🎆🎉2019 worship dance video | "Eternal Praise and Thankfulness to God"

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The Book of Revelation predicts, “And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder:  and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps:  3And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders:  and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.” (Revelation 14: 2–3). Dear friends, do you want to listen to the new songs prophesied in the Book of Revelation? The following period of time allows us to quietly listen to the heavenly voices that praise God. Enter into the new era of following the Lamb and singing new songs!

Gospel Song -2019 worship dance video | "Eternal Praise and Thankfulness to God"

Almighty God, Christ of the last days, expresses the truth to cleanse mankind.

We are raised before God. How joyful it is to enjoy His words.

We assemble and pray, praising God to our heart’s content. Understanding the truth, we are set free.

God’s words reveal mysteries, they are the truth. They conquer our hearts, fully.

What a supremely rare blessing it is to receive the way of everlasting life bestowed by God.

Merrily, we sing songs of praise, in eternal praise and thankfulness to Almighty God!

God’s words of judgment carry authority and power. They expose the true face of man’s corruption.

We come to know ourselves, and truly repent; utterly convinced, we bow before God.

We experience God’s judgment and taste His love, and though we suffer pain, we feel sweetness within.

We shed our satanic dispositions, there occurs cleansing in our corruption. We praise God’s holiness and righteousness.

God’s words cleanse us, they allow us to live out the likeness of a new person.

Merrily, we sing songs of praise, in eternal praise and thankfulness to Almighty God!

God’s words give us faith and strength; amid adversity and trials, we push onwards, steadfast.

We see through Satan’s deceitful schemes, we turn our backs on the great red dragon, bearing resounding testimony to the glory of God.

We truly love God and perform our duty, spreading the gospel of the kingdom and testifying to God.

Merrily, we sing songs of praise, in eternal praise and thankfulness to Almighty God!

We truly love God and perform our duty, spreading the gospel of the kingdom and testifying to God.

Merrily, we sing songs of praise, in eternal praise and thankfulness to Almighty God!

from Follow the Lamb and Sing New Songs

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Do You Know the Real Meaning of Easter?

Do You Know the Real Meaning of Easter?

Mar 19, 2019104

By Hanxiao

What Is Easter? The Origins of Easter

Easter, or Resurrection Sunday as it is also called, is a holiday which celebrates the Lord Jesus’ resurrection that occurred three days after He was crucified upon the cross. Its exact time falls on the first Sunday following the first full moon after the vernal equinox every year. In order to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus and to remember the salvation and hope Jesus brought to mankind, each year from March to April, Christians all over the world hold celebrations on the day of Easter. So while us Christians are commemorating the resurrection of Jesus, do we know why He returned from the dead and appeared to man despite having already finished His work of redemption? And what is the meaning behind His resurrection and His appearance to man?

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The Meaning of the Lord Jesus’ Resurrection and of His Appearance to Man

God’s words say: “The first thing that the Lord Jesus did after His resurrection was to allow everyone to see Him, to confirm that He exists, and to confirm the fact of His resurrection. In addition, it restored His relationship with the people to the relationship He had with them when He was working in the flesh, and He was the Christ they could see and touch. This way, one outcome is that the people had no doubt that the Lord Jesus had been resurrected from death after being nailed to the cross, and there was no doubt in the Lord Jesus’ work to redeem mankind. And another outcome is that the fact of the Lord Jesus appearing to people after His resurrection and allowing people to see and touch Him firmly secured mankind in the Age of Grace. From this time on, people could not return to the previous age, the Age of Law, because of the Lord Jesus’ ‘disappearance’ or ‘desertion,’ but they would continue forward, following the Lord Jesus’ teachings and the work He had done. Thus, a new phase in the work in the Age of Grace was formally opened up, and the people who had been under the law formally came out from the law from then on, and entered into a new era, with a new beginning. These are the manifold meanings of the Lord Jesus’ appearance to mankind after the resurrection” (“God’s Work, God’s Disposition, and God Himself III”). “After the Lord Jesus was resurrected, He appeared to the people He thought necessary, spoke with them, and made requirements of them, leaving behind His intentions, and His expectations of people. That is to say, as God incarnate, it doesn’t matter if it was during His time in the flesh, or in the spiritual body after being nailed to the cross and being resurrected—His concern for mankind and requirements of people did not change. He was concerned about these disciples before He was up on the cross; in His heart, He was clear on the state of every single person, He understood every person’s deficiency, and of course His understanding of every person was the same after He had died, resurrected, and become a spiritual body as it was when He was in the flesh. He knew that people weren’t entirely certain of His identity as Christ, but during His time in the flesh He did not make strict demands of people. But after He had been resurrected He appeared to them, and He made them absolutely certain that the Lord Jesus had come from God, that He was God incarnate, and He used the fact of His appearance and His resurrection as the greatest vision and motivation for mankind’s lifelong pursuit. His resurrection from death not only strengthened all those who followed Him, but also thoroughly put His work of the Age of Grace into effect among mankind, and thus the gospel of the Lord Jesus’ salvation in the Age of Grace gradually spread to every corner of humanity. Would you say that the Lord Jesus’ appearance after His resurrection had any significance? … His appearance allowed people to have another experience and feeling of God’s concern and care while also powerfully proving that God is the One who opens up an age, who develops an age, and He is the One who ends an age. Through His appearance He strengthened the faith of all people, and through His appearance He proved to the world the fact that He is God Himself. This gave His followers eternal confirmation, and through His appearance He also opened up a phase of His work in the new age” (“God’s Work, God’s Disposition, and God Himself III”).

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From God’s words, we can see that there is a profound meaning to the Lord Jesus appearing many times to His disciples after He had returned from the dead, and God’s painstaking care and thought is also hidden behind it! Jesus knew that, although those who followed Him at the time had listened to many of His teachings and had seen many miracles performed by the Lord, and they claimed that Jesus was their Lord and that He was the Son of God, yet they had no true understanding of the fact that Jesus was Christ and that He was God Himself. When Jesus was captured by the Roman authorities and was flogged and mocked by the soldiers, many of those who followed Him began to have doubts about His identity, and their faith in the Lord grew weaker and weaker. Especially when the Lord Jesus died after being nailed to the cross, many people were utterly disappointed in Him, and what had begun as doubt became denial of the Lord Jesus. Against such a context as this, if the Lord Jesus had not appeared to man after His resurrection, many of those who had followed Him would no longer have believed in Jesus Christ and they would have turned back to the Age of Law and continued to observe the law of the Old Testament. God scrutinized the innermost hearts of man and understood their weaknesses, however, and He knew that the people were of small stature. The Lord Jesus therefore returned from the dead and appeared to His disciples many times; He spoke with His disciples, He showed to them His spiritual body after the resurrection, and He ate with them and expounded on the Scriptures to them. His purpose in doing all this was to allow those who followed Him to be certain from the bottom of their hearts that the Lord Jesus had truly returned from the dead, that He was still the same Jesus who had loved man and taken mercy on man, that the Lord Jesus was the incarnate God Himself, and that He was the Messiah prophesied in the Bible who would come to redeem mankind. They no longer doubted or denied the Lord Jesus, but instead they sincerely believed in Him and they acknowledged Jesus Christ as their Lord. From this we can see that, by resurrecting and appearing to man, Jesus strengthened people’s faith to believe in and follow the Lord, thus drawing man closer to God. This is one aspect to the meaning of Jesus’ resurrection.

