Introduction

Just before my Bible study, a very miraculous thing happened, but to me, it's not too miraculous. The origin of this story goes like this: one of our sister's mother is old, and she needs to use a wheelchair because one of her legs has no strength, and it's very heavy to lift. Over the past years, I have been pushing her granddaughter and daughter, saying, "Pray for your grandmother's leg, and then pray for your mother's leg." Our sister said, "No! My mom has an iron plate inside her leg!" Can this iron plate stop the work of God? No, it can't.

I said to her granddaughter, "You have to pray for your grandmother's leg!" But she said, "Slow down!" I wondered, "What are you waiting for?" I didn't care, the old woman was yearning! So what are we waiting for?

When I pushed them again, they said, "Can you pray for my grandmother?" That's no problem! I like to do this. The leg that was unable to lift up now canyou pray for my grandmother?" That's no problem! I like to do this. The leg that was unable to lift up now can! Then, after some more ministering, they went back and sent me a video, and the old man was able to slowly stroll.

Have the Character to Dare to Ask

I share this because people need to be willing to dare to want; if you dare to ask God, God will dare to give you,  and this is a character trait that many brothers and sisters lack.

In this chapter, there’s a short story where Caleb asks Joshua to give him this land, but the people on that land are all giants. That’s not kidding, they see us as small as a cricket. As a result, they have to invade the land.

There was a place called Debir, and the people who lived there were very powerful. This Caleb was quite interesting, and Caleb said, "I will give my daughter Aksah in marriage to the man who attacks and captures Kiriath Sepher." I guess she was pretty, and if a daughter is pretty, it's a blessing.

What is this story about? When Aksah was married, she persuaded her husband to ask her father for a piece of land, and her husband knocked down Kiriath Sepher. It was Othniel, the son of Caleb's brother, Kenaz, and Othniel was a man with character!

The title for this chapter is Be Bold Enough to Ask God. If you dare, God will give it to you. This Kenaz said, "I’ll go and conquer the land!" Dare to ask is one of Christian’s most important characteristics. Caleb’s daughter, Aksah, is also daring enough to ask. She asked her father for a land when she was married, and she got the best one! If you ask me, am I bold enough to ask God? Of course I am!

Today, our church has the character to be daring enough to ask. We say we want to like Jesus, and nothing is better than this. In the evening, while I was praying for that elder’s leg, others were there recording, taking pictures, and it was as if the angelic heavenly soldiers were all around me. What were they looking at? They were watching a story of God's manifestation of glory.

This is not just a matter of an old woman getting up and walking; it's a matter of God's promises being fulfilled. God's promises, no matter how many there are, are faithful in my heart. I said, "I will dare to ask for it." Look at Aksah; she dares to ask for it and wants the best land. Have you ever thought, What if he doesn't give it to me? before you ask for it. Whether He gives us or not is not our business, but whether we ask or not is.

When Othniel dared to ask for the land, he took over Debir. That was a tough war! After that, he got a very valuable wife, Aksah, who also dared ask for it, and Othniel got a double share, one for himself in the tribe of Judah and one for his wife, Aksah, who brought it from his father-in-law. I just found out that this is a great man who dares to ask for it.

What do you think I want? All I want is God's promise. As long as it’s God's promise, I want it. No matter if you receive it or not, you have to ask for it! If you do not ask and hide behind and then speak in a quiet voice, "I want... I want this piece of land..." Then no one hears you. Too bad.

It’s God’s Heart For Us to Got it

In the Old Testament and in the New Testament, it is always the ones who dare to ask who get it. There was a blind man in the city of Jericho, and when Jesus passed by, he found him there shouting, "O son of David!" And he was shouting so loudly that his voice was breaking. Then Jesus said, "What do you want?" He said, "I want to be able to see!" God likes this kind of person.

If you ask me what kind of person I like to be, I’d like to be the kind of person that God likes. I don't like to be what I like, and whether I like it or not doesn't matter. God likes people who dare to ask, who have guts, who are bold and awesome! Don't be a timid person who wants something but is afraid to ask for it.

From now on, be bold and say boldly in the kingdom of God, "This land is mine! Let's divide the land on the earth, and let's also divide the land on the moon, understand? God often gives according to one’s desire! If man does not desire, it is a tragedy!

Look at that old woman; she was so full of desire that when I drove to pick her up, I misjudged her! I was saying how hard it is to be desired, but in fact she had been waiting for me for a long time. All our brothers and sisters, tell yourself from now on that God's promises are mine, no matter how many there are in Jesus Christ. I want them! How good that is! That's just precious! The lame shall walk, the blind shall see, and the lepers shall be cleansed. We are a blessing in this world! We are to be the salvation of our family. Ask God, and then take courage, be filled with the wisdom from heaven, and begin to trust God in all things, and God will give us what we want instead of making us timid and fearful in our hearts.

