| 爭取金牌！什麼金牌？當然是奧林匹克金牌，這是舉世公認，運動選手的最高榮譽，也是奧林匹克運動比賽的焦點。不管是令人咋舌的跳水，或累死人的馬拉松，所有參賽者只有一個共同目標；非贏不可。 記得美國體操名將瑪麗路雷頓嗎？她在跳馬項目上得過兩個滿分，這是很不得了的，凡看過她傑出表現的人，都過目難忘，難怪她會榮獲「女全能體操選手」的頭銜。田徑名將卡爾•劉易士呢？他在跳遠、百米賽跑、兩百米賽跑、四百米接力賽跑，都拿過金牌，幾乎把整個奧運榮耀集於一身。 但那些沒有拿到金牌的人怎麼辦呢？有些跑者快到終點線時腳突然跛了，有些體操選手只不過失去平衡一兩秒鐘。金牌就飛了。勝利者笑顏逐開，失敗者捶胸大慟。奧林匹克一如人生的縮影，似乎只有贏家才抬得起頭來。 但贏的本身卻有兩個問題。 第一，能贏的人實在非常少。每個金牌得主得打敗上百個選手才能榮登寶座。而那上百個被打敗的，也是身經百戰，打敗數千名對手才能擠進奧運的。舉個例，上次美國馬拉松奧運選拔賽，一百七十六人參加，僅僅三人入選。 奪標的機會真是低啊！人生往往也是如此。有句古老的西洋諺語：「山頂上永遠有位子，不怕你來」，這話聽起來很俏皮，卻不實際。這個世上一次只能有一個贏家。老闆的位子只容得下一人，百萬富翁俱樂部的會員想必不會太多。按照世俗的標準來看，成功的人實在寥寥無幾。 另一個問題，連贏家本身也會受累。勝利的滋味是很短暫的，今天的贏家有可能是明天的輸家。再了不起的金牌得主也不可能一輩子得意。 就這點來看，運動比賽和人生實在很像。不管你握得再緊，逝去的光榮回不來就是回不來了。馬拉松冠軍薩拉札說得好：「名聲只是夢一場，一點意義之沒有。」 薩拉札並不是第一個有此感慨的金牌得主，早在三千年前，另一位大贏家所羅門王，這位贏古今中外最有錢的人就曾慨嘆：「你豈要定晴在虛無的錢財上，因錢財必長翅膀，如鷹向天飛去」（箴言二十三：5） 既然只有少數人才能奪標，奪標後的勝利又如此短暫，請問，我們這些剩下來靠邊站，或曾經風光一時的過氣贏家還有什麼盼望呢？ 有的。好消息，有一場特別的賽跑正在進行，我們都是其中的選手。獎賞非常之好，贏的人可獲得豐富的今生和永恆的來世。更棒的是，比賽規則完全不同。 每個人都可以奪標！ 你不必特別去受訓，也不必比其他跑著更壯、更聰明、更好才能贏。事實上，你還得承認自己的體力不足呢！ 更特別的是，比賽的裁判是上帝，祂將親自給奪標者戴上冠冕，並厚賜他們豐盛的獎品：救恩、赦免、完全脫離罪及死亡的捆綁。 「因為罪的工價乃是死，惟有上帝的恩賜，在我們的主基督耶穌裏，乃是永生，」（羅馬書六章二十三節） 主耶穌為我們死在十字架上，償還了罪的代價。三天後從死裏復活，證實祂的確有能力賜我們永生。 沒錯。永生也是一獎賞之一。凡贏得比賽的人將可永遠保持戰果。 在這場人生大賽中，你保證有機會奪標。怎麼贏呢？
1.承認羅馬書三章二十三節：「世人都犯了罪……」。
2.求耶穌來救你：「凡求告主名的，就必得救」（羅馬書一章十三節）
3.宣告勝利！聖經說，只要你們「信奉上帝兒子之名……，你們知道自己有永生」（約翰壹書五章十三節）。 信靠基督的救恩吧，這是上帝千真萬確的應許。 Go for the Gold. Olympic gold, that is. The Olympic Gold medal—a symbol recognized around the world as the pinnacle of athletic success. That’s what the Olympics are all about. Whether it’s an intricate dive or a grueling marathon, the name of the Games is winning.
Remember Mary Lou Retton? No one who saw it will forget how that young American gymnast scored not one, but two perfect “tens” on the vaulting horse to capture the title of best all-around woman gymnast. Or how about Carl Lewis? His gold medals in the broad jump, the 100 and 200 meter dashes, and the 400 meter relay epitomize for many the glory of Olympic triumph.
But what happens to those who don’t bring home the Olympic Gold, who don’t win—the runner who pulls up lame 50 yards from the tape; the gymnast who loses her balance and in just two or three seconds her chance for the coveted medal? The victor gets the thrill, but agony awaits the defeated. At the Olympics, as in much of life, only winning seems to count. But there are two big problems with winning.
First, very few will ever make it. For every athlete who captures a gold medal, hundreds of others will go away empty-handed. And those hundreds of ”losers” won over thousands of other athletes just to get to the Olympics. For instance, a previous U.S. marathon trial drew 176 runners; only 3 qualified! Those are pretty harsh odds, but life is often like that. The old adage, “there’s always room at the top,” may be true, but for most of us it doesn’t help! The world only allows for one winner at a time. There’s only one chair in the boss’s office, only a handful of members at the Millionaires Club. Judged by those standards, many of us will never make it. The other problem with winning plagues even the winners. Victory itself is very temporary. Today’s winner already faces the risk of becoming tomorrow’s loser. Even an Olympic champion can’t savor his triumph too long. In this, too, athletics is very close to life. Even as you hold it, victory evaporates. Marathon runner Alberto Salazar has said it very well. “Fame is just an illusion. It means nothing.” Salazar isn’t the first winner to discover that winning is a mist. Almost 3,000 years ago another winner, King Solomon—probably the richest man who ever live—warned, “ Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone…off to the sky like an eagle” (Proverbs:23:5) So winning is reserved for the few, and even their victories pass with the night. Does anyone, then, have a word of hope for those of us on the sidelines—and those beside us who once stood on the winner’s platform? Yes! There’s good news. Another race is being run, and we’re all entered. The stakes are incredibly high—life itself and eternity. Fortunately, the rules are completely different. For one thing, everyone can win! More amazingly, you don’t have to train to win. You don’t need to be stronger, smarter or even better than the other runners. In fact, you have to admit your unfitness for the race! But there’s more. The Judge for this race—God Himself—also crowns the winners. The prize? Salvation. Complete pardon, full release from the guilt of sin and its sure consequence—death. “For the wages of sin is death,” the Bible says, “but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord”(Romans 6:23) You see, Christ’s death on the cross paid the complete penalty for our sins. Three days later He rose from the dead, demonstrating his ability to offer us eternal life. That’s right. Eternal life is also part of the prize. The winners in this race keep their prize forever! Here’s your opportunity to be a winner in the only race that really matters. How do you win?
1.Admit the truth of Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned…”
2.Ask Christ to save you: “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:13)
3.Claim your victory! The Bible says that if you “believe in the name of the Son of God…you may know that you have eternal life” (1 John 5:13). That’s God’s promise to you when you place your trust in Christ for salvation! If you have just made that decision, why not write us so that we can share in the joy of your victory?
|
PRESS