(Matt 5: 33-37)（太5:33-37）

Have you ever heard wedding vows that made you cry你听过让你流泪的婚礼誓言吗? I Have我有! When I was in my country还在国内时, I heard the bridegroom say this before God当我听到新郎在神面前说, “I promise to love我起誓会爱你…I will always be honest with you, kind, patient and forgiving永远对你诚实、温柔、忍耐、饶恕…” It reminded me of God’s love它就使我想起神的爱，The promised covenant of love through Christ Jesus’ blood came to us藉着耶稣基督的血而承诺的爱之约, which is so kind, patient and forgiving是那么温柔，忍耐，全然饶恕. This love encourages us to honor our Father God by forsaking our own ways and walking in His divine way这份爱，激励我们放下自己的道路，行在神的道中，荣耀我们的父神!

Today, let’s move on to the next passage of Matt 5, 33-37 about Oaths今天我们继续分享《马太福音》5章33-37节, “33 again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago你们又听见有吩咐古人的话，说, ‘Do not break your oath不可背誓, but fulfill to the Lord the vows you have made总要向主谨守.’ 34 But I tell you只是我告诉你们, do not swear an oath at all什么誓都不可起: either by heaven不可指着天起誓, for it is God’s throne因为天是神的座位; 35 or by the earth不可指着地起誓, for it is his footstool因为地是他的脚凳; or by Jerusalem也不可指着耶路撒冷起誓, for it is the city of the Great King因为耶路撒冷是大君王的京城. 36 And do not swear by your head又不可指着你的头起誓, for you cannot make even one hair white or black因为你不能使一根头发变黑变白了. 37 All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’你们的话，是，就说是；不是，就说不是； anything beyond this comes from the evil one若再多说，就是出于那恶者.”

 Before we get into this passage我们开始分享这段前, let us review what Jesus said in v. 20先来回顾主耶稣在20节所说的, he told his disciples 他告诉门徒that their righteousness must exceed that of the Pharisees enter to kingdom of Heaven要进天国，门徒的义必须胜过法利赛人的义. Because the Pharisees focused on the letter of the Law and did whatever they thought was right因法利赛人注重律法的字句，行自己看为对的, and missed the spirit of the Law失去律法的精义, so in the Sermon on the Mount 所以在登山宝训中our Lord Jesus went into details about murder, adultery, and divorce, 主进一步解释杀人，淫乱，离婚 and told us并告诉我们, that God’s Word judged people’s thoughts and the intentions of the heart神的道审判人的意念和内心的动机. For Heb 4:12 says（来4:12）说, “for the Word of God is living and active神的道是活泼的…it judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart连心中的思念和主意都能辨明. And there is no creature hidden from His sight并且被造的没有一样在他面前不显然的, ”

How can our righteousness surpass that of the Pharisees我们的义怎样胜过法利赛人的义? If we simply observe God’s word by our outward actions若我们只是外在行为上遵守神的道, and if we don’t allow the Holy Spirit to convict us若不让圣灵来光照我们, and to change the intentions of our hearts into His holy character不让改变我们内心的动机成为祂圣洁的内在品格, how can our righteousness surpass that of the Pharisees我们的义怎可能超过法利赛人的义呢? But we thank God for His Son Christ Jesus who died for the forgiveness of our sins但感谢神赐下爱子耶稣基督，舍命使我们罪得赦免, and gave us His Spirit将圣灵赐给我们. If we refuse to feel condemned and ashamed若我们拒绝顺从被定罪感和羞耻感, and put our trust in the Lord in faith信靠主, and allow the Holy Spirit to point out our faults让圣灵来指出我们的罪, and transform us into His holy character from the heart从内里改变使我们象祂, it makes it possible to surpass the righteousness of the Pharisees超过法利赛人的义就成为可能. Now, Jesus continues his teaching about “Oaths”现在，主继续教导我们关于起誓的道. 

1, The OT teaching on oaths. (v. 33)旧约关于起誓的教导（33节）

“33 again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago你们又听见有吩咐古人的话，说, ‘Do not break your oath不可背誓, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord总要向主谨守.’ Because of the traditions the Pharisees observed strictly 法利赛人恪守传统and thought that they were righteous because of them因此就觉得有义, Jesus refers to the OT Law about “oaths’耶稣就引用旧约律法中关于起誓的经文, “it was said to people有吩咐人的话说”, to point out that they had misunderstood the emphasis来指出他们误解了重点, because He is the Law giver因主耶稣就是律法的主，and only He knows the intention and the spirit of the Law也只有祂明白律法的本意和精义.

