Introduction

Hello, everyone. Let us look at 1 Kings, chapter 20. The theme of this chapter is: “Then you will know that I am the LORD.” Let me tell you, there is something remarkable here. When the Israelites entered Canaan, God said: It is not because you are good enough, but because the people of that land are wicked enough. We must understand this. How much God wants us to know that He is the LORD God! How much He wants us to know that He is the LORD God who rules over everything in heaven, on earth, and beneath the earth! If a person does not know this, it is truly a tragedy.

People must know God. They must come to know Him. I thank God that one of our sisters lost her job. Her last day, when she finished handing over her work, was October 16. At the time, none of us knew what the future held. We were all uneasy. A few days ago, she went for an interview. In the past two days, she received an offer, with better pay and benefits than before. Let me tell you, how much God wants us to know Him! Your depression was healed. Have you come to know Him? You lost your job and found another. Have you come to know Him? You were healed of a deadly illness. Have you come to know Him? If you still do not know Him, that is truly a tragedy. In this life, we must understand that knowing the Most High is understanding.

When I first came to Singapore, I knew who Lee Kuan Yew was. Ask people on the streets of Singapore: Who does not know Lee Kuan Yew? Everyone knows him. But the problem is that he did not know me. If he had known me, would I have been so poor and destitute? I knew him, but he did not know me. That kind of “knowing” is of no use. You know God, and God knows you. That is wonderful! This is what we call a relationship. With the right relationship, trouble is no trouble; without it, trouble becomes real trouble.

God Wants People to Know Him

Do you know how much God wants us to know Him? Sometimes it is like riding a roller coaster. Have you felt that? Suddenly, your heart is in your mouth. Once you get through it, you discover that it was a fright, but no disaster, and your heart settles down again. Then another round comes straight after! Let me tell you, God likes to “put us through our paces.” His purpose is not anything else. It is to enable us to know Him. Do you think losing your job is merely your own affair? God is arranging a drama. You are in the drama; He is the director. When it is over, you discover that nothing has gone wrong after all. As we are trained through these experiences, our knowledge of God gives us greater and greater confidence.

You know the story of Zhao Yun accompanying Liu Bei to Eastern Wu. Sun Quan had been looking for a way to kill Liu Bei, because Liu Bei stood in the way of his future ambition to dominate the whole land. Zhuge Liang gave Zhao Yun three brocade pouches containing instructions. When trouble arose, he was to open the first, then the second, and finally the third. Zhao Yun was muttering to himself: I am going to Eastern Wu with my lord Liu Bei. Can you, Zhuge Liang, foresee everything like a god? Do you really know what we should do? Give me a break! He casually stuffed the three pouches into his back pocket. He did not take them seriously. Then a difficult situation did arise.

In ordinary situations, Zhao Yun knew what to do, and Liu Bei knew what to do. But when they faced something they could not handle, Zhao Yun remembered the three pouches the chancellor had given him before they set out. He opened the first to take a look. The moment he opened it, he was astonished: Good heavens! The strategist really can foresee events like a god! It works! Let me ask you: How would he regard the next pouch? He would certainly have more confidence in it. When another such situation arose, he opened the next pouch with some measure of confidence. It worked! What about the third pouch? By then, he was full of confidence.

Our lives are like that. God gives us ten pouches of instructions. Then we encounter difficulty and open the first. Wonderful—it works! Do we have a little confidence now? Yes, a little. Then we open the second, the third, and the fourth. The more we open, the more confidence we have. Why? Because God wants us to know Him. If a person can come to know God in this life, that is understanding. For knowing the Most High is understanding.

If, in this life, you know God but have little desire to know Him further, or you know God but God does not know you, how are you going to live? Life will be hard! At a critical moment, what can we do except panic, with our hearts in our mouths? We are helpless, are we not? But if we have God, we have a pouch of instructions in our hands. Open it, and we discover that God truly knows what lies ahead. Is that not so?

God wants us to know Him, not because we are good enough, but because we are all muddle-headed people! We come to know Him, then seem to forget what we know, and panic as soon as trouble comes. Let me tell you: Through the greater part of my life, God has been there in every crisis. It has been extraordinary! How could you ask me not to love God? I have found a treasure. How could I be foolish enough to throw it away? Let me tell you: Whenever people rely on themselves, they become foolish. Whenever they are self-righteous, they become foolish.

