Introduction

Good day to all. Let us delve into the eleventh chapter of Exodus. I find this chapter particularly edifying. Whenever the Scripture speaks of God causing us to prosper, making us greatly esteemed in the eyes of Pharaoh in Egypt, bestowing honour upon us, granting Isaac a hundredfold harvest, and leading him to a place of abundance, I invariably beseech God for similar blessings. When reading the Bible, do not fall into the trap of thinking, "Ah, Moses! He was extraordinary! But there was only one Moses." Or, "Abraham was remarkable! But that was Abraham, not me!" The same applies to Jacob, Paul, and even Jesus. There is always a reason, isn't there? One might as well open a "Reasons Station" for those perpetually seeking excuses.

Among those I minister to, many lament, "I am inadequate, I am worthless!" They are fixated on themselves. But one’s own worthlessness is immaterial; God exalting you is a simple matter. You may think I am impressive, but it is not due to any inherent greatness in me. It is God who makes me esteemed in the eyes of others. How could I perform miracles without Him? I possess no such ability on my own. I am merely an instrument in His hands. However, witnessing God's exaltation of Moses fills me with a desire to emulate him.

The title of this chapter is: The LORD Made Moses Greatly Esteemed in the Sight of Pharaoh, His Servants, and the People of Egypt. We must discern God's intent in Scripture. His intent is for us to become like Moses. If you aspire to be like Moses, God is greatly pleased. Similarly, He will make you greatly esteemed in the eyes of Pharaoh. This world can produce thousands of Moseses, and God will still arrange a fitting place for you. It is a simple matter for Him. The more churches like our Chinese Mingding Destiny church, the better. Ten thousand would pose no problem. Therefore, when reading the Bible, we should note the extraordinary accomplishments of those who had God's presence, such as God making Moses greatly esteemed in the eyes of Pharaoh. We should then aspire to emulate them.

Moses spent forty years tending sheep in the wilderness, his garments perpetually covered in wool, emanating a strong ovine odour, akin to a denizen of a zoo, his very breath carrying the scent. Returning home, he was henpecked and looked down upon by his father-in-law, causing him great emotional distress. Moses felt defeated, incapable of anything. Yet, when Moses felt utterly inadequate, God made him powerful.

My own psychological state is similar. I often feel inadequate and worthless, yet God makes me capable! Thus, those who trust in God are powerful. To what extent was Moses inadequate? God said, "I will send you." Moses replied, "I will not go! I am slow of speech and have a faltering tongue. I cannot speak." God said, "Fear not, I will have Aaron assist you." Yet Moses made every excuse to avoid going.

In truth, Moses' initial reluctance stemmed not from a lack of faith in God. He thought it would be good to lead the Israelites out of Egypt, but he lacked confidence in himself. By the eleventh chapter of Exodus, we see Moses transformed. He speaks with authority before Pharaoh, and his pronouncements come to pass. Pharaoh had previously warned Moses that seeing his face again would mean death. But did Moses die? No! It is the same with my battles with Old Ma. He often threatens to destroy me! Is it so easy? If he could, he would have done so long ago. Old Ma is like a child who cannot win a fight and often says, "Just you wait and see! Revenge is a dish best served cold!" Ten years have passed, and he has yet to prevail. He has developed a loser's mentality.

Brothers and sisters, others wage war with swords and spears, horses and chariots, but our battle is the LORD's. Do not overestimate me. I am as worthless as a pile of dog excrement. But I differ from you in that I still possess passion. This is not false modesty, for without God, I am nothing. Years ago, when I first sought employment, my resumes vanished without a trace. When I finally secured an interview, my English was halting, my technical skills were lacking, and my language abilities were poor. I was utterly inadequate! God placed me in such circumstances, and I finally realized my own limitations. At that time, I resolved to seek a God and to live henceforth by His grace.

With God's help, Moses initially trembled when he raised his staff, unsure of its efficacy. But after repeated trials, his courage grew, so much so that he could speak forcefully before Pharaoh. Later, the text states that Moses left Pharaoh in hot anger. What does "in hot anger" mean? It means being able to curse and swear before the emperor, then turn and leave. Would you dare? Moses' back is now straight.

Previously, Moses' back was not straight, for he was merely an eighty-year-old shepherd. Of all people, God chose an old man with a wrinkled face, calloused hands, and a strong ovine odour. Standing before Pharaoh, he had neither fine clothes nor impressive looks. The staff in his hand was merely a wooden stick, while Pharaoh held a golden sceptre. Moses entered the palace as if entering the Forbidden City, utterly lacking in confidence.

But this time, it was different. He knew he had God with him, and his demeanour was transformed. Moses said, "You said that seeing my face again would mean death. But now I declare that every firstborn son in Egypt will die! Look and see what happens tomorrow!" This gives us great confidence. Know that Moses was the leader who led the Israelites out of Egypt, the mighty warrior chosen by God to lead the army of the LORD! If you would be a mighty leader of the LORD, you cannot rely on yourself. Moses was not negotiating with Pharaoh like a businessman seeking profit. This leader of the LORD's mighty army sought to have God strengthen our backs, so that we would no longer be broken-backed dogs, yelping and barking, but rather people of backbone. What is Pharaoh to us?

