Exegesis:

Introduction

Good day to everyone! Very pleased to meet you all online again. Sometimes, it is good for demons to manifest, because after they do, you will realize, Oh, that's how demons work. Actually, it's not easy to cast them out if they don't manifest; it's easier if they do. If a demon is cloaked in sheep's clothing, like an angel of light, that's quite troublesome. If someone appears to be a person but does the work of a demon, and still pretends to be an angel of light, that's very problematic.

Recently, whether we were studying the New Testament or preaching, we mentioned many sanctimonious people, some of whom are quite famous. But fame is not important. What's important is that we know how demons are cast out, how they mix like sugar and water until they are inseparable.

With persistent prayer, we will see water is water, sugar is sugar, a person is a person, and a demon is a demon. They separate immediately, and once separated, the demon can leave. This is how the Holy Spirit works. When a demon dwells in a person and does many bad things, we think it is the person doing them. Indeed, the person and the demon are doing them together, like sugar and water mixed. So I say, separate them, and you will see a clear split in the person, which is a good thing.

Honoring the God Who Sanctifies Us

Let's talk about Chapter 22. Chapter 20 discussed being set apart and sins deserving death, and Chapter 21 discussed God's higher requirements for priests, which I expounded for almost an hour. Sometimes, I find it good to share from Leviticus. For Chapter 22, I think the title should be: Honoring the Lord God Who Sanctifies Us. You know, God has a higher standard for us. No matter what the requirement is, God wants us to be sanctified, to become like Him, because Jehovah is holy, revered as holy. The name of Jehovah is a holy name. Jehovah is a holy God, therefore we must be holy, we must be set apart, and it is God who sanctifies us.

In the past, few people had a deep understanding of sanctification. People thought that doing good deeds diligently meant sanctification, and doing something bad meant losing it, so we found ourselves very divided. Has God's will for us to be sanctified in the New Testament changed? No, it hasn't. God is still the God who sanctifies us, but the method has changed. In the Old Testament, it was offering bulls and sheep; today, it is offering ourselves. So today, our brothers and sisters are pondering how to honor the God who sanctifies us. That's very interesting. That's why we say that reading Leviticus can be liberating, because as you read, you understand in your heart, and demons cannot deceive us. They are separated from us, and the lies and corruption they release begin to be dealt with.

The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to Aaron and his sons so that they treat with respect the sacred offerings the Israelites consecrate to me, and they do not profane my holy name. I am the Lord. (Leviticus 22:1-2)

Actually, the word 远离 (yuǎn lí) [keep away from] is not quite right. It should be about honoring, showing reverence. We should honor the sacred offerings given to the Lord God, lest we profane God's holy name. Profaning is the opposite of honoring. If you do not honor, you are profaning. So from the start, it is said to Aaron and his sons: people must honor the holy name of the Lord God, because God is the God who sanctifies us. So we must know that God's purpose is not for us to die, but for us to be sanctified, for us to become like Him. The previously mentioned defilement, sleeping with this person or that person, and sometimes even with an animal...all the eating, drinking, and messing around...many things are defiled. Can that be called holiness? No, it's not holiness.

God wants us to be holy. Know that the bad things demons do, or the way they deceive people's understanding, cause people to do these things uncontrollably. So we must know that it's not about ``keeping away,” but about honoring, lest people fail to honor God. If something belongs to God, whether you honor it or not represents whether you honor God. For example, we offer sacrifices. After the sacrifice is offered, it belongs to God. Whether you honor the sacrifice itself represents whether you honor the God. We say, Beat the dog, but look at its owner. That's the idea. The dog belongs to the owner. If you beat the dog, you are actually disrespecting the dog's owner. We must know that we must learn to honor. It is quite common for Christians not to honor our God in life, and many churches do not require people to honor God either.

Recently, I may have brought some confusion to everyone: if you need to sleep, sleep; if you need to serve, serve; if you don't need to sleep, don't. Do you think this is called honoring? No! This is to allow our brothers and sisters to live out their original selves, and then we see if this self honors God. It doesn't mean that we can just continue like this and end up in destruction, because we do not honor God.

Sleep when you are tired, and do what you need to do when you are awake. What I mean is this: when we stop being hypocritical, packaging a turd... no matter how exquisite the packaging, it is useless. It's better to honestly face God. I see myself as a piece of dog poop, and others see me as a piece of dog poop, but that's okay. God, I know I am rotten, but you are the God who sanctifies me. You can sanctify me, so today I start learning to honor you.

