Introduction

Greetings everyone! Let us delve into Genesis Chapter 17. This chapter is of utmost importance, highlighting the issue of the flesh, a critical component of the New Testament. The theme of this chapter is: Cutting off the desires of the flesh is the evidence of establishing an everlasting covenant.

Evidence of the Covenant

A covenant requires evidence, a signature. An everlasting covenant is signed on the male's genitals. It may sound unseemly, but thankfully, I am thick-skinned and unconcerned. Moreover, that is what the Bible states. The evidence of the covenant is circumcision, the removal of the foreskin from the male's genitals. What is this all about? It is of great significance. Before Genesis 17, how was the covenant established? By preparing and burning a heifer, a female goat, a ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.

Genesis Chapter 15 establishes the covenant through sacrifice, but a covenant established through sacrifice is not an everlasting covenant. An everlasting covenant is established on the flesh, cutting off the lusts and desires of the flesh. That is the sign of an everlasting covenant. I often hear Christians say, "I am saved, and I will go to heaven when I die." A tragedy if they do not diligently read the Bible! They know nothing and speak recklessly. Does the Bible say that? Even the New Testament, the age of grace, is not properly understood. They speak recklessly without even knowing what the age of grace is.

Therefore, brothers and sisters, ponder this: what kind of covenant have you established with God? Is finding a job through prayer an everlasting covenant? Sooner or later, you will lose that job. Even if the job remains, you may not be around anymore! Finding a job through prayer, being healed of illness through prayer, receiving a salary increase through prayer, seeking blessings through prayer... that is not an everlasting covenant. Some people's testimonies are even more amusing: when there are no parking spaces, they pray, and suddenly one appears. Some say, "Teacher, you have a halo. When you park your car, a parking space appears." What kind of logic is that? Living for a parking space? That is not an everlasting covenant.

If you wish to establish an everlasting covenant and enter eternal life, you must do one thing: make a sign of the covenant on your flesh, which is circumcision. Circumcision does not merely mean a minor surgery on the male's genitals. What is that? Is God concerned about such a thing? Some tell me, "I cannot listen to other people's interpretations of the Bible. Yours is good!" I ask, "What is good about it?" They say, "Cutting off that thing is more hygienic." But is it a matter of hygiene? You cannot even stop COVID-19, yet you worry about hygiene? The key is not the minor surgery; ultimately, people do it to resolve the lusts and desires of the flesh.

If you want to establish an everlasting covenant with God, what is an everlasting covenant? Saying, "I want to enter eternal life, and I will return to Jesus after I die." You may not necessarily return. Why not? Because you have no evidence. That evidence is mortifying the deeds of the body through the Holy Spirit. I finally understand: your belief in the Lord is not important, your baptism is not important, your being filled with the Holy Spirit is not important. What is important is that you mortify the deeds of the body through the Holy Spirit.

Therefore, we must begin solving problems from the flesh. In eternity, there are no tears, no sorrow, no sickness, no lack. There is only joy. People are not joyful because they are carnal. Serves them right! People suffer because they are carnal; people lack because they are carnal. All problems stem from this one thing. Therefore, when the Apostle Paul wrote the New Testament, he said of himself: "I do not fight like a boxer beating the air; instead, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave." If you do not subdue your body and make it your slave, can you be joyful?

Just last Sunday, I finished preaching on "rejoicing in labor," and someone said, "Teacher, I am not joyful!" If you are not joyful, that is fine. Shall I tell your fortune? I calculate that you have a miserable life, a life of toil and sorrow. Joy? Joy is for others, not for you. Look at the joy of carnal people: they are joyful when they go out to play, joyful when they have a meal. I find that extremely low. Can that be joy?

