whether is heaven in heaven or on earth?

whether is heaven in heaven or on earth?

Today, sister Wendy and sister Carrie fellowshiped what is heaven and whether heaven is in heaven or on the earth. I want to share my knowledge with everyone.

whether is heaven in heaven or on earth?

Wendy: The Lord has promised to us, "I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you to myself; that where I am, there you may be also" (John 14:2-3).
We know that the Lord has prepared a place for us in heaven. When He's back directly to the kingdom of heaven, we'll go.
So if the Lord has returned, I truly wonder why we are still here and not in heaven.


Carrie: Sister, the Lord has gone to prepare a place for believers; that's true. But is this place on earth or in heaven? No one knows for certain.
In our imaginations, the kingdom of heaven should be far off in heaven.
But is this how it really is? Let's see what Jesus has said about it.
"Our Father which are in heaven, Hallowed be your name. 
Your kingdom come, Your will be done in earth, as it is in heaven" (Matthew 6:9-10).

So this tells us the Lord says His kingdom is on earth, not in heaven. God's will will be done on earth just as it is in heaven.
Not to mention, it's also in Revelation 21:2-3,
…… "And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven….
Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God."
And in Revelation 11:15,
"The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ;
and he shall reign for ever and ever."

The prophecies say,
"the tabernacle of God is with men."
"… new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven."
"The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ."
The proof is clear that God will establish His kingdom on earth, and live with mankind here on earth.

So the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of Christ forever. Imagination tells us that God's kingdom is in heaven far away, and that when He comes, we'll be raptured up there.
But if that's the case, wouldn't God's words be in vain? (Yes.)
In fact, the final result of God's management plan is to save man and make His kingdom here on earth.
Almighty God, Christ of the last days, does the work of judging and purifying man,
just to make a group of overcomers on earth. Those overcomers here who are perfected by God are those who practice His word and follow His way on earth.
They are the people of God's kingdom.
When this group of overcomers is made, then God's will will be done here on earth.
And when the kingdom of Christ is finally realized on earth, then God will gain glory.
These prophecies in Revelation are what God will accomplish.
Isn't this a fact we can all agree with?
What kind of place has the Lord Jesus prepared for us?
He has predestined that we are born in the last days, and welcome His coming on earth to accept His purification to be made overcomers and carry out His will, so that the kingdoms of this world would be the kingdoms of Christ. This is surely God's will.

God is here on earth, but men still insist on heaven.
If we were taken up into the midair, how would we survive without food or housing?
That's man's imagination and notion. Would the Lord do that to us? It's naive of men to think that way with their heads in the clouds.

Carrie: What you've said makes a lot of sense. These years, we've been reciting the Lord's prayer:
''Your kingdom come, Your will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.''
Revelation also states,
"the tabernacle of God is with men."
"The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ."
"… new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven."
Now I see the scriptures are clear. How did we not see it before? (Yes.) We've longed to be in heaven for so long. We are so dull and numb! (That's right.)

Mary: These years, our belief in the Lord was muddled. Even though the prophecies were clear, we didn't understand. (It's true.)  Even though the prophecies were clear, we didn't understand. (It's true.) For so long, pastors and elders told us God's kingdom was in heaven. We believed it to be true, so we waited to be raptured into heaven. (Right.)
Seems like our pastors and elders don't really understand the Bible, (She's right.)
blindly explaining God's word with imagination and defining His work.
Aren't they deceiving and ruining man? (Mm. Yes.) We have been deeply deceived and never understood its literal meaning. We actually thought we would be raptured up to heaven. But the thought is absurd.

Jennie: Yeah. We need other people who understand the truth to fellowship with us.
Otherwise, no matter how long we believe, we won't gain anything from it.
How could we not be rejected by the Lord? Yeah. That's right. That makes sense.

Vivian: It's impossible for us to say whether God's kingdom is on earth or in heaven.
The Lord Jesus said several times, "The kingdom of heaven is at hand" and "Your kingdom come."
Since He clearly says, "the kingdom of heaven," how can it be on earth?
Yeah. The kingdom of heaven must be in heaven. Otherwise, why call it that?