Let’s see, Lev 19:12我们来看（利19:12）, ‘Do not swear falsely by my name and so profane the name of your God. I am the Lord.不可指着我的名起假誓，亵渎你神的名。”  In numbers 30:2, 在（数30:2）, when a man makes a vow to the Lord or takes an oath to obligate himself by a pledge人若向耶和华许愿或起誓, 要约束自己he must not break his word but must do everything he said就不可食言，必要按口中所出的一切话行.  And in Deuteronomy 23:21-23在（申23:21-23）， If you make a vow to the Lord your God你向耶和华你神许愿, do not be slow to pay it偿还不可延迟, for the Lord your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin因为耶和华你的神必定向你追讨，你不偿还就有罪. 22 But if you refrain from making a vow, you will not be guilty. 你若不许愿，倒无罪。 23 Whatever your lips utter you must be sure to do你嘴里所出的，就是你口中应许甘心所献的, because you made your vow freely to the Lord your God with your own mouth. 要照你向耶和华你神所许的愿谨守遵行。

Can you see the intention of this Law of God你能明白这律法的本意吗? “Whatever your lips utter you must be sure to do你嘴里所出的，就是你口中应许甘心所献的,要谨守遵行” Do what you say 行你所说的! God is faithful神是信实的, He never tells lies to us从不说谎, what He says, He does祂怎么说就怎么做. He also wants His people to be faithful and truthful祂也想祂的子民诚实忠心. The emphasis here is on truthfulness and faithfulness这里的重点在诚实和忠心上. When a man makes a promise to the Lord一个人如果向神许愿, he must be faithful in carrying out the promise就要忠心遵守执行.

In the bible圣经里有个记载, we see that the great prophet Samuel’s mum Hannah who had been barren大先知撒母耳的妈妈哈拿不能生育, one day有一天, she made a vow to the Lord,  saying她许愿说, “Lord Almighty万军之耶和华, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me你若垂顾婢女的苦情, and not forget your servant but give her a son眷念不忘婢女，赐给我一个儿子, then I will give him to the Lord for all the days of his life我必使他终身归与耶和华, and no razor will ever be used on his head不用剃头刀剔他的头. 1 Samual 1:11，（撒上1:11）” God listened to her神听了她的祷告, and she had a child Samuel她就生下儿子撒母耳. Was it easy for Hannah as a barren woman who had a baby to keep her vow不育的哈拿终于生了孩子，此时要守诺言容易吗? No非常不容易! Some may say有的人也许会说, “Oh哦, maybe it’s just a coincidence可能只是巧合吧. I want to keep my baby我要留住我的孩子.”

In our home church我们家里教会, there is a brother who made a vow to the Lord 5 or 6 years ago有位弟兄五、六年前向神起誓说, “Lord主啊, if you help me to succeed in this case I’m taking如果你帮我做成现在这个项目, I will quit my career to serve you as a full-time servant我就放下工作来做全职服事.” God listened to his prayer神听了他的祷告, the case he dealt with succeeded他的项目顺利完成了, but he broke the vow he made before God但他却没有遵守他的誓言. Through dealing with that case he should have received at least NZD 2 million那个项目本可以带给他最少纽币200万的收入, but so far, he has still received nothing可是直到现在却什么都没有得到. Then, he realized that God had been faithful于是他开始认识神是那样信实, and he had lied before God而他在神面前说了谎. After he repented他悔改之后, God helped him succeed again in another case last year神去年又帮助他顺利完成另一个项目, 5 or 6 years later这是五、六年后发生的事. But I believe these are special cases但我相信这是个别例子, not everyone who prays in this way, will God treat the same way不是每个人这样祷告，神都做相同的事, unless it is God’s will除非是神的旨意. Anyway不管怎样, the intention of this Law about “oaths” is to be faithful before God律法关于这起誓，目的是指要人在神面前忠心, and not tell lies不可说谎. Overall总的来说, the principle of making an oath in the OT is explained in Ecclesiastes 5:4-6a《传道书》5:4-6上，概括解释了旧约中关于起誓的原则, When you make a vow to God你向神许愿, do not delay in fulfilling it偿还不可迟延. He has no pleasure in fools祂不喜悦愚昧人. Fulfil your vow所以你许的愿应当偿还. 5 It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfil it你许愿不还，不如不许. Do not let your mouth lead you into sin不可任你的口使肉体犯罪。