What is honoring? Honoring our God in spirit and in truth. We are rotten today, but God helps us, and we also want to grow. Actually, no one doesn't want to grow, no one wants to ruin themselves. Even those who are controlled by demons want to grow. Today I tell you, brothers and sisters, I often give very definite judgments, like the person who is now manifesting and is controlled by the spirit of the dragon, she feels that I honor her. It's okay if her spiritual height is low today. God will surely sanctify her, because our God wants to sanctify us.

We start to treat ourselves and our God with spirit and truth, and then move forward step by step. This is the key. What's the use of playing fake all day, doing superficial work, wrapping a turd in exquisite packaging? So, brothers and sisters, wherever you are, in whatever position you are, take my advice: start learning to honor God in your heart, because God is the God who sanctifies us. God will surely make us into the person He originally created us to be.

God created us to be noble people, but our heads are often filled with garbage, and demons often put garbage into us. Our hearts are filled with evil thoughts that we sometimes cannot control. It's okay. Today, as you study the Bible with me, know that I want to honor my God, because my God is the God who sanctifies me. My God has tolerated everything I have done in the past and hasn't crushed me. Today, I am willing to turn back to Him. Although I may not be able to do it yet, I look to my God, I honor my God, and God will release us, and the Holy Spirit will move upon us.

The demons inside us are mixed with ourselves like sugar and water. The Holy Spirit's operation is like separating sugar from sugar water. How can you separate sugar from sugar water when they are mixed together? You can't. People and demons become like sugar water, mixed together, you in me and me in you. Now, the Holy Spirit is moving upon us. Our hearts desire to be released, and the Holy Spirit moves upon us. As a result of this operation, the Holy Spirit's power can separate light from darkness. The Holy Spirit's power can separate people from demons, and the Holy Spirit's power can separate sugar from water.

Our God is a God of great power, a God who raises people from the dead. Today, He begins to restore us continuously, restoring a little today and a little tomorrow. So brothers and sisters, let us not give up today. Let no one give up. I see you as very positive. I believe you will surely be released. I believe you will surely come out. You will surely be able to restore to the glorious image that God created you in. I am not worried that you are lazy today, I am not worried that you are chaotic today, I am not worried that you are possessed by demons and saying nonsense things. I am not worried about anything, because with God we don't need to worry about anything. We know that our God is the God who sanctifies us.

How well this is said! It’s not about relying on your own cultivation; what you cultivate is useless. Then you should have entered the wrong place. If you want to cultivate, build a temple and sit in meditation, eat vegetarian food and chant scriptures. If that stuff worked, we would all do it. But today I have given up that path. I begin to rely on the mighty strength of God working in me to set me apart. I am also willing to completely offer myself. I want to become a person who serves God. Then I tell you, even if there is still a lot of defilement in me, God will still release me. God will surely continue to sanctify me.

So, brothers and sisters, this topic is really good: Honoring the God Who Sanctifies Us. This is an attitude in our hearts, just an attitude in our hearts.

Impurity Must Not Be Contaminated; God Must Not Be Mocked.

What did Moses say?

“For the generations to come, if anyone among you is ceremonially unclean and yet comes near the sacred offerings that the Israelites consecrate to the Lord, that person must be cut off from my presence. I am the Lord.” (Leviticus 22:3)

If we are unclean and still come near the sacred offerings that the Israelites consecrate to the Lord, that person must be cut off from God’s presence. Why? Because a person with impurity cannot approach God. Brothers and sisters, don’t worry. This is written in Leviticus. The New Testament says that the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses our impurity.

We come before God not because we have no impurity, but because today we have the blood of Jesus Christ, and then we define in our hearts to set ourselves apart, and our God can sanctify us. The entire Chapter 22 is talking about whether we honor in our hearts the God who sanctifies us.

“If an Aaronite priest has defiling skin disease or a discharge, he may not eat the sacred offerings until he is cleansed. He also may not eat them if he touches something defiled by a corpse or if he has an emission of bodily fluid, or if he touches any crawling thing that makes him unclean, or any person who makes him unclean, whatever the uncleanness may be. The one who touches any such thing will be unclean till evening. He must not eat any of the sacred offerings unless he has bathed himself with water;” (Leviticus 22:4-6)

Actually, we have contamination on our bodies. This is because we have been contaminated by spiritual realm impurities, such as touching a corpse. We begin to be contaminated by the spirit of death, which is impure in God's eyes. There is a sentence later on:

“They must keep my requirements so that they do not become guilty and die for treating them with contempt. I am the Lord, who makes them holy.” (Leviticus 22:9)

Don’t think that Christians are okay because they have the blood of Jesus Christ. If you apply it today and apply it tomorrow, it will be like a rag on your windowsill, which is troublesome. Don’t despise God. That is not honoring. Treating the blood of Jesus Christ as a rag is not called honoring God. It was mentioned earlier that you can handle the affairs of your own family members when they pass away, but other people’s corpses are none of your business. Why do you have to do those things?