Think this through carefully. The more self-righteous a person is, the more foolish he becomes. Look closely. Some people are foolish when they are young. When they grow old, they are simply foolish people who have aged. All their lives, they do senseless things that bring no benefit. Yet they will not come to know God. Is that not a tragedy? We must deal firmly with the self-righteousness within us. God gives us grace, yet we think we deserve it. That is wrong. Never think that you deserve it.

When the Israelites entered Canaan, God told them: Do not think you are good enough. You are all sinners, all rotten people, but the people in that land are even more rotten than you. In this generation, do not imagine that anyone is good enough. This is a generation in which the comparison is between degrees of rottenness. I am quite rotten too, but there are those who are worse. God gives more to those who have, and takes from those who have not to give to those who have—to those who are not quite so rotten. What, then, is God doing? He is making us know Him. The theme of this chapter is: “You will know that I am the LORD.” After going through a crisis, you must come to know God. Not knowing God is foolishness.

The King of Aram, Leading Thirty-Two Kings, Was Defeated by Young Men

Ben-Hadad king of Aram gathered his entire army. Accompanied by thirty-two kings, with horses and chariots, he went up and besieged Samaria. He sent messengers into the city to Ahab king of Israel, saying, “This is what Ben-Hadad says: Your silver and gold are mine, and the finest of your wives and children are mine as well.” The king of Israel answered, “My lord the king, just as you say, I and all I have are yours.” The messengers came again and said, “This is what Ben-Hadad says: I sent word to you demanding your silver and gold, your wives and your children. But about this time tomorrow, I will send my servants to search your house and the houses of your servants. They will take away everything you value.” (1 Kings 20:1–6)

The king of Israel summoned all the elders of the land and said, “Look at how this man is seeking to harm me. He sent to demand my wives and children, my silver and gold, and I did not refuse him.” The elders and all the people said to the king, “Do not listen to him or agree to his demands.” So the king of Israel told Ben-Hadad’s messengers, “Tell my lord the king: Your servant will do all that you demanded the first time, but this demand I cannot meet.” The messengers left and took the answer back to Ben-Hadad. Ben-Hadad sent another message to Ahab: “May the gods deal with me, ever so severely, if enough dust remains in Samaria for each of my followers to take a handful!” The king of Israel answered, “Tell him: One who is putting on his armour should not boast like one who is taking it off.” Ben-Hadad and the kings were drinking in their tents when they heard this message. He said to his servants, “Take your positions!” So they took up their positions to attack the city. (1 Kings 20:7–12)

A prophet came to Ahab king of Israel and said, “This is what the LORD says: Do you see this vast army? Today I will deliver it into your hand, and you will know that I am the LORD.” Ahab asked, “Through whom?” He answered, “This is what the LORD says: Through the young men serving the provincial governors.” Ahab asked, “Who is to lead the attack?” He answered, “You yourself.” So Ahab mustered the young men serving the provincial governors, 232 in all. Then he mustered all the Israelite soldiers, 7,000 in all. (1 Kings 20:13–15)

They went out at noon, while Ben-Hadad and the thirty-two kings helping him were drinking heavily in their tents. The young men serving the provincial governors went out first. Ben-Hadad sent scouts, who reported, “Men are coming out of Samaria.” He said, “If they have come out for peace, take them alive. If they have come out for battle, take them alive as well.” (1 Kings 20:16–18)

The young men serving the provincial governors went out of the city, with the army following them. Each man struck down the enemy he encountered. The Arameans fled, and the Israelites pursued them. Ben-Hadad king of Aram escaped on horseback with the horsemen. The king of Israel went out and struck the horses and chariots, inflicting a great defeat on the Arameans. (1 Kings 20:19–21)

The prophet came to the king of Israel and said, “Strengthen yourself and consider carefully what preparations you must make, because this time next year the king of Aram will come up to attack you.” (1 Kings 20:22)

Let me ask you: Was it the young men who were formidable, or the 7,000 Israelite soldiers? Neither. It was God who was formidable. This is a strange affair, hard to make sense of, is it not? King Ben-Hadad led thirty-two kings, yet they could not defeat 232 young men. What exactly did these young men serving the provincial governors do? These 232 men serving the governor of Samaria—I would guess they danced for the governor. I am making that up. Do not take it as fact. I am only guessing.

