Attitude Towards Things

The fifth and sixth chapters of the Gospel of Matthew can be quite challenging to read. I have found my method of reading the Bible to be quite effective. I strive to identify all the common elements in the sixth chapter, and after identifying them, I summarize the theme of this chapter as: Two Kingdoms, Two Pursuits.

Two kingdoms, two pursuits are reflected in every aspect of human life. This sixth chapter is essentially about two forms of human expression: one is the form of expression in the Kingdom of God, and the other is the form of expression in the kingdom of man. Everyone must understand that these two kingdoms are irreconcilable. Some people live in this earthly kingdom, living according to the logic of this world, yet still claim to be Christians. That is futile! Others, though living in this world, live according to God's heavenly logic. You may be tired of hearing me talk about logic, but don't be, because you are still far from grasping it!

One's attitude towards things basically determines which kingdom one belongs to. Some people say, I am a Christian, I go to church every week, and I pray every day. But this is useless, because people in the world's logical system do the same. How do we distinguish people based on these two logical systems? This can probably be done through their attitude toward things.

A person's attitude towards eating, drinking, clothing, using, and living determines whether they belong to God's Kingdom or the kingdom of this world. A person's pursuits are entirely an external reflection of their inner logical system. Why do some brothers and sisters, after being delivered, feel better for a day, only to have the illness return the next day? This is because their internal logical system has not changed. They think they have changed, but they haven't. Because they have only changed on the surface, but in their bones, they are still pursuing eating, drinking, clothing, using, and living.

You ask me how I know? It's actually easy to know. Take away some of the things you value and see how much you care. If your cherished possessions are taken away and you react strongly, it shows that these things are very important to you.

Today, we attach great importance to many things: what we eat, what we drink, what we wear, what we use, where we live, what kind of car we drive. People always feel that what they do is reasonable, because they think everyone in the world is the same as them, so they naturally feel that their reactions and actions are justified. But if a person belongs to God, to the Kingdom of Heaven, they will view these things differently.

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? (Matthew 6:25)

I think this is very well said. Some people find it absurd. But if you think about it carefully, how many people care about food and drink today but not about life? How many people care about life but not about food and drink? Let me give you an example. Many of us eat only one meal a day. Yesterday, I had my first meal at 7 PM, after working hard all day. Was I hungry? No, because I didn't care much.

Many people would say, How can you live like that? But look, am I not living well? Not only am I not starving, but I also have fewer illnesses than you. People think that living without eating or drinking is the end. Many think that is abusing themselves, but it is actually treating themselves well.

Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? And why do you worry about clothes?

See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?

So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (Matthew 6:25-34)

If you think carefully, which kingdom is better to live in? Of course, it is better to live in the Kingdom of God. Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Many people do not seek God's Kingdom and His righteousness, but only seek those things. Will they get them? Then they are in the kingdom of the world. In the kingdom of the world, the devil is king; in the Kingdom of God, God is king. Of course, God also reigns in the devil's kingdom, but He reigns through the devil. Some say that the devil's authority also comes from God. of course it comes from God; otherwise, the devil can do nothing.

You must know that God allows the devil to mess with those who live in the kingdom of the world. The novel coronavirus we encountered was actually caused by God. God used old horses to do these things, like the grey horse in Revelation. Everyone must know that this is God's rule. If you don't follow the rules God has set, then sorry! One of our sisters' child had a terrible stomach ache and was sent to the hospital. Actually, she had been to the hospital before. When she brought her daughter to me. her daughter's scoliosis was very severe, and the hospital couldn't handle it. The only solution the hospital offered was surgery. Surgery has risks, do you want to take them?

Many people are paralyzed after surgery in the hospital. You must know that the hospital will not be responsible, because they will have you sign a form in advance. Initially, this child, through prayer and teaching, allowed God's word to take root in her, and as a result, the child's spine was healed. If scoliosis can be healed, then why go to the hospital for a stomachache? I am very moved. Ah, you can't tell just by her being a believer. Through her reaction to things, I know the spiritual state of this person. It's no use doing this or that, no matter how proactive you are; what matters most is what value system you have inside. What are we worried about? We always feel that we have to do something. People in the kingdom of the world will definitely think I am crazy when they hear what I say.

