Faith Comes from Hearing 听道而信道

[Dexu Xia]

Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ. Romans 10:17

When Pastor Bob suffered an injury that affected his voice, he entered fifteen years of crisis and depression. What, he wondered, does a pastor do who can’t talk? He struggled with this question, pouring out his grief and confusion to God. He reflected, “I only knew one thing to do—to go after the Word of God.” As he spent time reading the Bible, his love for God grew: “I’ve devoted my life to absorbing and immersing myself in the Scripture because faith comes from hearing and hearing by the word of God.”

We find the phrase “faith comes from hearing” in the apostle Paul’s letter to the Romans. Paul longed for all of his fellow Jewish people to believe in Christ and be saved (Romans 10:9). How would they believe? Through the faith that “comes from hearing the message . . . through the word about Christ” (v. 17).

Pastor Bob seeks to receive and believe in Christ’s message, especially as he reads the Bible. He can only speak for an hour a day and has constant pain when he does so, but he continues to find peace and contentment from God through his immersion in Scripture. So too we can trust that Jesus will reveal Himself to us in our struggles. He will increase our faith as we hear His message, whatever challenges we face.

By:  Amy Boucher Pye

How could immersing yourself in Scripture strengthen your faith? How have you found contentment even when life is challenging?

Loving God, You give me hope even when I feel stuck and in pain. Shape me into the person You want me to be.

可见信道是从听道来的，听道是从基督的话来的。—罗马书10章17节

包牧师因为受伤而影响了声带，使他陷入长达十五年的危机和抑郁之中。他心想，一个不能说话的牧师还可以做些什么呢？他苦苦思索这个问题，向上帝倾诉他的悲伤和困惑。他回忆说：“当时我只知道要做一件事，就是追寻上帝的话语。”随着他花更多时间阅读圣经，他对上帝的爱也与日俱增，他说﹕“我毕生致力于吸收和沉浸在圣经中，因为信道是从听道而来，也就是听从上帝的话语。”

在使徒保罗写给罗马人的书信中，我们读到“信道是从听道来的”。保罗渴望他所有的犹太同胞都相信基督并得到救恩（罗马书10章9节）。要怎么让他们相信呢？就是要建立起他们的信心，因为“信道是从听道来的，听道是从基督的话来的”（17节）。

包牧师寻求领受并相信基督的话语，尤其是当他阅读圣经时更是如此。他每天只能说话一小时，并且说话时喉咙会感到疼痛。然而当他反复咀嚼圣经中的话语时，就能不断地得到从上帝而来的平安和满足。同样地，你我身陷困境时，也可以相信耶稣会透过祂的话语扶持我们。无论我们面临什么挑战，当我们听祂的话语时，祂会增加我们的信心。

作者：  潘艾梅

反复默想圣经经文如何加强你的信心？即使生命充满挑战，你如何从中得到满足？当我们阅读圣经，上帝会藉着祂的话语和自我启示来向我们说话，增加我们的信心。

慈爱的上帝，即使我陷入困境，痛苦难当，祢仍赐给我盼望。求祢将我塑造成合祢心意的人。