Introduction

Good morning, everyone. Let us turn to Zephaniah chapter 3. The theme of this chapter is Those Destined for Destruction and Those Destined for Salvation. Throughout the entire Bible, you will find it consistently speaks of two types of people: those who please God and those who incur His wrath. The New Testament conveys the same message.

The Bible emphasizes repeatedly that our God is not some Santa Claus. It emphasizes that Those Destined for Destruction and Those Destined for Salvation must be deeply ingrained in our minds. We must begin to ponder, how does one become Destined for Destruction? How does one become Destined for Salvation?

In truth, you cannot argue with God! But you say: God, why do you destroy them in this way? Why do you save them? You are not entitled to ask. If we are qualified to discuss this, we will; but we are not now. Even if we were, what good would it do? Those destined for destruction will still be destroyed, and those destined for salvation will still be saved.

The Chinese Mingding Doctrine offers a very good suggestion: what kind of person do you choose to be? If you are born as someone destined for destruction, facing misfortune at every turn, do not run outside and say, God, are you blind? In reality, God is not blind; we are the ones who are blind.

I tell you: it does not matter what kind of person you are born as; what matters is what kind of person you aspire to be. Those who think this way are clever! To be successful, one must be intelligent! Some people fill their minds with foolishness and become destined for destruction. Is that not unnecessary trouble? Is it easier to be someone who pleases God or someone who incurs His wrath? Of course, it is easier to be someone who pleases God.

Only Two Types of People Exist in the World

There are only two types of people in this world, but they are not men and women. America invented gender, and it is said that there are over a hundred genders in America. One moment they are male, the next they are female; then back to male, then female again! Some people do not even know whether they are male or female! So, the two types of people in the world are not men and women, but those who incur God's wrath and those who please God.

The way a person's mind is shaped is crucial. If the mind is in the wrong place, that person is destined for destruction, and they are also someone who incurs God's wrath! But those with sound minds will say: I must become someone who pleases God. We must recognise that we are merely human; we should not live out such glorious and honourable lives like animals, for that would be corruption.

I hope that brothers and sisters will choose to be those who please God. How can we become those who please God? The Bible tells us. Many years ago, I delivered a series called Those Who Please God. See how good Abraham was! He had money, influence, and everything he wanted. Do you want to live a wealthy life? Of course, you do! Wealthy people are not necessarily those who please God, but those who please God are certain to be wealthy.

What I am saying is based on scripture. If Abraham was a beggar, then we would all be beggars if we followed his path. But Abraham was a tribal chief, a great prince, a formidable man; he was not a nobody! So, I encourage everyone to think about how good it is to please God! Is it good to be like Abraham? Definitely!

What about being like Isaac? Isaac was also a tribal chief! And what about Jacob? Jacob started out dirt poor, but later he sent hundreds of sheep to Esau as a gift. How wealthy was that? Incredible! Jacob went to his uncle's house with only a staff, but when he returned, he brought back a multitude of possessions! So, brothers and sisters, do not be confused. Do not say that pleasing God cannot be exchanged for money? God is far better than money!

Where do people go wrong? They think that money is good, but I think that God is good. I am not lacking in money; life is so simple! Because I have God's provision, and God's provision is so good! How did God make Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, Daniel, and Nehemiah wealthy? It is simple: because these people all pleased God.

Some people say, Why am I so poor? A sister came to me because someone she was ministering to had written a long reflection, saying, Teacher, every time you talk about those who please God being blessed and God making people wealthy, I feel sad because I am still dirt poor. After carefully reading these words, I realised that she had something in her mind, but she was not trying to get rid of it.

It is from Northeast China, do you know what it's mean? It is like a jar that has been left in the yard for a long time, and the dirt inside grows something. It is quite troublesome when someone has something in their mind because they lack the faith of Abraham, the heart to trust in God.

