(XV) Classic Words on Casting Off the Influence of Satan and Being Gained by God to Achieve True Salvation
400. What is the influence of darkness?
What is referred to as the influence of darkness is the bondage of Satan, the influence of Satan, and it is an influence that has an aura of death.
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When God created men, it was to have them enjoy His richness and genuinely love Him; in this way, men would live in His light. Today, all those who are unable to love God, are not attentive to His burdens, are unable to fully give their hearts to God, are unable to take God’s heart as their own, are unable to shoulder God’s burdens as their own—God’s light is not shining upon any such men, therefore they are all living under the influence of darkness. They are on a path that goes against God’s will, all that they do has not a shred of truth, and they are in collusion with Satan. Such people are living under the influence of darkness. If you can always eat and drink God’s words as well as be attentive to His will and practice His words, then you belong to God, and you are someone living inside God’s words.
from “Escape From the Influence of Darkness and You Will Be Gained by God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
401. Earliest mankind was in the hands of God, but because of Satan’s temptation and corruption, man was bound up by Satan and fell in the hands of the evil one. Thus, Satan became the object to be defeated in the work of God’s management. Because Satan took possession of man, and because man is the stock of all God’s management, if man is to be saved, then he must be snatched back from the hands of Satan, which is to say that man must be taken back after having been held captive by Satan. Satan is defeated through changes in man’s old disposition that restore his original sense, and in this way, man, who has been taken captive, can be snatched back from the hands of Satan. If man is freed from the influence and bondage of Satan, Satan will be shamed, man will ultimately be taken back, and Satan will be defeated. And because man has been freed from the dark influence of Satan, man will become the spoils of all of this battle, and Satan will become the object that will be punished once this battle has finished, after which the entire work of mankind’s salvation will have been completed.
from “Restoring the Normal Life of Man and Taking Him to a Wonderful Destination” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
402. Man’s flesh is of Satan, it is full of disobedient dispositions, it is deplorably filthy, it is something unclean. People covet the enjoyment of the flesh too much, there are too many manifestations of the flesh, and so God despises the flesh to a point. When people leave behind the filthy, corrupt things of Satan, they gain God’s salvation. But if they remain incapable of divesting themselves of filth and corruption, then they will still be under the domain of Satan. People’s conniving, deceitfulness, and crookedness are things of Satan; by saving you, God separates you from these things and God’s work cannot be wrong, and is all in order to save people from darkness. When you have believed to a certain point and can divest yourself of the corruption of the flesh, and are no longer enshackled by this corruption, will you not have been saved? When you live under Satan’s domain you are incapable of manifesting God, you are something filthy, and shall not receive God’s inheritance. Once you have been cleansed and made perfect, you will be holy, and you will be normal, and you will be blessed by God and delightful to God.
from “Practice (2)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
403. If you want to be praised by God, you must first escape from Satan’s influence of darkness, open your heart to God, and turn it to God completely. Are the things that you are now doing praised by God? Have you turned your heart to God? Have the things that you have done been what God has required of you? Do they fit with the truth? You must examine yourself at all times, concentrate on eating and drinking God’s words, lay out your heart before Him, love Him with sincerity, and devotedly expend yourself for God. Such men will surely receive God’s praise.
from “Escape From the Influence of Darkness and You Will Be Gained by God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
405. The truth that man needs to possess is found in the word of God, a truth that is the most beneficial and helpful to mankind. It is the tonic and sustenance that your body needs, something that helps man restore his normal humanity, a truth that man should be equipped with. The more you practice God’s word, the more quickly your life will blossom; the more you practice God’s word, the clearer the truth becomes. As you grow in stature, you will see things of the spiritual world more clearly, and you will be more powerful to triumph over Satan.
from “Practice the Truth Once You Understand It” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
406. To escape from the influence of darkness, one aspect is that it requires the work of the Holy Spirit, and another aspect is that it requires dedicated cooperation from man. Why do I say that man is not on the right track? In the first place, if a man is on the right track, he will be able to give his heart to God, which is a task that requires a long period of time to enter into because humankind has always been living under the influence of darkness and has been under Satan’s bondage for thousands of years. Therefore, this entry cannot be achieved in a day or two. I brought up this issue today so that men can have a grasp of their own state; regarding what is the influence of darkness and what it is to live within the light, entry becomes possible when man is able to discern these things. This is because you must know what Satan’s influence is before you can escape from it, and only then will you have the path for gradually ridding yourself of it. As to what to do thereafter, that is a matter for humans themselves. You must always enter in from a positive aspect and you must never wait passively. It is only this way that you can be gained by God.