Why would a governor gather 232 young men? Do you think he was training soldiers? No. These young men serving the governor were handsome fellows, a ceremonial guard, ornaments, there for show. Do you understand? They were not masters of combat. Why, then, did God choose them? He chose ornaments to go into battle, and even ornaments could win. These 232 young people might never even have had a great love affair. They were handsome young men and beautiful young women. They went out and killed whoever they encountered. What a strange affair, is it not?

Who can stop what God intends to accomplish? Why did He do it this way? To make people know the LORD! It is not because you are strong enough or skilled enough in combat. God intends to give you victory. You would find it difficult not to win. Imagine these 232 young men charging forward. The Aramean soldiers stood frozen, as though God had immobilised them with a touch. The 232 young men went in, saw that the enemy did not react, and struck them down one after another. The moment the Aramean soldiers raised their spears, they froze. How extraordinary! In human eyes, it must have been a completely one-sided victory.

How many men did the king of Aram lead? At least 100,000 or 200,000! Each of those thirty-two kings was quite capable, and they were all arrogant. Do you understand? It was not that King Ahab was so formidable. It was that the king of Aram became arrogant, and God intended to destroy him. Ben-Hadad saw his army collapse like a landslide. A few men at the front were killed, and those behind saw what was happening and ran for their lives. Even Ben-Hadad ran for his life, did he not? Think how arrogant he had been. He had said that there was not enough dust in Samaria for each of his men to take a handful. His soldiers covered the hills and plains. Let me tell you: However powerful the other side may be, if God intends to lead you to victory, there is no way you will fail to win.

Before God, people are no more than a few ants, are they? You may lead thirty-two kings, but your army will still collapse like a landslide. It is useless. You cannot stop it. There were 232 young men. What were the 7,000 behind them doing? Probably collecting weapons and treasure. Those men covering the hills and plains were killed, and their army suffered a crushing defeat. Look at how arrogant the king of Aram was! He even said that if they came out for peace, they were to be taken alive, and if they came out for battle, they were also to be taken alive. The young men serving the provincial governors had soldiers following them. These young men were not soldiers. How could they have been soldiers? They were probably like the ballet dancers in the Evergrande song and dance troupe, quite accomplished in their own way. The soldiers followed them, and each man struck down the enemy he encountered.

What exactly happened? Let me tell you: It came down to one thing. People must know God. When you know God, you understand that victory depends not on people, but on God.

The Arrogant King of Aram Was Defeated Again by Ahab King of Israel

The servants of the king of Aram said to him, “The God of the Israelites is a god of the hills. That is why they defeated us. But if we fight them on the plains, we will certainly defeat them. This is what the king should do: Remove the kings from their commands and replace them with military commanders. Raise another army as large as the one you lost, replacing horse for horse and chariot for chariot. Then we will fight them on the plains, and we will certainly defeat them.” The king listened to his servants and did as they advised. (1 Kings 20:23–25)

The following year, Ben-Hadad mustered the Arameans and went up to Aphek to fight Israel. The Israelites also mustered their soldiers, prepared their provisions, and went out to meet them. They camped opposite the Arameans like two small flocks of young goats, while the Arameans covered the countryside. A man of God came to the king of Israel and said, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Because the Arameans have said that I, the LORD, am a god of the hills and not a god of the plains, I will deliver this vast army into your hand, and you will know that I am the LORD.’” The Israelites and the Arameans camped opposite each other for seven days. On the seventh day, they joined battle. That day, the Israelites killed 100,000 Aramean foot soldiers. The rest fled into the city of Aphek, where the wall collapsed on the remaining 27,000 men. Ben-Hadad also fled into the city and hid in an inner room. (1 Kings 20:26–30)

Good heavens, this had become a joke. The arrogant Ben-Hadad king of Aram had some rather devious servants too. I wonder whether God stirred his servants to say: Your Majesty, the God of the Israelites is a god of the hills. That is why we lost when we fought them in the hills. If you say they did not know God, they seemed to know something. If you say they knew God, they were talking nonsense about “the God of Israel being a god of the hills.” God has a sense of humour. He moved a servant to go to Ben-Hadad with a fabricated story and deceive him. Ben-Hadad was completely taken in, was he not? Why? Because God intended to send him to his death.

