Question 3: We’ve believed in the Lord for so many years, and we’ve maintained His name. We often read the Bible, pray and confess our sins to the Lord; we are humble, patient, loving toward others. We often do charity, donate, and sacrifice everything else to work for the Lord and spread the gospel to witness Him. Are we not practicing the Lord's words and following His way? How can you say we never had any reality of faith in the Lord or are an unbeliever? In the Bible, Paul said, “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 …” (2Ti 4:7-8). Therefore, I think that our faith in the Lord will obtain His praise. When the Lord arrives, He will definitely rapture us into the kingdom of heaven.

Answer: Many believers think that as long as they keep the Lord’s name, read the Bible, pray and gather often, are able to sacrifice everything for the Lord and labor for the Lord, then they are true believers. They think that as long as they believe in the Lord this way, they’ll be lifted into the kingdom of heaven when He comes again. Is believing in God as easy as people think? If people believe in God like this, can they really obtain God’s approval? The Pharisees that were denounced and condemned by the Lord Jesus, isn’t that the way they believed in God too? They often prayed and worked hard and even traveled to the ends of the earth to spread the gospel. Then why has their faith failed to gain the Lord's approval and incurred His condemnation and curses instead? People that have read the Bible before understand that although the Pharisees read the Bible well, prayed often, spread God's work, suffered greatly, loved others, and appeared to be devout, true believers on the outside, in reality, God had no place in their hearts; they did not magnify God. In their faith, they did not focus on seeking the truth in God's words or understanding His will, much less practicing His words and following His commandments. They only focused on disseminating knowledge about the Bible and theological theory; they only focused on performing religious ceremonies, following the rules to glorify themselves, establishing themselves to be worshiped by others. They believed in God like that for many years and had no knowledge of God. They definitely did not become obedient and reverent toward God. Therefore, when the Lord Jesus did His work, they did not search for the truth. They only measured the Lord Jesus based on their own conceptions and imaginings. Regardless of how profound the Lord Jesus' preaching was or how much authority and power His work had, they did not search for or study them. They still fanatically resisted and condemned the Lord Jesus, then crucified Him on the cross. They were cursed and punished. Can the faith of the Pharisees be called true faith in God? Did God accept the faith of the Pharisees? Not only did the Lord Jesus not approve them, but He condemned and cursed them, saying, “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!” (Mat 23:13-36). The Pharisees only trusted their own conceptions and imaginings; they only believed in the vague God in heaven. They did not believe in the Lord Jesus incarnate who expressed the truth. They were all bored with the truth and hated the truth. They believed in God, but resisted God as well.

Question 2: Having believed in the Lord for so many years, we have always felt that as long as one can practice humility, tolerance and love brothers and sisters, and can follow the example of Paul by expending and laboring for the Lord, he is following the way of the Lord, and he will be raptured into the kingdom of heaven when the Lord returns. Just as Paul said, “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 …” (2Ti 4:7-8). But you have witnessed that when we believe in the Lord, we must receive the judgment work of Almighty God in the last days. When we receive cleansing, we will be commended by God and admitted in the kingdom of heaven. I have a question: We believe in the Lord for so many years, and we expend and labor for the Lord; can we enter the kingdom of heaven without receiving the judgment work of Almighty God in the last days?

Answer: Many believers of the Lord feel that following the example of Paul by expending and laboring for the Lord is the same as following the Lord's way and qualifying for admission to the kingdom of heaven when the Lord returns. This has become the conception of many people. Is this conception based on the Lord's word? Does it please the Lord's heart if we pursue it like this? Are we truly following the Lord's way by laboring for the Lord like Paul? Will we qualify for the kingdom of heaven? The Lord Jesus 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” (Mat 7:21-23). The Lord Jesus said it very clearly. Only those who follow the will of God could enter the kingdom of heaven. The Lord Jesus did not say those who sacrifice, expend, and labor for the Lord could enter the kingdom of heaven. Many of those who preach, cast out devils, and work wonders in the name of the Lord are people who labor. Not only are they not praised by the Lord, they are professed by the Lord as workers of iniquity. Paul said, “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 …” (2Ti 4:7-8). This saying contradicts the word of the Lord Jesus. It is fundamentally incompatible with the intention of the Lord. To be brought into the kingdom of heaven, there is only one affirmed way, which is what the Lord Jesus had clearly said: “And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom comes; go you out to meet him” (Mat 25:6). "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me” (Rev 3:20). “To sup with the Lord” refers to receiving God’s judgment work in the last days. By receiving the judgment and chastisement of God, we understand all the truths and are cleansed and made perfect, these are the results of supping with the Lord. So we can be certain that only by receiving cleansing from the judgment and chastisement of Almighty God in the last days can one enter the kingdom of heaven.

Question 1: We have believed in the Lord for so many years. Although we can preach and work for the Lord and suffer a lot, we can still always lie, deceive and defraud. Every day, we speak in defense of ourselves. So often, we are arrogant, opinionated, ostentatious, and condescending to others. We live under the situation of sinning and repenting, unable to escape the binding of the flesh, let alone experience and practice the Lord's word. We haven’t lived out any reality of the Lord’s word. In our case, can we be brought into the kingdom of heaven at all? Some people say, no matter how we sin, how we are bound by the flesh, the Lord sees us as sinless. They go by Paul's word: “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (1Co 15:52). And assume that the Lord will instantly change our form when He comes and bring us into the kingdom of heaven. Some people believe that those who receive salvation by faith but still constantly sin are unqualified to enter the kingdom of heaven. It is mainly based on God’s word: “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” (Mat 7:21). “… you shall therefore be holy, for I am holy” (Lev 11:45). These are two competing viewpoints that no one can say clearly, please communicate for us.

