约一18　从来没有人看见神，只有在父怀里的独生子，将祂表明出来。

　　罗八29　因为神所预知的人，祂也预定他们模成神儿子的形像，使祂儿子在许多弟兄中作长子。

　　在已过永远里神的独生子，与在复活里神的长子，二者之间的不同乃是：在已过的永远里，在祂成为肉体之前，祂只有神性，没有人性。然而借着成为肉体的过程，祂穿上了人性。祂经过人性生活，进入死，又在复活里出来。在复活里，照着祂的神性，祂仍然是神的儿子；但不仅如此，祂也具有借着成为肉体而得着的人性。祂成为肉体时所穿上的人性，也被带进复活里，有分于儿子的名分。这就是为什么行传十三章三十三节说，在复活那日，基督由神生为神的儿子。这意思是说，复活“子化”祂的人性，使祂的人性也成为神的儿子。根据行传十三章三十三节，基督的复活乃是一个出生，使祂不仅是神的独生子，具有神性，也是神的长子，兼有神性和人性（李文集一九八○年第二册，六四○至六四一页）。

　　John 1:18 No one has ever seen God; the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.

　　Rom. 8:29 Because those whom He foreknew, He also predestinated to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the Firstborn among many brothers.

　　The difference between the only begotten Son of God in eternity past and the firstborn Son of God in resurrection is that in eternity past, before His incarnation, He possessed only divinity without humanity. But through the process of incarnation, He put on humanity. He passed through human living, entered into death, and came out in resurrection. In resurrection He still remained the Son of God according to His divinity, but there was something more; He also possessed the humanity that He obtained through incarnation. The humanity that He put on in incarnation was also brought into resurrection to share in the sonship. This is why Acts 13:33 says that on the day of resurrection Christ was begotten of God to be God's Son. It means that resurrection "sonized" His humanity, made it also the Son of God. According to Acts 13:33, Christ's resurrection was a birth, making Him not only God's only begotten Son with divinity but also God's firstborn Son with both divinity and humanity. (CWWL, 1980, vol. 2, "The Secret of Experiencing Christ," p. 471)

　　今天基督在两方面是神的儿子：祂是神的独生子，也是神的长子。然而，祂若仅仅是神的独生子，就不会有任何弟兄。要得着我们作祂的弟兄，祂必须具有人性；然而，身为在已过永远里神的独生子，祂只有神性，而无人性。但基督在成为肉体时穿上了人性；借着复活，祂又将这人性带进儿子的名分里。这样，祂成了神的长子，具有神性和人性。之后，祂作为赐生命的灵，进到我们里面，使我们也成为神的儿子。如今我们是神许多的儿子，要模成神长子的形像，而不是要模成神独生子的形像。因此，基督身为神的长子，就有许多弟兄。

　　基督复活那日，在祂的人性里为神所生。祂成为神的长子，为要产生神许多的儿子。我们要领悟，我们重生的日子就是基督复活那日。当基督从死人中复活时，我们所有的信徒也与祂一同复活（彼前一3）。借着祂的复活，祂生为神的长子，同时祂所有的信徒也生为神许多的儿子。基督复活那日，所有神的选民都复活了，而且生为神许多的儿子。如今神有许多具有神性和人性的儿子。然而在这许多儿子当中，只有长子是神的独生子。这位神的独生子在祂复活的人性里，也是神的长子。祂是神的长子，兼有神性和人性，而我们这些作神许多儿子的信徒，也兼具人的性情和神的性情（彼后一4）。如今一天过一天，我们正被模成神长子的形像（罗八29）（李文集一九八○年第二册，六四一至六四二页）。

　　就神的独生子而言，主是神圣生命的具体化身。约翰福音强调耶稣基督是神的儿子；作为神的儿子，祂乃是神圣生命的具体化身（一4）。借着复活，基督成为神的长子，就是生命的分赐者，来为着生命的繁殖。首先祂是独生子，是生命的具体化身；现今祂是长子，是为着生命的繁殖（新约总论第九册，二八一至二八二页）。

　　参读：经历基督的秘诀，第四篇。

　　Today Christ is the Son of God in two respects: He is God's only begotten Son, and He is also God's firstborn Son. However, if He were only God's only begotten Son, He could not have any brothers. To have us as His brothers, He must possess humanity, but as God's only begotten Son in eternity past, He possessed only divinity, not humanity. Nevertheless, in His incarnation Christ put on humanity, and through resurrection He brought this humanity into sonship. In this way He became God's firstborn Son with both divinity and humanity. Then, as the life-giving Spirit, He entered into us to make us also sons of God. Now we are the many sons of God being conformed to the image, not of God's only begotten Son but of His firstborn Son. Therefore, as God's firstborn Son, Christ has many brothers.

　　On the day of His resurrection Christ was begotten by God in His humanity. He became the firstborn Son of God in order to produce many sons of God. We need to realize that the date of our regeneration was the date of Christ's resurrection. When Christ was resurrected from the dead, we, all the believers, were resurrected with Him (1 Pet. 1:3). Through His resurrection He was born to be God's firstborn Son, and at the same time all His believers were born to be the many sons of God. On the day of Christ's resurrection, all God's chosen people were resurrected and were born to be God's many sons. Now God has many sons with both divinity and humanity. But among these many sons, only the Firstborn is His only begotten Son. This only begotten Son of God, in His resurrected humanity, is also the firstborn Son of God. As the firstborn Son of God, He has both divinity and humanity, and we His believers as God's many sons also possess both the human nature and the divine nature (2 Pet. 1:4). Now day by day we are being conformed to the image of God's firstborn Son (Rom. 8:29). (CWWL, 1980, vol. 2, "The Secret of Experiencing Christ," pp. 471-472)

　　As the only begotten Son of God, the Lord is the embodiment of the divine life. The Gospel of John emphasizes that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that as the Son of God He is the embodiment of the divine life (1:4). Through resurrection Christ became the firstborn Son of God as the life-dispenser for the propagation of life. First, He was the only begotten Son as the embodiment of life; now He is the firstborn Son for the propagation of life. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, p. 2994)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1980, vol. 2, "The Secret of Experiencing Christ," ch. 4