Besides this, Jesus appeared and worked in the flesh, He thoroughly brought the Age of Law to an end, and He began the Age of Grace. After He resurrected, Jesus enabled people to see this fact even more clearly, that although the incarnated Jesus Christ had been crucified, yet He had overcome sin and death, He had defeated Satan, and He had completed His work of redemption and gained glory. The Lord Jesus began a new era, brought mankind utterly out of the Old Testament Age of Law and firmly established them in the Age of Grace, thus He enabled them to accept the guidance, shepherding and watering of God in the Age of Grace. In this way, even though Jesus resurrected and ascended to heaven, and He no longer ate, abided or lived with man, man could still pray to and call on Jesus’ name, keep His teachings, follow Jesus with unassailable faith and spread the Lord’s gospel. In particular, after the Lord Jesus resurrected and appeared to the disciples who had followed Him, their faith waxed great, and when it came to spreading the Lord’s gospel or bearing witness to it, they feared no hardship or danger, they were indomitable in their perseverance and they dedicated their all to spreading the gospel, even martyring themselves for the Lord. Ultimately, the gospel of Jesus extended throughout the entire universe and all across the world, and followers of the Lord Jesus continually grew in number until everyone in every household had heard His gospel and it became known to all.

After He had returned from the dead, the Lord Jesus appeared to man, He came into contact with them and spoke to them, He expounded on the Scriptures and communed with them, and He ate alongside them, and so on. These deeds allowed those who followed the Lord Jesus to feel His care and concern for man and to affirm that Jesus was indeed God Himself, the incarnated Christ, and these deeds firmly established God’s followers in the Age of Grace. Moreover, Jesus’ work of redemption thereupon began to spread until it had reached throughout the entire universe and all across the world. It is therefore evident that the meaning behind Jesus’ resurrection and His appearance to mankind is so profound as, not only is God’s painstaking care and thought hidden within these deeds, but God’s wisdom and almightiness are hidden within them also!

Dear brothers and sisters, let us give thanks to God’s enlightenment and guidance that have enabled us to understand the meaning of Jesus’ resurrection, and for allowing us to perceive within His work once again God’s care and concern for us mankind. Thanks be to God!

from The Church of Almighty God

    Recommended: The Eastern Lightning website is testimony that the Lord Jesus has returned in the flesh and appeared in China, that He is Almighty God, Christ of the last days, has expressed truths to do the work of judgment beginning with the house of God, and brings true light down upon mankind.

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Jesus’ Words to His Disciples After His Resurrection

Jesus’ Words to His Disciples After His Resurrection

Apr 26, 2018428

(Jhn 20:26-29) And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the middle, and said, Peace be to you. Then said he to Thomas, Reach here your finger, and behold my hands; and reach here your hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. And Thomas answered and said to him, My LORD and my God. Jesus said to him, Thomas, because you have seen me, you have believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

(Jhn 21:16-17) He said to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, love you me? He said to him, Yes, Lord; you know that I love you. He said to him, Feed my sheep. He said to him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, love you me? Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, Love you me? And he said to him, Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you. Jesus said to him, Feed my sheep.

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What these passages recount are some things that the Lord Jesus did and said to His disciples after His resurrection. First, let’s take a look at any differences between the Lord Jesus before and after the resurrection. Was He still the same Lord Jesus of past days? The scripture contains the following line describing the Lord Jesus after the resurrection: “then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the middle, and said, Peace be to you.” It’s very clear that the Lord Jesus at that time was no longer a flesh, but a spiritual body. This was because He had transcended the limitations of the flesh, and when the door was closed He could still come into the midst of the people and allow them to see Him. This is the greatest difference between the Lord Jesus after the resurrection and the Lord Jesus living in the flesh before the resurrection. Even though there was no difference between the appearance of the spiritual body of that moment and the appearance of the Lord Jesus from before, Jesus in that moment had become a Jesus that felt like a stranger to the people, because He had become a spiritual body after being resurrected from the dead, and compared to His previous flesh, this spiritual body was more puzzling and confusing for people. It also created more distance between the Lord Jesus and the people, and people felt in their hearts that the Lord Jesus in that moment had become more mysterious. These understandings and feelings on the part of the people suddenly brought them back to an age of believing in a God that could not be seen or touched. So, the first thing that the Lord Jesus did after His resurrection was to allow everyone to see Him, to confirm that He exists, and to confirm the fact of His resurrection. In addition, it restored His relationship with the people to the relationship He had with them when He was working in the flesh, and He was the Christ they could see and touch. This way, one outcome is that the people had no doubt that the Lord Jesus had been resurrected from death after being nailed to the cross, and there was no doubt in the Lord Jesus’ work to redeem mankind. And another outcome is that the fact of the Lord Jesus appearing to people after His resurrection and allowing people to see and touch Him firmly secured mankind in the Age of Grace. From this time on, people could not return to the previous age, the Age of Law, because of the Lord Jesus’ “disappearance” or “desertion,” but they would continue forward, following the Lord Jesus’ teachings and the work He had done. Thus, a new phase in the work in the Age of Grace was formally opened up, and the people who had been under the law formally came out from the law from then on, and entered into a new era, with a new beginning. These are the manifold meanings of the Lord Jesus’ appearance to mankind after the resurrection.

