Introduction

There is a notion: If a person has their fortune told once, and the fortune teller says that their entire life will be like this, will the person think, Is this what my life will be like? Is our destiny determined by fortune telling, or do we create it ourselves? We need to know why God tells us in advance what will happen in the future. God's motive is not for people to die but to live. Theological concepts are expectations of God. Your choices determine your future. You must choose life, you must choose the future. The most basic principle is what should we do? God's word declares: Whoever is like Jacob, Jacob's affairs will be accomplished in him; whoever is like Joseph, Joseph's affairs will be accomplished in him. That which is born of the Spirit is spirit, and that which is born of the flesh is flesh.

What to Do Before Death

What do people do before they die? Before dying, people often lament, My whole life! Some people spend their whole lives eating, drinking, and making merry; some people spend their whole lives working hard; and some people have simple hopes at the end of their lives. What people envy in a confined situation represents their value system. Some people, when they get old, are full of rubbish in their minds, but it seems very normal to them, like needing someone to take care of them. But Moses did not need care even in his old age.

I tell you, all the value systems inside a person are the standards of their choices. If you read Moses' long passage and think, Who should I choose to be? I want to choose to be Joseph. Even if I don't choose to be Joseph, I will choose to be Levi. I want all the blessings given to Levi, Joseph, and Jacob. If a person is like Jacob, Joseph, or Moses, he will have no problems when he gets old. Moses' eyes were not dim, and his vigour was not abated before he died.

Moses was a hundred and twenty years old when he died. His eyes were not dim, and his vigour was not abated (Deuteronomy 34:7).

A person with Mingding Destiny does not need anyone to take care of him before he dies. Do you want to be a person with Mingding Destiny? If you want to be a person with Mingding Destiny, let us begin today to learn to have a shrewd view of life and death. God told Moses that he was about to die, and Moses' reaction was normal. Moses' hope was not in this world at all. It is very sad if our Christian hope is in this world! The fear of death is definitely not a good thing, because a person who fears death does not have a view of life like Moses, Joseph, or Jacob, but like the people of the world. Their endings are all miserable. The view of life and death determines whether God is with you or the devil is with you.

If your view is not adjusted, especially for the elderly, it is very dangerous, because the thoughts inside them attract these evil spirits. For example, elderly people often say that they see dead people or strange things coming to them before they die. We think they are just senile, but it is not. Their spiritual eyes are opened, and what they see before they die are those things. Why do they see those things, but Moses did not see those things before he died? In fact, people with Mingding Destiny will attract the presence of God, and those without Mingding Destiny will attract the presence of demons. People with Mingding Destiny care about their impact on future generations, so Moses wrote Deuteronomy 33 and 34, telling future generations that whoever you are like, you will receive God's promises and blessings for that person. When Moses spoke of Israel, he said:

Now this is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the children of Israel before his death (Deuteronomy 33:1).

Moses referred to himself as the man of God in the book. So we brothers and sisters must learn to be men of God, and men of God will perform miracles and do many wonderful things.

He chose the best part for himself, For there a lawgiver’s portion was reserved; He went with the heads of the people; He administered the justice of the Lord, And His ordinances to Israel. And of Dan he said: “Dan is a lion’s whelp; He shall leap from Bashan.” And of Naphtali he said: “O Naphtali, satisfied with favour, And full of the blessing of the Lord, Possess the west and the south.” And of Asher he said: “Asher is most blessed of sons; Let him be favoured by his brothers, And let him dip his foot in oil. Your sandals shall be iron and bronze; As your days, so shall your strength be (Deuteronomy 33:21-25).

“There is no one like the God of Jeshurun, Who rides the heavens to help you, And in His excellency on the clouds. The eternal God is your refuge, And underneath are the everlasting arms; He will thrust out the enemy from before you, And will say, ‘Destroy!’ Israel then shall dwell in safety, The fountain of Jacob alone, In a land of grain and new wine; His heavens shall also drop dew. Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord, The shield of your help And the sword of your majesty! Your enemies shall submit to you, And you shall tread down their high places (Deuteronomy 33:26-29).”

