25. The Supernaturalness and Greatness of God’s Life Power

Lin Ling    Shandong Province

I was born in a poor peasant family. Because my family didn’t have power or influence, I was looked down upon and often bullied by others from my childhood. At such times, I felt especially aggrieved and distressed and expected from my heart that a savior could come to change my destiny.

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The Church of Almighty God | The Discernment of the Wicked Servants Will Keep You from Being Deceived

Every true believer in God is expectantly waiting for the return of the Savior Jesus. But faced with the confusion and the varied statements in the church, many of the brothers and sisters who truly love the Lord are in a tight corner and at a loss what course to take.

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The Loss and Gain of Gatherings | The Church of Almighty God

Pictures of the Church of Almighty God

Guozi    USA

My name is Guozi, and I’m a high school student studying abroad in the USA. I was born in a Christian family, and my mother accepted the work of Almighty God in the last days when I was one year old. I remember when I was very young that my mother would always say to me: “God created heavens, earth, and everything that exists. We humans were also created by God, and God loves us more than anything. Whenever something happens to you, remember to pray to Almighty God, and He will watch over and protect you.” So when I was very young I learned that God exists, and when anything happened to me and I prayed to God, I experienced God’s protection for me. But truly having knowledge of God and God’s work was something I gradually gained in the course of attending gatherings and fellowshiping about the truth together with brothers and sisters of the Church of Almighty God and practicing entering into the word of God …

In December of 2015, my mother suggested I attend a meeting with the brothers and sisters and said, “The work of God in the last days will end right away, and if you don’t attend gatherings and don’t fellowship about the word of God together with the brothers and sisters, it will be very difficult to understand the truth if you just read the word of God by yourself. It won’t be easy to receive salvation.” At the time I thought my mother was just saying that without thinking about it, so I just agreed with her perfunctorily, but I didn’t think that she had actually contacted the church and gotten the sisters to convene a gathering with me online. When the sisters set the meeting time with me, I was really reluctant to do so. I thought that if I had to attend a gathering every single week it would eat into my free time, and there would be less time for me to go out eating, drinking, and having fun with my friends. In my heart I didn’t want to attend the gathering, and just wanted to keep my current situation the same: When something happened to me, I would pray to God, and occasionally experience God’s protection, and it would be sufficient to have God in my heart. But I was too embarrassed to directly refuse the sisters, so all I could do was reluctantly agree. But when the time of the gathering arrived, I was always trying to come up with an excuse to get out of it. Even though I attended the gathering, my heart did not become at peace, and when I prayed to God all I could do was utter some words of praise or ask God to help me have success on an exam or things like that. When fellowshiping about the word of God, I was really afraid when it would be my turn, because I had no light in my heart. I didn’t know what I should fellowship about, and all I could do was look for what I thought were some key passages and read them. Then I would explain a little about the literal meaning, like it was doing a reading comprehension. Because I didn’t have a proper attitude in dealing with the word of God and I didn’t pay careful attention in the gathering, I didn’t have any enlightenment and illumination by the Holy Spirit—I didn’t have any rewards. The more it went on like this, the more boring I thought it was. I thought: Going out to have fun with my classmates is so much better than this. Especially when I saw that I had gotten a bunch of text messages on my phone, I just couldn’t help myself from thinking about going out with my classmates and friends. I then mentioned to my mother that I didn’t want to attend the gathering, and it would be fine if I just read the word of God on my own. But my mother said, “If you don’t attend gatherings, will you consciously read the word of God? The word of God isn’t like that in the textbooks you read in school. It’s not something you can just understand by getting the literal meaning of the words; you have to fellowship about it by attending gatherings with brothers and sisters and share experiences and knowledge with each other. Only that way can you gradually understand it clearly.” I had never thought that attending gatherings was so important. Since it was able to give me more of an opportunity to read the word of God, and also to allow me to understand the truth even more, I wasn’t able to say anything else. But since I was only interested in having a good time, I would not forsake my flesh and put the truth into practice even though I understood a little bit of it. So afterward, every time I attended a gathering, I would still go through the motions of fellowshiping about the word of God then start to play with my phone and look at some gossip news, check out the newest recent TV series, and sometimes chat with my friends. In this way, every time I attended a gathering I continued to get nothing out of it.

One time my mother suddenly asked me, “How have you been feeling recently about attending gatherings, do you understand what you hear? You absolutely can’t play with your phone during gatherings! Even though you attend gatherings online, and the sisters can’t see what you’re doing, God can see your words and actions all the time. If you never pay attention, God won’t ever enlighten you!” Right after that, my mother read to me a passage from the word of God: “Because in order to walk in God’s way, we cannot let go of anything to do with ourselves, or anything that happens around us, even the little things. No matter whether we think we should pay attention to it or not, as long as any matter is facing us we should not let it go. All of it should be viewed as God’s test for us. How’s this kind of attitude? If you have this kind of attitude, then it confirms one fact: Your heart fears God, and your heart is willing to shun evil. If you have this desire to satisfy God, then what you put into practice isn’t far from the standard of fearing God and shunning evil” (“How to Know God’s Disposition and the Result of His Work” in Continuation of The Word Appears in the Flesh). My mother said: “Even though you think that taking a peek at something on your phone while attending a gathering isn’t very serious, this is connected to your attitude of how you treat attending gatherings as well as God. God is at our side watching our each and every move, and observing every thought we have. Have you ever thought why you always want to play with your phone during gatherings? Actually, the tricks of Satan can be found in this. It is God’s will that we understand more about the truth through attending gatherings, mature quickly in our lives, and are finally able to receive God’s salvation. But in order to make you shun God and not listen to God’s word, Satan uses the things you like to entice you, to make you unable to be at peace in your heart in the presence of God, and ultimately unable to obtain anything. When God’s work is finished, your life will be forfeited.” Hearing my mother’s words, I thought to myself: It turns out that there is some truth to be sought in something as small as this, and it even involves a person’s attitude toward God. I was a little ashamed to have been so directly nailed by what my mother said about my thoughts. Before, I always thought that in any case I was just attending gatherings online, and there was no one watching, so I started to think up ideas to satisfy my own preferences. Now I finally knew that God was seeing all of this. Thinking about this, I had a sense of guilt, and was a little disturbed—in the recent several gatherings I was always playing with my phone, and God saw it all. I was full of remorse, and I hurried to acknowledge my mistake in prayer to God. I decided that after this I wouldn’t ever play with my phone again in gatherings and would try hard in pondering the word of God. I would conscientiously listen to what the brothers and sisters fellowshiped about. In the several gatherings I attended after that, I turned my phone off and left it somewhere far away from me. I focused my attention to listening to what the sisters fellowshiped about. Even though sometimes my mind would still wander and I would be absent-minded when listening, I gained a lot from attending gatherings.

