make up for lost time, he cut himself shaving;
为了赶时间，匆匆忙忙刮胡子的时候割伤了自己；
26. then, he found that his shirt was not ironed;
后来又发现衬衫没有烫平；
27. so, and, to make matters worse, he was running to his car -- he noticed that the tire was flat.
更糟糕的是，当他急急忙忙地跑向自己的汽车时，发现轮胎是瘪的。
28. Disgusted, and by this time, thoroughly distraught, the minister finally got underway with a sudden burst of speed.
他非常急躁愤怒，后来，终于可以开车出发了，他一路加速，赶往会场。
29. Racing through town, he did not notice the stop sign, and he rushed through it.
当他开车穿过城市的时候，没注意到路边有一个停牌，就直接闯过去。
30. As fate would have it, there was a policeman nearby;
很不巧，有一个警察正好在附近；
31. and, within seconds of running the stop sign, he heard this screaming siren after him.
几秒钟后，他听到有警笛在后面响起。
32. The agitated minister stopped the car, jumped out, and he yelled at the policeman,
这个心烦气躁的牧师停了车跳出来，对警员大声喊着说，
33. “Go ahead and give me a ticket. Everything else is going wrong today.”
“就给我一张罚单吧，今天每件事情都这么倒楣。”
34. The policeman walked up to him quietly and said,
那个警员平静地走到他面前，对他说，
35. “Sir, I used to have days like this before I became a Christian.”
“先生，在成为基督徒之前，我也是这样的。”
36. Needless to say, the minister was embarrassed.
不用说，当时这个牧师感到很羞愧。
37. Please listen carefully to what I am going to tell you.
请仔细听我说，
38. If Satan can sap your strength in the skirmishes of life, he doesn’t have to fight the big battles.
如果撒但可以在你人生的一次小冲突就消耗了你的力量，那他就不用打一场大规模的战争了。
39. If Satan gets you on the little things of life, he has already defeated you in your spiritual battlefield.
如果撒但可以在一些小事上击败你，在属灵的战场上他已经打败你了。
40. When Satan succeeds in getting the little foxes under your spiritual fence,
当撒但在你属灵的篱笆里，放进一只小狐狸，
41. he knows that he has already destroyed the vine;
他知道，他已经摧毁了葡萄园；
42. and that is why it is very important to understand what the Bible says about patience.
因此，理解圣经中所说的忍耐是多么的重要。
43. Now, we use the word, like everything else, out of context for different reasons to suit ourselves;
我们常常为了附和自己的情况，而断章取义地使用这个词语，如同其他词语一样；
44. but we must understand what the Scripture says.
但我们必须理解它在圣经里的含义。
45. What does the Word of God mean by “patience” in the Bible?
神在圣经里所说的“忍耐”，究竟是什么意思？
46. The Greek word is a word that is made of two words.
在希腊文里，这个词是由两个字组成的。
47. It joins the word “anger” with the word “slow”;
是由“愤怒”和“缓慢”这两个词组合而成，
48. or, it joins “anger” with “long”.
或者是由“愤怒”和“长久”这两个词组合而成。
49. In other words, half of the Greek word for “patience” means “anger”,
换句话说，忍耐这个词在希腊文里，一半是“愤怒”的意思。
50. and the other half means “long” or “slow”.
另一半是“长久”或者“缓慢”的意思。
51. Exodus tells us that slowness to anger is one of God's characteristics.
出埃及记告诉我们，有忍耐，不轻易发怒，是神的一个属性。
52. Exodus 34:6 tells us
出埃及记34章第6节说，
53. that God is slow to anger, abiding in love and faithfulness.
神不轻易发怒，并有丰盛的慈爱和诚实。
54. The Bible speaks about the anger of God.
圣经记载了神所发的怒气。
55. I need to explain this very carefully.
我需要很仔细地解释这一点。
56. I want you to listen, and I don’t want you to misunderstand me.
请你留心听，我不想你误解我的意思。
57. There are some people who don’t believe that God can be angry,
有些人，不相信神会发怒，
58. and they want to eliminate this word from biblical vocabulary.
他们想将这个词从圣经中删去。
59. They don’t want to speak about the anger of God, or the wrath of God, or the justice of God.
他们不想谈论神的愤怒和审判。
60. They do so out of ignorance of what it really means.
他们这样做，是因为他们对其中真正的含义很无知。
61. Because people think about anger as they have experienced it in life,
他们理解愤怒，就像他们在自己生活中所经历的一样，
62. whether at home from their parents or at school from their teachers.
