If Eastern Lightning Is the True Way, Why Is It Oppressed?

Hello, brothers and sisters of Spiritual Q&A,

I’ve been looking into the way of Eastern Lightning for some time now. By reading Almighty God’s words and watching The Church of Almighty God’s gospel films and videos, I’ve learned about the purpose of God’s three stages of work, the mysteries of God’s incarnations, the significance of God taking on a different name in each age, the inside story of the Bible, what a wise virgin is and what a foolish virgin is, what truly being raptured is, how God’s judgment of the last days cleanses, transforms, and perfects people, plus what people’s destinations and outcomes will be. I’ve come to understand so many truths I never did before and my faith and love for God have been restored. I’ve had a lot of spiritual enjoyment. I’ve seen that Almighty God’s words are the truth; they possess authority and might and couldn’t be uttered by a human being. They are utterances that come from the Holy Spirit. I feel that Eastern Lightning must be the true way. However, some of the pastors and elders in religious circles say that if it were the true way, why would it be so suppressed, persecuted, and condemned by the CCP? I’m not clear on this and want to do more seeking.

Yang Guang

Man Can Only Be Saved Amidst the Management of God

Everyone feels that the management of God is strange, because people think that the management of God is completely unrelated to man. They think that this management is the work of God alone, is God’s own business, and so mankind is indifferent to the management of God. In this way, the salvation of mankind has become vague and indistinct, and is now nothing but empty rhetoric. Even though man follows God in order to be saved and enter the beautiful destination, man has no concern for how God conducts His work. Man does not care for what God plans to do and the part he must play in order to be saved. How tragic that is! The salvation of man is inseparable from the management of God, much less can it be divorced from the plan of God. Yet man thinks nothing of the management of God, and thus grows ever more distant from God. Consequently, increasing numbers of people are becoming followers of God who don’t know things that are closely related to the salvation of man such as what creation is, what belief in God is, how to worship God, and so on. At this point, then, we must have a talk about the management of God, so that each follower may clearly know the significance of following God and believing in Him. They will also be able to choose the path that they should tread more accurately, instead of following God solely to gain blessings, or avoid disaster, or become successful.

Beholding the Appearance of God in His Judgment and Chastisement

Like the hundreds of millions of others who follow the Lord Jesus Christ, we abide by the laws and commandments of the Bible, enjoy the abundant grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and gather together, pray, praise, and serve in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ—and all this we do under the care and protection of the Lord. We are often weak, and we are also often strong. We believe that all of our actions are in accordance with the teachings of the Lord. It goes without saying, then, that we also believe ourselves to be on the path of obedience to the will of the Father in heaven. We long for the return of the Lord Jesus, for His glorious descent, for the end of our life on earth, for the appearance of the kingdom, and for everything as it was foretold in the Book of Revelation: The Lord arrives, He brings disaster, He rewards the good and punishes the wicked, and He takes all those who follow Him and welcome His return up to meet Him in the air. Whenever we think of this, we cannot but be overcome with emotion and filled with gratitude that we were born in the last days and have the good fortune to witness the coming of the Lord. Though we have suffered persecution, we have got in return “a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” What a blessing! All of this longing, and the grace bestowed by the Lord, render us constantly sober unto prayer, and make us more diligent in gathering together. Maybe next year, maybe tomorrow, and again, maybe within a space of time shorter than man can conceive, the Lord shall suddenly descend, appearing among a group of people who have been waiting for Him with eager solicitude. We rush to get ahead of each other, none willing to fall behind, all for the sake of being in the first group to behold the appearance of the Lord, of being among those who are raptured. We have given everything, heedless of the cost, for the coming of this day, some leaving their jobs, some abandoning their families, some renouncing marriage, and some even donating all of their savings. What selfless acts of devotion! Such sincerity and loyalty is surely beyond even the saints of ages past! As the Lord bestows grace upon whomever He pleases, and shows mercy to whomever He pleases, our acts of devotion and of expending, we believe, have long since been beheld by His eyes. So, too, have our heartfelt prayers reached His ears, and we trust that the Lord will give us recompense for our dedication. Moreover, God had been gracious toward us before He created the world, and the blessings and promises He has given to us no one can take away. We are all planning for the future, and as a matter of course have made our dedication and expending into counter chips or capital to exchange for being raptured to meet the Lord in the air. What is more, we have, without the slightest hesitation, placed ourselves on the throne of the future, to preside over all nations and all peoples, or to reign as kings. All this we take as a given, as something to be expected.

