バイブルクラスがおこなわれました

Bible class on Saturday April
4^th,2015

明日に復活祭をひかえた土曜日の午後、緑星バイブルクラスはいつもより少ない3名の出席でマタイによる福音書の25章を学びました。

今回のテキストも前章から引き続きイエスのたとえによる「救いの完成」について教えています。

この章は三つのたとえ話で構成されています。はじめに"The
Story of the Virgins"乙女の物語、次に"The Story About
Investment"投資の物語、そして"The Sheep and the Goats"羊とヤギの話しという小見出しがそれぞれ記されています。聖書が教える「救いの完成」は、キリストの再臨や最後の審判がいかなるものかの教えを通し、その時に向かって真摯に取り組むべきことは具体的に何であるかを私達に問いかけてきます。

はじめのたとえ"The Story of the
Virgins"では、花婿を出迎える十人の花乙女が登場します。そのうち五人は賢く、残りの五人は愚か者として区別されせっかくの婚宴の席から締め出されてしまいます。たとえ話の中でこの判定基準となったのが、乙女たちがその役割（夜来る花婿を出迎える）のために持つともし火とその油でした。賢い乙女たちはいつでも花婿を迎えられるように十分な油を備えていましたが、愚かな乙女たちにはその備えが無く、いざその段を迎え慌てて油を準備していた乙女たちに「分けてください」と頼み込みますが断られてしまい、ついには婚礼の祝宴から締め出されるのです。

今日のバイブルクラスの話し合いでは、「乙女の物語」と「投資の物語」の教訓にから次のような意見や気付きが話されました。

• 判定基準となったともし火とそれを絶やさない油とは「私達自身の信仰」のことではないか。

  油が無くなると当初のともし火の芯は燃え尽き、もう光り輝かない。

• 「なぜ賢い乙女たちは油を分けてあげなかったのだろう？」...（キリストの再臨、あるいは終末のような）いざという時に個人の内面に在る信仰は他人に分けてあげることができない。

信仰は直接的には神と個人との関係であって、神や救い主キリストを介して間接的に他の人と信仰を共有している。

• 花婿の夜の到着が遅れ、賢い乙女も愚かな乙女も眠ってしまった。...福音書の他の箇所でも弟子たちがイエスのゲッセマネの祈りの最中に眠りこけてしまったように、人間だれしもが持つ弱さをあらわしていてイエスはそれを赦している。...再臨の時はいつ来るか人にはわからない。

   

次に"The Story About Investment"投資の物語については...

• 旅に出かけた主人はとは十字架・復活・昇天のキリストであり、その主人の帰りとはキリストの再臨をたとえている。

• キリストは父の御許に昇る際、地上の人々に多くの神の資産を預けた。これが今回の「投資の物語」の第一の要点。地上にある私達の教会も神が託された資産である。

• 神は資産を託す人のマネジメントの能力に応じて預ける。それらは能力以上でもなく、能力以下でもない。

  このたとえ話の三人の登場人物は、能力相応に実績を出した二人とそうでない一人で構成されている。

• たとえ話では解りやすくするために主人が預けた資産はタラントンという単位のお金だけだが、資産には建物や設備などもある。すなわちこのたとえ話は、与えられた資産を用いて（主人が帰ってくるまでに）時間の経過と共に、与えられた分同等の資産価値を産み出す使命が与えられていると教えている。これは営利も非営利も無く企業の自律自助の大原則。

• 神から預かった資産は教会員のモノでもなく、また牧師のものでも役員のモノでもない。神の資産が増えたのは神の資産を正しく用いたからで、そこに神の祝福とお働きが在った証拠ではないか。

• 教会が神から託された資産を使い減らす一方では、主人から与かったお金を長いこと土に埋めただけのしもべとなんら変わらない。

・・・・等々、今日は活発で前向きな意見が多く出ました。

Matthew 25 The Message (MSG)

The Story of the Virgins

1-5 "God's kingdom is like
ten young virgins who took oil lamps and went out to greet the bridegroom. Five
were silly and five were smart. The silly virgins took lamps, but no extra oil.
The smart virgins took jars of oil to feed their lamps. The bridegroom didn't
show up when they expected him, and they all fell asleep.

