Sermons and Fellowship About God’s Word “It Is Very Important to Establish a Proper Relationship With God” (II)

Sermons and Fellowship About God’s Word “It Is Very Important to Establish a Proper Relationship With God” (II)

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Let’s start our meeting. Let’s first read a passage of God’s word, “It Is Very Important to Establish a Proper Relationship With God.”

“People believe in God, love God, and satisfy God by touching the Spirit of God with their heart, thereby obtaining the satisfaction of God; and when engaging with God’s words with their heart, they are therefore moved by the Spirit of God. If you wish to achieve a proper spiritual life and establish a proper relationship with God, you must first give your heart to God, and quiet your heart before God. Only after you have poured your whole heart into God can you gradually have a proper spiritual life. If, in their belief in God, people do not give their heart to God, if their heart is not in God, and they do not treat God’s burden as their own, then everything they do is cheating God, and is the actions of religious people, unable to receive God’s praise. God cannot get anything from this kind of person; this kind of person can only serve as a foil to God’s work, like a decoration in the house of God, filling the seats and taking up space, and is a good-for-nothing—God does not use this kind of person. In such a person, not only is there no opportunity for the work of the Holy Spirit, much less is there any value of perfection; this type of person is the real “walking dead”—they have no components that can be used by the Holy Spirit—they have all been appropriated by Satan, corrupted to the extreme by Satan, who are the object of God’s elimination. Currently the Holy Spirit is not only using people by putting their virtues into play, but also perfecting and changing their shortcomings. If your heart can be poured into God, and keep quiet before God, then you will have the chance, the qualifications, to be used by the Holy Spirit, to receive the enlightenment and illumination of the Holy Spirit, and you will even more so have the opportunity for the Holy Spirit to make up for your shortcomings. When you give your heart to God, you can enter more deeply on the positive side, and be on a higher plane of understanding; on the negative side, you will have more understanding of your own faults and shortcomings, you will be more eager to seek to satisfy God’s will, and in a non-passive state, you will actively enter, and this will mean that you are a correct person. On the premise that your heart is calm before God, the key of whether or not you receive praise from the Holy Spirit, whether or not you please God, is whether you can actively enter. When the Holy Spirit enlightens a person, uses a person, it never makes him negative, and always makes him positive and eager to progress. Even though he has weaknesses, he is able to not live according to them, he is able to refrain from delaying his life growth, and he is able to continue to seek to satisfy God’s will. This is a standard which sufficiently proves that a person has obtained the presence of the Holy Spirit. If a person is always negative, and even after being enlightened to know himself, is still negative and passive, unable to stand up and act in concert with God, then this type of person just receives the grace of God, but the Holy Spirit is not with him. When a person is negative, this means that his heart has not turned to God, his spirit has not been touched by God’s Spirit, and this should be recognized by all.

In your experience you see that one of the most important issues is quieting your heart before God. It is an issue that concerns people’s spiritual life, and the progression of their life. Only if your heart is at peace before God will your pursuit of the truth and of changes in your disposition bear fruit. Because you come burdened before God, and you always feel that you are lacking too much, that there are many truths that you need to know, much reality that you need to experience, and that you should give every care to God’s will. These things are always on your mind, it is as if they are pressing down on you so hard that you can’t breathe, and thus you feel heavy of heart (but not in a negative state). Only people such as this are qualified to accept the enlightenment of God’s words and be touched by the Spirit of God. It is because of their burden, because they are heavy of heart, and, it can be said, because of the price they have paid and the torment they have suffered before God that they receive the enlightenment and illumination of God, for God does not give anyone special treatment, He is always fair in His treatment of people, but He is also not arbitrary in His provision to people, and does not give to them unconditionally. This is one side of His righteous disposition. In real life, most people have yet to attain this realm. At the very least, their heart has yet to completely turn to God, and thus there has still not been any great change in their life disposition, which is because they only live amid God’s graces, and have yet to gain the work of the Holy Spirit. The criteria for God’s use of people are as follows: Their heart turns to God, they are burdened by the words of God, their heart yearns, and they have the resolve to seek the truth. Only people such as this can gain the work of the Holy Spirit and be often enlightened and illuminated. The people God uses appear from the outside to be irrational and seem to be without proper relationships with others, though they speak with propriety, don’t speak carelessly, and can always keep a quiet heart before God. Such a person is sufficient to be used by the Holy Spirit. This irrational person God speaks of looks like they don’t have proper relationships with others, and they don’t have outward love or superficial practices, but when they are communicating spiritual things they can open their heart and selflessly provide others with the illumination and enlightenment they have acquired from their actual experience before God. This is how they express their love for God and satisfy God’s will. When others are all slandering and ridiculing them, they are able to not be dictated by outside people, occurrences, or things, and can still be quiet before God. Such a person seemingly has their own insights. Regardless of others, their heart never leaves God. When others are chatting cheerfully and humorously, their heart still remains before God, contemplating God’s word or praying in silence to the God in their heart, seeking God’s intentions. They never make the maintenance of their proper relationships with other people the main focus. Such a person has seemingly no philosophy of life. On the outside, this person is lively, adorable, innocent, but also possesses a sense of calmness. This is the likeness of a person God uses. Things like the philosophy of life or “proper reasoning” will not get through to this type of person; this type of person has devoted his whole heart to God’s word, and seems to only have God in his heart. This is the type of person who is what God refers to as a person “without reason,” and is just the person that is used by God. The mark of a person who is being used by God is: No matter when or where, his heart is always before God, and no matter how dissolute others are, how much they indulge in lust, indulge in the flesh—his heart never leaves God, and he doesn’t follow the crowd. Only this type of person is suited for God’s use, and is exactly the one who is perfected by the Holy Spirit. If you are unable to reach this point, then you are not qualified to be gained by God, to be perfected by the Holy Spirit.

If you want to have a proper relationship with God, your heart must turn to God, and on this foundation, you will also have a proper relationship with other people. If you don’t have a proper relationship with God, no matter what you do to maintain your relationships with other people, no matter how hard you work or how much energy you put into it, it still belongs to a human philosophy of life. You are maintaining your position among people through a human perspective and a human philosophy so that they will praise you. You do not establish proper relationships with people according to the word of God. If you don’t focus on your relationships with people but maintain a proper relationship with God, if you are willing to give your heart to God and learn to obey Him, very naturally, your relationships with all people will become proper. This way, these relationships aren’t established on the flesh, but on the foundation of God’s love. There are almost no interactions based on the flesh, but in the spirit there is fellowship as well as love, comfort, and supply for one another. This is all done on the foundation of a heart that satisfies God. These relationships aren’t maintained by relying on a human philosophy of life, but they are formed very naturally through the burden for God. They don’t require human effort—they are practiced through the principles of the word of God. Are you willing to be considerate toward the will of God? Are you willing to be a person “without reason” before God? Are you willing to completely give your heart to God, and not think about your position among people? Of all the people you have contact with, with which of these do you have the best relationships? With which of these do you have the worst relationships? Are your relationships with people proper? Do you treat all people equally? Are your relationships with others maintained according to your philosophy of life, or are they built on the foundation of God’s love? When one does not give his heart to God, then his spirit becomes obtuse, it becomes numb and unconscious, and this kind of person will never understand God’s words, will never have a proper relationship with God; this kind of person will never change their disposition. Changing one’s disposition is the process of one giving his heart completely to God, and of receiving enlightenment and illumination from the words of God. God’s work can, on one hand, let one actively enter, and also enable him to get rid of his negative aspects after gaining knowledge. When you are able to give your heart to God, you will be able to perceive every subtle movement within your spirit, and you will know any of the enlightenment and illumination received from God. Hold onto this, and you will gradually enter into the path of being perfected by the Holy Spirit. The quieter your heart can be before God, the more sensitive and delicate your spirit will be, and the more your spirit will be able to observe the movement of the Holy Spirit, and then your relationship with God will become more and more proper. A proper relationship between people is established on the foundation of giving your heart to God; it is not achieved through human effort. Without God, relationships between people are merely relationships of the flesh. They are not proper, but are indulgent of physical desires—they are relationships that God detests, that He loathes. If you say that your spirit has been touched, but you always want to have fellowship with people who appeal to you, with whoever you think highly of, and if there is another seeker who does not appeal to you, who you hold a bias against and will not engage with, this is more proof that you are an emotional person and you do not have a proper relationship with God at all. You are attempting to deceive God and cover up your own ugliness. Even if you can share some understanding but you carry wrongness in your heart, everything you do is good only by human standards. God will not praise you—you are acting according to the flesh, not according to God’s burden. If you are able to quiet your heart in front of God and have proper interactions with all those who love God, only then are you fit for God’s use. This way, no matter how you associate with others, it will not be according to a life philosophy, but it will be living in front of God, considerate of His burden. How many people like this are there amongst you? Are your relationships with others really proper? On what foundation are they built? How many life philosophies are there within you? Have they been cast off? If your heart cannot be completely turned to God, then you are not of God, then you come from Satan, and in the end you will be returned to Satan; you are not worthy of being one of God’s people. All of this requires your careful consideration.”