Today, we must be careful to avoid being negligent and contaminated. If you are contaminated, you cannot eat the sacred offerings here. Because if you eat these sacred offerings, having just touched a corpse, without telling anyone, thinking that God doesn’t know and no one will find out... Some people have a nocturnal emission, a wet dream, and the next day they don’t tell anyone and continue to eat the sacred offerings. Others don’t know either; no one will check. Then you ate the sacred offerings, and that is being negligent towards God.

Of course, this is talked about in Leviticus in the Old Testament, but today we must also know that anyone who has a nocturnal emission and then eats God's sacred offerings is being negligent towards God and will therefore bear guilt and die. So in the past, there were very many priests who died bearing guilt. During the time of Aaron and Moses, there were many people who died bearing guilt, until later on, the old Eli in 1 Samuel, and many priests also died bearing guilt. Why? Because they were negligent towards God and didn’t honor God at all. The consequences of not honoring God are very serious. God must not be mocked.

We must know that it is absolutely not a case of God not knowing and demons not knowing. God knows and demons know, but you yourself don’t know.

“Anyone who touches them will be unclean till evening, and he must not eat any of the sacred offerings unless he has bathed himself with water; When the sun goes down, he will be clean, and then he may eat the sacred offerings, for they are his food. He must not eat anything found dead or torn by wild animals, and so defile himself through it. I am the Lord.” (Leviticus 22:6-8)

It’s not that God is being unreasonable, but it’s about a person’s attitude towards handling things. Today, many impurities are closely related to things in the spiritual realm. For example, being torn by wild animals is very impure in the spirit, and dying on one’s own is also very impure in the spirit. God doesn’t want us to touch these things, so we don’t touch them. Why do we have to touch them? After touching them, we still defile ourselves, and after defiling ourselves, we go to eat Jehovah’s sacred offerings. So everyone has to carefully ponder things that are spiritually impure.

We had a very poor neighbor; in those days, everyone was poor. Our city had a military horse farm that raised horses for the army. Horses are very delicate and prone to illness and death. When they got sick and died, they would dig a pit and bury the horse. This neighbor of ours would often look for where there were horses, dig them up, and eat them. As a result, they had many problems. The children they gave birth to were all foolish. So we must know that for the sake of eating this piece of meat, do we have to eat this piece of meat? Honoring God is often closely related to what we eat.

If a person has a wet dream and a nocturnal emission, they become unclean. Many people don’t know that this is a spiritual realm matter. Once I went to a place, and the person who received me told me that he couldn’t sleep every night and only dared to sleep when it was dawn. I asked him why, and he said that it was very hard at one or two o’clock in the evening. As soon as he lay down and closed his eyes, a very real situation would appear, like we read in Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio. A very beautiful and full female ghost would hug him and do that thing with him. Actually, he quite enjoyed it.

As he continued like this, his health deteriorated and he became very prone to fatigue. Later, I cast the demon out of him, but he invited it back. I cast it out again, and it went back and forth like this. He knew that I understood things in the spiritual realm, so he said to me, “I’m telling you, you don’t treat me like a mental patient, but when I tell others, they treat me like a mental patient.”

Don’t think that the things mentioned in Strange Tales are fake. Actually, there are all kinds of strange things in the world. Why is this unclean? Because it is closely related to the spiritual realm, so we must know that this uncleanness and that uncleanness are closely related to these things in the spiritual realm. So before God, we know ourselves very well, so we must honor God!

God wants to save us from these spiritual yokes. God wants to save us from these demonic disturbances. The matter of eating, whether we honor God or not, is very critical.

“No one outside a priest’s family may eat the sacred offering, nor may the guest of a priest or a hired worker eat it. But a priest’s servant—whether bought with money or born in his household—may eat it, and so may the priest’s own children.” (Leviticus 22:10-11)

We must clearly distinguish. Sometimes when we talk about things devoted to destruction, we can’t wait to throw away the things devoted to destruction in our neighbor's house, thinking that those things will affect us. Even if you live under the same roof, your mother-in-law’s idols are hers and won’t affect you. You don’t need to worry. We ourselves should not keep things devoted to destruction, and don’t throw away other people’s things devoted to destruction.

