Ann, United States
When I was still an eight-year-old child, I had joined the Jehovah’s Witnesses with my mother. There I heard many stories, such as that of Jonah, Job, Jeremiah, Noah, and Abraham…. Fascinated by these stories about God and man, I had a wonderful yearning for God in my young heart, which laid the foundation of my faith.
Every week, we attended meetings regularly and shared scriptures in our church, learning how to live out a good humanity, how to love one another, and so on. Also, to learn more God’s words, my mom and I would fellowship together at home at least once a week. In this way, I was able to memorize many Bible verses that I liked, and what impressed me most was the vision John saw in Revelation, which says, “And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof? And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon. And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon. And one of the elders said to me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof” (Revelation 5:1-5). When reading these words, I couldn’t help wondering: What is the scroll that would be opened by God? Since it is recorded in Revelation, it shall happen in the last days; since it was sealed with seven seals, it was unknown to man; since here mentions that the Lamb alone is worthy to open it, this can only be done by Christ. Then how would the scroll be opened? And what’s written in it? In addition, I often heard people talk about the judgment of the last days in the church, then how would God judge man in the last days? Though unable to clearly tell the inner meaning of the verses, I always had an idea that in the last days something great would happen, and a sealed little scroll would be opened to us.
Every week, we attended meetings regularly and shared scriptures in our church, learning how to live out a good humanity, how to love one another, and so on. Also, to learn more God’s words, my mom and I would fellowship together at home at least once a week. In this way, I was able to memorize many Bible verses that I liked, and what impressed me most was the vision John saw in Revelation, which says, “And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof? And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon. And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon. And one of the elders said to me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof” (Revelation 5:1-5). When reading these words, I couldn’t help wondering: What is the scroll that would be opened by God? Since it is recorded in Revelation, it shall happen in the last days; since it was sealed with seven seals, it was unknown to man; since here mentions that the Lamb alone is worthy to open it, this can only be done by Christ. Then how would the scroll be opened? And what’s written in it? In addition, I often heard people talk about the judgment of the last days in the church, then how would God judge man in the last days? Though unable to clearly tell the inner meaning of the verses, I always had an idea that in the last days something great would happen, and a sealed little scroll would be opened to us.
Through the years, I saw that the disasters across the world became ever more frequent and the people increasingly panicked and corrupt. In light of the great disasters and various signs of the last days mentioned in Revelation, I was more convinced in my heart that the last days have arrived, and the little scroll shall have been opened now. But how is it opened? If we are ignorant of its content as well as what God is doing now, then how can we prepare ourselves to face God’s judgment of mankind in the last days? To these questions, I then asked the brothers and sisters in the church. Their answers were: The little scroll will be opened bit by bit, as it has been sealed with seven seals. But as for what’s happened to it now, no one can tell clearly. Besides, in the last days, God will bind Satan for a thousand years to transform us, and then for another thousand years, He will release it to test us, and this is the judgment. Still, such replies could not solve my questions. Moreover, I saw that the believers all lived helplessly in the cycle of committing and confessing sins. One married pastor even had affairs with some sisters of our church for 10 years, which was eventually fully exposed. I couldn’t help but sigh: Why was the pastor also living such a fallen life? All the efforts that we made to study the Bible, and to practice loving others as ourselves and living out the normal humanity, how could they not stop us from sinning? Thinking back, two thousand years ago, the Lord Jesus had successfully fulfilled His work of redeeming us by being nailed to the cross. Two thousand years later, however, we are still living in sin, unable to extricate ourselves. The day of the Lord being near at hand, will we go meet Him so? Something seemed to be amiss in that; yet I myself could not make it clear.
Then carrying all my confusion, I left the Jehovah’s Witnesses for a church of Pentecost. The pastors here would collect offerings two or three times in each worship service on the Lord’s day, and often invented various items to collect money. All the believers focused on pursuing material blessings, seeing signs and wonders, and receiving the so-called “Holy Spirit” as well as the spiritual gifts of tongues, prophecy, etc. A pastor wanted to lay his hand upon and pray for me, saying that he could give me the “Holy Spirit,” and that I would be cleansed once I received it. However, I saw that many of them who had gained the so-called “Holy Spirit” still sinned inevitably, for example, stealing offerings, developing an extramarital affair. Even those pastors with many so-called spiritual gifts also had illicit affairs with some sisters in the church. Therefore, I declined him. But anyway, I still asked him the questions that puzzled me, “Pastor, it’s now already the last days when, as the Bible mentions, the scroll is opened and God comes to judge man. So, what are they all about?” He replied, “The Lord’s coming to judge man means that when the Lord returns in the last days, all men will come before Him; then He will call the roll, and judge and test us one by one according to our actions and deeds.” His answer sounded somewhat unrealistic to me, because for my part, the judgment shouldn’t be that simple. While I had no idea of its true meaning either, I still felt that there must be a deeper meaning within it. Consider the fact that all people are now deeply caught up in sin; based on such actions, who can withstand God’s judgment? I was bewildered. Then, the pastor was kind of impatient and said, “These are all mysteries, and you don’t have to know.” So I raised no more questions, thinking: Truly, these are mysteries. But it is the last days now. If we still do not seek these great things God will do, then how can we prepare ourselves and face the judgment God shall do? At last, I left the church disappointed and then returned to the Jehovah’s Witnesses; still, there was no answer all the time.