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Regarding the matter of entering into life, this is the most important matter for God’s elect. If man is unable to see through the matter of entering into life, he shall have no paths. It will then be very difficult for such a man to attain the understanding of truth and the knowledge of God. Why? Life entry is not based on man’s notions and imagination; it is not something that man can make it whichever way he thinks. It must be done in accordance with God’s words and God’s demands of man in order to achieve results. The passage of God’s words that we have just read, “It Is Very Important to Establish a Proper Relationship With God,” is the foundation for entering into life. Why do we say that this passage of God’s words is the foundation for entering into life? During our last meeting, we made a comparison between the prayers of those within religion and the prayers of those earnestly seeking the truth. I gave some examples regarding how those in religion pray and how those seeking the truth pray. Many of you were able to understand what I said, and felt that “It is too important to have true prayers, to speak your heart to God, and to seek the truth with God. Such things are too important.” How come so many men, after believing in the Lord for so many years, were unable to gain the truth and life? What are they lacking? This is something worth pondering. After we have finished reading this passage of God’s words, we should be able to see through this matter, to see that which is lacking is the establishment of a proper relationship between man and God, the sincere giving of their heart to God, and the true communion with God. Is this not the case? Some are unable to see through this matter, and they are wondering: “Is it really the case?” This matter requires some pondering. This is not something that you can understand simply from me repeating the question. You must put in the effort. If man has no true communion with God, it is very difficult for him to establish a proper relationship with God. If a proper relationship with God is lacking, then is he a right man? Is he someone who truly believes in God? The Book of Isaiah said: “For as much as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me …” (Isaiah 29:13). What are these words referring to? If man has believed in God for many years yet has not established a proper relationship with God, does he truly believe in God? Does God recognize him? The Lord will say: “You come near Me with your mouth, you believe in Me with your mouth, instead of believing in Me with your heart. I do not recognize your belief.” Just like the communication between two people, who only say nice words to each other, yet their hearts do not walk on the same path. Would they still be true friends? Wouldn’t such people be deceitful? Could you call such people your true friends? If a man does not open up his heart when communing with other men, is he able to open up his heart when communing with God? A crafty man does not even open up his heart to his parents, how is he able to open up his heart when believing in God? Can you now see through this matter? When people have made many fair-weather friends, duplicitous friends, they may not be able to see through them. But God inspects man’s heart and mind, and is God able to clearly see those who truly believe in Him? Would God know the ones who give their true hearts to Him? Would God know the ones who always obey the words and the way of the Lord? He knows all these things very clearly, therefore do not deceive God. Let us now reflect on the words that the Lord Jesus has said: “Not every one that said to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name? and in your name have cast out devils? and in your name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess to them, I never knew you: depart from me, you that work iniquity” (Matthew 7:21-23). Now, when we read these words of the Lord once again, aren’t they much easier to understand? Why did the Lord say “depart from me, you that work iniquity”? These men prophesied in the Lord’s name, cast out devils in the Lord’s name, and did many wonderful works in the Lord’s name, yet the Lord said “depart from me, you that work iniquity.” Who are the men that work iniquity? What are the men that work iniquity? Is this easy to understand? We have just fellowshiped on this matter. If man does not have true communion with God and has not established a proper relationship with God, does such a man truly believe in God? Has he given his heart to God? Such a man has not given his heart to God. He has only given his mouth to God, praying to God with his mouth, going near God with his mouth, yet his heart is far away from God. How does such a person seem to God? A person that works iniquity. To go near God with his mouth yet have his heart far away from God, what is the essence of this matter? This is deceiving God with his eyes wide open, this is trifling with God. Isn’t such a man a hypocrite? Isn’t he someone who resists God? Isn’t he a man that works iniquity? First, to go near God with his mouth yet have his heart far away from God, this is called deceiving God and being trifling with God. Second, not giving his heart to God, this is not believing in God, not obeying God; his heart is still doing things in accordance with his own will; his heart is still rebelling against God, moving away from God; his heart is still living in sin, enjoying the pleasures of sin. Isn’t such a person someone who works iniquity? This is a person who works iniquity. Therefore, the Lord Jesus said: “I never knew you: depart from me, you that work iniquity.” Do you now understand these words? This is now easy to understand once I have fellowshiped thus, is this not the case? If I have not fellowshiped thus, would you still be able to understand? No. Now you see, it doesn’t work to merely read God’s words with no one to fellowshiped with you. If someone only reads God’s words by himself, once he has reached this point, “Why is it said here that they are someone who works iniquity? Oh, I don’t understand this. They prophesied in the Lord’s name, cast out devils in the Lord’s name, and did many wonderful works in the Lord’s name, yet in the end they are called men who worked iniquity. This is incredible.” If man is left to himself to read God’s words, isn’t it easy to misunderstand God? It is too easy to misunderstand God. Therefore, one must have others to fellowship with them in addition to reading God’s words. One needs the enlightenment and illumination from the Holy Spirit, one also needs real experience and understanding. Now, can you see clearly this matter?

I have said that Paul was not someone who truly loved God. He was someone who resisted God. The nature and essence of Paul was too vicious. Many don’t understand and don’t accept this, so they think that I am judging Paul. However, some understand: “After hearing you fellowship in this way, we started to ponder. Paul indeed resisted God, and he indeed did not have a heart that loves God. Look at all the letters that he has written, he never said ‘Lord Jesus, I love You.’ ‘The Lord Jesus is so loveable, the Lord Jesus saved me, the Lord Jesus has not been treating me based on my past transgressions.’” Have Paul’s letters said any such things? Look at those words by Paul, are they witnessing for himself or are they witnessing for the Lord Jesus? Carefully read these words of Paul; he was completely witnessing for himself, showing off himself. He was not someone who loves the Lord Jesus. He talked himself up to such heights; to what height did he elevate himself? He said that he knew a man who was caught up to the third heaven and heard unspeakable words. He was beating around the bush with these words. He said that he knew someone, but in fact, he was talking about himself. Was this not lying? Paul, the ringleader of all evil who opposed the Lord Jesus, was also the vanguard of Judaism which resisted the Lord Jesus. How could he be qualified to be caught up to the third heaven? The third heaven is where God resides. These words of Paul are of a deceitful and deceptive nature. These words are witnessing for himself, witnessing the blessings that he received before God and the height to which he was elevated by God, up to the third heaven. In this way, men viewed Paul as more exalted than any of the other apostles. He was only slightly lower than the Lord Jesus, yet much more exalted than everyone else. That is, he was under only the Lord but above millions. The status of the Lord Jesus never entered Paul’s heart, can we not say that?

Why do we say that God is righteous? God’s judgment is righteous, and God treats everyone with righteousness. Consider how Paul resisted and persecuted the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus did not sin and did not say anything wrong. He spoke with authority and power, He had the authority to perform those miracles and wonders. He is the truth, the way, the life. He was sent by God, He was also God incarnate; therefore, He had the ability to express the truth. Then, why did men resist and convict Him? Consider a normal man, and let us not consider whether he fears God and has a heart that reveres God. If the man is normal, with a heart and a spirit, and if he should have resisted and convicted someone who is innocent, someone who spoke the truth with authority and power, how would such a man feel in his conscience? Would he not feel guilt in his conscience? Of course he would feel guilt. Yet did Paul feel any guilt regarding his resisting and convicting the Lord Jesus? Have you read such things in Paul’s letters? “Initially, when I was resisting and convicting the Lord Jesus, I felt guilt inside of me. However, I didn’t understand, I didn’t understand that this guilt came from the Holy Spirit. Subsequently, I was spurred on by the Pharisees, so I listened to what they said, and I continued to fiercely resist the Lord Jesus.” Did Paul say any such words? He did not say any such words, which shows that Paul did not feel one ounce of guilt for resisting and convicting the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus expressed the truth, and He was innocent. Was He not a good and righteous man? He was such a good and righteous man, yet people, without any previous knowledge of Him, were able to convict, insult and persecute Him, for no good reason. Do such people have any humanity? Such people have no humanity. Did Paul have any humanity? From the way that Paul did his best to convict and resist the Lord Jesus, as well as arrest Him, we can see that he was someone without any humanity, is that not the case? This has been fixed. Let us now think in broader terms. Even though Paul did not blame himself when he resisted and convicted the Lord Jesus, yet he was someone who believed in God in Judaism. This is undeniable. He also studied the Bible under Gamaliel. Gamaliel was a renowned expert in the law. That is, he was an expert in studying the Bible, and Paul was his student. When discussing the work of the Lord Jesus, Gamaliel said: “Refrain from these men, and let them alone: for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nothing: But if it be of God, you cannot overthrow it; lest haply you be found even to fight against God” (Acts 5:38-39). Gamaliel said such words, meaning that: “I am not able to see through this matter. If Jesus has been sent by God, then if we should resist and convict Him, that would be resisting God. If He is of men, if He should come from men, then we need not resist Him, for He will self-destruct.” What are your thoughts regarding these words? Is this something that a normal person would say? For a man who has no knowledge that the Lord Jesus is God incarnate, to treat the Lord Jesus as Gamaliel outlined here, this would be all too normal, and this is the way that a normal person should react to this matter. Yet did Paul react in such a way? No, he did not. What Gamaliel meant was that: “I am worried that it could be wrong to resist. If resisting should be wrong, then I would have offended God. Therefore, I shall not pass any judgment, I shall not convict, and I shall not resist.” Judging from these words of Gamaliel, did he revere God? The fact that Gamaliel was able to say such words showed that he revered God. Yet Paul, with his frenzied and brazen arrest and conviction of the Lord Jesus, did he revere God? From this matter, we can see that Paul did not revere God. Also, Paul’s disposition was too arrogant, insidious, and vicious. He was not a right man.

After looking at these two matters, let us then see, if someone was normal and truly believed in God, after the Lord Jesus was crucified and then resurrected, what should such a man think? At this point, if a man had conscience and sense, then he should reflect: “This is not an ordinary person, resurrection is a major miracle of God. Oh, Jesus has been resurrected, have we been wrong in convicting Him? We antagonized Him, were we wrong?” I believe that most people should have reflected on this matter, that they should have come to realize the truth. Can we not say that? Did Paul come to realize the truth? Did he reflect? No, he did not reflect. I feel that most men, men who believed in God, once they have seen the Lord Jesus resurrected from death, they would be terrified, they would be unable to eat or sleep when they returned home. “We have erred in this matter. Jesus said that He was sent by God, He said that the Father was in Him and that He was in the Father, that He and the Father were one. Could that be true? Otherwise, how was He able to be resurrected? If He were an ordinary man, then if He died, He would have stayed dead, He couldn’t have lived. Now Jesus has been resurrected from death, this is a major miracle of God. Could it be that He was truly sent by God? Oh, maybe we have been wrong in resisting Him. We must reflect. We cannot continue to resist.” If man has a little bit of conscience, if he has a spirit, then he would certainly be afraid, and this incident should have halted his tendency to do evil. Isn’t that right? Yet did Paul halt? Paul was not afraid, and he didn’t halt. He continued to persecute the Lord Jesus. Is that not fact? What is this problem? Can we see the essence and nature of Paul? Take some time to analyze this matter.