So this is my value system, my pursuit in the Kingdom of God. They cannot hear these words. We must know one thing: can relying on the hospital really prolong people's lives? Can it allow us to live with dignity? Actually, if you study it a little, you will know that it is not possible.

Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? (Matthew 6:27)

A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot what is planted. (Ecclesiastes 3:2)

If you insist on arguing with me about this, I can only surrender. Why? This cannot be experimented on! If you die at that time, do you say that he should have died at this time, or should not have died at this time? Did he die because he saw a doctor, or did he die because he didn't see a doctor? No one can prove this! For example, many people die of cancer after seeing a doctor, and many people die of cancer without seeing a doctor! What can you prove? Can't prove anything, because some people die of cancer without seeing a doctor, and some die without seeing a doctor. Can't prove anything!

Therefore, since nothing can add an hour to our life, what are we worried about? If we carry God's logic, thoroughly deal with this worldly logic in God's Kingdom, our pursuit will be completely changed.

I often see the occurrence of medical accidents is quite common! Who do you go to? Cry to the sky, the sky does not respond, cry to the ground, the ground does not respond. I have a friend whose brother went to see a doctor for a disease. Originally, the kidney only had a slight problem, but the kidney was not cured, and the liver was damaged; then the liver was treated and the kidney was treated, but the gallbladder was damaged; then the gallbladder, liver, and kidney were treated, and finally the lungs were damaged; then the kidney, liver, gallbladder, and lungs were treated, and the heart was damaged. Later, this person went crazy and needed to be locked with a large iron chain, otherwise it would be scary. Where do you go to reason?

So we must know that since the doctor cannot decide a person's life span, what do we care about it for? But the problem is that we have experienced so much, and we still cannot destroy the worldly kingdom and the worldly logic system, which is very terrible. So we must first seek God's Kingdom and God's righteousness!

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. (Matthew 6:33)

The ancient Chinese scholars were very powerful! They said: Do not rejoice in things, do not grieve in self. That is, they would not be happy because of things, nor would they be sad because of themselves. People must start to thoroughly study things. Today, if our understanding of living is not as good as that of ancient scholars, would that not be troublesome? For example, giving testimony: Wow! Thank God! I found a good job, and my salary has increased by so much. What does that prove? In fact, the more you value salary, the more you belong to this world.

I have never seen the Babylonian emperor or the Persian emperor increase Daniel's salary or give him a house in the Book of Daniel… Why aren't these things mentioned? Because whether he gives or not, these things are not important. Today, what is our attitude towards our children, our attitude towards ourselves, our attitude towards living? It's just two pursuits, two kingdoms. Do you belong to the Kingdom of God or the kingdom of the world?

Attitude Towards Money

One can easily tell someone's attitude toward money by testing them. There are not many people in this world who do not love money; too many people love money.

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Matthew 6:19-21)

Brothers and sisters must know what your attitude towards money is. I will say something boastful on this matter: I know very well what money can do, and I also know very well what money cannot do. Not very useful, really. Although I think money is not very useful, I won't be poor. Is it not easy for God to make me rich?

No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. (Matthew 6:24)

Does the process of entering the Kingdom of God change little by little? Or does it change all at once? Actually, this is not difficult! You can figure it out by thinking and researching a little.

Many people's attitude towards money is as if it were their lifeline. Can money make him live longer? No! It is hard not to have money, but if you pursue money and have it, will everything be fine? In fact, many people have disasters when they have money. Statistics have been done in the world. Many people buy lottery tickets. Some people win millions, tens of millions, or even hundreds of millions. But according to statistics, the people who won the lottery jackpot all lived poorly later. Because when people see so much money, they don’t know what money can do and what money cannot do.

Zhao Benshan's sketch tells the story of a person who won the lottery and had a lot of money, and as a result, people kept coming to his house! They were all asking him to borrow money. The local leaders also came to him, which was annoying! In the end, he became penniless again. Because he didn’t know what he could do. Brothers and sisters must know that you cannot love money and love God at the same time.