Carrie: We should keep in mind that "heaven" always refers to God. The kingdom of heaven means God's kingdom.
Revelation says,
"the tabernacle of God is with men."
"The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ."
It shows us that God's kingdom is on earth. The kingdoms of this world will become those of God. After the disasters, the old world will be destroyed and the Millennial Kingdom will appear. And this world shall become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ.
And then God's will shall be done on earth just as it is in heaven. This fulfills the prophecy that new Jerusalem will come down to earth then.
God incarnate in the last days does the work of judgment to end the dark and evil times. Those who hear God's voice and are raptured before the throne will be made overcomers. 
Then the great disasters will fall. Only those who are purified, saved through God's work in the last days can remain on earth and be in God's kingdom.

Today, we who accept God's work in the last days are truly the most blessed. We're fortunate to hear God's voice and be raptured before His throne. We will be purified through the judgment of God's word, and also be overcomers made before the disaster and be His first fruits. Then God will return to Zion and the great disasters will fall.

All those who oppose God and the followers of Satan in the disasters will be destroyed, while those who are sanctified and perfected by God shall remain on earth protected.
When the Lord descends to people openly on a cloud, then God will come to His kingdom on earth. That's what God will accomplish very soon.
As believers, if we don't know this vision, aren't we blind? Those who simply gaze up at the sky and wait for the Lord to come with clouds will weep and gnash their teeth when they see the Lord come upon white clouds.
Just as Revelation prophesied,
 "Behold, he comes with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. " (Revelation 1:7).

When the disasters come, those who haven't heard God's voice and aren't raptured will be punished in these disasters, weeping and gnashing their teeth.

Wendy: Thanks be to the Lord. It's a mystery. Without such fellowship, we would've never known.

Mary: Right. They're all very wise and enlightened. So that's how the prophecy in Revelation is fulfilled. Yes. I understand so clearly. Their fellowship makes so much biblical sense. They're full of enlightenment. We should listen to them more.

Carrie: Brothers and sisters, in the beginning God created man on earth. Satan corrupts man on that same earth. However, it is still on earth that God saves man.
Until the kingdom of Christ appears to man, all this happens on earth. That's why God establishes His kingdom on earth in the last days. In the end, man's destination is on earth, not in heaven. It's ordained by God. Let's see what Almighty God says in His own words.
"God will return to His original position, and each person will return to his or her respective place. These are the destinations that God and man will respectively reside in after the end of God's entire management. God has God's destination, and man has man's destination. While resting, God will continue to guide all of humanity in their lives upon earth. While in God's light, man will worship the one true God in heaven. … When humanity enters into rest, it means that man has become a true creation; humanity will worship God from upon the earth and have normal human lives. People will no longer be disobedient to God or resist God; they will return to the original life of Adam and Eve. These are the respective lives and destinations of God and humanity after they enter into rest. Satan's defeat is an inevitable trend in the war between God and Satan. In this way, God's entering into rest after the completion of His management work and man's complete salvation and entrance into rest likewise become inevitable trends. Man's place of rest is on earth, and God's place of rest is in heaven. While man rests, he will worship God and also live upon earth, and while God rests, He will lead the remaining portion of humanity…."

Carrie: Almighty God has put it very clearly. When God's management work is complete, God and man will enter into rest together. God's place of rest is in heaven while man's is on earth just as it is now. This is the destination God has prepared for us, and also God's kingdom to be established on earth.
If we can't see this after years of believing in God, doesn't it show then that we are ignorant of the Lord's word?

