Introduction

Greetings, everyone! Let's turn to the 50th chapter of Genesis. When I previously taught on Genesis chapter 50, the theme was "Even in Death, Enter Canaan; Even in Death, Enter the Promised Land." But is that really the case as I read it now? Later, I realised that might not be the complete picture, so I made a slight adjustment, choosing a title that balances the two perspectives. Actually, the first title, "Even in Death, Enter Canaan; Even in Death, Enter the Promised Land," is not bad, but I chose the second title, "God Will Surely Care for You and Lead You into the Promised Land."

Why do I say this? The reason is simple. Both Jacob and Joseph were people who were determined to enter Canaan even in death. But what they were most concerned about was not their own fate, but the Israelites who remained in Egypt after their deaths. Joseph declared, "God will surely care for you, and bring you up out of this land to the land which He swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob."

I find these words particularly encouraging. It's one thing for me to be determined to enter Canaan and the Promised Land even in death. But I declare in faith, brothers and sisters, don't worry about whether I live or die; I live by my God. I also want to encourage you, brothers and sisters, live by trusting in God, and know in your hearts that God will surely care for you! Don't worry about my death; my death is not a big deal. God has not died; God is still alive. How good it is to hear these words!

I was thinking: is our faith really built on God? Let us return to God and rebuild our faith on Him. God will surely care for you. The one who speaks these words hopes that you have faith, and not build your faith on a certain pastor, Joseph, or Jacob. That's not good. It's best to build your faith on God. Those who trust in God will not be put to shame. Stop being foolish and be wise.

Jacob Died with Faith

You know, Jacob lived a very rough life. No one has experienced as much hardship as Jacob; he experienced more hardship than all his ancestors. But there was a peculiar thing in him: he didn't care about worldly things; he only cared about what God wanted him to care about. What did God want him to care about? God wanted him to obtain what God wanted him to obtain, and he believed that God would let him obtain what God wanted him to obtain.

Jacob died with faith, telling his sons before his death: "Listen to your father Israel." Did they listen to Israel? They couldn't! What kind of person you are is almost proportional to your faith. Jacob's sons, Joseph's brothers, were just like that. Even Joseph's younger brother, Benjamin, was like that. Everyone has their own Mingding Destiny. So Jacob said: "My sons, listen to me. Have the same faith as I do, and build your faith on God." Did they build it? No!

Later, Jacob died with faith. Before his death, he made Joseph swear to bury him in the cave of Machpelah, where Abraham, Isaac, and Rebekah were buried. Jacob was extraordinary. He died with faith, seeing from afar that God would resurrect him from the dead in eternity, and that he would enter into God's glory in eternity. Let Jacob's short and bitter life be exchanged for an exceeding weight of eternal glory.

I am surprised that there are so few people with such faith. This is a treasure. When such people die, the people on earth should mourn. Such people are extraordinary. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob all died with faith. What they believed was not anything else, but that God's promise to them would surely be fulfilled. Even though they died, they would enter Canaan, enter the Promised Land. Although they did not see the complete fulfillment of God's promise while they were alive, they would see the fulfillment of God's promise even in death. Later, what Jacob hoped for was all fulfilled.

Brothers and sisters, listen to my advice: no matter what, build your faith on God. God will surely care for us. God's promises never fail. Those who believe will rise from the dead, return to God, be with God, and live in God's glory. Sometimes what I say is very interesting: if I don't achieve it while I'm alive, I will achieve it after I die. What I believe will be achieved after I die. This is a great man of faith.

Brothers and sisters, is the God you believe in the same God I believe in? Is it the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob? If we believe in the same God, then let us tell ourselves: God will surely care for us! Stop worrying about this death and that death. No matter who dies, God will surely care for us. What we pursue in our hearts is what these great men of faith pursued, living in eternity. No longer pursue the things of this life, because the things of this life are all illusory.

Last night I sent a message to a brother, saying: "I'm going to kick you out, because you're trash in our midst. You're a Jiangmi Tiao in Lao Ma's eyes, but a pile of dog shit in God's eyes." He quickly called me and said: "Teacher, don't kick me out." What is he believing in? People like this should be thrown aside, that's called free-range. Live if you can, die if you want to. It's okay for people like this to die! What are they pursuing all day long? If they took just a little of what they pursue and the love they have for the world and used it to love God, they wouldn't be like this. They have to choose to live joyfully in this life, in a curse, on the road to being with demons.