Over the past year, I have conducted numerous experiments: I treat you to food and drink, and everyone is very happy, drinking and toasting. Have you noticed that whether it is a gathering with old friends or old classmates, after drinking, you lie on the bed at home, staring at the ceiling, feeling a strong sense of emptiness or helplessness? Whenever you indulge the flesh, you cannot be joyful. We are very familiar with this. I will point you to a path: establish a covenant with God. Do not think that sacrifice is enough; sacrifice cannot make you perfect. You do good deeds, perform acts of kindness, help old ladies on the street... You are lucky if you are not framed. You will know when you are framed one day.

Becoming perfect is establishing a covenant on the flesh, cutting off the lusts and desires of the flesh. Let us see how much of the flesh the Holy Spirit deals with in you, how much you follow the flesh, and how much you follow the Holy Spirit. I have slowly summarized the pattern: carnal people are like wild beasts. I am very careful not to be bitten by them like a wild wolf or rammed by them like a wild boar. My small frame cannot withstand that. If I see a flood of carnal beasts, I must first mortify your flesh before I can properly tend to you. When I see carnal beasts, I am very careful. Therefore, I put in as much effort as you deal with the flesh. If you do not deal with the flesh and are like a flood of beasts, it is terrifying. Some people build churches specifically to cater to the flesh. Are they not raising a group of beasts? People cannot do that. They must establish an everlasting covenant with God and ensure that the evidence of the covenant is correct.

If one day you grow wings and arrive at the Southern Heavenly Gate, the Northern Heavenly Gate, or the Eastern Heavenly Gate, and say, "I have come, Lord Jesus." Lord Jesus says, "I do not know you." You say, "I cast out demons. How can you not know me?" Lord Jesus says, "I do not know you." You say, "But I preach the gospel." Do you think that if you know Lord Jesus, Lord Jesus will know you? I know Deng Xiaoping. Does Deng Xiaoping know me? I know Lee Kuan Yew. Lee Kuan Yew does not know me either. It is useless. They will kick me out. I say, "I know him." It is useless that you know him. You know many people, but if they do not know you, it is useless!

Therefore, when you come before God, before Jesus, present the evidence of your mortifying the flesh, and God will say, "Oh, this one can come in." Sometimes I like to tell jokes when I speak. If you listen to me, you must ponder this: you think you believe in the Lord well and that you can go to heaven after you die. Suddenly, "Ox-Head and Horse-Face" appear, look at you, and say, "Hey! This person belongs to me. Come with me!" Then they carry you away, and you cannot refuse. I believe in Jesus. The one within me is greater than the one without, but it does not seem so! How come I see one with a white face on the left and a black face on the right? Those are "Black and White Impermanence"! And there is one without a head, a black body and a white body. It is terrifying!

You say the one within me is greater than the one without. Many people do this. When I see it, I feel like I am watching a joke. Let me say something rather insulting: go back and repeat elementary school! If you did not study well in elementary school, take remedial classes! If you cannot understand the texts, where does your confidence come from? Do you understand? You do not understand. Someone says, "I have been saved because I believe in my heart and confess with my mouth!" But what do you believe in your heart? What do you confess? What is that thing you believe in? You cannot explain it clearly.

Mortifying the lusts and desires of the flesh is the evidence of the covenant. Mortifying the lusts and desires of the flesh is the work of the Holy Spirit. How much are you willing to cooperate with the work of the Holy Spirit? Few people pray like this: "God, mortify the evil deeds of my flesh, break me!" Many people pray like this: "God, bless me quickly." There are even more outrageous prayers: "God, give me ten million, and I will donate five million." No, I will donate six million.

They pray for a month, but there is no response. Can such prayers have a response? They become anxious and say, "God, give me the ten million. You can keep the six million. Just give me four million, and it is done!" What kind of nonsense is this? It is all carnal lusts and desires, and they are still praying, calculating the accounts so clearly. Can the accounts in the Bible be calculated clearly? If not, go back and repeat elementary school. I advise you to read the "101 Course" and the Book of Genesis.

