Introduction

Good day to all! Let us continue our study of the Book of Exodus, Chapter 24. What is the theme of this chapter? It is difficult to discern from the words alone. It is very challenging to understand this chapter in isolation without connecting it to the subsequent chapters. When we consider the following chapter, we see that Moses went up the mountain to be with God for forty days and forty nights. What happened during these forty days and nights? The Israelites made a golden calf at the foot of the mountain! Our God knew beforehand that the Israelites would make a golden calf. So why, knowing that the Israelites would make a golden calf, did God still treat them this way? Therefore, this chapter is about: God giving sufficient grace to prepare people and prevent them from worshipping idols.

This chapter is about God preparing the Israelites. God gives them sufficient grace. God allows Moses to ascend the mountain for forty days and forty nights to instruct Moses on how to build the tabernacle. Over the years, as I have read the Bible, I have discovered that God gives sufficient grace! Even though God knows that these Israelites are quite muddled, He still gives them grace in the end! Why? Because our God is such a God! Although God clearly knows that the Israelites will be foolish and will make a golden calf to worship idols in the future, God still chooses to believe in them and chooses to give them sufficient grace! Why do I say this?

Then the LORD said to Moses, "Come up to the LORD, you and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel. You are to worship at a distance, but Moses alone is to approach the LORD; the others must not come near. And the people may not come up with him." When Moses went down and told the people all the LORD's words and laws, they responded with one voice, "Everything the LORD has said we will do." Moses then wrote down everything the LORD had said. (Exodus 24:1-4)

and they saw the God of Israel. Under his feet was something like a pavement made of sapphire, clear as the sky itself. But God did not raise his hand against these leaders of the Israelites; they saw God, and they ate and drank. (Exodus 24:10-11)

God had Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy elders of Israel come up the mountain to Him. Why do this? It is to let them see, to let them know, how great and glorious God is! These people clearly saw God, eating the food God provided. Where would food come from on a barren mountain? There was no food at all. What was the purpose of going up the mountain? It was so that Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel could see God, so that they would not make a golden calf while waiting below!

Do you see God's painstaking effort? It was truly painstaking! Repeatedly, writing down all the LORD's commands, and speaking them over and over, just so they could wait for Moses to come down! It was probably about waiting for forty days and nights. Surely they could wait for forty days and nights, right? They had all seen God with their own eyes and eaten and drunk in God's presence. How could they forget in the blink of an eye? This is a very miraculous thing, and I still do not understand it. In our ministry, how many people have experienced God's grace, yet people forget in the blink of an eye! They continue to walk their own path!

God wants us to know that God is a great and awesome God, full of glory, how vast He is, and that God's power is beyond our imagination. How could the Israelites change their minds after encountering some difficulties and waiting for forty days? Before, they said over and over again, "Everything the LORD has said we will do," and then in the blink of an eye, they did not obey. How many miracles had the Israelites experienced from the time they left Egypt until now? They had seen God bring plagues upon the Egyptians with their own eyes, and the Egyptians could not stand before God.

You must know that God was able to bring the Israelites out of the hands of the Egyptians. Such power is unprecedented and unparalleled. Yet, as soon as they encountered some difficulties, they immediately forgot God's power and did not know that God could sustain the universe with His omnipotence. God used His omnipotence to deliver us from Pharaoh in Egypt. God gives sufficient grace.

The Inherent Logic of Man is Corrupt

Some people just do not know the power of God and always use human logic to think. Regardless of what they see and hear every week, or the healings they receive through prayer meetings every day, as soon as they encounter some difficulties, they immediately forget that God's power can deliver them from everything. Isn't this a very interesting thing? Let us all ponder this together. The Israelites made solemn promises to God, "Everything the LORD has said we will do," why would they still do this?

In Chapter 32, after Moses had been on the mountain for forty days and nights, he came down and saw the Israelites making a golden calf. Who led the way in making it? Moses' brother Aaron. He led the seventy elders and the Israelites in making a golden calf. Then they said, "This is the god who brought us out of Egypt, we should hold a festival to the LORD," speaking very clearly. God gives sufficient grace, allowing people to see again and again, crossing the Red Sea as if walking on dry ground, and the elite soldiers of Pharaoh were buried under the Red Sea. Why would they forget in the blink of an eye? There are indeed many such people among us, who forget immediately when they encounter a problem.

Some people who have cancer have experienced so much of God's grace, but when their condition worsens slightly, their faith immediately disappears. Various kinds of illnesses, or various environments in life, and they are immediately paralyzed when the boss shouts, but it is useless no matter how God shouts. Don't you find it strange? Actually, I tell you that a person who serves God should often remind himself, "God! May you have mercy, may you remember me." In fact, sometimes after serving, it is very painful to see people being foolish.