I emphasize once again that wealthy people are not necessarily blessed! Cain was also very wealthy, but he was cursed. Previously, a certain real estate mogul was also very wealthy, with trillions in funds, but now he is finished. He used to live a life of luxury, but that is not called blessing! Remember, a person blessed by God will certainly not lack money, and there will be no additional misfortunes!

The prominent theme of this Bible study is these two types of people in the world. What kind of people are those destined for destruction and those destined for salvation? I suggest that if your finances have not turned around by now and you still feel sad, carefully study what kind of people those who please God are.

The first thing about those who please God is that they see through the essence of life. Why are you not blessed? Because you do not understand. Your faith is not the faith of Abraham. The faith of Abraham is the faith that enters into blessing. If you do not have the faith of Abraham, what kind of faith do you have? Therefore, it is troublesome! So, start gradually challenging yourself, removing the rubbish in your mind. Is it not fatal to have rubbish in your mind?

There are only these two types of people in the world. I do not want to be an unlucky person in this life; I want to be a blessed person who pleases God. It is so good to please God! Everything prospers, no matter what you do; that is the key. Now, everyone, take out a pen and write down: I want to have the faith of Abraham. Without the faith of Abraham, everything is finished! So, start by emulating Abraham, all the way to restoring the glorious image of God. That is very important.

God is a Righteous God

The Lord within her is righteous; he does no wrong. Morning by morning he dispenses his justice, and every new day he does not fail, yet the unrighteous know no shame. (Zephaniah 3:5)

In fact, God reveals His righteousness every morning, every evening and morning. I have so much faith in God's righteousness! When I see someone unlucky, I know it is God's righteousness. When I see God pleasing and blessing someone so much, I know it is also God's righteousness.

The Chinese Mingding Doctrine made a very classic statement: God will not make mistakes, and ghosts will not make mistakes; it is only we humans who often make mistakes. God is a righteous God, so we must be especially careful when we minister.

Some time ago, I ministered to one of our sisters. Her house was like a garbage dump, and I thought, I cannot ignore this! So, I helped her clean the kitchen and even brought her a refrigerator because her refrigerator was like a garbage dump, and the whole house was a mess.

After I cleaned it up, she began to hate me, complaining about a lot of things. I do not know where she got these words from. On the surface, she spoke to me very well, but she spoke badly about me to her niece, saying that I had thrown away her clothes, even though I had not. I wondered, what kind of logic is this? I helped her clean, gave her a refrigerator, and yet she spoke lies, saying a lot of very evil things.

But it does not matter! If we cannot minister, we will not minister because people and ghosts have become unbelievably unified, to the point that if you are good to them, they think you are trying to harm them; and if you are trying to harm them, they think you are being good to them. That is the kind of mind they have. As a result, their legs have no strength, and they feel sad! Yet has she not experienced God? I and the sisters among us had prayed for her, but I thought, Forget it! It seems that this is God's righteousness, so brothers and sisters must be careful.

I once ministered to someone who had depression. We drove out the demons, and her depression was healed! But her house was unimaginably dirty and a mess! At the time, I thought that since she was a member of our church, I had to teach her how to clean up. After teaching her how to clean up, she threw away more than ten bags of garbage, one pile after another.

But when her husband came home from work, he took all the garbage back from the garbage dump and even called to question me about why I had thrown away the things. I wondered, what kind of logic is this? Always remember that people who like to collect garbage not only collect garbage in their garbage houses, but they also have garbage in their minds. Not only is there rubbish in their houses, but there is also rubbish in their minds.

If a person cannot even manage their own life, cannot even handle simple hygiene, cannot even talk about cleanliness, how can they possibly live a holy life? Because there are demons on their body. God is a righteous God. When you see that a person is very unlucky, you must be careful. That is God's wrath abiding on that person.

A person who incurs God's wrath specializes in doing things that incur God's wrath. Never point to the sky and say, God, are you blind? Nor should you ask God, God, why did you let these things happen? You must know that it is we who are blind. God has not made any mistakes. God is always a righteous God. The most troublesome thing is that our eyes see wrongly.