Someone asks, "God, do you think it is okay for me to do this business?" Is that God's everlasting covenant? Some say, "Oh, I want to be a 'unicorn'." If one day you really grow a horn on your head, where will you cut it off? Whether it is the New Testament or the Old Testament, dealing with the flesh is the most core component of faith. Stop with the "believe in your heart, confess with your mouth, and you will be saved." Is that the word of the Bible? Yes! But have you believed correctly? Everyone must know that sickness comes from the flesh, and death comes from minding the flesh. Minding the flesh is death. Entanglement, depression, and suffering are closely related to the lusts and desires of your flesh. If you want to live well, you must deal with the flesh. I have seen many people whose flesh is greatly inflated, but they refuse to cut it off.

The Content of the Everlasting Covenant

The content of this everlasting covenant is not to obtain a good job. The content of this everlasting covenant is extraordinary!

"I will establish my covenant as a covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you." (Genesis 17:7)

Kingdoms will come from you, and kings will come from you! You will become the father of many nations. This is the everlasting covenant. You say, "It is enough for me to be the grandson of many nations." They may not necessarily want you as their grandson! Therefore, we must know what kind of covenant we are establishing. We are establishing an everlasting covenant. Before Genesis Chapter 17, it was not an everlasting covenant. In Chapter 17, God speaks of the everlasting covenant: "I will be your God and the God of your descendants forever." The content of this covenant is very grand.

If you do not have a concept of eternal life, why would you establish a covenant? You just want ten million. I once ministered to a person who was going to die in six hours. Six hours before, I was still leading him in prayer. As I led him in prayer, his strength recovered, and he had the strength to count money again. I saw him counting on his fingers: 30 million, 800 million. The amount was quite large. He was muttering about money! He died six hours later. What did he need money for?

No kingdom, no king, nothing, only destruction. Only "Black and White Impermanence," only "Ox-Head and Horse-Face." If you do not have a concept of eternal life, why would you need an everlasting covenant? I do not need to deal with your flesh or tend to you. Go play! We work with the hope of eternal life. The content of our covenant is an everlasting covenant. Without an everlasting covenant, people live and die, and it is meaningless.

Why are we Christians? Because living is meaningless, not because it is meaningful. Someone sent me a message that several pastors had cancer and that he was ministering to them. I replied, "Stop ministering!" He said, "Why do you say that?" I said, "I cannot minister." He said, "How do you know?" I said, "I have tried many times and cannot do it." Then I said, "Go and find out if they really want to live. If they all want to live, let us not bother."

What happens if they really want to live? They are especially afraid of death and want to live, thinking that living is full of hope. Then it is over. They do not need an everlasting covenant. They do not need the eternal concept of "kingdoms will come from you, and kings will come from you." These people do not want to die! A living dog is better than a dead lion. Living is better than dying. What kind of logic is that? These people do not need an everlasting covenant.

A person who needs an everlasting covenant does not live in this life at all. If they do not particularly want to live, they have a chance. Is that really the case? Everyone must try it. You will not know until you try. How do I know? Because I have ministered to many people. These people I minister to have one characteristic: they really want to live. They come to me for prayer and are basically finished. But if a person really wants to live in that everlasting covenant, they may not die.

I think it is quite interesting. It turns out that my ministry is not the decisive factor. The decisive factor is what they believe in their hearts. Those were all pastors. One pastor I know had only one breath left. Oh, he could not die! As long as there was that breath, they had to try to save him. That was the whole logic. If this person lives in eternity, they have a set of logic for eternity. They do not care much about living or dying. What they care about is the everlasting covenant.

What do you do if you care about the everlasting covenant? You must deal with the lusts and desires of the flesh. Let us talk about it. If you kill a cow, the cow will shed tears. If you kill a sheep, the sheep will also shed tears. They do not want to die! If you want to kill a pig, the pig will squeal. Some people say, "Teacher, that is what I think too." If the pig thinks that way and you think that way, is that not troublesome? We must understand why we believe in the Lord. We must also understand what kind of everlasting covenant we are establishing with God.