People are filled with human logic systems. I use the word "system" quite often. Once people use a human logic system, they will use human logic to think when they encounter something, and they cannot change it into a divine logic system no matter how hard they try. People live not by trusting in other things, but by trusting in God's power. If people do not know God's omnipotence, they are believing in a logic, believing in a few words, which is useless. What is inside you is still a human logic system. Just like one plus one is not equal to two, what else can it be equal to? Now, when I encounter this situation, who wouldn't think this way if they were in my shoes? Who wouldn't discern good and evil if they were in my shoes? Everyone thinks they have done enough.

If the logic system within a person cannot be completely destroyed, it will not take forty days. As soon as they encounter something, they will be stunned because people do not believe in God's power. So, brothers and sisters, you must know that we could have lived a very wonderful life, a wonderful life where God is with us every day, living in miracles and wonders every day. It is not because we love miracles that we have miracles, but because we love God, God is with us, and miracles and wonders completely transcend human logic and completely transcend chemical laws. We should have lived in God's power.

Build Faith on God's Power

Brothers and sisters, where is your faith built? If your faith is built on a pile of words, built on wise and persuasive words, I tell you, you don't even need to think about it, you will definitely be finished! The Jews and Israelites, the most excellent people in the world, are still like this. Everyone, start to ponder why people would make a golden calf? In a sermon I preached some time ago, "Everyone Did What Was Right in His Own Eyes," what does "right in his own eyes" mean? It means what people want!

What does "what people want" mean? It means what Satan wants. Don't you think this is terrifying when you think about it? If we humans do not destroy the logic within us, those very reasonable and self-evident things, I tell you, you will not be able to go on! What do I hope for? I hope that our faith is not built on wise and persuasive words, but on the demonstration of the power of the Holy Spirit. Why do we often see miracles among us, but then immediately fail when we encounter something? It is because we are pursuing what people want.

A few days ago, there was such a thing. Two sisters ate and ate until they could not breathe. She left a message saying: "Child, Mom can't breathe, quickly call my pastor!" Actually, she knew everything. She really couldn't breathe, and the child really helped her make the call, and then our pastor led in prayer. Everyone finds it laughable. Why couldn't she breathe from eating too much? It was an old horse! Everyone must know that not being able to breathe is an old horse, uncontrollable.

If people do not change the logic system within them into God's logic system, they will always think according to human logic. But God will still give you sufficient grace. Our God, how great is the length and breadth and height and depth of His love; our God, how abundant and glorious is His grace! God let Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders of Israel see God with their own eyes. Why? Because God wanted to give these leaders great honor. The other people were not allowed to come up, but these leaders saw God, saw God with their own eyes, and ate the food God prepared for them. What was the result? They led the people of Israel in making a golden calf.

So sometimes the role of a leader is so great! If a leader obeys his people, obeys what the people want, it is difficult for you to implement God's words, because God's words directly contradict the self-evident things within people. Not only does it contradict the system within oneself, but it also contradicts what is within all the people below. They once said with their mouths: "Everything the LORD has said we will do." Do what? When the time comes, they will not believe, and when the time comes, they will not know that God's power can sustain the universe.

These little things in life, like eating and drinking, can God solve them? Yes! Why not? Haven't you lived from yesterday to today? If you can live from yesterday to today, you can live from now to tomorrow, right? But we don't know which day we won't be able to live through. What are we worried about? What are we concerned about? Isn't living a very simple thing? Do you understand? So I tell the leaders that the role of a leader among a group of people is very important, but what is the problem? The problem is that the leader cannot change what people want within them. If we look at the New Testament, what do you think of the twelve disciples that Jesus led? They were not very good either, right?

The eldest was the most considerate of what people wanted, but Jesus said: "Get behind me, Satan!" Right? You say how corrupt people's thoughts are! How much of what you have is not what people want? How much of what you have is trusting in God's power, and how much of what you have is having great hope through God's power and the power of the Holy Spirit? No matter how much grace you have seen, no matter how many miracles you have seen, even if you have experienced things like the Israelites leaving Egypt, crossing the Red Sea, and eating manna, not having to farm or harvest in the wilderness, but never going hungry. But as soon as something happens, it is immediately the human logic system. So we must completely destroy our human logic system, not just say it with our mouths.