Moses said, "Thus says the LORD: 'About midnight I will go out into the midst of Egypt, and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the cattle. And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there has never been, nor ever will be again.'" (Exodus 11:4-6)

The Only Choice is to Trust in God

I feel it is wonderful to have God! My first job was arranged by God. Others seek connections through people, but I had no ability, no connections, no skills, and no language proficiency. It was a terrible feeling. There was no one to call upon for help. At that moment, I made the wisest choice of my life: I would seek the greatest God, the one who governs the universe. I would seek the greatest back door.

And my God is so powerful! I applied for a job at a company and received a polite rejection letter within days. Later, they called me back for an interview, and I could hardly believe it. After working there for three months, with God's help, I solved some technical problems for my boss. The boss found me interesting and told me a story.

He said that he had not initially intended to hire me, but God had personally told him to hire me. This boss had only recently become a believer a year prior. A year before, he had been in dire straits, even contemplating suicide. After believing, he changed jobs and became a department head at this company, and his life was transformed. He prayed about everything. When he was hiring, he had a thick stack of resumes on his desk, all from talented people from prestigious universities. When he first laid his hands on those resumes and prayed, God told him to hire me. He looked at my resume and said to God, "This person is not suitable! I only have one position."

The next morning, as he continued to pray in his office, God spoke my name to him in an audible voice! Is that not a powerful back door? On the third day, during prayer, he heard my name again. So he had no choice but to call me for an interview and offer me the job. From that day on, I felt that my God was truly amazing! Do you know how wonderful it is to have God's help when there is no one else to turn to? I am so grateful!

This was my first experience with God. Although it was just a job, I am grateful to this day. For I know that as long as I live with God, I will always honour and revere Him! From that time until today. Brothers and sisters, if a person does not have God, he cannot deal with people on earth, let alone the spirits in the spiritual realm. Life becomes unbearable. All you can do is say, "Just you wait and see!" But in the end, you see nothing. All you can do is say, "You just wait!" But you wait until the end of time and nothing happens. Given your limited abilities, I think you should just give up. It is wonderful to have God! I want to tell you why I have chosen to trust in God until this day. Because I know my own limitations, I know the vastness of the heavens and the earth, that there are mountains beyond mountains, people above people, and heavens beyond heavens. If I do not worship my God, what else can I do?

After Moses had God, he still complained, "God, you have not helped the Israelites at all!" Why? Because he did not know that God was directing a play, unfolding scene by scene. Moses tried something and it worked well! Water turned into blood, plagues of flies, frogs, locusts, hail, pestilence, and a host of other disasters.

If you are a mighty warrior of the LORD, signs and wonders will surely follow you. For what is impossible with man is possible with God! Therefore, brothers and sisters, begin to trust in our God! Moses continually experienced God in moments when things seemed impossible. Through the manifestation of these seemingly negative signs, God made Moses greatly esteemed in the eyes of Pharaoh. If even the emperor holds you in high regard, then you are as the Scripture says, above and not beneath, the head and not the tail.

And the LORD said to Moses, "Yet one plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. After that he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will drive you away completely." (Exodus 11:1)

Did the Israelites leave Egypt by the power of God's mighty arm, or by their own swords and spears? Of course, it was by the power of God's mighty arm! The Israelites did nothing! Even if there were exceptionally skilled warriors among them, it would be of no use. No matter how skilled or powerful they were, they were still slaves in Egypt. Even if you were a puppet soldier or a traitor, you would still be a second-class citizen. Such skills are useless. What is needed is the power of the LORD. We, as brothers and sisters, must rely on God and become people of backbone, no longer relying on our own abilities! We must clearly recognize one thing: Those who live by their own hands and abilities are cursed! Only those who live by trusting in God are blessed!

God Will Lift Up His People

These Israelites were enslaved in Egypt, surrounded by Egyptian soldiers. Disobedience meant beatings, and further disobedience meant death. They were in a dire situation with no hope. But with God, not only did He bring them out of Egypt, regardless of their martial prowess, He caused them to find favor in the eyes of the Egyptians.

How did they find favor? When the Israelites asked the Egyptians to give them gold and silver articles and clothing from their homes, the Egyptians gave them. You might wonder if these Egyptians were foolish? No! When the firstborn sons in these Egyptian families died, the grief was indescribable. The night before, they had eaten together happily, and the next morning they found their firstborn dead! They went to knock on the neighbor's door, only to find that their firstborn had also died! Every family was wailing and crying, completely out of control! At this time, it was easy to profit from the dead; no need to negotiate prices. In fact, Moses had announced this disaster the day before.

