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

Read More

How to Shake off Worries and Find a Happy Life

How to Shake off Worries and Find a Happy Life

Hanxiao

There is no denying that we all want to live a happy life, having a warm and harmonious family, an ideal job, a good prospect, sensible children and so on. However, in the process of seeking happiness, we are besieged by all sorts of worries. Some people worry about whether their jobs will be threatened in face of fierce social competition. Some worry about their success in competition with their colleagues. Some rack their brains trying to make big money to remain invincible in the business. Some seek every means to attend training classes given by famous teachers to improve themselves constantly, so that they will become the strong of life or social elites. And some worry about when they can pay off their car loan or housing loan and therefore rush and busy about for it. More people can hardly breathe due to hard work or heavy business, and pressures of life have greyed their hair. Others worry about their marriage and family in face of the temptations from the evil trends of the world. Still others worry about how to educate their children and make them stand out among others in the increasingly fierce social competition. … With so many worries in our life, isn’t the happy life we yearn for far from the reality?

Then, What Causes the Worries in Our life?

There are mainly two reasons.

First, our criteria of a happy life are fame and gain. We think we will live happily as long as we succeed in our studies, careers, and marriage, our children become useful, and we become the best of the best and are admired by others. We all live by the rules for survival such as the “wealth and status,” “family prestige,” “rising above others,” “money talks,” “money isn’t everything but without money you can’t do anything.” So we fix our life goals firmly on those which can bring us fame and gain, and fear that something would go wrong in the course of our pursuit and thus we might brush past happiness.

Second, we live in our own worlds and always want to live the life we desire through our own exertion. In fact, we are insignificant in this universe, but we always consider ourselves powerful. We think that our fates can be controlled by our own hands. Only by seizing the right moment and grasping our fate can we succeed, and only by keeping ourselves progressing can we achieve a happy life step by step. For these reasons, we often worry: Should I have done it better? Have I missed any chance?

Can These Things We Pursue Bring Us a Happy life?

In reality, if we think back and observe carefully, we can easily find this fact: Many people try their best to live happily, but when some of them do get fame and gain and position, they find themselves living in a treacherous world where people intrigue against and outwit each other. They are no happy at all. Some people have reaped fame and gain after struggling most of their life, but they do not feel happy within their hearts. For they have seen that there is no justice, no righteousness, and no light in the world—everyone lives for fame and gain and for pursuing fleshly enjoyments, and nobody can find a shred of the value and meaning of life. Some people have successful careers and happy marriages, but in real life, they rack their brains to get money, fame, gain, and position, and are exhausted from the sinister interpersonal relationship. Some people become millionaires, but they die young or commit suicide, for the material wealth cannot fill the emptiness of their hearts. So money cannot bring us happiness, either. Even many elderly people who used to eat bland food say, “Now we are wealthy and don’t need to worry about food and clothing, but we always have a sense of emptiness within. Well, we’re just muddling along.’” Maybe you don’t understand why they say so. Since they had gone through many hardships and now live a wealthy life, they should feel happy. But how come …

Actually, King Solomon’ words in the Bible have given us the answer. He said, “I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit” (Ecclesiastes 1:14). This shows that a wealthy life, and fame and gain cannot bring us happiness; they can only make us feel increasing emptiness.

How Can We Shake off Worries and Live a Happy Life?

As a matter of fact, the true happiness comes from God, and only God is the source of our happiness. Only by obeying God’s sovereignty and walking the way of human life in accordance with God’s requirements, can we have the true happiness. The Lord Jesus has said to us, “Therefore I say to you, Take no thought for your life, what you shall eat, or what you shall drink; nor yet for your body, what you shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much better than they? … Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knows that you have need of all these things. But seek you first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:25-26, 31-33).