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Some ask me: “Why do you say that Paul is an antichrist? Can you talk about the essence of an antichrist? What is an antichrist?” Isn’t this easy to explain? Those knowing full well all that the Lord Jesus expressed are truths that possess authority and power, who yet still oppose the Lord Jesus, such men are antichrists. How is an explanation such as this? Is such an explanation practical? Is this explanation relating to doctrines and rules? No, it is not. So, does this explanation fit with that which Paul has done? Once compared with that which Paul has done, we can see that Paul was just such a person. After the Lord Jesus was resurrected, He appeared for forty days, yet Paul did not let Him go. He continued to pursue the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus was resurrected as an ethereal body, yet Paul continued his pursuit. How frenzied was Paul’s pursuit of the Lord Jesus! Was he still a man? Was he not possessed by some demon? After the Lord Jesus was resurrected, Paul still didn’t come to realize the truth, he continued to pursue the Lord Jesus as well as arrest the disciples of the Lord Jesus. At that time, when the disciples of the Lord Jesus were captured, they would be beaten brutally, they would be killed. Therefore, we read in the Bible that Peter has denied the Lord three times. Peter recognized that the Lord Jesus was Christ, that He was the Son of God, yet why did he still deny the Lord three times? Tell me, what is happening here? This shows that Judaism was persecuting the Lord Jesus and His disciples to such a degree that the environment and atmosphere at the time was exceedingly harsh and terrifying, thereby making even someone like Peter, who truly believed in God, become timid and refuse to acknowledge God. Is this not the case? Tell me then, wasn’t Judaism’s persecution of Christians and its resistance of the Lord Jesus particularly frenzied, particularly cruel? Paul acted as the vanguard in Judaism’s frenzied antagonism against the Lord Jesus. Afterward, the Lord Jesus took a look and thought: “Oh, this man, Paul, is relentless in his pursuit. Judaism is too frantic.” Therefore, the Lord Jesus decided to teach Paul a lesson before having Paul serve Him, in order to shame the forces of Satan. Accordingly, the Lord Jesus appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus. This appearance was not an appearance of true significance, it was as punishment, it was to teach a lesson, it was to have Paul serve the gospel work. Some might say: “Must the Lord Jesus appear from the air to teach Paul a lesson, to punish him, for Paul to serve Him?” If the Lord Jesus had appeared to Paul as a spiritual body, could Paul have accepted? He would not have accepted, he would continue to give chase. He couldn’t wait to capture the Lord Jesus, and then crucify Him, and then burn Him at the stake. He was hostile. Therefore, all that the Lord Jesus was able to do was to shine onto him as a great light from the air, to first blind him with great light, such that he would be frightened and bow down once he lifted his head and looked at the light. If the Lord Jesus had appeared to Paul as a spiritual body, without the great light, would Paul have feared the Lord Jesus? He would not have. He would have said: “You are in the air, do You think that I cannot hit You in the air? I shall shoot You down with an anti-aircraft gun.” Paul would not have submitted. Therefore, a great light had to be used on him. Once he was shined onto with the true light, his eyes were blinded. Wasn’t it particularly painful once his eyes were blinded by the light? When he felt the pain, he said: “Lord, who are You?” The Lord Jesus then said: “I am Jesus whom you persecute.” He thought: “Oh, Jesus, this great light, this is the true light. Oh, this is God, this is God.” This time, he had no choice but to be subdued, he had no choice but to submit. It would not have worked without the true light. Tell me, how unyielding was this Paul? He was as unyielding as the devil, without conscience or sense. The Lord Jesus appearing as flesh did not work, the Lord Jesus appearing as a spiritual body did not work. The Lord Jesus had to shine upon Paul with a great light to blind his eyes, to have Paul bow down on the ground, before he was able to accept that which was entrusted by the Lord Jesus. When a man was this way, when he resisted God to such a degree, he was done for, he must perish, was that not the case? And now, what is your understanding of the Lord Jesus’ appearance to Paul? Was it an appearance of grace, was it an appearance of blessing, was it an appearance of God’s appreciation of Paul? It was none of these, it was entirely an appearance of punishment. That was not the meaning of God’s appearance to man.

Herein lies the principles by which God appears to man. Look at the way that God appeared to Abraham, such that he saw a Son of man, as if a Son of man was talking to him. He said: “My Lord! …” He bowed down to the ground, to address the Lord. God appeared to Abraham as an ordinary man, yet Abraham was able to bow down to the ground and address Him as Lord. Did such a man have humanity? Was he someone who feared God? It was the same when God appeared to Noah, he quickly bowed down to the ground: “Lord, I shall do your bidding.” Look, this was someone who truly believed in God. God did not have to appear to him as a great light for him to accept and to submit. He merely had to hear God’s voice to accept and to submit, to dedicate himself to God’s words and that which God entrusted him. God appears to men who are normal, with genuine heart and spirit, this is God’s true appearance. God appeared to Moses in the flame, meaning: “I am the flame. Now I shall entrust you with this great work of leading the Israelites out of Egypt.” Once Moses saw God speaking in the flame, he covered his face, because he feared God. Such ordinary men were frightened. God appeared to Moses in this way. How did God appear to Job? God appeared out of the whirlwind, and only Job was able to hear His voice. Job was under extreme pain at the time, and God spoke to Job out of the whirlwind. Job listened, and then he bowed down to the ground, saying: “I shall repent in the ashes, I am ashamed to face God. I put my hand over my mouth, for I can no longer speak. What I have said was wrong, with no reverence to God.” Therefore, by comparing the ways with which God appeared to a few, we get a glimpse of the secret in the ways that God appears. Now, let us look at the way that the Lord Jesus appeared to Paul, which was different from the others. For the others, such as Moses, Abraham, and Job, they accepted and submitted once they heard God’s voice. If God should have appeared to Paul in this way, would Paul have accepted? What would Paul have done? Paul would have said: “Good, I have been pursuing You for twenty, thirty days, now You have shown up. I have finally found You. I am going to capture and crucify You.” Wouldn’t he have said something like this? Paul would have most certainly said something like this. Therefore, the Lord Jesus did not appear to him in the image of Jesus on the ground, He could only appear to Paul in the air through a great light, to shock him, to have him bow down to the ground, to accept that which was entrusted to him by the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus thus entrusted Paul to shame Satan. “Satan, aren’t you frantically persecuting Me? I shall subdue you through a major miracle, then I shall command you to serve Me. You shall be loyal to that which I have entrusted you, and give your life in the end.” This is the meaning. From this, can you not see God’s righteous disposition? God cannot be offended, yet Paul offended God, therefore God punished him thus, as well as made him serve God to shame him. After Paul received that which was entrusted by the Lord Jesus, he was spreading the gospel for over twenty years, or at most thirty years, and in the end he martyred himself. What did he say before he martyred himself? “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: From now on there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness …” (2 Timothy 4:7-8). How are such words? Do they make sense? Did he know the disposition of the Lord Jesus? Did he know why the Lord Jesus had entrusted him to spread the gospel? He did not know, he did not grasp the meaning of the Lord. Tell me, did such a man have sense? He had no sense. Let us give an example. Let us say, a servant was working for a rich landlord. The servant kept doing bad things, beating other servants, as well as deceiving the landlord, and in the end he was disciplined and punished by the landlord. After he had been punished, he was thrown out of the house. This servant then pled pitifully: “Please forgive me, please give me another chance. I will be a loyal and knowledgeable housekeeper, I will take good care of your house.” How was the pleading of this servant? Did it make sense? The landlord then gave this servant another chance, “Good, I shall let you work for me one more time.” When the servant was doing his work this time, he was not grateful nor repentant. Although he worked harder than before, yet he was still showing himself off, not obeying anyone, not showing respect for anyone, as if he were above everyone else except for his master. In the end, as his service was coming to an end, he even asked his master to give him a crown of righteousness. Does this make any sense? Paul used to so frantically resist the Lord, performing all kinds of evil deeds; in the end, after he had put in some effort, he dared to ask to be crowned. This makes no sense at all. He was fortunate to atone for his sins, he was fortunate to have a second chance. Was that not the case? On the contrary, Paul was witnessing for himself, saying that there was laid up for him a crown of righteousness. What does it mean that “there was laid up for me a crown of righteousness?” “Lord, if You do not bestow onto me such a crown of righteousness, then You are not a righteous Lord. The Lord, the righteous judge, shall surely bestow the crown of righteousness upon me; if You do not give it to me, then You are not the Lord.” Was this not resisting the Lord once again? Weren’t such words resisting God to an extreme extent? Tell me, was this witnessing for God, or resisting God? If I do not fellowship about this today, will you be able to see through this matter clearly? You cannot, is that the case?

From these things that Paul has done, we come to know the essence of Paul. This man did not accept the truth. Some might say: “What basis do you have to say that Paul did not accept the truth?” The Lord Jesus spoke for over three years, expressing countless words, yet have the letters from Paul witnessed any of them? Paul wrote so many letters, yet he never witnessed for or held up the words of the Lord Jesus. Is that not fact? That is fact. After Paul had accepted that which was entrusted by the Lord Jesus, he should have truly repented, he should have been unable to eat or sleep for thirty days, reflecting on his own deeds. If he had truly felt that the Lord Jesus was the true God, that He was the manifestation of God, he should have said: “The sermons and words spoken by the Lord Jesus in these few years are too precious, I must collect these sermons and words. I must carefully read the words of the Lord Jesus, ponder the truths within His words, then evangelize and witness for Him based on these truths and the words spoken by Him.” Shouldn’t a man of conscience who seeks truth have acted in such a way? Yes, he should have. Has Paul acted in such a way? We all know who wrote the Four Gospels, there is no need for me to remind you. The apostles of the Lord Jesus wrote them. The disciples and apostles of the Lord Jesus collected many of His words as their maxims in order to follow the Lord Jesus. Did Paul collect any of the Lord Jesus’ words as his maxims? No. Are you able to find words of the Lord Jesus on which Paul has repented, reflected, and thereby come to know his mistakes? Were there such words? There have not been any such words in Paul’s letters. The Lord Jesus that Paul resisted was God incarnate. Did Paul understand this truth of God’s incarnation? He did not understand a single bit. Why do I say that he did not understand? He kept on saying “The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,” always treating the Lord Jesus as the Son, as the Son of God. He always placed Jehovah God at the very top, is that not the case? Look at Paul’s letters. In them, is there anything like this, “The Lord Jesus Christ is God Himself, He is God incarnate”? Are there words like this in his letters? No. Where did the “Trinity” arguments of the religious community come from? These all came from Paul’s points of view. Paul kept on talking about the Trinity, which shows that he did not recognize the Lord Jesus as the manifestation of God. He did not acknowledge. He did not acknowledge that the incarnate Christ was the manifestation of God, that He was God Himself, then how could he have understood the truth regarding God’s incarnation? Therefore, when we say that Paul was not someone who sought the truth, that he did not know the Lord Jesus, do we have any basis? When I further say that Paul had no truths, that he was not someone who sought the truth, that most of the time he witnessed for the Lord Jesus based on the Old Testament, does it not show that Paul was not someone who sought the truth? It does. Now, do you still have notions regarding what I said? Not anymore. Now that we see clearly that Paul had no reverence for God, that he was so frenzied as to not have any humanity, conscience, or sense, have I gone too far in saying that he was a devil who resisted God, that he was a typical representative of the antichrists? No, I have not.

