Looking Out for Others' Interests First
先求他人的益处
"Do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others” (Philippians 2:4).
“各人不要单顾自己的事，也要顾别人的事。”（腓立比书2：4）
The Lord wants us to have a general but sincere concern for the ministry interests of fellow Christians.
上帝希望我们对其他信徒的事工有普遍且真诚的关心。
We live in a world that is preoccupied with special interests. On the national and international levels, interest groups push for public acceptance of their particular agendas. Likewise, on the local level most people care only about their own personal interests. They’re concerned about their jobs, their families, their hobbies, and perhaps their favorite sports team. In addition to those, if you’re a Christian, you will be concerned about your local church. But even there you can become focused only on your area of ministry.
我们生活在一个专注于特定利益的世界。在国家和国际层面，利益集团推动公众接受他们的特定议程。同样，在地方一级人们只关注自己的利益。他们关注自己的工作、家庭、爱好、也许还有自己喜欢的体育队。另外，如果你是基督徒，你还会关注自己的当地教会。但即使那样，你也只是关注自己的事工领域。
In today’s verse, the apostle Paul cautions us, “Do not merely look out for your own personal interests.” He is warning first of all that we shouldn’t see our personal activities and ministries as our only goals in life. When we become narrowly preoccupied with our own things, it can cause conflicts and other problems with people we know. Instead, God wants us to have a serious, caring involvement in some of the goals others are concerned about. And one way that will happen is if we take our eyes off ourselves and our often excessive concern for self-esteem in everything we do.
在今天的经文中，使徒保罗警告我们：“不要只顾自己的事”。他告诫我们首先不要只把自己的活动和事工当作生活的仅有目标。当我们把自己局限在个人的事务中时，会造成与他人的冲突和其他问题。相反，上帝希望我们认真的，关心地参与到他人关注的事务中。能做到如此的方法就是，把眼光从自我身上挪开，不再陷入在做各样事物时对自尊的过度关注中。
You may wonder exactly what Paul meant by the broad term “interests.” It is a nonspecific word that has several meanings and implications. It includes legitimate goals and responsibilities you have as a Christian, but it also extends to the same kinds of concerns others in your church and family will have. Their needs, tasks, gifts, character qualities, and ministries should be considered equal in importance to yours.
你也许想要知道保罗提及的广义词汇“事务”具体指什么。它是个有多种意思和内涵的非特定词汇。包括作为基督徒的你所有的合法目标和责任，但也包含你的教会和家庭其他成员的目标和责任。应当视他们的需求、任务、礼物、品格和事工和你的同样重要。
Paul, by the Holy Spirit, is calling us to pursue a high standard of Christian living, but the standard is worth pursuing. The more we understand the importance of fellow believers and that they need our prayer and concern, the less our fellowships will be plagued by unscriptural competitiveness and pride of personal interest.

藉着圣灵，保罗呼召我们追求基督徒生活的高标准，而这个标准值得我们追求。我们越多明白其他信徒及他们需求我们祷告和关心的重要性，我们之间的关系就越不容易被不符合圣经的争竞和个人利益的骄傲所损害。
1
Suggestions for Prayer
祷告建议
Ask the Lord to help you order your priorities today, so that you’ll have time for involvement in the concerns of a Christian friend or relative.
求上帝调整我们今天事务的优先性，让我们有时间关注其他基督徒亲友。
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For Further Study
进深研究
Read Luke 10:38-42. 阅读路加福音10：38-42
1. What was Martha’s attitude regarding the interests of her sister?
马大对她妹妹的态度如何？
2. What do Jesus’ words to Martha say about where our      ultimate interest should lie?
耶稣告诉马大我们的终极目标应该放在哪里？
end
作者：John MacAuthor
翻译：Ruth Wei
音频主播：微妙
排版：Rebecca Wei
音频制作：Rebecca Wei
校对：Snow
本文英文原载于John MacArthur所著【Strength for Today】，1997年由Crossway Books出版，转自Grace to You网站
转载请注明出处（转自微信号：JesusChrist611，及作者、译者），请不要对文章内容进行修改，谢谢。
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