Let me tell you: Never put your trust in your strength. Never put your trust in your ability. Never put your trust in your schemes. Trust God. Do not be arrogant. Arrogance is useless! What do you mean, “The God of the Israelites is a god of the hills, so we can win if we fight on the plains”? Nonsense! What happened in the end? The Israelite soldiers were like two small flocks of young goats, while the Arameans covered the countryside.

Two small flocks against Arameans who covered the land. Hard to imagine, is it not? With such a disparity, how could they possibly win? Yet they did win! It was to make people know that the LORD is God. Ahab was still rather foolish, with poor understanding. After all these experiences, he should have known that the LORD is God. Do you know God’s purpose in doing this? It was to destroy this arrogant Ben-Hadad king of Aram. It was to send Ben-Hadad king of Aram to his death. The king of Israel defeated the king of Aram. Those two small flocks of young goats actually killed 100,000 Aramean foot soldiers.

The ratio was probably one to ten. Last time there were 7,000 men. This time, perhaps 10,000 or 8,000. Eight or ten thousand men killed 100,000. That is hard to believe. There were another 27,000, not to mention an unknown number who escaped. From a human point of view, how could they possibly win? But let me tell you, this is what the man of God said:

A man of God came to the king of Israel and said, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Because the Arameans have said that I, the LORD, am a god of the hills and not a god of the plains, I will deliver this vast army into your hand, and you will know that I am the LORD.’” (1 Kings 20:28)

Let me tell you: When you fight God’s enemies, God will certainly give you victory. Those whom God hates, He will certainly deliver into your hand. A hundred thousand were killed. How could 100,000 have been killed? Let me tell you: Once an army’s morale breaks, everything collapses. It loses all ability to fight. But after the Israelites killed a small number at the start, their morale soared, and they went on to strike down 100,000. Killing 100,000 pigs would be exhausting, let alone killing 100,000 people.

For one person to kill ten would be hard enough; to kill a hundred would be harder still. Another 27,000 were crushed by the wall. Is that not strange? Ben-Hadad hid in an inner room. Does this scene not resemble what happened to Saddam Hussein, the president of Iraq? He hid in a room and was later handed over. Very similar. Ben-Hadad was so arrogant that God intended to destroy him. We must understand what it means to be God’s enemy. This is no joke.

If You Spare Someone God Has Determined to Destroy, Your Life Will Take the Place of His

This is a deadly serious statement: If you spare someone God has determined to destroy, your life will take the place of his. It is a revelation that is very difficult to understand. Let me tell you: When God has determined to destroy someone, you must not indulge in sentimental mercy. Someone God has determined to destroy will certainly be someone who speaks arrogantly. Someone God has determined to destroy will certainly be someone who blasphemes God. Remember this. These words are for the brothers and sisters among us. If you are governed by sentimental mercy, you are in some danger.

His servants said to him, “We have heard that the kings of Israel are merciful kings. Let us put sackcloth around our waists and ropes around our heads, and go out to surrender to the king of Israel. Perhaps he will spare your life.” So they put sackcloth around their waists and ropes around their heads, went to the king of Israel, and said, “Your servant Ben-Hadad says, ‘Please spare my life.’” Ahab said, “Is he still alive? He is my brother.” (1 Kings 20:31–32)

Can you understand Ahab saying, “He is my brother”? Was there something missing in his head? In fact, this also meant that God intended to take Ahab’s life.

The men watched closely for a favourable sign and quickly seized on his words, saying, “Ben-Hadad is your brother.” The king said, “Go and bring him.” When Ben-Hadad came out to him, the king invited him into his chariot. Ben-Hadad said to the king, “I will return the cities my father took from your father. You may establish marketplaces in Damascus, as my father did in Samaria.” Ahab said, “On the basis of this agreement, I will let you go.” So he made a covenant with him and released him. (1 Kings 20:33–34)

Was this not a matter of life and death? This principle is deeply revealing. Why was Saul rejected as king? Because he spared Agag king of the Amalekites. Therefore, God rejected Saul as king. Do you understand? Not only did he keep Agag alive, he even regarded Agag as a good man, a good brother. Ahab did the same. Why do people act this way? Because they do not know God’s will. They do not know God. Chinese Mingding Doctrine has learnt a profound lesson here.