The Chinese later summed up a saying: There must be something hateful about a pitiable person. After ministering for the past few years, I have concluded that the Chinese speak very well. One person was abused by her husband. She called me, and I heard her husband drunk, almost kicking down the door. I said this would not work. I quickly called the police. Otherwise, if I went over, her husband would beat me up as well. I could not take that!

Later, the police went first, and I followed behind the police! Then, after I settled her down, she brought her abusive husband back. Is that not very speechless? There are many people in this world with rubbish in their minds! That rubbish is a demon. Some people say, She is just cheap! But sometimes, in order to minister, we also commit a little bit of cheapness. When we really cannot minister, we just give up!

We always want to save one more person, always want to release these people from the hands of demons, but it is very difficult because people and demons are united. This is The Lord within her is righteous; he does no wrong. Morning by morning he dispenses his justice, and every new day he does not fail, yet the unrighteous know no shame.

Those Destined for Destruction

Woe to the city of oppressors, rebellious and defiled! She obeys no one; she accepts no correction. She does not trust in the Lord; she does not draw near to her God. Her officials within her are roaring lions; her rulers are evening wolves, who leave nothing for the morning. Her prophets are unprincipled; they are treacherous people. Her priests profane the sanctuary and do violence to the law. (Zephaniah 3:1-4)

Who is this passage talking about? It is talking about the people of Jerusalem and the people of Judah. Why are people like this? Because they do not know God. What kind of people are these? Why is it that only the faith of Abraham is blessed? Because Abraham saw through the essence of life.

Remember that if a person does not see through the essence of life, it is very difficult. One of our pastors asked me, Teacher, why has this sister among us, whose hands and feet are bent, not been healed? Because it is God's righteousness, I praise my God! God will never make mistakes.

Why are some people not healed among us? I also pity these people. They are really poor, and the poorer they are, the more they love money! I am giving them release, giving them some antidote, but over there they are drinking poison. If you touch them a little, they will fly into a rage, filled with hatred, hating to the point that their fingers are bent. They have suffered so much, and yet they still cannot see through the essence of life.

I feel very upset in my heart. What should I do? He is really poor. Why is he poor? Because his mind is full of clunkers (嘎嘣). A mind full of clunkers will lead to poverty, and poverty leads to more clunkers, and then even more poverty. Yet, people desperately want to live. Those heading for destruction cannot see through the matter of living, thinking it is very important, not willing to lose a single yuan, and cannot stand to suffer any loss.

People taking the matter of living too seriously is a corruption, it invites destruction! Why is it said that a leader is a roaring lion? You must know that a leader cannot avoid making some money, can he? In the Qing Dynasty, officials had to make money; they could not support their families on their salaries alone. They also had to give gifts to those above them for festivals and birthdays. You had to do it that way; the salary was not enough even after giving it all away, so you had to earn money.

They do not obey commands, do not receive instruction, do not rely on Jehovah, and do not draw near to their God. So all these problems become unsolvable! Then they develop themselves into a roaring lion, a jackal in the evening, and a weasel that steals chickens at night, leaving no food until morning, devouring it all. So a prophet, to survive, has to be deceptive and fraudulent, otherwise they cannot get money.

Priests profane the sanctuary and distort the law, all for money! If people do not understand the matter of living, how can they possibly worship God? They think serving God is about having a promising future? They think obeying commands, receiving instruction, relying on Jehovah, and drawing near to Jehovah God, is that feasible? They feel that the culture of this society does not allow it, and then they take crooked paths and become people inviting destruction.

Always remember, if a person does not understand the matter of living, they are finished! If you despise the matter of living, it is easy to handle! Like me, what do I need money for? I eat very little, and I do not eat expensive things that I cannot afford. You say: Aren't you tempted? I can control it, I am not tempted. I do not live in houses I cannot afford, and I do not see doctors I do not respect.

