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.