Since He was a spiritual body, how could people touch Him, and see Him? This has to do with the significance of the Lord Jesus’ appearance to mankind. Did you notice anything in these passages of scripture? Generally spiritual bodies cannot be seen or touched, and after the resurrection the work that the Lord Jesus had taken on had already been completed. So in theory, He had absolutely no need to return to the people’s midst in His original image to meet with them, but the appearance of the Lord Jesus’ spiritual body to people like Thomas made its significance more concrete, and it penetrated more deeply into the people’s hearts. When He came to Thomas, He let doubting Thomas touch His hand, and told him: “reach here your hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing.” These words, these actions weren’t things that the Lord Jesus wanted to say and do only after He had been resurrected, but they were things He wanted to do before He had been nailed to the cross. It is evident that the Lord Jesus who had not yet been nailed to the cross already had an understanding of people such as Thomas. So what can we see from this? He was still the same Lord Jesus after His resurrection. His essence had not changed. Thomas’ doubts had not just started but had been with him the entire time he had been following the Lord Jesus, but He was the Lord Jesus that had been resurrected from the dead and had returned from the spiritual world with His original image, with His original disposition, and with His understanding of mankind from His time in the flesh, so He went to find Thomas first, to let Thomas touch His rib, to let him not only see His spiritual body after resurrection, but to let him touch and feel the existence of His spiritual body, and completely let go of his doubts. Before the Lord Jesus was nailed to the cross, Thomas always doubted that He is Christ, and could not believe it. His belief in God was established only on the basis of what he could see with his own eyes, what he could touch with his own hands. The Lord Jesus had a good understanding of the faith of this type of person. They only believed in God in heaven, and did not believe at all, and would not accept the One sent by God, or the Christ in the flesh. In order to have him acknowledge and believe in the existence of the Lord Jesus and that He truly was God incarnate, He allowed Thomas to reach out his hand and touch His rib. Was Thomas’ doubting any different before and after the Lord Jesus’ resurrection? He was always doubting, and aside from the Lord Jesus’ spiritual body personally appearing to him and allowing Thomas to touch the nail marks on His body, no one could resolve his doubts, and no one could make him let go of them. So, from the time the Lord Jesus allowed him to touch His rib and let him really feel the existence of the nail marks, Thomas’ doubt disappeared, and he truly knew that the Lord Jesus had been resurrected and he acknowledged and believed that the Lord Jesus was the true Christ, that He was God incarnate. Although at this time Thomas no longer doubted, he had lost forever the chance to meet with Christ. He had lost forever the chance to be together with Him, to follow Him, to know Him. He had lost the chance for Christ to perfect him. The Lord Jesus’ appearance and His words provided a conclusion, and a verdict on the faith of those who were full of doubts. He used His actual words and actions to tell the doubters, to tell those who only believed in God in heaven but did not believe in Christ: God did not commend their belief, nor did He commend their following which was full of doubts. The day they fully believed in God and Christ could only be the day that God completed His great work. Of course, that day was also the day that their doubt received a verdict. Their attitude toward Christ determined their fate, and their stubborn doubt meant their faith gained them no results, and their hardness meant their hopes were in vain. Because their belief in God in heaven was fed on illusions, and their doubt toward Christ was actually their true attitude toward God, even though they touched the nail marks on the Lord Jesus’ body, their faith was still useless and their outcome could only be described as beating the wind—in vain. What the Lord Jesus said to Thomas was also very clearly telling every person: The resurrected Lord Jesus is the Lord Jesus that had initially spent thirty-three and a half years working among mankind. Although He had been nailed to the cross and experienced the valley of the shadow of death, and He had experienced resurrection, His every aspect had undergone no changes. Although He now had nail marks on His body, and although He had been resurrected and walked out from the grave, His disposition, His understanding of mankind, and His intentions toward mankind had not changed in the slightest. Also, He was telling people that He had come down off the cross, triumphed over sin, triumphed over hardships, and triumphed over death. The nail marks were just the evidence of His victory over Satan, evidence of being a sin offering to successfully redeem all of mankind. He was telling people that He had already taken on mankind’s sins and He had completed His work of redemption. When He returned to see His disciples, He told them with His appearance: “I’m still alive, I still exist; today I am truly standing in front of you so that you can see and touch Me. I will always be with you.” The Lord Jesus also wanted to use the case of Thomas as a warning for future people: Although you believe in the Lord Jesus, you can neither see nor touch Him, yet you can be blessed by your true faith, and you can see the Lord Jesus through your true faith; this kind of person is blessed.

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……

That is the Lord Jesus’ attitude toward those who are full of doubts. So what did the Lord Jesus say to, and what did He do for those who are able to honestly believe in and follow Him? This is what we’re going to look at next, regarding something the Lord Jesus said to Peter.

In this conversation, the Lord Jesus repeatedly asked Peter one thing: “Peter, love you me?” This is a higher standard the Lord Jesus required from people like Peter after His resurrection, who truly believe in Christ and strive to love the Lord. This question was a sort of investigation, and a sort of interrogation, but even more, it was a requirement and an expectation of people like Peter. He used this method of questioning so that people would reflect on themselves and look into themselves: What are the Lord Jesus’ requirements for people? Do I love the Lord? Am I a person who loves God? How should I love God? Even though the Lord Jesus only asked this question of Peter, the truth is that in His heart, He wanted to use this opportunity of asking Peter to ask this type of question of more people who seek to love God. It is only that Peter was blessed to act as the representative of this type of person, to receive questioning from the Lord Jesus’ own mouth.

Compared to “reach here your hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing,” which the Lord Jesus said to Thomas after His resurrection, His three times of questioning Peter: “Simon, son of Jonas, love you me?” allow people to better feel the sternness of the Lord Jesus’ attitude, and the urgency He felt during His questioning. As for doubting Thomas with his deceitful nature, the Lord Jesus allowed him to reach out his hand and touch His nail marks, which let him believe that the Lord Jesus was the Son of man resurrected and acknowledge the Lord Jesus’ identity as Christ. And although the Lord Jesus did not sternly rebuke Thomas, nor did He verbally express any clear judgment of him, He let him know that He understood him through practical actions, while also displaying His attitude toward and determination of that type of person. The Lord Jesus’ requirements and expectations of that type of person cannot be seen from what He said. Because people like Thomas simply do not have a thread of true faith. The Lord Jesus’ requirements for them are only in this, but the attitude He revealed toward people like Peter is entirely different. He did not require that Peter reach out his hand and touch His nail marks, nor did He say to Peter: “be not faithless, but believing.” Instead, He repeatedly asked Peter the same question. This was a thought-provoking, meaningful question that can’t help but make every follower of Christ feel remorse, and fear, but also feel the Lord Jesus’ anxious, sorrowful mood. And when they are in great pain and suffering, they are more able to understand the Lord Jesus Christ’s concern and His care; they realize His earnest teaching and strict requirements of pure, honest people. The Lord Jesus’ question allows people to feel that the Lord’s expectations of people revealed in these simple words are not merely to believe in and follow Him, but to achieve having love, loving your Lord, loving your God. This kind of love is caring and obeying. It is humans living for God, dying for God, dedicating everything to God, and expending and giving everything for God. This kind of love is also giving God comfort, allowing Him to enjoy witness, and allowing Him to be at rest. It is mankind’s repayment to God, their responsibility, obligation and duty, and it is a way that mankind must follow for their entire lives. These three questions were a requirement and an exhortation the Lord Jesus made of Peter and all people who would be made perfect. It was these three questions that led and motivated Peter to complete his path in life, and it was the questions at the Lord Jesus’ parting that led Peter to start on his path of being made perfect, that led him, because of his love for the Lord, to care for the Lord’s heart, to obey the Lord, to offer comfort to the Lord, and to offer up his whole life and his whole being because of this love.