Sometimes we think that these things devoted to destruction, even if they are not ours, will affect us. Actually, what is not ours will not affect us. Of course, sometimes children are young, and their mother’s things devoted to destruction will affect them. This is normal. Once I served a cancer patient who was screaming in pain. No matter how I prayed, it didn’t work. Later I asked him, and they lived in a very remote mountainous area. They had ancestral tablets for eight generations, layer upon layer. So I said to him, “Look at your child, he has become like this. Don’t do these things anymore. Just throw these things away.” Seeing her child in such pain, she packed up these things and threw them away. The pain stopped immediately after they were thrown away.

So we must understand things in the spiritual realm. Outsiders cannot eat the sacred offerings. Let’s not give things that belong to God to those who do not belong to God. So if a priest’s daughter marries an outsider, she cannot eat the sacred offerings. If this daughter is a widow or divorced and returns to her father's house, she can eat her father's food as she did when she was a child, but outsiders cannot eat them. Why do we do this? Because it is honoring our God. We must grasp this key point: honoring the Lord God Who sanctifies us.

God Wants Our Attitude of Sacrifice: Giving the Best to Him

You casually give what belongs to God to outsiders, thinking, Here, take it! I can't eat it anyway. This attitude is utterly deplorable. Be careful not to treat God with disrespect, lest you bear the guilt and die. So, what I'm saying today is:

Speak to Aaron and his sons and to all the Israelites and say to them: 'If any of the Israelites or any foreigner residing in Israel presents a burnt offering to the Lord, either to fulfill a special vow or as a freewill offering, to be acceptable you must present a male without any defect from the cattle, sheep or goats. (Leviticus 22:18-19)

Offering a defective sacrifice is dishonoring God! We finally have an opportunity to give a sacrifice to God, but we keep the best cattle for ourselves and offer the lame ones to God. Is that honoring God? It's better not to offer anything at all. Do you understand? Brothers and sisters, you must know that our attitude in offering sacrifices is crucial. Just as companies assess a person's attitude when hiring, God examines our attitude. God looks at our attitude, not just the offering itself.

Some people interpret the Bible in a ridiculous way. In Genesis, when Cain and Abel offered sacrifices to God, Cain's offering was rejected while Abel's was accepted. They don't understand why God wasn't pleased with Cain's offering. They say it's because Abel offered a lamb, and God likes meat, while Cain offered crops, and God prefers meat. That's nonsense! Why would God care whether we offer rice or cattle? Because God values our attitude in offering the sacrifice.

God wants the attitude of sacrifice, which means offering the best, the first fruits, whether it's rice or cattle. In my life, I had a unique experience. Why were my offerings blessed? I'll tell you, when I first became a Christian, I struggled with giving for a long time. But I overcame it, I decided to give. Why? Because I didn't think I could become wealthy without giving and I did not like being poor. My salary was so meager, so I thought just give a little, just give!” and i started to give.

I came across some Christians who told me that every time they gave, they felt pained. They divided their monthly tithe into four parts, giving a little each week so it wouldn't hurt as much. But while that might ease the pain, it doesn't honor God.

From that day on, after hearing what they said, I made a decision: if I'm going to give, it has to hurt. I had to combine all four payments into one big offering. So, when I gave, it was a substantial sum. Later, when I became wealthy and received large year-end bonuses, I would immediately give all ten percent, or even more. Why? Because I knew I lived by God's grace and blessings. If it weren't for God's favor, where would I be today?

Look at David's offerings. He never offered something that cost him nothing. He always paid a high price for the land he offered to God. Do you understand that? I think that's a wonderful attitude of giving. If it doesn't hurt, do you think you're just giving God a tip? Later, I even gave away all the money in my account several times. Don't follow my example! Did I become poor? No. But if someone doesn't have the right attitude of honoring God, I don't like accepting their offering, or I will return the money, because you don't know what the offering is for.

Offering Sacrifices to be Accepted by God

Our offerings should honor God. If a person doesn't realize they live by God's grace, their giving will always be a struggle. It's not about how much they give, but rather that we must honor the God who sanctifies us. What is the point of giving something defective? Should not we brothers and sisters have a resolve to not only offer cattle, sheep and tithes, but also to completely dedicate ourselves to God? Should we insist on offering sacrifices that displease God and are not accepted by him?