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To tell you the truth, the last time I talked to you about Paul, my temper flared up a bit, and my speech was tinged with anger. However, it’s certainly not the case that I get angry every time I have to talk with you about Paul. Every time I expose Paul’s antichrist activities, evil deeds, and true nature, how the religious pastors’ and elders’ antichrist natures are the same as Paul’s, how they all follow Paul and how they are Paul’s dutiful descendants, some people just aren’t satisfied. They hate it when I say these things. Some people hate it so much that they grind their teeth. This is why I get angry. When I get angry, many people with serious religious conceptions say, “You weren’t made perfect by God because you still have a temper. You have too much of a temper. People who have been made perfect by God do not have tempers!” Tell me, are they correct? Do people who have been made perfect by God have tempers? Do people with tempers possess normal humanity? How should we view this, then, when people lose their tempers? You have to see why they lose their temper, whether it’s justified or not. If you don’t know that, you can’t make any determinations about it, so why would you pass judgment? You’d be passing blind judgment on others! Doesn’t God have wrath? Yes, the “wrath of God.” Then, tell me, in light of God’s wrath, can we say God has a righteous disposition? You all say yes. Then, some people think “people that lose their temper have no reality of truth. It demonstrates that their life disposition has not changed.” What kind of viewpoint is this? What’s the logic behind this? Is this way of looking at things correct? People that believe in the Lord Jesus talk about love and meekness. Then, how do you explain “love” and “meekness”? What is love? If you practice love, do you hate as well? Love and hate are opposites that coexist. If you only have love and not hate, then your love is impure and foolish. Now, we focus on “Love those who God loves. Hate those who God hates,” right? Who does God hate the most? Satan, wicked people, those who resist Him and those who hate the truth. Therefore, when God reveals His disposition in the last days, it will primarily be a righteous disposition. God wants to unleash His wrath on the dark, evil world and the evil forces of Satan. Someone said, “How will God show His wrath? What form will it take?” Catastrophes the likes of which we’ve never seen before will descend upon the world to destroy the evil humans and religious communities. Isn’t this God’s righteousness? Yes, it is. How should we view this, then, when people lose their tempers? Does anyone have any religious conceptions left? None this time? Then I shall lose my temper again, OK? Can you deal with that? Yes, you can, but my anger is not without justification. Have you seen me lose my temper with brothers and sisters before? No. In the past, some of brothers and sisters have judged me. Now? Not so much. Some of them tend to have their own conceptions. I don’t get angry with them. I patiently communicate the truth with them. What kinds of people do I lose my temper with? I lose my temper with antichrists and evil people, not brothers and sisters. Do I have principles for losing my temper? Yes, I don’t do it randomly. Can going into random fits of rage solve any problems? No, problems must be solved by communicating the truth. Therefore, I give sermons to you. I don’t lose my temper, regardless of whatever conceptions you may have. As long as you can accept the truth, it’s OK. As long as you can truly listen to my sermons, connect them to the words of God and understand the truth, it’s OK. This is why I do my duty and those are the results that I intend to achieve. There’s nothing else other than that. If I help all of you mature, understand the truth and become those who do God’s will, then I have accomplished the job that God has entrusted me with; I have done my duty.

Let’s continue reading God’s words. “If, in their belief in God, people do not give their heart to God, if their heart is not in God, and they do not treat God’s burden as their own, then everything they do is cheating God, and is the actions of religious people, unable to receive God’s praise.” “And is the actions of religious people, unable to receive God’s praise.” Paul stands as a classic example of this, as do the pastors and elders of the religious world. When I say the religious pastors and elders are the antichrists and have antichrist natures, I’m not saying 100% of them are like this, but I am saying that most of them are. Understand? The majority of the religious pastors and elders (around 80-90%) are antichrists in substance, the embodiment of the Pharisees. Understand? Because there are some pastors and elders that accept God’s work. This is the evidence. God said, “unable to receive God’s praise. God cannot get anything from this kind of person; this kind of person can only serve as a foil to God’s work.” Do you know what “foil” means? When people were originally separated into groups, these people belonged to one of the groups. What do these people do for God’s elect? They are here to help others gain discernment, to serve as cautionary tales. That’s what a foil is. For example, after we have listed the behaviors of the Pharisees, what should we use as a foil? We’ll use a mouse. Tell me, what is a mouse’s nature? It lives in the dark, afraid to meet humans, afraid to come into the light. It just scurries around in its cave, stealing food and causing food to spoil. Why and how are we using mice as a foil? We’re using them as the foil of the religious elders and the Pharisees. They act exactly as the mice do. They say human words but do not act like humans. They remain in the dark, working toward their own ends, striving for personal fame and status. This is all they do. That is what it means to be a foil, is it not?

Let’s continue reading the word of God, “like a decoration in the house of God, filling the seats and taking up space, and is a good-for-nothing—God does not use this kind of person.” Some people say, “Pastors and elders were established by God.” God says, “I have no need for these types of people.” Based on their own conceptions, these people say, “Pastors and elders were established by God.” Is this true? This is only based on their own conceptions and imaginations. You think pastors and elders were established by God. Where’s your evidence? If that really was the case, these people would have the work of the Holy Spirit. If they do not have the work of the Holy Spirit, then they were not established by God and definitely are not being used by God. Isn’t this right? See, how is the work that the religious pastors and elders do any different from what I do and my preaching? Someone said they don’t have the work of the Holy Spirit. That’s one difference. Are there any others? Someone said they exalt themselves and testify to themselves. That’s true also. What else? Do they have the reality of truth? No. Why do you say they don’t have the reality of truth? You can’t say things without evidence to back it up. Why do you say they don’t have the reality of truth? First, they have not really experienced God’s words. They’ve only generalized about His words in literal terms. Right? If they have never really experienced God’s words, can they talk about how they truly obey God? Where is their true obedience? Where is their love for God? Can they give such testimonies? No, they can’t. In addition, they cannot give testimony about their experience of, true obedience to and love for God. Considering this, are they really obedient to God? Do they really love God? If they are not truly obedient to God, and they do not truly love God, then what are they? They are simply those who speak literal doctrines. They are cheating God and cheating other people. In summary, they are hypocrites, isn’t that so? This is pretty easy to understand now, right? Christ of the last days has expressed many truths which have been spread on the Internet and among men for so many years. Have they ever pursued or investigated them? No, they haven’t done any investigation. What does this prove? They are not searching for God. They do not long for God to appear again. They are not hungering to search for the truth. This has been proven. Then why can you accept Christ of the last days today? Have you seen the face of God? Have you seen the manifestation of God? If you haven’t, then why do you still believe in Him? Tell me, what is the basis for your faith? Some people say that they have read the words of God and feel that they are the truth. This is a good basis for your faith. The following sentence drives this point home. “When I see these words that God has expressed, I instantly know they’re the truth, and I’m certain that God came back, reincarnated as Christ.” There is no one in the world that can express the words of God or the truth. People do not have the truth. According to these words we can say for sure that the Lord Jesus has returned; He is God incarnated in the flesh. He is not a spiritual body. He is here in the flesh; He is the Son of man; He is the incarnate God, the practical God.

Why don’t religious people accept Almighty God? Whoever can see through this can see the true nature of religious people. They only believe in God’s name. They do not acknowledge the truth. They aren’t interested in the truth, so their belief in God is vain and meaningless, isn’t it? Believing in God’s name, but not accepting that God is the truth, what kind of person acts this way? A non-believer, right? Some people say, “I believe in the God of heaven. I believe in the Lord Jesus. I believe in Jehovah God. The One I believe in is the true God. How can you say I’m a non-believer?” I say you’re a non-believer because you do not recognize that the essence of God is the truth. You do not recognize that God’s words are the truth. You only believe in God by name. Your belief in God is the same as the non-believers’ belief in the Old Man in the Sky. You believe in a vague God, and it is not practical at all. So many words of God have been posted on the Internet, and there are also many people that spread the gospel among man or in the churches. But the religious people still don’t accept it or try to investigate it. What’s more, they try to monitor, control, lock away, limit, stop and report those who bear witness to Almighty God. What is the problem here? Is this not resisting God’s arrival? Doesn’t this show their hatred of the truth? Is this any different from the Pharisees, who looked forward to the coming of the Messiah but then did not accept the Lord Jesus when He did come? No. It’s the same. You see this, right? Then, if religious people never accept Almighty God, should they be destroyed? Someone said yes. Why should they be destroyed? On what basis should they be destroyed? These words are not being said lightly. The most important reason they should be destroyed is because they hate the truth! What does their hatred of the truth mean? They deny the substance of God! They only acknowledge God by name. They do not acknowledge that His true essence is the truth. This is to deny God’s substance, which equates to denying God Himself! To only acknowledge God by name, to fail to acknowledge the truth that He speaks, what will be the result of this? They will be against God, unable to be compatible with Him. They think the Lord Jesus was only a puppet. They say, “You are the God we’re supposed to worship. You’re a puppet! You cannot express the truth. If You express the truth, we will hit You on the head and nail You to the cross!” This is only accepting God’s name while treating Him as a puppet. “If You express the truth, we will not accept it. We will stand against You! You are not allowed to express the truth. You are not allowed to make a sound!” Isn’t that so? Isn’t this behavior, in essence, standing as an enemy to God? To believe in God but still resist Him, that is to believe in God but also stand as His enemy, is it not? When the Lord Jesus comes back in the last days in the image of an Asian person and expresses all of these words, religious people push Him away. They push Him out of their houses and close their doors. “I have nothing to do with You. I don’t accept You!” Doesn’t this amount to a betrayal of the Lord Jesus? To not believe in Almighty God is to betray the Lord Jesus. Therefore, the Lord Jesus does not recognize them. The Lord Jesus says, “I never knew you: depart from me, you that work iniquity.” Religious people still stand there and proudly proclaim, “We are waiting for the Lord Jesus to come down on a cloud. What can you do to us? Even if we do not accept Almighty God, the Lord Jesus will still come to receive us!” Isn’t that how they think? What is the result of this kind of thinking? God says, “I will place you in the disasters and see if you can send yourselves up to heaven!” What do you think of this? “I will place you in a disaster and have you wait for the Lord Jesus to come back on a cloud.” When the Lord Jesus descends on a cloud, heaven and earth will be made anew, and the religious people will weep and gnash their teeth in the darkness. They will be punished in the disasters; they will be finished. They still think that “If the Lord Jesus doesn’t raise me into heaven, I can take Him to court. I can sue Him in the third heaven.” Can they get to the third heaven? What court will they sue Him in? They will wither in the great disasters and then fall into the depths of hell. Worms in hell do not die, and the fire is not quenched. While they are burning, they will cry out, “Lord, rescue me! Save me! I can’t take it. Rescue me!” They will weep and grind their teeth then! Who are they going to sue? Are they going to sue the Lord Jesus? Are there many people in the religious world who want to take God to court? Yes, there are many. What is in store for these people in the end? They will be sent to hell. You can understand this now, right? Are they not resisting God? They insist on reasoning with the Lord and going to heaven. Do these people really believe in God? Are these people really obeying God? They are forcing God to send down disasters to destroy them. They are forcing Him to send them down into the flames to be destroyed. They dare challenge God! If this is not the brood of Satan, then what is it? Isn’t it obvious, how these religious people are resisting God? Evil intentions, vile motivations, absolutely unwilling to repent, willing to challenge God. If they are not the brood of Satan that resists God, then what are they? You can see this for what it is now, right? When I expose the religious community, some people say, “You’re judging people; you’re judging the religious community!” Am I judging them? I’m just speaking the truth, isn’t that right? Are you not going to allow me to speak the truth? The fact that you can’t see it doesn’t mean I can’t see it. You admire the religious community; you praise the religious community; you stand with them to resist God. I beg to differ.