The Principles That Must Be Understood for Serving God

People fulfilling their duties of serving God is not doing their own work, but rather they are doing the work that God has commissioned. To do the work that God has commissioned, it must be done in accordance with God’s requirements in order to satisfy God’s will. If it is their own work, then people can do it according to their own will. They can do it however they like, and other people have no right to interfere. For example, if you are an official in the government, then you would have to work according to the country’s laws in order to be retained. If you work in a factory, you would have to work according to the factory’s rules in order to get paid. In the same way, if you work on God’s commissions in the house of God, you have to do it in accordance with God’s requirements and God’s words in order to not be eliminated. This is like the Chinese idiom, “If you do not work according to your employer’s commands, you wouldn’t be rewarded even if you die from exhaustion.” Now, many people who are working as leaders still do not understand this principle. These kinds of people are truly foolish, ignorant, and lacking in knowledge.

Several Principles for Leading Non-Religious New Believers

God’s salvation of people is not limited to those who are already religious or are outsiders. As long as a person is willing to accept God’s work, is able to eat and drink God’s words and seek truth, then they are a suitable target for God’s salvation. God’s will is such that all those who can accept the work of Almighty God and attain purification are those who shall attain God’s salvation. There is no seniority among believers when practicing faith in God. As long as someone seeks truth and accepts God’s judgment and chastisement—thereby achieving transformation in his or her life disposition—then they are someone perfected by God. Therefore, mankind’s conceptions, imaginings or delineations about God are all ridiculous. God is righteous; God does not treat anyone with preference. To nurture and give sustenance to non-religious believers—truly bringing them into God’s words and helping them to enter into all truths—is God’s requirement, and this is also God’s commission to the leaders and workers of God’s house. All those who have prejudice against or exclude non-religious new believers, all those who muddle through the work of nurturing and giving sustenance to non-religious new believers, are all servants of Satan and they are all interrupting and disturbing God’s work. This is entirely the revelation of mankind’s satanic nature that opposes God. This must be clearly discerned.

Principles for Establishing a Church and Managing Church Life

1. Principles for Establishing a Church

The principles for establishing a church are: So long as there is a group of people (around 20) who have truly accepted God’s work, who request to formally join the church, and who are willing to fulfill their duties, then a church can be established. If there are around 10 new believers who ask to have gatherings, a gathering group can first be set up, but a church cannot be established. If the new believers have not formally recognized and accepted the true way while they investigate it, then a church should not be established. The establishment of a church should be done in person by a church leader, a gospel preaching deacon or a nurturing deacon. Before establishing a church, it is most critical to first clearly communicate how church leaders and deacons are elected. After the new believers have all understood the principles for electing leaders and deacons, an election can then be held. After the church leader and deacons have been elected, the person responsible for establishing the church shall preside over and hold a prayer meeting during which they should formally announce the establishment of the church, announce who are to be the church leaders and deacons, and then begin to pray. Everyone shall pray before God and declare that they formally believe in Almighty God and are joining the church. They should also declare that they thoroughly accept and submit to God’s work, will seek truths to attain God’s salvation, will exalt God and bear witness for God to repay God’s love and spend their whole life for God. They may also relate their wishes, aspirations and innermost thoughts to God. After God’s chosen people have finished their prayers, the church will then have been established, and the leaders and deacons may officially begin leading the church life.

The Story of Job: Why Did Job Curse the Day of His Birth?

By Mu Cheng

It is dusk, and a grey-haired old man was sitting by the ashes of his fire, his exposed skin densely covered in painful boils, the surface of the boils broken and suppurating in a horrifying scene.