Answer: In the past, we used to treat the words of apostles like Paul as the word of God and go by Paul's word to believe in the Lord and work for the Lord. We went by Paul’s word even with the matter of the Lord’s return, but cast aside the Lord Jesus’ word. Wasn’t this a problem after all? When we believe in God, should we listen to the word of God or man? As for the word of Paul in the Bible, was it the word of God or man? As far as how to distinguish whether it is the word of God or man, let us first set it aside. But we can be certain that the words of Jehovah and the Lord Jesus in the Bible are the words of God. No one can deny this. The words of apostles like Paul were definitely the words of man. Even with the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, those were still the words of man, absolutely not the word of God. It is because neither the Lord Jesus nor the Holy Spirit had witnessed that the word of apostles, like Paul, was the word of God. Even the apostles themselves did not say what they had written was the word of God. Isn’t this the fact? The words of man in the Bible are the words of man and cannot be regarded as the word of God, let alone be used as the basis as if they were God’s word because some of man’s words originated from the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit while some were mixed with human will. They were not the expression of the truth. If we treat the word of man as the truth, it is easy to cause confusion and lead to nowhere for man. Why did thousands of denominations appear throughout the religious community? The root cause is because man has interpreted the word of man in the Bible as the word of God, giving rise to such serious confusion. About the matter of entering into the kingdom of heaven, we should only go by the Lord Jesus’ word as final because the Lord Jesus is the incarnate Christ. Only the Lord Jesus is the Savior. The word of the Lord Jesus is the truth. Only the word of the Lord Jesus has authority. Paul was only a man. He was not Christ. He could not express the truth. So it was unavoidable that his word was blended with man’s will and imagination. Even Paul dared not say his word was inspired by God, not to mention his letters being the word of God. Wouldn’t it be absurd if we regard the word of Paul as God’s word? So whether we are obedient to God’s will or qualified to be brought into the kingdom of heaven or not, we should go by the Lord Jesus’ word alone for introspection and pursuit of the truth in order to find the right answer.

Question 2: It’s that the Lord Jesus once said: “I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you to myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (Jhn 14:2-3). The Lord Jesus was resurrected and returned to heaven to prepare a place for us, so that means the place He prepared should be in heaven. If the Lord has returned, it should be to rapture us into heaven, to first lift us up into the sky to meet with the Lord. What you’re bearing witness to now is that the Lord Jesus has returned, that He has become flesh and is on the earth speaking and working. So how is He going to lift us up to the kingdom of heaven? Is the kingdom of heaven on earth, or is it in heaven?

Answer: To understand whether the kingdom of heaven is actually in heaven or on the earth, first we must understand what the kingdom of heaven really is. Everyone knows that “heaven” usually refers to the celestial, to God. So naturally, the kingdom of heaven refers to God’s kingdom, and it is the kingdom where God is in power, it is Christ’s kingdom. So then is God’s kingdom on earth, or is it in heaven? First let’s look at what the Lord’s prayer says. “Our Father which are in heaven, Hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” (Mat 6:9-10). The Lord Jesus’ words are very clear. The Lord requires that we pray for God’s kingdom to come down to the earth, so that His will may be carried out on earth. The Lord Jesus did not say that God’s kingdom would be established in heaven, and He particularly did not have us hope and pray for the day we would be raptured up to heaven. So isn’t always hoping to be taken up to heaven to enter into God’s kingdom out of line with the Lord’s words, and out of line with His will? Let’s take a look at a prophecy in Revelation： “And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever” （Rev 11:15）. “And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away” （Rev 21:2-4）. These two passages mention these two things: “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ.” “New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven.” “The tabernacle of God is with men.” These refer to the kingdom of Christ being realized on earth. Almighty God’s work of judgment in the last days is to establish the kingdom of Christ on earth. Before the great disaster comes upon the earth, God is going to make a group of overcomers, and this group will be the pillars of God’s kingdom. They are the ones who will rule alongside God in the kingdom of Christ. In the disaster, those who have been perfected by God will be the people of God’s kingdom. Those who have never accepted Almighty God’s work in the last days will be exposed and eliminated by God, and they will have no part of the kingdom of Christ. The prophecies in the Book of Revelation start with the utterances of God incarnate in the last days, and then go to the end of the great disaster when the kingdom of Christ is realized on earth, and then go on to the eternity of a new heaven and a new earth. When these prophecies are all fulfilled and completed, God’s management plan will fully be fulfilled. So, all those who accept Almighty God’s work in the last days, as long as they have been purified and perfected, will be the people of the kingdom of Christ. They are the ones who God will make into the group of overcomers before the disaster. They are those who are able to heed God’s words, and obey and worship Him. When the great disaster comes, those people will be protected and kept by God. But those who live in vagueness and imagination, who just long to be raptured into the sky and meet with the Lord but do not accept Christ’s judgment and purification in the last days will be dealt with in the disaster. Most people will be destroyed, and a minority of people will turn toward God through the crucible of the disaster. These are all true things that God is going to do soon.