好像在家里父母发怒，或者在学校里的老师发怒一样。
63. This is how they think that God gets angry.
他们对于神的愤怒就是这样理解的。
64. Their experience of anger is one of vindictiveness and flying off the handle;
他们所经历的愤怒，是一种报复性的和失控的情绪。
65. and they think, “Surely, this is not how God reacts.”
他们认为，“神一定不会这样的。”
66. They are right, and they are wrong.
他们这样理解，对了一半，但也错了一半。
67. That’s not the anger of God;
那不是神的愤怒。
68. but you must understand that God’s anger, and the slowness of His anger, is inexorably linked to His love.
但你必须明白神的愤怒，以及神不轻易发怒的特性，是和祂的慈爱紧紧联系在一起的。
69. They are two sides of the same coin.
就像同一块硬币的两面。
70. Let me explain.
让我来解释一下。
71. Because God loves humanity that He has created,
因为神爱祂所创造的人，
72. His anger is directed toward anyone or anything that mars His masterpiece.
祂的愤怒，指向那些损坏祂精心创造的任何一个人或者事物，
73. It is God's love that caused Him to pour His wrath upon His Son on the cross.
因为神的爱，才让祂将震怒发在十字架的独生子身上。
74. It is because of His love that He is angered at sin.
因为祂爱我们，所以祂对罪恶发怒。
75. It is because of His love that He is angry over Satan.
因为祂爱我们，所以祂对撒但发怒。
76. It is because of His love that His anger will be manifested one day.
也因为祂爱我们，有一天祂的愤怒会完全彰显出来。
77. To emphasize the love of God, and deny His anger and wrath and justice,
如果你只强调神的爱，而否定祂的愤怒和审判，
78. you will have an image of a God Who is weak and lazy and could not be bothered with sin;
那么，在你心目中，神就是一位懦弱，懒惰，对罪毫不在乎的神。
79. but that’s not our God.
但那不是我们的神。
80. On the other hand, to emphasize God’s anger and judgment without understanding of His incredible love,
另一方面，如果你只强调神的震怒和审判，却不明白神奇妙的爱，
81. you will have an image of a God Who is vindictive and vengeful,
在你心目中，神就是一位只知道报复的神。
82. and that’s not our God.
那也不是我们的神。
83. We all love to create a God that fits our fancy,
我们都喜欢制造一个符合我们想象的神。
84. instead of the true God of the Scripture;
却不是圣经里的这位真神。
85. and that is why some people behave and think and live like the unbelievers in society at large.
这就是为什么有些人的行事为人，思考和生活方式，都像社会上那些非信徒一样。
86. Back in the days of Peter, people scoffed at the fact that Jesus did not return like He said,
在使徒彼得那个时代，人们都嘲笑说，耶稣不会照祂所说的，再回到世上来。
87. and that is why Peter explains, in 2 Peter 3:9,
因此，彼得在彼得后书3章9节那里解释说，
88. that it is His patience that is keeping Jesus from coming back,
耶稣还没有回来，是因为祂宽容我们，
89. because when He comes back, the judgment, which is the natural consequences of sin, will be swift and final.
因为，一旦祂回来了，审判是犯罪的必然后果，一定会迅速执行，带来终局。
90. Let us read together 2 Peter 3:9 and 10.
让我们来读彼得后书3章9到10节。
（请读彼得后书3章9-10节。）
91. Let me tell you something else about the judgment of God that I don’t want you to forget.
让我告诉你一些其它有关最后审判的事，请你别忘记。
92. God’s judgment will not be vindictive or capricious.
神的审判不是报复和任性的。
93. He will merely take away His restraining hand, and all the natural consequences of sin and disobedience will pour out.
祂只是撤开自己掌控的手，那时，所有罪恶和叛逆的后果，自然会显现。
94. The judgment of God is not God sitting there and saying, “I’m going to severely punish you.”
神并不是坐在审判席上说，“我要重重地惩罚你。”这不是神的审判，
95. The judgment of God is the natural consequences of sin.
神的审判，就是罪的必然后果。
96. The Bible talks about the Holy Spirit as a restrainer.
圣经说圣灵是管理者。
97. The judgment of God is based on the natural consequences of sin,
神的审判是基于罪的必然后果。
98. the natural consequences of disobeying God,
是叛逆神的必然后果。
99. the natural consequences of ignoring God, and refusing to listen to His voice.
忽视神，拒绝听祂话语的必然后果。
100. Yes, there are earthquakes and shootings and floods and hurricanes where thousands of people die,
是的，很多人死于地震，火山，洪水和飓风。
101. but still the restraining hand of God is still there.