Do you know why Joseph cried after Jacob died? Do you think Joseph cried the same way we do? He cried because he lost a confidant. In this world, only his father Jacob could understand Joseph's heart. People in the world couldn't understand Joseph's pursuit.

In those 17 years, Joseph was with his father Jacob. Joseph also had to handle a lot of official business. You can imagine, being the prime minister of Egypt, he was very busy. He often didn't have time to sit down with his father. Once he had time, he would talk with his father. Can you understand? The two of them would sit together, have a little wine, a plate of peanuts, buy a sausage at a small shop, slice it, and fry an egg. It was very simple. But the two of them talked about God caring for them, and about the glory in eternity.

These two were people who had great faith in God. When people like this die with faith, the earth will shake. These are people whom the world is not worthy of. The world is not worthy of owning such people. These are people whom God owns. They were discussing: seeing the glory in eternity from afar, perhaps seeing Chinese Mingding Destiny four thousand years later; perhaps seeing a David a thousand years later; perhaps seeing a Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt four hundred years later. They saw it, it was great! Perhaps they saw that there was a group of people who loved God to the point of madness, a group of people who were willing to lay down their lives for God. They longed to have the image of Jesus Christ, the image of God, the image of the Apostle Paul.

That's what the two of them were talking about, how good! Now that Jacob is dead, who can Joseph talk to about his heart? He can't find anyone to talk to. If he talks to other people, it's annoying to listen to. Sometimes I feel very emotional. If I had a father like Jacob, with the same longing and the same pursuit, how good would that be! If a father like Jacob died, I would cry my heart out. Usually, the people I pastor, I would really tell them: "Your brains don't work!"

Look at what we are pursuing? What we care about are trivial and nonsensical things. Sometimes I want to say something to them, but I can't say anything for a long time, and I feel uncomfortable. But it doesn't matter, I will pastor them well. It is in eternity that, perhaps because of my faith, brothers and sisters can begin to long for the glory in eternity.

Joseph cried like this because he lost a confidant. When you read this passage, you will definitely ask: "Teacher, haven't you seen through life and death? Hasn't Joseph seen through life and death? Why is Joseph crying?" Do you think Joseph is the same as you? Jesus' crying, Joseph's crying, and our crying when someone dies are completely different. Jesus saw Lazarus lying in the tomb, and saw the people around him, Martha and Mary, who had seen so many miracles performed by Jesus, but they still didn't believe in their bones.

Jesus said: "If you believe, you will see the glory of God." Do you know these words? I wish all the brothers and sisters were confidants. Let us all be a group of people like Jacob and Joseph, longing to see the glory of God in eternity. What are you pursuing? As soon as I see the questions you ask, I know what you are pursuing. My crying is crying for those whose brains don't work; you cry, but I don't know what you are crying for.

What were the Egyptians crying for? The Egyptians were crying for Joseph. The Egyptians were not crying for Joseph's father Jacob. What were they crying for? Because they saw Joseph crying, they said: "Our leader's father is dead, we should at least make a show of it." Because those people were all Joseph's subordinates, they didn't know what Joseph was crying for. The Egyptians' crying was also in vain, just making a show. They didn't really know anything in their hearts.

Brothers and sisters, we trust in God, believing that God will surely care for us and lead us into the Promised Land. I declare in faith: brothers and sisters, God will surely care for you. If I die, God will surely care for you. If not, I will not be able to rest in peace. I can only say in faith: brothers and sisters, God will surely care for you who trust in God, because you care about the glory in eternity, and you don't care about the little things and trivial matters of this world.

Our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. Don't think I'm fooling you, I really believe it. This is my pursuit, this is the source of my strength, this is the hope I have to live in this world. Without God, I really have no hope of living. I have no hope in this world. I don't know what the point of living in this world is, there is no point at all.

It is because of the hope in eternity that I can live in this world. Although every day is very hard, it is full of hope and full of joy. No matter what, be a treasure in God's eyes. Jacob believed in God, and he died with faith. He believed that God would surely care for us, and that God would surely resurrect us from the dead in the last days. Jacob was a person who lived in eternity, but Jacob's sons were not very good. If you talk about the twelve tribes, they are not very good. Which of Jacob's twelve sons are worth learning from? Jacob is worth learning from, Joseph is worth learning from. As for the others, let it be!

Don't ask me anymore, what about Benjamin, Dan, and those people? What twelve apostles, twelve tribes, and even drawing lots to choose someone to replace Judas among the twelve apostles, that's not very good either. Especially that Peter, I always look down on him. If I ever return to heaven, maybe I will see Peter. When Peter sees me, he will be embarrassed. Although the Apostle Paul was not among the twelve apostles, he was a towering figure.

