罗六6　 知道我们的旧人已经与祂同钉十字架，使罪的身体失效，叫我们不再作罪的奴仆。

　　加二20 我已经与基督同钉十字架；现在活着的，不再是我，乃是基督在我里面活着；并且我如今在肉身里所活的生命，是我在神儿子的信里，与祂联结所活的，祂是爱我，为我舍了自己。

　　在我们的基督徒生活与召会生活中，最损害我们用处的，就是照我们的个性而活。……有些弟兄姊妹在他们的个性中有很强的成分，使他们不能与别人配搭合作。有些弟兄姊妹如果受安排作一些事，他们就不能包容别人在那件工作上一同来帮助，他们必须包办一切。这样的弟兄姊妹通常很能干，但也很容易在召会生活中引起难处。

　　主的工作是身体的工作，也是借着身体的工作；所以配搭是迫切需要的。使徒保罗很有才干，但他还需要别人帮助他，并与他配搭。……连主自己也需要与别人配搭。事实上，我们大多数人不喜欢与别人一同作工。我们若是懒惰松散的人，可能会喜欢别人为我们劳苦；但我们若是殷勤的人，一直的在劳苦，就不喜欢别人与我们一同作工，因为无论别人作什么，都会搅扰我们正在作的事。

　　在我们属灵生活、基督徒生活、召会生活并主的工作中，我们必须学习作个一直反对自己的人。……反对自己就是反对我们的个性（生命的经历与长大，一九二至一九三页）。

　　Rom. 6:6 Knowing this, that our old man has been crucified with Him…that the body of sin might be annulled, that we should no longer serve sin as slaves.

　　Gal. 2:20 I am crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live in faith, the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.

　　The thing that most damages our usefulness in the Christian life and church life is our living according to our disposition…. Some brothers and sisters have a strong element in their disposition that hinders them from coordinating and cooperating with others. If certain brothers or sisters are assigned a certain work, no one else can be included with them to help in that work; they must do it exclusively. Such brothers or sisters are usually very capable, and they can also easily stir up trouble in the church life.

　　The Lord’s work is a work of the Body and by the Body; therefore, coordination is desperately needed. The apostle Paul was very capable, but he also needed a number of others to help him and coordinate with him…. Even the Lord Jesus Himself needed to coordinate with others. Actually, most of us do not like to work with others. If we are lazy, careless persons, we may like others to labor for us. But if we are diligent persons, laboring all the time, we may not like others to work with us, because whatever they do interferes with what we are doing.

　　In our spiritual life, in our Christian life, in our church life, and in the Lord’s work, we must learn to be people who are always opposing ourselves…. To oppose ourselves is to oppose our disposition. (CWWL, 1989, vol. 3, “The Experience and Growth in Life,” p. 146)

　　照我多年的观察，我们在神圣生命的长大上，真正的敌人乃是我们的个性。我们的个性也是破坏我们在主手中用处的因素。

　　……我发现许多圣徒最终在神圣的生命上停止长大，不能更进一步往前，……（是）由于他们个性上特别、怪僻的一面。……他们放弃了世界，为主牺牲了许多事物。他们也听了许多信息，并且爱这些信息。然而，还有特别、怪僻的一面留在他们里面。他们本性的那一部分成了坚固的营垒，使他们无法在生命长大上进步。

　　我们怪僻的特性可以比作木块中的木纹。……一块木头的质料可能很好，但若有节瘤，就不容易锯切，而没有什么用处。凡没有任何怪僻特性的基督徒，是长得最多、最快的人。……在事奉上，最有用处的人，是那些一直拒绝并否认他们所是的人。

　　在我们属灵生命的开头几年，我们可能长得很快。然而，由于我们的个性，我们的成长可能慢下来，甚至停顿下来。……我们必须留意我们本性中，个性中的“瘤”。我们若对付这个“瘤”，就会长得快，并在属灵生命上步入坦途，在生命长大上没有什么阻挠，对主也会更为有用。

　　所有圣徒，特别是那些受训练全时间事奉主的人，若都能治死他们的个性，凡事就能顺遂。不然，每一个受了训的人都会成为召会潜在的难处。我们若受了训练，却用我们的野心和才干来实行，结果就是难处。……你对主有多少用处，或对召会造成多少难处，乃在于你的个性有多少被治死。所以，对付个性是一件紧要的事（生命的经历与长大，一九八至一九九、二○三、一九六页）。

　　参读：生命的经历与长大，第二十三至二十五篇。

　　According to my observation over many years, the real enemy of our growth in the divine life is our disposition. Our disposition is also the factor that spoils our usefulness in the hand of the Lord…. I have learned that many saints eventually stopped growing in the divine life and could make no further progress… due to a particular, peculiar aspect of their disposition. They had given up the world and had sacrificed many things for the Lord. They also listened to the messages and loved them. However, a particular, peculiar aspect remained in their being. That part of their makeup became a stronghold that held them back from making progress in the growth in life.

　　Our particular traits can be compared to the grain in a piece of wood…. A piece of wood may be of good quality, but if it has a knot or burl, it cannot be sawed easily; it is not useful. The Christians who do not have any peculiarity, any peculiar traits, are the ones who grow the most and the fastest…. In the service the ones who are the most useful are the ones who always reject and deny what they are.

　　In the first few years of our spiritual life, we may have grown quickly. However, our growth may have slowed down or even come to a standstill because of our disposition…. We must learn to take care of the “burl” in our makeup, our disposition. If we deal with the “burl,” we will grow quickly and have a free way in our spiritual life without any hindrances to our growth in life. We will also become more useful to the Lord.

　　If all the saints, especially those who are being trained to serve the Lord full time, kill their disposition, everything will be very good. Otherwise, each trained one becomes a potential problem to the church. If we pick up the training and practice it with our ambition and capacity, trouble will be the result…. How useful you will be to the Lord or how much trouble you will make to the church depends upon how much your disposition is killed. Therefore, dealing with the disposition is a crucial matter. (CWWL, 1989, vol. 3, “The Experience and Growth in Life,” pp. 150, 153, 148)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1989, vol. 3, “The Experience and Growth in Life,” msgs. 13, 21-25