Question (1): You witness that the Lord Jesus has returned, and that He has appeared and worked in China, I believe that it is true because this is what the Lord Jesus had prophesied in the Bible: “For as the lightning comes out of the east, and shines even to the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (Mat 24:27). But we think that the Lord will return in the last days to bring us into the kingdom of heaven, or at least He should lift us to the clouds to meet with Him in the air. Just as Paul said in the Bible, “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (1Ts 4:17). But why hasn't the Lord come as described in the Bible? What does Almighty God's judgment work in the last days have to do with us being brought into the kingdom of heaven?

Answer: Many people believe that when the Lord returns, He will lift the believers in the air to meet with them. What you are saying is based on the word of Paul, not of the Lord. We have no way of telling whether Paul’s word was from the idea of man or the Holy Spirit’s enlightenment. This was what the Lord Jesus said in prophesying His return: “But of that day and hour knows no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only” (Mat 24:36). The Lord said it very clearly. When He returns, no one will know. Other than God, not even the angels will know. According to your idea, those who believe in the Lord would be lifted in the air to meet Him in the cloud. Is there any basis for this in God’s words? If you go by Paul’s word instead of the Lord’s word, then you are utterly wrong! Paul was only a man; he did not represent the Lord Jesus. How could he know that the Lord would lift His believers to the clouds when He returns? What was the basis of Paul’s word? Do we have to wait for the Lord’s return according to Paul’s words? Why don't we welcome the Lord according to the Lord Jesus’ word? This was what the Lord Jesus said in prophesying His return: “If therefore you shall not watch, I will come on you as a thief, and you shall not know what hour I will come on you” (Rev 3:3). What does it mean when someone only goes by Paul’s word but not the Lord Jesus’ word in believing in the Lord? Does it mean that Paul was the Lord and Christ? So whom do you believe in after all, Paul or the Lord Jesus? Isn’t this worthy of our rumination? The Lord’s second coming is to receive the saints into the kingdom of heaven. This is for certain. But no one can guess actually how the Lord will receive His followers into the kingdom of heaven. If we went by the concepts and imagination of man to understand it, assuming that the Lord would take people into the air to meet with them, that would be too unrealistic. We have all seen that Almighty God appears in China in the last days and expresses all kinds of truths for the cleansing and salvation of man; He is in the process of cleansing and making perfect all the wise virgins brought before His throne. God is determined to make this group of people overcomers before the catastrophe arrives. After making a group of overcomers, God unleashes the catastrophe to destroy this evil mankind that insanely resists God. After the catastrophe, God will appear to all peoples and all nations. Isn't this the real process of how the Lord will bring His followers into the kingdom of Christ upon His return? I feel that Almighty God’s work in the last days has completely fulfilled the prophecies of the Lord Jesus. “I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you to myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (Jhn 14:2-3). Since the Lord is already here on earth, yet we still want to go up in the sky, aren’t we going in the wrong direction? Since the Lord has come to earth, God has also predetermined for us to be born in the last days, to be brought before His throne, receive His work of judgment in the last days, be cleansed and made perfect by Him and finally enter the kingdom of Christ. What kind of a place has the Lord prepared for us? This refers to the kingdom of Christ being realized on earth, fulfilling the prophecy “that where I am, there you may be also.” This proves that when the Lord returns in the last days, He will come into His kingdom. God’s work of judgment that begins with the house of God is to make a group of overcomers out of the wise virgins who are the first to receive God’s work in the last days and then He’ll openly appear by descending on a cloud. Thus the kingdom of Christ is realized on earth. The fact of God’s work in the last days completely fulfills the prophecies of the Lord Jesus. Only through experiencing God’s judgment work in the last days can we see the fulfillment of the prophecies in the Bible. Relying on man’s notions and imagination to speculate on the prophecies is foolish and absurd! We should go by God’s word, not man’s, to meet the Lord’s return. If we go by man’s word, we will miss the chance of rapture at the Lord’s coming, unable to meet Him. We will have only ourselves to blame.

from the movie Screenplay of My Dream Of The Heavenly Kingdom

Question (2): We have long heard that the Church of Almighty God has already testified to the return of the Lord Jesus. And He is Almighty God! He expresses truths and performs His judgment work of the last days, but the majority of people in religious circles all believe that the Lord will return by descending with the clouds. This is because the Lord Jesus clearly said: “And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory” (Mat 24:30). The Book of Revelation also prophesied: “Behold, he comes with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him” (Rev 1:7). I also maintain the belief that the Lord will return by descending with the clouds to directly take us up into the kingdom of heaven. We refuse to accept the Lord Jesus who does not descend with the clouds. You say that the Lord's return is returning to the flesh and descending in secret. But nobody knows about this. However, the Lord openly descending with the clouds is absolute! That's why we are waiting for the Lord to descend with the clouds and appear openly to take us directly up into the kingdom of heaven. Is our understanding correct or not?