2. Jesus Christ’s teaching on Oaths (v.34-37)耶稣基督关于起誓的教导（34-37节）

“But I tell you只是我告诉你们,” -- Now Jesus, the Law giver 耶稣基督，这位律法的主，starts to interpret the Mosaic Law concerning oaths开始解释关于摩西律法中起誓的事, “ ‘do not swear an oath at all什么誓都不可起: either by heaven不可指着天起誓, for it is God’s throne因为天是神的座位; 35 or by the earth不可指着地起誓, for it is his footstool因为地是他的脚凳; or by Jerusalem也不可指着耶路撒冷起誓, for it is the city of the Great King因为耶路撒冷是大君王的京城. 36 And do not swear by your head又不可指着你的头起誓, for you cannot make even one hair white or black因为你不能使一根头发变黑变白了.”

Let’s look back historically我们来回顾一下历史, in Jewish tradition oaths containing God’s name were binding犹太人的传统，以神的名来起誓就有约束性, but if they didn’t contain God’s name they were not binding反之没有涉及神的名的就没有约束性. So if their oaths were made by heaven, or Jerusalem, or by their heads所以如果他们是指着天、地、耶路撒冷、自己的头等等所起的誓, they were free to break the oaths就可以随便违背. But Jesus emphasised that it is impossible to keep God out of any oaths但主耶稣强调说任何誓言都不可能与神无关. If they swear by heaven they are swearing by God’s throne如果指着天起誓，就是指着神的座位起誓; if they swear by the earth they are swearing by His footstool如果指着地起誓，就是指着神的脚凳起誓; if they swear by anything else they are swearing by God’s creation凡指着任何东西起誓，就是指着神的创造起誓, like Jerusalem and their heads就如耶路撒冷或人的头. They cannot remove God from the oath at all人不可能把神排除在任何誓言之外, and they are bound by it anyway无论怎样都被誓言所约束.

Sometimes we hear people say我们有时听到人这样说, “I swear on my mum’s grave that I didn’t do it我指着我妈的坟墓发誓，我没做过.” “I swear on my mum’s life (children’s life) 我以我妈妈的性命（孩子的性命）发誓…I swear on a stack of Bibles that it is true我以圣经发誓这是真的…” What’s the intention hidden behind these words这些话背后的本意是什么?  They are trying to make people trust that they aren’t lying目的是让人信他们没有撒谎. But Jesus explained但主耶稣解释说, that any oath is bound by the name of God任何誓言都被神的名约束, if we swear on anything or anybody我们若指着任何人、事起誓, we are swearing by God’s creation就是指着神的创造起誓, God cannot be excluded都无法把神排除在外. Therefore, as followers of Christ因此作为耶稣的跟随者, we don’t need to make an oath to verify our words我们无需发誓来证明自己. Because God is our vindicator因神是我们的申冤者. We are to be honest and to say我们要诚实地说, “yes be yes是，就是是, and no be no不是，就是不是.”

How important it is to keep promises that we make to others向人谨守诺言何等重要. When my daughter was a little girl我女儿很小的时候, I wasn’t a Christian and was busy running my own trading company那时我还没信主，经营着自己的贸易公司. One day有一天, my little daughter was very sad女儿很难过, and she said to me她说, “Mum妈妈, you promised me that you would accompany me to do this and that你答应我陪我做这做那, but you didn’t do it但你都没有做.” Twenty years passed到现在二十年过去了, and I still remember how frustrated and sad she was when she found her mum failed to keep promises to her我仍然记得起她因妈妈失约，脸上那失落和难过的样子. Thank God for His forgiveness that I was forgiven感谢主，赦免了我! Now as Christians being faithful is possible for us现在，作为基督徒，我们可以成为信实的! Whenever we promise our children任何时候我们答应孩子, our spouses配偶, or anybody else something或别人的任何事, we are taking an oath in the sight of God我们就是在神面前起誓. If we fail to keep that promise, we are lying若失约就是说谎.

