陈鸽 （译者附加小标题）
当我们全面地讨论基督的排他性时，就理当把属灵的争战包括在内，不是在灵恩教会里看到的那种无稽之谈：一个信心医治者通过电视屏幕、试图捆绑背痛的魔鬼或季节性过敏的鬼；真正的灵界争战与舞台上的魔术和魔咒毫不相干，乃是所有的信徒都蒙召要天天去打的那一场你死我活、没完没了的争战。
异教和魔鬼
在哥林多前书中，保罗谈到信徒当中一个日趋严重的问题：不仅教会对领受主餐漫不经心，而且教会当中还有许多人参加祭拜偶像的庙会。就此，保罗身为牧者，对他们发出警戒：“我是怎麽说呢？岂是说祭偶像之物算得什麽呢？或说偶像算得什麽呢？我乃是说，外邦人所献的祭是祭鬼，不是祭神。我不愿意你们与鬼相交。”（林前10:19-20）问题很简单，虽然偶像本身对信徒并不构成灵里的威胁，但哥林多人仍需要芥蒂这种偶像崇拜背后邪灵存在的事实。这里，保罗一刀切，全面地否定所有的假宗教；凡敬拜圣经之外的神的，就是在拜魔鬼。
水火不相容
这样的结论和那些主张：印度教、佛教、所有的异教或其他世界观，藉着他们的本能的直觉、天然的理性、属灵的倾向，都可以找到寻找到上帝（反正条条大路通罗马）与这样的观点是不可兼容的。若保罗是正确的（的确，他是正确的），那么，其他的信仰（异教）就不可能提供进入天堂的另一条道路，人类的理性也不能提供另一种蒙恩的途径。使徒保罗斩钉截铁地说，那些异教的追求不能引导人来到神的面前，因为他们实际上是在敬拜魔鬼，虽然异教徒不会承认自己在拜鬼，但魔鬼仍在所有虚假宗教的背后操作以及一切错误思想的体系当中运行。撒旦就是那撒谎之人的父，牠乔装做光明的天使，牠的爪牙也伪装成光明的使者和真理的代言人。（林后11:13-15）
我们需要把这样的认识带进保罗写的哥林多后书，和以下这段劝勉的经文当中：
思想的斗争
林后10:3 因为我们虽然在血气中行事，却不凭著血气争战。4我们争战的兵器本不是属血气的，乃是在神面前有能力，可以攻破坚固的营垒，5 将各样的计谋，各样拦阻人认识神的那些自高之事，一概攻破了，又将人所有的心意夺回，使他都顺服基督。
这里，保罗在描述：教会必须如何回应一切虚假的宗教、世俗的哲学、心理学理论、以及凡与福音真理敌对的意识形态的营垒。换言之，属灵争战是一场与一切抵挡神的思想的斗争。神呼召信徒去和恶魔的宗教对抗。
坚固的营垒
保罗用来形容魔鬼谎言的词汇很引人入胜，翻译成“营垒”的这个词ochyrōma（fortress），指的是一个坚固的碉堡，也许是一座堡垒、监狱、或坟墓，这些都是描绘虚假宗教和错误世界观的恰当隐喻。许多追求另一条通往神道路的人，就像在建造堡垒一样地巩固他们意识形态的要塞，但很快它就变成一座监狱，最后成了一座坟墓，除非他们被基督掳回，否则不能重获自由。
迷人的谎言
一切撒旦的营垒（fortress）不论外表看来何等的雄伟壮观，不过是整死人的牢狱。所有的异教都是出于魔鬼，人们不可能藉着恶魔的谎言上天去见神。无论你多么用心良苦、热心虔诚、穷理尽性，都无法将任何人从恶魔迷人的意识形态的坟墓中抢救出来。
因此，当你遇见一个虔诚信奉异教的人时，不要以为他在尽其所能地敬拜真神，不是的，他不是走在一条绕远点儿的救恩弯路上；他乃是在拜魔鬼。神不与那些偶像同在；撒旦才在其中运行，要败坏、要扭曲、搅乱罪人的心，让他们相信自己是在寻求真理。保罗告诉我们，我们必须对异教有这样的认识，才能帮助那些仍被撒旦谎言掳去的人。
天堂没后门
在帖撒罗尼迦后书一章，保罗给了我们一个关于上帝审判有力的陈述。第7-9节，论到基督的降临，“那时，主耶稣同他有能力的天使从天上在火焰中显现，要报应那不认识神和那不听从我主耶稣福音的人。他们要受刑罚，就是永远沉沦……。”
太清楚了，保罗绝对不给普救论“上帝宽广的怜悯”留下任何余地。进天堂不能开后门，你若不认识真神，不信主耶稣基督，就必遭神的怒气。
牧者的哀叹
“自然神学”救不了任何人，它只能陷你于恶魔的谎言之中，牢牢地捆绑你，速速地毁掉你，并且效率特高。这也许是我心中最大的悲哀，就是自称信主、爱主、认识主的人，因着这种邪门的神学，大大地削减了教会传道的热忱。在此万事俱备之刻，当神的百姓拥有充分的财力、科技、交通工具，当我们有一个“地球村”，使传福音比以往都更方便的时候，撒旦竟说服了许多人：“让失落的人顺其自然吧，他们活的挺好的！”甚至，还有人认为我们没必要将福音传到天涯海角，因为他们若知道更多真理，就会因拒绝而遭到更重的审判。根据这种落后的“自然神学”逻辑，无知比光照更有福，传福音不是拯救罪人的途径，乃是危险害人的行动。