Answer: When it comes to waiting for the Lord to descend with the clouds, we must not rely on man’s notions and imaginations! The Pharisees committed a huge mistake in waiting for the arrival of the Messiah. They precisely used man’s notions and imaginations to measure the Lord Jesus who had already arrived. In the end, they nailed the Lord Jesus to the cross. Is this not a fact? Is waiting for the Lord’s arrival as simple as we think? If the Lord returns and works among mankind like the way the Lord Jesus in the flesh had done, and we don’t recognize Him, then would we also judge and condemn Him as the Pharisees had done and crucify Him once again? Is this a possibility? The Lord Jesus prophesied that He shall return and said many words about it, but you only hold on to the prophecy that the Lord will descend with the clouds and don’t seek or investigate other more important prophecies spoken by the Lord. This makes it easy to walk down the wrong path and be abandoned by the Lord! There is actually not just the “descend with the clouds” prophecy in the Bible. There are also many prophecies like that the Lord will come as a thief and descend secretly. For instance, Revelation 16:15, “Behold, I come as a thief.” Matthew 25:6, “And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom comes; go you out to meet him.” And Revelation 3:20: “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” All these prophecies refer to God becoming flesh as the Son of man and descending in secret. “As a thief” means coming quietly, secretly. People won’t know He is God even if they see or hear Him, just as it was back when the Lord Jesus appeared and performed His work. From the outside, the Lord Jesus was just an ordinary Son of man and nobody knew He is God, which is why the Lord Jesus used “as a thief” as an analogy for the Son of man’s appearance and work. This is too befitting! Those who do not love the truth, no matter how God in the flesh speaks or works, or how many truths He expresses, they do not accept. Instead, they treat God in the flesh as a normal person and condemn and abandon Him. That is why the Lord Jesus prophesied that when He returns: “For as the lightning, that lightens out of the one part under heaven, shines to the other part under heaven; so shall also the Son of man be in his day. But first must he suffer many things, and be rejected of this generation” (Luk 17:24-25). Based on the Lord’s prophecy, His return shall be “the coming of the Son of man.” “Son of man” refers to God in the flesh, not the spiritual body of the resurrected Lord Jesus descending with the clouds to openly appear before all people. Why is that the case? Let’s think about it. If it were the spiritual body of the resurrected Lord Jesus descending publicly with the clouds, it would be incredibly powerful and shock the world. Everyone would drop to the ground and no one would dare resist. In that case, would the returned Lord Jesus still endure a lot of suffering and be rejected by this generation? Definitely not！That is why the Lord Jesus prophesied that His return shall be “the coming of the Son of man” and “as a thief.” In actuality, it is referring to God incarnated as the Son of man arriving in secret.

Question 3: You say only those who obey the will of God receive the way of everlasting life. After we started believing in the Lord, we suffered and paid a price to spread the Lord’s gospel. We’ve shepherded the Lord’s flock, taken up the cross and followed the Lord, practiced humbleness, patience, and tolerance. Are you saying we haven’t been following God’s will? We know if we continue, we will become holy, and be raptured to the kingdom of heaven. Is this way of understanding and practice wrong?

Answer: You have the notion that if you labor, sacrifice, or do good deeds, you are obeying God’s will. But are these imagined notions of yours after God’s heart? Do they have a basis in God’s word? Let’s see what the Lord Jesus said: The Lord Jesus 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” (Mat 7: 21-23). From the Lord Jesus’ words we can see that those who prophesy, cast out devils, and do many wonderful works in His name are the ones who suffer and do works for the Lord. They serve God, devote all their time to Him, and have many good behaviors. But, why does the Lord Jesus call them those who work iniquity? How should we understand this? By your notions, any who suffer and do work for the Lord and spend and sacrifice for Him are obeying God’s will. The chief priests, scribes, and Pharisees in Judaism also appeared to be very pious. They traveled far and wide to preach the gospel. So why did the Lord Jesus condemn and curse them? That’s something worth reflecting on, isn’t it? We can’t determine obedience to God’s will using the notions of man. True obedience to God’s will refers to people who can obey God’s work and words, practice God’s words, follow God’s commandments, and fulfill their duties according to God’s will and requirements. You say any who suffer and do work for the Lord are obeying God’s will. Then let’s evaluate them using the Lord Jesus’ requirements. What was the Lord Jesus’ most important requirement for man? “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like to it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Mat 22:37-39). But are we doing this? Obeying God’s will means loving God with all our heart, soul, and mind. No matter how much work we do, or how much we suffer, there must be no personal ambition or impurity, we must be devoted purely to obeying and satisfying God, to carrying out God’s will. We must be happy to sacrifice everything for God, without demand for recompense. In the face of trials and tribulation from God, we must not complain or betray Him, and put ourselves at the mercy of God’s arrangements. Like Abraham, Job, and Peter, when God’s trials come, we must accept with utter obedience and without complaint or question, and bear good and resounding testimony for God. This is obedience to God’s will. Given those demands, it should be obvious whether or not we are people who truly obey the heavenly Father’s will.

Question 2: The Lord Jesus and Almighty God are the same God, but do different work in different ages. The Lord Jesus did the work of redemption, and preached the way of repentance. In the last days, Almighty God does the work of judging and purifying mankind, and brings them the way of everlasting life. I still have another question, what is the difference between the way of repentance and the way of eternal life?