But because my desire to just have fun was still strong, after a short while my hands were itching again to play with my phone while in a gathering. I thought: I’ll just take a peek at my phone, I promise. I quickly picked up my phone to take a look, with the result that I was hopeless when it came to looking at my phone. Very quickly, I went back to my old ways, and even sometimes put the computer I was using for the gatherings to one side. Ignoring everything I would take my phone and watch TV shows. This attitude I had of deliberately doing wrong led to me not receiving any of the work of the Holy Spirit. Although we were holding a gathering, I simply had no idea what the sisters were fellowshiping about the whole time. When it came time for me to fellowship, I had no idea what I should say. Gradually, my thoughts of unwillingness to attend gatherings sprouted back up again, but I was too embarrassed to tell my mother. I was only able to continue to halfheartedly attend. This went on until one time at a gathering when I was playing with my phone, I noticed a new TV series that had just come out that I wanted to rush to see, but I had to download some software to watch it. I hesitated a bit, but still downloaded the software. Once I had finished the download, I went to open the program, and my phone’s screen suddenly went black. Then it showed that it wanted my password, but how could I know what the password was? When I went online to search for what reason could have led to my screen going black, I realized that I had been tricked, and someone had taken control of my phone and it was now unusable. I was extremely regretful, and at the same time my mind arrived at the idea of God’s discipline. I thought: God observes the deepest parts of people’s hearts, and every single one of my actions was in full view of God. I deliberately did wrong, and this was God’s discipline being visited on me! After I thought about it I knew I really couldn’t play with my phone in gatherings.

When I told my mother about this, my mother read to me a passage from the word of God: “What’s a big matter? What’s a small matter? All matters that involve walking in God’s way aren’t divided into big or small ones. Can you accept that? (We can accept it.) In terms of everyday matters, there are some which people view as very big and significant, and others that are viewed as minor trifles. People often view these big matters as being the very important ones, and they consider them to be sent by God. However, over the course of these big matters playing out, owing to the immature stature of man, and owing to man’s poor caliber, man is often not up to God’s intentions, cannot obtain any revelations, and cannot acquire any actual knowledge that is of value. So far as the small matters are concerned, these are simply overlooked by man, left to slip away little by little. Thus, they have lost many opportunities to be examined before God, to be tested by Him. Should you always overlook the people, things, and matters, and circumstances that God arranges for you, what will this mean? It means that every day, even every moment, you’re always renouncing God’s perfection of you, and God’s leadership. Whenever God arranges a circumstance for you, He is watching in secret, looking upon your heart, looking upon your thoughts and considerations, looking at how you think, looking at how you will act. If you are a careless person—a person who has never been serious about God’s way, God’s word, or the truth—then you won’t be mindful, you won’t pay attention to that which God wants to complete, and that which God demands of you when He arranges circumstances for you. You also won’t know how the people, things, and matters that you encounter relate to the truth or God’s intentions. After you face repeated circumstances and repeated trials like this, with God not seeing any achievements to your name, how will God proceed? … there’s only one attitude that God has toward these people. What attitude is this? God spurns this kind of person from the bottom of His heart” (“How to Know God’s Disposition and the Result of His Work” in Continuation of The Word Appears in the Flesh). Reading the word of God, I thought: This time, I have genuinely experienced the discipline of God for myself, and I also saw that God is truly by my side watching my every deed. I always thought that I could deceive the brothers and sisters with my corrupt actions and thoughts. But I could never escape the observation of God. Now, I made deliberate wrong actions, and did not read the word of God or fellowship about the truth carefully during gatherings, but just played with my phone and watched TV shows. I already became detested by God, and not only someone took control of my phone, but I also didn’t get anything at all out of fellowshiping about the truth during gatherings. I wasted my time, and blocked myself from entry into life. I also thought: Before, I always wanted to use my own effort to stop myself from playing with my phone during gatherings, but the result has been that I haven’t been able to overcome the enticement of Satan. I’ve seen that by not relying on God but only on my own strength, it’s very difficult to put the truth into practice and attain a state of fearing God and shunning evil. I think my own stature is too meager. In the future I would just pray to and rely on God, and only that way would I be able to truly attain a state of fearing God and shunning evil, would I bring peace to my heart in gatherings.

In the following months, I used my classmate’s phone. Because it was someone else’s phone, I didn’t dare to randomly download whatever programs I felt like. So every time I was in a gathering I would sit contentedly in my seat listening to what the sisters fellowshiped about. Sometimes I would see friends sending me one message after another, my curiosity would start to get the better of me and I really wanted to take a look at what my friends had sent me. But I then thought about God watching my every move, “I am in a gathering at the moment, and if I do not have a devout and reverent attitude it may make God detest me.” So every time when I stretched my hand out toward my phone, I would quickly pull it back. In my heart I would pray to God: “God! Please protect my heart so that it can become tranquil and not be disturbed by Satan.” When I prayed to God and made my heart tranquil, and would conscientiously listen to what the sisters fellowshiped about and shared their experience and knowledge of the word of God, I found that throughout the entire gathering I gained quite a lot of enlightenment and light from the word of God. It allowed me to gain some knowledge about God and God’s work. Before, I never wanted to go to gatherings, and I did make excuses of being busy with schoolwork to avoid attending gatherings. Now, I felt that it was necessary for me to forsake my flesh, and I should always find the time to attend gatherings. Anyway, studying wasn’t normally too much pressure or too much work, and I would often spend my free time playing with my phone and watching TV series. Actually, I was totally able to spend more time participating in gatherings, and this was very beneficial to me in understanding the truth. So I proposed to participate in gatherings two times a week. When I was genuinely carrying it out like this, I understood more and more of the truth, and the knowledge I got of the word of God was much more than I had before. Sometimes I would carry my phone on me and I would still sneak a peek at it, but I would immediately respond by remembering that I had to forsake my flesh and was able to throw my phone onto the bed and continue with the meeting. This is because I knew that God was secretly watching my every move, and I should no longer follow my flesh and had to have a heart that reveres God.

Several months passed, and I really felt like I had gained a lot, understood much of the truth, and made a lot of progress in my life. By the sisters sharing their testimony of experiencing the word of God, I also gradually learned to experience God’s work in my life. The experience I remember most deeply was during a math test, when I copied another student’s answers so I could get a good result. What happened was that I was questioned by the school about whether I had a problem with academic integrity, and this problem was so severe that it would affect me getting into university. Just when I had no idea what I should do, during a gathering a sister shared with me the word of God and fellowshiped about God’s will based on my situation. She said the people God likes are honest, and that only honest people can receive God’s salvation. When I was practicing being an honest person in accordance with the word of God, I saw God’s conduct, and not only did I get an opportunity to re-take the test, but was also rewarded with getting straight A during that semester. Experiences like that were hardly limited to just that once. … Now, I like attending gatherings more and more, and I like fellowshiping about the word of God together with the sisters and talking about my own experiences of carrying out the word of God. Sometimes through the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, when I’m reading the word of God and pondering it in connection with my own experience, my spirit is very moved and I was really overcome with emotion: How good it is to believe in God! Through experience, I went from being afraid to attend gatherings to enjoying it, and this is an outcome I was led to reach by the word of God! Thinking about it carefully, even though because I was attending gatherings I spent less time going out with my classmates to eat, drink, have fun, and get crazy, what I gained was God’s provision for my life. It was God’s word that allowed me to understand that being an honest person would obtain God’s blessing, and when I was carrying out the truth I felt peace and joy in my spirit. By playing with my phone and following my fleshly preferences, I could be harmed and corrupted by Satan, and it could make me get further and further from God and also cause God to detest me. Gatherings and fellowshiping about the truth gradually allowed me to learn that being a person who fears God and shuns evil is something that God praises, and is also the form of a genuine person that I should pursue and live out. Through God’s guidance, I gained so much. Thanks be to Almighty God!

