Misaada ya RohoThe Helps of the Spirit
Katika Warumi 8 Roho hutusaidia kuomba, hutusaidia katika taabu, na hutusaidia katika kazi yote ya wokovu wetuIn Romans 8 the Spirit helps us pray, helps us in trouble, and helps us in the whole work of our salvation
1. Msaidizi Aliye Kando Yetu1. The Helper Alongside Us
Katika Agano Jipya Roho wakati mwingine anaitwa Msaidizi, Yeye anayekuja kando yetu kutoa msaada. Hakuna mahali ambapo jambo hili linaonekana waziwazi kuliko katika Warumi 8, mojawapo ya sura kuu za Biblia nzima. Humo Paulo anatuambia njia tatu muhimu ambazo Roho hufanya kazi maishani mwetu ili kutusaidia. Hutusaidia kuomba, hutusaidia tunapokuwa katika taabu, na hutusaidia katika kazi yote ya wokovu wetu. Tayari tumeona kile Roho anachofanya ili kutufanya watoto wa Mungu; sasa tunamtazama akiwa kando yetu siku kwa siku, akituinua pale tulipo dhaifu kabisa. Na tuyaangalie misaada hii mitatu mmoja mmoja, ili tumtegemee kama inavyotupasa, kwa maana Msaidizi tumepewa hasa pale penye hitaji letu.In the New Testament the Spirit is sometimes called the Helper, the One who comes alongside to give aid. Nowhere is this more clearly seen than in Romans 8, one of the great chapters of the whole Bible. There Paul tells us three important ways the Spirit works in our lives to help us. He helps us to pray, He helps us when we are in trouble, and He helps us in the whole work of our salvation. We have already seen what the Spirit does to make us God's children; now we watch Him at our side day by day, bearing us up where we are weakest. Let us take these three helps one at a time, that we may lean on Him as we ought, for the Helper is given to us precisely at the point of our need.
2. Roho Hutusaidia Kuomba2. The Spirit Helps Us Pray
Msaada wa kwanza ndio faraja kuu kuliko zote. Paulo anaandika, "Kadhalika Roho naye hutusaidia udhaifu wetu; kwa kuwa hatujui kuomba jinsi itupasavyo, lakini Roho mwenyewe hutuombea kwa kuugua kusikoweza kutamkwa" (Warumi 8:26). Ikiwa tutasema kwamba Roho hutusaidia kuomba, kwanza ni lazima tukiri kwamba sisi wenyewe hatuombi vizuri sana. Maombi ni mojawapo ya mambo rahisi kabisa ulimwenguni, na pia mojawapo ya magumu kabisa. Tunaweza kuketi kuomba na kuhangaika muda wote, tusiweze kumfikia Mungu. Mtu mmoja aliwahi kusema kwamba tunapaswa kuomba tunapojisikia kuomba, na kuomba tusipojisikia; na nyakati zile tunapohangaika zaidi, ndipo tunamtegemea Roho kwa nguvu zaidi ili ayapeleke mahangaiko yetu kwa Mungu. Kwa nini maombi ni magumu kwetu hivi? Roho anaujua udhaifu wetu, naye huja kutusaidia pale pale tulipo dhaifu kabisa.The first help is the greatest comfort of all. Paul writes, "the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered" (Romans 8:26). If we are going to say that the Spirit helps us to pray, we must first admit that by ourselves we do not pray very well. Prayer is one of the easiest things in the world, and also one of the hardest. We may sit down to pray and struggle the whole time, unable to get through to God. Someone once said that we must pray when we feel like it, and pray when we do not feel like it; and at the very times we struggle most, we lean hardest upon the Spirit to carry our concerns to God. Why is prayer so hard for us? The Spirit knows our weakness, and He comes to help us in the very place where we are weakest.