Now you know that I basically have no pressure. Why no pressure? Because doing more or less is the same. It does not have much effect in eternity. The effect is to rejoice in labor. That is my portion. Sometimes I scold the people I minister to harshly. I scold them very seriously! I shout at them loudly. Afterward, I laugh in my heart. It is quite convincing.

He says, "Teacher, are you not supposed to be joyful?" I say, "I am quite joyful. When I scold you, I have to put on that act! You thought I was really angry!" I shout loudly and then stop! I have revealed my hand to everyone. Sometimes it does not work if I do not shout! Shouting too much can soothe the liver and regulate the Qi. Sometimes I do not want to shout, but it does not work if I do not shout. Shouting too much can injure the liver with anger, so venting my anger can also heal my spleen and stomach.

Do you want to inherit the land? What land? The land in eternity or the land on earth in this life? It is a tragedy if people do not have a concept of eternity! Someone said to me, "Teacher, you say I try hard to keep and obey. Do you think I love the Lord?" After listening, I said, "That is loving the Lord, but what have you kept and obeyed?" He said, "I have kept and obeyed everything I should keep and obey." I said, "You are amazing! But you have not done one thing." He said, "Teacher, what is that?" I said, "Sell all your possessions and follow Jesus." He left sorrowfully. If you really care about things in eternity, would you do that?

"The young man said, "All these I have kept. What do I still lack?" Jesus answered, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." (Matthew 19:20-21)

A young man named Mark came to Jesus and asked, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus said, "Keep the commandments: 'You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery...' Honor your father and mother." He said, "Teacher, I have kept all these." Jesus said, "Well done, young man. Sell all your possessions and follow me." After hearing Jesus' words, Mark immediately became sullen. People fail when it comes to core things. What do people really care about? When he came to ask Jesus, he thought Jesus would praise him.

When someone comes to ask me, they think I will praise them, but I am more ruthless than Jesus. I ask him, "What have you kept and obeyed?" He says, "I forgot." What have you kept and obeyed in the past year? I forgot. What have you kept and obeyed in the past month? I cannot remember clearly. What have you kept and obeyed in the past week? I cannot remember either. What have you kept and obeyed today? I have kept and obeyed everything. You do not even know what is written in the Bible. What are you keeping and obeying? We must know that the evidence of the covenant is mortifying the lusts and desires of the flesh.

Do you think keeping and obeying is so easy? People fail immediately when it comes to core interests. Everyone thinks they are doing well. Are there any among us who think they are doing well? I tell you, we Chinese Mingding Destiny always feel that we are never doing well enough. Someone says, "Why do you not build up my faith?" What should I build? I am telling you the truth. You have only taken one step out of a hundred thousand miles, and you are already arrogant. If I do not pour cold water on you, can you wake up? If you are still sleepwalking, would that not be troublesome?

Therefore, we must know the content of the covenant. The content of this covenant is eternal life. Never say, "I preached the gospel once, I helped an old lady cross the street, I did a good deed, I saw an old man buying groceries from the market, and I helped him take them home." Those things are nothing. When your carnal lusts and desires are touched, you will see your reaction.

We must begin to strive hard because all our problems are rooted in one thing: the flesh. If demons come to you, it is because you are a carnal person. Chinese Mingding Destiny is never doing well enough in mortifying the lusts and desires of the flesh, but we strive to enter into perfection, to subdue our bodies and make them our slaves, no longer following the flesh, but following the word of God, following the plan that God has prepared for us in eternity. We mortify the deeds of the body through the Spirit of God. This is God's promise, to be a son who inherits God's promise.

A Son Who Inherits God's Promise

In Genesis Chapter 17, God said something very powerful: Isaac will be born from Sarah.