Know more: Eastern Lightning

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Come out of the Temple and Seek the Voice of Christ

The Holy Temple

Come out of the Temple and Seek the Voice of Christ

Cui Na

One day, my classmate and I came to the outside of a Catholic cathedral unconsciously. Attracted by this beautiful building, we entered it. What met our eyes were several small buildings in blue bricks. The European-style spires were surmounted by statues, which looked so handsome. Fascinated by its imposing exterior, my classmate took pictures continuously, and said excitedly, “Look at the pictures. It seems that we are abroad.” When we went into its interior, we saw it was more gorgeous: Lines of European-style chandeliers hung from the high ceiling. The front of the church was well decorated with stained-glass windows. On the high ceiling was painted a giant mural painting. Under the painting was a stage, with many flowers and ornaments on it. On both sides of the stage were two small platforms, with a sculpture of the Lord Jesus on one platform and a Madonna on the other side; in front of them were plenty of flowers and candles. All these things dazzled me.

Looking around this gorgeous church, I suddenly thought of my aunt who was a Catholic. I remembered she proudly said to me that their church was very beautiful. She consecrated the Mass once a month, which was actually offering money. Because their priests told them that to do this was to store up treasures in heaven, and that the more treasures they stored up, the more blessings they would get. Especially, every May they would go on a pilgrimage to Madonna Mountain. On that day, over one hundred thousand people from all over the surrounding region gathered there. There were more than ten statues on the mountain. When coming in front of each of the statues, they would offer some money. At the end of that day, the money in every offering box could fill up several gunnysacks. They reckoned that acting in this way was worshiping God. After hearing her words, I thought: The various temples have been handsomely furnished to attract people to worship God, but does this prove that God works there? Later, my aunt said, “Because preachers have nothing to preach in the church, many fellow believers have gone back to the world to earn money and fewer and fewer fellow believers attend meetings. In order to attract believers, the bishops and priests founded a drummer team equipped with gorgeous costumes. This team gave performances in every church on festival days. The show was pure spectacle and really attracted many people to watch. Just then, the magnificent church appeared so impressive. …”

At the moment, a passage of God’s word in a book suddenly occurred to me: “‘But I say to you, That in this place is one greater than the temple. But if you had known what this means, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, you would not have condemned the guiltless. For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day’ (Mat 12:6-8). What does ‘temple’ refer to here? To put it simply, ‘temple’ refers to a magnificent, tall building, and in the Age of Law, the temple was a place for priests to worship God. When the Lord Jesus said ‘in this place is one greater than the temple,’ who did ‘one’ refer to? Clearly, ‘one’ is the Lord Jesus in the flesh, because only He was greater than the temple. What did those words tell people? They told people to come out of the temple—God had already come out and was no longer working in it, so people should seek God’s footsteps outside of the temple and follow His steps in His new work. The background of the Lord Jesus saying this was that under the law, people had come to see the temple as something greater than God Himself. That is, people worshiped the temple rather than worshiping God, so the Lord Jesus warned them not to worship idols, but to worship God because He is supreme. Thus, He said: ‘I will have mercy, and not sacrifice.’ It is evident that in the eyes of the Lord Jesus, most people under the law no longer worshiped Jehovah, but were merely going through the process of sacrificing, and the Lord Jesus determined that this process was idol worship. These idol-worshipers saw the temple as something greater, and higher than God. In their hearts there was only the temple, not God, and if they lost the temple, they lost their dwelling place. Without the temple they had nowhere to worship and could not carry out their sacrifices. … Because they used the temple as a cover, and sacrifices as a guise for cheating people and cheating God, the Lord Jesus said this to warn people. If you apply these words to the present, they are still equally valid and equally pertinent. Although people today have experienced different work of God than people in the Age of Law experienced, the essence of their nature is the same.”

At that time, the Jewish chief priests, scribes and Pharisees all occupied the temples and the synagogues. They had status and power. It seemed that the magnificence of the temple represented their grandeur. They, dressing in rich robes, performed various rituals in the temple, offered sacrifices to Jehovah God to make atonement for the people, and focused on keeping the Sabbath and all the feasts. In people’s eyes, they were men who served God in the temple. Naturally, the temple became a place to worship God. At the end of the Age of Law, the sins of the Jewish religious world grew each day. The Jewish leaders only concentrated on leading people to conduct all sorts of religious rituals, instead of concentrating on obeying God’s commandments and seeking to know God. It caused people to merely have the position of the temple and their leaders, rather than the position of God in their hearts. As a result, the entire religious world lost the work of the Holy Spirit, and the temple became a den of robbers. In addition, when the Lord Jesus came to do His work, people still followed the religious leaders and worshiped the “temple” in their hearts within the temple, but didn’t seek or investigate God’s new work. In that condition, the Lord Jesus said, “in this place is one greater than the temple.” His purpose was to teach us: In our belief in God, we should honor Christ as great, magnify God, pay attention to the work of the Holy Spirit, recognize the voice of God, and follow Him, not man. We shouldn’t be deceived by those who have positions and gifts outwardly but don’t truly believe in or worship Him in essence, for such kind of people have no place for God in their heart. Rather, they occupy high status and domineer over others under the guise of believing in and serving God. In fact, God simply does not work among these hypocrites. When the Lord Jesus came to do His work, He didn’t preach to the chief priests, scribes and Pharisees in the temple who resisted Him. On the contrary, He came out of the temple and went everywhere with His disciples to testify to the gospel of the kingdom of heaven. As for the Jewish chief priests, scribes and Pharisees in the temple, not only did they not seek God’s will, but doggedly stayed within the temple and rigidly stuck to the Bible. No matter how great the authority and power of the Lord Jesus’ words and work was, they still refused to seek and investigate. For fear that people all followed the Lord Jesus and in order to safeguard their position and job, they publicly opposed the Lord Jesus, God incarnate. On the grounds that the Lord Jesus was not the coming Messiah and that He broke the laws to heal the sick on Sabbath, they condemned and arrested Him, and in the end nailed Him to the cross. They not only offended God’s disposition but also received His punishment and curse. As a result, the nation of Israel was destroyed. This is the bitter consequence and disaster brought by their holding on “The temple is greater than God.”voice of God Yet, those who magnified God and had Him in their hearts laid stress on seeking the voice and the working trend of the Holy Spirit. Consequently, from the work and word of the Lord Jesus, they recognized His voice, and confirmed that the Lord Jesus is the appearance of Christ. Hence, they followed Him, received His commendation and blessings, and gained His great salvation.