Then那么, we need to turn to God’s gracious forgiveness and also say sorry to people我们就要转向神丰盛的饶恕之恩，也要向人道歉. For God says因神说, “The Lord detests lying lips说谎言的嘴，为耶和华所憎恶, but he delights in men who are truthful行事诚实的，为祂所喜悦. Pro 12: 22（箴12:22）” “No one who speak falsely will stand in my presence说谎话的，必不得立在我眼前. Psa 101:7（诗101:7）” That’s serious这太严肃了! If we lie我们若说谎, we lose the presence of God就失去神的同在, if we are kept from the presence of Light我们若与光隔离, darkness will overwhelm us黑暗就会笼罩我们. In other words换句话说, if we lie and don’t repent and ask for forgiveness in faith我们若说谎不悔改，不求赦免, we will incur losses我们就会有损失, mentally情绪思想上的 or spiritually属灵上的 or physically身体上的 or financially或财务上的, because the mission of the devil is to steal, kill, and destroy因魔鬼来就是要偷窃、杀害、损坏. But thank God for Jesus Christ who is the atoning sacrifice for our sins但感谢耶稣基督为我们的罪做了挽回祭, 任何时候，whenever we confess our sins我们若认自己的罪，, he is faithful神是信实的and just是公义的and will forgives us our sins必要赦免我们的罪and purify us from all unrighteousness洗净我们一切的不义(see 1 John 1:9)（约一1:9）He will be with those who are contrite and lowly in spirit祂会与心灵痛悔谦卑的人同居, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the hearts of the contrite 要使谦卑人的灵苏醒，也使痛悔人的心苏醒(see Isa 57:15b，赛57:15下) So please don’t accept any feelings of condemnation but put your trust in God’s salvation所以不要接受任何定罪感，而要信靠神! God never looks for people who are perfect神寻找的不是完美的人, but looks for people who have a humble and contrite hearts to be corrected and led by Him而是寻找心灵痛悔谦卑的人，可被祂指正和引导。

B, Let’s go back to the topic of oaths再回到起誓的话题, Jesus said, anything beyond “yes” and “no” comes from the evil one主耶稣说，是就说是，不是就说不是，再多说就出于那恶者. He also told us祂又说, “don’t swear at all什么誓都不可起”. We can simply declare God’s Word over our lives在生活中我们可以直接宣告神的话, instead of making what we believe to be good vows而不是信自己的信誓旦旦， 哪怕是好誓言 For example比方说, when we are feeling overwhelmed, we declare我们在感到被压垮的时候宣告, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. 我靠着那加给我力量的，凡事都能做。Phil 4:13，腓4:13” When we are worried about giving, we can decree and declare我们担忧给出去自己就没有了时可以宣告, “my God will meet all my needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus. 我的神必照祂荣耀的丰富，在基督耶稣里使我一切所需用的都充足。Phil 4:19，腓4:19” Declaring God’s Word over your life will build your faith and fill your hearts with truth在生命中不断宣告神的话，可以建立你的信心，用真理充满你的心.

But, as the Bible warns但照圣经所警戒的, if you start adding vows to your words你若是照着自己的话加增誓言, even if they appear good就算看起来很好, you could end up with evil结局还是会犯罪得罪神. For the bible says因圣经说, “Now, listen, you who say嗐！你们有话说, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city今天、明天我们要往某城里去, spend a year there在那里住一年, carry on business and make money做买卖得利”; why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow其实明天如何，你们还不知道. What is your life你们的生命是什么呢? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes你们原来是一片云雾，出现少时就不见了. Instead you ought to say你们只当说, “If it is the Lord’s will主若愿意, we will live and do this or that. 我们就可以活着，也可以作这事，或作那事” As it is, you boast and brag现今你们竟以张狂夸口. All such boasting is evil凡这样夸口都是恶的. (James 4:13-16，雅各书4:13-16)

Notice that James connects boasting with evil请留意雅各把夸口当成恶, just as Jesus connected anything beyond yes and no as being evil in His sermon就如耶稣在讲道中将超出是或不是的说法都当成恶. Peter the apostle once swore to the Lord彼得曾经起誓说, “even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble. 众人虽然为你的缘故跌倒，我却永不跌倒。Matt 26:33，太26:33” Do you see看到了吗? Even Peter the disciple of Christ boasted that he would never stumble because of Christ就算是主的门徒彼得，也曾夸口他不会为主的缘故跌倒, but he failed to keep his own words completely可他完全失信了. Because he didn’t know how unfaithful his fallen nature was因他不认识自己堕落的本性何等不信实. Would we be better than Peter我们比彼得强吗? It’s impossible不可能! But Peter’s changed life gives us hope可彼得的生命被改变，带给我们盼望，that we can deny our evil human desires and live in Christ就是我们可以否定自己的邪情私欲，住在基督里!