People must know God. They must know what kind of people God hates. Never show sentimental mercy towards those whom God hates. Why is this so? From God’s perspective, it is not simply a question of showing mercy or withholding mercy. Some people are enemies in God’s eyes! Why? They are bent on corrupting God’s kingdom. The same applies to the church. Our church has a particular practice: Whoever leaves, we never invite them back. We do not ask people to return. If Lao Ma takes them away, then Lao Ma takes them away. If God takes them away, then God takes them away. We simply devote ourselves wholeheartedly to building God’s church.

The reason is simple. Some people are enemies of God’s kingdom. If you commit an economic crime, you are merely a criminal offender. But if you seek to overthrow God’s kingdom, you are a political offender! Do you understand? If you seek to overthrow God’s kingdom and corrupt God’s church, God will certainly destroy you. So, brothers and sisters, be careful. With some brothers and sisters, I know clearly in my heart: This sister may have a few personality quirks and a temper, but she loves God. She does not love money.

Although she has faults and occasionally judges good and evil, she is not an enemy of God’s kingdom! Do you understand? If someone is an enemy of God’s kingdom, do not show mercy. Do not indulge in sentimental mercy! He has come precisely to corrupt God’s kingdom. If you spare someone God has determined to destroy, your life will take the place of his!

The King of Israel Spared the Arrogant Ben-Hadad King of Aram

Why did God bring the king of Aram to attack Ahab twice? Why did He let Ahab defeat Ben-Hadad twice? Because God wanted to destroy Ben-Hadad, but Ahab was rather foolish and did not understand. He came to attack you twice, and you defeated him. Sparing him was like sparing Hideki Tojo. Can such a person be spared? They established Unit 731 in northeastern China. These war criminals specialised in poison gas and biological and chemical weapons. How many people did they kill? If you spared him, would that not be disastrous? The king of Israel made a fatal mistake in sparing the arrogant Ben-Hadad king of Aram. So God would make his life take the place of the king of Aram whom he had released.

If you spare someone God has determined to destroy, your life will take the place of his. Think about this. King Saul spared King Agag, and God rejected him. Ahab king of Israel spared Ben-Hadad king of Aram, and God would make Ahab’s life take the place of Ben-Hadad’s. Can you understand it now? So, in God’s kingdom, do not make political errors.

One of the sons of the prophets said to his companion, by the word of the LORD, “Strike me!” But the man refused to strike him. Then he said to him, “Because you have not obeyed the word of the LORD, a lion will kill you as soon as you leave me.” As soon as the man left him, a lion met him and killed him. The son of the prophets found another man and said, “Strike me!” So the man struck him and wounded him. Then the prophet went and waited for the king by the road, disguising himself with a bandage over his eyes. As the king passed by, he called out to him, “Your servant was in the battle when a man brought someone to me and said, ‘Guard this man. If he goes missing, your life will take the place of his, or you must pay a talent of silver.’ While your servant was busy here and there, the man disappeared.” The king of Israel said to him, “That is your sentence. You have pronounced it yourself.” Then the prophet quickly removed the bandage from his eyes, and the king of Israel recognised him as one of the prophets. He said to the king, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Because you have released the man I had determined to destroy, your life will take the place of his life, and your people will take the place of his people.’” So the king of Israel returned to Samaria sullen and displeased, and went into his palace. (1 Kings 20:35–43)

If you spare someone God has determined to destroy, your life will take the place of his. Later, I discovered that we had misunderstood a number of things in our ministry. What was the misunderstanding? If God intends to take a person’s life, no amount of ministry on our part will work. Can you understand that? This weighs heavily on my heart. Later, we gradually drew lessons from our experience and asked God to guide us. In many cases, it is not simply that people cannot be healed. God intends to take their lives, and so He allows them to become arrogant.

You cannot use your prayers to change God’s intention to take someone’s life. This was something we did not know. Sometimes we pray with all our might. It is not that there are no results. There are results. But after those results, you see the arrogance within the person, that heart which blasphemes God, remaining unchanged right up to death.

Only many years later did we understand this. One man had cancer, and we prayed desperately for him. His blood oxygen level kept falling, and we prayed with all our might, hoping God would save him. In fact, God intended to put him to death. You must understand: God will certainly destroy the arrogant. Never be arrogant. After we prayed, his blood oxygen level rose. Then he said something utterly offensive: “Ah, modern technology is really impressive!” We were all stunned.