Answer: There is only one God, and His work of saving mankind can’t be done in one or two stages. Because there are three stages of work in God’s management plan to save mankind, the truth expressed by God in each stage is different, and gradually deepens, so that in the end it becomes perfect. God does different work across the ages based on the needs of man at the time, so the way God gives to man in each age is different. Knowing the difference between the way of repentance and the way of eternal life is very important. It is a truth every true believer in God must understand, because it’s related to how we know the truth and gain eternal life. Now we all know that the Lord Jesus did the work of redemption in the Age of Grace, and gave man the way of repentance. As the Lord Jesus said: “Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Mat 4:17). Which is to say, man should confess his sins and repent before God if he wants to enter the kingdom of heaven. After man confesses previous sins, such sins will be forgiven. Man will no longer sin, repent and be born again. This is repentance. But at that time, the Lord Jesus only taught man to confess his sins and repent, not to commit sins, not to do evil, to deny himself, take up the cross, and follow the Lord, to love the Lord with all his heart, his soul, and his mind, to love others as himself, with humility, forbearance and patience, and to forgive others seventy times seven and so on. These are the ways for man to repent. When man confesses his sins and repents before the Lord Jesus, these sins will be forgiven, which qualifies man to pray before God and fellowship with Him, and enjoy the bountiful grace and truth given by God. But what we can’t deny is that even if man’s sins are forgiven, his sinful nature still exists, and he can still sin, oppose and betray God. This proves that though man’s sins can be forgiven, he can still sin, and can’t escape the satanic disposition to attain purification. The Lord Jesus only did the work of redemption, which merely allows man to confess his sins, repent, return to God, and enjoy the grace given by God. This shows that the truth expressed by the Lord Jesus is the way for man to repent. Just as Almighty God says: “At the time, Jesus only spoke to His disciples a series of sermons in the Age of Grace, such as how to practice, how to gather together, how to ask in prayer, how to treat others, and so forth. The work He carried out was that of the Age of Grace, and He expounded only on how the disciples and those who followed Him ought to practice. He did only the work of the Age of Grace and none of the last days. … The work of God in each age has clear boundaries; He does only the work of the current age and never does He carry out the next stage of work in advance. Only in this way can His representative work of each age be brought to the fore. Jesus had spoken only of the signs of the last days, of how to be patient and how to be saved, how to repent and confess, as well as how to bear the cross and endure suffering; never did He speak of what man in the last days should enter into or how to seek to satisfy God’s will” (“How Can Man Who Has Defined God in His Conceptions Receive the Revelations of God?” in The Word Appears in the Flesh). “The sins of man could be forgiven through the sin offering, but as for just how man can be made to sin no more, and how his sinful nature may be extirpated completely and transformed, he has no way of solving this problem. The sins of man were forgiven, and this is because of the work of God’s crucifixion, but man continued to live within the corrupt satanic disposition of old. This being so, man must be completely saved from his corrupt satanic disposition, so that his sinful nature may be completely extirpated, never to develop again, thus enabling the disposition of man to be transformed. This would require man to grasp the path of growth in life, to grasp the way of life, and to grasp the way to change his disposition. Furthermore, it would require man to act in accordance with this path, so that his disposition may gradually be changed and he may live under the shining of the light, so that all that he does may be in accord with the will of God, so that he may cast away his corrupt satanic disposition, and so that he may break free from Satan’s influence of darkness, thereby emerging fully from sin. Only then will man receive complete salvation” (“The Mystery of the Incarnation (4)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh). The words of Almighty God clearly tell us that the Lord Jesus did the work of redemption, and what He gave us was only the way of repentance, but He didn’t give man the way of everlasting life to cast off his satanic nature and attain purification. So, in the last days, Almighty God has come, and on the foundation of the Lord Jesus’ work of redemption, He has done the work of “judgment beginning at the house of God” and gives us the way of everlasting life. Only by accepting the way of everlasting life given by Almighty God in the last days can we become obedient to the will of God, completely escape the dark influence of Satan, reach salvation, and enter the kingdom of God.

Do You Know the True Significance of the Lord Jesus’ Redemption?

By Xiaomo, China

The mention of “Jesus’ Redemption” always fills us with gratitude to the Lord. Two thousand years ago, to redeem us from the hands of Satan, the Lord Jesus was crucified and sacrificed for the sins of humanity, thereby forgiving all our sins. When we sin, as long as we repent and confess our sins to the Lord, our sins are forgiven, and we enjoy peace and joy. But recently, some brothers and sisters have been confused: Although our sins are forgiven by the Lord, we have never been able to escape the bondage of sin, we often lie and deceive, we are stuck in the cycle of sinning and confessing, and we cannot keep the Lord’s teachings. The Bible clearly tells us, “, there remains no more sacrifice for sins

In the Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard, Do You Know What God’s Hidden Intention Is?

Chengxin

One evening, as I sat at my desk after praying to God, I read the parable told by Jesus in Matthew 20:1-16, where the kingdom of heaven is likened to a landowner hiring workers for his vineyard, and it didn’t matter whether they went first thing in the morning or if it was in the noon or the afternoon that they went into the vineyard, their wages were all the same. When the workers who came first learned of this, they grumbled against the landowner, but the landowner replied by saying: “Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with my own? Is your eye evil, because I am good? So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen” (Mat 20:15-16). After reading these several lines of scripture from the Bible I knitted my brows and could not help but think: “It is reasonable to say that those who practice their faith in God for a long time, who forsake more and expend themselves more for the Lord and who toil and work for more years ought to be rewarded with more than those who come later, but in Scripture it says that the wages are the same for those who come early and those who come late, isn’t this God intentionally showing favoritism for those who come later?” I felt that I really didn’t understand these words, I didn’t understand what the Lord’s intention was in saying these words.