from “Escape From the Influence of Darkness and You Will Be Gained by God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
407. You must be awake and waiting at every moment, and you must pray more before Me. You must recognize the various plots and cunning schemes of Satan, know the spirit, know people and be able to discern all kinds of people, matters and things; you must eat and drink more of My words and, more importantly, you must be able to eat and drink them by yourselves. Equip yourselves with all the truth, come before Me so that I may open your spiritual eyes and allow you to see all the mysteries that lie within the spirit…. When the church enters its construction phase, a battle of the saints against Satan[a] ensues. Satan’s various hideous features are set before you; do you stop and backslide, or do you stand up and walk onward, relying on Me? Thoroughly expose Satan’s corrupt and ugly features, spare no feelings and show no mercy! Fight Satan to the death! I am your backup and you must have the spirit of the male child! Satan is lashing out in its final death throes but it will still be unable to escape My judgment. Satan is beneath My feet and it is also trodden underneath your feet—it’s true!
from “The Seventeenth Utterance” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
408. All those religious interrupters and those who demolish the building of the church must not be tolerated in the slightest and I will judge them immediately. Expose Satan, trample it underfoot, destroy it utterly and leave it nowhere to hide. All manner of demons and ghosts will surely reveal their true forms before Me and I will cast them all into the bottomless pit from which they will never be free; they are all beneath our feet. If you want to fight the good fight for the truth, then first of all, don’t give Satan any chance to work, and to do this you will need to be of one mind and be able to serve in coordination, relinquish all your own conceptions, opinions, views and ways of doing things, quiet your heart within Me, focus on the voice of the Holy Spirit, be attentive to the work of the Holy Spirit and experience God’s words in detail. You must have only one intention, which is that My will can be carried out. You should have no other intention. You must look to Me with all your heart, watch My actions and the way I do things closely, and do not be negligent at all. Your spirit must be sharp, your eyes open. Ordinarily, those whose intentions and objectives are not right, those who love to be seen by others, who are eager to do things, who are prone to interrupting, who are strong in religious doctrine, Satan’s lackeys, etc., when these people stand up they become difficulties for the church and the eating and drinking of brothers and sisters comes to nothing; when you find this kind of person play acting then ban them immediately. If they do not change despite repeated admonition then they will suffer greatly. If those who stubbornly persist in their ways come to their own defense and try to cover up their sins, the church should cut them out immediately and leave them no room to maneuver. Do not lose a lot by trying to save a little, and keep your eye on the big picture.
from “The Seventeenth Utterance” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
409. To escape from the influence of darkness, you must first be loyal to God and have the eagerness to seek the truth—only then will you have a correct state. Living in the correct state is the precondition for escaping from the influence of darkness. Not having the correct state means that you are not loyal to God and that you do not have the eagerness to seek the truth. Then, escaping from the influence of darkness is out of the question. Man’s escape from the influence of darkness is based on My words, and if man cannot practice in accordance with My words, they will not escape from the bondage of the influence of darkness. To live in the correct state is to live under the guidance of God’s words, to live in the state of being loyal to God, to live in the state of seeking the truth, to live in the reality of sincerely expending for God, to live in the state of genuinely loving God. Those who live in these states and within this reality will gradually transform as they enter more deeply into the truth, and they will transform with the deepening of the work, until eventually they will certainly be gained by God, and they will come to genuinely love God. Those who have escaped from the influence of darkness will be able to gradually grasp God’s will, gradually understand the heart of God, and eventually become intimate with God. Not only will they have no notions of God and no rebellion against Him, but they will come to detest even more the notions and rebellion that they had before, engendering genuine love for God in their hearts.