Later, we truly could not continue praying, so we let go. He died miserably, howling in pain. People must know God. I do not care much about how he died. What I care about is whether our brothers and sisters can come to know God. Never remain ignorant of God. Not knowing God is a tragedy. Do you understand? Yet we still think we are doing quite well. Let me tell you: When God intends to bring someone down, He first allows him to become arrogant. He lets him think he is very capable. Then the person becomes arrogant, and God destroys him. It is that simple.

Gradually, we learnt. Let me tell you, God truly does not concern Himself with whether a few people die. God struck down 600,000 Israelites in the wilderness. Korah’s faction, with its 250 elders, was very powerful, yet God struck them down. How many others did God kill through plagues? How many did He kill by various other means? Do you think God is really concerned about whether one person dies or lives? He is not. If you insist on taking that road, God does not mind. That is also fine. Never imagine that God is Santa Claus. Never imagine that God is a God who brings neither calamity nor disaster.

Our God both blesses and curses. He brings both blessings and calamities. Nothing lies outside His rule. We must fear God. If you become God’s enemy, is that not a tragedy? The path of believing in the Lord presents a very great challenge: You will either be set high above all the nations on earth, or placed beneath them all. Moreover, these people whom God puts to death do not understand what has happened, even as they die. Among the Israelites who died in the wilderness was Korah. He died bewildered: Why is this happening? I am one of God’s people too. Why has God put me to death?

Many people, then, die without knowing how they have offended God. Old Eli broke his neck and died. His descendants all lived under a curse. There are many old Elis among today’s pastors too. So we must remind ourselves: Do we want to be old Eli? Never assume, “I believe in the Lord, so I am saved.” On what basis? What exactly do you believe? Let me tell you: Ahab spared someone God had determined to destroy, and Ahab’s life would take the place of that man’s. This part of the story is very strange.

One of the sons of the prophets said to his companion, by the word of the LORD, “Strike me!” But the man refused to strike him. Then he said to him, “Because you have not obeyed the word of the LORD, a lion will kill you as soon as you leave me.” As soon as the man left him, a lion met him and killed him. (1 Kings 20:35–36)

When we read God’s word, do we think: Is God really this kind of God? God is precisely this kind of God.

If a person indulges the flesh to the utmost, carries the flavour of Lao Ma all his life, and lives entirely for these things, how can it end well? Once again, I call heaven and earth to witness as I tell you: Be careful! Do not reach death without understanding how you came to die or what happened. A priest was crushed to death by a cross while receiving Holy Communion. Unbelievers would be puzzled: He served God wholeheartedly. How could he be crushed to death by a cross? Was God taking him home to heaven? God does not take people home like that. Let me tell you: If you indulge in sentimental mercy, and what fills you is a fleshly system of reasoning, your life will take the place of theirs. Be very careful!

Do Not Think You Deserve It: God Wants You to Know That He Is the God of All the Earth

Never think you won because you are capable. Understand that victory comes neither because we have done something right nor because they have done something wrong, but because God wants us to know Him. Have you established this understanding? Do not think you deserve it. It is because God wants you to know Him. If we experience God’s power time and again but still do not know Him, what exactly are we trying to do? Stop being foolish. To go through one experience after another and still not know God is truly a tragedy! People are full of Lao Ma’s system of reasoning, yet still think they are doing well.

There has always been a hurdle in my heart that I find difficult to get past. I have a hope, and I believe it is also the Spirit of God moving me: I hope that all our brothers and sisters can overcome Lao Ma, overcome the worldly system of reasoning, and overcome the fleshly system of reasoning. We are not to use God’s power to satisfy our needs. We are to seek God’s kingdom and His righteousness! We are not to live to indulge the flesh. We are to set our minds on God’s kingdom and on the Holy Spirit, making the mind of the Holy Spirit our own. If we are still preoccupied with the affairs of this life, concerned about this and that, praying for this illness and that illness, praying for your job and mine, that is quite detestable! Why? Because we still do not know God.

Do we truly know God’s will? If we truly knew God’s will, we would regard everything in this world lightly. This hurdle has remained in my heart. Several times, I almost glossed over it and moved on. Yet it still weighs on me! When will our brothers and sisters completely break free from Lao Ma’s system of reasoning? When will they overcome these worldly things, these fleshly things, and these things of this present life?

Never think it was our prayers that produced the result. It was God’s will that produced the result. We must know God. “Then you will know that I am the LORD.”

May God bless you all!