3. Kwa Nini Tunaona Maombi Kuwa Magumu3. Why We Find Prayer Hard
Kuna sababu kadhaa zinazotufanya tuone maombi kuwa magumu, na inasaidia kuzitaja kwa uaminifu. Kwanza, hatuwezi kuona wakati ujao. Hatujui litakalotokea mwaka ujao, mwezi ujao, au hata baada ya dakika tano, na hivyo mara nyingi tunaomba mambo yasiyofaa, tukimwomba Mungu kile ambacho kisingekuwa chema kwetu. Paulo mwenyewe aliomba mara tatu kwamba mwiba ulio katika mwili wake uondolewe, na Mungu kwa hekima yake alisema hapana, kwa maana neema yake ilitosha. Hatujui daima lililo bora kuomba. Pili, hatuna daima maneno sahihi; tunapoyatafakari mambo ya Mungu, tunaona kwamba lugha yetu haitoshi kueleza sifa za kweli, au huzuni kwa ajili ya dhambi, au shukrani kwa rehema zake zote. Tatu, tunakosa ufahamu. Mara nyingi tuko kama watoto wadogo wanaoomba vitu vibaya kwao, na Mungu, kama mzazi mwenye hekima, lazima aamue lililo bora. Na nne, pengine kuliko yote, tunapata shida kuomba kwa sababu sisi ni wenye dhambi; tunamchukia Mungu, tunamlaumu Mungu, mawazo yetu yanatangatanga, wala hatutaki kuungama makosa yetu. Kwa sababu hizi zote, hata aliye bora kati yetu huona maombi kuwa mapambano.There are several reasons we find prayer hard, and it helps to name them honestly. First, we cannot see the future. We do not know what will happen next year, next month, or even in five minutes, and so we often pray for the wrong things, asking God for what would not be good for us. Paul himself prayed three times that the thorn in his flesh be removed, and God in His wisdom said no, for His grace was sufficient. We do not always know what is best to ask. Second, we do not always have the right words; when we think of the things of God, we find that our language is not enough to express true praise, or sorrow for sin, or thanks for all His mercies. Third, we lack understanding. We are often like small children who ask for things that are bad for them, and God, like a wise parent, must decide what is best. And fourth, perhaps most of all, we have trouble praying because we are sinners; we resent God, we blame God, our minds wander, and we will not confess our faults. For all these reasons, the best of us finds prayer a struggle.
4. Jinsi Roho Anavyotusaidia Kuomba4. How the Spirit Helps Us Pray
Lakini hapa ndipo ajabu lake lilipo: hata tunapopata shida kuomba, hata tunapoomba mambo yasiyofaa, hata tusipoweza kupata maneno sahihi, Mungu bado anayasikia maombi yetu. Yesu anatuambia kwamba Mungu anajua kila hitaji na anajua kila kitu tunachopaswa kuomba. Na Roho Mtakatifu yupo kututafsiria maombi yetu, akituombea kwa kuugua kusikoweza kutamkwa. Kama msaidizi wetu katika maombi Roho hufanya mambo mengi. Hutupa hamu yenyewe ya kuomba. Hutusukuma kumwita Mungu Baba. Wakati mwingine hutuelekeza kuombea mambo fulani. Na hutusaidia kulipokea jibu ambalo Mungu analitoa, hata jibu hilo lisipokuwa lile tulilolitaka. Kamwe hatuombi peke yetu; Roho Mwenyewe anayabeba maneno yetu duni hadi kwa Baba. Kulikuwa na mzee mmoja aliyekuwa akiketi kwa saa nyingi mbele ya madhabahu, na alipoulizwa anamwambia Mungu nini, alijibu kwa urahisi, "Yeye ananitazama, nami namtazama Yeye." Roho anaweza kuubeba hata upendo usio na maneno hadi mbele za Mungu.But here is the wonder of it: even when we have trouble praying, even when we ask for the wrong things, even when we cannot find the right words, God still hears our prayers. Jesus tells us that God is aware of every need and knows everything for which we ought to pray. And the Holy Spirit is there to interpret our prayers for us, making intercession with groanings that cannot be uttered. As our prayer-helper the Spirit does many things. He gives us the very desire to pray. He moves us to call God Father. He sometimes directs us to pray for particular things. And He helps us to accept the answer that God gives, even when that answer is not the one we wanted. We are never praying alone; the Spirit Himself is carrying our poor words up to the Father. There was once an old man who would sit for hours before the altar, and when asked what he said to God, he answered simply, "He looks at me, and I look at Him." The Spirit can carry even a wordless love into the presence of God.