Can everyone understand someone like me? Some people say I have self-control. I learned self-control; how could I not control myself? But I have not lacked anything either. Once, I attended the funeral of a good friend. I survived COVID, but he got COVID, went to the hospital, and died. He was intubated in the hospital for four months. When I stood outside the coffin, I felt a bit embarrassed.

What could I tell him? Why did he love living so much? It's so much better to be like me! Don't nitpick, everyone. Sometimes I like to make jokes about the dead. Anyway, my way of living is simple: if I don't respect a doctor, I won't see them, especially since seeing them might be worse than not seeing them!

Another good friend of mine died of cancer. Standing outside the coffin, he was lying inside. I was filled with emotion: How could he love living so much? His spirit must be able to hear what I'm saying, surely thinking: Why did I only figure this out now? Only after dying did I figure it out! So people inviting destruction have their eyes only on this world. How can their minds not grow clunkers?

A brother in his thirties had several relationships fall apart. Why? Not enough money. Without money, there is no foundation. After much effort, he still couldn't make money, but he wanted to get married. The more he tried, the poorer he became. I thought: this person doesn't understand, so he is being played by the ghosts of this world. Working hard to earn money for marriage, what is this for? It's very tiring! The more he wants to do this, the more he ruins himself in everything every morning when he wakes up.

I said: Surely you will fear me and accept correction! Then your dwelling would not be cut off, nor all my judgments come upon you. But they were keen to corrupt all their ways. (Zephaniah 3:7)

Starting to ruin yourself from the moment you open your eyes in the morning, isn't that strange? Then, when God gathers the nations and kingdoms to pour out His wrath on them, God's anger will consume the whole earth like fire. I praise my God, my God is a righteous God! People deserve it! Do you want to live like Abraham? Do you want to see through the things of the world? If you want to, take the path of Abraham, the path of prosperity. Why must you take the path of having clunkers in your head? This is called a person inviting destruction.

People inviting destruction do things that offend God, never feeling ashamed, full of arrogance and pride, and then they are removed by God. These people prove one thing in their lives: they are indeed people inviting destruction, their minds full of worldly things.

I try hard to enlighten them, but I don't know if it's effective. Let me ramble on for a bit more: there's not much meaning in living. The most meaningful thing is nothing more than toil, worry, and illness! What's the point? Loving life so much is just preparing a urn for yourself.

Now there are river burials and sea burials. Some people say when they are alive: When I die, scatter my ashes in the great river. Actually, scattering them in the great river, the small river, or the gutter is pretty much the same, because it's meaningless. A person's life is nothing but vanity, a person's life is nothing but meaninglessness.

I urge everyone to imitate Abraham and start seeking a meaningful life. If you have it, good. If you don't, forget it! You might say: That's easier said than done, but I still want it. The problem is, if you want it, will you get it? If you don't get it, won't you be upset in the end? People inviting destruction do things that offend God, not feeling ashamed at all, thinking it's their right, and then they are cut off. What's the point?

The Saved People

God is very interesting. In the time of Abraham, God found an Abraham. God found a treasure. But the people of this world don't want to be Abraham. What to do then?

During Abraham's growing-up process, he was a very wealthy man. I guess he made a lot of money in business, but he found that life had no meaning. Why? Because his brother, that is, Lot's father, died, and he was very sad. He felt that living had no meaning, so he went to find the meaning of living. As a result, he sought and searched for God, and God answered his prayer.

But the people of this world don't have this opportunity. Why? I'm not too sure, but people become bad as soon as they have money, becoming arrogant, arrogant towards God's holy mountain, climbing up as soon as they have money! What happens as a result? In the time of Zephaniah, God said: These people can't see through, I have to make them poor. I must bring about a few more people like Abraham, so I will leave in their midst a poor and humble people, and they shall trust in the name of Jehovah.