"I will bless her; indeed, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her so that nations shall derive from her; kings of peoples shall come from her." (Genesis 17:16)

Actually, Abram was renamed Abraham, not that he was called Abraham before. He was renamed Abraham when the everlasting covenant was established. The son of promise was called Isaac when the everlasting covenant was established. Isaac is the son of God's promise, not because Sarah's flesh was powerful or Abraham's ability was strong, that Isaac was born. He was born by the power of God. When people could not have children, God allowed her to have a child. That was God's promise. God came to that place and said to Abraham:

"God also said to Abraham, "As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. I will bless her, and moreover I will give you a son by her; I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall come from her." Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said to himself, "Can a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Can Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?" And Abraham said to God, "O that Ishmael might live in your sight!" God said, "No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him." (Genesis 17:15-19)

The son who inherits the promise is called Isaac. He was born by the power of God. Mortifying the flesh is by the power of God. The son that Abram bore was born by the power of God's promise. Therefore, the one who inherits the promise is the son of God. Chinese Mingding Destiny all regard themselves as sons who inherit the promise, and God's promise is indeed manifested among us. No matter how many promises God has, they are yes and faithful in Christ Jesus. If you believe, believe this.

Brothers and sisters, begin to become sons of God or sons of God's promise. As long as you have not breathed your last breath, no matter how seriously ill you are, it is not a hopeless state. There is an opportunity to deal with the lusts and desires of the flesh. God will surely manifest His omnipotence in you because you are a person who has been resurrected from the dead and found after being lost. Everyone knows how good it is to be a son who inherits the promise. The son who cannot inherit the promise is carnal, and the one who inherits the promise is spiritual. If we refer to Genesis Chapter 17 and then read Romans, you will know that it is talking about this.

"For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live." (Romans 8:13)

It is not because you are good enough, but because God is good enough, simply because you believe. If you are willing to deal with the lusts and desires of the flesh by the power of God, you can live even if you are about to die. That is why I am willing to take a risk to deal with your flesh, no matter how seriously ill you are. You may not be happy, but you will find that after dealing with it, the illness seems to be much better, and people are much more joyful. But after a few days, the flesh returns, and it is not good again. What should I do?

Isaac was a son born to Sarah when she was ninety years old and Abraham was a hundred years old. People are very confused. What medicine did they take? Actually, it was not medicine, but God's covenant in eternity. Some people want children after listening, but that is not the case. Only children born according to the promise will have kingdoms come from you, and kings come from you. God's promise is the most beautiful thing in a person's life. Isaac is the son of God's promise. Ishmael is the child of Abraham and Hagar and does not need God. Some say, "Why did Abraham not have more children with Hagar?" Even if Abraham had one child after another with Hagar, even if he had more, they would be carnal and would not need God. What is the point of having so many?

Shadow of the New Covenant

But a Jew is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter. His praise is not from man but from God. (Romans 2:29)

The Old Testament is a shadow of the New Testament. If you are unaware of this, then you are still living in the Old Testament. The Old Testament circumcision was performed on the genitals of Abraham and his household. Why on the genitals? Because this thing, the genitals, is wicked. One day, someone sought me out, calling me "teacher" for a long time without saying anything of substance, which made me anxious! I said, "Speak quickly if you have something to say." He said, "Teacher, I have a problem." I asked, "What problem?" He said, "An unspeakable one." Oh! I understood. I said, "What are you seeking me for? I cannot help you!" He said, "I cannot control it."

I said, "Hey, that's normal; how old are you?" He said, "Thirty." I said, "It's normal for a thirty-year-old male's genitals to react! If you didn't react, I'd have to take you to the doctor." You must understand what I'm saying; can it not react? I ask you, do adult males and adult females' genitals react? Genitals definitely react, as long as you are a normal person. A normal person has normal reactions, but it is not quite normal because it is not easily controlled. So lust has a characteristic: it is not easily controlled. When that urge comes, it's no good.