The Lord Jesus preaches on the mountain

We have to reflect on these historical facts. If we have only temple but no God in our hearts, and treat temple as something above God, then what will be our end? In these magnificent churches, how many people are true believers in the Lord? If they only keep their external practices and religious rituals, will God like them to do this? Is this what it means to worship God? Still, many people think that they can buy the blessings of the kingdom of heaven as long as they read the scriptures repeatedly, offer more money, do much work, spend and sacrifice a lot, and so on. But few think: What kind of people can enter into the kingdom of heaven? How should we deal with the condition of committing and confessing sins every day? Without breaking away from the bondage of our sinful nature, can we enter into the kingdom of heaven? At that time, the Pharisees “served God” punctually and regularly, kept external rules and ceremonies very well, and had godly behavior outwardly. Yet, they were punished by God because of resisting God. This shows that they didn’t have a knowledge of God at all, much less understand His will. The pastors, elders, bishops and priests in today’s religious world know the Bible well, but they don’t lead believers to obey God’s words and commandments. Instead, they only attach importance to how lively the activity is, how noble their churches are and how attractive the decoration of the churches is. Although they stand in the position of serving God, they don’t lead believers to pursue knowledge of God, but explain letters and doctrines and theological theories to deceive and entrap believers, so as to let them stay within the church. Unconsciously, the Bible, churches and even the leaders’ lofty figures are in their hearts. What’s more, they don’t place importance on the Lord Jesus’ words and requirements at all, let alone practice them. Is there any difference between them and the Jewish Pharisees at that time? If we have no discernment, still follow them and remain in the desolate religion, how can we gain the approval of the Lord? Just like what the Lord Jesus said, “This people draws near to me with their mouth, and honors me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Matthew 15:8-9). As believers in God, if we do not have a place for God in our hearts, or magnify God or honor Christ as great, then we cannot be approved by God, no matter how much biblical knowledge we know and how “devoutly” we worship Him in the church.

The Lord Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father, but by me” (John 14:6). Revelation prophesies, “These are they which follow the Lamb wherever he goes” (Revelation 14:4). “Blessed are they which are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb” (Revelation 19:9). Our belief in God is not believing in the magnificent and tall temple, or rigidly keeping the words and rules of the Bible and religious rituals, or least of all, following the pastors and elders to stay within the church where there is no work of the Holy Spirit. Instead, we should keep pace with the work of the Holy Spirit when it progresses forward. And moreover, we should seek where there is the Holy Spirit’s work and where there are God’s new utterances. Such are the ones who follow the footsteps of the Lamb. Because only Christ can express the truth and God’s voice, thus only when we live by the truth expressed by Christ can we be the ones who truly worship God, exalt Him and honor Him above all else. Only when we come out of the temple to seek the truth and utterances of Christ of the last days, can we keep up with the pace of God’s work, obtain the truth and life from Him, attain His salvation, and gain His approval and blessings.

Read more: Eastern Lightning, The origin of the Church of Almighty God

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A Hymn of God's Words "The Significance of God's Two Incarnations"

Pictures of the Church of Almighty God

The Significance of God's Two Incarnations

I

God began His work of salvation in the Age of Grace, after the end of the Age of Law. The first incarnation redeemed man from sin through the flesh of Jesus Christ. He saved man from the cross, but man's satanic dispositions lingered on. In the last of days, God judges to purify mankind. It's only when this is done will He end His work of salvation and enter into rest.

II

He lives among man, experiencing his suffering, and gifts to man His word. All man can touch is God's incarnate flesh. Through Him man can receive salvation and understand all words and truths. The second incarnation, enough to purify man, thus completing all the work and the meaning of His incarnation. The work of God in the flesh will now come to an end. He won't incarnate in flesh.

III

After this incarnation, His work in flesh and salvation will cease. For He'll have divided man and gained His chosen people. The second incarnation will deliver the forgiven ones. Dispositions will change and they'll be clean. Breaking free from Satan's influence, they'll return to God's throne. Yes, it's the only way to be fully sanctified.

from "The Mystery of the Incarnation (4)" in The Word Appears in the Flesh

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

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To Give Credence to Rumor Is to Lose God’s Salvation of the Last Days

Pictures of the Church of Almighty God

To Give Credence to Rumor Is to Lose God’s Salvation of the Last Days

Whenever they hear someone talking about Almighty God’s gospel of the last days, many brothers and sisters within the church are unable to listen and don’t dare accept what is said because they have been startled by sensationalized rumor. They might hear someone say: “Those who believe in Almighty God are really something, you’ll be deceived if you get in contact with them. There are many true believers among every religious sect and they have good inner qualities, they are lambs who love the truth but they are being stolen by believers in Almighty God …” Or someone has said: “The believers in Almighty God are really enthusiastic about spreading the gospel. If they convert a believer they receive a prize of 2,000 RMB (about 300 dollars), if they convert a church leader they can get 10,000 to 20,000 RMB (about 1,500 to 3,000 dollars) …” And still others have said: “They don’t have very good boundaries between men and women and they are all very promiscuous …” And still others have said: “The Eastern Lightning is a criminal organization. If you get involved with them you’ll never escape. If you do, they’ll gouge out your eyes and cut off your ears, or they’ll break your legs …” etc., etc. It is rumors like these that make some brothers and sisters who are not clear on the facts delay or even refuse God’s salvation of the last days. I do not know if any brothers or sisters within the church have earnestly thought about or studied whether or not these things that are said match up with the facts; is there any factual basis? Have you ever thought about what sort of dire consequences there will be if you believe all the rumors you hear and persist in doing things the wrong way? For now, we need not discuss who the source of these rumors is or why they would deliberately fabricate these things. Instead, we will first have a simple fellowship about these rumors so we can enable our brothers and sisters to clearly see the substance of these rumors.

The rumor goes: “Those who believe in Almighty God are really something, you’ll be deceived if you get in contact with them. There are many true believers among every religious sect and they have good inner qualities, they are lambs who love the truth but they are being stolen by believers in Almighty God …” Today, most of the believers in Almighty God do indeed come from many different religious sects and among them, a great many are very dedicated people, but to say that they are all deceived is malicious slander, pure and simple. Just think about it: Could so many devout people coming from so many different religious sects to accept Almighty God’s work of the last days all be deceived? Does it make sense that they’d be believers for so many years without having some discernment? Even if there is some deception, it could only be those who are not seekers and who are muddled in their faith who get deceived. How is it even possible that so many seekers and so many with sincere faith in God could be deceived? As everyone knows, our faith is in the almighty God—the Holy Spirit who is the sevenfold intensified Spirit—and only the work of the Holy Spirit can encourage the seekers and truly faithful to return to God. Today, there are many sincere seekers from various religious sects who have read and re-read the Bible and who have now come to accept Almighty God’s work of the last days, so what does that indicate? All brothers and sisters with spiritual acuity know the answer, which is this: The Church of Almighty God contains the work of the Holy Spirit and it contains the truth! If it were not the work of God Himself, then who would have brought these brothers and sisters from so many different religious sects together? Could such a great miracle be the work of man? Almighty God is indeed the return of the Lord Jesus; He is the appearance of the one true God! He shall reap and winnow in the last days and do the work where all religious denominations return to one and He will bring all true believers into His kingdom. Therefore, the brothers and sisters who are true believers from all religious sects have one by one returned to stand before Almighty God’s throne after hearing God’s voice. Almighty God has brought the truth, the way, and the life and He reveals the mysteries of God’s 6,000-year management plan. He tells us all the mysteries in the Bible that we didn’t understand and when the true seekers of God hear these truths and see God’s appearance, how could they not accept the work of Almighty God in the last days? Who wouldn’t want to follow the footsteps of the Lamb? This is the reason so many seekers from different religious sects have accepted Almighty God’s work of the last days. The idea that people who have accepted Almighty God’s work of the last days are deceived is clearly an outright lie, it is defamatory, and it is blasphemous to God.

