提后四7 那美好的仗我已经打过了，当跑的赛程我已经跑尽了，当守的信仰我已经守住了。

　　　　二3~4 你要和我同受苦难，好像基督耶稣的精兵。凡当兵的，不让今生的事务缠身，好叫那招他入伍的人喜悦。

　　在提后四章七节保罗提起三件事：打美好的仗，跑当跑的赛程，守住当守的信仰。正确的基督徒生活是三重的：为着神国的权益，打那美好的仗，抵挡撒但及其黑暗的国度（提前六12）；为着照神永远的定旨完成神的经纶，奔跑赛程（来十二1）；为着在神的经纶里有分于神圣的丰富，守住信仰（加三22）。……守住信仰乃是守住整个神新约的经纶，就是关于基督是神的具体化身也是神的奥秘，以及召会是基督的身体也是基督的奥秘等这些信仰（提摩太后书生命读经，七三页）。

　　2 Tim. 4:7 I have fought the good fight; I have finished the course; I have kept the faith.

　　2:3-4 Suffer evil with me as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please the one who enlisted him.

　　In 2 Timothy 4:7 Paul mentions three items: fighting the good fight, finishing the course, and keeping the faith. A proper Christian life is threefold. It involves fighting the good fight against Satan and his kingdom of darkness for the interests of God’s kingdom (1 Tim. 6:12), running the course for the carrying out of God’s economy according to His eternal purpose (Heb. 12:1), and keeping the faith for participation in the divine riches in God’s dispensation (Gal. 3:22). To keep the faith is to keep the entire New Testament economy of God—the faith concerning Christ as the embodiment of God and the mystery of God and the church as the Body of Christ and the mystery of Christ. (Life-study of 2 Timothy, pp. 61-62)

　　使徒认为他们的职事乃是为着基督的争战，正如民数记四章二十三、三十、三十五节，把祭司的事奉看作服役，争战。每当我们将基督供应别人，就发觉自己是在争战。因此，我们不但该是将美好的托付交托别人的教师，也该是为着神的权益争战的精兵。

　　提后二章四节……这里的今生，原文指今世肉身的生命。我们要为着神在地上的权益打那美好的仗（四7），就必须清除一切属地的缠累。我们竭力将基督供应别人时，我们物质、肉身的生命不该缠累我们。这职事是争战，而争战要求我们免于缠累。一面，祭司的事奉是对神的服事；另一面，是对神仇敌的争战。祭司抬见证的柜时，他们必须预备好与可能攻击这见证的人争战（提摩太后书生命读经，二八页）。

　　为信仰打仗，意思是为神新约的经纶打仗；尤其是为基督是神的具体化身，并为召会是基督的身体打仗。……在提前六章十二节，……永远的生命即神圣的生命，神非受造的生命，这生命是永远的。永远的，指神圣生命的性质，过于指其时间的因素。我们在基督徒的生活中，特别在基督徒的工作中，要为信仰打那美好的仗，就需要持定神的生命，而不信靠我们人的生命。……要完成提摩太前书所说神对召会的经纶，对抗提摩太后书所说召会败落的趋势，并维持提多书所说召会中良好的秩序，这生命乃是必要的基本条件。

　　属神的人该追求公义、敬虔、信、爱、忍耐和温柔；他该为神新约的经纶打仗，并持定永远的生命。这一切事乃是新约基本的方面。相对的，启示录十三章的兽和二十章的火湖，不能与这些基本的方面相比。今天我们为信仰打那美好的仗；这就是说，我们必须为基督是神的具体化身，并为召会是基督的身体打仗。……我们不可仅仅打客观的仗，而必须借着持定永远的生命，打主观的仗。我们不该离开这生命作什么。我们对自己的丈夫、妻子和儿女说话，不该凭着天然的生命，而该凭着永远的生命。甚至在买一双鞋的事上，我们也该照着我们已蒙召进入的永远生命而活。作为今日的提摩太，我们必须持定永远的生命（提摩太前书生命读经，一二一至一二三页）。

　　参读：提摩太前书生命读经，第二、十二篇；提摩太后书生命读经，第三、七至八篇；国度的操练为着教会的建造，第七至八篇。

　　The apostles considered their ministry a warfare for Christ, just as the priestly service was considered a military service, a warfare, in Numbers 4:23, 30, 35 (lit.). Whenever we minister Christ to others, we find ourselves in a battle. Hence, we should not only be teachers committing the deposit to others, but we should also be soldiers fighting for God’s interests.

　　The word for life [in 2 Timothy 2:4] in Greek is bios, indicating the physical life in this age. To fight a good fight (4:7) for the Lord’s interests on this earth we must be cleared of any earthly entanglement. The matters of our material, physical life should not entangle us as we are endeavoring to minister Christ to others. This ministry is a fighting, and the fighting requires that we be free from entanglement. On the one hand, the priestly service is a ministry to God; on the other hand, it is a warfare against God’s enemies. As the priests were bearing the Ark of Testimony, they had to be prepared to fight against those who might attack this testimony. (Life-study of 2 Timothy, pp. 23-24)

　　To fight for the faith means to fight for God’s New Testament economy. In particular, it is to fight for Christ as the embodiment of God and for the church as the Body of Christ. The eternal life in 1 Timothy 6:12 is the divine life, the uncreated life of God, which is eternal. Eternal denotes the nature more than the time element of the divine life. To fight the good fight of the faith in the Christian life, especially in the Christian ministry, we need to lay hold on this divine life and not trust in our human life….To bring forth God’s dispensation concerning the church in 1 Timothy, to confront the process of the church’s decline in 2 Timothy, and to maintain good order in the church life in Titus, this life is a prerequisite.

　　A man of God should pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and meekness; he should fight for God’s New Testament economy and lay hold on eternal life. All these matters are essential aspects of the New Testament. In contrast, the beasts in Revelation 13 and the lake of fire in Revelation 20 cannot compare with these essential aspects. We today must fight the good fight of the faith. This means that we must fight for Christ as the embodiment of God and for the church as the Body of Christ. Furthermore, we must not merely fight objectively, but fight subjectively by laying hold on eternal life. We should not do anything apart from this life. We should speak to our husband or wife and to our children not by the natural life, but by the eternal life. Even in the matter of buying a pair of shoes, we should live according to the eternal life to which we have been called. As today’s Timothys, we need to lay hold on eternal life. (Life-study of 1 Timothy, pp. 101-102)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of 1 Timothy, msgs. 2, 12; Life-study of 2 Timothy, msgs. 3, 7-8; CWWL, 1978, vol. 1, “The Exercise of the Kingdom for the Building of the Church,” chs. 7-8