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Let’s read another passage from God’s word. “In such a person, not only is there no opportunity for the work of the Holy Spirit, there is even more so no value of perfection; this type of person is the real ‘walking dead’—they have no components that can be used by the Holy Spirit.” Who does the real walking dead refer to? Is this a dead person? In this kind of person, “not only is there no opportunity for the work of the Holy Spirit, there is even more so no value of perfection.” Then, can the Holy Spirit do His work on this kind of person? Is it evident, from these words, that God has completely abandoned people like this? Yes, He has completely abandoned them. “… this type of person is the real ‘walking dead’….” What does “walking dead” mean in this context? A spiritless creature, a beast dressed in human’s clothing. If we say that this spiritless creature is a beast, would that be considered insulting them? Is this spiritless creature a beast? It’s just a matter of whether the words sound nice or not. The basic sentiment is true, is it not? Some people, when they first hear this, respond by saying “Isn’t this an insult? Isn’t calling me a walking corpse insulting me?” Is this really an insult? All of God’s words are the truth. It’s not an insult. Then what does it mean to insult a person? If you call a person with a spirit and a conscience a walking corpse, then you’re insulting them. If you call a walking corpse without a spirit or conscience a person with humanity, that is a distortion of the facts. That is confusing right and wrong. If they are a walking corpse, then say they’re a walking corpse. If they’re a beast, then just call a spade a spade. It is appropriate, not an insult. Isn’t that so? If you say the devil is the devil, does that amount to an insult? It’s calling a spade a spade. If you say the devil is a person, what’s the problem there? You’re distorting the facts. If you say a person with humanity is the devil, that is an insult, that is framing, that is judging. Saying it like that makes it easy to understand, doesn’t it? Then if we read God’s words again, can we have any conceptions or misunderstandings? The results will be a bit better. We must have a pure understanding of God’s words.

Continuing on, God then says, “this type of person is the real ‘walking dead’—they have no components that can be used by the Holy Spirit—they have all been appropriated by Satan, corrupted to the extreme by Satan, who are the object of God’s elimination.” Those wicked ones who eat their fill, those evil spirits, those who do not love the truth at all, they have all been invaded and deeply corrupted by Satan; they are walking corpses. They will ultimately be eliminated by God. Are there many people like this in the religious world? Yes. Therefore, God cannot save these people. They must all die in the disaster. If someone says, “No. God is love. Everyone who believes in Him will be saved; none of them will be forsaken. God Himself even brought up an example: Even if 1 out of 100 sheep is lost, they shall be returned.” Is it right to use this parable as evidence? To understand this passage, you must first understand who God’s sheep are. Walking corpses are not God’s sheep. Those that have no love for the truth are not God’s sheep. The Lord Jesus used many metaphors to illustrate this point: In the last days He’ll separate the weeds from the wheat, the sheep from the goats, the wicked servants from the good servants, the true believers from the fake believers. They shall all be divided according to their type. This is what the Lord Jesus meant by this. In the last days, people’s natures will be revealed, and there shall be a major restructuring. The wheat will be placed in the barn, while the weeds will be blown away by the wind. When I say this now, do you think there are many people in the religious community that can obtain God’s salvation? Not many. Religious people entertain themselves every day with dreams of entering the kingdom of heaven and being raptured by God. In the end, they unknowingly die in the great disaster. It’s just like when Noah built the ark. All the people of the world were drinking and laughing. They said, “Noah is crazy! What is that lunatic up to? I’ll bet you he’s still gathering wood to build that ark of his!” Someone said, “He’s bound to fall and kill himself, carrying all that wood. Where is the flood? Nowhere to be found! He’s deluding himself! He’s got a screw loose!” At that moment, the floodwaters arrived, and they all drowned. What are the religious people saying now? They’re saying: “They believe in Almighty God. Look. Their faith has driven them crazy. They are leaving their homes and sacrificing their careers! See it is so good that we believe in the Lord Jesus. We will be raised up to heaven and don’t need to be judged or chastised!” While they’re having their dreams, the great disaster will strike. Just calling to the Lord Jesus for help doesn’t mean He’ll save them. No one will hear their calls. When that happens, won’t they be dumbfounded? They’ll say, “Alas, I am going to call out to Almighty God and see if that will work.” Tell me, do you think calling out to Almighty God at that point will do any good? At that point, it’s too late to call for help. The door to salvation will have closed. No matter how long you keep knocking, the door won’t open.

Let’s continue reading God’s word. “Currently the Holy Spirit is not only using people by putting their virtues into play, but also perfecting and changing their shortcomings.” This is the principle by which God makes people perfect. Do you understand? Tell me, “using people by putting their virtues into play,” what does “virtues” refer to? Is it clear to you? The virtues are the things that people’s caliber is capable of, the things that allow them to understand and experience the truth. They can be enlightened by the Holy Spirit. God uses them to serve His purpose. The Holy Spirit enlightens people so that they can experience the truth and gain enlightenment in God’s word and have a path forward. Then they will be able to communicate about and bear witness to the truth so that others will benefit as well. Do you understand? In their fellowship about God’s word, many brothers and sisters have enlightenment, ways of practice, and some experiences; after listening to the fellowship, God’s chosen will think, “Oh, great! It’s edifying!” Is this how the Holy Spirit works on everyone that has obtained His work? Yes, it is. These are their virtues. Then what are man’s shortcomings? Sometimes they are arrogant. Sometimes they are disobedient. Sometimes they view things according to their own conceptions and illusions. Sometimes they live in the corruption of the flesh, rebel against God and push God away. These are man’s shortcomings. What does God do with the shortcomings? As long as you seek and practice the truth at times, you give the Holy Spirit a chance to do His work; He has a chance to work on you. As long as you give your heart to God and can say a real prayer to Him, you give the Holy Spirit a chance to do His work; He has a chance to work on you. On the one hand, the Holy Spirit enlightens you so you can understand the truth and practice some truth. On the other hand, the Holy Spirit disciplines you when you rebel against God or become arrogant. He will refine you and make you endure hardships. This refinement will make you endure hardship; it will transform your undesirable parts. Do you understand? When our brothers and sisters elect leaders, we often hear them say, “This person has these good qualities, but also has those shortcomings. If they can change their shortcomings, they will be really useful to God. That person has these good qualities, but also has those shortcomings. I haven’t seen anyone who’s perfect, but they all really want God and love the truth.” These are the people of God. They are kinds of people that God will save. Therefore, the Holy Spirit has a chance to do His work on those people and use the parts that are useful and can be made perfect while pruning and changing the parts that are not useful and undesirable. Do you understand? This is how the Holy Spirit was starting to do His work on me. At that time, I was enlightened by the Holy Spirit, and everyone felt like hearing my sermons. However, my “undesirable part” was my hubris and arrogance. As soon as the Holy Spirit did His work on me, I was enlightened. Sometimes I underestimated other people. When I saw many people who worked for years but did not pursue the truth, I looked down on them. I said, “You guys have believed in God for so many years, yet you do not pursue the truth!” Tell me, what’s the problem here? Are these the undesirables? Yes. These are the undesirables. Then, are the undesirables enough to prove that people have been too deeply corrupted by Satan? Therefore, during God’s work in the last days, all the people who God will make perfect have been corrupted by Satan, without exception. Their corrupt nature is exactly the same. There is no major difference between them. Some people who have believed in God until this day have undergone a lot of change; some people who have believed in God until this day have only undergone some change. This is normal. Some people ask me, “Have you been made perfect by God?” I answer by saying, “I dare not say. If God says this, I feel like I don’t deserve it because I have also been deeply corrupted.” Some people say, “Then are you considered holy?” I say, “I can’t say that. People are always filthy and corrupt in God’s eyes.” Do humans dare say they are holy? Although you say you haven’t sinned, you also don’t dare say you’re holy. Isn’t that right? If you haven’t committed any sins, have you sinned in your thoughts? Do you have any filthiness? Do you dare say no? I dare not say no. I have filthiness, but it’s not major. I say man is not holy not merely because of this. Are people’s thoughts and ideas in accordance with the truth? Are they all in accordance with God’s will? Are any of them mixed with human will? I have all these. If we simply said we had corrupt ideas, wouldn’t that be an understatement? Is it that simple?

What does it mean to be “made perfect” by God? When we talk about being made perfect, can we say that it’s an endless process? The minimum standard is that people obey God, love God and will no longer resist God. This is the minimum standard. What is the highest standard? That your mind and thoughts are holy and in accordance with God’s will and the truth. Tell me, how long do you have to believe in God to achieve this? It would take, as we say, an indefinite amount of time. In that case, can you say that the process of being made perfect is an endless one? Yes, it’s endless. In that case, you ask me, “Have you been made perfect by God?” Are you using the minimum standard or the highest standard to assess me? If you are using the minimum standard, I think I still fall a bit short of it. God says His demand for people is this minimum standard, but if you ask me whether I meet that standard, I would not dare to say “I meet the minimum standard. If I keep on trying for a few more years, I can meet a mid-level standard. If I keep trying for ten or twenty years, I can meet a high standard.” Who dares to make that claim? You can’t say it. If you said it, you’d be exposed and put to shame. Are any other people going to ask me, “Have you been made perfect by God?” How should we understand this? Don’t think of this thing too highly or mysteriously. Just say, “Oh. If that’s what God says, I accept it. God’s demands are reasonable; they are not too high and not too low. Normal people can meet them.” If this is the way God makes people perfect, then maybe there are some people that will be made perfect and become the “overcomers” and people who are after God’s heart. If the standard is as lofty as people think, then I’m afraid God’s words here will come to nothing. In the last days, God wants to perfect a group of people who are of one mind with Him. Well, if that is as difficult a task as you imagine, can God accomplish it? If so, it would be hard to make a group of overcomers, for no one would attain that. Then, as you understand it, “being made perfect,” is that using God’s highest standard or the lowest standard? You all say it’s the lowest standard. Why do you all agree that it’s the lowest standard? Someone said, “We hope we’ll become the overcomers too. If we agree that it’s the highest standard, then that will be trouble. We won’t have any chance to become overcomers.” How clever! If we say it’s according to the lowest standard, do I count as having been made perfect? This time it counts. If I lose temper again, will you think anything of it? No, you wouldn’t. If someone did take exception with it, how would you explain it to them? I won’t say much more. In any case, you’ve all seen God’s words. God’s demands are not as high as people think. They are objective and realistic; they are goals that ordinary people can achieve. Are there such words contained in God’s word? Yes, there are. Now some people always have notions about me being angry. What is actually in their hearts? “We hope that our brother can be completely holy and become a truly perfected man so that we can emulate him.” If they expect that much from me, how can I not thank them? This is all good. They have good intentions. Their doubts make me even more motivated to keep working hard and moving forward until I cleanse myself of all corruption and am completely holy. This is what I want to do. However, even if this is my intention, every person has their own limits. Isn’t that true? In any case, everyone has some level of understanding of how God makes people perfect. Although their understanding may be imperfect, if they have a willingness to achieve it, then that’s OK. That’s proper. Where is the starting point? Establishing a proper relationship with God. This is the starting point.