What I mean by normal is that a normal person is like this, unless you are a eunuch. And no one really wants to be a eunuch. Why is this a shadow of the New Covenant? Because the lust of the flesh is concentrated in the genitals, have you noticed? When we watch animal documentaries, when stallions and mares are in heat, the stallions fight to the death. What are they fighting for? The right to mate; they'll go to any lengths for that. In other words, as one lives in this world, you'll find that many things are related to this thing.

That's why people have invented many "green hats." I once ministered to someone who sent me a large number of green hat icons. Why was he frantic? Because he had been cuckolded. This Old Testament is merely a shadow of the New Covenant, and our brothers and sisters do not know its true meaning. So in the time of the Apostle Paul, many still did not know that the essence of circumcision was to cut off the lust of the flesh. In fact, it was already clearly explained in the Old Testament.

Don't think it was only made clear in the New Testament; in the Old Testament, cutting off the lust of the flesh was already clearly explained. It's not just about having an operation; it symbolizes an everlasting covenant with God, which requires cutting off the lust of the flesh. Isn't your lust of the flesh uncontrollable? Well, I tell you it can be controlled. It can be controlled and resolved through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Whenever you obey the Holy Spirit, you can regain the power to put to death the deeds of the body. Whenever you follow the flesh, you will reap death and corruption, leading to a series of side effects. So you must know, and I hope you are sharp. If you are sharp, you will understand: "Ah, that road leads to death; I cannot go down it again." Unless you don't believe: "Can anything good come from what you say?"

The shadow of the New Covenant refers to the lust of the flesh, the most deadly thing in a person's life that is not easily controlled. Later, I discovered something: what does it mean to obey the Holy Spirit? For example, start doing serious things, studying proper matters. As you do them, that person comes to me and says, "Teacher, I seem to be much better lately." Have you noticed that this thing is quite wicked? When you're not doing serious things, you're always thinking about doing "that," I use "that" to express it. When you're always doing serious things, you don't think about doing "that," have you noticed?

So, what do you rely on to solve the problem of lust? Rely on the power of the Holy Spirit to do more serious things, and the problem is solved. Otherwise, it cannot be solved at all. You say, "What do I do with this thing? Teacher, can you pray for me?" I say, "Pray for what? Pray for that?" How do you pray? Do you know these things? Pastors often encounter this. One day, a couple came to me, and the sister was crying. I said, "Why are you crying?" She said, "We've been married for two months and I'm still a virgin." I understood, I can't handle this. I was thinking: "If your arm hurts, pull it tight and in the name of Jesus, release it; see if it's released." But how do you do this with "that"? I say, "Pull it tight, in the name of Jesus?" How do you test it? I was stumped; this thing is really hard to deal with, annoying.

This is a shadow of the New Covenant. But even as a shadow, God commanded Abraham to do something very interesting. That day, God ascended; he watched God fly into the sky. Whoosh, that sight, God! After God ascended, he returned home and held a meeting. He said, "All the males in our household will have an operation with me today." "You do it for me, and I'll do it for you." Some said, "I'll do it myself." Okay, if you want to do it yourself, that's fine. After the operation, I was thinking: "They didn't prepare any cotton gauze or anti-inflammatory medicine." It seems they didn't prepare anything. Were there enough knives and scissors? I think there must have been at least a thousand people, adults and children.

When God had finished speaking with Abraham, he went up from him. That very day Abraham took his son Ishmael and all the male members of his household, both those born in his household and those bought with money from a foreigner, and circumcised them, as God had told him. Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised, and his son Ishmael was thirteen years old. That very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised; and all the men of his household, both those born in the household and those bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him. (Genesis 17:22-27)

This is very miraculous. What's miraculous about it? If I were Abraham, how would I say it? "Everyone, let's have a meeting. God just told me that we're all going to have a minor operation today!" Someone below would ask, "Boss, what kind of operation?" I'd say, "It's to cut off the foreskin on the male genitals." The most amazing thing is that no one asked, "Is there any anesthesia?" No one said it. Okay, everyone raised their hands in agreement. Oh my goodness! What is going on?