If you love money then you love money, if you love God then you love God, if you love God then you must despise money, if you love money then you cannot love God. You say how can you not get both at the same time? I am not saying that you cannot have money if you love God, I am saying that you cannot love God if you love money, and you cannot love money if you love God. If God is the key to solving our problems, then we will no longer rely on money. As long as we cling to God, won’t all our problems in this world be solved?

So we must know that the kingdom of the world can blind people! How are they blinded? Many worries, many concerns. If you have money, you worry, if you don't have money, you worry. If you have money, you worry about money. If you don’t have money, you worry about money. Every day I think about these little things in the world, all about what to eat. What to drink. What to use and what to do. People toss about for money, but they don’t know that these things are vanity of vanities, and as a result, their eyes are darkened!

The eyes are the windows to the soul, yet people seem unaware of the needs of their spirits. Our spirits deeply crave the Spirit of God! When the Spirit of God dwells within us, our inner spirits come alive, and we become like God, with truly enlightened eyes. For those among us with eye or ear ailments, it is crucial to confront the worldly value systems that plague us. These worldly values are deadly!

One's attitude towards money reflects one's wisdom. Foolish people exhibit foolish attitudes towards wealth. If our attitude towards money aligns with God and the wisdom from above, we demonstrate true wisdom. If we operate outside the worldly system, not only will nothing bad happen to us, but we will also live out God's glorious image and lack nothing.

Our Father knows our needs; therefore, we must seek His kingdom and His righteousness first, and all these things will be added to us. However, many in this world need to adjust their inner compass, addressing the issue of two kingdoms. Some ask me: Why are my prayers ineffective? If you dwell in the worldly kingdom, how can your prayers be effective? Their initial effectiveness was to draw you into God's kingdom. God provided sufficient grace, hoping you would cling to Him tightly. Instead, you cling to money, to what to eat, drink, wear, and use, including your children's education or learning—valuing everything that lives except the kingdom of God.

Seeking everything but God's kingdom and righteousness inevitably leads to resembling the world. In that state, praying to God becomes unnecessary and futile. God bestows ample grace, yet you persist in living within the worldly system, prioritizing worldly things repeatedly. God will then allow you to continue in this path. Therefore, brethren, ponder your attitude towards money.

Attitude Towards Others

People often seek to please others and desire their accolades. However, in God's kingdom, pleasing people is not the goal. While it is acceptable for people to like you, constantly seeking to please this person or that, including myself, is futile. My best advice is to please God.

Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.

**But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on street corners to be seen by others. **

Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. (Matthew 6:1-8)

When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting will not be obvious to others, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. (Matthew 6:16-18)

Are we pursuing human approval or divine approval in all that we do? The motivation behind our actions immediately determines our reward. If we seek rewards and benefits in the worldly kingdom, we cannot receive benefits from God. Hence, I speak of two kingdoms, two pursuits. In God's kingdom, we seek His kingdom and His righteousness. Superficially, it may seem we eat, drink, and dress the same, but our pursuit is not these things; our pursuit is the kingdom of God.

Brethren, it is crucial to understand whether your internal system is rooted in the kingdom of God or the kingdom of the world. If it is based on the worldly kingdom, believing that praying excessively will ensure you are heard is impossible. Your Father knows what you need, but if you live in the worldly kingdom with a worldly system, who is your father? The Pharisees claimed Abraham as their father, but Jesus said their father was the devil.

The Heavenly Father is our Father. He knows our needs and rewards us, adding what we need because we pursue the kingdom of God. Why do I emphasize that everyone should have Mingding Destiny? Because it is the system of God's kingdom. Mingding Destiny means we live, are born, and die for God. This is our Mingding Destiny.

Our Mingding Destiny is to diligently observe and follow God's Word. Are there those among us who fear unemployment, fear the boss, and constantly seek to please this person or that? If so, you still live in the worldly kingdom, and who is your father? This is a matter of life and death! Never be a hypocrite. These passages all address hypocrisy—appearing to others as if you are in God's kingdom, but God does not recognize you because you are in the worldly kingdom.

Hypocrisy is easy. For example, wearing a Taoist robe makes one a Taoist, or shaving one's head and donning a monk's robe makes one a monk. People on the street will surely identify you as such. Dressing up is easy, but God knows if you are genuine.