当神的名蒙羞，异教侵蚀他的真理又扭曲他的话语时，我们理当伤心难过。这是很正常的，我们应该为那些失落在罪恶中，又被谎言牢笼的人们悲哀。然而，当人们冒“基督教”之名去积极地破坏福音时，就更令人痛心疾首，因这不但羞辱主名，更堂而皇之地带领罪人越发离经叛道。
福音的紧迫
愿我们都忠于圣经的真理，并忠心地传讲基督的福音。愿神兴起一群忠诚的百姓，可以将他荣耀儿子的福音信息，就是那唯一可以靠着得救之名，带到世界的每一个角落。尽管恶魔千方百计要拦阻，基督仍必在列国中被尊崇。愿神赐教会一个将福音传遍地极的心志，因为没有这福音，人必定要灭亡。愿我们始于足下，现在就开始参与。
（改编于“好消息”）
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原文如下：
The Truth About Spiritual Warfare
by John MacArthur
Wednesday, September 26, 2018
Any thorough discussion of the exclusivity of Christshould include the issue of spiritual warfare. Not the nonsense we see in thecharismatic church, where a faith healer attempts to bind the demons of backpain and seasonal allergies through your television screen. True spiritualwarfare isn’t about parlor tricks or incantations. It’s a tireless effort towhich all believers have been called, an endless battle we must wage every day.
In his first epistle to the Corinthian church, Pauladdressed a growing problem among the believers there. Not only was the churchcareless with their observance of the Lord’s Table, but there were also many inthe church who were still partaking in the idol feasts in the temples. Issuinga pastoral warning, Paul wrote, “What do I mean then? That a thing sacrificedto idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, but I say that thethings which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God” (1 Corinthians 10:19–20). The point was simple:The idol itself might not represent a spiritual threat to believers, but theCorinthians should nonetheless respect the demonic realities behind suchidolatry. Paul was making a comprehensive condemnation of all false religions.Worshiping anything other than the God of the Bible amounts to demon-worship.