Moses' Blessing on the Entire Israel

There are several very important concepts here. The important point is where God appears and where God shines. This passage says that the Lord came from Seir. Mount Seir is a barren mountain, like the Grand Canyon in a very desolate movie. Paran is a wilderness. In other words, where does God appear to us? God appears in desolate, wilderness, and barren places. That is to say, once we reach the end of our rope and no longer have hope in the things of the world, God will appear. If you are full of hope in the things of the world, you are climbing the Tower of Babel, and it is difficult for God to appear to you!

People need to know what mountain you are climbing. If you are climbing the mountain of the Lord, the temple of the God of Jacob, then you must lose hope in the world's logic system and the world's affairs. The hope we seek is an eternal hope. If the eternal God is our dwelling place, His everlasting arms are helping us, and He is eternally driving out our enemies. If a person pursues eternal things and looks at the things of the world as he looks at Mount Seir, as he looks at the wilderness of Paran, as he looks at the barren Sinai...

We need to know for sure that the law of fiery fire that God passed down is for screening and refining, refining saints. Brothers and sisters, don't think that you just need to be a simple believer. God does these things to sift out the saints who belong to Him. How to sift them out? It is with the wilderness, the desolate Mount Seir, and the barren Sinai. When we look back today, God brought the tribes of Israel to Egypt for 400 years of slavery. 400 years still did not destroy the Israelites' hope in the world and their worldly value system. They are still not Jacob.

If we want to be Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph today, we must learn to be sifted out to be saints and overcome in many trials. If you can wrestle with people and God like Israel and win, you will become all the saints. When the brothers and sisters among us have a particularly strong and firm worldly value system, they cannot read the Bible; what they read must be a mess and completely incomprehensible.

Moses' law contains extremely deep mysteries and strong value concepts. Many people think that there is no value in it and just read it through. If you are Jacob, you will see through many things, and God's word is your treasure.

God dwells in our unity. When we gather together with the appearance of Jacob, receiving God's word, God reigns in our midst. If this is the case, God will be our dwelling place. Why is God's word our extremely important asset? Because it will make us superior rather than inferior, the head rather than the tail. If we value God, God will also value us. Our enemies will surrender at our feet because of God, and they will also be trampled under our feet. This is God's promise.

Everything you do will be blessed. This is God's blessing to the entire Israel. If you are Jacob, you will receive these blessings. People who value money do not necessarily get money, but many people who love God get God's blessings. God becomes our property, our dwelling place, the power of our battle, God makes us victorious, God becomes our refuge, and God will surely help us get the dew of heaven, grain, new wine, and oil, and also become our shield. What a grace this is! Moses declared that if you want to receive it, you must have the character of Jacob.

Moses' Declaration of Blessings on the Twelve Tribes Before Death

God did not make an ironclad judgment on the twelve tribes, but rather a view of the twelve tribes. If you are like Reuben, this is probably the result; if you are like Judah, this is probably the result of Judah; if you are like Levi, it is like the passage about Levi; if you are like Benjamin, it is like the passage about Benjamin.

Levites Who Obey God's Word

So Jacob made a judgment on Simeon and Levi before his death, but the tribe of Levi made a deep repentance for this judgment. The tribe of Simeon constantly inherited Simeon's bad habits. That is to say, if you are like Simeon, Moses is too lazy to pay attention to you and too lazy to make any judgment on you.

What's wrong with Simeon? Regarding the matter of Joseph being sold to Egypt, you can see that Simeon is actually the second child. Reuben tried to stop them from doing this bad thing, but Simeon resolutely sold Joseph to Egypt, originally intending to kill him. That is to say, Simeon is a very ruthless person at heart, with no Mingding Destiny and full of strife and jealousy.

So later, Joseph became the prime minister in Egypt, and his brothers came to Egypt to buy grain. He kept his brother in prison in Egypt for about a year. Why? Hoping that he could repent. Joseph's view of Simeon and Moses' view of Simeon were not very good. So Jacob's view of Simeon was also not very good. That is to say, Simeon is a very fatal person.

