The persecution has intensified

Exodus 5:4-14; 11/30/2025; BCBC/IOUC; Rev. Paul Wang

Introduction

         The Antichrist’s persecution of God’s children will surely continue to increase day by day and intensify layer by layer. This has always been the case both longitudinally throughout history and horizontally across different eras, and it requires no further justification.  Let us look at the first point:

Who bears whose burden?

         The king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why are you causing the people to stop working?  Go back to your burdens.”  What does the word ‘burdens’ mean here?  Does it refer to responsibility? Or consequences?  All of this is worth our reflection, isn’t it?  First, burdens and loads.  Galatians 6:2 says, “Bear one another’s burdens,”  while 6:5 says, “Each one will bear his own load.”  In the original Greek, these are two different words: baros and phortion.  Their meanings differ, though they share a related sense.  In life, we essentially carry these two kinds of burdens.  Simply put, we are to bear with one another the burdens that others cannot carry, and at the same time, we are also to carry the load that we can and ought to bear ourselves.  Pharaoh forced upon the Israelites burdens they could not bear—and in essence, he sinned against God and treated Him with contempt!  Every person ought to bear only the load that he himself should bear, and no one should lay upon others burdens they are unable to carry.

         Secondly, lies and distortion of truth.  God gave Pharaoh authority with the intention that he would treat the people of Egypt—and especially the Israelites—with justice and compassion.  But Pharaoh mistakenly used that authority as a tool for his own tyranny, to oppress the people and to deal harshly with the Israelites.  For more than four hundred years, God brought the Israelites into Egypt through Joseph, intending that Pharaoh would show kindness—even abundant kindness—to God’s people, so that he himself might find favor before God.  Yet the Pharaohs spread rumors, fabricated false reports, produced grand propaganda, and manipulated internal messaging.  They sought not only to deceive the Egyptians, but also to mislead the Israelites living among them, all with one purpose: to obstruct God’s will in leading Israel out of Egypt.

         Finally, accountability and consequences.  God once showed kindness to Egypt through Joseph when he served as prime minister.  But when a new king arose in Egypt, he became ungrateful—a thankless betrayer who forgot all the previous grace.  This became a historical debt that the Egyptians could never settle before God. Likewise, throughout history, every Antichrist regime that has persecuted the church and oppressed God’s people has been unable to give an account to Him.  God places His children under the authority of a nation so that He may bring the gospel to that nation and bestow blessings and grace upon it.  Yet the nature of the Antichrist runs contrary to God’s blessings; no possibility of ever intersecting.  For the Antichrist, nothing awaits but the consequence of eternal death—there is no other outcome.  Let us now look at the second point:

Bricks cannot be made without straw

         When the persecution of the Antichrist extends to matters related to people’s livelihoods, it becomes a vile method that strikes at the heart itself.  Once it reaches such a level of madness, the day of destruction is not far off.  First, the insidious act of secretly reducing materials.  Over three thousand years ago, the bricks used in Egypt were made of mud.  These bricks were formed by taking mud from the riverbank and mixing it with straw collected from the fields.  Usually, Egyptian bricks were sun-dried, as kiln-fired bricks were rare due to the scarcity and high cost of wood.  Sun-dried bricks were therefore the main option in Egypt.  In such bricks, the only thing that gave them structural strength was the straw—rice straw, wheat straw, reeds, and the like.  When Pharaoh ordered the supply of straw for brick-making to be stopped, it was equivalent to pulling the rug out from under them—sabotaging their work and making their labor far more difficult.  Of course, Egypt did not lack straw; the problem was that from that point on, the Israelites had to spend extra time, pay a higher cost, and expend more labor.

         Secondly, the trap of “cooking without rice.”  When the supply of straw was stopped, the number of bricks still could not be reduced—this was deliberate harassment.  The owner of the meeting place for Zion Church in Beijing was threatened  and dared not rent the venue to the church.  The Antichrist assumed that this would stop the Israelites from leaving Egypt, or even that Zion Church would be silenced and cease gathering!  Yet, in less than twenty years, Zion Church had already established dozens of congregations across the country.  Pharaoh thought that by stopping the supply of straw, the Israelites would be punished for not being able to make bricks.  But the reason Pharaoh gave for accusing the Israelites was a moral pretext: he claimed that they were lazy, even extending the accusation to their worship of God.  See how they twisted God’s worship into an excuse to shirk work!