Moses said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘About midnight I will go out into the midst of Egypt, and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the female servant who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the cattle. Then there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it again. But against none of the children of Israel shall a dog move its tongue, against man or beast, that you may know that the Lord does make a distinction between the Egyptians and Israel.’ And all these your servants shall come down to me and bow down to me, saying, ‘Get out, and all the people who follow you.’ After that I will go out.” Then he went out from Pharaoh in great anger. (Exodus 11:4-8)

You might wonder why God didn't let the Egyptian Pharaoh himself die? That's how God arranged it, to make it even more painful for them! For parents to bury their children! The Chinese say that there are three great tragedies in life: losing one's father in youth, losing one's spouse in middle age, and losing one's child in old age. God wanted Moses and the Israelites to be great in the eyes of the Egyptians. Moses, in Pharaoh's eyes, was the one leading the Israelites, leading the army of the Lord God out of Egypt, and he was seen as very great in their eyes. Very great meant seeing him as godlike. This person is too powerful! I wonder what the Egyptian Pharaoh thought after hearing Moses' announcement? This was going to happen at midnight, why didn't he go to Moses and say, let's talk? You can leave today, let's not have this disaster! But he thought: Is this really going to happen at midnight? It shouldn't, right?

Foolish! This Pharaoh had seen the miracles performed by Moses one after another, even with low intelligence, he should have learned the pattern. This disaster was too severe, and as a result, Pharaoh, his servants, and the people of Egypt begged the Israelites to leave quickly. One person died in each family, wailing everywhere, it was too tragic! Even the plague didn't reach this level. You might wonder, why doesn't God have compassion? Many people like to ask such questions! I beg you not to ask such questions anymore, ask them when you meet God! If the Egyptians had let the Israelites go earlier, would they have offended God? God had already been gracious enough, already telling them in advance that this would happen at midnight. If they let the Israelites go now, nothing would happen!

Do you want to be an enemy of God? No matter what kind of demon, or what kind of person, no matter how high or low your status, I must tell you, this God is the Lord of the universe, He is the God of the Israelites, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and also our God! So brothers and sisters must know one thing: God will make Moses great in the eyes of the Egyptian Pharaoh. Moses is not a businessman, he is a leader appointed by God to lead the army of the Lord God. Why do I encourage everyone to be elite soldiers in God's army, to rise up and become leaders? Maybe you can't be Moses, but you can be Joshua or Caleb. In God's army, no matter how small a soldier you are, you are great in the eyes of the Egyptians.

When Moses first went to see the Egyptian Pharaoh, he felt unworthy; but now Pharaoh is asking Moses, and seeing Moses as extremely great. We must never underestimate ourselves, we must rely on God! Moses, Joshua, and Caleb did not rely on their own abilities, nor did they look at who was the strongest in Israel. Although we feel that we are terrible, these are not important, God will lift us up. Today God will lift us up! Not because we built a terrible church, but because we listen to the word of the Lord God, and build His mighty army according to His word, and bring God's army out of Egypt, out of this world! This is exactly what we are to do.

Becoming Warriors of God's Mighty Army

The Kingdom of God is not of this world, and we do not rely on worldly battles. We are not on the same level as the things of this world. We are fighting a spiritual battle, trampling on the devil and the enemy! We are to destroy the work of the devil and the enemy, and release people from the world, from bondage. In fact, the essence of our gospel is release for the captives, freedom for the oppressed! Isaiah 61 says:

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; to grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.

They shall build up the ancient ruins; they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations. Strangers shall stand and feed your flocks; foreigners shall be your plowmen and vinedressers; but you shall be called the priests of the Lord; people shall call you the ministers of our God; you shall eat the wealth of the nations, and in their glory you shall boast. Instead of your shame there shall be a double portion; instead of dishonor they shall rejoice in their lot; therefore in their land they shall possess a double portion; they shall have everlasting joy. (Isaiah 61:1-7)

What a wonderful thing! In the Bible, from the beginning of recorded history, God has been constantly lifting up His people. I have seen some very declining pastors, because they do not do what Moses and David did, they are imitating Jeroboam, walking the path of Jeroboam, how can God lift them up? This is being an enemy of God! But the path we are taking must be the path that God lifts us up, God will surely give us double the benefits, double the inheritance!

We are not businessmen, nor are we officials, we are priests of the Lord God. Our purpose is not to make money, our purpose is to come out of the land of Egypt to serve our God, to become the mighty army of the Lord God, to listen to God's word, to build His glorious church according to God's word! To let the glory of God be seen on this earth! We can experience God's blessings because there is a victorious church in this spiritual world that can trample on the devil and the enemy, and can be a blessing to many people. It would not be too much to have a thousand or ten thousand such churches on earth. I believe this is God's will. Let us all enter into God's will. Among the people of Israel, there must be many who are willing to give themselves for God, who are faithful to God, and who love God wholeheartedly.

I hope that when our brothers and sisters hear this, they will say, God, I want to be like Moses, Joshua, and Caleb! I am the one You want to choose, I am the one who will bring people out of Egypt and become a warrior of God's mighty army! God will surely lift you up! Recently, I have heard testimonies from some of our brothers and sisters who have been promoted. They did not rely on their own abilities, but on God. God will surely lift us up! Let us trust in our God, God will surely lift us up in the workplace or in the market, and even be seen as great in the eyes of Pharaoh, the servants of Pharaoh!

May God bless everyone!