Know God’s Sovereignty and Find Happiness in Life

By Kaoshen, Germany

When I was little, my father would often say to me, “My son, our family is not well-off, so if you want anything you have to earn money. When you have money, you have everything!” From then on, my dream was to have a career making big bucks so that my family could live a good life.

Christian Love: How to Get Over a Breakup

By Shuyi, South Korea

Early one morning at the start of summer, a faint fragrance permeated the air and sunlight poured into every corner. Qinyi, wearing a flower-patterned chiffon dress, sat feeling happy at the subway station, waiting for the next train to come. Turning her head, Qinyi happened to see on a video screen a girl breaking up with a boy because he had been two-timing her, then the girl turning away and leaving with tears running down her cheeks. Qinyi stared fixedly at the screen. Just then, she suddenly thought of how she had been before, when she had harbored a longing for a beautiful love where she and her boyfriend would walk through life together, but in the end, she had received only scars and wounds …

With Life Hanging by a Thread, the Hand of God Came to the Rescue

Ling wu, Japan

“If I were not saved by God, I would still be drifting in this world,

struggling hard and painfully in sin, every day bleak and hopeless.

If I were not saved by God, I’d still be crushed below the devil’s feet,

snared in sin and its enjoyments, ignorant of what my life would be.

It’s Almighty God

Through God’s judgment

All the word and truth God expresses, it has all given me new life.

I have seen my God face to face and have tasted God’s true love.

Finally I’ve understood God’s loving hand holds mine as we go.

Now I have heard the voice of God and been raised before God’s throne.

The feast of my Christ I attend, to be perfected and purified by Him.

What I’d hoped for is finally realized, I have now been saved by God.”

(“If I Were Not Saved by God” in Follow the Lamb and Sing New Songs). Whenever I hear this hymn of experience, I am always deeply moved. If it weren’t for God saving me, as described in the hymn, I might still be wandering aimlessly in the world, tiring myself out chasing after money, even to the point that I would long since have lost my life and died abroad in a foreign land …

3 Must-Knows for How to Deal With Depression

Editor’s Note: In recent years, depression has snuck into our lives, affecting more and more people. Many are tormented by this disease—some lose their hope in life and live in pain, and some even lose their courage to go on living, choosing to commit suicide to end their own lives. Why is it that people experience depression? How should we deal with it, and how can we get out of the trap of depression?

Back From the Brink

By Zhao Guangming, China

At the beginning of the 1980s, I was in my 30s and was working for an architectural design company. I considered myself to be young and fit, treated people with loyalty and respect, and did my work responsibly. My architect skills were also top-notch, and I was sure that I was going places in the company and that once my career really took off I would be living like a prince. This was my goal and so I stayed with the company and worked hard for many years. But despite my impeccable caliber, in both character and professional skills, my efforts never seemed to be recognized by the company, which is something I never understood. The top salary grade in our company was grade 6, but my salary never got above grade 3. I watched a number of colleagues, who had neither my skills nor my time served in the company, get pay raises, but it never happened to me. I was puzzled and resentful about why they got raises and I didn’t. Finally, one of the colleagues who I got along with quite well gave me a tip: “In this company, the most important thing is to butter up the manager by giving him gifts at Chinese New Year and other festivals.” On hearing this, I finally understood the real reason why I had been overlooked by the company, and the injustice of it made me furious. But although I hated those ass kissers in the company, and had even less time for the colleagues who did little work but still got ahead by using underhand methods, I needed to firm up my standing and so I had to adapt to these unwritten rules. So the next time Chinese New Year came along I “expressed my heartfelt good wishes” to the manager and was immediately promoted to team leader.

Testimony of a Christian: I Have Wealth More Valuable Than Money

By Shunxin, Thailand

Editor’s Note: If you have someone like this in your life, someone who wants to become wealthy but never succeeds, and who lives in torment, how should you help him escape his misery? What follows is the experience of author Shun Xin, whose predicament was precisely this, but today she can calmly evaluate her monetary gains and losses, and has found a wealth more valuable than riches. How did she emerge from her torment? And what is this wealth more valuable than money? Let’s discover these things through her story.

God Is by My Side

By Guozi, USA

I was born into a Christian family, and when I was one year old, my mom accepted the new work of the Lord Jesus returned—Almighty God—but my grandma was strongly opposed. I remember when I was little, her most frequent words to me were: “If you don’t feel well or you can’t do your homework, just pray to the Lord Jesus. He’ll give you intelligence and wisdom; He’ll look after your safety.” My mom, though, would often tell me: “God created this world and He created mankind. He’s always by our sides. Remember to pray to Almighty God when you encounter an issue and He will care for and protect you.” These two different voices frequently rang in my ears. I once asked my mom uncertainly: “Grandma wants me to pray to the Lord Jesus and you want me to pray to Almighty God. Who should I listen to?” She said: “Actually, the Lord Jesus and Almighty God are the same God. It’s just that the names God took on and the work He’s done are different because the ages are different. The Lord Jesus did the work of the Age of Grace, and Almighty God does the work of the Age of Kingdom. He changes the way He works in every age, and He also changes His name. But no matter how His name and His work change, His essence doesn’t change. Just like today you’re wearing red to go to school and tomorrow you’ll wear blue to go to the restaurant—even though you’re wearing different clothing, going to different places, and doing different things, you’re still you. But when God’s new era arrives we have to keep up with His new work. That’s why we should pray to Almighty God now.” Even though I heard my mom’s explanation, I was still very perplexed in my heart and still had a somewhat doubtful attitude toward Almighty God’s new work.