from “Escape From the Influence of Darkness and You Will Be Gained by God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
410. Are you willing to escape from Satan’s domain and live in the light of God? If you live inside God’s words, then the Holy Spirit will have an opportunity to perform His work; if you live under Satan’s influence, then the Holy Spirit will have no opportunity to perform any work. … If men live inside God’s words, then the Holy Spirit will be with them and perform work on them; if men are not living inside God’s words, then they are living within the bondage of Satan. Men living in a corrupt disposition do not have the presence or the work of the Holy Spirit. If you are living within the sphere of God’s words, if you are living within the state required by God, then you belong to Him and His work will be performed on you; if you are not living within the sphere of God’s requirements but instead are living under Satan’s domain, then you are certainly living under Satan’s corruption. Only by living within God’s words and giving your heart to Him, can you meet His requirements; you must do as God says, you must make God’s words the foundation of your existence and the reality of your life, and only then will you belong to God. If you sincerely practice in accordance with God’s will, He will perform work on you and then you will live under God’s blessings, live in the light of God’s countenance, grasp the work that the Holy Spirit performs, as well as feel the joy of God’s presence.
from “Escape From the Influence of Darkness and You Will Be Gained by God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
411. If you pray to God and eat and drink of His words every day, are always thinking of the work of the church, if you show consideration for God’s will, use your heart to genuinely love Him and satisfy His heart, then your heart will belong to God. If your heart is occupied by a number of other things, then it is still occupied by Satan and it has not truly turned to God.
from “Genuine Love for God Is Spontaneous” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
412. You can devote your heart and body and all of your genuine love to God, place them before Him, be completely obedient toward Him, and be absolutely considerate to His will. Not for the flesh, not for family, and not for your personal desires, but for the interests of God’s household. In everything you can take God’s word as the principle, as the foundation. That way, your intentions and your perspectives will all be in the right place, and you will be someone who gains God’s praise before Him.
from “People Who Can Be Absolutely Obedient Toward God’s Practicality Are Those Who Truly Love God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
413. After you have sincerely prayed to God, you turn your heart to Him completely. At this point, your heart is moved by God’s Spirit, you are willing to give yourself completely, and in this moment, you have escaped from the influence of darkness. If all that man does is pleasing to God and fits with His requirements, then he is someone who lives inside God’s words, and he is someone who lives under the care and protection of God. If men are unable to practice God’s words, always fooling Him, acting in a perfunctory manner with Him, and not believing in His existence, such men are all living under the influence of darkness.
from “Escape From the Influence of Darkness and You Will Be Gained by God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
414. The purpose of your spiritual life is to deliberately seek and gain the presence of the Holy Spirit. It is not to observe rules or conduct religious rituals, but to truly act in concert with God and discipline your body. This is what man should do, so you must give it your all in order to do this. The better your cooperation and the more effort you put forth, the more you will be able to turn your heart toward God, and the more you will quiet your heart before Him. Once you’ve reached a certain state, God will gain your heart completely. No one will be able to sway or capture your heart, and you will belong completely to God.
from “A Normal Spiritual Life Leads People Onto the Right Track” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
415. I have spoken so many times that God’s work of the last days is in order to alter each person’s spirit, to change each person’s soul, such that their heart, which has suffered great trauma, is reformed, thus rescuing their soul, which has been so profoundly harmed by evil; it is in order to awaken people’s spirits, to thaw their cold hearts, and allow them to be rejuvenated. This is God’s greatest will. … for God’s work is the complete salvation of man—man who has been redeemed, who still lives under the forces of darkness, and who has never roused himself—from this gathering place of demons; it is so that man may be freed of millennia of sin, and be beloved of God, completely striking down the great red dragon, establishing God’s kingdom, and bringing rest to God’s heart sooner, it is to give vent, without reservation, to the hate that swells your breast, to eradicate those moldy germs, to allow you to leave this life that is no different from an ox or horse’s, to no longer be a slave, to no longer be freely trampled upon or ordered about by the great red dragon; you will no longer be of this failed nation, will no longer belong to the heinous great red dragon, you will no longer be enslaved by it. The demons’ nest will surely be torn to pieces by God, and you will stand beside God—you belong to God, and do not belong to this empire of slaves.
from “Work and Entry (8)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
416. The better these people become and the stronger the life of the church, the more the great red dragon is brought to its knees. These are matters of the spiritual world, they are the battles of the spiritual world, and when God is victorious, Satan shall be shamed and fall down. This stage of God’s work has tremendous significance. Work of such a grand scale completely saves this group of people; you escape from the influence of Satan, you live in the holy land, you live in God’s light, and there is the light’s leadership and guidance, and then there is meaning to your being alive. What you eat and wear is different to them; you enjoy the words of God, and lead a life of meaning—and what do they enjoy? They enjoy only the legacy of their ancestors and the “national spirit.” They have not the slightest trace of humanity! Your clothes, words, and actions are all different from theirs. Ultimately, you will completely leave the filth, no longer be ensnared in the temptation of Satan, and gain God’s daily provision. You should always be cautious. Though you live in a filthy place you are untainted with filth and can live alongside God, receiving His great protection. You have been chosen among all on this yellow land. Aren’t you the most blessed people?