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A Christian’s Spiritual Diary—I don’t want to go to church

A Christian’s Spiritual Diary—I don’t want to go to church

May 12, 2017

It’s a fine day today. Outside the window, the light breeze was blowing softly. In the yard, leaves on the trees were dancing gaily in the breeze to express their happiness …

Looking at the dancing leaves, however, I was still unhappy. For a period of time, I often felt empty and fretful for unknown reasons. At home, when what my husband and son said was not to my liking, I lost my temper with them; when my husband hung about all day long, I even hated and despised him. But I thought of “Be you angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down on your wrath: Neither give place to the devil” (Ephesians 4:26-27). So I tried to be tolerant of and patient with them. However, no matter how hard I tried, I found myself always unable to conquer the sins, living in the constant state of committing them by day and confessing them by night. Sometimes, I even felt too ashamed to meet the Lord.

Worse still, recently, every time I went to church, as soon as the pastor began preaching, my eyelids started to droop and sleep stole over me. Although sometimes I had tried my best to stay awake, I still felt very drowsy. Neither did it work to call to the Lord for help. And the last few times I even became fed up with church meetings. I knew it’s not right, but I just couldn’t control this thought.

I have always thought: How come I have fallen into such a state? At the beginning when I believed in the Lord, brothers and sisters in our church were fervent; I was also full of faith, feeling strong in the spirit. Several times when I was scolded and persecuted by my husband, I felt weak in the spirit, and then the elder sister who led me to faith in the Lord came to my support. We sat under a big tree in the yard. When she talked of how the Lord Jesus was flogged, humiliated, and nailed to the cross, I was deeply moved by the Lord’s love for mankind, and felt that His love was too profound to be described in words. Over the talk, my sorrow and bitterness vanished without my knowing it. And an unfailing strength stirred in me, giving me the faith to walk a rocky road after the Lord. When my family had difficulties, I called to the Lord, and He would send others to help me; when I disobeyed or strayed from the Lord, He would deal with and discipline me through my husband or something else. Several times when I wanted to do business to earn money and didn’t want to attend church meetings, my husband quarreled with and criticized me, and things didn’t go well for me at all. At last, I couldn’t but go on to attend meetings. … At that time, I strongly felt that the Lord is like both a stern father and a loving mother, and that God is in the heaven, at my home, and even more in my heart.

However, unknowingly, I began to feel a growing sense of darkness in my heart. At its worst, I couldn’t see anything clearly, as if in a dark, endless wilderness where I felt directionless and lost. More often than not, I sank into unspeakable pain and worries. No matter how I prayed, the Lord seemed to be rather far away from me, and I couldn’t feel His presence at all. Then I thought of Psalm 63 and began to sing, “O God, you are my God; early will I seek you: my soul thirsts for you, my flesh longs for you in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is….” And my tears gushed out. I called in my heart over and over again, “Lord, have You really deserted me? Where are You? Where …”

May 16, 2017 Sunny

After waking up this morning, I was aware that I should rise to read the Bible. But I didn’t want to move. I lay there, gazing at the ceiling and trying to figure out the cause of my present state: There’re many activities in our church now. We have dinner together after every meeting; the church holds different kinds of activities on festivals; sometimes we join in outdoor activities and go traveling; and the church even invites preachers from other churches to give us sermons. But we are thirsty in spirit and haven’t made much progress in our spiritual life. Believers still pursue the trends of the world; jealous disputes and struggles for the fame and gain happen too often. Everyone is in the state of sinning during the day and confessing at night, unable to extricate himself from it. Actually what is the cause of such a situation? I have asked several brothers and sisters about this question, but they couldn’t explain it clearly and some were even unaware of it. I don’t know how to walk my future path. While I was thinking, I felt I was like a kid abandoned by his mother. Tears trickled down my cheeks. I called on God in my heart to help me out.