During the Age of Grace, God’s work was primarily for two types of people. The first was the type of person who believed in and followed Him, who could keep His commandments, who could bear the cross and hold to the way of the Age of Grace. This type of person would gain God’s blessing and enjoy God’s grace. The second type of person was like Peter, someone who would be made perfect. So, after the Lord Jesus was resurrected, He first did these two very meaningful things. One was to Thomas, the other was to Peter. What do these two things represent? Do they represent God’s true intentions of saving mankind? Do they represent God’s sincerity toward mankind? The work He did with Thomas was to warn people not to be doubting, but to just believe. The work He did with Peter was to strengthen the faith of people like Peter, and to make clear requirements of this type of person, to show what goals they should be pursuing.

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After the Lord Jesus was resurrected, He appeared to the people He thought necessary, spoke with them, and made requirements of them, leaving behind His intentions, and His expectations of people. That is to say, as God incarnate, it doesn’t matter if it was during His time in the flesh, or in the spiritual body after being nailed to the cross and being resurrected—His concern for mankind and requirements of people did not change. He was concerned about these disciples before He was up on the cross; in His heart, He was clear on the state of every single person, He understood every person’s deficiency, and of course His understanding of every person was the same after He had died, resurrected, and become a spiritual body as it was when He was in the flesh. He knew that people weren’t entirely certain of His identity as Christ, but during His time in the flesh He did not make strict demands of people. But after He had been resurrected He appeared to them, and He made them absolutely certain that the Lord Jesus had come from God, that He was God incarnate, and He used the fact of His appearance and His resurrection as the greatest vision and motivation for mankind’s lifelong pursuit. His resurrection from death not only strengthened all those who followed Him, but also thoroughly put His work of the Age of Grace into effect among mankind, and thus the gospel of the Lord Jesus’ salvation in the Age of Grace gradually spread to every corner of humanity. Would you say that the Lord Jesus’ appearance after His resurrection had any significance? If you were Thomas or Peter at that time, and you encountered this one thing in your life that was so meaningful, what kind of impact would it have on you? Would you see this as the best and the greatest vision of your life of believing in God? Would you see this as a driving force of your following God, striving to satisfy Him, and pursuing love of God in your life? Would you expend a lifetime of effort to spread this greatest of visions? Would you make spreading the Lord Jesus’ salvation a commission you accept from God? Even though you have not experienced this, the two cases of Thomas and Peter are already enough for modern people to have a clear understanding of God’s will and of God. It could be said that after God had become flesh, after He personally experienced life among mankind and a human life, and after He saw the depravity of mankind and the situation of human life, God in the flesh more deeply felt the helplessness, the sadness, and the pitifulness of mankind. God gained more compassion for the human condition because of His humanity while living in the flesh, because of His instincts in the flesh. This led Him to have greater concern for His followers. These are probably things that you can’t understand, but I can describe worry and caring of God in the flesh for every one of His followers with this phrase: intense concern. Even though this term comes from human language, and even though it’s a very human phrase, it truly expresses and describes God’s feelings for His followers. As for God’s intense concern for humans, over the course of your experiences you will gradually feel this and get a taste of it. However, this can only be achieved by gradually understanding God’s disposition on the basis of pursuing a change in your own disposition. The appearance of the Lord Jesus materialized His intense concern for His followers in humanity and handed it over to His spiritual body, or you could say His divinity. His appearance allowed people to have another experience and feeling of God’s concern and care while also powerfully proving that God is the One who opens up an age, who develops an age, and He is the One who ends an age. Through His appearance He strengthened the faith of all people, and through His appearance He proved to the world the fact that He is God Himself. This gave His followers eternal confirmation, and through His appearance He also opened up a phase of His work in the new age.

from “God’s Work, God’s Disposition, and God Himself III” in The Word Appears in the

Recommended: The Eastern Lightning website is testimony that the Lord Jesus has returned in the flesh and appeared in China, that He is Almighty God, Christ of the last days, has expressed truths to do the work of judgment beginning with the house of God, and brings true light down upon mankind.

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Gospel Reflection: Giving Credence to Rumors Means Losing God’s Salvation of the Last Days

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Gospel Reflection: Giving Credence to Rumors Means Losing God’s Salvation of the Last Days

Jun 22, 2017322

 Many brothers and sisters are unable to take heed whenever they hear someone talking about Almighty God’s gospel of the last days, and don’t dare accept what is preached because they have been spooked by the sensationalized rumors fabricated within religious circles. They may hear someone say: “Those who believe in Almighty God are really something—you’ll be taken in as soon as you have contact with them. There are many true believers from every denomination who are good sheep and even bellwethers of good caliber, but they are being stolen by believers in Almighty God….”Or some 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, if they convert a church leader they can get 10,000 to 20,000 RMB….” And still others have said: “They don’t maintain good boundaries between men and women—they are all very promiscuous….” Some have even said: “Eastern Lightning is a criminal underworld organization. If you get involved with them, you’ll never escape. If you try, they’ll gouge out your eyes and cut off your ears, or they’ll break your legs….” and so on, and so forth. It is rumors like these that stop some brothers and sisters who are not clear on the facts from seeking and studying Almighty God’s work of the last days. Brothers and sisters who believe the rumors, have you earnestly considered or investigated whether there is any basis for these things, and if they are in line with the facts? Have you ever thought about what sort of dire consequences there will be if you blindly believe all the rumors you hear and miss the opportunity to welcome the Lord’s arrival? For now, we will first have a simple fellowship on these rumors so that our brothers and sisters can clearly see their substance, and have clear discernment regarding who is really spreading them, what the motivations are behind their fabrication, and what goal they want to achieve.