In dealing with people, if you are pretending to have a worldly value system and competing there, and you like to do bad things, it is because there is no Mingding Destiny in your heart. Before his death, Moses skipped Simeon. The first was Reuben, the second was Judah, and the third was Levi. There was no Simeon.

Today, we need to know for sure that a person's life is the result of his own choice. Let us not be like Simeon today, competing, jealous, liking to kill people, liking to kill them, and often doing such things. So the tribe of Simeon naturally inherited his curse without a blessed state, so we must all avoid being like Simeon. I hope everyone can make shrewd choices. Okay, Simeon was not skipped, and a declaration was made to the other 11 tribes. In fact, a holistic declaration was also made to the entire Israel.

Declaration to the Tribe of Levi

And of Levi he said: “Let Your Thummim and Your Urim be with Your holy one, Whom You tested at Massah, And with whom You contended at the waters of Meribah (Deuteronomy 33:8),

Thummim and Urim are with the devoted one. Levi became a devoted person after repentance. The Levites became a tribe that belonged only to God, people who could foresee the future. God had tested the Levites at Massah, and the Levites overcame the test. The Levites did not follow worldly concepts but followed God's word and kept God's word.

He says of his father and mother, ‘I have not seen them’; Nor did he acknowledge his brothers, Or know his own children; For they have observed Your word And kept Your covenant. Who is my mother, who are my brothers and sisters? Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is. They became the ones who taught the Israelites the word of God.

Lord, Your Thummim and Your Urim are with Your devoted one. That is to say, we, Thummim and Urim, are a fortune-telling device, budgeting the future, and letting God help us make decisions. It seems like two pieces of wood are put together and thrown on the ground to see which side is facing up. He said: Lord, Your Thummim and Your Urim are with Your devoted one. That is to say, the Levites, after repenting of their sins, became devoted people before God. When you read Jacob's declaration to Levi, it is actually quite ruthless. So Jacob and Simeon were more cruel, cutting off the large tendons of the cows and so on. Then, when Moses declared to the tribe of Levi, they became devoted people.

Jacob said: Levi and Simeon will be scattered among the tribes of Israel. What was the result? These people are people who foresee the future. Why? Because the Levites became servants of God, a tribe that belonged only to God. What did he say? He said that you were tested at Massah and contended with him at the waters of Meribah. That is, God had tested the Levites at Massah. The entire tribe of Israel was making a lot of noise there. In fact, the Levites did not. The Levites had faith in God and were a very miraculous tribe. In fact, Moses himself was a Levite. Moses himself, Miriam, and Aaron were all Levites.

Who said of his father and mother, ‘I have not seen them’; Nor did he acknowledge his brothers, Or know his own children; For they have observed Your word And kept Your covenant. They shall teach Jacob Your judgments, And Israel Your law. They shall put incense before You, And whole burnt sacrifice on Your altar (Deuteronomy 33:9-10).

The Levites are also people who offer sacrifices and must desire to be Levites.

Bless his substance, Lord, And accept the work of his hands; Strike the loins of those who rise against him, And of those who hate him, That they rise not again (Deuteronomy 33:11).

When you read this passage, you may feel that the Levites are like this? Because the Levites do not live among the people according to worldly concepts, but according to the fact that the Levites follow God's word and keep His covenant for God. What was the result? He has not seen his own parents, does not recognize his brothers, and does not recognize his own children. That is to say, what do we see this sentence become? It became a copy of Jesus' words. Jesus said: Who are my parents, who are my brothers and sisters, who are my children? What does it mean? Whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is, this is the Levites' view.

In Exodus 32:25-26, Moses shouted: Whoever is on the Lord's side, come to me. The Levites all came over. After the Levites came over, Moses ordered them to put on their swords and start killing people in the camp, killing three thousand. Why? Because they violated God's command. In fact, the Bible killed their own brothers there in Exodus, including their parents. That is to say: What do we begin to see? The Levites are a group of people who obey God's word, are tested, honour the Lord as the greatest, obey the Lord's word, and see through family affection. In fact, to some extent, it is called being ruthless towards one's relatives.