After breakfast, Sister Wu in our church came to invite me to attend a meeting in another church. I thought: Weak as I am, I should attend meetings. So I went to that church with her. When we walked into the room, their meeting had already begun. The preacher said, “Let’s see: Why is the temple in Judaism desolate? There are two reasons. On the one hand, the chief priests, scribes, and Pharisees of Judaism opposed God and were enemies to God. Externally, they were serving Jehovah God; in fact, they went against God’s laws and commandments. For example, they killed prophets and devoured widows’ houses, and they only observed religious traditions. Because they did these unlawful things under the banner of service to God, they were detested and rejected by God, and the Holy Spirit had long ago stopped working in the temple. So it fell into desolation and became a den of thieves where cattle, sheep, and doves were sold. On the other hand, it’s because God’s work had moved forward on the basis of that of Jehovah God—the incarnate Lord Jesus had carried out the redemptive work outside the temple. However, the religious world held onto the law rigidly, didn’t seek for or keep pace with God’s new work, so they lost the work of the Holy Spirit. Moreover, when the Lord Jesus’ work came upon them, none of the religious leaders accepted or obeyed His work. Instead, they condemned and resisted the Lord Jesus frenziedly. They had become those who resisted God. This fulfilled the prophecies in the Bible: ‘And also I have withheld the rain from you, when there were yet three months to the harvest: and I caused it to rain on one city, and caused it not to rain on another city: one piece was rained on, and the piece whereupon it rained not withered. So two or three cities wandered to one city, to drink water; but they were not satisfied: yet have you not returned to me, said the LORD’ (Amos 4:7-8). ‘Behold, the days come, said the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD’ (Amos 8:11). From these verses, we can see that ‘I caused it to rain on one city’ means that the Holy Spirit works in the church where the God incarnate appears to do His work. And ‘caused it not to rain on another city’ means that if a church doesn’t obey God’s commandments and even denies, resists, and condemns the appearance and work of God incarnate, there will not be the work of the Holy Spirit in this church. Without the Holy Spirit’s work, the believers will be thirsty and hungry in spirit, and can’t see through anything….” I was astonished when I heard these words: Aren’t I a blind person who is darkened and thirsty in the heart, and unable to see through anything? The more I listened to his sermon, the more I felt I didn’t have the work of the Holy Spirit, and I even felt there was no the work of the Holy Spirit in our church. Outwardly, the church seems to be thriving, and the brothers and sisters attend meetings and serve the Lord. But in reality, they’re just going through formalities or following a process. They’re practicing the Lord’s words according to their own will. Those who crave fleshly enjoyments remain the same, and those who covet money remain the same. Does the Lord work in other churches and not in our church? Is our church the same as the filthy temple at the end of the Age of Law? I dared not to think more.

The preacher continued, “God allows the famine to befall the temple, and His intention is to force those who truly believe in Him and like the truth to look for the footsteps of His work and His appearance. Just like when the family of Jacob encountered famine, they all went to Joseph to get food. Once we find the true way, we can enjoy the supply of living water of life, restore our original faith and love….” Hearing out his communication, I was sure that our church had already lost the work of the Holy Spirit. And I suddenly sensed that the sermon today was quite different. I had never heard such a sermon before, and I received much supply from it. I thought the preacher’s sermon was really good. So I told Sister Wu after the meeting that I would go there again.

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Why We Beware of the Leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees

Why We Beware of the Leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees

Liu Zhi

“… Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees” (Matthew 16:6).

In what context did the Lord Jesus speak the words? The Scriptures provide the following account, “The Pharisees also with the Sadducees came, and tempting desired him that he would show them a sign from heaven. He answered and said to them, When it is evening, you say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is red. And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowering. O you hypocrites, you can discern the face of the sky; but can you not discern the signs of the times? A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas. And he left them, and departed. And when his disciples were come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread. Then Jesus said to them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have taken no bread. Which when Jesus perceived, he said to them, O you of little faith, why reason you among yourselves, because you have brought no bread? Do you not yet understand, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets you took up? Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets you took up? How is it that you do not understand that I spoke it not to you concerning bread, that you should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees? Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees” (Matthew 16:1-12).