Joseph's Brothers Believed in People

I look down on Joseph's brothers! If there are people who are worthy of my respect, we can hold hands and run and jump in the glory of eternity. These brothers are very annoying. Why? Because Jacob just said to his sons:

"Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father." (Genesis 49:2)

They heard it, but they didn't hear anything. They were still the same kind of birds, the same kind of dicks. As soon as Jacob died, they had ideas:

"And when Joseph's brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him." (Genesis 50:15)

Listen to these words, what kind of trust is this? What they trust in is people. They thought that Joseph couldn't do anything to them when Jacob was alive. If Joseph really wanted to do something to them, even if Jacob was still alive, what could he do? The old man couldn't stop him! His brothers were always thinking and doing bad things. They thought that how they treated people in the past, people would treat them the same way. Petty people are petty themselves, and they think that others are also petty.

People are very strange. What people think in their hearts, they think that everyone in the world will have the same ideas as them. They thought that Joseph was taking care of them for the sake of his father. How could they know that Joseph and Jacob were both living in this world with the hope of heaven and eternity, and there were not many things in this world that they looked up to. His brothers believed in people. When people died, what could they do? They thought: "We rely on our father Jacob. Every day when we pass by Joseph eating at home, we think that as long as our father is still alive, what can you do to me?" Joseph's brothers thought that how they treated people, people would treat them the same way.

"And they sent a messenger unto Joseph, saying, Thy father did command before he died, saying, So shall ye say unto Joseph, Forgive, I pray thee now, the trespass of thy brethren, and their sin; for they did unto thee evil: and now, we pray thee, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of thy father. And Joseph wept when they spake unto him." (Genesis 50:16-17)

They even brought out the dead. Actually, Jacob didn't say this. Joseph wept when they said these words to him. Joseph thought: "When will you be able to have faith in God? How can you live with your two skills?"

"And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God? But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them." (Genesis 50:19-21)

Among our brothers and sisters, especially those I pastor, I sometimes say things very harshly, but they are all heartfelt words. I say with tears in my heart: "Why are you people without faith? Why can't you trust in God?" Joseph cried, crying that his brothers were all people without faith. "Why don't you know God's will? You used to think evil against me. You were always jealous of each other. Dad was good to me because I trusted in God. It was because you were such losers that Dad sent you to do hard labor. Now that Dad is dead, you start making up lies to fool me, bringing out the dead to say that Dad told us to apologize to you before he died."

Joseph said: "As for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive." Amazing! How big must Joseph's heart be? What he was pursuing was not the trivial matters of this world at all. He was not pursuing the things of this world, but he became the person second only to one. Even Pharaoh treated Joseph like a father. That pattern is amazing. Therefore, I wish that brothers and sisters could have a heavenly pattern, a heavenly mind, and the mind of Jesus Christ. Don't love the world anymore, don't eat shit like eating Jiangmi Tiao anymore. Now many people don't dare to eat Jiangmi Tiao anymore. If people treat shit as Jiangmi Tiao, they will be ruined.

People just take this life too seriously. If you are a treasure in God's eyes, then you are also a treasure in my eyes. If you are trash in God's eyes, I will also treat you as trash in my eyes. Why be trash? Why be Jiangmi Tiao? Why live only for the things of this life?

"And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God? But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them." (Genesis 50:19-21)

What people care about is this, "Can you feed us?" It's just for living. The matter of living is very easy, but people's minds are full of this matter. As a result, Joseph comforted them with kind words. They cared about this life, but Joseph cared about eternal life. Joseph saw that they had no faith, so he spoke according to their level of faith, so as not to scare them. God's meaning and people's meaning, at a glance, one is in heaven and one is on earth. People with faith are treasures!

Among us, maybe you spend five days a week thinking about heavenly things, and two days thinking about earthly things. Maybe you spend seven days thinking about earthly things. Joseph's brothers, in Jacob's house, clearly saw that Joseph was the prime minister in Egypt. They had been in Egypt for seventeen years, but for seventeen years they didn't know God's deeds. The Israelites left Egypt and couldn't understand God's deeds in the wilderness for forty years. Why? As soon as they think, they think crookedly. They think about trivial matters, all about this life. As soon as they open their mouths, it's all about these things. Where is the glorious hope! They simply don't understand God's deeds.