We were created by God; and in the beginning, in order to make us mankind live better on earth, God created the beautiful Garden of Eden for our ancestors, Adam and Eve, and unconditionally bestowed upon them everything they needed to exist. They were carefree and blissfully living in Eden. Abraham, recorded in the Bible, heard God’s command and went to the place God promised to him. He didn’t worry about his future life, rising up and leaving his hometown. Because he had the true faith in God and true worship of God, he could obey all the orchestrations and arrangements of God. He took no thought of his own future and fate, nor did he have unreasonable requirements or extravagant desires for God. He lived in God’s blessings all his life because of his worship for God. In addition, Job, a character in the Bible that is familiar to us, spent all his life in seeking to know God among His creation of all things and worship Him, so he was blessed by God and became wealthy. When he was stripped of all, he neither complained or misunderstood God, nor worried about his future life, because he knew that everything was in God’s hands. When he absolutely obeyed and offered praise to God, not only did he gain double blessings from God, but also his life was prolonged and he died full of days at last. The Lord Jesus’ words make us understand that in our real life, if we are able to practice the Lord’s words, follow His way, and pursue the truth to gain life and attain fearing God and shunning evil, we will receive God’s blessings and salvation and be qualified to enter the kingdom of Heaven. Only when we love the Lord with all our heart, all our mind, and all our soul, only when we have an obedient attitude to our future life, and only when we receive everything God has arranged and prepared for us and seek to know God through it, can we live in happiness.

Finally, let me share a passage in “God Himself, the Unique III”: “For one sees that when one does not comprehend fate, when one does not understand God’s sovereignty, when one gropes forward willfully, staggering and tottering, through the fog, the journey is too difficult, too heartbreaking. … When one has no God, when one cannot see Him, when one cannot clearly recognize God’s sovereignty, every day is meaningless, worthless, miserable. Wherever one is, whatever one’s job is, one’s means of living and the pursuit of one’s goals bring one nothing but endless heartbreak and irrelievable suffering, such that one cannot bear to look back. Only when one accepts the Creator’s sovereignty, submits to His orchestrations and arrangements, and seeks true human life, will one gradually break free from all heartbreak and suffering, shake off all the emptiness of life.”

Dear friends, I hope this article could help you reflect on life, shake off your worries, and have a happy life.

Recommended:
The Secret of Happy Life
A Symphony of My Fate
My Painful Experience of Struggling Against Fate

Read More

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

Read More

Strongest Hurricane Ever Recorded Kills 14 People; Warnings of the Last Days Escalate

Strongest Hurricane Ever Recorded Kills 14 People; Warnings of the Last Days Escalate

Hurricane Irma, a Category 5 storm, the strongest storm ever recorded in the Atlantic Ocean sped across the Caribbean islands on Thursday morning (September 7th), which damaged many buildings and trees, affected over 1.2 million people, and made thousands of people homeless and killed at least 14 people. Almost 90 percent of all structures on Antigua and Barbuda had been destroyed, rendering the islands “barely habitable.” The hurricane Irma has been downgraded after making landfall in Haiti, Turks and Caicos Islands and Bahamas. When Irma makes its closest approach to Florida with 180 miles per hour—most likely before 10th—the state government has ordered all public schools closed and issued a mandatory evacuation order for 500 thousand residents.

Earlier Report

Irma, a category five hurricane, has sustained winds of 183 mph (295 km/h) for more than 33 hours, becoming the longest storm to sustain this speed since the 1970s. Predicted by the Meteo France, it may sustain this speed until it reaches Bahamas.

After the once-in-a-hundred-year total solar eclipse, we encountered Typhoon Hato. Hong Kong Weather Bureau raised its typhoon warning signal to 10, the highest level. And it’s closely followed by the great flood in America which can be said once in a millennium and caused by Hurricane Harvey, which is Category 4. Before the influence of Hurricane Harvey to America gone, a Category 5 Hurricane Irma came and it lunged at America again after ravaging Caribbean Sea. These disasters, occurred one after another, have continually broken all weather recordings, which made people feel fear. Moreover, many meteorologists have predicted that the future disasters will be greater and greater.

Way back when the total solar eclipse occurred, many people thought it was God’s reminding to us and there will be disasters afterwards. An American preacher, Anne Graham Lotz published a blog post, “Is God’s Judgment Coming on America?” to remind people that the solar eclipse was not something that should be celebrated but God’s warning to us, and maybe God’s judgment will come upon America. He called on people to return to God and render our hearts in sincere, heartfelt repentance. Australian pastor, Steve Cioccolanti who is a Discover Ministry also posted a video, “IS AMERICA IN THE BIBLE | GREAT AMERICAN ECLIPSE AUG 21st, 2017 A REAL END TIME SIGN” and he thought the solar eclipse was the sign of the last days. What’s more, eight American church leaders claimed in a report that the solar eclipse was the sign of the last days and also the sign of the Lord Jesus’ return.