When Moses went down and told the people all the LORD's words and laws, they responded with one voice, "Everything the LORD has said we will do." Moses then wrote down everything the LORD had said. Early the next morning he built an altar at the foot of the mountain and set up twelve stone pillars representing the twelve tribes of Israel. Then he sent young Israelite men, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls as fellowship offerings to the LORD. Moses took half of the blood and put it in bowls, and the other half he sprinkled on the altar. Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read it to the people. They responded, "We will do everything the LORD has said; we will obey." Moses then took the blood, sprinkled it on the people and said, "This is the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words." (Exodus 24:3-7)

Shouting slogans is useless, we must rely on God's power! The Israelites saw God's power, offered sacrifices, built an altar, poured blood on the altar, and sprinkled blood on the people, so that people would always remind themselves that our God is mighty and awesome, our God is a faithful God, He will never forsake us, and God will surely lead us into the promised land. From Genesis, Exodus, Numbers, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy, what is recorded are stories of corpses lying everywhere, because people stubbornly refuse to give up the human logic system.

God's Power Descends Miracles and Wonders

The Israelites could see and knew that our God is a consuming fire, and they also saw God's glory descending on Mount Sinai, appearing to the Israelites as a consuming fire, burning the mountain, so that people would know that our God is a mighty God. Your work, your life, everything you have, is a small problem for God, although you may see your problem as a big mountain, but in God's eyes it is child's play, but how difficult it is for people to believe in God's power!

The glory of the LORD settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days. On the seventh day the LORD called to Moses from within the cloud. To the Israelites the appearance of the LORD's glory was like a consuming fire on top of the mountain. Then Moses entered the cloud as he went up the mountain. And he stayed on the mountain forty days and forty nights. (Exodus 24:16-18)

Let us all build our faith on God's power, as the Apostle Paul said. If we do not build on God's power, we will be afraid of this and afraid of that, afraid of a lot of things. Why? It is for the sake of God giving us so much grace, so that we may know God's power, so that we may know that nothing is impossible for God. Since God led us out of Egypt, He will surely bring us to the promised land. God's intentions are good! Let us tell ourselves in our hearts that we have already seen many graces, we have already seen much of God's glory, and God's power!

If you are in another church, I understand, you may rarely see a little grace, or you may not have seen anything or experienced anything. But among us, many people are healed during daytime prayers, and many people are healed during evening prayers, from Monday to Friday, and then on Saturday and Sunday, we experience God's power every day. The testimonies shared on the Lord's Day are only a small part of what we have experienced, especially for some of the more difficult patients I serve, their faith immediately builds on their own experiences. We must know for sure that for God, healing us is an extremely simple thing, but for us to maintain faith in God is a very difficult thing.

I have a hope in my heart, which is that our brothers and sisters will live in miracles and wonders every day, and live in God's power every day, not live in the human logic system. People should live in miracles and wonders. It is not that we need miracles and wonders when we have serious illnesses, but even if we have nothing, miracles and wonders still follow us. Let the captives be released and the oppressed be set free. Let us see God's glory with our own eyes, see God's presence with our own eyes, and see how painstaking God's efforts are. Our God is not stingy at all!

God wants us to see every day, to live under His power every day. God gives us sufficient grace, not because we deserve it, but because of God's grace and mercy. Those who are leaders, stand firm and be like a leader. If the people below are considerate of the flesh and considerate of what people want, you should imitate Jesus and rebuke the devil Satan to get away. If we ourselves are considerate of the flesh and considerate of what people want, let us personally rely on God's power to destroy it, so that we may live under God's grace. We often face challenges and face all kinds of difficulties, but do you know? We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed!

Hold Fast to Faith at All Times

If you were to ask me, why haven't I been healed yet? It's been thirty-eight days already, why hasn't Moses come down? The fire is still burning on the mountain, could Moses have been burned to death up there? Is God toying with us? Come, let us make a golden calf. Do you all know how powerful the evil spirit behind this is? If the evil spirit behind this slightly lures us away from God, after the seduction, the Israelites' fate will be to be destroyed by God.

But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. (2 Corinthians 4:7-10)

Let me give you a piece of advice, never say things like, God, when will I be healed? Originally, you were supposed to be healed the next day, but then you say, it's extended by forty days. When will it ever end? And then, once you say that, there's no end. Our God gives us sufficient grace. If we must speak, let us thoroughly deal with the evil thoughts within. Look at how filthy it is inside. What we should truly say is, we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.

Do I have this gift, do I have this anointing? It seems like I don't? Why can't I just persevere in faith? If we have faith within us, this gift and anointing will surely be given to us! Because God longs for us to live under His mighty power, God longs for us to have signs and wonders following us, God longs to bestow miracles, but do you have that faith? Can you hold fast to that faith? Since we have received this ministry, let us not lose heart.

