Those who ministered to God before Him had to be clothed with linen garments, linen bonnets on their heads, and linen breeches on their loins. Their whole body was clothed with linen material. Verse 17 also says that no wool should come upon them. No one who ministered to the Lord could be clothed with wool. Before God, no one could ever put on woolen garments. Why? Please read Ezekiel 44:18: “They shall have linen turbans on their heads and have linen trousers over their loins; they shall not gird themselves with anything that causes sweat.” This portion of the Word reveals that all those who minister to the Lord should not sweat. All work that produces sweat is not pleasing to God and is rejected by Him. What is the meaning of sweat? The first sweat in the entire world was shed by Adam when he was driven out of the garden of Eden. Genesis 3 tells us that, due to Adam’s sin, God punished him by saying, “By the sweat of your face / You will eat bread.” Sweat is a result of the curse. Due to God’s curse, the ground ceased to yield its fruit; due to the absence of God’s blessing, human effort is necessary, and this causes sweat. What is the work that causes sweat? It is the work that comes out of human effort without the blessing from God the Father. Everyone ministering to God should absolutely abstain from any work that causes sweat. Numerous works placed before God require effort and running around for their accomplishment. Everyone ministering to God must do a work that causes no sweat. All of God’s work is serene; it is not accomplished by running around but by sitting down. Although outwardly one may be very busy, he is very restful within; although outwardly it is hot, within it is very calm. This work is done by sitting down. This is the work that causes no sweat! All the real work before God is not accidental and not accomplished by fleshly effort. Unfortunately, so much of today’s work cannot be accomplished without sweating. What a pity that today’s work cannot be accomplished unless someone is planning, sponsoring, promoting, proposing, running around, admonishing, exhorting, and exerting human effort and fleshly strength. Oh, it is really a pity that in most cases, without sweat, there is no work. Please bear in mind that sweating outside is permissible. In slaying cattle and sheep outside, serving sinners, and ministering to the saints, sweating is permissible. If you are doing that kind of work, you can sweat all you want. But those who minister to the Lord in the Holy Place absolutely cannot sweat. God does not need man’s sweating. No doubt, all work is busy, but God’s work does not need fleshly strength. I do not mean that there is no need of spiritual strength. In fact, how much spiritual strength you need and how much suffering you have to go through is hard to say. No one cares to distinguish between spiritual work and fleshly work. Men conclude that all of God’s work cannot be accomplished without running around, spending time to discuss and debate, negotiating, proposing, approving, and authorizing. Yet if you ask them to wait quietly before God and listen to His speaking, they cannot do it because the flesh is not capable of doing this. Oh, all these require sweating.
The most important aspect of spiritual work is to deal with God. The first person we should contact is God, not man. The work of the flesh is different; the first one it contacts is man. Hence, if a work cannot be accomplished without man, it is not the work of God. How precious it is to be in God’s presence. We have to deal with Him alone. We are not idle; rather, we are doing a work that causes no sweat. What does this mean? If we deal properly with God, there is no need to sweat before man. We can accomplish the most amount of work with the least amount of strength. The reason there are so many advertisements, promotions, and proposals is because men are not praying before God. Let me say that all spiritual work is done only before God. If we take care of our work properly before God, we will not need many ways. Others will spontaneously respond to us and spontaneously profit. God is working, and there is no need of human strength and sweating.
Brothers and sisters, we should examine ourselves very honestly before God. Let us ask Him, “O Lord, am I really ministering to You or to the work? O Lord, is my ministry unto the house or unto You?” If we are sweating from morning till evening, then we can surely say to ourselves that we are ministering to the house and not to the Lord. If all our business and laboring are to meet outward needs, we can conclude that we are ministering to people and not to God. I do not despise such people, for they also are doing God’s work. There is a need for some to slay the cattle and sheep. There is a need for some to lead and guide others. The children of Israel needed some to minister to them. But God desires something much deeper. We ought to pray to Him, “O God! I beg You to deliver me that I might not fall into the realm of ministering to the people.” There is more than just ministering to the people. Brothers and sisters, too many are already ministering to the people. Why do we still want to add our portion there? God has no way to demand everyone to minister to Him; God cannot do this since many are not willing to minister to Him. Because man is not willing, it is impossible to revive the whole church and cause everyone to become faithful. Many are truly saved and have God’s life, yet they just want to minister to the people. There is no way to change them because they do not want to miss the excitement on the outside. They will not let go of the work on the outside; their focus is on the field of work. Surely, there are some who need to take care of these matters. But the question is, are we among those taking part in these things? I hope we all can say to the Lord, “O God, I want to minister to You. I am willing to drop everything, to let go of all the work and forsake all the outward things. I want to minister to You and do a spiritual work. I am willing to give up all the outward things. I want to enter within, more deeply within.”