Afterward, I got a publication of the Jehovah’s Witnesses specifically on Revelation. I had ever tried to read and comprehend the book. However, at least 4 years had passed and I found myself still unable to get the answers from it, because even though they had summed up some verses, they could not explain their implied meanings. Seeing that the prophecies concerning the last days being fulfilled, yet I failed to learn what God is doing and how I should prepare myself, my heart was in so much pain and fraught with anxiety. I knew that there was no Holy Spirit’s work in the church and I was just observing church services. I went there empty and returned again empty, with nothing to fill my heart. I felt myself walking in circles all along, and no answer was found. Later, I no longer went to the church persistently but occasionally just to keep my family and children aware of God’s existence. We could listen to their talk about believing in God there, but received no supply at all. I felt totally worn out. I could only cry to God constantly, “O God! Where are You? What are You doing now? Today, I can see, is already the last days. I know the scroll has been opened since so many prophecies in Revelation have been fulfilled. But God, the churches have become ever more chaotic and we are still committing sins. Besides, I have so many questions and confusion. O God! I don’t know what to say … I just have a deep sensation that I need You so badly. Please help me! Help me! I don’t wanna get lost and I cannot but seek You.…”
When I turned to God and sought for His help, I called to mind the word in the Bible, “seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7). I was confirmed in my heart that God had prepared the way for me. Before, I once posted on my page of Facebook the word, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding” (Proverbs 9:10). One day in June, 2016, I found on Facebook that a brother named Danny liked my post, and sent me a friend request. In order to find out who he was, I hence opened his timeline. No sooner had I read his posts than I sighed, “Oh, my God! I seem to have found the truth.” I had no idea of what had happened; it was like having found what I had been seeking all my life. What he posted was totally different from those messages of other churches which provided no light; rather, these words have much truth and light within to be sought, fresh and new. They are all about what are happening presently and what God is doing now, rather than history. I was shocked. Thus I accepted his friend request, and later learned that he was a preacher of God’s kingdom gospel of the last days. Then we fellowshiped about how some prophecies concerning the last days had been fulfilled. He also sent me some hymns and words, such as “God Is Seeking Your Heart and Your Spirit” and “If I Were Not Saved by God.” I couldn’t refrain from sighing, “O my God! These words and hymns are my spiritual bread. They are exactly what I’ve been always seeking.”
Since the moment I started discussing with Brother Danny, I had realized that the words he sent over are full of authority and power, some of them with God’s majesty and righteousness, and some with God’s blessings and promises to us. I was excited and joyful, and couldn’t help asking, “Brother, Thank you so much! These words are so good. Where are they from?” He said, “They are the utterances of God Himself.” What he said greatly excited me: God’s utterances? What’s going on? God speaks? What else has He spoken? I felt a wave of amazement and expectation, as if I had seen the light. Then he added, “Thank God for enlightening you! God has come to do His work on earth and expressed the words to judge and purify man in the last days. I know a sister who has more knowledge of God’s work of the last days. If you like, I can invite her to have a meeting and fellowship with us about it as well as how the little scroll prophesied in Revelation is opened.” I agreed gladly, as these were what I had been seeking. Moreover, from the words I had read so far, I knew there are more truths here worthwhile to seek.