In this record of the Bible, we can clearly see that the Lord Jesus taught His disciples to beware of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. The Pharisees and the Sadducees, as we all know, were the high-level people in the church at that time, but why did the Lord Jesus teach His disciples to beware of them? Let’s come back to the age of the Lord Jesus’ work and take a look at what they had done.
When working in the world of man, the Lord Jesus, with the intention of letting man better know Him and accept His redemption, made the blind see, the lame walk, the demon-possessed healed, even the dead raised, and so on. He performed many miracles. At that time, the Jewish people enjoyed a lot of grace and blessings from Him and saw a great many of His wondrous deeds, so they followed Him and listened to His preaching. While those Pharisees and Sadducees, seeing many people follow the Lord Jesus, wished to still keep their positions and jobs. Therefore, they continuously fabricated lots of rumors against the Lord Jesus and slandered and condemned Him. However, the foolish Jewish people, after hearing the rumors, had no discernment and couldn’t maintain a firm stance. They followed the Pharisees and the Sadducees to deny and judge Him. In consequence, there were overwhelming claims of condemnation of the Lord Jesus in the whole Judaism. Under that background, the Lord Jesus said to His disciples, “Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees” (Matthew 16:6).

The disciples of the Lord Jesus, from His work and word, recognized that He was the Messiah who had been predicted to come; they believed that His ability to heal the sick and cast out demons was from God’s authority; they saw through various fallacies and rumors of the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and followed the Lord Jesus steadfastly. While the Jewish people, because of being deceived by the rumors of the Pharisees and the Sadducees, followed them to nail the Lord Jesus to the cross, becoming those who resisted and condemned God. In the end, the entire nation suffered the destruction.

The Bible has already prophesied, “And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and fornicators, and murderers, and idolaters, and whoever loves and makes a lie” (Revelation 22:12-15). From these verses, we can learn that many things like making up lies will still happen when the Lord Jesus returns in the last days. Then how should we beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees in order not to follow in the footsteps of the Jewish people? This is the truth that every brother and sister who has sincerely been expecting the Lord’s return should understand.

Tomorrow, in the daily reading column, we will continue to share how to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees and be a wise Christian.

Recommended:
The Lord Jesus Has Returned; Do You Remain Stubbornly in Religion Like the Pharisees?
Have You Welcomed the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus?2
Take a Firm Stance in Welcoming the Second Coming of Jesus Christ

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How Much of God’s Creating All Things Do We Really Know?

How Much of God’s Creating All Things Do We Really Know?

Gao Han

From the Bible, I learned that when God created the world, He created the heavens and earth and all things during the previous five days, and created humanity and various living things on the sixth day. After knowing this fact, I thought that I had known God’s creation and believed He is the only true God. Not until I read God’s words did I come to understand how God created, manages and rules all things. Especially when I saw God says, “God created all things and used His own methods to set the laws of growth for all things, as well as their growth trajectory and patterns, and also set the ways all things exist on this earth, so that they may live continuously and depend on each other. With such methods and laws, all things are able to successfully and peacefully exist and grow on this land. Only by having such an environment is man able to have a stable home and living environment, and under God’s guidance, continue to develop and move forward, develop and move forward” (God Himself, the Unique VIII). I realized that, every day, we enjoy the air, sunshine, as well as rain and dew created by God, eat all kinds of grains provided by Him, and witness the changes and transformations of the natural world with our own eyes, but we have hardly any knowledge of His will behind His creation.