I'm surprised that there are so many people in this generation who don't understand God's heart! People think, "If I have a hundred million dollars, I have faith, but if I don't have a hundred million dollars, I don’t have faith." In fact, I can have faith even without the 100 million! With 100 million, I can also have faith. I have that college degree, so I can have faith. Without that college degree, I can still be a person with faith. In fact, faith is such an easy thing—that is, believing God's promises.

We brothers and sisters need to know what was going on in Othniel's head. He was not thinking about anything else but Caleb, who was a great man who was dedicated to following God! In the last chapter, he went to Joshua and said, "This land is mine," and he got it. In fact, Debir was not the first city that Caleb fought; there were other cities. He attacked and plundered the city, and when he reached the most difficult city, Debir, he said, "Whoever can attack this city and take it, I will give him my daughter Aksah as his wife." This is called a double portion! What was Othniel thinking? I want to be the one who dares to ask for it!

It is important that I dare to ask for it. This is the character of Othniel. And what do you think Othniel had in mind? What Othniel had in mind was that from his ancestors, from Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph, and then from generation to generation until his generation, he saw Joshua and Caleb with his own eyes, and he even saw Moses, and he saw a God like this! That's why Othniel was so great! Later, he became the shophet of Israel, just like the president now.

Caleb thought about what it would be like to follow God, and Othniel was a man who followed God with all his heart. He followed Caleb and followed Caleb's example! As a result, he not only gained that city but also got Caleb’s daughter, Aksah. Aksah was a great person. She didn't say, "Honey, give this city to my father! She made it clear that my father's was my father's, mine and my husband's were mine and my husband's, and mine was mine. Then she asks his father for a piece of land and gets the upper and lower springs from her father.

How did she ask for the land? She said, "Othniel, when you see my father, ask him for a piece of land. When she came back on the donkey, Caleb asked her when she got off the donkey: "What can I do for you?" "He didn't hear what I just said; how could he know?" She replied, "Do me a special favour. Since you have given me land in the Negev, give me also springs of water." So Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs." As a result, her father gave her the upper and lower springs.

Let me tell you: What is our relationship with God? Our relationship with God is that of father and son. What is yours is also mine, and what is mine is also yours! I think this, perhaps you listen to me to hear the contradiction: since my father's is also mine, mine is also my father's; simply do not ask; in fact, not so much; after you ask, it will be under your name.

If You Want It, God Will Give You More

Why did God record this story in the Bible? It's for people to have characters, and that character is down to the earth. Don't be unaware that there is a law in this world, and this law is called the Matthew effect. That is, what you have will be added to you, and what you don't have will be taken from you and given to the ones who have it.

Therefore, as brothers and sisters, each one of us must begin to understand the laws of God's operation. From the beginning of the church to today, I have asked for many things! What have we gotten today? I have been rewarded with an abundance of returns! How wonderful it is! How good it is to have faith in the Lord! In fact, how many women are recorded in the Bible? Not many, actually.

Both Othniel and Aksah are recorded in the Bible, and the people recorded in the Bible are people of great character. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph were all such people. They were not the kind of people who were petty, they have big hearts! Please don't say, "I've seen it all, I see everything as garbage. Didn't you just say that you consider all things garbage? Then why are you talking about this again?" Don't be mistaken about this. Why can't we want something, if we consider everything garbage? You consider all things as garbage, yet you may gain the greatest treasure! Don't read the first half of this sentence, but the second half.

Only gain Jesus Christ as the most valuable; in Jesus Christ, all God's promises are fulfilled.Since they are all God's promises, you should be bold and take hold of them! Even things on earth are included in the promises of Jesus Christ. Do you understand? Although we see everything as garbage, we can still gain Jesus Christ as the most precious, and the promises in Jesus Christ are extremely abundant.

Am I creating any confusion? If so, let me read you something else. We have talked about leaving everything behind in order to gain what we need. We leave everything behind because we see everything as garbage. So, what does God say? There is nothing in this life that we won't receive many times as much of in this age, and in the age to come: eternal life." That's a very profound statement, isn't it?

After we see everything as garbage, we are not ruled by anything. But there is nothing in the promises of Jesus Christ that we don't desire. We will receive the promises that come with Jesus Christ, no matter what they may be. So, I want to share with you an idea. When you see a very poor preacher, he should not be unable to obtain God's promises, because there is no poverty in Jesus Christ.