Let’s check the Bible together:

“And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring” (Luke 21:25).

“For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matthew 24:21).

From these scriptures, we can see the prophecies about the last days have almost all been fulfilled. The disasters we encounter are greater and greater, from which we can see the Lord’s day has come. We are all expecting the Lord’s coming, so that He can take us to be by His side from the sufferings of the last days, and we can be saved and enter the kingdom of heaven. From the upper trend in disaster occurrence, we can see welcoming the Lord’s return has become a top priority, which is also extremely urgent. But do we really know how to welcome the Lord’s second coming? Many believers think we just need to earnestly serve God; some think no one can know the Lord’s coming, but when He comes, people will know it. We all have different opinions about welcoming the Lord’s return and different views about the scriptures. But the Lord Jesus taught us only by being wise virgins and recognizing the voice of the bridegroom can we welcome the Lord’s return. Just as it is said in the Bible, “However, when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come” (Jhn 16:13). From this verse, we can see that when the Lord Jesus comes, He will speak more words and will show us things to come. At that time, only those who focus on hearing the voice of God will be able to receive the return of the Lord. Because it is recorded in the Bible, “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me” (Rev 3:20). Thank God. May we all be wise virgins and welcome the Lord’s second coming!

Recommended:
Super Full Eclipse – Signs of the Last Days
What Warnings Do the Disasters Give Us?
Sri Lanka Floods and Mudslides Continue: Warnings Sounded by the Worsening Catastrophe

Read More

Have Your Spiritual Eyes Opened?

Wenli

Everyone has a pair of eyes, and every animal has a pair of eyes, which are given by God at the beginning of creation. That is absolutely fair. People have the same eyes with the same functions. But eyes have a variety of uses and can catch different things. With the eyes, some look for the light, and some give in to vanity, some look for the road to riches, thinking of nothing but money, some demonstrate themselves to others, some express the friendship and love, some see the merits of others to make up for their own shortcomings, some focus on the demerits of others with haughty eyes, but achieve nothing, some observe every word and deed of others carefully, and some try to see themselves whether the heart is in the right place; By the eyes, doctors treat patients, scientists create inventions, the kind people look at the road in order not to walk on the wrong way, and the thieves target others’ money and look for a chance to reap without sowing like parasites. By the eyes, some become knowledgeable and versatile, some are totally illiterate, some read those works of famous people, the heresies and fallacies of Satan, while some read the words of God in order to understand the truth and obtain life. Why do people have different lives? Everybody owns a pair of eyes; why do the eyes play different roles? And why do people have rather different fates?

It’s said that eyes are the windows to the soul. The eyes and soul are connected closely and the inner world of a person can be seen from his eyes. Through one’s eyes, we can know what he clings to and what he pursues, which represents his nature and substance and determines his fate and destination. It makes me think of my own life….

My eyes were clear and transparent in my childhood. As I grew older and time passed, they turned dim and cloud over, losing the brightness of times past. And my inner world also became complicated and changeable. Someone preached the gospel of the Lord Jesus to me, but my heart was hardened, for the temptations of the dazzling world attracted my attention. I was obsessed with money, mansion, cars and beauty and coveted the world with all my heart. Afterward, I read the words of the Lord Jesus, “And if your right eye offend you, pluck it out, and cast it from you: for it is profitable for you that one of your members should perish, and not that your whole body should be cast into hell” (Matthew 5:29). The words of the Lord opened my deceived eyes. I saw clearly that I was seduced and deceived by the dazzling world so that I lived in the sin of gorging myself on the enjoyment of the flesh, neither realized that man should believe in and worship God in his life nor know the existence of the truth and light. Then I prayed to God to repent my sins and accepted His redemption willingly.

Gradually, I realized that man committed sins and enjoyed the pleasure of sin, not only because man’s naked eyes were deceived but the eyes of heart were blinded by the evil tendencies of this world, which made people stray away from God and betray Him. It was the same with the circumstance that Adam and Eve succumbing to snake’s temptation ate the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Satan said, “… in the day you eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Genesis 3:5). Our ancestors betrayed the words of God and listened to Satan to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Although man’s eyes were opened and he had a sense of shame, he lost the eternal life from then on.