Some people have said: “The believers in Almighty God are really enthusiastic about spreading the gospel. If they convert a believer they receive a prize of 2,000 RMB (about 300 dollars), if they convert a church leader they can get 10,000 to 20,000 RMB (about 1,500 to 3,000 dollars) …” Within this lie, it is mentioned that believers in Almighty God are very enthusiastic about spreading the gospel of Almighty God. While this part is indeed factual, the rest about believers in Almighty God being bribed with money to spread His gospel is purely fabricated nonsense and a defamatory rumor. The fact is, believers in Almighty God who spread His gospel do not receive an award of any kind. Instead, they spend their own savings to do so, and sometimes all they have. The reason they are so enthusiastic is not because they are bribed with money, rather, it’s because they have truly seen the appearance of God, heard God’s word, received His great salvation, and experienced God’s love. Therefore, they are willing to spend all they have and endure any hardship or humiliation to spread the gospel of God’s kingdom. They are just like the original disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ; they have seen God’s appearance and they have gained God’s love. They have given up their homes and careers to bear witness for God; it’s true! Perhaps some brothers and sisters have personally witnessed how believers in Almighty God are treated when they spread the gospel: Some are humiliated, others are beaten with clubs, some are chased off, and others have even been sentenced and imprisoned at the hands of people in power; they suffer all manner of persecution. … I urge everyone to consider this: Who would willingly submit themselves to curses, beatings, and humiliation to spread God’s gospel of the last days if it were not for God’s great love and the work of the Holy Spirit? Who would risk the dangers of prison to spread the gospel of God’s salvation in the last days if they hadn’t seen the appearance of God? If it really was about money, wouldn’t it be easier to go out into the world and work for it? Why endure humiliation and suffering like that to spread the gospel? If we take another look at the brothers and sisters who spread the gospel of the last days, how many of them are wearing or using famous brands or high-end products? If this rumor were true that bringing in a believer gets them 2,000 RMB and bringing in a church leader gets them 10,000 to 20,000 RMB, then wouldn’t there be masses of brothers and sisters in China getting rich every day by spreading Almighty God’s gospel of the last days? There’s no harm in doing a quick survey: Let’s see exactly who among the brothers and sisters in the Church of Almighty God has gotten rich from spreading the gospel. Thus “converting a believer gets a prize of 2,000 RMB, and converting a church leader gets them 10,000 to 20,000 RMB” is clearly a lie and is defamatory.

There are still others who have said: “They don’t have very good boundaries between men and women and they are all very promiscuous …” Regarding this point, let’s take a look at Almighty God’s words: “I am the holy God Himself, I cannot be sullied, and I cannot possess an unclean temple” (The Word Appears in the Flesh). And the regulation is very clear in “The Ten Administrative Decrees That Must Be Obeyed by God’s Chosen People in the Age of Kingdom”: “Man has corrupt disposition and, moreover, he is possessed of emotions. As such, it is absolutely prohibited for two members of the opposite sex to work together when serving God. Any who are discovered doing so will be expelled, without exception—and no one is exempt.” We can see from Almighty God’s words that He is holy and does not live in an unclean temple. His righteous disposition does not tolerate any offense from mankind and anyone who is a follower of Almighty God must strictly adhere to God’s administrative decrees or they will be expelled from the church; no exceptions. The kingdom gospel of Almighty God has spread throughout mainland China and there are believers in Him in every place. You may have seen them yourself and the believers in Almighty God are all dignified and upright, their words and mannerisms are appropriate and in good taste, they conduct themselves in a principled manner, they speak and work rationally, possess humanity, and their living out is worthy of admiration. They are outstanding among other members of society; it’s a fact! Again, the brothers and sisters who are believers in Almighty God are primarily drawn from very genuine seekers from various religious sects and many are leaders and co-workers from different denominations. They have known from the Age of Grace that God hates promiscuous activity and they have always maintained the Lord Jesus’ commandments, something which truly reverent people have always done in the past. Would someone like this intentionally violate the administrative decrees of God’s kingdom today? In the past they traveled about for the Lord, gave up everything they had, and bore the cross and suffered for many years, does it make sense that they do not understand such a simple and basic rule? So you can see, the root of this rumor is simply nonsensical and purely meant as a smear campaign.

Some people have said that “The Eastern Lightning is a criminal organization. If you get involved with them you’ll never escape. If you do, they’ll cut out your eyes and cut off your ears, or they’ll break your legs …” When they bring up criminal organizations, we all know that those involve murderers, arsonists, and very vindictive people who do all manner of evil things. No one wants to provoke those sorts of people. Even the Chinese Communist Party and its police won’t dare mess with them, isn’t that right? So let’s take a look at the brothers and sisters who spread the gospel of the last days. When they go out to bring people before the throne of God, they endure being thrown out, insulted, beaten, attacked by dogs, arrested, imprisoned, and tortured. They suffer all kinds of cruel treatment. If these brothers and sisters were really criminals, would anyone really dare treat them that way? Who would hit them? Who would set their dogs on them to attack them? Who would dare try to arrest them? No one would do that! Would a criminal endure verbal abuse and not respond? Would a criminal be beaten and not fight back? Do you know of any criminals like that? If these brothers and sisters really were criminals, why would they be specifically trying to convert true believers in God who are relatively dedicated seekers? Furthermore, there are many brothers and sisters from various religious sects who have heard God’s gospel of the last days. Whether they accepted the gospel and then withdrew from the church or if they never accepted it in the first place, who among them has had their eyes gouged out, ears cut off, or legs broken? Is there any factual basis for anything these rumor spreaders have said? There is also no factual basis when they say things like: “If you get involved with believing in Almighty God you’ll never escape.” In fact, all of the true believers and those who are truly certain about God’s work in the last days who do decide to never leave, do so because they do not want to leave. Why is this? Almighty God says, “The incarnation of God has sent shockwaves through all sects and denominations, it has ‘thrown into disarray’ their original order, and it has shaken the hearts of all of those who yearn for the appearance of God. Who is not adoring? Who doesn’t long to see God? God has personally been among man for many years, yet man has never realized it. Today, God Himself has appeared, and shown forth His identity to the masses—how could this not bring delight to man’s heart?” (“Work and Entry (10)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh). “During the last days, God once more became flesh, and when He became flesh this time, He ended the Age of Grace and brought the Age of Kingdom. All those who accept the second incarnation of God will be led into the Age of Kingdom, and be able to personally accept the guidance of God. … All those who submit under His dominion shall enjoy higher truth and receive greater blessings. They shall truly live in the light, and shall gain the truth, the way, and the life” (Preface to The Word Appears in the Flesh). The incarnation of God in the last days has indeed sent shockwaves through various sects of the religious world and it has shaken the hearts of those who thirst for God’s appearance. The reason brothers and sisters from various sects have returned to stand before God is because they have seen the appearance of God, heard His word, understood Christ of the last days is the truth, the way, and the life, and that only belief in Almighty God will allow them to achieve salvation and entry into the kingdom of heaven. Who would want to leave after receiving salvation like this? Therefore, it’s easy to see that rumors about people not wanting to leave due to being afraid of having their eyes gouged out, ears cut off, or legs broken are just being fabricated by people with ulterior motives.