from “Practice (2)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
417. You see all these acts of God now, yet still you resist and are rebellious and do not submit; you harbor many things inside yourself and do whatever you wish; you follow your own lusts, and likes—this is rebelliousness; this is resistance. Belief in God that is carried out for the flesh, for one’s lusts, and for one’s own likes, for the world, and for Satan, is filthy; it is resistant and rebellious. There are all different kinds of belief now: Some seek shelter from disaster, and others seek to obtain blessings, while some wish to understand mysteries and still others try to get some money. These are all forms of resistance; they are all blasphemy! To say that one resists or rebels—is it not in reference to these things? Many people now grumble, utter complaints or make judgments. These are all things done by the wicked; they are human resistance and rebelliousness; such people are possessed and occupied by Satan. The people that God obtains are those who submit to Him completely, those who have been corrupted by Satan but have been saved and conquered by His work now, who have endured tribulations and in the end have been obtained completely by God and no longer live under Satan’s domain and have broken free from unrighteousness, who are willing to live out holiness—these are the holiest people; they are the holy ones. If your current actions do not match one part of God’s requirements, you will be eliminated. This is indisputable.
from “You Should Know How the Whole of Humanity Has Developed to the Present Day” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
418. Man’s entire life is lived under the domain of Satan, and there is not a single person who can free themselves from the influence of Satan on their own. All live in a filthy world, in corruption and emptiness, without the slightest meaning or value; they live such carefree lives for the flesh, for lust, and for Satan. There is not the slightest value to their existence. Man is incapable of finding the truth that will free him from the influence of Satan. Even though man believes in God and reads the Bible, he does not understand how to free himself of the control of Satan’s influence. Throughout the ages, very few people have discovered this secret, very few have touched upon it. As such, even though man detests Satan, and detests the flesh, he does not know how to rid himself of the ensnaring influence of Satan. … Man lives in a human hell, he lives under the dark influence of Satan; across the land, ghosts live together with man, encroaching upon the flesh of man. On earth, you do not live in a beautiful paradise. The place where you are is the realm of the devil, a human hell, a netherworld. If man is not cleansed, then he is of the filth; if he is not protected and cared for by God, then he is still a captive of Satan; if he is not judged and chastised, then he will have no means of escaping the oppression of the dark influence of Satan. The corrupt disposition that you show forth and the disobedient behavior that you live out are sufficient to prove that you are still living under the domain of Satan. If your mind and thoughts have not been cleansed, and your disposition has not been judged and chastised, then your entire being is still controlled by the domain of Satan, your mind is controlled by Satan, your thoughts are manipulated by Satan, and your entire being is controlled by the hands of Satan.
from “The Experiences of Peter: His Knowledge of Chastisement and Judgment” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
419. When people have yet to be saved, their lives are often interfered with, and even controlled by, Satan. In other words, people who have not been saved are prisoners to Satan, they have no freedom, they have not been relinquished by Satan, they are not qualified or entitled to worship God, and they are closely pursued and viciously attacked by Satan. Such people have no happiness to speak of, they have no right to a normal existence to speak of, and moreover they have no dignity to speak of. Only if you stand up and do battle with Satan, using your faith in God and obedience to, and fear of God as the weapons with which to fight a life-and-death battle with Satan, such that you fully defeat Satan and cause it to turn tail and become cowardly whenever it sees you, so that it completely abandons its attacks and accusations against you—only then will you be saved and become free. If you are determined to fully break with Satan, but are not equipped with the weapons that will help you defeat Satan, then you will still be in danger; as time goes on, when you have been so tortured by Satan that there is not an ounce of strength left in you, yet you have still been unable to bear testimony, have still not completely freed yourself of Satan’s accusations and attacks against you, then you will have little hope of salvation. In the end, when the conclusion of God’s work is proclaimed, you will still be in the grip of Satan, unable to free yourself, and thus you will never have a chance or hope. The implication, then, is that such people will be completely in Satan’s captivity.
