感谢上帝！
在活人的国度里，笼罩着阴霾的黑夜会降临；它会降临到每个人身上。任何深度的承诺，任何高度的服从都无法阻止人类经历的黑夜的来临。
And when that night comes, feeling afraid, we may draw near places of despair. This happens when we allow ourselves to dwell only in that moment, to live as captives of that moment, and we fail to scale the horizons of the dark to see the promise of the emerging dawn of God’s deliverance.
Thick darkness can never remove the gracious hand of God. It may threaten to hide that hand, to remove it entirely from sight; but it can never obliterate it. And even while we dwell in the realm of darkness, the promise of God’s liberating light can fill our hearts with the nearness of the day of victory.
让我们仔细领会，耶稣的十字架不仅仅是罪所造成的痛苦和苦难的标志，因为它是胜利的保证。因为耶稣被举起，他吸引全人类归向他自己。在历史的弧线上，十字架并不是脱离复活而存在的。因为耶稣是我们的喜乐，所以在痛苦中也能获得喜乐。只有当复活节的喜乐被遗忘时，耶稣受难日的悲伤才会存在。
Soon, Easter morning comes. Full-orbed light displaces the darkness of Good Friday. What was only partly visible in the dark night of pain and disappointment now glows at the dawn of renewal. Hope springs anew; courage rises from bowels of fear for Jesus is risen! The solemn purposes of God come into fuller view. “Death is crushed to death” in order that we might enjoy the risen life of the Son of God!
在这个复活节里，基督徒们没有被黑暗所欺骗，因为黑暗会把我们困在消极和绝望的网中。我们看到了邪恶的力量，甚至在人们拼命寻找善良和正义的胜利迹象的地方。 蜂拥而至的怀疑和不信占据了人心，让我们感到生命的虚无。然而，当黑暗笼罩时，我们并没有被压倒，因为靠着上帝的恩典，我们能够摆脱绝望时期所产生的残缺麻木。
在复活节这一天，我们肯定基督已经死了，基督复活了，基督还会再来。感谢上帝！
内维尔-卡拉姆
总书记
世界浸信会联盟®。
©2013年3月26日