From Peter’s oath由彼得所起的誓, we can see that vows or oaths are often made up of words like就看到誓言常由这样的字词组成, “I will never我绝不会…”. In the bible圣经里, only when God says只有神这样说, “I will never我绝不再…I will never again curse the ground for man’s sake 我不再因人的缘故咒诅地(Gen 8:21，出8:21)…I will never break My covenant with you我永不废弃与你们所立的约 (Judges 2:1，士2:1)…I will never leave you nor forsake you 我总不撇下你，也不丢弃你(Heb 13:5，来13:5) God is faithful and never tells lies神是信实的，断不至说谎! When He promises他怎样应许, He is faithful to keep His word就怎样信实持守! But for us但对于我们, in the fallen nature在我们堕落的天性里, it turns to lies就成说谎了, for we don’t know what will happen tomorrow like the book of James says, “all such boasting is evil.” 因我们不知道明天会发生什么事，就像雅各书说的“凡这样夸口都是恶”.

When I was a little girl当我还是小女孩, I made a vow我发誓, “I’ll never marry a man from the North of China我绝不嫁给北方男人, and a man with glasses和戴眼镜的男人.” But see看到了吗, God’s will上帝的旨意! My husband. God is faithful!神是信实的 I confessed since I became a Christian.信主后我悔改了。Vows or inner vows like 誓言或内在誓言，就像 “I will never get married我一辈子都不结婚…I will never trust him (or her) again我再也不相信他/她了…I will never fly on an airplane我永远不要坐飞机…I will never allow anyone to hurt me我不许别人再伤害我…I will never get angry like my dad我绝不要象我父亲那样发脾气…when I become a parent I will never我做父母时就绝不会…” These kinds of vows are made out of hurt这类誓言源自伤害, rejection被拒绝, fear 惧怕and judgmental thoughts论断, and they bring negative influences into our lives给我们的生命带来负面影响, and also create strongholds of stubbornness 也建立起里面的坚固营垒which hinder us from being changed by the truth这会阻止我们不能被真理改变. For example比方说, a brother who cannot wait for God’s will to be revealed, when he needs a job有位弟兄找工作时总是不能等候神的旨意显明, because he made a vow to himself when he was a child因为他小时候心里起过誓, “I’ll never be like my dad我一定不要象我爸爸, who quit his job and left the family in a difficult financial situation自己辞职却让家里陷入财务危机.” As an adult成年后, he completely forgets the vow he made他完全忘记自己起的誓, and he also can’t understand why he can’t wait patiently for God’s will to be revealed without feeling fearful但就是不明白，为什么自己总是心怀恐惧、无法耐性等到神的旨意显明. That’s the evil power that binds our souls with those vows那就是用誓言捆索住我们的邪恶势力, so that we can hardly be changed even though we do want to甚至就算我们愿意也无法被改变. Inner vows produce bitter fruit like内在誓言制造出这些苦果:

·        A defensive wall自保的墙. (I will never allow anybody to harm me…我绝不允许任何人伤害我……)

·        To get angry easily容易发怒. (I will never allow anybody to command me…)

·        Bitter root judgement and expectations (I won’t be like my dad or mum… when a little child judged his parents, his teachers or other authorities, this bitter root produces bitter root expectations, as an adult, he may forget the vow, but he has had this inner habit that he unconsciously expects that things can go according to his expectation, or people can do things in light of his expectations, otherwise, he will be easily hurt or rejected or get angered or escape.

·        Actions and words that trigger automatic reactions. (I will never get married…I will never bear a child…if anybody ask this person who made those kinds of vows bitterly, it will trigger his reaction of anger automatically.)  

·        Anxieties and fears 焦虑和恐惧 （I will never that in my house…）

Inner vows are harmful内在誓言是害人的, even when they appear to be good即使有时候看起来很好, for example比如:

·        I’ll be gentle with women just like dad.我要象我爸爸那样礼待女人

·        I’ll never drink or smoke.我才不要喝酒抽烟

They can cause us to be self-righteousness through our flesh这种誓言借着肉体制造出自义. How can we be set free from the bondage of inner vows那么我们怎样从内在誓言的捆索中得释放? 2 Cor 10:4（林后10:4）, The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world.我们争战的兵器，本不是属血气的， On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds.乃是在神面前有能力，可以攻破坚固的营垒。 Jesus our Lord has promised us freedom in His truth主耶稣应许我们真理叫我们得自由, there are some basic steps to break inner vows下面是打破内在誓言的基本步骤:

·        James 4: 16, all such boasting is evil. Declare that you believe in truth. And ask the Holy Spirit to help you recall some inner vows you made or that from the fruit you may recognize some inner vows you have made. 求圣灵使你想起曾做过的内在誓言，或者使你由果子认出自己里面的内在誓言(John 16:13, Romans 2:1)（约16:13，罗2:1）

·        In faith confess and forgive those who have hurt you在信心里承认并饶恕伤害过你的人, which lead you to make vows以至于你起了誓, and also in faith forgive yourself在信心中饶恕自己. (Matt 6:14, 1 John 1:8-9)（太6:14，约一1:8-9）

·        Repent and renounce the vows by the authority of Jesus Christ 奉耶稣基督的权柄，悔改并弃绝内在誓言(Matthew 18:18)（太18:18）

·        Declare and decree that宣告, under the blood of Jesus, the bondage of the vow has been broken. 基督宝血遮盖，内在誓言的捆绑已经断开(1 John 3:8b)（约一3:8下）

·        Declare and decree your new identity 宣告在基督里的新身份Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” (James 4:15)

3, Can Christians take an oath?基督徒可以起誓吗？

Our Lord Jesus didn’t refuse to take an oath when he was questioned before the high priest主耶稣被大祭司审问时没有抗拒祭司指着神发誓的问话. In Matthew 26:63（太26:63）, “The high priest said to him大祭司对他说, ‘I charge you under oath by the living God我指着永生神叫你起誓告诉我们: tell us if you are the Christ, and the Son of God你是神的儿子基督不是？” Our Lord didn’t ignore the oath the high priest made主没有轻忽大祭司起的誓, instead he answered他回答了. In Acts 18:18（徒18:18）, when the Apostle Paul made an oath使徒保罗起过誓, it says that he shaved his hair because of a vow he had taken经上说，他因为许过愿，就剪了头发. So I believe the principle of the whole teaching of Matthew 5:33-37所以我相信（太5:33-37）所教导的原则， is to call the followers of Christ to live a life of honesty and faithfulness without hypocrisy是呼召基督的跟随者，诚实忠心地生活，拒绝假冒伪善. Whatever we say or share the word of God to others我们和他人分享任何神的话, we ourselves shall truthfully do what we say我们自己要诚实地活出来。

If there is a need to make an oath若有起誓的需要, for example, at a wedding or in court比如在婚礼或法庭上, we can make it in sincerity and honesty我们可诚挚起誓. If some of us have made an oath to the Lord in the Holy Spirit若我们当中有人在圣灵中向神许愿, “Lord主啊, break my heart as what breaks yours破碎我就像你怎样被破碎一样! I’m willing to take up my cross and deny myself to follow you我愿背起自己的十字架舍己跟随你.” God has already taken it神已经接受了这愿, we must be faithful to keep it我们就要信实守约, even when it hurts哪怕自己很痛. But when we forget但我们若忘了, God will never forget神永不会忘记. Even if we fail to keep it like Peter who stumbled 就算我们象彼得那样跌倒and swore to people “I don’t know this man”发誓说”我不认识那个人”, but by God’s grace and forgiveness and His unfailing love但借着神的恩典、赦免和不止息的爱, Peter stood up in Christ’s resurrection life and kept faithful to the Lord until the end of his life彼得在基督复活的生命中站立，至死向主忠心. that’s our hope这是我们的盼望. In Christ alone, we stand!我们唯有在基督里站立。

One last story最后有个故事, a young man walked down a beach有个年轻人在海滩上走, and sat beside an old lady who was reading the Bible在一位正在读圣经的老太太身边坐下, he asked her他问老太太, “Are you a Christian你是基督徒吗?” She answered “Yes.”回答说”是”。 “Do you read your Bible every day你每天都读圣经吗?” She nodded her head老太太点头, “Yes是.” “Do you pray often你常常祷告吗?” Again, she answered老太太又点点头, “Yes是.” With that he asked his final question年轻人就问了最后一个问题, “Will you hold my wallet while I go swimming我下水游泳时，可以帮忙看住我的钱包吗?”

May we live a life of speaking truthfully and faithfully that our yes means yes and our no means no through Jesus Christ愿我们藉着耶稣基督，活出一个”是就是 是，说不是就是不是”的诚实忠心的生命, so that we can be trusted with much by our Lord以至于主可以把许多事托付给我们!