Then, through Brother Danny, I got to know Sister Flora and we fellowshiped on Facebook. I asked her, “Based on the various signs we have been given, I have a sense that the last days have come. At this time, as the Bible prophesies, God is going to do great things. However, I’ve asked many people, but none could tell clearly what God will do in the last days.” She answered, “Thank God! Now is indeed the last days. God has come among man to express the truth and done a stage of work of judging, chastising, purifying, and perfecting man.” Surprised, I thought: The work of judgment and chastisement? Purify and perfect man? Although I didn’t quite understand it, I felt her preaching worth seeking. After that, she read me two passages of God’s words, which say, “All the work done this day is so that man can be made clean and be changed; through judgment and chastisement by the word, as well as refinement, man can cast away his corruption and be made pure. … Though man has been redeemed and forgiven of his sins, it is only considered as God not remembering the transgressions of man and not treating man in accordance with man’s transgressions. However, when man lives in the flesh and he has not been set free from sin, he can only continue to sin, endlessly revealing the corrupt satanic disposition. This is the life that man leads, an endless cycle of sin and forgiveness. The majority of men sin in the day only to confess in the evening. As such, even if the sin offering is forever effective for man, it would not be able to save man from sin. Only half the work of salvation has been completed, for man still has corrupt disposition” (“The Mystery of the Incarnation (4)”). “The sins of man were forgiven because of the work of God’s crucifixion, but man continued to live in the old, corrupt satanic disposition. As such, man must be completely saved from the corrupt satanic disposition so that the sinful nature of man is completely cast away and never again develops, thus allowing the disposition of man to be changed. This requires man to understand the path of growth in life, the way of life, and the way to change his disposition. It also needs man to act in accordance with this path so that the disposition of man can gradually be changed and he can live under the shining of the light, and that he can do all things in accord with the will of God, cast away the corrupt satanic disposition, and 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)”). I had never heard these words before. So I said in my heart: All I need to do now is to seek humbly and to know more of God as well as His new work.
Sister Flora continued her fellowship, “The work of judgment God is doing in the last days is based on the need of us mankind. Although we’ve accepted the Lord Jesus’ redemption, and as long as we confess to Him after we sin, we are then forgiven by Him and condemned no more by the law, yet as God hasn’t done the work of purifying man, we still have the corrupt satanic dispositions within us. We are arrogant and conceited, selfish and despicable, crooked and crafty. As a result, we often live in sin, unable to break free of the bondage of sin. The Bible says, ‘holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord’ (Hebrews 12:14). ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, Whoever commits sin is the servant of sin. And the servant stays not in the house for ever: but the Son stays ever’ (John 8:34-35). God is righteous, so how can we, with the sinful nature, be worthy to enter the kingdom of heaven to see the Lord’s face? As such, in the last days, God carries out a stage of work of purifying and perfecting man on the basis of the work of the Age of Grace, so that we man can completely cast off the bonds of sin and in the end be fully purified, saved, and gained by God.” Her words enlightened me: No wonder we still often live helplessly in sin after believing in the Lord for years, as the work of the Lord Jesus was just for redeeming us, rather than delivering us from our sinful nature. According to our present condition, we are certainly unfit to enter the kingdom of heaven to see the Lord’s face, since the Bible says, “Be you holy; for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:16). I knew this word long ago, and we really need God to do another work. Having no doubts about that, I was ready to accept the words she read for me and her fellowship. I thought to myself: Is this something that I ever felt missing?
I asked her urgently, “Then, sister, how does God carry out His work of judgment?” To answer it, she read more of God’s word for me, which says, “In the last days, Christ uses a variety of truths to teach man, reveal the essence of man, and dissect his words and deeds. These words comprise various truths, such as man’s duty, how man should obey God, how man should be loyal to God, how man ought to live out the normal humanity, as well as the wisdom and disposition of God, and so on. These words are all focused on the essence of man and his corrupt disposition. In particular, those words that reveal how man spurns God are spoken in regard to how man is an embodiment of Satan and an enemy force against God. When God does the work of judgment, He does not simply make clear the nature of man with just a few words, but carries out revelation, dealing, and pruning over the long term. Such manner of revelation, dealing, and pruning cannot be substituted with ordinary words but with the truth that man does not possess at all. Only such manner of work is deemed judgment; only through such judgment can man be persuaded, be thoroughly convinced into submission to God, and gain true knowledge of God. What the work of judgment brings about is man’s understanding of the true face of God and the truth about his rebelliousness. The work of judgment allows man to gain much understanding of the will of God, of the purpose of God’s work, and of the mysteries that could not be understood by man. It also allows man to recognize and know his corrupt substance and the roots of his corruption, as well as to discover the ugliness of man. These effects are all brought about by the work of judgment …” (“Christ Does the Work of Judgment With the Truth”).