5. Roho Hutusaidia Katika Taabu5. The Spirit Helps Us in Trouble
Msaada wa pili unapatikana katika mojawapo ya mistari inayopendwa sana katika Maandiko yote: "Nasi tunajua kwamba mambo yote hufanya kazi pamoja kwa wema kwa wale wampendao Mungu, yaani, wale walioitwa kwa kusudi lake" (Warumi 8:28). Ni ahadi ya ajabu kama nini hii, na imewaletea watu wa Mungu faraja kubwa kama nini katika saa zao za giza kuu! Lakini kabla hatujaikamata, tunapaswa kutambua kwamba ahadi hii ina masharti fulani. Si hirizi ya kupungia juu ya taabu yoyote; ni neno hakika la Mungu kwa watu fulani, nasi tunapaswa kulisoma kwa uangalifu ule ule tunaoshikamana nalo. Wengi wameuegemeza uzito wao wote juu ya mstari huu katika huzuni na wakaona kwamba unashikilia.The second help is found in one of the most beloved verses in all of Scripture: "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose" (Romans 8:28). What a wonderful promise this is, and what comfort it has brought to the people of God in their darkest hours. But before we seize upon it, we must notice that the promise carries some conditions. It is not a charm to be waved over any trouble; it is a sure word of God to a particular people, and we must read it just as carefully as we cling to it. Many have leaned their whole weight upon this verse in sorrow and found it held.
6. Kuisoma Ahadi Sawasawa6. Reading the Promise Rightly
Na tuisome ahadi hii sawasawa. Kwanza, si ya kila mtu. Imetolewa kwa "wale wampendao Mungu," kwa wale "walioitwa kwa kusudi lake." Mtu asiye wa Kristo hana haki ya kuidai. Tuseme asiyeamini anakutana na msururu wa misiba na, akiwa amelala katika taabu zake, anatabasamu na kusema, "Kila kitu kitaishia vizuri, kwa sababu ya ahadi ya Mungu." Amejidanganya, kwa maana ahadi ilitolewa kwa wale tu wampendao Mungu. Pili, mstari huu hausemi kwamba mambo yote ni mema. Mambo mengi katika ulimwengu huu ni mabaya waziwazi; ugonjwa, ukatili, na dhambi za wengine zinaweza kutuletea maumivu makubwa, wala hatuhitaji kujifanya vinginevyo. Mtoto anapopotea katika ajali ya kusikitisha, hilo si jema, na Biblia haituombi tuliite jema. Tatu, na hiki ndicho kiini chake, mstari huu hausemi kwamba kila jambo peke yake ni jema; unasema kwamba mambo yote "hufanya kazi pamoja" kwa wema. Katika vita vikuu si kila pambano ni ushindi; kuna kushindwa kwa uchungu njiani. Hata hivyo mwishowe Mungu anaweza kuchukua hata kushindwa na huzuni za maisha na kuvifuma pamoja kwa wema kwa wale wampendao. Yeye anafanya kazi katika yote hayo kuelekea lengo moja jema.Let us read the promise rightly. First, it is not for everyone. It is given to "those who love God," to those who are "the called according to His purpose." The man who does not belong to Christ has no right to claim it. Suppose an unbeliever meets a string of calamities and, lying in his troubles, grins and says, "Everything will work out for the best, because of God's promise." He has deluded himself, for the promise was made only to those who love God. Second, the verse does not say that all things are good. Many things in this world are plainly bad; sickness, cruelty, and the sins of others can bring us great pain, and we need not pretend otherwise. When a child is lost in a tragic accident, that is not good, and the Bible does not ask us to call it good. Third, and this is the heart of it, the verse does not say that all things individually are good; it says that all things "work together" for good. In a great war not every battle is a victory; there are crushing defeats along the way. Yet in the end God can take even the defeats and the sorrows of life and weave them together for good to those who love Him. He is working all of it toward one good end.