Such a conclusion is incompatible with the view of thosewho contend that somehow Hindus, Buddhists, and people of all other religionsand worldviews can find their way to God through intuition, natural reason, andspiritual inclinations. If Paul is correct—and he is—those other faiths don’tpresent alternative avenues to heaven, nor does human reason present analternate means of obtaining grace. The Apostle bluntly says that thosepursuits can’t lead people to God because they’re actually demon worship. Andwhile devotees of other religions wouldn’t self-identify as demon worshipers,demons are nonetheless behind all false religion and at work in all falsesystems. Satan is the father of lies who masquerades as an angel of light, andhis ministers disguise themselves as angels of light and bearers of the truth (2Corinthians 11:13-15).
We need to bring that understanding into Paul’s secondepistle to the Corinthians and the following exhortation:
For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war accordingto the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinelypowerful for the destruction of fortresses. We are destroying speculations andevery lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are takingevery thought captive to the obedience of Christ. (2Corinthians 10:3–5)
Paul is describing how the church must respond to falsereligion, worldly philosophies, psychologies, theories, and every otherideological fortress that stands in opposition to the truth of the gospel.Spiritual warfare is a battle against all anti-God ideas. He’s callingbelievers to fight against the religions of demons. The word Paul uses to describethese demonic lies is fascinating. The word translated as “fortress” isochyrōma; it speaks of a fortified stronghold. It could be a castle, a prison,or a tomb. All of those are fitting metaphors for false religions and faultyworldviews. Many people who pursue these alternative paths to God build theirideological fortress like a castle, but it quickly becomes a prison—and it endsup as their tomb, unless they’re rescued and brought captive to Christ.
All of Satan’s fortresses, regardless of how majestic andimpressive they might appear, are damning prisons. All false religion isdemonic, and people are not ascending to God through the means of demonic lies.No amount of good intentions, zealous piety, or reasoning capacity can clawanyone out of Satan’s deceptive ideological tombs.
So when you encounter a person who devoutly follows somefalse religion, don’t think that person is making the best effort he can toworship the true God. He is not merely on a more circuitous path to salvation;he is worshiping demons. God is not in those idols. Satan is in those idols,working to corrupt, distort, and confuse sinful man into believing he ispursuing truth. Paul says that’s how we must perceive false religion, for thesake of those still caught in the clutches of Satan’s lies.
In 2 Thessalonians 1, Paul gives us a powerful statementabout God’s judgment. Verses 7–9 speak of the return of Christ,
when the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with Hismighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not knowGod and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. These will paythe penalty of eternal destruction.
That’s unmistakable. Paul leaves no room for auniversalistic wideness in God’s mercy. There is no back door to heaven. If youdon’t know the true God and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, you will sufferthe fury of God.
Natural theology cannot save anyone. All it can do is tieyou to demonic lies and damn you—and it does so with stunning efficiency. It isperhaps the greatest grief of my heart that professing believers—those whoclaim to know and love the Lord—have severely impeded the church’s missionaryendeavor with this kind of heretical theology. At a time when God’s people havethe financial resources, the technology, and the means of transportation—whenwe have a global village that makes proclaiming the gospel easier than it hasever been—Satan has convinced many that the lost are fine the way they are. Infact, some have gone so far as to argue that we shouldn’t take the gospel tothe far reaches of the globe, since those who don’t believe will be guilty ofrejecting more of the truth. In the backward economy of natural theology,ignorance is preferable to illumination and preaching the gospel is dangerous ratherthan a means of deliverance.
We are appropriately grieved when God’s name isdishonored and when false religions corrupt His truth and twist Scripture.We’re right to grieve for the people who are ensnared by those lies and lost intheir sin. But it is all the more grievous when people actively undermine thegospel and call it “Christianity.” It brings such dishonor on God’s name, andit proudly leads sinners further away from the truth.
May it be that we are faithful to the truth of Scriptureand faithful to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. And may God raise up agreat force of people who, being faithful to that gospel, can be mightily usedto bring that message of His glorious Son—the only name through which salvationis available—to the ends of the earth. In spite of these demonic efforts,Christ will be exalted among the nations. May God give the church a heart totake the gospel to the ends of the earth, because men will perish without it.And may we be a part of that, starting where we are.
(Adapted from Good News)
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