God says, “Ever since God created them, based on the laws that He determined, all things have been operating and have been continuing to develop regularly. Under His gaze, under His rule, all things have been developing regularly alongside the survival of humans. Not a single thing is able to change these laws, and not a single thing can destroy these laws. It is because of God’s rule that all beings can multiply, and because of His rule and management that all beings can survive …” (“God Himself, the Unique IX”). From God’s words, I understand that God determined the laws for all things at the same time He created all things. Afterward, He still manages and rules them. Then I continued reading God’s words, and I got some knowledge of God’s will of determining these laws: In the past, we only knew that God created mountains, plains, deserts, hills, rivers and lakes. The vastness of plains often wins our great admiration, yet we have never known that the plains are the best living environment God prepared for us mankind, in which it is convenient for us to walk and work. Mountains are natural defenses God prepared carefully for our living environment. They can block the sudden fierce winds and gigantic waves and keep our homes from being attacked and destroyed. They also take on the mission of raising a variety of animals and plants, and, simultaneously, supply ideal habitats for various birds. You may be attached to the mountains inasmuch as they are shot through with great vitality, but detest deserts on account of their blistering heat and being barren. But in truth, deserts are specially prepared and arranged by God for regulating the temperature. Because of their existence, there is suitable temperature and climate for us to live. The rivers and lakes are sources of water God offered for our survival. With water to drink, we will have the guarantee of survival. … When the world began, God drew boundaries and set the laws for plains, mountains, deserts, and hills. If we break and change this laws by our own will, we will only bring disaster on ourselves. Take the construction of the Three Gorges Project in China for example. It has converted a great deal of plains into reservoirs and has triggered several earthquakes, mountain landslides, and other geological calamities. God’s determining these laws for all things is for us humanity to live a life of happiness and in good health for generation after generation. Thus, only by abiding by these laws can we live in peace and happiness. Just as God’s words, “This is how God manages all beings. It is to provide for mankind the best environment for survival. The living beings within all beings each have life-sustaining food within their own environments for survival. With that food, they are fixed within their native environment for survival; they are fixed in that environment. In that kind of environment, they are still surviving, multiplying, and continuing on according to the laws God has established for them. Because of these types of laws, because of God’s predestination, all beings interact harmoniously with mankind, and mankind and all beings are interdependent” (“God Himself, the Unique IX”).

From God’s words, I also understood that God not only gave mountains, plains, rivers, and lakes their scope, but also arranged different living environments for various birds and beasts, and other animals and all plants. The fish can’t live without water, while different kinds of birds are doomed to fly in the sky; Livestock such as cattle and sheep are reared by man, but wild beasts always live in the forest; Lions and tigers never swim in the water, whereas the fish in the sea never creep in the desert; We can live with dogs and cats, but no one keep elephants or snakes at home as pets. … When God created all things, He set the laws of their existence according to their function and attribute. So all things survive and multiply according to the laws. It is because of these laws that sorts of animals, plants, and human beings can live safely; It is because of these laws and God’s ordination that all things and humans are interdependent, which constitutes a beautiful and harmonious spectacle. It can be said that whatever God does, we humans are always the ultimate beneficiaries. Of late years, locusts’ attacking crops has occurred frequently, and tens of thousands of toads once appeared on the street, which brought great harm to our lives. This is all because these creatures’ homelands are destroyed. That is to say, once the laws God established for all things are damaged, we humans will be harmed in the end. … At that moment, I realized the reason why God saw that it was good after creating all things. Everything He bestows on us mankind is indeed the best. At that time, I truly experienced that the way in which God treats us humans is akin to how parents treat their own children. His heart and love need us to feel and experience with our hearts.

God says, “If you limit your understanding of God to just words, if you limit it to your own little experiences, God’s grace that you count, or your little testimonies to God, then I say that your God absolutely is not the true God. He absolutely is not the true God Himself, and it can also be said that the God you believe in is not God. This is because the God that I am speaking of is the One that rules over everything, that walks among everything, that manages everything. He is the One that holds the fate of all of mankind—the One that holds the fate of everything. The work and actions of the God that I am talking about are not just limited to a small portion of people. That is, it’s not limited to just the people who currently follow Him. His actions are demonstrated among all things, in the survival of all things, and in the laws of change of all things” (“God Himself, the Unique IX”). After reading these words, I realized that our previous understanding of God is only confined within the words of the Bible and limited range of vision. Now, when we have seen more and more His deeds, and felt more of His great, immeasurable authority and power, we won’t delimit Him within narrow bounds any more. Because innumerable facts prove that He is not just the God of all believers in the Lord, but also the God of all humankind, and, moreover, the God of all things and all living beings; He did not merely create all things, but has been supplying and managing them in particular methods, which makes us and other things restrain one another, and depend on one another, and furthermore allows man and all things to follow the laws set by Him and live under His blessings continuously. His wisdom is wonderful and unfathomable. His deeds are deeply mysterious. We should come out of the Bible and the stage of our ideas, so that we can truly know Him. By the time when we these understanding, we will feel that He is the One who supplies us with everything, and the only thing we have. And we will grow to have infinite gratitude and adoration for Him.