There was no way for God to ask all the Levites to come. He could only choose the sons of Zadok. Why? Because when the children of Israel turned against the ways of the Lord and forsook Him, the sons of Zadok kept the charge of the sanctuary. They saw that what was on the outside was beyond repair; what was on the outside had collapsed and was contaminated. So they left what was on the outside and concentrated on keeping the sanctuary holy. Brothers and sisters, can you let what is on the outside collapse? Perhaps you will use wood to support it, so that the structure will not collapse. But the Lord will say, “I do not care for these things. I will only preserve My sanctuary and reserve a place that is holy for My children.” There is the need of a place to be wholly separated and sanctified to Him; a place where one can discern between what is proper and what is improper. God wants to preserve His sanctuary. What is on the outside is collapsing, and God has no way but to let it go. Since the sons of Zadok did what they did, God chose them. Truly, God has no way to deal with everyone, but He wants to deal with you! If you are not willing to let go of everything on the outside, to whom can God go? Brothers and sisters, I stand in the presence of God to beg you all; God is seeking those who will fully minister to Him. There are really too many who are working on the outside. Those who are ministering to God on the inside are far too few. This is why God is crying, “Who will minister to Me in My sanctuary?”
Oh! I cannot say too much about this matter. I can only say that I very much enjoy reading Acts 13: “Now there were in Antioch, in the local church, prophets and teachers....And as they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, Set apart for Me now Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them” (vv. 1-2). Such is the work of the New Testament. It is also the unique principle for the work of the New Testament. The work of the Holy Spirit can only be revealed at the time of ministering to the Lord. Only at the time of ministering to the Lord will the Holy Spirit send some forth. If we do not place ministering to the Lord as the top priority, everything will be out of order.
The work of the church in Antioch began during the time of ministering to the Lord. The Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me now Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” I repeat again, God does not want men to volunteer for His army. The soldiers who volunteer for the army are not wanted by God. God only has conscripted, or drafted, soldiers. We know that there are two kinds of soldiers in an army: one kind volunteer to join the army, and the other kind are drafted by the country. Based on the orders of the country, they have no choice except to serve as soldiers. But in the Lord’s work, there are only drafted soldiers; there are no voluntary soldiers. Therefore, no one can say, because of his preference, he will go and preach the gospel; God will not use him. God’s work has been greatly damaged by too many volunteer soldiers. They cannot declare as the Lord has declared, “Him who sent Me...” O brothers and sisters, this is not a light matter. God’s work cannot be accomplished according to our will. God’s work is completely His. We must check to see if this work is out of ourselves or out of the Lord’s call. We must ask ourselves if we have volunteered to join the army or if we have been drafted by God. All the volunteer soldiers will not last; all those who recommended themselves will not last because God only wants soldiers who have been drafted by Him. When they ministered to the Lord, Paul and Barnabas did not say, “We will go forth to spread the gospel.” Rather, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me now Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Only the Holy Spirit has the authority to commission men to work. Concerning this matter, the church has no authority at all. Yet within many missionary societies and crusades there is the sending forth of men by men. God never allows such things. We should only minister to the Lord, not to the house. God desires to have those who will minister to Him directly and receive the commission by the Holy Spirit directly.
I say again, to minister to the Lord is not to forsake all the work on the outside. To minister to the Lord is not to give up serving in the villages. What I say is that all the work on the outside should be based on our ministry to the Lord. We go forth, out from our ministry to the Lord, rather than out from our own desires, which have no basis in the ministry to the Lord. There is a vast difference between these two matters. The difference is greater than that between heaven and earth. All those with experience realize that there is no difference greater than the difference between ministering to the Lord and ministering to the house.
It is one thing to know about the veil; we should minister to the Lord in the sanctuary. But beyond the veil, there is another matter which is just as important: “Let us therefore go forth unto Him outside the camp, bearing His reproach” (Heb. 13:13). The central thought of the book of Hebrews comprises these two things: the veil and the camp. Not only do we need to minister to God in the sanctuary, but we also need to go outside the camp. It is only when we have left the camp to minister to the Lord that He will speak and lead; at other times, He will not speak.