One day, someone testified the work of Almighty God in the last days, saying that Almighty God is the Lord Jesus’ return, who has expressed all the truth of saving man and unfolded the work of judgment and chastisement. The words of Almighty God judge and reveal the reality of man’s corruption and substance of man’s nature. I saw that the word of Almighty God is full of authority and power and fully convinced me so that I couldn’t put it down. The more I read it, the more I was enlightened.

Soon, the upper-level co-worker in my former church came to my home. He used the biblical knowledge to bind me, saying, “Don’t easily listen to others, lest you be deceived! I have greater knowledge of the Bible and my eyes are bright! I will not be tricked easily! ‘Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever’ (Hebrew 13:8). We can gain eternal life by believing in the name of the Lord Jesus, which is recorded clearly in the Bible.” At that moment, I just prayed to God in my heart continually, and I recalled the words of God, “God’s wisdom, God’s wondrousness, God’s righteousness, and God’s majesty shall never change. His substance and what He has and is shall never change. His work, however, is always progressing forward, always going deeper, for God is always new and never old” (“The Vision of God’s Work (3)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh). God’s words lit up the eyes of my heart. Jehovah, Jesus and Almighty God are God’s names respectively in the Age of Law, the Age of Grace and the Age of Kingdom and they are all the same God and the same Spirit. God takes different names in different ages based on the differences in His work. However, whether God appears to the mankind as a spiritual body or by becoming flesh, the authority and the power of His words, the righteous disposition of God, His holy essence and what God has and is shall never change. After God created the world using the words, He issued laws to lead man’s life on earth in the Age of Law so that man could see Jehovah God’s wrath and imprecation. In the Age of Grace, from the Lord Jesus’ words that condemned and cursed the Pharisees, it can be seen that God’s name changed, yet His righteous and majestic disposition didn’t change even though the incarnate Lord Jesus was filled with mercy and lovingkindness. In the last days, Almighty God judges and purifies man with words, and His righteous disposition is much more unoffendable. So Almighty God is the Almighty who is, who was and who is to come. God’s words made me have discernment and no longer fall into the temptation and deception of the former co-worker.

In the whole religious community, who is not expecting the return of the Lord Jesus with great anxiety? Why are many people shut out from the gate of the kingdom and unable to see anything? Why are they even unaware of them being eliminated? Why do people not open their spiritual eyes to have a look when the Savior returns? Almighty God says, “I admonish you this: Many of My words have already opened to those who believe in Me. Those who admire the beauty in the kingdom but are shut out from the gate of the kingdom, have already been eliminated” (“Words Toward the Old and the Young” in The Word Appears in the Flesh). I was overwhelmed with emotion. It turned out that the words of Almighty God are bestowed to those wise virgins who are watching and waiting and can recognize the voice of God. Those foolish virgins who only dream of being raptured into the kingdom of heaven rather than focus on seeking the voice of God, will be forsaken and eliminated by God’s work, mourning and grinding their teeth amidst the disaster that has scarcely been seen through the ages!

I read God’s words day after day. Once the spiritual eyes are opened, I can see everything. Aged and dim naked eyes can’t affect the experience of the heart. I see that God reveals the mysteries of the heaven, the world and the spiritual realm and all of these are the manifestations of the omnipotence and wisdom of the Creator. Today I have seen the countenance of the Creator, and that is the faithful depiction of the face of the Son of man recorded in Revelation. Ah, I have seen Him, and I am to see Him again!

Read More

Church Life – The Losses And Gains In The Meetings

Church Life – The Losses And Gains In The Meetings

Guozi    United States

My name is Guozi, and I’m a high school student studying in the United States. I come from a Christian family. When I was one year old, my mother accepted Almighty God’s work in the last days. I remember that when I was very young, my mother often told me, “God created this world, and He created mankind. God loves us the most. Remember to pray to Almighty God when things happen to you, and He will care for and protect you.” Therefore, I was aware of the existence of God from my early childhood, and I also experienced the protection of God when I prayed for things that befell me. But my true knowledge of God and God’s work was gradually gained only after I entered into God’s words in the meetings with my sisters from the Church of Almighty God.