6 "In the middle of the night
someone yelled out, 'He's here! The bride-groom's here! Go out and greet him!'

7-8 "The ten virgins got up
and got their lamps ready. The silly virgins said to the smart ones, 'Our lamps
are going out; lend us some of your oil.'

9 "They answered, 'There
might not be enough to go around; go buy your own.'

10 "They did, but while they
were out buying oil, the bridegroom arrived. When everyone who was there to
greet him had gone into the wedding feast, the door was locked.

11 "Much later, the other
virgins, the silly ones, showed up and knocked on the door, saying, 'Master,
we're here. Let us in.'

12 "He answered, 'Do I know
you? I don't think I know you.'

13 "So stay alert. You have
no idea when he might arrive.

The Story About Investment

14-18 "It's also like a man
going off on an extended trip. He called his servants together and delegated
responsibilities. To one he gave five thousand dollars, to another two
thousand, to a third one thousand, depending on their abilities. Then he left.
Right off, the first servant went to work and doubled his master's investment.
The second did the same. But the man with the single thousand dug a hole and
carefully buried his master's money.

19-21 "After a long absence,
the master of those three servants came back and settled up with them. The one
given five thousand dollars showed him how he had doubled his investment. His
master commended him: 'Good work! You did your job well. From now on be my
partner.'

22-23 "The servant with the two
thousand showed how he also had doubled his master's investment. His master
commended him: 'Good work! You did your job well. From now on be my partner.'

24-25 "The servant given one
thousand said, 'Master, I know you have high standards and hate careless ways,
that you demand the best and make no allowances for error. I was afraid I might
disappoint you, so I found a good hiding place and secured your money. Here it
is, safe and sound down to the last cent.'

26-27 "The master was
furious. 'That's a terrible way to live! It's criminal to live cautiously like
that! If you knew I was after the best, why did you do less than the least? The
least you could have done would have been to invest the sum with the bankers,
where at least I would have gotten a little interest.

28-30 "'Take the thousand and
give it to the one who risked the most. And get rid of this "play-it-safe" who
won't go out on a limb. Throw him out into utter darkness.'

The Sheep and the Goats

31-33 "When he finally
arrives, blazing in beauty and all his angels with him, the Son of Man will
take his place on his glorious throne. Then all the nations will be arranged
before him and he will sort the people out, much as a shepherd sorts out sheep
and goats, putting sheep to his right and goats to his left.

34-36 "Then the King will say
to those on his right, 'Enter, you who are blessed by my Father! Take what's
coming to you in this kingdom. It's been ready for you since the world's
foundation. And here's why:

I was hungry and you fed me,

I was thirsty and you gave me
a drink,

I was homeless and you gave
me a room,

I was shivering and you gave
me clothes,

I was sick and you stopped to
visit,

I was in prison and you came
to me.'

37-40 "Then those 'sheep' are
going to say, 'Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you
hungry and feed you, thirsty and give you a drink? And when did we ever see you
sick or in prison and come to you?' Then the King will say, 'I'm telling the
solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or
ignored, that was me--you did it to me.'

41-43 "Then he will turn to
the 'goats,' the ones on his left, and say, 'Get out, worthless goats! You're
good for nothing but the fires of hell. And why? Because--

I was hungry and you gave me
no meal,

I was thirsty and you gave me
no drink,

I was homeless and you gave
me no bed,

I was shivering and you gave
me no clothes,

Sick and in prison, and you
never visited.'

44 "Then those 'goats' are
going to say, 'Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you
hungry or thirsty or homeless or shivering or sick or in prison and didn't
help?'

45 "He will answer them, 'I'm
telling the solemn truth: Whenever you failed to do one of these things to
someone who was being overlooked or ignored, that was me--you failed to do it to
me.'

46 "Then those 'goats' will
be herded to their eternal doom, but the 'sheep' to their eternal reward."

次回は4月18日、いつものように午後3時からマタイによる福音書の26章を学びます。