《西敏信条教牧简释 11.2》

Posted on Dec 28, 2020 by admin

11.2 如此领受并依靠基督和祂的义的信心，乃是称义的唯一工具1；然而这信心在称义的人里面并不是单独存在的，而是始终有其他使人得救的恩德相伴，不是死的信心，而是藉着爱表达出来的信心2。
1 约1:12；罗3:28；5:1；2 雅2:17、22、26；加5:6

11.2 Faith, thus receiving and resting on Christ and His righteousness, is the alone instrument of justification:1 yet is it not alone in the person justified, but is ever accompanied with all other saving graces, and is no dead faith, but worketh by love.2
1 Jn 1:12; Rom 3:28; 5:1; 2 Jas 2:17, 22, 26; Gal 5:6.

我们之前已看到我们称义是因着信的。信心是什么呢？信心基本上就是为了我们得救而“领受并依靠基督和祂的义”。
We saw previously that we are justified by faith. What is faith? Faith, essentially is “receiving and resting on Christ and His righteousness” for our salvation.

基督教所有宗派与表现都同意，我们得救需要有信心。但是，不掌握圣经里所教的信心与称义其微妙的关系，使许多组合从真正基督教分裂，成为谎称是基督徒的律法主义宗教，或成为给基督大名带来羞愧的不法形式。所有类似的宗教即使自称是基督教，仍是无力救赎罪人。
All branches and manifestations of Christianity agree that faith is necessary for our salvation. However, a failure to grasp the intricate relationship between faith and justification as taught in the Scripture has resulted in many groups veering away from true Christianity into legalistic religions that falsely claim to be Christian, or into forms of lawless Christianity that bring shame to the name of Christ. All such religions are powerless to save sinners even if they claim to be Christian.

那么，什么是对信心与称义之关系的正确理解呢？我们的信条给我们提供了答案。
So what is the correct understanding of the relationship between faith and justification? Our Confession gives us the answer.

首先，我们要确认信心不是称义的功德性原因。称义的基础是基督、祂的赎罪和祂的公义。信徒是藉着信心或通过信心称义，而不是因为信心。这点需要我们的仔细了解，因为它今日即使在笃信福音的基督徒当中也是最常见的错误之一。罗伯特•霍尔丹（Robert Haldane）的解释非常正确：“用信心本身代替义，作为人蒙上帝悦纳的条件，或将信心当作拯救罪人的义，没有比这更加沾污真理的了。信心本不是义。义是成全律法。”
First of all, we are given to reaffirm that faith is not the basis or the meritorious cause of justification. The meritorious cause of our justification is Christ, His atonement and His righteousness. Believers are justified by faith and through faith but never on account of faith. This must be carefully understood as it is one of the most common errors even amongst evangelical Christians today. Robert Haldane is surely right when he says, “Nothing, then, can be a greater corruption of the truth than to represent faith itself as accepted instead of righteousness, or to be the righteousness that saves the sinner. Faith is not righteousness. Righteousness is fulfilling of the law.”

第二，我们要承认信心不只是导致称义的工具，而且也是“称义的唯一工具”。我们坚持唯独藉着信心的意思就是这么样。这与天主教因着信心与善行称义的教义截然不同。当雅各说“人称义是因着信为，不是单因着信”（雅2:24）时，他所说的”称义“并不是那祠的神学含义，而是”为证（是实）“的意思（参考：路7:35）。雅阁是说人的善行证明了他真的是基督徒。
Secondly, we are given to confess not only that faith is the instrumental cause of justification, but that it is the “alone instrument of justification.” This is what we mean when we say that we hold to sola fides. This contrasts sharply with the doctrine of Roman Catholicism that we are justified by faith and works together. When James says that “by works a man is justified and not by faith only” (Jas 2:24), he is not speaking of “justified” in the theological sense of the word, but in the sense of “proved to be true” (cf. Lk 7:35). James is saying that good works proves that a Christian is for real.

第三，我们要坚持，得救的信心“在称义的人里面并不是单独存在的”。它“始终有其它使人得救的恩德相伴，不是死的信心，而是藉着爱表达出来的信心”。换言之，称义是唯独藉着信心，但这信心并不单独存在。雅各说：”这样，信心若没有行为就是死的。”（雅2:17）当然，这不代表说称义是因着信心加上善行。路德这样说：“如果只谈称义，那么，行为的确可以不予考虑。但是，真正的信心不可能不产生好行为，就好比太阳必然发光一样。”我们也可以这么说，一个称义的人也会被成圣。称义若没有成圣相伴则是假的。现在有一种异端，教导一个人一接受基督为救主就可以得救，即使他不一定接受基督为主宰。表明这立场的人教导说，一个人一祷告接受基督，即使他没有归正或成圣的表现，也会得救。这是我们的信条所提醒反对的。
Thirdly, we are given to insist that saving faith is “not alone in the person justified.” It is “ever accompanied with all other saving graces, and is no dead faith, but worketh by love.” In other words, justification is by faith alone, but the faith is not alone. “Faith, if it hath not work, is dead, being alone” (Jas 2:17), says James. This, of course, does not mean that justification is by faith plus works. Luther has well said: “Works are not taken into consideration when the question respects justification. But true faith will no more fail to produce them, than the sun can cease to give light.” To put it in another way: a justified person will also be sanctified. Justification not accompanied by sanctification cannot be true. There is a modern heresy which teaches that a person can be saved so long as he has received Christ as his Saviour, but not necessarily as Lord. Those who hold to this position teach that once a person prays to receive Christ, he will be saved even if he shows no evidence of conversion or sanctification. This is what our Confession is guarding against.