Joseph's brothers lived for twenty-two years without Joseph. When they came to buy grain, Joseph played a trick on them. At that time, they felt very uncomfortable. Finally, they found out that it was their brother Joseph. They enjoyed seventeen years of good life in Egypt. What was the result? They still didn't understand God's deeds. How much can you understand of what you see and experience? Someone said: "Teacher, don't kick me out." Yes, I didn't kick you out on the surface, but I have already kicked you out in my heart. You can't rely on being trash in a victorious church.

Joseph's brothers believed in people, so what do you believe in? Joseph explained to them not to be afraid, and that he would feed them and their children. Everyone felt that it was okay again, and life went on as usual. It's just living for the sake of living! Joseph felt very emotional in his heart.

Joseph Also Died in Faith

Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die. But God will surely visit you and bring you up out of this land to the land he swore to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob.” And Joseph made the sons of Israel swear an oath and said, “God will surely visit you, and you must carry my bones up from here.” (Genesis 50:24-25)

Jacob died in faith, and Joseph also died in faith. Joseph was determined to enter Canaan even in death, and to obtain blessings in eternity. Because Joseph said, "You must carry my bones up from here." Joseph's coffin was not buried, and Joseph's remains were not laid to rest; they were kept in the coffin. Why? Joseph's faith surpassed Jacob's. Actually, Jacob did not need to worry, but he took advantage of Joseph being alive to quickly have his remains transported to Canaan.

But Joseph was different. "I am dead, my bones are here, but God will surely visit you and surely lead you to the Promised Land, and my bones will surely witness God's power with you." Could Joseph have arranged for Ephraim and Manasseh to bury him in the cave of Machpelah where Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were buried? Yes, he could. But Joseph's faith was not limited to this; Joseph's faith far exceeded Jacob's faith. In Joseph's spiritual eyes, he had already seen the result 400 years later. Joseph saw the Israelites carrying his coffin, carrying his remains out of Egypt, and returning to the Promised Land.

Joseph said, "Even in death, I want to see God's power, and I want to witness you all leaving Egypt with me." What kind of faith is this? Amazing! Joseph was the prime minister. After a powerful person dies, is he afraid that someone will take out his remains to whip and burn them in humiliation? He is afraid. Did Joseph offend many people? Yes, he offended all the Egyptians. If it were up to an election, they would definitely vote him out. The Egyptians felt that Joseph was too bad and had taken all their money.

Was Joseph worried when he was in Egypt? He was not worried when he was alive, and he was not worried after he died, because God not only cares for the living, but also cares for them after death. Do you and I have such faith? Joseph was extraordinary. Moreover, Joseph said, "You don't need to send me to Canaan. I want to leave Egypt with you. It doesn't matter that I have offended so many people. What can they do to me? I have God!"

Later, after the Israelites were enslaved, when the Egyptians saw the coffin, they would ask, "Who is this? Why is the coffin here?" The Israelites would reply, "This is our ancestor Joseph. He came to Egypt and became the prime minister of Egypt. Otherwise, you can check the history of Egypt. This person is very famous."

The question is, can the Israelites keep Joseph's coffin safe? You are all slaves, what can you keep safe? As a result, the Egyptians really wanted to take the remains out of the coffin and burn them. "Aren't you Israelites, Hebrews? You are all slaves, what are you keeping a coffin for?" But I tell you, just because a person like Joseph was lying in the coffin, some people wanted to burn the remains in the coffin, but the next day, just as they were about to do it, they died. Something went wrong as soon as they tried to do it, do you understand? Did you think that you couldn't deal with Joseph when he was alive, but you could deal with him after he died? Even if Joseph is dead, you still can't deal with him, because Joseph has God.

God will take care of Joseph's bones and accomplish what Joseph believed when he was alive. Joseph believed that after his death, 400 years later, when the Israelites left Egypt, his bones would leave Egypt with them. This is God's eternal will, accomplished according to what Joseph believed. Who in Egypt dared to touch it? No one dared to touch it, whoever touched it would be unlucky. As a result, it was left there for hundreds of years. Maybe the Egyptians would go there to worship, offer incense, and make offerings. I am filled with emotion. What kind of faith is this? It is faith in God, and this faith can shake the power of the devil in the spiritual world.

Once, my mother said to me, "After I die, you must arrange things this way." I said, "Okay, I promise you everything." Later, I added, "However I arrange it, it won't count what you say anyway." Would Joseph be like this? Joseph was not like this. Joseph's faith is: "Although I am lying in the coffin, what I say doesn't count, but my faith when I was alive is that I still trust in God. God will surely visit you, surely lead you up from this place, surely lead you into the Promised Land, and my bones will go up with you and enter the Promised Land together." Joseph wanted to witness God's work in Egypt with his own eyes. Later, when the Israelites left Egypt, when Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, Joseph's bones were there to witness the plagues that God sent upon the land of Egypt.