但是神依旧掌管一切。
102. In my personal opinion, the restraining hand of God is beginning to be taken away.
从我个人观点来看，神掌管一切的手正在逐渐撤开。
103. When the hand of God is pulled out after His believers are taken up to Heaven, Hell will come to earth.
当信徒被提到天上，祂的手就会完全撤离，人间将成为地狱。
104. If you have never committed your life to Jesus Christ, let this be the day,
如果你还没有将你的生命交给耶稣基督，就让今天成为这特别的一天吧，
105. a day in which you accept Jesus Christ to be your Savior, and escape from the judgment of God.
你接受了耶稣为你个人的救主，你就可以避免神的审判。
106. I am glad that I will not be around on the Day of Judgment,
我很高兴，审判的那一天我不会在这里，
107. the day when the restraining hand of God is taken away, and people reap the consequences and pay the natural wages of sin.
那一天，神掌控一切的手撤开了，人们开始自食恶果，为自己所犯的罪付上代价。
108. Now, let me get back to patience.
现在，我再回到忍耐的话题。
109. Patience is dependent on how you deal with anger.
忍耐就是在于你怎样处理愤怒。
110. There are some people who repress their anger, because they think that all anger is always wrong.
有些人一再掩饰自己的愤怒，因为他们认为，愤怒都是错误的。
111. I have to laugh when someone says, “I am not angry about this.”
当有些人说：“我不为此生气”，我会忍不住笑。
112. I often reply to them, “If you are not angry, why did you have to bring it up?”
我经常这样回答他们，“你不生气的话，为什么又要说起它？”
113. A better solution would be something like this:
有一个更好的办法：
114. you say, “I am angry right now, and let me tell you why...”
你说，“我很生气，让我告诉你为什么……”
115. or, “In a few hours, or a few days, I’ll tell you why.”
或者，“几小时或者几天后，我再告诉你原因。”
116. Repressing your anger, or refusing to admit that it exists, will not help you deal with it.
掩饰愤怒，或者拒绝承认愤怒，并不有助于你处理你的情绪。
117. There are others who may not repress their anger, but they suppress it.
另外一些人，可能不掩饰，不过他们压抑怒气。
118. The two are not the same.
这两者不一样。
119. The repressor will say that any anger of any kind for whatever reason is just not spiritual.
掩饰愤怒的人会说，任何愤怒，不管什么原因引起的，都不属灵。
120. What is the reply to this statement?
该怎样回应这种说法？
121. Listen to the Word from the Scripture,
请听圣经怎么说，
122. in Matthew 21:12.
马太福音21章12节。
123. “Jesus entered the temple area and drove all who were buying and selling there.
“耶稣进了神的殿，赶出殿里一切做买卖的人。
124. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves.”
推倒兑换银钱之人的桌子，和卖鸽子之人的凳子。”
125. Suppression of anger is always expressed in the pale face and the pinched lips and the leaving-quietly-never-to-return.
压抑愤怒的人，总是铁青着脸，紧闭双唇，静静地离开，永远不再回来。
126. Suppression of anger is when hurt, resentment, coldness, fury and bitterness abound below the surface.
压抑的愤怒，是在被伤害时，在外表之下，怨恨，冷淡，发怒和苦毒的交织。
127. The Bible chooses to use the word "root" with bitterness.
圣经使用“毒根”来形容心中的苦毒。
128. Why?
为什么？
129. Because the root is hidden. We cannot see it.
因为根是隐藏的，外表看不到。
130. There are so many people running around with hidden roots of bitterness, acting in all kinds of bizarre ways, and finding themselves unable to have a spiritual life;
有许多人，带着毒根，四处往来，外表则表现出各种的伪装，但不能拥有健康的属灵生命。
131. and the reason they don’t know why is because the root of bitterness is hidden.
他们不明所以，就是因为这毒根是隐藏的。
132. The tragedy is that these people think that it is not spiritual to be transparent,
更悲哀的是，这些人认为，诚实开放自己是不属灵的，
133. openly deal with whatever it is that is eating them up.
他们认为，公开地处理侵蚀他们内心的问题，是不属灵的。
134. In fact, what the suppressors are doing is not spiritual,
但实际上，压抑自己才是不属灵的，
135. because you are destroying your health.
因为你正在摧毁自己的健康。
136. Suppression and/or repression can lead to depression,
压抑或掩饰自己的愤怒，只会导致忧郁，
137. and that is not what patience is,
这不是真正的忍耐，
138. and that is not what the fruit of the Spirit is.
也不是圣灵的果子。
139. I have noticed that I have run out of time;
我注意到节目时间又快到了；
140. and, next broadcast, we will continue talking about patience and anger.
下次我们将继续讨论忍耐和愤怒的问题。
141. I hope you will tune in.
希望你能继续收听。
142. Until next time, I wish you God’s richest blessing.
愿神大大地赐福给你，下次节目再见。