from “God’s Work, God’s Disposition, and God Himself II” in Continuation of The Word Appears in the Flesh
420. In his life, if man wishes to be cleansed and achieve changes in his disposition, if he wishes to live out a life of meaning, and fulfill his duty as a creature, then he must accept God’s chastisement and judgment, and must not allow God’s discipline and God’s smiting to depart from him, so he can free himself from the manipulation and influence of Satan and live in the light of God. Know that God’s chastisement and judgment is the light, and the light of man’s salvation, and that there is no better blessing, grace or protection for man.
from “The Experiences of Peter: His Knowledge of Chastisement and Judgment” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
421. If they wish to be saved, and wish to be completely gained by God, then all those who follow God must face temptations and attacks both great and small from Satan. Those who emerge from these temptations and attacks and are able to fully defeat Satan are those who have been saved by God. Which is to say, those who have been saved unto God are those who have undergone God’s trials, and who have been tempted and attacked by Satan an untold number of times. Those who have been saved unto God understand God’s will and requirements, and are able to acquiesce to God’s sovereignty and arrangements, and they do not forsake the way of fearing God and shunning evil amid Satan’s temptations. Those who are saved unto God possess honesty, they are kindhearted, they differentiate between love and hate, they have a sense of justice and are rational, and they are able to care for God and treasure all that is of God. Such people are not bound, spied upon, accused, or abused by Satan, they are completely free, they have been completely liberated and released. Job was just such a man of freedom, and this is precisely the significance of why God had handed him over to Satan.
from “God’s Work, God’s Disposition, and God Himself II” in Continuation of The Word Appears in the Flesh
422. If you have never in your life sensed God’s sovereignty and His arrangements, much less recognize and accept God’s authority, then you will be utterly worthless, you will be without a doubt the object of God’s detestation and rejection, thanks to the path you have taken and the choice you have made. But those who, in God’s work, can accept His trial, accept His sovereignty, submit to His authority, and gradually gain real experience of His words, will have attained real knowledge of God’s authority, real understanding of His sovereignty, and will have truly become subject to the Creator. Only such people will have truly been saved.
from “God Himself, the Unique III” in Continuation of The Word Appears in the Flesh
424. At the same time as man accepting God’s life as their own life, they come to understand the truth, they grow roots, they gain the principles of what it is to be a human, they grow the roots they need to be a human, and they gain the direction they need to walk in to be a human. They no longer suffer the deception of Satan, are no longer deceived by evil people, no longer bound by Satan, no longer used by evil people, no longer polluted, besmirched, bound or seduced by evil trends. Man then lives free between heaven and earth and they are released, no longer to be bound or to feel pain. There are no more difficulties, they live free, and they are able to live genuinely under the dominion of God, no longer to suffer harm by any evil and dark forces.
from “Man is the Greatest Beneficiary of God’s Management Plan” in Records of Christ’s Talks
425. The transformation of man’s disposition signifies that man has freed himself from Satan’s bondage and from the influence of darkness, and has truly become a model and specimen of God’s work, a witness of God, and one who is after God’s heart.
from “Only Those Who Know God Can Bear Testimony to God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
426. When man achieves the true life of man on earth, the entire forces of Satan will be bound, and man will live easily upon earth. Things will not be as complex as they are today: Human relationships, social relationships, complex familial relationships…, they are such bother, so painful! Man’s life here is so miserable! Once man has been conquered, his heart and mind will change: He will have a heart that reveres God and a heart that loves God. Once all those within the universe who seek to love God have been conquered, which is to say, once Satan has been defeated, and once Satan—all the forces of darkness—has been bound, then man’s life on earth will be untroubled, and he will be able to live freely upon earth. If man’s life is without the fleshly relationships, and is without the complexities of the flesh, then it would be so much easier. Man’s relationships of the flesh are too complex, and for man to have such things is proof that he has yet to free himself of the influence of Satan. If you had the same relationship with the brothers and sisters, if you had the same relationship with your regular family, then you would have no concerns, and would not need to worry about anyone. Nothing could be better, and in this way man would be relieved of half of his suffering. Living a normal human life on earth, man will be similar to an angel; though still being of the flesh, he will be much like an angel. This is the final promise, it is the last promise that is bestowed upon man.
from “Restoring the Normal Life of Man and Taking Him to a Wonderful Destination” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Footnotes:
a. The original text omits “against Satan.”
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