In December, 2015, my mother advised me to attend gatherings with brothers and sisters. She said, “God’s work in the last days will soon reach its end. If you don’t attend meetings and fellowship about God’s words with brothers and sisters, you can hardly understand the truth, much less be perfected by God.” At that time, thinking my mother was just speaking casually, I consented perfunctorily. But I never expected that she really contacted the church, and I was arranged to have meetings online with some sisters. When one sister set the time for the gatherings with me, I felt a strong disinclination. I thought attending meetings every week would take up my spare time and hinder me from going out eating, drinking, and having fun with my friends. I was unwilling to attend meetings from the bottom of my heart, and merely preferred to continue my past life—not to resist the work of Almighty God, to be able to pray to God when encountering things, and to occasionally experience God’s protection. I thought it was enough that I had God in my heart. But feeling ashamed to refuse, I had to consent to it grudgingly. When the time for the meeting arrived, I always felt like making excuses to avoid it. What I feared most was the coming of the gathering on Sunday. Even though I attended the meeting, I still couldn’t quiet my heart. During my prayer, I only said some praises to God or asked God to allow me to get through the exam, and so on. When we began to fellowship about God’s words, I trembled for my turn, for I received no illumination within and had no idea of what to communicate. I only read some sentences in God’s words that I thought crucial, and explained the literal meaning of them, just as when I worked on a Chinese reading comprehension. I didn’t have a right attitude toward God’s words and treated the meetings carelessly, so I didn’t gain anything. The more I did so, the more boring I felt the meetings; and I thought it better to go out and play with my classmates than to attend the meeting. Especially when finding my mobile phone received many messages, I was more unable to resist the desire to go out to play with my classmates or friends. Thereupon I told my mother that I’d like to read God’s words by myself rather than attend meetings. But she said, “If you don’t attend meetings, you simply won’t read God’s words on your own initiative, nor will you understand them. For God’s words are all the reality of the truth, which are different from the books you read at school, and you can only clearly understand them by fellowshiping at the gatherings.” I never realized that having meetings was so important. It would not only urge me to read God’s words, but also enable me to understand the truth better. So I could say nothing more. Yet I was so excessively fond of play that I couldn’t be bothered to forsake the flesh to practice the truth, in spite of having understood a bit of truth. Therefore, later at every gathering, I just went through the motions when communicating about God’s words, and after that, I would start to use my phone, browsing gossip, watching the latest updated TV series, or chatting with my friends sometimes. So, I gained nothing from each meeting.

Once, my mother asked me, “How do you feel about your recent gatherings? Can you understand what your sisters fellowshiped? Do not play with your phone or be absent-minded at the gatherings. Although you have meetings online and your sisters can’t see what you are doing, God is watching your every action all the time. If you never concentrate your attention, God knows it and will discipline you.” Then she read me a passage of God’s words: “Because in order to walk in God’s way, we cannot let go of anything to do with ourselves, or anything that happens around us, even the little things. No matter whether we think we should pay attention to it or not, as long as any matter is facing us we should not let it go. All of it should be viewed as God’s test for us. How’s this kind of attitude? If you have this kind of attitude, then it confirms one fact: Your heart fears God, and your heart is willing to shun evil. If you have this desire to satisfy God, then what you put into practice isn’t far from the standard of fearing God and shunning evil” (“How to Know God’s Disposition and the Result of His Work” in Continuation of The Word Appears in the Flesh). She said to me, “Probably in your opinion, having a look at your phone at the gatherings is just a small matter, and is nothing serious. But it concerns your attitude toward the gathering and God. God is right by man’s side, watching his every action and looking upon his thoughts. Have you ever considered why you constantly feel like playing with your phone at the gatherings? As a matter of fact, in it lies Satan’s trick. God’s intention is to, through the meetings, make you understand more truths so that you can mature in your life soon, and eventually receive God’s salvation. On the contrary, Satan’s attempt is to distance you from God and God’s way. It seduces you through these things you like and prevents you from quieting your heart before God, so that you will have gained nothing ultimately and your life will have been ruined when God’s work ends.” As I listened to my mother, I thought to myself: So there is the truth to be sought even in such a small matter, which concerns man’s attitude toward God. I felt ashamed within, thinking my mother had read my thoughts. Before, I had always thought that I gathered with my sisters online and no one could see me, so I began to play with my phone secretly to satisfy my desire. Not till then did I know God was watching over all of this. Then I developed feelings of guilt and some unease: In the last few meetings, I played with my phone and God saw it all. Will God really discipline me? With my heart full of regret, I immediately prayed and apologized to God, and determined that I would no longer play with my phone during the meetings, and instead, I would ponder God’s words attentively and listen to the other sisters’ fellowship carefully. Thereupon at the following gatherings, I turned off my mobile phone and put it far from me, and then focused my mind on my sisters’ fellowship. Despite the fact that sometimes I still stared blankly or let my mind wander as I listened, I felt I had gained something after every gathering.