Summary

I would like to make a summary. The entire Book of Genesis is about faith. Are Genesis, Deuteronomy, Leviticus, Numbers, and Exodus books of law? No, these are books of faith. Abraham pioneered a path of faith, and what you believe will be accomplished. Genesis speaks of faith, even after death, still knowing that in faith, God will surely care for us, God will surely fulfill His promise, God has already established His will, and God's will will surely be accomplished. Let us declare together that God will surely care for us, God will surely lead us up, and God will surely bring us into the Promised Land! This is a declaration of faith.

Therefore, I also declare in faith that Chinese Mingding Destiny will bring about a transformation of Christianity in the future world and future generations. I don't know if it will be when I am alive or when I am dead, but that doesn't matter, because I live in eternity. God will surely care for me, not only care for me, but also care for you. God will surely bring us to the Promised Land, but whether we can enter or not, that is our own destiny.

What is destiny? It is what we believe in our hearts, that is destiny. Jacob died in faith, Joseph died in faith, these people were determined to enter the Promised Land even in death, and they saw God's glory from afar while they were alive. They were amazing.

We must imitate them, even if people want to harm me, they cannot harm me. God's intention is good. It turns out that the foundation of the entire Bible is faith. Abraham pioneered a path of faith, and Joseph's faith reached the peak of his era. This faith is faith in God, not in this life, but in eternity.

May God remember us and bestow grace upon us!

Genesis Chapter 50 Scripture

50:1 Joseph threw himself on his father and wept over him and kissed him.
50:2 Then Joseph directed the physicians in his service to embalm his father Israel. So the physicians embalmed him,
50:3 taking a full forty days, for that was the time required for embalming. And the Egyptians mourned for him seventy days.
50:4 When the days of mourning had passed, Joseph said to Pharaoh’s court, “If I have found favor in your eyes, speak to Pharaoh for me. Tell him,
50:5 ‘My father made me swear an oath and said, “I am about to die; bury me in the tomb that I dug for myself in the land of Canaan.” Now let me go up and bury my father; then I will return.’”
50:6 Pharaoh said, “Go up and bury your father, as he made you swear to do.”
50:7 So Joseph went up to bury his father. All Pharaoh’s officials accompanied him—the dignitaries of his court and all the dignitaries of Egypt—
50:8 besides all the members of Joseph’s household and his brothers and those of his father’s household. Only their children and their flocks and herds were left in Goshen.
50:9 Chariots and horsemen also went up with him; it was a very large company.
50:10 When they reached the threshing floor of Atad, near the Jordan, they lamented loudly and bitterly; and there Joseph observed a seven-day period of mourning for his father.
50:11 When the Canaanites who lived there saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, “The Egyptians are holding a solemn ceremony of mourning.” That is why that place near the Jordan is called Abel Mizraim.
50:12 So Jacob’s sons did for him what he had commanded them:
50:13 They carried him to the land of Canaan and buried him in the cave in the field of Machpelah, near Mamre, which Abraham had bought as a burial place from Ephron the Hittite, along with the field.
50:14 After burying his father, Joseph returned to Egypt, together with his brothers and all the others who had gone with him to bury his father.
50:15 When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “What if Joseph holds a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?”
50:16 So they sent word to Joseph, saying, “Your father left these instructions before he died:
50:17 ‘This is what you are to say to Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs they committed in treating you so badly.’ Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the God of your father.” When their message came to him, Joseph wept.
50:18 His brothers then came and threw themselves before him. “We are your slaves,” they said.
50:19 But Joseph said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God?
50:20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.
50:21 So then, don’t be afraid. I will provide for you and your children.” And he reassured them and spoke kindly to them.
50:22 Joseph stayed in Egypt, along with all his father’s family. He lived a hundred and ten years
50:23 and saw the third generation of Ephraim’s children. Also the children of Makir son of Manasseh were placed on Joseph’s knees.
50:24 Then Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die. But God will surely visit you and bring you up out of this land to the land he swore to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob.”
50:25 And Joseph made the sons of Israel swear an oath and said, “God will surely visit you, and you must carry my bones up from here.”
50:26 So Joseph died at the age of a hundred and ten. And after they embalmed him, he was placed in a coffin in Egypt.