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God’s words say: “Currently the Holy Spirit is not only using people by putting their virtues into play, but also perfecting and changing their shortcomings.” This is the path and method God uses to perfect people. But what is most essential to obtaining God’s perfection? Most important is to have opportunities for the Holy Spirit to work. Where are the opportunities for the Holy Spirit to work? When you establish a proper relationship with God, the Holy Spirit will have opportunities to work. What is meant by a proper relationship with God? What is true belief? True belief is true submission. What does submission to God entail? It’s not simply submitting to God’s arrangements, orchestrations, and dominion. Here’s the most important point: accepting and practicing the words expressed by God. This is the most practical part of submitting to God, do you understand? When you pray and seek the truth in God’s words, the Holy Spirit will have opportunities to work. Seek God’s will pertaining to what happens to you, pray with a submissive heart, and then the Holy Spirit will have opportunities to work. These two are the most important opportunities. One is to learn to submit to God when things happen. Job is an example. Trials came to Job, all properties were taken away, and he prayed to God. He was silent for many days contemplating this matter and seeking God’s will. Finally, he gained some understanding, “No matter what, God gave and God has taken away, may the name of God be praised; God must not be blamed.” After thinking and struggling for many days, that was his conclusion. Would you say that Job’s struggle over these days was effective? His utterance represents the effect. Satan had been there waiting for days for Job to betray God so that it could begin to ridicule God. Satan waited until Job’s utterance was made, then said, “I have not seen through you; I’m again in disgrace.” It was gone. Can Satan inspect the bottom of people’s heart? It couldn’t see through Job. God can observe the bottom of people’s heart. God had seen and understood Job, God spoke the truth about him thoroughly, but Satan was unconvinced, so it gambled and it lost. What does this prove? God can observe the bottom of people’s heart and knows everyone like the palm of His own hand. Satan can’t do that. Satan has no penetration into a person’s substance and the truth about him. What sort of people’s thoughts and hearts can be mastered by Satan? Only those who are possessed by it. Whoever is possessed by Satan has his thoughts and heart mastered by it, but Satan has no penetration into the hearts and thoughts of those not possessed by it. Is this not the case? God observes everyone’s heart; God sees everyone’s heart and immediately understands. We now comprehend this aspect of the truth.

By now we should be clear on how people can provide opportunities for the Holy Spirit to work! First, seek to understand the truth, and find a way to practice in God’s word. After you discover how to practice, pray to God about it, give Him your heart, and make no choices of your own, choose only to practice the truth to satisfy God, choose only to practice the truth, and stand witness to and love God. Then, the Holy Spirit will have opportunities to work. Second, seek God’s will pertaining to things which happen to you, make no choices of your own, choose only to stand in testimony to satisfy God, and this way the Holy Spirit will enlighten you. Once enlightened, you shall understand God’s will, and you’ll say, “I want to stand in testimony to God.” Isn’t this a path? This means providing opportunities for the Holy Spirit to work. Now you should understand! For example, you may be introduced to a potential marriage partner. How should this be handled? Should you seek God’s will? “Oh God, should I seek a marriage partner? Now that the big disaster looms, will it be beneficial to my growth in life to fall in love?” After you pray, you’ll think, “Don’t get married, it will only entangle you!” So, when something happens, you should seek God’s will! If you lack penetration and get impatient, “I need a romantic partner, I need offspring,” in the end that only produces entanglements and disasters, and you’ve ruined your own life. Who should take the blame for that? Who is to be blamed? “Why didn’t God enlighten me?” God will say, “You didn’t pray and seek. You wanted it and decided you couldn’t do without marriage, so who is to blame? Did I tell you to get married? Did I tell you to marry some particular person?” That was your own idea, so don’t blame God.

God’s words are as follows, “When you give your heart to God, you can enter more deeply on the positive side, and be on a higher plane of understanding; on the negative side, you will have more understanding of your own faults and shortcomings, you will be more eager to seek to satisfy God’s will, and in a non-passive state, you will actively enter, and this will mean that you are a correct person.” What is someone who is correct? Someone who is correct has the work of the Holy Spirit, and can gain God’s approval. What does someone who is correct have? He should pursue and seek the truth to achieve the results that come from being correct. The first part, “When you give your heart to God, you can enter more deeply on the positive side.” Giving your heart to God, what does that signify? With regard to giving your heart to God, some people say: “How do I give my heart to God? I can’t take my heart out of my chest. If my heart was an object I could easily remove, then I’d send it to God, but I can’t do that!” What does “give your heart to God” refer to? This is about the performance of a heart; bring out your true heart. Bring out your true heart and offer it to God. Find your true heart, bring it out, and offer it to God. What does this mean? I’ll give you an example: Whenever things happen to people, they have a choice to make. Whenever things happen to people, they form their own attitudes. But where do those choices and attitudes come from? Where does a decision come from? Is it the heart? If this heart can submit to God and make choices according to God’s requirements, isn’t that giving the heart to God? Giving the heart to God means offering yourself to God, submitting entirely to God’s arrangements, making no choices of your own, letting God rule over this matter, letting God make the arrangements, and letting God be the master and decision-maker. That is the meaning of “give your heart to God.” Put like that, is it easy to understand? Suppose you face the matter of seeking a romantic partner. “God, as my flesh demands, I’m considering getting a romantic partner, but when I think about it, I realize it’s not simple, and I’m now indecisive. If I get one, there could be many future troubles; if I don’t, my flesh will be uncomfortable and suffer. What should I do? God, I entrust you with this matter. If you disallow it, I won’t. If you want me to give up, I’ll give up. Whatever you decide will be my decision.” Is this giving the heart to God? Suppose someone receives a recommendation for a good job from his friend, a high-status job with a salary higher than most. “This is a good thing!” When this temptation comes, people can’t let go. “This is a good job, and the pay is good. If I don’t do it, won’t I lose out?” At this point, shouldn’t you pray to God? Some say you should. Then how should you pray? Should you leave the matter to God? Give your heart to God and let Him take charge; let God make the choice for you, let God be the master and decision-maker; don’t let yourself have the final say. This is meant by giving the heart to God. Let God decide. “God, if You say I should take up this job, I’ll go to work. If You say I should give it up, I will.” Isn’t praying this way giving the heart to God? This is how to pray. Now does giving the heart to God make sense? Now you understand what it means. In other words, let God decide all things and hold no ideas of your own. Some say, “It’s important to pursue the truth now. At each gathering, this brother’s sermons truly carry the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. They truly have the work of the Holy Spirit, which represents God’s meaning. If we don’t pursue the truth diligently now, if we miss this opportunity, our regret later will be unspeakable, and we will only be able to weep and gnash our teeth! So what should we do? Today I love drinking, dressing up and putting on make-up, bodybuilding, traveling and appreciating the nature created by God.” Don’t these hobbies of yours belong to the flesh? Can you forsake them? Can’t you instead use this precious time to eat and drink God’s words, pursue the truth, and do your duties? And everyone answers very quickly with a “yes.” It’s a “yes,” and the heart is willing, but you can’t practice that “yes.” At such a moment, shouldn’t you give your heart to God? Some say, “No, I can’t let go, even if I give my heart to God now, eventually my heart will follow my flesh, and the giving will be in vain. I can’t give it, because my heart thirsts for travel too deeply, my heart thirsts for leisure too deeply, my heart thirsts for dressing up and showing off too deeply. I can’t squelch it!” Such demands carry great difficulties and are hard to overcome. The hobby is too important, and can’t be given up! Is this easy to solve? Are there people with experience in such matters? I’ll provide an example. Some brothers and sisters fall in love, but they then accept God’s work. Hearing the voice of the Creator, they stand up and follow God. Those who haven’t married cancel their plans to marry, and those who are in love leave their partners. Are most people capable of such things? Are these things done by people or by God? Some say they’re done by God. But even if they’re done by God, they still wouldn’t be possible without cooperation from people. If these things were done by people alone, they couldn’t be accomplished. It takes people cooperating with God to make it work, doesn’t it? Put this way, is there a path in the face of such great difficulty? Is there hope? There is hope. If you don’t believe, pray. Pray for a few days, and in the beginning, you might have 50% faith, and just when you’re about to kick your potential romantic partner away, your leg won’t move, in fact you might not even be able to leave your house. But on the second day, if you keep praying, your faith will reach 60%, and the thought will begin to take shape. You might be able to leave the house, but whether you can move your leg and kick your romantic partner away is still in doubt. Keep praying, because on the third day, your faith will rise to 70%, and on the fourth day, it will rise to 80%. After praying for a few days, you’ll say “I understand the issue now. Why is it so easy for me to let go now? I’ll get rid of my romantic partner tomorrow!” After praying for a few days, you’ve found the strength. We’ve all seen such testimony. Many people have borne such witness, haven’t they? Haven’t we seen people get divorced after giving birth to a child? Haven’t we seen people quit good jobs? Were they people with a large spiritual stature? Not necessarily so. They have prayed to God, so God worked and gave them faith. And those things were accomplished with their cooperation. No matter what else, it is certain that these people were willing to practice the truth, weren’t they? Worry only if you don’t depend on God. If you don’t depend on God, but instead yourselves, will you be able to achieve these things? No, not without twenty to thirty years of experience, having witnessed countless similar victories, and growing your spiritual stature. This has to do with giving your heart to God.