As a result? They will teach Jacob your judgments and Israel your law. They became the ones who taught the word of God. How can those who teach the word of God be such people? In fact, what God wants is really such people, what God wants is really such people. Brothers and sisters, don't get it wrong, Moses didn't get it wrong, Moses knew what he was talking about when he wrote it. If you want to walk in God's will, I tell you, like Jesus said, a person's enemies are his own family. If your enemy is your own family, why? Because your own family will bind you.

For example, some of our sisters, her parents said: You have to find someone! She felt uncomfortable. The people around her: Find someone! She didn't think it was important. But when her parents gave her pressure, it didn't work. That is to say, many of the constraints and oppressions on our bodies often come from our closest family members. If these things will bind us, you will not be able to obey God's word, and you will not be able to teach Jacob your judgments and Israel your law.

The Levites are the ones who teach God's word. They are also people who pray, they will burn incense before you and offer whole burnt sacrifices on your altar. They are still people who offer sacrifices, so brothers and sisters, we really want to be Levites.

Becoming a Levite Brings God's Blessings

Consider this, do you desire to be blessed financially and in all that you do? If so, let me tell you, you must become like a Levite. Then God will contend with your enemies, and those who rise against Him and hate Him, God will pierce their loins, so they cannot rise.

In other words, if you are a Levite, your enemies will not be able to stand before you. I believe that the way Moses described the Levites is remarkable. Not all who serve God are Levites. Some who serve God are not Levites. Those who claim to be Jews are not necessarily Jews, and those who claim to be Christians are not necessarily Christians. There are true Christians and false Christians; true Jews and false Jews; true Levites and false Levites.

Therefore, I believe that from today onwards, we must clearly understand that Levites, in God's eyes, are those who serve Him wholeheartedly. This is clearly described earlier. If you want to serve God, you must be like what God said, that he said of his father and mother, 'I have not seen them'; he did not acknowledge his brothers or recognize his own children. This is because the Levites adhered to God's word and kept His covenant. He shall teach Jacob God's ordinances and Israel God's law. Do you understand? This is what a Levite is. We must be like this to be Levites today.

I have seen many who serve God, who prioritize their families above all else. It sounds logically correct: how can I serve God if I cannot manage my family well? But when his family is well managed, he still does not serve God well.

In my service, I have found that God blesses me financially and that everything I do prospers. God accepts what I do, and then God arises to attack those who attack me, those who hate me. This is all God's doing; I do not need to argue for myself. Therefore, I hope that all of us can be like Levites.

A Declaration Concerning Joseph

...and for the choice things of the earth and its fullness, and the favor of Him who dwelt in the bush. Let all these rest on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him who is distinguished among his brothers. (Deuteronomy 33:16)

...on the crown of the head of him who is distinguished among his brothers. What rests on him? Those blessings. ...and for the choice things of the earth and its fullness, and the favor of Him who dwelt in the bush. Let all these rest on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him who is distinguished among his brothers. Sometimes one feels like just being an ordinary person, not wanting to be this or that. But everyone must learn and understand that Jacob was different from ordinary people, Abraham was different from ordinary people in his generation, Isaac was different from ordinary people, and Joseph was also different from ordinary people.

Joseph was truly different from ordinary people. Joseph was an extraordinary person. So I encourage everyone to begin to contemplate what it is like to be Joseph. He was a unique child, his views, his thoughts, and what he pursued were different from others. We might think that Joseph did not receive the blessing of the firstborn, but he did.

What did Moses say? His glory is like a firstborn bull... That is, Joseph, like his father, desired to be the firstborn, to be the one who inherited God's promise. Did Joseph receive it? He did. Because his parents and siblings had to bow down before him, meaning he was the greatest in the family. I encourage us to ask ourselves, what are we pursuing? Joseph pursued the inheritance of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob's blessings, the destiny that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob received from God. Such people are not the majority; not everyone is like this, only a few are.