Recommended:
After the Mountain Was “Removed” …
God’s First Commandment for Mankind is Full of Concern
On the First Day, the Day and Night of Mankind Are Born and Stand Fast Thanks to the Authority of God

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Devastating Hurricane Harvey has caused 5 feared deaths in Texas and threatened with historical flood

Devastating Hurricane Harvey has caused 5 feared deaths in Texas and threatened with historical flood

Hurricane Harvey has hit Texas since late Friday and brings strong winds and torrential rain. It is the most fiercest hurricane to hit the U.S. in 12 years and the strongest to strike Texas since 1961 on record.

Before Harvey, only a handful of storms in the past century have reached land in Texas and Louisiana as a Category 4 hurricane or higher.

There are about 6 million of residences on the path of the hurricane.

The maximum sustained winds once reached 130 mph (215 kph), and storm surges up to 12 feet (4 metres).

Harvey was expected to drop prodigious amounts of rain – up to 3 feet. The resulting flooding, one expert said, could be “the depths of which we’ve never seen.”

The latest forecasts warn that Harvey, now downgraded to tropical storm status, will hover along the shore for the next four or five days as “a marathon but not a sprint”. There is a great potential of catastrophic flooding and tropical cyclone in the coming days.  

So far, 5 people have been reported dead and 14 are injured, the full scope of economical damage is unknown.

On Sunday morning, the second deadly phase of Hurricane Harvey has gripped Texas.

Lord Jesus says, “For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows”(Mark 13:8). The frequent disasters today are God’s repeated warnings to us man, this prophecy of the second coming of Jesus has come true and the last days have already arrived. We can only receive the Lord’s care and protection by focusing on hearing the voice of God like a clever virgin and by welcoming the second coming of Jesus.

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Have You Accepted the Good News Through the Air?

Have You Accepted the Good News Through the Air?

Qian Kun

Here is a short story: A large telecommunications company needed to recruit a telegraph operator with the ability of using Morse code. On the day of recruitment, hundreds of people went to apply for this post. Recruiters took them to a hall where people were busy coming and going, with loudspeakers broadcasting. The scene was extremely noisy. The applicants were seated on benches, awaiting someone who would come out of a little room and call them in for an interview. However, an hour had passed, and no one bade them enter; another hour later, there was still nobody calling them. All of them were just waiting anxiously. At the moment, a young man who was late came and waited by the benches as there was already no vacant seats. Standing for a second, he suddenly walked straight into the little room. After ten minutes, the human resource manager took this young man out and proclaimed: “Hello, everybody! I’m sorry, but you may leave now, for this young man has been hired for the post.” The rest of the applicants weren’t convinced, saying: “We have waited for over two hours, but no one came to call us; while he was late and entered without being called. Why was the job offered to him?” The manager explained to them: “In reality, from the moment you sat here, there had been Morse code transmitted by radio waves constantly, conveying the message that ‘anyone who’s already understood the Morse code can go into the little room directly.’ Nevertheless, none of you noticed it. You just sat here, waiting. Only this young man walked into the room and said: ‘I got the Morse code.’ As a matter of fact, I believe every one of you can understand Morse code. However, what we want is not simply a telegraph operator but someone who can catch information keenly using his ears.”

This brief recruitment story sounds novel, particular and refreshing, and is thought-provoking. When recruiting a telegraph operator, this company sent information to people in Morse code via radio. Whoever understood the code could go into the small room. Only the young man late to the interview was admitted, while hundreds of the other people who went there didn’t get the desirable position. Was it because they couldn’t understand the Morse code? No. Was it because the code was obscured by the noisy environment they were placed in? No. Rather, it was because many people, relying on their minds and imagination, thought the recruiters would call them into the room to have an interview one by one. It was their imagination that made them miss a valuable opportunity of being employed by the big enterprise.