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Let’s continue communicating God’s words. “… you can enter more deeply on the positive side, and be on a higher plane of understanding; on the negative side, you will have more understanding of your own faults and shortcomings, you will be more eager to seek to satisfy God’s will, and in a non-passive state, you will actively enter, and this will mean that you are a correct person.” Someone who is correct is someone who seeks the truth, understands the truth and practices it, understands the truth and submits to God, and gives his heart to God when things happen. Although his spiritual stature is too small, he can look to God and rely on God. In the end, he crosses the barriers, and stands as testimony. This is someone who is correct. Therefore, someone who is correct is surely someone who pursues and loves the truth. He depends on the faith and strength given to him by God to overcome Satan’s temptations and the flesh. Isn’t this the case? Then what do we mean by someone who is not correct? This person dislikes the truth, and when things happen, he does not seek the truth. Instead, he seeks nothing but profits, insists on his own notions and imagination about everything, insists stubbornly on his own wrongful opinions and views about everything, is arrogant and self-right, and refuses to accept the truth. Such a person is not someone who is correct, and not someone who pursues the truth. He lives entirely in the corrupt satanic disposition, and at the mercy of Satan. He greedily enjoys sinful happiness, measures all things with his own notions and imagination, and never accepts the truth. This is someone who is not correct. If he is that kind of person, can he be saved by God? He absolutely cannot be saved by God. Why? Because the Holy Spirit has no opportunities to work on such a person. He does not give opportunities to the Holy Spirit to work. He will never be able to receive the work of the Holy Spirit! Such people are destined to be eliminated by God. And those in religion who always refuse to accept Almighty God, are they people who are correct? Those in religion who truly seek God and love the truth are the wise virgins. Those who hear that Almighty God has come but do not seek, inspect, and blindly condemn Him are foolish virgins. What shall be the outcome and ending for the foolish virgins? Such virgins can only be thrown into disaster, where they will weep and gnash their teeth. Now people in religion still preach, “We believe in the Lord Jesus, and are guaranteed to be raptured. If it isn’t the Lord Jesus who descends with white clouds under His feet, we won’t accept Him!” They shout and are so insistent, but in the twinkling of an eye, when the final great disaster comes, they will see that they are not raptured, and they will sigh at God with tears in their eyes, “Lord Jesus, are You coming or not? The disaster has arrived, am I to fall into this disaster? Can You bear to see me falling into this disaster? Can You bear to see me die in this disaster? Lord Jesus, please save me!” Will these words be of any use then? They will be useless. Once that disaster comes, the door of grace will be shut. Some say, “Opportunities should be afforded to people!” What opportunities? Have opportunities not been given? You refuse to take the opportunities yourself, you refuse to look for opportunities to seek God’s work yourself; are these opportunities given by people? The disaster is about to come, yet you still do not seek the truth. How should God give you opportunities? Without even the penetration to understand this issue, aren’t you someone who does not understand the spirit? What do you mean by giving you opportunities? God’s work never waits for any that cannot keep pace with God. God always works according to His own schedule and His arrangements, isn’t this the case? You may still talk about giving people opportunities, but God has arranged when the great disaster will arrive. There are signs everywhere proving that the great disaster is imminent, coming almost immediately. Even unbelievers are saying: “The end of the world is arriving! There are truly the end times!”

Building a proper relationship with God depends on seeking and obeying the truth and giving your heart to God. So long as you sincerely seek the truth and submit to God you shall receive the work of the Holy Spirit, because those who live under the guidance of the work of the Holy Spirit are on the path to salvation and perfection. If a person has believed in God for many years and cannot obtain the work of the Holy Spirit, then he is not someone who is correct, and is likely to be abandoned and eliminated by God! Therefore, although you are now a believer and have accepted Almighty God, do you truly have the work of the Holy Spirit? Is this not a practical issue? Is there any opportunity for the Holy Spirit to work in you? Do you have the enlightenment and illumination and the guidance of the Holy Spirit? If you have no feeling toward such matters, nothing at all, isn’t there some danger? This is already living on the edge of danger. Have you reflected as to why you are living on the edge of danger? What causes you to be living on the edge? It’s mainly because you haven’t given your heart to God, don’t seek the truth, and don’t pursue the truth. Isn’t this the case? Then where is your heart? What’s your heart doing? Where has it gone? Can you find your heart? Can this matter be dealt with easily? If you don’t find your heart and give it to God, use it to pursue the truth, and use it to experience God’s words, then you are not someone who is correct, and you are likely to be eliminated by God! Don’t think that as followers of Almighty God you are guaranteed to be safe, because you are not! If you have entered into the truth and reality of God’s words and obtained the guidance of the work of the Holy Spirit, then relatively speaking you are safer. If you have the truth, have a foundation in the true way, know how to practice the truth by yourself, can submit to God easily, have made real progress in being an honest person, and have achieved change, then you’re truly safe. Then make sure you’ve understood what I’ve said! This is the most essential matter! Without the work of the Holy Spirit, we can’t congratulate ourselves too soon.

I asked someone, “You believe in Almighty God, so do you think you have laid the foundation?” He took a deep breath, “Oh, to that question, I have no easy answer. Have I laid the foundation?” I said, “Let’s put it this way, can those rumors and fallacies of the great red dragon and the religious circles still confuse you?” “Definitely not.” I said: “Then can you refute them? Can you refute those rumors and fallacies with the truth and God’s words?” He said, “This I can’t do. I know that those rumors and fallacies are wrong, but I still can’t refute them in concrete terms. I don’t have enough words to refute them.” What is the problem? Does this count as laying a foundation in the true way? No. Some think, “If I can’t use the truth and God’s words to refute those rumors and fallacies of the great red dragon and the religious circles, that means I haven’t laid my foundation in the true way properly. This is serious, and this saying is right and practical! Considered this way, it seems I haven’t laid my foundation at all.” Without the foundation, are you guaranteed to be safe? Is your salvation certain? It’s hard to say. It’s hard to say whether you will survive or not. Is it fair to put it this way? You mustn’t treat praying, communicating with God, and giving your heart to God as ordinary and dispensable things. You mustn’t think such things are not important. If you do, you’re in trouble, because this is a crucial matter. If you can’t practice this truth or make such prayers, and cannot achieve results, it will be very difficult for you to obtain the work of the Holy Spirit. For you to obtain the work of the Holy Spirit, the essential factors include whether you can give your heart to God, whether you pray to God with complete sincerity, and whether you seek the truth and obey God. If you lack complete sincerity, then you are going through the motions with God, having fun with God, and toying with God; that’s a great sin! If you can’t make real entry and real breakthroughs in this regard, then your belief isn’t much different from that of people in the religious world. God does not recognize that. Believing in God is a serious matter. If you can’t treat it seriously, it means you are frivolous. Don’t imagine you can be like people in the religious circles, who pray, “Oh, Lord Jesus, I’m a sinner, may You forgive me, I believe in You and accept You with all sincerity,” and that when the Lord Jesus hears it, He will say, “Alright, you are forgiven,” to which the religious cry, “Lord Jesus, You’re truly my Lord! I’m a sinner, I’m a filthy and corrupt person! You’ve forgiven me today, I shall submit to You, obey You, and follow You.” And then after praying, they feel released, and have peace and joy and become self-satisfied in their heart, thinking, “It’s settled! I’m guaranteed to be saved! From now on I belong to the Lord Jesus. When I’ve lived enough, the Lord Jesus will come and bring me to heaven. I’ll enter the kingdom of heaven! It’s done! That’s how easy it is to believe in God!” Is this a realistic expectation? Is this not a dream? The Lord Jesus has said so many things; do you practice even one? Not even one; and you say you belong to the Lord Jesus, and are waiting for the Lord to bring you to heaven. Isn’t this shameless?

Let’s read a few passages of the words of the Lord Jesus. Matthew 4:4, “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” If people only eat and drink but do not practice God’s words, they are walking corpses. The most important part is that man should live “by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” You need to practice God’s words; that’s the most important. Second, Matthew 7:21, “Not every one that said to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven.” “… but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven.” These words of the Lord Jesus are very important. You can forget about entering the kingdom of heaven without doing the will of the heavenly Father. That’s nothing but a daydream. Let’s read another part, Matthew 11:12, “And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.” What does “force” refer to? You must practice God’s words, and do God’s will; that’s called “force.” If you are not forceful, and cannot obtain force, you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 12:48-50, “But he answered and said to him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brothers? And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brothers! For whoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.” The Lord Jesus does not recognize those who are not doing the will of the heavenly Father. If His mother, foster father, and brothers did not do the will of the heavenly Father, He wouldn’t have recognized them! Did the Lord Jesus have emotions? Let’s move on with the reading. Mark 12: 29-31, “And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is none other commandment greater than these.” The first commandment is to love God; love God with all your heart and mind. The second is to love your neighbor as yourself. These two are the greatest commandments. Have you carried out these two commandments? If you cannot carry them out, yet want to enter the kingdom of heaven, you will fail! Next, Luke 9:23-25, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whoever will save his life shall lose it: but whoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it. For what is a man advantaged, if he gain the whole world, and lose himself, or be cast away?” “Save his life”; how to save his life? “For whoever will save his life shall lose it: but whoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.” What does “lose his life” refer to? It’s not just about death; it’s about betraying the flesh, nailing the flesh on the cross, getting rid of that which pleases the flesh, refusing to pursue fleshly things, and forsaking the flesh; this is what is meant by “lose his life.” Losing enjoyment of the flesh, losing personal pursuit, and losing personal liking mean saving yourself. Therefore, those who cannot betray the flesh cannot obtain the truth and life; understood? Let’s read John 3:3, “Truly, truly, I say to you, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” You see, those who are not born again cannot see the kingdom of God. John 8:12, “Then spoke Jesus again to them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” We must follow the Lord. What is meant by “follow the Lord”? Following the Lord means practicing and experiencing the Lord’s words. You are not following the Lord if you are not practicing and experiencing the Lord’s words, and are not following His way. Those who follow the Lord shall obtain life; those who do not follow the Lord shall not obtain life but fall into darkness. John 8:31-32, “Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If you continue in my word, then are you my disciples indeed; And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” “If you continue in my word, then are you my disciples indeed.” If you want to enter the kingdom of heaven, ask yourself if you have walked in the way of the Lord Jesus. If you haven’t walked in the way of the Lord Jesus, does the Lord Jesus recognize you? Of course not! John 8:34-36, “Jesus answered them, Truly, truly, I say to you, Whoever commits sin is the servant of sin. And the servant stays not in the house for ever: but the Son stays ever. If the Son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed.” It’s mentioned here that those who often commit sin are servants of sin; servants of sin cannot stay forever in the house. They must be eliminated. That’s the meaning. You commit sin often and think of entering God’s kingdom, absolutely impossible! John 8:51, “Truly, truly, I say to you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death.” Only through walking in the way of the Lord can one enter the heavenly kingdom and never see death; he who does not walk in the way of the Lord and yet thinks of waiting for the Lord to rapture him will have no chance. Don’t even think about it! This is not all the Lord has to say about it, but reading this much should be enough. Based on these words, do those in religion who believe in the Lord Jesus and think of being raptured into heaven still have hope? Have they obeyed the words spoken by the Lord Jesus? Have they gained entry? They do not practice a single utterance among these words, and still think of entering the heavenly kingdom. Impossible! That’s a fantasy! Therefore, since we accept Almighty God today, who has expressed so much truth, we must practice it! It’s unacceptable to not practice it! The desire to enter the kingdom of heaven without practicing it is madness! The Spirit of truth is here. He is Almighty God, and He has expressed all truth required for people’s salvation. Yet how much of the truth have people implemented? First, do you love God? If you truly love God, why are you not forsaking everything to follow God? If you truly love God, why are you not practicing and experiencing His words? If you truly love God, why are you not walking in His way? If you truly love God, why are you not loyal to Him to the end? All these should be understood by people. If people do not walk in God’s way, do they have a proper relationship with God? Does God recognize them? God would say, “You do not truly love Me; you do not walk in My way, therefore, I do not recognize you as My disciple.”