You say, I believe God heals, but I still need to... Need what? Need to follow the world's system? I am not against what you do, but what matters is not what you do but the kingdom deep in your bones. What kingdom is it? Why do parents freak out when their children face issues? Because their children are too important to them. But are children truly that important? The Bible places obeying God's Word in a higher position.

Brethren, know whether you seek to please people or to please God. If you seek to please people, you have already received your due reward because you are acting according to the world's system. If we are to please men, we cannot be servants of Jesus Christ; we must single-mindedly please God and single-mindedly love God, not love Mammon. We pursue God's kingdom and His righteousness, as stated in the Lord's Prayer. Many Christians recite the Lord's Prayer by heart but do they truly understand its meaning? Many do not.

This, then, is how you should pray: 'Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.' For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours now and forever. Amen. (Matthew 6:9-13)

Attitude Towards Relationships

Our attitude towards relationships and how we treat those who offend us is also crucial.

For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins. (Matthew 6:14-15)

Why do we forgive others' offenses? Because these things are no longer important. Why do worldly things trouble us? Because they are important to us. Why do we resent and hate others after being offended? Because these things are important. Even if our lives are nailed to the cross, like Jesus, is it that significant? Because we receive an unshakable kingdom, a kingdom given to us by God in eternity, while this world and its affairs will pass away.

The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever. (1 John 2:17)

I am deeply moved! Recently, a close childhood friend of mine passed away from liver cancer discovered earlier this year. A lifetime of pursuits vanishes in an instant. Each time I hear of someone's passing, I become more awakened to the insignificance of worldly things. I must single-mindedly love my God and seek solely His kingdom and His righteousness. If God were to say, I will take you back to heaven tomorrow, I would respond, Excellent! Can we leave today? That is my attitude. Many would say, No, I have many untied ends; the property I recently bought has not been transferred! Death is unavoidable when it is time. Knowing we are merely sojourners in this world resolves many issues.

During a discussion with brethren, they asked me: In Hebrews, it speaks of people sawed in two, killed by the sword, pursued in the wilderness, enduring great hardship before leaving this world. Why did they endure these trials? Because they pursued the kingdom of God and saw through the affairs of the world. They did not care; it was not a big deal. If you and I have this attitude, worldly affairs become insignificant, simplifying life. We will not freak out over many things and can thoroughly trample the devil, our enemy.

Conclusion

Let us ask ourselves, do we belong to the kingdom of God or the worldly kingdom? Our attitude towards eating, drinking, clothing, food, shelter, transportation, living, and wealth—do we seek to please people or to please God? Do we forgive or not forgive? Our attitude towards offenses immediately determines which kingdom we belong to. This topic may seem heavy because our worldly value system must be completely demolished.

Life and death, blessings and curses—these are the choices we must face. If we choose to die for God, we may find it harder to die because we have not yet fulfilled the Mingding Destiny God has entrusted to us in this world. If you live merely to live, extending your lifespan even for a quarter of an hour is impossible, and you have no control over what befalls you.

I am deeply moved! Seeing people pursuing vainly in this world, creating numerous problems and troubles, only to live and then die, which is meaningless. If you truly understand what I am saying, begin to seek God's kingdom and His righteousness, for God will add all these things to us.

Consider Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph—they were all wealthy men who started from scratch. However, they never boasted about their possessions because money was insignificant to them. They desired the unshakable kingdom in heaven. Later, Moses, Samuel, David, Solomon—all these people we have listed lived in faith, believing they could attain eternal life through God.

If we cannot attain eternal life, are we not like the people of the world? Living and then dying, trying to eat well and enjoy life while alive, but ultimately failing to enjoy it. Make a choice today to see through all worldly affairs—eating, drinking, clothing, food, shelter, transportation, work, children, cars, houses; facing money, people, bosses, and others who offend and hurt us, do not care about any of it, it is just a small matter in the world.

If you can think as I have said and desire to live out God's glorious image, you cannot but prosper, for God's promises to us are all promises of prosperity, and God's will for us is inherently prosperous. May God's kingdom come upon the brethren, let us experience all the wonderful things of His kingdom today, and may God's promises be fulfilled in us, amen!

God bless everyone!