Abraham went back and declared, "From now on, I will be the father of many nations, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with God." How? By having a minor operation. This sounds quite wicked. God did something very miraculous. God can actually do something, which is to make everyone agree. I tell you, some Christians have a problem with wearing a mask. And some Christians, if you ask them to get a vaccine, that's no good; getting a vaccine means getting the "666," what kind of brains are these! I am filled with emotion!

Abraham was so amazing. He was full of faith when he announced this operation at the meeting. "Does everyone want to be the father of many nations with me?" Everyone shouted, "Yes!" Doesn't it sound like a multi-level marketing conference? "Does everyone want to be the mother of many nations?" The sisters all raised their hands: "Yes!" Then they shouted slogans: "The kingdom will be established from us, and kings will come from us!" "Do you want to establish an everlasting covenant with God?" "Yes!" Having an operation is all it takes; it's amazing.

I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. (Genesis 17:6-7)

In fact, how much did those who were circumcised in Abraham's household understand? They probably didn't understand, and we don't know. But I tell you, Abraham was amazing. How could he open his mouth and say such a thing? If you ask me, I think it's so difficult to open my mouth; Abraham was amazing. Then they performed the circumcision that day, which became a model for us to build the church today. Do we want to put to death the deeds of the flesh? Everyone raised their hands: "Yes!" Do we want to have Mingding Destiny? Yes. Then we will become a great nation, God will make our name great, and God will make us a blessing to all nations and peoples on earth. Wow, this is nothing; paying a price is normal. Can't we pay this small price? So in the New Covenant, it is completely realized in putting to death the lust of the flesh.

Putting to Death the Lust of the Flesh Through the Holy Spirit

When Abram was ninety-nine years old the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless. (Genesis 17:1)

What does it mean to be blameless? A person who completely puts to death the lust of the flesh is a blameless person. If you want to be a blameless person, you are willing to say in front of a thousand people, "Let's all do this together." Abraham was amazing! We also want to be blameless people. If you want to enter into God's eternal covenant, start dealing with the lust of the flesh. Don't think that if you preach the gospel to others, you will be rejected yourself.

Putting to death the lust of the flesh is one thing, and preaching the gospel is another. Preaching the gospel is not called putting to death the deeds of the flesh. Putting to death the deeds of the flesh is putting to death the deeds of the flesh, preaching the gospel is preaching the gospel, pastoring is pastoring, and leading prayer is leading prayer. But putting to death the lust of your flesh is an everlasting covenant. So brothers and sisters, please don't tell me, "Teacher, I have kept and obeyed God's words, do you think I love God like this?" Please don't say such things.

May God bless everyone!

Genesis Chapter 17 Scripture

17:1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully.
17:2 Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”
17:3 Abram fell facedown, and God said to him,
17:4 “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations.
17:5 No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations.
17:6 I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you.
17:7 I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.
17:8 The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.”
17:9 Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come.
17:10 This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised.
17:11 You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you.
17:12 For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner—those who are not your offspring.
17:13 Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised. My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant.
17:14 Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”
17:15 God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah.
17:16 I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.”
17:17 Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Can a child be born to a man a hundred years old? Can Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?”
17:18 And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!”
17:19 Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him.
17:20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation.
17:21 But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you by this time next year.”
17:22 When God had finished speaking with Abraham, he went up from him.
17:23 On that very day Abraham took his son Ishmael and all those born in his household or bought with his money, every male in his household, and circumcised them, as God told him.
17:24 Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised,
17:25 and his son Ishmael was thirteen years old when he was circumcised.
17:26 On that very day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised;
17:27 and all the men of his household, whether born in his household or bought with money from a foreigner, were circumcised with him.