You may give me a few examples of poverty, but I might say that it's a rare occurrence! In the Bible, which of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph were poor? None of them! And David and Solomon, all those who pleased God, were not poor. Why is that? Everything in the heavens and on the earth belongs to our God, so how can we live in poverty!

In other words, we have to be careful that he is not able to take God's promises, because if he cannot receive God's promises, God will take what he has and give it to the one who has it. Then what kind of person is he? Would he not be a wicked man? A lazy and wicked servant. We must not be such people. I don't believe that we can live in poverty in the name of Jesus Christ. We don't love money, and loving money will not make you rich. However, love God will.

Have a Yearning Heart for God's Promises

We receive God's promises because we believe we will receive them. I have never doubted that God has already given us His promises! We simply need to claim these promises, such as: "By Jesus Christ's stripes we are healed!" Just claim it! Don't ask Jesus to heal me! Heal me! I beg you! God has already given it to us.

If God hasn't given us something yet, we need to earnestly ask for it! For example, the Holy Spirit is also a promise that God has given us, but God requires us to have a yearning heart. So we must have a fervent desire to serve the Lord and love God with all our heart, soul, and strength! This is what the Bible says.

Therefore, we must clear up each of these confusions one by one and not get them mixed up. For example, asking for the Holy Spirit: "Fill me with the Holy Spirit! Fill me with the Holy Spirit!" We ask God to bless us, and we must never let go until He blesses us. This is called struggling with God and men and being victorious, just like Israel. So we must strive to be like Jesus, and if we are not quite there yet, we must continue to pursue Him with all our might. That is priceless.

Even though I am asking for things today, there are still many things that I have not gained! Even though I am striving so hard, there are still many things that I have not obtained, and I must continue to strive for and pursue them. If you are lukewarm, indecisive, and confused, how are you going to make it? If you can't even get yourself together, you will look like a slave without a master's mindset. So let's all start adjusting ourselves.

Strive to Break Through the Worldly Reserve in Us

There is another very interesting event in Joshua 15:63

Judah could not dislodge the Jebusites, who were living in Jerusalem; to this day the Jebusites live there with the people of Judah. (Joshua 15:63 NIV)

We wonder: didn't we already conquer it? Why can't the Jebusites in Jerusalem be driven out? What is the reason? I will tell you the reason. The reason is that among the people of the tribe of Judah in Israel, there was confusion. Their confusion was that since they already had these lands, let them live here! It doesn't matter; this is called women's benevolence.

Why is this passage recorded in the Bible? People often think they are full of love, but they actually go against God's words. In fact, this passage in the Old Testament of the Bible also alludes to us today. We still have many undiscovered territories. Among Christians, there is a great confusion that the Holy Spirit lives in me, so evil spirits cannot be in me. I often meet people who say to me, "The Holy Spirit lives in me; God is my Lord; how can evil spirits be in me?"

I say to them, "Come on, just look at yourself." You can tell that there are still many worldly things inside you. Do you understand? That is to say, as we live on as Christians, we put to death the evil deeds of the flesh, one by one, and think that this is good enough. But there is still a piece of land that has not been conquered, and we cannot completely put to death the evil deeds of our flesh. There is still a small piece left. You may ask me, "What about you?" I am the same. Until today, I have not obtained everything! There are still some things that have not been put to death or surrendered to Jesus Christ.

Therefore, never use me as a standard; only God’s words are standards. God’s heart is for everyone to be healed, but we still get sick because there are still worldly things in us.

We all need to deal with the worldly system; it’s just that I deal with it more than you do, and maybe someday you'll deal with it more than I do. I also hope that our brothers and sisters will drive out all the worldly systems from within us without leaving anything behind. Why leave anything behind? We can't let Jesus Christ be the Lord and still keep a little piece of land for ourselves.

I wonder why we would leave something. Why would the people of Judah leave something? This is a contrast! Caleb was a daring person! But in the tribe of Judah, there is always a group of people who are not daring. Why? Because either they are too compassionate, or too satisfied, and dare not strive for it anymore.

Conclusion

So, brothers and sisters, to conquer the evil deeds of our flesh and the value system of the worldly things within us, we must attack and conquer them city by city, so that everything within us will surround Jesus Christ. We must destroy the worldly systems within us, city by city, until they are completely under the authority of Jesus Christ. Then, we will become more and more like Jesus, more and more capable, and able to bring glory to God. I will tell you what will happen: something miraculous will occur, and we will become vessels that manifest the glory of God."

May God bless you!