Then, through Brother Danny, I got to know Sister Flora and we fellowshiped on Facebook. I asked her, “Based on the various signs we have been given, I have a sense that the last days have come. At this time, as the Bible prophesies, God is going to do great things. However, I’ve asked many people, but none could tell clearly what God will do in the last days.” She answered, “Thank God! Now is indeed the last days. God has come among man to express the truth and done a stage of work of judging, chastising, purifying, and perfecting man.” Surprised, I thought: The work of judgment and chastisement? Purify and perfect man? Although I didn’t quite understand it, I felt her preaching worth seeking. After that, she read me two passages of God’s words, which say, “All the work done this day is so that man can be made clean and be changed; through judgment and chastisement by the word, as well as refinement, man can cast away his corruption and be made pure. … Though man has been redeemed and forgiven of his sins, it is only considered as God not remembering the transgressions of man and not treating man in accordance with man’s transgressions. However, when man lives in the flesh and he has not been set free from sin, he can only continue to sin, endlessly revealing the corrupt satanic disposition. This is the life that man leads, an endless cycle of sin and forgiveness. The majority of men sin in the day only to confess in the evening. As such, even if the sin offering is forever effective for man, it would not be able to save man from sin. Only half the work of salvation has been completed, for man still has corrupt disposition” (“The Mystery of the Incarnation (4)”). “The sins of man were forgiven because of the work of God’s crucifixion, but man continued to live in the old, corrupt satanic disposition. As such, man must be completely saved from the corrupt satanic disposition so that the sinful nature of man is completely cast away and never again develops, thus allowing the disposition of man to be changed. This requires man to understand the path of growth in life, the way of life, and the way to change his disposition. It also needs man to act in accordance with this path so that the disposition of man can gradually be changed and he can live under the shining of the light, and that he can do all things in accord with the will of God, cast away the corrupt satanic disposition, and 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)”). I had never heard these words before. So I said in my heart: All I need to do now is to seek humbly and to know more of God as well as His new work.
Sister Flora continued her fellowship, “The work of judgment God is doing in the last days is based on the need of us mankind. Although we’ve accepted the Lord Jesus’ redemption, and as long as we confess to Him after we sin, we are then forgiven by Him and condemned no more by the law, yet as God hasn’t done the work of purifying man, we still have the corrupt satanic dispositions within us. We are arrogant and conceited, selfish and despicable, crooked and crafty. As a result, we often live in sin, unable to break free of the bondage of sin. The Bible says, ‘holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord’ (Hebrews 12:14). ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, Whoever commits sin is the servant of sin. And the servant stays not in the house for ever: but the Son stays ever’ (John 8:34-35). God is righteous, so how can we, with the sinful nature, be worthy to enter the kingdom of heaven to see the Lord’s face? As such, in the last days, God carries out a stage of work of purifying and perfecting man on the basis of the work of the Age of Grace, so that we man can completely cast off the bonds of sin and in the end be fully purified, saved, and gained by God.” Her words enlightened me: No wonder we still often live helplessly in sin after believing in the Lord for years, as the work of the Lord Jesus was just for redeeming us, rather than delivering us from our sinful nature. According to our present condition, we are certainly unfit to enter the kingdom of heaven to see the Lord’s face, since the Bible says, “Be you holy; for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:16). I knew this word long ago, and we really need God to do another work. Having no doubts about that, I was ready to accept the words she read for me and her fellowship. I thought to myself: Is this something that I ever felt missing?
I asked her urgently, “Then, sister, how does God carry out His work of judgment?” To answer it, she read more of God’s word for me, which says, “In the last days, Christ uses a variety of truths to teach man, reveal the essence of man, and dissect his words and deeds. These words comprise various truths, such as man’s duty, how man should obey God, how man should be loyal to God, how man ought to live out the normal humanity, as well as the wisdom and disposition of God, and so on. These words are all focused on the essence of man and his corrupt disposition. In particular, those words that reveal how man spurns God are spoken in regard to how man is an embodiment of Satan and an enemy force against God. When God does the work of judgment, He does not simply make clear the nature of man with just a few words, but carries out revelation, dealing, and pruning over the long term. Such manner of revelation, dealing, and pruning cannot be substituted with ordinary words but with the truth that man does not possess at all. Only such manner of work is deemed judgment; only through such judgment can man be persuaded, be thoroughly convinced into submission to God, and gain true knowledge of God. What the work of judgment brings about is man’s understanding of the true face of God and the truth about his rebelliousness. The work of judgment allows man to gain much understanding of the will of God, of the purpose of God’s work, and of the mysteries that could not be understood by man. It also allows man to recognize and know his corrupt substance and the roots of his corruption, as well as to discover the ugliness of man. These effects are all brought about by the work of judgment …” (“Christ Does the Work of Judgment With the Truth”).