39. What are the differences between dispositional change and good behavior?

Relevant Words of God:

A transformation in disposition mainly refers to a transformation in your nature. Nature is not something you can see from outside behaviors; nature directly involves the worth and significance of people’s existence. It directly involves the values of human life, the things deep within the soul, and the essence of people. If people couldn’t accept the truth, then they would have no transformations in these aspects. Only if people have experienced God’s work and have fully entered into the truth, changed their values and outlooks on existence and life, viewed things the same way as God, and become capable of completely submitting and devoting themselves to God can their dispositions be said to have changed. You may appear to put forth some effort, you might be resilient in the face of hardships, you might be able to carry out the work arrangements from the above, or you might be able to go wherever you are told to go, but these are only small changes in your actions, and they are not enough to be a transformation in your disposition. You might be able to run down many paths, and you might be able to suffer many hardships and endure great humiliation; you might feel very close to God, and the Holy Spirit is working in you, but when God requests you to do something that doesn’t conform to your notions, you still don’t submit, you look for excuses, and you rebel against and resist God, even to the point that you blame God and protest against Him. This is a serious problem! This proves that you still have a nature to resist God and that you have not transformed in the slightest degree.

from “What You Should Know About Transforming Your Disposition” in Records of Christ’s Talks

2. Almighty God Is the Returned Jesus.

Relevant Words of God:

God is incarnated in the Chinese mainland, what the compatriots in Hong Kong and Taiwan call the inland. When God came from above to the earth, no one in heaven and earth knew about it, for this is the true meaning of God returning in a concealed fashion. He has been in the flesh working and living for a long time, yet no one has known about it. Even to this day, no one recognizes it. Perhaps this will remain an eternal riddle. God’s coming into flesh this time is not something anyone is able to be aware of. No matter how large-scale and powerful the Spirit’s work, God always stays composed, never giving Himself away. One can say that it is as if this stage of His work is taking place in the heavenly realm. Even though it is perfectly obvious to everyone, no one recognizes it. When God finishes this stage of His work, everyone will awake from their long dream and reverse their past attitude.[1] I remember God once saying, “Coming into flesh this time is like falling into the tiger’s den.” What this means is that because this round of God’s work has God coming into flesh and being born in the dwelling place of the great red dragon, His coming to earth this time is accompanied even more so with extreme dangers. What He faces are knives and guns and clubs; what He faces is temptation; what He faces are crowds wearing murderous looks. He risks being killed at any moment. God did come with wrath. However, He came in order to do the work of perfection, meaning to do the second part of His work that continues after redemption work. For the sake of this stage of His work, God has devoted utmost thought and care and is using every conceivable means to avoid the assaults of temptation, concealing Himself humbly and never flaunting His identity. In rescuing man off the cross, Jesus was only completing redemption work; He was not doing perfection work. Thus only half of God’s work was being done, and finishing the redemption work was only half of His whole plan. As the new age was about to begin and the old one about to recede, God the Father began to deliberate the second part of His work and started preparing for it. In the past, this incarnation in the last days may not have been prophesied, and therefore that laid a foundation for the increased secrecy surrounding God’s coming into flesh this time. At the break of dawn, unbeknownst to any, God came to earth and began His life in the flesh. People were unaware of this moment. Maybe they were all fast asleep, maybe many who were watchfully awake were waiting, and maybe many were praying silently to God in heaven. Yet among all these many people, not one knew that God had already arrived on earth. God worked like this so as to more smoothly carry out His work and achieve better results, and it was also to avoid more temptations. As man’s spring slumber breaks, God’s work will have long been finished and He shall depart, bringing to a close His life of roaming and sojourning on earth. Because God’s work requires God to act and speak personally, and because there is no way for man to help, God has endured extreme pain to come to earth to do the work Himself. Man is unable to stand in for God’s work. Therefore God risked dangers several thousand times greater than those during the Age of Grace to come down to where the great red dragon dwells to do His own work, to put all His thinking and care into redeeming this group of impoverished people, redeeming this group of people mired in a heap of manure. Even though no one knows of God’s existence, God is not troubled because it greatly benefits God’s work. Everyone is atrociously evil, so how can anyone tolerate God’s existence? That is why on earth God is always silent. No matter how excessively cruel man is, God does not take any of it to heart, but just keeps doing the work He needs to do so as to fulfill the greater commission that the heavenly Father gave Him. Who among you has recognized God’s loveliness? Who shows more consideration for God the Father’s burden than His Son does? Who is able to understand the will of God the Father? God the Father’s Spirit in heaven is often troubled, and His Son on earth prays frequently over God the Father’s will, worrying His heart to pieces. Is there anyone who knows of God the Father’s love for His Son? Is there anyone who knows how the beloved Son misses God the Father? Torn between heaven and earth, the two are constantly gazing after each other from afar, side by side in Spirit. O mankind! When will you be considerate of God’s heart? When will you understand God’s intention? Father and Son have always depended on each other. Why then should They be separated, one in heaven above and one on earth below? The Father loves His Son as the Son loves His Father. Why then should He have to wait with such longing and long with such anxiety? Although They have not been separated for long, does anyone know that the Father has already been anxiously yearning for so many days and nights and has long been looking forward to His beloved Son’s quick return? He observes, He sits in silence, He waits. It is all for His beloved Son’s quick return. When will He again be with the Son who is wandering on earth? Even though once together, They will be together for eternity, how can He endure the thousands of days and nights of separation, one in heaven above and one on earth below? Tens of years on earth are like thousands of years in heaven. How could God the Father not worry? When God comes to earth, He experiences the many vicissitudes of the human world just as man does. God Himself is innocent, so why let God suffer the same pain as man? No wonder God the Father longs so urgently for His Son; who can understand God’s heart? God gives man too much; how can man adequately repay God’s heart? Yet man gives God too little; how could God not therefore be worried?