7. Roho Hutusaidia Katika Wokovu7. The Spirit Helps Us in Salvation
Msaada wa tatu unafika kuanzia kabla hatujazaliwa hadi utukufu wa mbinguni, kwa maana Paulo anaendelea kueleza kazi yote ya wokovu wetu (Warumi 8:29-30). Na kadiri tunavyoutazama wokovu, ndivyo tunavyofikia hitimisho lile lile: sisi hatukufanya chochote; Mungu alifanya yote. Alitupa njia yenyewe ya wokovu, kwa maana Yesu alikuja ulimwenguni, akaishi maisha makamilifu, akafa msalabani, akafufuka tena; sisi hatukuibuni habari hiyo, tuliipokea tu. Tulikuwa kama mtu anayechukuliwa na mto wenye mkondo mkali akielekea kwenye maporomoko, asiyeweza kujiokoa, mpaka Yesu alipoinama akatuokoa. Mto ulikuwa na kasi mno kupiga makasia, na kama angeruka nje angezama tu; dhambi ilikuwa imetufanya tusiweze kujiokoa, kisha Kristo akatuokoa kutoka kwenye maangamizi. Mungu pia alitupa hamu ya wokovu, kwa maana ni Roho Mtakatifu peke yake awezaye kuiumba hamu hiyo moyoni; tunaweza kuwaambia wengine habari za Kristo, lakini ni Roho peke yake afanyaye kazi ya kuhakikisha dhambi, na kama hashughuliki na mtu, tunaweza kuzungumza mpaka tuchoke kabisa na hakuna litakalotokea. Naye anatufanya kuwa kazi iliyokamilika, akitufanyia kazi maisha yetu yote, akitubadilisha na kutufanya tufanane zaidi na Yesu.The third help reaches from before we were born all the way to the glory of heaven, for Paul goes on to describe the whole work of our salvation (Romans 8:29-30). And the more we look at salvation, the more we reach the same conclusion: we did nothing; God did it all. He gave us the very means of salvation, for Jesus came into the world, lived a perfect life, died on the cross, and rose again; we did not create that story, we only received it. We were like a man adrift in a swift river headed for the falls, unable to save himself, until Jesus reached down and rescued us. The river was too swift to paddle, and if he leaped out he would only drown; sin had made us unable to save ourselves, and then Christ rescued us from destruction. God also gave us the desire for salvation, for only the Holy Spirit can create that desire in a heart; we may tell others about Christ, but the Spirit alone does the work of convicting, and if He is not dealing with a person we may talk until we are blue in the face and nothing will come of it. And He is making of us a finished product, working on us through all our lives, changing us and making us more like Jesus.
8. Sawasawa na Mpango8. Just Like the Plan
Siku moja mbinguni Roho ataikamilisha kazi hiyo, na hiki ndicho Paulo anachokiita kutukuzwa. Tumeahidiwa kwamba siku ile tutafanana na Yesu, tukiyatenda mapenzi ya Mungu kikamilifu. Huenda umesikia habari ya mhandisi aliyelibuni Daraja la Brooklyn. Aliumia wakati wa ujenzi wake na akafungiwa chumbani mwake kwa miezi mingi, wakati mke wake mwenye kipaji akiipeleka michoro yake kwa wafanyakazi. Hatimaye daraja hilo kuu likakamilika, na mbunifu huyo asiyejiweza akabebwa juu ya kitanda cha safari kwenda kuliona. Jicho lake la uchunguzi likapita juu ya nyaya, mihimili, na misumari ya chuma, akaona kwamba kila kipengele kilikuwa kimetekelezwa sawasawa kabisa na alivyokiota. Kwa furaha akapaza sauti, "Ni sawasawa na mpango, ni sawasawa na mpango." Hivyo ndivyo Roho anavyofanya ndani yetu. Anatufanya, polepole na kwa hakika, kulingana na mpango wa Mungu, na siku moja kazi itakamilika. Mpaka wakati huo, Msaidizi yuko kando yetu katika maombi yetu, katika taabu zetu, na katika wokovu wetu, wala hataiacha kazi bila kuikamilisha. Kile alichokianza ndani yetu hakika atakikamilisha, kwa maana yeye ni mwaminifu, na mpango ni wa Mungu mwenyewe.One day in heaven the Spirit will finish that work, and this is what Paul calls glorification. We are promised that on that day we shall be like Jesus, doing the will of God completely. You may have heard the story of the engineer who designed the Brooklyn Bridge. He was injured during its building and shut up in his room for many months, while his gifted wife carried his plans to the workmen. At last the great bridge was finished, and the helpless architect was carried on a cot to see it. His critical eye traveled over the cables, the beams, and the rivets, and he saw that every detail had been carried out exactly as he had dreamed it. In delight he cried out, "It is just like the plan, it is just like the plan." That is what the Spirit does in us. He is making us, slowly and surely, according to the plan of God, and one day the work will be complete. Until then, the Helper is at our side in our praying, in our troubles, and in our salvation, and He will never leave the work unfinished. What He has begun in us He will surely complete, for He is faithful, and the plan is God's own.