 The rumor goes: “Those who believe in Almighty God are really something—you’ll be taken in as soon as you have contact with them. There are many true believers from every denomination who are good sheep and even bellwethers of good caliber, but they are being stolen by believers in Almighty God.…” Today, most of the believers in Almighty God do indeed come from many different denominations and among them, a great many are those from their denominations that have caliber, insight, and are dedicated seekers, but saying that they are all taken in is malicious slander, pure and simple. Just think about it: Could so many devout people all be deceived who come from various denominations to accept Almighty God’s work of the last days? Does it make sense that they’d be believers for so many years and know the Bible well without having some discernment? Even if people are deceived, they could only be those who are not seekers, those who eat the loaves and are filled, and those who are muddled in their faith. How is it even possible that so many seekers and so many with sincere faith in God have been deceived? As everyone knows, it was prophesied in the Bible long ago that God would come in the last days “like a thief” to “steal” treasures, that He would “steal” those who are “treasures.” This means that all of those who are “stolen” are of good caliber, they can understand and accept the truth, and know God’s voice. Those who have been “stolen” are all good sheep and the Lord’s return is to save and perfect them. It is clear that being “stolen” is actually being raptured to meet the Lord. Those with true faith in the Lord from different denominations read Almighty God’s words, and see that He has unveiled the mysteries of God’s management plan for saving mankind as well as the relationship between the Age of Law, the Age of Grace, the Age of Kingdom (the three stages of God’s work), the truth and inside story of the Bible, the significance of God’s work of judgment in the last days, how God classifies people according to their kind and determines their outcome, and finally how God will bring the age to an end and how Christ’s kingdom will be realized. Seeing these, they are able to confirm in their hearts that this is the voice of God, and that Almighty God’s words are what was prophesied several times in Revelation: “what the Spirit says to the churches.” It is all the truth, and they have recognized that Almighty God is the returned Lord Jesus and so have turned toward Him, one by one. If it weren’t God’s appearance and work, who else would have the authority and power to conquer brothers and sisters from all denominations and have all faiths become one? It is because Almighty God is the Lord Jesus, who has returned and who has appeared and works in the last days, that those true seekers of God have heard God’s voice and seen God’s appearance and so they accept the work of Almighty God in the last days. Who wouldn’t want to be a wise virgin and follow the footsteps of the Lamb? This is the reason so many seekers from different denominations 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, if they convert a church leader they can get 10,000 to 20,000 RMB….” 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 being bribed with money to spread His gospel and about their enthusiasm being driven by personal benefit, 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. On the contrary, 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 understood the truth from Almighty God’s words, truly seen the appearance of God, received His great salvation, experienced God’s love, and felt God’s eagerness to save people. 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, who heard the voice of God through Jesus’ work and words, recognized that the Lord Jesus was the Messiah they had been waiting for, and saw that He was willing to sacrifice Himself to save mankind, to be crucified. God’s love is so great, so real! Moved by the Holy Spirit, spurred on by God’s love, they were willing to give up homes and careers and to withstand all kinds of oppression and difficulties to spread the news, to bear witness for the Lord. It’s true! Perhaps some brothers and sisters have seen and heard what kind of “compensation” believers in Almighty God get 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 those 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 and even his life to spread the gospel of God’s salvation in the last days if it were not for God’s work? Thus “If they convert a believer they receive a prize of 2,000 RMB, if they convert a church leader they can get 10,000 to 20,000 RMB” is nothing but a lie, a pure fabrication.

There are still others who have said: “They don’t maintain good boundaries between men and women—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 One Hundred and Ninth Utterance” in 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 God’s disposition is holy and righteous and does not tolerate any offense from mankind. He does not live in an unclean temple. God does not want a single one that engages in promiscuous behavior. Every follower of Almighty God must strictly adhere to God’s administrative decrees, or they will be expelled from the church—no exceptions. Besides, the brothers and sisters who are believers in Almighty God are primarily drawn from those genuine seekers from various denominations; some of them are leaders and co-workers from different denominations. They know from the Age of Grace that God is a jealous God and despises promiscuous behavior. 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 the Age of Kingdom today? So you can see, the root of this rumor is simply nonsensical and purely meant as a smear campaign.

Some people have said that “Eastern Lightning is a criminal underworld organization. If you get involved with them you’ll never escape. If you try, they’ll gouge out your eyes and cut off your ears, or they’ll break your legs….” When they bring up underworld organizations, we all know that those involve murderers, arsonists, thieves, and robbers who do all manner of evil things. No one wants to provoke those sorts of people. Even the Chinese government and its police won’t dare mess with some of them, isn’t that right? So let’s take a look at the brothers and sisters who spread Almighty God’s gospel of the last days. When they go out to bring people to God, they endure being thrown out, insulted, beaten, attacked by dogs, arrested, imprisoned, and even tortured. They suffer all kinds of cruel treatment. If these brothers and sisters were really members of an underworld organization, would anyone really dare treat them that way? Would they endure verbal abuse and not respond? Would they be beaten and not fight back? Do you know of any gangsters like that? Could anyone involved in that kind of thing truly believe in God? If they did believe in God, could they have the work of the Holy Spirit? Would they be able to preach the gospel to relatively dedicated seekers? Furthermore, there are many brothers and sisters from various denominations who have heard God’s gospel of the last days. Whether they accepted the gospel and then withdrew from the church for whatever reason, or they never accepted it in the first place, who among them has had their eyes gouged out, ears cut off, or legs broken? According to this, there must be a number of people who have had eyes gouged out, legs broken. Have you seen a single one? If there really were one, wouldn’t the CCP government have long ago brought this to trial in a court of law, and issued a sentence, and then mobilized all the presses to spread the news across the entire world? Is there any factual basis for the things these rumor mongers have said? Neither is there any factual basis when they say things like: “If you get involved with believing in Almighty God, once you go in, you’ll never get out.” It is written in “The Ten Administrative Decrees That Must Be Obeyed by God’s Chosen People in the Age of Kingdom”: “Kin who are not of the faith (your children, your husband or wife, your sisters or your parents, and so on) should not be forced into the church. God’s household is not short of members, and there is no need to make up its numbers with people who have no use. All those who do not believe gladly must not be led into the church.” The Church of Almighty God has no need of those who do not gladly believe in God just to make up the numbers and when preaching the gospel, people particularly cannot drag people along or force them to believe in God. This is God’s administrative decree and every person must strictly adhere to this—it cannot be violated. The truth is that the door of the Church is open, and those who want to leave the church and their faith can go at any time. Nobody will coerce them. The Church of Almighty God always gives each person the freedom to make their own choices. In fact, it’s not that those who accept God’s work in the last days are unable to leave, but that they themselves do not want to leave. Why is this? Almighty God says, “The incarnation of God has sent shockwaves through all religions and denominations, it has ‘thrown into disarray’ the original order of religious circles, 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 appearance and work of God incarnate in the last days has indeed sent shockwaves through the entire religious world and it has shaken the hearts of those who thirst for God’s appearance. The reason brothers and sisters from various denominations have returned to God is because they have seen the appearance of God, heard His voice, understood that 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 enter 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. If we apply just a little bit of discernment here these rumors really start to unravel. A believer concocting lies and bearing false witness is behavior that God most detests; it is condemned by God, just as the Bible says: “A false witness deceit” (Proverbs 12:17). “Lying lips are abomination to Jehovah” (Proverbs 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” (John 8:44). Knowing that concocting lies and bearing false witness is something God detests, why would they persist in doing this? John chapter 11 verses 47-48 say: “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 Jewish chief priests, scribes, and the Pharisees were afraid that everyone would believe in the Lord Jesus and that they would then 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 had never resurrected, saying that His disciples took His body away when the soldiers were sleeping. We see from this that people can intentionally fabricate lies, and judge and slander God’s work as well as blaspheme God. They do this to protect their own reputations, statuses, and profits. This shows their evil nature, that they hate the truth and are enemies of God. It’s just the same now, in the last days. As Almighty God has expanded His work of the last days in mainland China, great swaths of believers from many different religious denominations have come to accept God’s new work. When some leaders of these denominations see more and more people believe in Almighty God while the believers under them 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 seek, investigate, and accept God’s work in the last days; their purpose is to trap and control their congregations forever. From this we can see that the leaders of various denominations are the modern-day Pharisees revealed by God’s work of the last days. They make up rumors to protect their own status and income—they have their motives, their own goals in this.