After that, she fellowshiped, “When God carries out His work of judgment in the last days, He does it primarily by expressing all aspects of truths to judge and chastise man, and to reveal the corrupt disposition within us and the essence of our satanic nature that opposes God, like deceit, crookedness, selfishness, arrogance, as well as our resistance and disobedience to God, etc. Through this, we become aware of our ugly face resulted from the corruption of Satan; thus we feel utterly ashamed and then fall down before God. Meanwhile, these truths are also the expression of God’s disposition. They enable us to see God’s righteous disposition and His benevolent essence, and thus to develop a sense of longing for Him. Also, they contain many truths that we ought to enter into, and at the same time, show us a direction to transform our disposition. So, by accepting God’s words regarding judgment of the last days, we will be transformed in disposition, thoroughly shed the bonds of sin, and thereby be saved and perfected by God.” Hearing that, I was much brightened. I felt: Her fellowship is so practical, which is quite other than what the pastors preached. And God’s doing His work of judgment in this way is so good and practical, which is totally within the reach of us humans. It is really the pressing need of us, the people who are yearning for God’s return yet still living helplessly in sin. Thank God for allowing me to hear these messages.
Then I raised another question that I was most concerned about, “Sister, since God has come to work, He must, as prophesied in the Bible, have opened the scroll. But where is it then? And how is it opened?” She replied, “Yes, sister, the scroll has been opened. As all the brothers and sisters who have read the words of Almighty God know, the truths He expresses in the last days have disclosed all the mysteries, like God’s six-thousand-year management plan, the true story and substance of the three stages of God’s work, the mystery of the incarnation, and so forth, as well as all aspects of the reality of truth, such as how to be an honest man, how to live out a normal humanity, how to pursue to know and love God, and so much more. After reading these words, all of us release a sigh from deep within: Such truth, such mysteries, can only be expressed by God Himself! This exactly fulfills the prophecy in the Bible, ‘And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon’ (Revelation 5:3). Moreover, those words which reveal man’s satanic nature are so straightforward that while reading, we all stand abashed and even suffer a lot from refinement. After experiencing such judgment and chastisement, we come to know our corrupt nature, begin to loathe and forsake our flesh, and start to seek living by God’s words, thereby getting transformed in our disposition. At this moment, we feel God’s great love and salvation for us, our hearts as sweet as honey, and our mouths filled with words of thanks and praise to God. This exactly fulfills the word, ‘And I went to the angel, and said to him, Give me the little book. And he said to me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make your belly bitter, but it shall be in your mouth sweet as honey’ (Revelation 10:9). The Word Appears in the Flesh expressed by Almighty God in the last days is precisely the little scroll opened by the Lamb mentioned in the Bible. Just as Almighty God says, ‘Almighty God is all-powerful, all-achieving and utterly complete true God! He not only carries the seven stars, bears the seven Spirits, has seven eyes, opens the seven seals and opens the scroll, but more than that He administers the seven plagues and the seven bowls and opens the seven thunders; long ago He has sounded the seven trumpets! All things created and made complete by Him should praise Him, give glory to Him and exalt His throne’ (‘The Thirty-fourth Utterance’). With the scroll opened, people who truly seek God’s appearance have gradually returned before His throne from all sects and denominations and accepted His work of judgment and chastisement. When the work ends, those who are purified, saved by God, and thus left alive will enter into the kingdom and enjoy rest with Him, while those who fail to be purified will all be destroyed by the disasters sent down in the last days. And then, God’s management plan will come to a complete end.” I was beside myself with excitement. So, the little scroll is exactly all the words God expresses in the last days, and the great thing to be done by God in the last days is actually His work of judging, chastising, and saving man. The questions that had bothered me so many years were finally solved, so clearly and thoroughly, as if I were stepping into the sun! I hence accepted Almighty God’s work of the last days, because I had realized that only by receiving the judgment of His words can I be purified and saved by God.
In the days that followed, I read God’s words hungrily, and gathered and fellowshiped with brothers and sisters. In just several months, from Almighty God’s words, I understood much more truth than I did after a few decades in religion. I thought: Is there any other church that I can go and find such truth in this world? I’ve fully ascertained that Almighty God is really the return of the Lord Jesus. He has opened the scroll and revealed all the mysteries. Then I lost not a moment in preaching the gospel to my family; both my mother and husband have come before God. How fortunate we are! Later, I will preach to my daughter and friends, too. I will proclaim God’s words and I want to say my heartfelt word: Behold! The scroll has been opened!
Read more: Eastern Lightning, About the Church of Almighty God