In the time of Abraham, Abraham sought when he was wealthy. But in the time of Zephaniah, wealthy people didn't seek God, feeling that life was good, eating and drinking enough, and oppressing the common people, because the money was scraped from the heads of everyone. If you want to get rich, you have to scrape from the heads of everyone. This is the basic principle of merchants, like Meituan, scraping from the heads of everyone. This is the platform.

As a result, God saw: Good grief, they don't become Abraham even with money. I will make you poor and humble people. However, the poor and humble people were left behind, and the others were destroyed. At this time, God looks: Will they surely trust in the name of Jehovah?

But I will leave within you the meek and humble. The remnant of Israel will trust in the name of the LORD. They will no longer do wrong; they will not tell lies. A deceitful tongue will not be found in their mouths. They will eat and lie down, and no one will make them afraid. (Zephaniah 3:12-13)

The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.” “I will remove from you all those who mourn over the loss of the appointed festivals; they are a burden and a reproach to you. At that time I will deal with all who oppressed you; I will rescue the lame and gather those who have been scattered. I will give them praise and honor in every land where they have suffered shame. (Zephaniah 3:17-19)

At that time I will gather you; at that time I will bring you home. I will give you honor and praise among all the nations on earth when I restore your fortunes before your very eyes,” says the LORD. (Zephaniah 20)

After reading this, I hope more that everyone will take the path of Abraham. There's no shortage of money on this path either! But the problem is, in the time of Zephaniah, you will find: it's very strange, people just like to live their lives. In the Old Testament, I summed up the term living a small life. You must know that living a small life is very corrupt.

That is, once people's lives get better, they go to live a small life, and then they become corrupt, becoming people who invite God's anger and destruction. Everyone, don't think this is a good thing. Don't wait until you are in distress and poverty to look up to God. If you are really in distress and poverty, oppressed by others, can't you see through it? You need to see through it even more.

Like the old woman I served, I helped her, but she thought I wanted to harm her. Shouldn't I stay away from such a person? She is evil! The remnant of Israel will do no wrong; they will not tell lies. A deceitful tongue will not be found in their mouths. This is just God's hope. Look at how you used to rely on yourself, and you have lived like this. Can't you see through it?

Of course, it's still a bit difficult to see through it while living, but we brothers and sisters must know that as people who please God, we must know that our God is a Savior who is mighty in power. If we look up to Him and trust in Him, God will surely rejoice over us with singing, and He will love us silently, and He will rejoice over us with shouts of joy! May brothers and sisters receive such words, and then God will punish all those who oppress us.

So in the time of Jesus, the naturally lame could walk, and the blind could see, but those who could see became blind, and those who could walk became lame. God will save us, sparing no effort to turn us back from these corruptions. This is the saved people.

Choose to be a person who pleases God. If we really want to please God, doing everything with a heart that pleases God, then you cannot but be saved, and you cannot continue to live in poverty.

Some people don't like these words I say. I guess they have suffered a lot, and they say I am preaching prosperity theology and grace theology, giving a whole lot of explanations. Aren't I speaking words from the Bible? Everyone, don't just listen to me, and don't listen to what those people say. Listen to what God says. Read the Bible carefully, and then think about whether it's the case?

I hope everyone can become people who please God and are saved by God. God will surely gather us together, God will surely make our name great, and make us a great nation! God will also curse those who curse us, and bless those who bless us. This is Abraham. Actually, in God's heart, He still hopes that His people will become like Abraham. This is related to the Chinese Mingding Doctrine.

We take the path of Abraham, continue to run forward, and become like Jesus Christ. How wonderful that is! The road ahead of us is a path of prosperity, a path of being saved, a path that Abraham once pioneered for us. How good! This is why there is no blessing outside of the Mingding Doctrine, because Abraham walked the Mingding Doctrine path. Why is it necessary to seek the Mingding Doctrine? Because there is not much meaning in living in the world, that is the key.

We will share up to here. May God bless everyone!