If we are unable to discern these lies fabricated by religious circles and blindly follow them, then we stand on the side of those who slander, resist, and disrupt God’s work. This not only causes one to lose God’s salvation in the last days, but also turns one into a target for God’s loathing, 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 that the Lord Jesus’ ability to cast out demons was only because He was conjuring the prince of demons, Beelzebub, saying that He was possessed by demons, as well as other blasphemous things. Because of the Pharisees’ lies and rumors, because they lacked discernment, and because they did not carefully study the Lord Jesus’ work and word, many Jewish people took the evil path of resisting God, blindly accepting the lies of the Pharisees and joining them in abandoning and murdering the Lord Jesus. The Pharisees spread falsehoods and slandered and blasphemed God, and we can all guess 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? They suffered unprecedented national destruction and the Jewish people scattered to the four winds. They had no home to return to for 2,000 years. 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, who do not seek or investigate God’s new work, and who easily believe lies become accomplices to Satan and evildoers who resist God. In the end, they sink down into destruction because of this resistance to God. This fulfilled what is written in the Bible: “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6). “But fools die for want of wisdom” (Proverbs 10:21).

 It says in the Bible that demons lie from the very start. Lying and slandering are two common tricks Satan uses to resist God and deceive people, and its evil intentions and cunning are hidden within. However, God’s wisdom is always a step ahead of Satan’s tricks. Satan is not only incapable of ruining God’s work, but on the contrary, it renders its service to God’s work. Just like when the Jewish chief priests, scribes and Pharisees tried so hard to resist and condemn the Lord Jesus’ work; they colluded with Rome to have the Lord Jesus crucified, thinking that they were succeeding in their scheme and they would obliterate the Lord Jesus’ work, but to their great surprise, the Lord Jesus said: “It is finished.” This shows us that God used Satan’s tricks to achieve His management plan and to complete His redemption of mankind. Today is no different. Even though there are leaders in various denominations who will stop at nothing to create lies and rumors to resist Almighty God’s work of the last days, not only is all of this incapable of harming God’s work, but in fact, they aid in the accomplishment of His work of the last days: the work of reaping and winnowing, of separating the wheat from the tares, the sheep from the goats, to classify man according to their kind, and to reward the good and punish the evil. Through our actual experience, we have seen that the lies of the CCP government and the religious world have deceived some brothers and sisters who don’t understand the true situation. However, through seeking and investigating God’s work of the last days and reading Almighty God’s words, those who genuinely believe in God and love the truth clearly see the fact that the true way has been subject to oppression since time immemorial. They understand that the more the CCP government and the religious world resists and condemns it, the more it is the true way—they thus turn back to God. But those who detest and hate the truth mindlessly listen to the lies and rumors and follow other people because they love evil and adore power. As a result, they are caught up in a web of lies and are stuck outside of the kingdom’s gate. Isn’t that God’s wisdom and almightiness? 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 will be gathered into the granary in the end. In this manner, Satan’s tricks end up only being the tools, the serving objects 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. God’s work is so wondrous and unfathomable.

As I get to this point, I trust that you have gained some knowledge of the rumors’ cause, their substance, and their harmfulness! And now, Almighty God’s work in the last days has reached unprecedented new heights—it approaches its glorious conclusion 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 just for being taken in by some rumors? Are you willing to so narrowly miss God’s salvation of the last days for that? I believe that any intelligent person will certainly make the wise choice.

from The Church of Almighty God

Read More

Analyzing and Discerning the CCP Government’s and the Religious World’s Rumors and Lies (2)

Analyzing and Discerning the CCP Government’s and the Religious World’s Rumors and Lies (2)

Nov 29, 2017191

(3) Dissecting the Third Chinese Communist Party and Religious Community Rumor: The Church of Almighty God Was Created by a Person

Relevant Words of God:

Some may wonder, Why must the age be ushered in by God Himself? Cannot a created being stand in His stead? You are all aware that God becomes flesh for the express purpose of ushering in a new age, and, of course, when He ushers in a new age, He will have concluded the former age at the same time. God is the Beginning and the End; it is He Himself who sets His work in motion and so it must be He Himself who concludes the former age. That is the proof that He defeats Satan and conquers the world. Each time He Himself works among man, it is the beginning of a new battle. Without the beginning of new work, there would naturally be no conclusion of the old. And when there is no conclusion of the old, this is proof that the battle with Satan has yet to come to a close. Only if God Himself comes, and carries out new work among man, can man break completely free of the domain of Satan and gain a new life and a new beginning. Otherwise, man shall forever live in the old age and forever live under the old influence of Satan. With every age led by God, a part of man is set free, and thus man advances along with the work of God toward the new age. The victory of God means a victory for all those who follow Him. If the race of created human beings were charged with concluding the age, then be it from the viewpoint of man or of Satan, this would be no more than an act of opposing or betraying God, not one of obedience to God, and the work of man would become a tool for Satan. Only if man obeys and follows God in an age ushered in by God Himself can Satan be fully convinced, for that is the duty of a created being. And so I say that you need only follow and obey, and no more is required of you. This is what is meant by each keeping to his duty and each performing his respective function. God does His own work and has no need for man to do it in His stead, nor does He participate in the work of created beings. Man performs his own duty and does not participate in the work of God. Only this is obedience, and proof of Satan’s defeat. After God Himself has finished ushering in the new age, He no longer comes down to work in the midst of mankind Himself. It is only then that man officially steps into the new age to perform his duty and carry out his mission as a created being. These are the principles governing work, which no one may transgress. Only working in this way is sensible and reasonable. The work of God is to be done by God Himself. It is He who sets His work in motion, and it is He who concludes His work. It is He who plans the work, and it is He who manages it, and even more, it is He who brings the work to fruition. As stated in the Bible, “I am the Beginning and the End; I am the Sower and the Reaper.” All that pertains to the work of His management is done by God Himself. He is the Ruler of the six-thousand-year management plan; no one can do His work in His stead and no one can bring His work to a close, for it is He who holds everything in His hand. Having created the world, He will lead the entire world to live in His light, and He will also conclude the entire age, thereby bringing His entire plan to fruition!

from “The Mystery of the Incarnation (1)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh

Sermon and Fellowship Excerpts for Reference:

In the Age of Grace, the Lord Jesus promised to His followers, “And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (Jhn 14:3). He also prophesied, “For as the lightning comes out of the east, and shines even to the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (Mat 24:27). In the last days, as promised and foretold by Himself, God has again become flesh and descended to the East of the world—China—to do the work of judgment, chastisement, conquest, and salvation using the word, on the foundation of the redemption work of the Lord Jesus. In this, the prophecies of the Bible that “Judgment begins with the house of God” (1Pe 4:17) and “He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (Rev 2:7) have also been fulfilled. God’s work of the last days has ended the Age of Grace and ushered in the Age of Kingdom. As the gospel of the kingdom of Almighty God spread rapidly in Mainland China, The Church of Almighty God came into being. As proven by facts, The Church of Almighty God came into being entirely as a result of God’s work of the last days, and was not established by any man. This is because the chosen people in The Church of Almighty God pray in the name of Almighty God, obey His work, and accept all the truths expressed by Him. Thus it is evident that these chosen people believe in Christ who is incarnated in the last days, the practical God who is the Spirit realized in the flesh, instead of believing in a man. Outwardly, Almighty God is nothing more than an ordinary Son of man, but in substance He is the embodiment of God’s Spirit and is the truth, the way, and the life. His work and word are the direct expression of the Spirit of God and are the appearance of God in person. Therefore, He is the practical God who is incarnated.

from “Almighty God and The Church of Almighty God” in Selected Annals of the Work Arrangements of The Church of Almighty God

The churches of Christianity came to be because of the appearance and work of the Lord Jesus become flesh, and The Church of Almighty God came to be because of the appearance and work of the incarnate Almighty God of the last days. Thus, churches throughout the ages have been produced because of the appearance and work of God become flesh. Every time God incarnate works, He expresses many truths, and many people come to accept and follow God because of these truths expressed by God, thus giving rise to the churches. From this it can be seen that the churches are formed from those who accept the work of God and follow God. These gatherings of God’s chosen ones are called churches. The churches of Christianity were produced by the appearance and work of the incarnate Lord Jesus two thousand years ago. The Lord Jesus preached, “Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Mat 4:17), and He did the work of redemption, and expressed the truths that the people of the Age of Grace should put into practice and enter into. Many people then began to believe in and follow the Lord, and thus the churches of that time came into being. Afterward, the gospel of the Lord Jesus spread to every country and territory, until the last days when it had spread to the ends of the earth, and Christian churches thus emerged in every country. These were the churches of the Age of Grace. During the final stages of the last days, the incarnate Almighty God appears and works in mainland China. Upon the foundation of the work of redemption of the Lord Jesus during the Age of Grace, Almighty God carries out the work of “judgment must begin at the house of God” (1Pe 4:17) prophesied in the Bible. To all mankind, Almighty God reveals all the mysteries of God’s six-thousand-year management plan, and expresses all truths for the purification and salvation of mankind. Because of the appearance and work of Almighty God of the last days, many people from every denomination of the religious world, people who have believed in the Lord for many years, have finally heard the voice of God and seen that the Lord Jesus has come and has carried out the work of judgment of the last days. They have verified that Almighty God is the returned Lord Jesus, and because of this they have accepted Almighty God’s work of the last days. In mainland China, at least several million people have accepted and now follow Almighty God. Thus, The Church of Almighty God is entirely the result of the appearance and work of Almighty God. It was personally established by Almighty God, and not by any person. Every Christian in The Church of Almighty God fully recognizes that Almighty God is the returned Lord Jesus, Christ of the last days, and the appearance of God. The Christians of The Church of Almighty God pray to the name of Almighty God. What they read, listen to, and fellowship are the words of Almighty God, and what they hold to are all the truths expressed by Almighty God. These truths are the way of everlasting life brought by God during the last days. This is enough to prove that the Christians in The Church of Almighty God believe in and follow Almighty God rather than any man. But the CCP government makes the rumor that The Church of Almighty God was established by a certain man. This is unfounded and does not accord with the fact remotely. Who God incarnate will use has been predestined by God, and is also personally appointed and testified to by God—just as when the Lord Jesus worked, He personally chose and appointed the twelve disciples. These people who are used by God, however, merely cooperate in God’s work, and they are incapable of working in God’s stead. The churches were not established by them, and the one whom God’s chosen ones believe in and follow is not those who are used by God. The churches of the Age of Grace were not set up by Paul and the other apostles, but produced by the work of the Lord Jesus; they were personally established by the Lord Jesus. Likewise, The Church of Almighty God of the last days was also not set up by the man used by God, but was born from the work of Almighty God. It was established and is shepherded by Almighty God personally; the man used by God merely waters, provides for, and guides the churches, performing his duty. Although God’s chosen ones are led, watered, and provided for by the man used by God, the One whom God’s chosen ones believe in and follow is Almighty God—which is a fact that no one can deny. …

The Christians of The Church of Almighty God accept and follow Almighty God as they see the expression of Almighty God is all the truth. They recognize that Almighty God is the second coming of the Lord Jesus. Yet the CCP government does not recognize the existence of God. It refers to religious organizations and churches as human organizations. Religious groups are designated as human organizations by unbelievers and the atheist government. This is unsubstantiated internationally. As we all know, religious beliefs are commonly recognized by the international community. All democratic countries recognize religious beliefs, recognize freedom of belief and respect religious groups. International conventions also recognize the freedom of religious belief. Why doesn’t the CCP? Because the CCP is an atheist political party that does not recognize the existence and incarnation of God, let alone respect freedom of belief. Since the CCP took power, it has steadfastly persecuted freedom of belief, designating religious groups as human organizations for restriction, persecution and suppression. But The Church of Almighty God’s millions or even tens of millions of Christians all recognizes that the word expressed by Almighty God is the truth and the voice of God. No one can deny that Almighty God is the returned Lord Jesus, the appearance of God in the last days. Just as when the Lord Jesus was doing His work, the Roman government and Judaism did not recognize it. But two thousand years later, the gospel of the Lord Jesus has spread throughout the world all the same. All countries in the world have recognized that Christianity is a pure faith. What is reason for this? It is because the truth is the truth, and God’s word is the truth.

from The Fellowship From the Above

(4) Dissecting the Fourth Chinese Communist Party and Religious Community Rumor: The Man Used by the Holy Spirit Fled Overseas with Huge Sums of Money

Relevant Words of God:

3. The money, material objects, and all property in God’s household are the offerings that should be given by man. These offerings may be enjoyed by none but the priest and God, for the offerings of man are for the enjoyment of God, God only shares these offerings with the priest, and no one else is qualified or entitled to enjoy any part of them. All of man’s offerings (including money and material things that can be enjoyed) are given to God, not to man. And so, these things should not be enjoyed by man; if man were to enjoy them, then he would be stealing offerings. Anyone who does this is a Judas, for, in addition to being a traitor, Judas also helped himself to what was put in the money bag.

from “The Ten Administrative Decrees That Must Be Obeyed by God’s Chosen People in the Age of Kingdom” in The Word Appears in the Flesh

Sermon and Fellowship Excerpts for Reference:

How can man’s persistent notions about God be resolved? This requires pursuit of the truth. For example, some people claim I [the man used by the Holy Spirit] have embezzled the church’s funds, that I stole them and ran away. Is this correct? I would not steal the church’s money and run off. I’m responsible for managing and allocating offerings to God. How could that be called taking them and running away? That’s not called running off with them, it’s called taking responsibility for allocating this money, and I have the authority to do so. So, that is an erroneous claim. Some say I fled China to go overseas. Is this correct? I did not flee the country. I carried out my work in mainland China for over ten years. In my wildest dreams, I never imagined that God would send me abroad. I thought that as long as God was doing His work in China, I would carry out my duty in China. I never thought of leaving, but this is where God led me; it was His instruction. At the time I had reservations, “I am on a CCP wanted list. If God has me leave the country, won’t I be caught at customs? Isn’t this asking for trouble? If anything goes wrong, I’ll surely be caught!” But I didn’t say these things; I just said to myself, “Obey. Leave!” As a result, at customs, I narrowly escaped being caught, and it was God’s guidance and protection that got me through. Would you call this running away? This was the Holy Spirit’s guidance; it was God’s instruction. So, once again the rumor spread by the Chinese Communist Party is wrong. They say I fled the country because I was being hunted down, but that doesn’t adhere to the truth. I had never considered going abroad. It was God’s instruction to do so—He sent me. I took the risk and obeyed, albeit reluctantly, and so He led me through customs safely. What was I thinking at the time? “If I make it through customs, it will be because God has led me through. If I do not make it through, then it will be because God has handed me over to Satan.” I accepted this, and I obeyed.

from Sermons and Fellowship on Entry Into Life, Volume 138

For instance, the Chinese Communist Party said I [the man used by the Holy Spirit] embezzled money and fled to the United States. How can you explain that? Some say, “That’s right. He is in the US indeed.” Was that fleeing to the US? It was being led here by God. It was God who dispatched me from China to the US to do work under His command. If it weren’t for God’s guidance, could a person escape? I am one of the most wanted national fugitives by the Communist Party in the mainland China. How would I dare leave? At that time, I thought, “If I leave, won’t I be captured?” So, this was not my own impetus—I was dispatched by God. It was God who told me that I had to leave. When I heard it, I thought, “Oh, this is God’s word. Every time God’s work approaches a turning point, God always says something in advance that comes true later. God has spoken of going abroad and it was not a joke. It is His arrangement!” Thus, I began preparations and I was able to leave as soon as everything had been handled. It was all led by God. It was hopeless in people’s eyes. Now you say—was it that I fled to the US, or was it that God led me and arranged for me to come? (God led you.) The Chinese Communist Party said that I embezzled money and fled, but that was not embezzled money. Those were offerings God’s chosen people offered to God, which I am in charge of and empowered to maneuver and control. Is that embezzlement? Do you think it was like a corrupt official just wantonly fleeing with embezzled money? What do embezzlement and flight refer to? It’s fleeing with money taken from the country and the common people. That is called fleeing with embezzled money. Was that what I did? On the surface, it looks true. First, I came to the US. Second, I am in charge of a portion of the money. But when it comes out of the CCP’s mouth, it turns into something negative. Now that I’ve told you the real story, you know that all of this is positive. On the surface there appears to be a lot of things that coincide with the facts, but the CCP’s presentation of it distorts the truth; they turn right into wrong. Do you get it now?

from Sermons and Fellowship on Entry Into Life, Volume 141

(5) Dissecting the Fifth Chinese Communist Party and Religious Community Rumor: The Church of Almighty God Destroys Families and Makes People Abandon Everything to Follow God

Bible Verses for Reference:

“If any man come to Me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brothers, and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:26).

“And he that takes not his cross, and follows after Me, is not worthy of Me” (Matthew 10:38).

“Truly I say to you, There is no man that has left house, or parents, or brothers, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God’s sake, Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting” (Luke 18:29-30).

“No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62).

Sermon and Fellowship Excerpts for Reference:

The Chinese Communist Party says: “The Church of Almighty God asks people to leave behind everything in order to follow God. This is breaking up families.” In Christianity, didn’t the Lord Jesus demand such things from man? Have not the saints through the ages been doing so? These kinds of testimonies have all been performed starting long ago, so why does the CCP condemn The Church of Almighty God? Didn’t the Lord Jesus say such words? Have not the saints through the ages left their marriages, their families, and the world in the name of God, to follow God, to preach and bear witness for the Lord Jesus? There have been so many. Which law from which country condemns this as a crime? Is it fair for the CCP to say this? Is this the reality? To follow God, to pursue the truth, to devote themselves for the sake of righteousness—these are things people happily choose to do. Has the house of God ever forced anyone? Wasn’t this also a requirement of the Lord Jesus’ work during the Age of Grace? What did the Lord Jesus say? “Whoever he be of you that forsakes not all that he has, he cannot be My disciple” (Luk 14:33). The Lord Jesus called on the twelve disciples Himself, and said, “Come you after Me” (Mak 1:17). He also said, “Go you into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature” (Mak 16:15). Could the Lord Jesus really have been wrong in saying so? This is recorded in the Bible. This has been the practice of all of the religious communities, those who serve the Lord and all the saints through the ages. Why does the CCP come here and vilify The Church of Almighty God by saying that it breaks up families? Is this not a pack of lies told by Satan? You are following God, yet you are unable to see through this. You can’t differentiate between true and false, or tell black from white.

from Sermons and Fellowship on Entry Into Life, Volume 130

The Chinese Communist Party is now spreading rumors all over the place against God’s chosen people, particularly those who have given up their families to perform their duties; they are attacking, judging, and defaming The Church of Almighty God. They say: “It is The Church of Almighty God that destroys people’s families, separating families and not allowing people to stay with their families.” Isn’t that fabricating rumors and making attacks? What kind of a family would you say that dark and evil mankind belongs to? Is that a positive thing? That kind of family is not a positive thing. What is wrong with someone leaving behind a family of Satan when he really believes in God? This is perfectly justified! “I cast aside everything to expend myself for God and do God’s will. Why shouldn’t I do that? I abandoned the family that kept me from practicing my faith and pursuing the truth. What was wrong with that? The path that a believer follows is distinctly different from that of a non-believer. I want to pursue the truth and follow God. If you disagree, I will divorce you. What could be wrong with that?” Such a divorce is more meaningful than those who divorce because of adultery and a desire for novelty! That kind of divorce is called destroying a family! We abandon everything and leave our families behind that are subject to Satan’s influence so that we may follow God and pursue the truth. This is called renouncing darkness to seek the light. This is a just act that is consistent with God’s will. It is a positive thing. Isn’t it better than following Satan into destruction?

from “Sermons and Fellowship About God’s Word ‘God Himself, the Unique II’ (IX)” in Sermons and Fellowship on Entry Into Life XII

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