However, my desire for play never decreased. After some time, once at a gathering, my hands fairly itched to play with my phone again. I thought to myself: I’ll just give a glance at my phone, only one glance. Then I took my phone and began to play with it. Yet it turned out that, once started, it was difficult to stop. Soon I returned to my former condition. Sometimes I even put aside my computer used for meetings, and picked up my phone to watch the TV plays without scruple. I committed mistakes knowingly and willfully, and such attitude prevented me from receiving the work of the Holy Spirit. Although I was attending the meeting, when it was my turn to communicate, I had no idea of what to say, and I was also unaware of what my sisters had fellowshiped throughout the meeting. Gradually my disinclination to have meetings arose involuntarily. But I was ashamed to tell it to my mother again, and I could only attend the meetings perfunctorily. Later, in a meeting, while I was playing with my phone, I found that I could get the first look at a new TV play only if I downloaded a piece of software. I hesitated a moment, yet still decided to download it. However, as soon as I finished downloading and launched it, my phone screen went black; and when I clicked on it again, it showed me to enter the password. How should I know what the password was? Only after I had searched on the Internet for the reason why my phone’s screen was black, did I realize that I was fooled and that my mobile phone was under the control of others and couldn’t be used anymore. At that moment, I was overcome with regret. Meanwhile, I thought of God’s discipline, and it occurred to me: God observes the depths of man’s heart, and my every action is under God’s eye. I did things that I knew were wrong, so this might be God’s discipline coming upon me. It seems that I really should no longer play with my phone at the gatherings.

When I told my mother this matter, she read such a passage of God’s word to me: “What’s a big matter? What’s a small matter? All matters that involve walking in God’s way aren’t divided into big or small ones. Can you accept that? (We can accept it.) In terms of everyday matters, there are some which people view as very big and significant, and others that are viewed as minor trifles. People often view these big matters as being the very important ones, and they consider them to be sent by God. However, over the course of these big matters playing out, owing to the immature stature of man, and owing to man’s poor caliber, man is often not up to God’s intentions, cannot obtain any revelations, and cannot acquire any actual knowledge that is of value. So far as the small matters are concerned, these are simply overlooked by man, left to slip away little by little. Thus, they have lost many opportunities to be examined before God, to be tested by Him. Should you always overlook these matters and circumstances that God arranges for you, what will this mean? It means that every day, even every moment, you’re always renouncing God’s perfection of you, and God’s leadership. Whenever God arranges a circumstance for you, He is watching in secret, looking upon your heart, looking upon your thoughts and considerations, looking at how you think, looking at how you will act. If you are a careless person—a person who has never been serious about God’s way, God’s word, or the truth—then you won’t be mindful, you won’t pay attention to that which God wants to complete, and that which God demands of you when He arranges circumstances for you. You also won’t know how these everyday matters relate to the truth or God’s intentions. After you face repeated circumstances and repeated trials like this, with God not seeing any achievements to your name, how will God proceed? … there’s only one attitude that God has toward these people. What attitude is this? God spurns this kind of person from the bottom of His heart” (“How to Know God’s Disposition and the Result of His Work” in Continuation of The Word Appears in the Flesh). Looking at God’s words, I thought: This time I truly experienced God’s work and discipline, and saw that God is really by my side watching my every action. I used to think that my corrupt behaviors and thoughts could deceive my sisters, but they could never escape God’s observation. During the gatherings, I knowingly played with my phone and watched TV plays rather than pursuing the truth properly. My behavior is detested by God. Now not only is my phone controlled by others, but I haven’t gained the slightest truth. Meanwhile, time is wasted and my growth in spiritual life is delayed. I also recognized: I have constantly been trying to restrain myself from playing with my phone at the gatherings through my own efforts, yet as it turns out, I’m incapable of overcoming Satan’s temptation. It shows that, if man only relies on himself rather than on God, he can hardly practice the truth and attain fearing God and shunning evil. I am still too immature in my stature now, and thus in the future, all that I need to do is pray to God and rely on God, and only in this way can I quiet my heart in the meetings, and truly attain fearing God and shunning evil.