And of Joseph he said: 'Blessed of the Lord is his land, with the precious things of heaven, with the dew, and the deep lying beneath, with the choice fruits of the sun, with the precious produce of the months, with the best things of the ancient mountains, with the precious things of the everlasting hills, and for the choice things of the earth and its fullness, and the favor of Him who dwelt in the bush. Let all these rest on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him who is distinguished among his brothers.' (Deuteronomy 33:13-16)

Being Like Joseph Means Receiving Joseph's Blessings

Some say, How many are like Jacob? How many are like Joseph? How many are like Paul? That is right, but after reading this passage, we are qualified to choose to be like Jacob, to choose to be like Joseph, to choose to be like Paul, to choose to be like Abraham. It is all in our choices. If you truly believe in this passage, you will choose. Later, Joseph did become the firstborn, but he did not appear in the genealogy of Jesus, which does not affect the reality that he was the firstborn.

What happens to such a person? His land is blessed by the Lord. The land you stand on is blessed by the Lord, with the precious things of heaven, with the dew. These words are all spoken to Joseph. The fertile soil of the earth is for you, the dew from heaven is for you, and the springs hidden in the earth. These are the most important things for a person to live on. The choice fruits of the sun, the precious produce of the months, the best things of the ancient mountains, the precious things of the everlasting hills, and the choice things of the earth and its fullness, and the favor of Him who dwelt in the bush. Let all these rest on the head of Joseph. Doesn't this sound wonderful?

A sister told me that she had been to a church of Wenzhou people, and they liked to sing a hymn that says, May we obtain the choice fruits of the sun, the precious produce of the months. There is a hymn called Flames of Revival. Today, we must understand that we cannot obtain these things just by wanting them. You must be Joseph to obtain them. You receive blessings according to who you are. Do you understand?

Moses, who wrote Deuteronomy, also wrote Genesis. He described the story of Joseph so wonderfully. Joseph was sold by his brothers into slavery in Egypt! However, during his time as a slave, he did not lose hope. His faith and hope in God became the desire to save his family, and God accomplished it, making him the prime minister of Egypt! Before that, he was a slave for ten years, not even owning his own body. What hope was there? But the faith within him did not diminish.

A person who was sold into Egypt by his own brothers did not hate them. This is an extraordinary child! He was only 17 years old when he was sold into Egypt. He was a wealthy young man, but what happened? He was sold into slavery in Egypt. Imagine, being a slave in Potiphar's house, the captain of Pharaoh's guard, at the age of 17. It was not easy. If you watch Dae Jang Geum, the fierce struggles between the maids in the palace are very cruel! Yet Joseph had God's presence and became the head of Potiphar's household. How remarkable!

In the place of suffering, he named his first son, saying that God had made him forget all his hardship. Later, he had a second child, saying, God has made me fruitful in the land of my suffering, named Ephraim and Manasseh.

Joseph did not see his father until he had been prime minister for nine years. Nine years is not a short time. For the previous thirteen years, he had not seen his father, and had no news of him. Later, when Joseph became the prime minister of Egypt, he did not write a letter to his father, nor did he bring his father to Egypt to enjoy his wealth and glory.

Imagine, being the prime minister of Egypt, second only to one person, and above everyone else. How powerful! Yet he did not do these things. This is no different from the Levites' disregard for family, almost identical. Why didn't he go home to see his father? Why didn't he bring his father to Egypt for a visit?

If we have the chance to meet Joseph in heaven, we must ask him. Joseph is too remarkable, too remarkable because he was determined to have his family bow down before him. He restrained his longing for his relatives, so when he saw his brothers and his father, he burst into tears. It was a collapse, so many years of longing.

This is a very remarkable person. Why? Because he wanted to please God. Doesn't our God want us to go back and see our parents? What is wrong with seeing our parents? Some people may not be able to hear such words. But today, we should know that Joseph had his own set of logic for dealing with people, a logic that completely exceeded our imagination.