I often deal with myself. I say this not to boast about myself, but to boast about my weaknesses. Every time I minister, I want to give up. When I see the brothers and sisters, you know the kind of voice inside, people as pathetic as these, just forget it! It's so hard! Especially when the brothers and sisters say things that break the pastor's heart. I say, no, I must struggle through it first, and then I command Satan to retreat! The will of man to retreat! May the word of God accomplish God's good will. You know how many times I've had such struggles.

Once, when I was ministering, the feeling of discomfort in my heart, I believe God felt even more discomfort. One of our brothers ministered to a patient with colon cancer, and after the ministry, the person was completely healed. Went to the hospital for a check-up, truly completely healed! Completely healed, and then we couldn't contact him anymore, as if we were wasting his time, as if we desperately needed to pray for him. I tell you, I wished I could stay far away from him, according to my own human will, it was disgusting, like eating a dung beetle.

A month later, he came to find his pastor again. His pastor had the same feeling as I did, the cancer had returned. His pastor worked very hard, unable to bear it alone. So I mobilized all the pastors among us who could be mobilized to take turns ministering to him. At that time, whether it was preaching or Bible study, I put it all aside and led him in prayer. But we just couldn't change the logical system of that person inside.

Later, do you know how much grace he experienced? He couldn't even get out of bed at the time. Prayed, prayed, vomited a lot, and was able to get up and walk. His whole body was weak, but after praying, his strength was restored. After recovering a bit of strength, he started talking about money, until he died. He was going to die in twenty-four hours, and he didn't even know it, still talking about money. Why is living this little bit so difficult! Why doesn't he know there is a God! Don't think I'm so great, I don't mean that, I'm really not good.

Demolish the Human Logical System

If you don't remove the human things inside a person and let his faith be built on the foundation of God's power, even if he is serving God, he will only be the Peter of the future. My greatest dream is that the brothers and sisters among us can all be like Paul, have Paul's character. Because we have treasure, we have this treasure in our broken earthen vessels, it is to manifest God's great power.

I long for the brothers and sisters to be people with signs and wonders following them, to be a treasure in God's eyes, like the Apostle Paul. That's why we set the standards for the brothers and sisters a bit high. It doesn't matter if you walk slowly, the question is whether your attitude inside is bad? If our attitude is very bad, we cannot walk this path. We shouldn't say that we carry the dying of Jesus Christ, but when we encounter no water to drink, no food to eat, when things are not fun, we are constantly complaining, our heads are filled with a bunch of crap, nothing. I say this may discourage the brothers and sisters' faith, but I want to say, what's the use of man's will? Man needs God's word, God's power most of all. If man can rely on his own will to go on, what are you here for?

The church needs a group of strong and courageous leaders who have experienced God's power, who can turn the will of man around, who can turn the human will of those being pastored around, and never obey the will of man. In fact, many of those being pastored often tell me: you should minister to me like this! I thought about it, if I were to minister to you like this, it would be putting you to death! Our God is full of grace, full of mercy, knowing full well that the Israelites are a bunch of rotten people, yet He is so gracious to them. Giving them grace again and again, preparing their faith again and again, but the choice is still with man. When they encounter difficulties, they complain that the pastor doesn't pray for them. Such people are quite detestable! But we must still imitate God in our ministry. We also deal with our own flesh, and also deal with the human will within us, so that I can be in accordance with God's heart.

Now we know what kind of God God is, right? God is a God full of grace. I say these words not so that everyone will use these words to measure me, and then say, God gives so much grace to others, why don't you give me more grace? I guess there are people who have such thoughts, otherwise there wouldn't be so many complaints. I hope everyone can imitate God.

Summary

Actually, I also want to mention briefly that some pastors recommend their class leaders to do ministry work. They can be contacted when they have time, but they can't be contacted at all when they don't have time. They definitely contact me when they have problems, but when I contact them, they disappear. Isn't that strange? They do it for two or three days and then disappear, ignoring it. Why is that? They are busy with their own things. Once they are busy, they don't even attend meetings, once they are busy, they put God aside.

They put work first, family second, son third, and God ninth, because eighth is drinking a little wine, so they put God in ninth place. Is this the path we should be walking? We must wake up and know that we ourselves are the root of our own problems. How much grace has God given us? Too much grace. Don't wait until you fall in the wilderness before saying: God! How could this be? I'll tell you again, one day, you will exhaust God's grace, and you will also exhaust your own life. Why not learn to fear God?

Look at our reports again, all we talk about are our work problems. It's not that your work is not important, it's about how you solve it. Without God's power, don't solve anything. We are filled with human logic, all the problems we see are problems; if we are filled with God's power, we see problems as small problems, even if we are hard-pressed on every side, we know we will not be crushed. More importantly, we must know that the people of Israel solemnly swore: we will surely do everything, but then they made a golden calf. May God have mercy on us!

May God bless everyone!