In the following several months, I used my classmate’s mobile phone. Considering it was not mine, I didn’t dare to download software to the phone as I pleased. At every gathering, I could not but quietly sit there listening to my sisters’ fellowship. At times, I was still disturbed by the desire to play with the phone. Especially when I heard my friends sending me message after message, my curiosity would be aroused and moved me to read them. However, it occurred to me that God was watching my every action, and that when I was having the meeting, if I was not devout or fearful before God, I would be detestable to God. At the thought I immediately drew back my hand every time I stretched it out to the mobile phone. And I prayed to God in my heart, “O God! Help me quiet my heart and free me from Satan’s disturbance.” I tried to calm my heart down while praying to God so that I could carefully listen to my sisters’ fellowship and sharing. In this way, after the gathering, I found I had received a lot of enlightenment and illumination of the Holy Spirit in the words of God, which allowed me to know much about God and His work. Thinking back to the past, I was always unwilling to have meetings, and often avoided attending meetings under the pretext of being too busy with my study and having no time. Whereas now I felt I ought to forsake the flesh and find time to attend meetings. As there was usually not much pressure or homework in my studies, I frequently spent my spare time playing with my phone and watching TV plays. Actually the spare time might well be devoted to having meetings, which would be beneficial to my understanding of the truth. Thus, I requested to attend meetings twice a week. As my attendance doubled, I understood more and more truth, and obtained much more knowledge of God’s words than ever before. With the mobile phone close at hand, I could not help taking a peep at it sometimes, but I would immediately realize that I should forsake the flesh, and then I threw it onto the bed and went on with the meeting. For I was well aware that God was watching my every action in secret, and that I should no longer follow the flesh but instead should revere God in my heart.

Several months were gone, and I felt I had gained a lot. Not only had I grown much in my spiritual life, I also learned to experience God’s work in my life. The most impressive experience to me was: In a math exam, I copied the answers from one of my classmates in order to get a good record, and then the school suspected me of lacking academic integrity, which was so serious a problem as to influence my college entrance. I was at a loss what to do. At that time, a sister, regarding my situation, shared God’s words and communicated God’s will with me at the gathering. She told me that God likes honest people and that only honest people can receive the salvation. Then when I practiced being an honest person on the basis of God’s words, I witnessed God’s deed. I not only got the opportunity to retake the exam, but also obtained a certificate of merit for my “straight A” grades. I have had such experience far more than once. Now I feel increasingly fond of attending gatherings, fellowshiping about God’s words with my sisters, and sharing my experiences of practicing God’s words. Sometimes, while reading God’s words, when I measure my own experiences against God’s words due to the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, I am moved very much in my spirit and can genuinely sigh from deep within: It’s really good to believe in God! Gradually, through these experiences, I, a person who was afraid of having meetings at first, has changed into one who is fond of having meetings, which is all the result achieved by the guidance of God’s words. Thinking back, though I had less time to go out eating, drinking, and having fun with my classmates because of attending meetings, yet I have received God’s supply of spiritual life, which allows me to understand: One will receive God’s blessing by being an honest person and will feel peace and joy by practicing the truth. If one follows his fleshly desires, like playing with the mobile phone during the meetings, it will invite Satan’s affliction and God will not be pleased with him. Through the fellowship about the truth in the meetings, I have realized that God approves of a person who fears God and shuns evil, and that fearing God and shunning evil is the likeness of a real man one should live out. Thanks to the guidance of God, I have gained too much. Thanks be to Almighty God!

Recommended: God Is at My Side

Read More