Today, we must begin to understand that Joseph was such a person, and it is not easy to be Joseph. It is even more extreme than the Levites' disregard for family. As for Joseph, ...his glory is like a firstborn bull; his horns are like the horns of a wild ox; with them he shall gore the peoples, all of them, to the ends of the earth. They are the ten thousands of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh. Ephraim means fruitful, fruitful in the land of suffering; Manasseh means God has made me forget all my hardship. Today, we desire to be Joseph, to overcome all worldly values within us, to overcome all carnal feelings and desires.

We should not think that being Joseph is a simple matter. It is both simple and difficult. What makes it difficult? Because what he does exceeds our worldly concepts. What makes it simple? Because he relies entirely on God. This person is extraordinary. So, if you want to obtain the dew of heaven, the fertile soil of the earth, the springs hidden in the earth, the choice fruits of the sun, and the precious produce of the months, then be Joseph!

Emulating Joseph to Become a Person of Destiny

There is the abundance of the land, the precious things of the everlasting hills, the best things of the ancient mountains. Joseph had a concept of eternal life, a strong concept of eternal life. What is the concept of eternal life? It is that we do not care much about earthly things! If a person understands life and death, he will not care much about living, and will not care about many things.

You can forget the harm others have done to you because you do not care. If you are a slave in Egypt, it is because you do not care, so you can happily be a slave, although it is hard, you can still be happy. Why can we overcome the feelings within us? Because we are sojourners on earth, and we seek a house in heaven that lasts forever, so that we can return to God. You must be like Joseph when you are on earth. Then with the horns of a wild ox, you can gore the peoples to the ends of the earth, which is victory. We can spread our gospel to the ends of the earth, just like Joseph. Our horns represent power and ability.

Your Choice Is Your Value System

The foundation of your choice is your value system. What do you value in your heart? If what you obtain is corruption, it is because there is a problem with the value system you have chosen. Whatever we do, how should we read the Bible? Read it until we thoroughly destroy our inner value system and begin to build a godly value system.

The words that people like Moses declared before their deaths will come to pass. Because you choose to be like Joseph, the blessings of Joseph will come upon you; if you choose to be like Levi, the blessings of Levi will come upon you. Do you understand? If you choose to be like Simeon, you will have nothing; it would be good enough if you are not cursed.

Today, we must make a choice between life and death, blessing and curse, and choose to believe what God has said. None of God's words will fail. Today, we must know for sure that we are to be people of destiny!

Do we have the idea that when Moses pronounced blessings and curses on the tribes, that was how the tribe would be? If we have our fortune told, and we think that is how our life will be, should we see destiny as something calculated or something we live out? What should we make of this? Moses made many prophecies about the eleven tribes of Israel, some good, some not so good, some long, and some short. We need to know why God tells us what will happen in the future. If we are told these things in advance, can we turn them around?

God has a motive, and that motive is not to cause death, but to cause life to flourish. It is not to fix your life in a certain way, but to tell you in advance what the future holds, so you can make a wise choice, and choose to be like Joseph, Levi, and Jacob.

Your choices determine your future. The most basic principle for reading the Bible is that we must choose what to do. Your choices determine your future, not that God issues a prophecy, and then your life is set in stone. For example, God's prophecies for Israel were very beautiful, but the Israelites abandoned God for over two thousand years, and were scattered among the nations, becoming a curse. Some of the blessings God gave to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were fulfilled, but some were not. Why were they not fulfilled? Do not think that God's words failed.

You should understand that God's pronouncements through Moses were not a fixed prophecy about the future, but an expectation for the entire tribe. We must understand God's will. God hopes that each of us can be like Jacob and Joseph, and that each of us can receive the promises given to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph.

That which is born of the Spirit is spirit, and that which is born of the flesh is flesh. God's promise to Isaac was not fulfilled in Ishmael, and God's promise to Jacob was not fulfilled in Esau. Was God's promise to Jacob fulfilled in his twelve tribes? It seems so, and it seems not, but it was fulfilled in Joseph. God's promise to Joseph is also like this. We shouldn't think that what is born of the flesh is set in stone; it is determined by the faith and desire within you!