Finally, obstructing the worshipping community.  Today’s Antichrist acts in the same way.  When accusing pastors and ministers of Zion Church, they avoid using charges of religious persecution and instead resort to other underhanded tactics, such as alleging crimes of illegal use of information networks, illegal business operations, or fraud.  More than ten years ago, the Three-Self Church, the Religious Affairs Bureau, and the United Front Work Department held Bible exhibitions across North America, with the aim of deceiving Americans into believing that China had religious freedom.  Some pastors in our Texas Baptist Association colluded with these representatives of the Antichrist, both internally and externally, becoming accomplices to the Antichrist.  Their actions are no different from those of Pharaoh—they use the banner of worshipping God to obstruct God’s children from worshipping Him!  Let us now look at the third point:

What are false words?

         The methods by which the Antichrist persecutes God’s children are nothing more than being rooted in falsehood, marked by lies, and using the tactic of “the thief cries, ‘Stop the thief!’” to deceive God’s children and all people.  First, persecution is the very nature of the persecutor.  We may not understand it, but such is the foolishness of the Antichrist.  Who is Christ?  He is the Lord who created heaven and earth!  How foolish, then, must these people be!  And yet, they do not spare even the children of God.  Moses carried God’s authority and power.  The gospel preached by the Church is, in itself, the power of God, capable of saving all who believe.  Do you not know this? At the very least, you could read the Bible!  God’s Word is full of power, able to overturn the world and transform human hearts.  The works of God are evident within the human heart; though invisible to the eyes, they can be perceived through creation.  I ask you: will you continue to persecute God’s children?

Secondly, oppression is the oppressor’s habit.  Once the Antichrist gains authority, he will attempt to reverse history, set full sail, and steer toward an ignorant future.  When he sees the weak, the righteous, or those who love others as themselves,   the oppressor’s nerves are electrified, sending out twisted signals and broadcasting words of hellish malice that instill fear.  In reality, all of this is simply the oppressors’ habitual behavior—we need not be afraid!  A person whose heart is with the Lord has no reason for fear, nor is there a time or place for dread.  Not a single word spoken by the oppressor is true.  Any who act under the banner of the people or carry the flag of the party and state are merely oppressors in disguise, carrying out their habitual evil.

        Finally, lies are the Antichrist’s rhetoric.  When the Israelites heard that they would have no straw but still had to make the same number of bricks, they felt afraid. Moreover, the Antichrist is very skilled at speaking threats, saying things like, “Why didn’t you make the required number of bricks yesterday and today? Why haven’t you finished your work?”  In reality, the Israelites only needed to speak the truth: “Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Let my people go, so that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.”  The LORD is the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob, and the God who today reveals Himself to Moses, calling us to come out of Egypt!  Therefore, stop lying!  The suffering of making bricks in Egypt is about to end!

Conclusion

         Praise the Lord!  The days of intensified persecution are inevitably accompanied by the days of growth in our spiritual life.  God has said that as our days are, so will our strength be!  The LORD is my strength, my fortress., and the portion of my cup!  What more do we need when we have the Lord?  With the Lord with us, what can persecution do to us?  Praise the Lord!

         Let’s pray together……

 

4 But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why do you take the people away from their work? Get back to your burdens.” 

5 And Pharaoh said, “Behold, the people of the land are now many, and you make them rest from their burdens!” 

6 The same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people and their foremen, 

7 “You shall no longer give the people straw to make bricks, as in the past; let them go and gather straw for themselves. 

8 But the number of bricks that they made in the past you shall impose on them, you shall by no means reduce it, for they are idle. Therefore they cry, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God.’ 

9 Let heavier work be laid on the men that they may labor at it and pay no regard to lying words.”

10 So the taskmasters and the foremen of the people went out and said to the people, “Thus says Pharaoh, ‘I will not give you straw. 

11 Go and get your straw yourselves wherever you can find it, but your work will not be reduced in the least.’” 

12 So the people were scattered throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble for straw. 

13 The taskmasters were urgent, saying, “Complete your work, your daily task each day, as when there was straw.” 

14 And the foremen of the people of Israel, whom Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten and were asked, “Why have you not done all your task of making bricks today and yesterday, as in the past?”