From what we fellowshiped about above, we can see that the slanderous comments about God’s work in the last days are nothing but lies that are complete fabrications with no basis in the truth. To be a believer who concocts lies and bears false witness is behavior that God hates the most and is deemed as sinful behavior by God, just like the Bible says here: “He that speaks truth shows forth righteousness: but a false witness deceit” (Pro 12:17). “Lying lips are abomination to the LORD: but they that deal truly are his delight” (Pro 12:22). The Lord Jesus said: “You are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and stayed not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it” (Jhn 8:44). Considering that this is something God doesn’t like, why do they persist in doing this? In John chapter 11 verses 47-48 it says: “Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man does many miracles. If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation.” Matthew chapter 28 notes this fact: After the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, the chief priests and the elders were afraid that everyone would go to believe in the Lord Jesus and that they would thereby lose their status and income. They then colluded to cover up the fact that the Lord Jesus was resurrected. They bribed the soldiers with silver and made up lies to persuade people that the Lord Jesus never resurrected, saying that disciples took the body of Christ away when the soldiers were sleeping. We see from this that people can fabricate lies and slander as well as blaspheme God, which indicates their evil nature, that they hate the truth and that they are enemies of God. They do this to protect their own reputations, statuses, profits, and physical pleasures. It’s just the same today. As Almighty God has expanded His work of the last days in mainland China, great swaths of believers from many different religious sects have come to accept God’s new work. When some leaders of these sects see more and more people accept Almighty God’s work of the last days while their churches dwindle, they fabricate all sorts of lies and slander to condemn Almighty God’s work of the last days so that they can protect their own status and income. This is how they deceive and frighten brothers and sisters to make them afraid to accept God’s work in the last days; their purpose is to trap and control their congregations. These people treat Almighty God in the exact same way that the Pharisees treated the Lord Jesus; they are the modern-day Pharisees! From this we can see that people intentionally and purposefully spread lies.

If we are unable to discern these lies and blindly follow them, then we stand on the side of those who slander, resist, and disturb God’s work. This not only causes one to lose God’s salvation in the last days, it also turns one into a target for God’s detestation and rejection and punishment. This is just like the Lord Jesus’ work among the Jewish people, where the Pharisees made up all kinds of lies and slander against Him, such as saying the Lord Jesus’ ability to cast out demons was only because He was conjuring the prince of demons, Beelzebub, as well as other blasphemous things. So, many Jewish people took the evil path of resisting God when they blindly accepted the lies of the Pharisees due to lacking the discernment and not carefully studying what they saw and thereby followed the Pharisees to abandon and murder the Lord Jesus. The Pharisees spread falsehoods and slander about God, and we all know what ending they met, but what about those Jewish people who took those lies and slander as truth, wasn’t their ending just as tragic? The Jewish state was destroyed and the Jewish people were scattered in all directions. They had no home to return to for 2,000 years and they were punished by God just like the Pharisees were. Aren’t these the consequences of taking the lies of the Pharisees as truth and resisting God? We can see then, that those that believe in God without a reverent heart and who do not seek to investigate God’s new work and those who easily believe lies become accomplices to Satan and become evildoers who resist God. In the end, they will lose God’s salvation. It is the same today as it was back then. As believers and followers of God, when facing God’s work in the last days, we must seek and study it with reverent hearts. This is the only way to approach this if we want to keep pace with God’s work and obtain God’s salvation of the last days. Otherwise we will become like the Jewish people in the past who became tools exploited by Satan, who resisted God, and who became God’s bitter enemies and thereby became subject to God’s punishment.

We should know that rumors are one of Satan’s tricks and that rumors are one of its methods to resist God’s work. However, God’s wisdom is always a step ahead of Satan’s tricks. Satan is not only incapable of messing up God’s work, but instead just makes God’s work more effective. Just like when the Jewish scribes and Pharisees tried so hard to resist and condemn the Lord Jesus’ work; they colluded with Rome to have the Lord Jesus crucified, but they had no way of knowing the true significance of when the Lord Jesus said: “It is finished.” This shows us that God used Satan’s trick to achieve His own plan and to complete His redemption of mankind. Today is no different. Even though there are leaders and co-workers in various religious sects who use their own deliberate and despicable means to create lies and rumors to resist Almighty God’s work of the last days, however, none of these tricks are capable of harming God’s work. Instead, they are beneficial to the accomplishment of God’s work of the last days to classify man according to their kind and to reward the good and punish the evil. Although their lies have deceived some brothers and sisters, people who sincerely seek God’s appearance have ultimately returned to stand before God’s throne. Lies may tightly bind together the “tares,” but these lies do not do the same to “grains of wheat.” The wind blows the chaff away, while the plump seeds shall be gathered into the granary in the end. To put it another way, lies will reveal and eliminate those who do not belong to God, who lack reverence for God, and the conformists. But for the genuine seekers of truth who thirst for God’s appearance, they shall be taken by God to a beautiful destination. In this manner, Satan’s tricks end up only helping to complete God’s work in the last days of classifying man according to their kind, as well as rewarding the good and punishing the evil, doesn’t this serve as a great example of God’s almightiness and wisdom?

We will end our fellowship here. I believe that when you are all confronted with rumors you will understand their cause, their substance, and their harmfulness! And now, Almighty God’s work in the last days has reached unprecedented new heights and approaches its glorious end and Almighty God will reveal Himself for all nations and all peoples to see. At such a crucial time, are you willing to lose your life and forsake God’s salvation of the last days just to believe in some rumors? I know that you will make the wise choice.