If anyone brings a defective animal as a sacrifice, you must not offer it, because it will not be accepted on your behalf. When anyone brings from the herd or flock a fellowship offering to the Lord to fulfill a special vow or as a freewill offering, it must be without defect or blemish to be acceptable. Do not offer to the Lord the blind, the injured or the maimed; do not give them to the Lord as food offerings on the altar. You may, however, present as a freewill offering an ox or a sheep that is deformed or stunted, but it will not be accepted in fulfillment of a vow. You must not offer to the Lord an animal whose testicles are bruised, crushed, torn or cut; you must not do this in your own land. You must not accept from the hand of a foreigner any such animals as food offerings to your God, because they are deformed and have blemishes; they will not be accepted on your behalf. (Leviticus 22:20-25)

Why would you do something that God doesn't accept? Just keep it for yourself. Brothers and sisters, we must have an attitude of willing and cheerful giving. Why should we give willingly and gladly? Because our inner logic is sound. We live by God's promises, by His Word, not by cattle, sheep, or money. Therefore, we must honor God.

There are some things we may not understand. For example, when a cow or sheep gives birth, the calf or lamb stays with its mother for seven days. After the eighth day, it can be offered as a fire offering to the Lord. Whether it is a cow or a ewe, you must not slaughter both the mother and its offspring on the same day. You ask me what this means, and I ask do I need to explain it? God simply doesn't like killing a mother and its offspring on the same day. Why doesn't God like it? God just doesn't. Sometimes we ask, What do you like to eat? I like curry. Why do you like curry? No reason, I just like it!

In fact, we shouldn't do what God dislikes, do you understand? If the sacrifices we offer to the Lord are acceptable, who can do anything to you? No one can do anything to you. Today, we must please God. In the New Testament, it says: If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ. If I am pleasing God, I will willingly follow His path. Do you understand? Therefore, the sacrifices we offer to God must be eaten on the same day, and none of it must be left until morning. This is an attitude of reverence towards God.

You ask, Why can't we leave it until morning? Can I leave a little to eat tomorrow? No! That is dishonoring God. Why is it dishonoring God? Do we always feel like there will be something to eat tomorrow? What if there is nothing to eat tomorrow? Let's just keep a little for today. It's as if God can only provide for us today, but not for tomorrow. That is not an attitude of reverence towards God. Brothers and sisters, our God can not only supply everything we need in life, but also for eternity. He can not only give us what we need for life, but also sanctify us. The key is whether or not we honor God.

Trust God, Honor God

Our God is a faithful God. He made a covenant with us, He is the Lord God, He is the Master of all things in heaven and earth. If we don't trust Him, who do we trust? He brought us out of Egypt to be our God. He is the Lord of all things in heaven and earth. If we don't honor Him, whom should we honor?

Keep all my decrees and all my laws and follow them. I am the Lord. Do not profane my holy name, for I must be acknowledged as holy by the Israelites. I am the Lord, who makes you holy, who brought you out of Egypt to be your God. I am the Lord.” (Leviticus 22:31-33)

God brought us out of Egypt, out of the world. Should we still live according to the world's logic? If we don't live according to the world's logic, the spirit of the dragon, the devil Satan, can deal with those who carry the world's logic. But it cannot deal with those who carry the logic of God, the logic of Jesus Christ. Do you understand? That is to say, can we, who trust in God, transform our inner logic with the Word of God, and live again by the Word of God?

He is God, and this truth is very straightforward. He is in charge of all things in the universe. Can't He handle our little problems in life? That is too dishonoring to God. Do you trust in God? Yes, I trust in God. Then, when it comes to giving, do you trust in God? Yes, I trust in God. Then that is honoring God. Trust in God for what? Trust in Him because He is our God. He brought us out of Egypt, out of the world, to sanctify us, to make us live out his glorious likeness. This is our God! We must not profane the name of our God. Profaning the name of God is actually dishonoring Him, not trusting Him, and doing a lot of things that trust in cattle and sheep, picking and choosing and being reluctant to give the best to God. Giving the best to God is our best choice.

Brothers and sisters, after reading this chapter, combined with the previous chapters of Leviticus, we must live a holy life and be set apart. We must know the sins that lead to death and what sins can kill us. We must know God's requirements for priests. When you understand these things, you will know to honor the Lord God who sanctifies us. When we do this, God will surely enable us to live out His glorious likeness. God will surely enable us to live out His glory image, because He created us in that glorious image.

Today, God is restoring this work. What reason do we have not to honor Him? God has redeemed us from the world to lead us into the promised land, into the land flowing with milk and honey, not to kill us in the wilderness. Everyone must begin to honor our God.

May God bless everyone!