Let us now take a look at what Luke says. Let us clarify this once again: we do not want to expound on Luke. Rather, we want to find out from this portion of the Word what the Lord really wants. Luke 17:7-10 tells us very clearly that the Lord is satisfied with nothing other than Himself. He does not want you and me; He wants Himself. It is amazing that although the words here are quite severe, everyone feels that this portion is precious. There are two kinds of work here: one is plowing, or we may say, sowing. The other is the shepherding, or we may say, feeding. The work of sowing deals with those not yet regenerated. The work of shepherding deals with those who possess the life of God. Consequently, one kind of work concerns sinners, and the other kind of work concerns believers. These works cause those who have not received the Lord to receive the Lord and those who have received the Lord to be fed. Such is the work of the Lord’s servants. This is also what we should do in the presence of God. This work is vital, and we must do our best. But the Lord is very amazing here. He said, “But which of you, having a slave who is plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, Come immediately and recline at table?” (Luke 17:7). This means that He would not do it this way. In other words, the servants, the Christians, should not be given food to eat after their work is done. Fleshly ones will say, “What a harsh Employer! We are extremely tired from plowing and feeding the cattle outside. Now that we are home, You should serve us food.” But the Lord is not like a worldly master. (A different relationship between the earthly master and the servant is mentioned in Colossians and Ephesians. What is spoken of here is the treatment the Lord expects toward Himself. This is about the relationship between the spiritual master and the servant.) The Lord does not invite us to eat. What does He want then? Verse 8 says, “Will he not rather say to him”—that is, surely he will say to him—“Prepare something that I may dine, and gird yourself and serve me.” This is what the Lord is doing. We always think to ourselves, “Today I have plowed so many acres of land and sown so many pounds of seeds. After so many days, so many months, there will be at least a thirty or sixty-fold harvest. Today I led so many sheep to the green pastures, to a certain spot in a certain place, and they drank beside the still waters. After so much time, these sheep will surely grow big and fat. This is indeed the greatest work. The produce from the land may serve as food; the products from the flock of sheep may serve as clothing.” We are glad and enjoy the happiness from our labor. The meaning of eating and drinking is the enjoyment that comes out of our recollection of the work we have done. How often, after we have made some proud achievements, do we think about them even while we are sleeping and relish them in our memory. We may even think about them while we are eating and feel very proud and satisfied. Often we call to mind something and are thrilled by such thoughts. But the Lord said His goal for all the work, whether it be feeding the cattle or plowing the field, is not to make us happy, give us enjoyment, or let us have some gain. The Lord will surely say to us, “Prepare something that I may dine, and gird yourself and serve Me.” Do we see this? What the Lord demands is that we minister to Him. Please remember that the work in the fields cannot be compared to the work at home. Please remember that the land and the cattle cannot be compared to the Lord. The Lord does not say here, “Since you labored so hard, plowed so much land, and fed so many cattle, you need not serve Me anymore; you may go to eat, drink and be merry.” The Lord’s words inform us how He weighs the importance of our labor and our need to minister to Him. He will not let us go just because we have plowed the land, fed the cattle, and done so much work on the outside; He will not tell us that there is no need to minister to Him. The Lord will not do this. He will by no means do this. He will not allow us to omit the ministering to Him just because we are too occupied with our work. He will not allow the hardship of the labor to rob Him of our ministry to Him. The first priority is to minister to the Lord because ministering to the Lord is more vital than all the plowing, feeding, and working.
Brothers and sisters, what are we really doing? What is our goal? Do we only care for plowing and sowing? Do we only care for preaching the gospel to save sinners? Do we only care for shepherding and feeding cattle? Do we only care to dispense food for the edification of the believers? Or are we satisfying the Lord with food and drink? The Lord is showing us here that after we come home we should not rest and be slothful. Although we are tired, we still need to endeavor to serve Him. Although we have worked much and suffered much, this cannot take the place of the ministering that He should receive. We need to forget all our experience and serve Him once again. But this is not to say that we do not need to eat. It merely means that our eating and drinking should come after the Lord’s. We should also be filled and satisfied. Yet this should be after the Lord is filled and satisfied. We should also be happy. Yet this should be after the Lord’s happiness. Therefore, let us ask ourselves to whom the glory of the work goes. Is everything that we are doing really for the satisfaction of the Lord’s heart? Or is it for the satisfaction of our heart? Is the fruit of the labor for the Lord’s satisfaction? Or is it for our own satisfaction? I deeply fear that many times the Lord has not gained anything, and yet we are satisfied. I deeply fear that many times before the Lord is happy, we are already very happy. We need to ask God to show us where we should stand in His presence and how we should really minister to Him in His presence.
Brothers and sisters, even if we do everything, we are nothing but useless servants. We are indeed very small.
Our goal and our striving are not the land and cattle, the world and the church. Our goal is the Lord. We are also striving for the Lord. He is our everything. Therefore, let us ask ourselves: Is the work we do truly for Christ, or is it only for sinners and brothers? Whoever can discern the difference between the ministry to sinners and the ministry to the Lord, and whoever can discern the difference between the ministry to the brothers and the ministry to the Lord, is blessed. In theory it seems easy to make such a distinction; yet to be able to inwardly distinguish the difference in our experience is a blessing. This kind of knowledge does not come easily. It requires the shedding of blood before the lesson can be learned. This kind of discernment is not easily apprehended. It requires many dealings before we can know it. Many times it requires the putting down of our life and the killing of our opinions before we can truly comprehend it. Ministering to the Lord is not as easy as ministering to the brothers and the sisters. Therefore, there is a vast difference between ministering to the Lord and ministering to the house.
Nevertheless, if the Holy Spirit works in us, it will not be that difficult for us to know. We need to ask the Lord to grant us grace, revelation, and light, so that we may see what ministering to Him means. A ministry to the sinners and a ministry to the Lord are two entirely different things; ministering to sinners is altogether different from ministering to the Lord. Brothers and sisters, sinners are not more important than the Lord. We need to ask the Lord to work on us, so that we will minister to Him. I cannot say anything more. I can only say that this is what the Lord wants to speak to us in these few days.