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A Hymn of God's Words "Only God Incarnate Can Thoroughly Save Mankind"

Only God Incarnate Can Thoroughly Save Mankind

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When God incarnate comes to do His work on earth, man's faulty notion of Him will forever be laid bare, because the normality and reality of God incarnate is the opposite of man's vague, mythical idea of Him. It's only through this contrast that man's old concept of God is revealed. Only God can do this work. No matter how rich man's words, they cannot articulate the normality, nor the reality of God Himself. When God becomes the flesh and works among mankind, they will see Him more clearly and know Him more practically. When God becomes the flesh and works among mankind, they can be saved from the influence of Satan. Only God incarnate can thoroughly save mankind.

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You Must Know the Truths About the Incarnation of God

The Last Supper

Chapter 5 You Must Know the Truths About the Incarnation of God

3. What Is the Difference Between the Work of God Incarnate and the Work of the Spirit?

Relevant Words of God:

Though God’s work in the flesh involves many unimaginable difficulties, the effects that it ultimately achieves far exceed those of the work done directly by the Spirit. The work of the flesh entails much hardship, and the flesh cannot possess the same great identity as the Spirit, cannot carry out the same supernatural deeds as the Spirit, much less can He possess the same authority as the Spirit. Yet the substance of the work done by this unremarkable flesh is far superior to that of the work done directly by the Spirit, and this flesh Himself is the answer to all of man’s needs. For those to be saved, the use value of the Spirit is far inferior to that of the flesh: The work of the Spirit is able to cover the entire universe, across all mountains, rivers, lakes, and oceans, yet the work of the flesh more effectively relates to every person with whom He has contact. What’s more, God’s flesh with tangible form can better be understood and trusted by man, and can further deepen man’s knowledge of God, and can leave upon man a more profound impression of the actual deeds of God. The work of the Spirit is shrouded in mystery, it is difficult for mortal beings to fathom, and even harder for them to see, and so they can only rely on hollow imaginings. The work of the flesh, however, is normal, and based on reality, and possessed of rich wisdom, and is a fact that can be beheld by the physical eye of man; man can personally experience the wisdom of the work of God, and has no need to employ his bountiful imagination. This is the accuracy and real value of the work of God in the flesh. The Spirit can only do things that are invisible to man and difficult for him to imagine, for example the enlightenment of the Spirit, the moving of the Spirit, and the guidance of the Spirit, but for man who has a mind, these do not provide any clear meaning. They only provide a moving, or a broad meaning, and cannot give an instruction with words. The work of God in the flesh, however, is greatly different: It has accurate guidance of words, has clear will, and has clear required goals. And so man does not need to grope around, or employ his imagination, much less make guesses. This is the clarity of the work in the flesh, and its great difference from the work of the Spirit. The work of the Spirit is only suitable for a limited scope, and cannot replace the work of the flesh. The work of the flesh gives man far more exact and necessary goals and far more real, valuable knowledge than the work of the Spirit. The work that is of greatest value to corrupt man is that which provides accurate words, clear goals to pursue, and which can be seen and touched. Only realistic work and timely guidance are suited to man’s tastes, and only real work can save man from his corrupt and depraved disposition. This can only be achieved by the incarnate God; only the incarnate God can save man from his formerly corrupt and depraved disposition. Although the Spirit is the inherent substance of God, work such as this can only be done by His flesh. If the Spirit worked single-handedly, then it would not be possible for His work to be effective—this is a plain truth. Though most people have become the enemies of God because of this flesh, when He concludes His work, those who are against Him will not only cease to be His enemies, but on the contrary will become His witnesses. They will become the witnesses that have been conquered by Him, witnesses that are compatible with Him and inseparable from Him. He shall cause man to know the importance of His work in the flesh to man, and man shall know the importance of this flesh to the meaning of man’s existence, shall know His real value to the growth of man’s life, and, moreover, shall know that this flesh will become a living fountain of life from which man cannot bear to part. Though the incarnate flesh of God is far from matching God’s identity and position, and seems to man to be incompatible with His actual status, this flesh, who does not possess the true image of God, or the true identity of God, can do the work that God’s Spirit is unable to do directly. Such is the true significance and value of God’s incarnation, and it is this significance and value which man is unable to appreciate and acknowledge. Though all men look up to God’s Spirit and look down on God’s flesh, irrespective of how they view or think, the real significance and value of the flesh far exceed those of the Spirit. Of course, this is only with regard to the corrupt mankind. For everyone who seeks the truth and longs for the appearance of God, the Spirit’s work can only provide moving or revelation, and a sense of wondrousness that it is inexplicable and unimaginable, and a sense that it is great, transcendent, and admirable, yet also unattainable and unobtainable to all. Man and the Spirit of God can only look upon each other from afar, as if there is a great distance between them, and they can never be alike, as if separated by an invisible divide. In fact, this is an illusion given to man by the Spirit, which is because the Spirit and man are not of the same kind, and the Spirit and man shall never coexist in the same world, and because the Spirit possesses nothing of man. So man does not have need of the Spirit, for the Spirit cannot directly do the work most needed by man. The work of the flesh offers man real objectives to pursue, clear words, and a sense that He is real and normal, that He is humble and ordinary. Although man may fear Him, for most people He is easy to relate to: Man can behold His face, and hear His voice, and does not need to look at Him from afar. This flesh feels approachable to man, not distant, or unfathomable, but visible and touchable, for this flesh is in the same world as man.

from “Corrupt Mankind Is More in Need of the Salvation of God Become Flesh” in The Word Appears in the Flesh

God’s saving of man is not done directly through the means of the Spirit or as the Spirit, for His Spirit can neither be touched nor seen by man, and cannot be approached by man. If He tried to save man directly in the manner of the Spirit, man would be unable to receive His salvation. And if not for God putting on the outward form of a created man, they would be unable to receive this salvation. For man can in no way approach Him, much like how none could go near the cloud of Jehovah. Only by becoming a man of creation, that is, putting His word into the flesh He will become, can He personally work the word into all who follow Him. Only then can man hear for himself His word, see His word, and receive His word, then through this be fully saved. If God did not become flesh, no fleshly man would receive such great salvation, nor would a single man be saved. If the Spirit of God worked directly among man, man would be smitten or completely carried away captive by Satan because man is unable to associate with God. The first incarnation was to redeem man from sin through the flesh of Jesus, that is, He saved man from the cross, but the corrupt satanic disposition still remained within man. The second incarnation is no longer to serve as a sin offering but to fully save those who were redeemed from sin. This is done so that those forgiven can be delivered from their sins and be fully made clean, and attain a change in disposition, thereby breaking free of Satan’s influence of darkness and returning before the throne of God. Only in this way can man be fully sanctified.

from “The Mystery of the Incarnation (4)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh

If the Spirit of God directly spoke to man, they would all submit to the voice, falling down without words of revelation, much like how Paul fell to the ground amid the light as he journeyed to Damascus. If God continued to work in this way, man would never be able to know his own corruption through judgment by the word and attain salvation. Only through becoming flesh can He personally deliver His words to the ears of all so that all who have ears can hear His words and receive His work of judgment by the word. Only such is the result achieved by His word, rather than the emergence of the Spirit frightening man into submission. Only through such practical and extraordinary work can the old disposition of man, hidden deep within for many years, be fully revealed so that man may recognize it and have it changed. This is the practical work of God incarnate; He speaks and executes judgment in a practical manner to achieve the results of judgment upon man by the word. This is the authority of God incarnate and the significance of God’s incarnation. It is done to make known the authority of God incarnate, the results achieved by the work of the word, and that the Spirit has come in the flesh; He demonstrates His authority through judgment upon man by the word. Although His flesh is the outward form of an ordinary and normal humanity, it is the results that His words achieve that show man He is full of authority, that He is God Himself and that His words are the expression of God Himself. This shows all man that He is God Himself, God Himself who became flesh, and that He can be offended by none. None can surpass His judgment by the word, and no force of darkness can prevail over His authority. Man submits to Him entirely because He is the Word become flesh, His authority, and His judgment by the word. The work brought by His incarnate flesh is the authority that He possesses.

from “The Mystery of the Incarnation (4)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh

Because the one who is judged is man, man who is of the flesh and has been corrupted, and it is not the spirit of Satan that is judged directly, the work of judgment is not carried out in the spiritual world, but among man. No one is more suitable, and qualified, than God in the flesh for the work of judging the corruption of man’s flesh. If judgment were carried out directly by the Spirit of God, then it would not be all-embracing. Furthermore, such work would be difficult for man to accept, for the Spirit is unable to come face-to-face with man, and because of this, the effects would not be immediate, much less would man be able to behold the unoffendable disposition of God more clearly. Satan can only be fully defeated if God in the flesh judges the corruption of mankind. Being the same as man possessed of normal humanity, God in the flesh can directly judge the unrighteousness of man; this is the mark of His innate holiness, and of His extraordinariness. Only God is qualified to, and in the position to judge man, for He is possessed of the truth, and righteousness, and so He is able to judge man. Those who are without the truth and righteousness are not fit to judge others. If this work were done by the Spirit of God, then it would not be victory over Satan. The Spirit is inherently more exalted than mortal beings, and the Spirit of God is inherently holy, and triumphant over the flesh. If the Spirit did this work directly, He would not be able to judge all of man’s disobedience, and could not reveal all of man’s unrighteousness. For the work of judgment is also carried out through man’s conceptions of God, and man has never had any conceptions of the Spirit, and so the Spirit is incapable of better revealing the unrighteousness of man, much less of completely disclosing such unrighteousness. The incarnate God is the enemy of all those who do not know Him. Through judging man’s conceptions and opposition to Him, He discloses all the disobedience of mankind. The effects of His work in the flesh are more apparent than those of the work of the Spirit. And so, the judgment of all mankind is not carried out directly by the Spirit, but is the work of the incarnate God. God in the flesh can be seen and touched by man, and God in the flesh can completely conquer man. In his relationship with God in the flesh, man progresses from opposition to obedience, from persecution to acceptance, from conception to knowledge, and from rejection to love. These are the effects of the work of the incarnate God. Man is only saved through the acceptance of His judgment, only gradually comes to know Him through the words of His mouth, is conquered by Him during his opposition to Him, and receives the life supply from Him during the acceptance of His chastisement. All of this work is the work of God in the flesh, and not the work of God in His identity as the Spirit. The work done by God incarnate is the greatest work, and the most profound work, and the crucial part of the three stages of God’s work are the two stages of the work of incarnation.

from “Corrupt Mankind Is More in Need of the Salvation of God Become Flesh” in The Word Appears in the Flesh

If this work were done by the Spirit—if God did not become flesh, and instead the Spirit spoke directly through thunder so that man had no way to have contact with Him, would man know His disposition? If only the Spirit did the work, then man would have no way of knowing His disposition. People can only behold God’s disposition with their own eyes when He becomes flesh, when the Word appears in the flesh, and He expresses His entire disposition through the flesh. God truly lives among man. He is tangible; man can truly engage with His disposition and what He has and is; only in this way can man truly know Him.

from “The Vision of God’s Work (3)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh

The best thing about His work in the flesh is that He can leave accurate words and exhortations, and His accurate will for mankind to those who follow Him, so that afterward His followers can more accurately and more concretely pass on all of His work in the flesh and His will for the whole of mankind to those who accept this way. Only the work of God in the flesh among man truly accomplishes the fact of God’s being and living together with man. Only this work fulfills man’s desire to behold the face of God, witness the work of God, and hear the personal word of God. The incarnate God brings to an end the age when only the back of Jehovah appeared to mankind, and also concludes the age of mankind’s belief in the vague God. In particular, the work of the last incarnate God brings all mankind into an age that is more realistic, more practical, and more pleasant. He not only concludes the age of law and doctrine; more importantly, He reveals to mankind a God who is real and normal, who is righteous and holy, who unlocks the work of the management plan and demonstrates the mysteries and destination of mankind, who created mankind and brings to an end the management work, and who has remained hidden for thousands of years. He brings the age of vagueness to a complete end, He concludes the age in which the whole of mankind wished to seek God’s face but was unable to, He ends the age in which the whole of mankind served Satan, and leads the whole of mankind all the way into a completely new era. All this is the outcome of the work of God in the flesh instead of God’s Spirit. When God works in His flesh, those who follow Him no longer seek and grope after those vague and ambiguous things, and cease to guess at the will of the vague God. When God spreads His work in the flesh, those who follow Him shall pass on the work that He has done in the flesh to all denominations and sects, and they shall communicate all of His words to the ears of the whole of mankind. All that is heard by those who receive His gospel shall be the facts of His work, shall be things personally seen and heard by man, and shall be facts and not hearsay. These facts are the evidence with which He spreads the work, and are also the tools that He uses in spreading the work. Without the existence of facts, His gospel would not spread across all countries and to all places; without facts but only with man’s imaginations, He would never be able to do the work of conquering the entire universe. The Spirit is impalpable to man, and invisible to man, and the work of the Spirit is incapable of leaving any further evidence or facts of God’s work for man. Man shall never behold the real face of God, and shall always believe in a vague God that does not exist. Man shall never behold the face of God, nor will man ever hear words personally spoken by God. Man’s imaginings are, after all, empty, and cannot replace the true face of God; the inherent disposition of God, and the work of God Himself cannot be impersonated by man. The invisible God in heaven and His work can only be brought to earth by God incarnate who personally does His work among man. This is the most ideal way in which God appears to man, in which man sees God and comes to know the true face of God, and it cannot be achieved by a non-incarnate God. God having carried out His work to this stage, His work has already achieved the optimal effect, and has been a complete success. The personal work of God in the flesh has already completed ninety percent of the work of God’s entire management. This flesh has provided a better beginning to all of His work, and a summary for all of His work, and has promulgated all of His work, and made the last thorough replenishment to all of this work. Henceforth, there will not be another incarnate God to do the fourth stage of God’s work, and there will be no more wondrous work of the third incarnation of God.

from “Corrupt Mankind Is More in Need of the Salvation of God Become Flesh” in The Word Appears in the Flesh

Recommendation: Eastern Lightning,  Know more of the Church of Almighty God

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