This story brings some enlightenment to us: Now the last days have arrived. The biblical prophecies of the second coming of Jesus Christ in the last days have already been fulfilled. The return of Israel, the split of the Mount of Olives in Israel, and the disasters everywhere, such as earthquakes, floods, droughts and plagues and so forth, all of this presages the Lord Jesus has come back. Many devout believers have been looking desperately forward to the second coming of Jesus Christ and expecting to be welcomed into the heavenly home and live together with Him. The wait has lasted dozens of years or even longer, rather than one or two years. Have you got the news of the second coming of Jesus Christ?

In this highly-developed information age where science is constantly progressing, all kinds of information are transmitted across the world through network. At present, if you connect to the Internet, I’m sure you can hear or see the news about the second coming of Jesus Christ. This good news is unceasingly spread to people through the air: The Lord Jesus has already come; He is Christ of the last days—Almighty God, who utters His words and does a stage of work of judging, purifying and saving man. Now God’s chosen people shoulder their holy missions, testifying to God’s work and spreading God’s holy name to all nations and all lands across the world. Have you heard it? Have you accepted it? Are you the same as most applicants in the job interview who relied on their own imagination and conception, thinking the Lord will arrive as He departed and blindly awaiting His coming upon a white cloud to take all the believers into the air to meet Him? Or, are you the same as the young man who was keen-minded and didn’t act according to his imagination and notion? Will you heed the voice of the Lord Jesus returned, and take it upon yourself to welcome His arrival and sup with Him upon hearing the news that He has arrived to perform work?

Almighty God says: “God’s six-thousand-year management plan is coming to an end, and the gate of the kingdom has been opened to all those who seek the appearance of God. Dear brothers and sisters, what are you waiting for? What is it that you seek? Do you await the appearance of God? Are you searching for the footprints of God? How the appearance of God is yearned for! And how difficult it is to find God’s footprints! In an age such as this, in a world such as this, what must we do to witness the day of God’s appearance? What must we do to follow the footprints of God? Such questions are faced by all those who await the appearance of God. You have all considered them on more than one occasion—but with what outcome? Where does God appear? Where are the footprints of God? Have you gained the answers? … The appearance of God cannot be reconciled with the conceptions of man, much less can God appear at the behest of man. God makes His own choices and has His own plans when He does His work; moreover, He has His own objectives, and His own methods. It is not necessary for Him to discuss the work He does with man or to seek the advice of man, much less notify each and every person of His work. This is the disposition of God and, moreover, should be recognized by everyone. If you desire to witness the appearance of God, if you wish to follow the footprints of God, then you must first transcend your own conceptions. You must not demand that God do this or that, much less should you place Him within your own confines and limit Him to your own conceptions. Instead, you should ask how you should seek the footprints of God, how you should accept the appearance of God, and how you should submit to the new work of God; that is what should be done by man. Since man is not the truth, and is not possessed of the truth, man should seek, accept, and obey” (“The Appearance of God Has Brought a New Age” in The Word Appears in the Flesh).

Now, the Church of Almighty God’s hymns, dance videos, movies, music videos, books, and so on have been published on different online platforms for those who truly thirst for God’s appearance to seek, and those who have been looking forward to the second coming of Jesus Christ can follow the footsteps of the Lamb earlier through this. God has been waiting for those possessed of hearts and spirits to hear His voice and return to Him, for He intends to save man to the greatest possible extent. So, have you accepted it when you hear the news that the Lord Jesus has returned? How will you welcome the second coming of Jesus Christ?

Recommended:
Put Aside Our Notions to Welcome the Lord’s Return
Notions and Imagination Will Never Help You Know God
How Come Those Giving up on Food for Fear of Choking Welcome the Second Coming of Jesus Christ

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