35. Why will God place those who refuse to accept Almighty God into the disasters?

Relevant Words of God:

All those that I love will surely live for eternity, and all those who stand against Me will surely be chastised by Me for eternity. For I am a jealous God, I will not lightly spare men for all that they have done. I will watch over the whole earth, and, appearing in the East of the world with righteousness, majesty, wrath, and chastisement, I will reveal Myself to the myriad hosts of humanity!

from “The Twenty-sixth Utterance” of God’s Utterances to the Entire Universe in The Word Appears in the Flesh

1. What is God’s church? What is a religious organization?

Bible Verses for Reference:

“And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, And said to them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but you have made it a den of thieves” (Mat 21:12-13).

2. What is the difference between the words of people used by God throughout the ages which conform to the truth and the words of God?

Relevant Words of God:

The truth comes from the world of man, yet the truth among man is passed on by Christ. It originates from Christ, that is, from God Himself, and is unattainable by man.

12 Only Those Who Pursue to Know God and Satisfy God Can Bear Testimony for God

Xiyue  Jinan City, Shandong Province

Although at present, we all say that since we believe in God, we should live for the truth and for satisfying God and testifying God, and we are also all eager to bear a strong and resounding testimony for God in the future great trials, nevertheless, we do not pay attention to our practice and entering in in the real life. In everything we encounter daily or in cooperating in any work of God’s family, we are careless and incautious and often act according to our own will, not paying attention to seeking God’s will, not pursuing to know God, and much less having the willingness to practice rebelling against the flesh to satisfy God in everything. In this case, what we say that we will bear a good testimony for God in the great trials will become an empty word without reality.

11 Only Possessing the Reality of the Truth Means Having Gained the Truth

Xiao Liu  Hefei City, Anhui Province

It is only right for people to pursue to gain the truth when believing in God, but to truly gain the truth is not so easy a matter. Some think that they have gained the truth because they can preach some messages and resolve some difficulties of the brothers and sisters. Some think that they have gained the truth because they can receive some revelation and enlightenment when reading God’s word and have gained some knowledge of the truths of a certain aspect. Some think that they have gained the truth because now they can fellowship three or four days without running out of words when having a meeting, while in the past they would have nothing to say after fellowshipping only one day. Still others think that they have gained the truth because they are very familiar with God’s word and can immediately find in the book of God’s word any words they speak about when preaching or fellowshipping. Then, do such states and manifestations prove that they have gained the truth? What are the states of having truly understood the truth and gained the truth?

10 Whoever Doubts God’s Word Will Be Eliminated

Heyi  Zhuanghe City, Liaoning Province

In words and in doctrine, we all acknowledge that God is faithful and whatever he says will be fulfilled, but many times we do not truly believe God’s word from the bottom of our heart and even often deny it in our practical experience. For example, God says: “Nothing is too difficult for me.” However, when we encounter some difficulties or when we achieve no results in the gospel work, we no longer believe this word but think that the practical difficulties are there and that even if we rely on God, we will not be able to resolve the problems or achieve the results. God says: “God perfects people according to their different functions.” But some of the brothers and sisters who preach the gospel, handle general affairs, or do hosting cannot believe this word. They always consider that only the leaders and those who water the churches are the ones to be perfected by God, while they are the serving ones, not the ones to be perfected by God. God says: “I do not care whether you have done laborious service and made great contribution, whether you have much seniority…; as long as you do not act according to my requirements, you can never receive my approval.” But some brothers and sisters cannot believe this word. And they always consider that as they have followed God for so many years, they have done hard work if not good work and God will not be so heartless as to eliminate them in the end. God says: “God’s will is to save man to the utmost.” However, some brothers and sisters do not believe this word but think that they are through and God will never forgive them, because they have brought great losses to God’s family in performing their duties or have once committed a grievous transgression. God says: “All God’s words are directed at everyone who acknowledges God and at everyone who follows God.” But we say that some of God’s words are directed at us and some not, for in us there are not those kinds of states God speaks about. Again, some people see that God always says such words as “My day has been laid before your eyes,” “my day will not be delayed,” and “my day is truly not very distant,” but so far God’s day still has not come; so they think that God’s words are without accuracy.