Kutoka Mimbarini kwa Dkt. CookFrom Dr. Cook's Pulpit
Msaada wa ndani kabisa wa Roho: amri mbili za kimungu — Iweni watakatifu (Mambo ya Walawi 11:44), mjazwe (Waefeso 5:18)The Spirit's deepest help: two divine imperatives — Be holy (Leviticus 11:44), be filled (Ephesians 5:18)Roho yule yule anayetuombea katika maombi na kuyafuma mambo yote pamoja kwa wema wetu ametolewa kutusaidia kwa namna iliyo ya ndani zaidi bado: hutufanya watakatifu, na hutujaza. Amri mbili zinasimama pamoja katika Maandiko, nasi tunapaswa kuzishika pamoja: "iweni watakatifu; kwa kuwa mimi ni mtakatifu" (Mambo ya Walawi 11:44), na "mjazwe Roho" (Waefeso 5:18). Kuwa mtakatifu ni kutengwa kwa ajili ya matumizi ya Mungu peke yake. Kitu ni kitakatifu kinapokuwa mali yake na si ya mwingine, na kinatunzwa kwa ajili ya huduma yake peke yake. Hilo ndilo analotuomba — si kwamba tuongeze dini kidogo katika maisha ambayo bado ni yetu wenyewe, bali kwamba tuwe wake kabisa, tuliohifadhiwa kwa ajili yake kama chombo kilichotengwa katika nyumba yake.The same Spirit who pleads for us in prayer and weaves all things together for our good is given to help us in a deeper way still: He makes us holy, and He fills us. Two commands stand together in Scripture, and we should hold them together: "be ye holy; for I am holy" (Leviticus 11:44), and "be filled with the Spirit" (Ephesians 5:18). To be holy is to be set apart for God's exclusive use. A thing is holy when it belongs to Him and to no other, and is kept for His service alone. That is what He asks of us — not that we add a little religion to a life that is still our own, but that we be wholly His, reserved for Him as a vessel set apart in His house.
Nasi tunafanywa watakatifu kwa kujazwa, kwa maana utakatifu si kitu tunachokizalisha kwa nguvu zetu wenyewe. Zingatia sarufi ya amri hiyo, kwa maana si jambo linalofanyika mara moja na kumalizika: Paulo anaiandika katika wakati uliopo unaoendelea, hivi kwamba maana yake ni endeleeni kujazwa, siku baada ya siku. Na kujazwa si kupokea hisia fulani au nguvu fulani kama kitu kilicho mbali naye; ni kuwa chini ya utawala wa Nafsi, Roho Mtakatifu akiingia kushika usukani wa maisha. Kabla ya kuja kwa injini za dizeli nilipenda kutazama gari moshi kubwa la mvuke likisimama juu ya reli, likitetemeka kwa mvuke, magurudumu yake makubwa marefu kuliko mtu, na bado halisogezi kitu chochote; lilikosa tu dereva wake kitini. Akipanda na kuweka mkono wake juu ya kidhibiti cha mvuke, gari moshi zima lilianza kuondoka. Vivyo hivyo mwamini anaweza kuwa na kila sehemu ya maisha ya Kikristo na bado akasimama bila kusogea, mpaka Roho achukue kiti cha uongozi. Hiyo ndiyo maana ya kujazwa.And we are made holy by being filled, for holiness is not a thing we work up out of our own strength. Mark the grammar of that command, for it is not done once and finished: Paul writes it in the present, continuing tense, so that it means keep on being filled, day after day. And to be filled is not to receive some feeling or power as a thing apart from Himself; it is to come under the control of a Person, the Holy Spirit entering to take the helm of the life. Before the diesels came I loved to watch a great steam locomotive stand on the track, throbbing with steam, its drive-wheels taller than a man, and yet not moving a thing; it lacked only the engineer in his seat. Let him climb up and lay his hand on the throttle, and the whole train moved out. So a believer may have every part of the Christian life and still stand motionless, until the Spirit takes the controlling seat. That is what it is to be filled.
Basi huu ndio msaada tunaouhitaji zaidi kutoka kwa Msaidizi: kwamba Yeye aliyetutenga pia atujaze, na aendelee kutujaza, mpaka utakatifu wake ufanyike ndani yetu kabisa. Alama hakika ya mtu wa namna hiyo si kwamba anahisi mengi, bali kwamba angependa zaidi kuwa mtakatifu kuliko kuwa na furaha, na anaithamini heshima ya Mungu kuliko raha yake mwenyewe. Basi kuwa wake, umetengwa kwa ajili yake peke yake; na ujitoe kwa Roho kila siku, ili ajaze kile alichokitenga.This, then, is the help we most need from the Helper: that the One who has set us apart would also fill us, and keep on filling us, until His holiness is worked all the way through us. The surest mark of such a man is not that he feels much, but that he would rather be holy than happy, and holds the honor of God dearer than his own ease. Be His, then, set apart for Him alone; and yield to the Spirit daily, that He may fill what He has set apart.