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So isn’t the most important thing now for us to build a proper relationship with God? What is a proper relationship with God? It is a relationship characterized by our total submission, our true love for God, our worship for the Creator in our capacity as His creatures, our performing the duty of a creature to repay God’s love, submitting as a servant to our Master, and treating God as God in our submission to Him. So, is this your relationship with God? Do you possess such a relationship? Do your prayers to God and your communion with God produce an effect? Have you built a proper relationship with God? If not, you need to work hard and gain experience! Sometimes it takes three to five years to build such a relationship! In this period, there can be many failures and falls, but through continuous hard work, eventually people can stand firm, have a proper relationship with God, no longer depart from God, no longer betray God, and can truly love and submit to God. Then, this proper relationship has not only been built, but has produced achievement. Gaining salvation and being perfected by God is the ultimate result of building a proper relationship with God. If you fail to build a proper relationship with God, can you still be saved and perfected? No, not at all! God doesn’t recognize that. God says: “You are not My disciple, you are not truly following Me, you are not obeying My words, you never practice or experience My words, you never consider My will, you never seek the truth from Me.” If God says that to you, you’re in trouble! Such a person believes in Almighty God, but God won’t be willing to see him. God will say, “This person doesn’t pursue the truth in the slightest. I have nothing to say to him if I see him. If I ignore him, he may say that God doesn’t love people, and that God is cold toward him, but it wouldn’t matter even if I bothered with him and spoke to him. Outwardly he listens, but behind My back he doesn’t practice, so it’s best not to see him. And it’s good to him, too.” Some individuals pursue the truth and achieve some genuine change, and God says it’s alright to see someone like that, because God likes such people. When God speaks, this kind of person doesn’t interrupt, he listens attentively with his heart, memorizes God’s words, and takes them seriously afterward. He can implement and experience these words, and after some time, he shows growth. God likes such honest people, and people who pursue the truth. If such a person seeks God, God will say, “I’m willing, because seeing such an individual doesn’t mean I speak in vain. I can give him some benefit. But if it’s not someone like that, it’s useless for Me to speak with him. I would be wasting My effort, because it would have no effect.” Why does God mention this issue? People always want to seek to see Christ, but I tell you that before you have attained the truth and entered into the reality of the truth, it’s best that you don’t meet with Christ. It’s easy to offend God upon meeting Him. God sees in you the performance of an unbeliever, the disposition of an unbeliever, the glance of an unbeliever, and action and look of an unbeliever and finds them sickening. God sees this kind of person and says, “One look tells Me he’s not someone who pursues the truth, one look tells Me he’s not Godly; one look tells Me he doesn’t have a God-fearing heart, and I see such people to be no different from unbelievers and the devil.”

Some people have believed in God for quite some time, but are not willing to expend for God with a true heart, can’t give up anything, can’t give away anything, care about the flesh, and lust for enjoyment and comfort. Only when God gives them daily grace will they treat God as such. If God gives them difficulties and pain, they will grumble about God. Are they ones who truly believe in God? Some people may have good qualities, but they aren’t willing to expend for God. They have qualities and gifts, but they say, “I would rather earn more money and enjoyment in this world, I won’t expend for God.” Do such people have a conscience? God granted you with intelligence and wisdom and made you competent, yet you don’t use these gifts to expend for God, instead you use them to earn money. How can you answer to God? The house of God has confidence in certain people with good quality, we say “You should pursue the truth well, so that you can expend for God, and shoulder burdens for God.” But some won’t do it. Some church leaders try to work on them, “You possess great qualities, so could you pursue the truth and do some work for the house of God?” When they hear this, they put on airs, “We’ll discuss it later! I have my own troubles now. My family needs money, my children need my care to grow, my parents need care in their old age.” They won’t give everything up, and yet they want to enter the kingdom of heaven, God’s kingdom, they want to be given blessings, and handed the crown. Do such people exist? A great many. These people lack sense. Their thinking is abnormal. Wouldn’t you say that it’s better and more meaningful to enter into the heavenly kingdom, expend for God and do work to satisfy God than to live in the world and have enjoyment of the flesh? You live in the flesh and the comfort of family. That’s emptiness, sin, and betrayal! Now God has come to do the work of the last days. How many days are left? Immediately the disaster is coming. Perhaps someday, suddenly, wars will erupt and big earthquakes will occur. Suddenly, a big disaster will eliminate your family members and bury them. Then you’ll say, “There’s no one left in my house now, I have no more entanglements, so I should expend for God. Now I can do my duty.” Do you still have a chance? Christ came to earth but He will not work on earth forever. It’s a transient moment that happens in the twinkling of an eye! If people cannot love God while Christ is still on earth, they have missed the opportunity to love God.

Some people say, “I love the God who is in heaven!” Does this make sense? How do you love the God who is in heaven? Have you seen Him? Has He spoken with you? Can you have a heart-to-heart with Him? Can He chat with you? That’s pure imagination, pure nonsense, and impractical! God incarnate can speak heart-to-heart with people. God incarnate can chat with people; God incarnate can keep people company. God incarnate can get along with people. If, during the period God has incarnated, you cannot speak heart-to-heart with Him, you cannot give God your heart, and you cannot love God and submit to God, then you’ll regret it forever! Some say, “The man used by the Holy Spirit can talk with us and communicate with us daily. We’ve gained much.” You can accomplish and gain some things through fellowship with this person. However, if you communicate and get along with Christ this way, wouldn’t you receive more benefits? If you could hear God’s fellowship often and speak with God face-to-face, you would be very fortunate! You won’t find this opportunity later. How many years did the Lord Jesus work on earth before He departed? The maximum was three and a half years. Within those three and a half years, how many had the privilege to live by the Lord Jesus’ side and carry those beautiful memories? Just those few, and even so, it wasn’t on a frequent or daily basis. They might meet with the Lord only once every eight to ten days. Possibly, they followed the Lord for a duration, went home for a duration, and then returned to the Lord. If people cannot love God while the incarnate God works on earth, that’s quite a big regret! Something they’ll regret forever! Some say, “If I don’t feel it now, I won’t feel it later.” You don’t feel it now, and you dare say you won’t feel it later? You’ve spoken too soon! Someday you’ll know, and then you’ll regret it! Some say, “Then must people see Christ?” I’m not saying that you must see Christ, but that you have to pursue loving God, “While Christ is working, my heart always loves Him. While Christ is on earth, I expend for Him daily, and experience and practice His words. While I don’t see Christ face-to-face, I use my heart to satisfy Him. God can observe this!” Do you dare say these words? If you truly act this way, and you say, “God can observe me, I do everything because I love God and submit to God, I use my heart to experience and implement each utterance of God, and I do it all to satisfy God. So, my heart loves God even without seeing Christ face to face.” If you are such a person, you’re blessed! People say, “Many who have seen Christ do not love God so much, yet without seeing Christ even once, the love of God in your heart is so real and strong!” Would you say such love is genuine? It’s like what the Lord Jesus told Thomas, “because you have seen me, you have believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed” (John 20:29). Blessed are they that have not seen Christ and yet have believed. Someone says, “I use my heart to believe in Christ without seeing Him. Without seeing Christ, my heart still loves Him, I always live for loving Him, I do all things because I love Him, and I fulfill my duty.” Is this person more praised by God than those who have seen Christ but do not love Christ? Now there are many people who have seen Christ; tens of thousands of the early believers in Almighty God have seen Christ, but how many of them love God? Not many people love God. Now there are even more believers in Almighty God. If a person hasn’t seen Christ, but has a true heart that loves God, has done many things, and has let go of many things, God can see this. Would you say such a person truly loves God? Such people are certainly the most blessed by God. Understood? If someone says, “We haven’t seen Christ face-to-face, how can we love God?” Is there any sense in this? This is ridiculous. If you really want to love God, it has to do with whether you have the intent. Those with the intent don’t rely on what they see with their eyes. Such a man uses his heart to love God, to care about God’s will, and to submit to God—that’s enough; that means giving the heart totally over to God. This heart is a heart that truly loves God and submits to God’s will; such people are those who abide by God’s way. Therefore, such people are qualified to enter the heavenly kingdom. Such people are most blessed by God, and when such people enter the heavenly kingdom, they surely are the pillars of the heavenly kingdom, they can be priests and leaders. Is there any basis for what I’ve said? God says, “Those who love God can walk freely throughout the world, those who testify to God can travel across the universe.” These people are most blessed by God. In the next era, God shall use those who love Him to rule over all on the earth. God grants them the power to rule over all things and all nations, understood?

How do you practice loving God? First, give your heart to God and accept the perfection by the work of the Holy Spirit. When your heart has the work and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, then your corrupt disposition and your satanic poison shall be purified. Then, your heart shall begin to love God. When you have much understanding of the truth, you shall feel that God is so lovable that it will be impossible to stop loving God. When you can practice the truth and are submissive to God, you will taste the sweetness in practicing the truth, you shall find it invaluable to have truth as life, and you shall find that there’s nothing in this world as precious as the truth. Not even the whole world can compare to such life! Life is the most precious! When people die, they have nothing. If people have the truth, they obtain eternal life. With eternal life, their hearts love God most, and they feel that all material things are empty and dispensable. Only God is the precious and honorable, humans can never leave God. Therefore, to be perfected by God one must give his heart to God. Once the heart is given to God, he will change daily, be increasingly closer to God daily, and love and submit to God daily. In the end, as each day passes, he lives more and more before God, he can live in the light and walk with God—this is the highest state pursued by believers. Where is the starting point of this highest state? That is, “It Is Very Important to Establish a Proper Relationship With God”! By now you should understand this “very important”! This “very important” becomes pertinent when? By now, isn’t it clear?

Today’s fellowship has come to an end. Goodbye!

Eastern Lightning, the Church of Almighty God was created because of the appearance and work of Almighty God, the second coming of the Lord Jesus, Christ of the last days. It is made up of all those who accept Almighty God's work in the last days and are conquered and saved by His words. It was entirely founded by Almighty God personally and is led by Him as the Shepherd. It was definitely not created by a person. Christ is the truth, the way, and the life. God's sheep hear God's voice. As long as you read the words of Almighty God, you will see God has appeared.