God's Word | The Church of Almighty God

Only Loving God Is Truly Believing in God

Today, as you seek to love and know God, in one respect you must endure hardship and refinement, and in another, you must pay a price. No lesson is more profound than the lesson of loving God, and it can be said that the lesson that people learn from a lifetime of belief is how to love God. Which is to say, if you believe in God you must love God. If you only believe in God but do not love Him, have not attained the knowledge of God, and have never loved God with a true love that comes from within your heart, then your belief in God is futile; if, in your belief in God, you do not love God, then you live in vain, and your entire life is the most lowly of all lives. If, throughout your whole life, you have never loved or satisfied God, then what is the point of you living? And what is the point of your belief in God? Isn’t that a waste of effort? Which is to say, if people are to believe in and love God, then they must pay a price. Rather than trying to act in a certain way externally, they should seek true insight in the depths of their hearts. If you are enthusiastic about singing and dancing, but incapable of putting the truth into practice, can you be said to love God? Loving God requires seeking God’s will in all things, and that you probe deep within when anything happens to you, trying to grasp God’s will, and trying to see what God’s will is in this matter, what He wishes you to achieve, and how you should be mindful of His will. For example: Something happens that requires you to endure hardship, at which time you should understand what God’s will is, and how you should be mindful of His will. You must not satisfy yourself: First put yourself to one side. Nothing is more abject than the flesh. You must seek to satisfy God, and must fulfill your duty. With such thoughts, God will bring especial enlightenment to you in this matter, and your heart will also find comfort. Be it big or small, when something happens to you, you must first put yourself to one side and regard the flesh as the most lowly of all things. The more you satisfy the flesh, the more liberties it takes; if you satisfy it this time, next time it will ask for more, and as this carries on, you come to love the flesh even more. The flesh always has extravagant desires, it always asks that you satisfy it, and that you gratify it within, whether it be in the things you eat, what you wear, or in flying off the handle, or pandering to your own weaknesses and laziness…. The more you satisfy the flesh, the greater its desires become, and the more debauched the flesh becomes, until it gets to the point when people’s flesh harbors even deeper conceptions, and disobeys God, and exalts itself, and becomes doubtful about the work of God. The more you satisfy the flesh, the greater the weaknesses of the flesh; you’ll always feel that no one sympathizes with your weaknesses, you’ll always believe that God has gone too far, and you’ll say: How could God be so harsh? Why won’t He give people a break? When people are too indulgent of the flesh, and cherish it too much, then they forfeit themselves. If you truly love God, and do not satisfy the flesh, then you’ll see that everything God does is so right, and so good, and that His curse of your rebelliousness and judgment of your unrighteousness is justified. There will be times when God chastens and disciplines you, and raises up an environment to temper you, forcing you to come before Him—and you will always feel that what God is doing is wonderful. Thus you will feel as if there isn’t much pain, and that God is so lovely. If you pander to the weaknesses of the flesh, and say that God goes too far, then you’ll always feel in pain, and will always be depressed, and you will be unclear about all of the work of God, and it will seem as if God is not sympathetic to man’s weakness at all, and unaware of man’s difficulties. And thus you will feel miserable and alone, as if you have suffered great injustice, and at this time you will begin to complain. The more you pander to the weaknesses of the flesh in this way, the more you will feel that God goes too far, until it gets so bad that you deny the work of God, and begin to oppose God, and become full of disobedience. Thus, you must rebel against the flesh, and not pander to it: Your husband, wife, children, prospects, marriage, family—none of them matter! You need to have this resolve: “In my heart there is only God, and I must try my best to satisfy God, and not satisfy the flesh.” If you are always possessed of such resolve, then when you put the truth into practice, and put yourself aside, you will be able to do so with but a little effort. It is said that there was once a farmer who saw a snake on the road that was frozen stiff. The farmer picked it up and held it to his breast, and after the snake was revived it bit the farmer to death. Man’s flesh is like the snake: Its essence is to harm their lives—and when it completely gets its own way, your life becomes forfeit. The flesh belongs to Satan. Within it are extravagant desires, it thinks only for itself, it wants to enjoy comfort, and revel in leisure, wallowing in sloth and idleness, and having satisfied it to a certain point you will ultimately be eaten up by it. Which is to say, if you satisfy it this time, next time it will come asking for more. It always has extravagant desires and new demands, and takes advantage of your pandering to the flesh to make you cherish it even more and live among its comforts—and if you don’t overcome it, you will ultimately forfeit yourself. Whether you can gain life before God, and what your ultimate end will be, depends on how you carry out your rebellion against the flesh. God has saved you, and chosen and predestined you, yet if today you are unwilling to satisfy Him, you are unwilling to put the truth into practice, you are unwilling to rebel against your own flesh with a heart that truly loves God, ultimately you will ruin yourself, and will thus endure extreme pain. If you always pander to the flesh, Satan will gradually gobble you up inside, and leave you without life, or the touch of the Spirit, until the day comes when you are completely dark inside. When you live in darkness, you will have been taken captive by Satan, you will no longer have God, and at that time you will deny God’s existence and leave Him. Thus, if you wish to love God, you must pay the price of pain and endure hardship. There is no need for external fervency and hardship, reading more and running about more; instead, you should put aside the things within you: the extravagant thoughts, personal interests, and your own considerations, conceptions, and motivations. Such is God’s will.

The Hymn of God's Word | The Church of Almighty God

God's Disposition is Lofty and Grand

I

    God's wrath is that unrighteous things are here to harass mankind, that darkness and evil have their being, as do the things that chase away the truth, and that there are things against the good. His wrath is the symbol of the end of all bad things, and even more the symbol of His holiness, the symbol of His holiness. God's delight is righteousness and light coming into the world, is the destruction of darkness and evil. His delight is bringing light to mankind, and beauty into their life. His delight is righteous; it is the symbol of all things positive, and the symbol of the auspicious, and the symbol of the auspicious.

II

    He is sad that mankind, His hope is in darkness, that His work on mankind fails to meet His will, that His beloved mankind can't all live in light. He feels sad for the innocents among mankind, for the sincere yet blinded ones among them, for those who are good but without conviction. His sorrow is the symbol of His goodness, of His compassion, of beauty, and of benevolence. God's delight is righteousness and light coming into the world, is the destruction of darkness and evil. His delight is bringing light to mankind, and beauty into their life. His delight is righteous; it is the symbol of all things positive, and the symbol of the auspicious, and the symbol of the auspicious.

III

    His joy is the enemy defeated, man's true heart won, the powers of His foes driven out, extinct, and mankind secure in a life beauteous and serene. His joy is far from man's usual happiness, it's the savor of reaping fruit beyond happiness. His joy is the symbol that henceforth, mankind will suffer no more, and will enter the world of light. God's delight is righteousness and light coming into the world, is the destruction of darkness and evil. His delight is bringing light to mankind, and beauty into their life. His delight is righteous; it is the symbol of all things positive, and the symbol of the auspicious, and the symbol of the auspicious.

from “It Is Very Important to Understand God’s Disposition” | The Church of Almighty God

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OnlyLoving God Is Truly Believing in God

God Presides Over the Fate of All Mankind | Eastern Lightning

God Presides Over the Fate of All Mankind

As members of the human race and devout Christians, it is the responsibility and obligation of us all to offer up our mind and body for the fulfillment of God’s commission, for our entire being came from God, and it exists thanks to the sovereignty of God. If our minds and bodies are not for God’s commission and not for the righteous cause of mankind, then our souls will be unworthy of those who were martyred for God’s commission, much more unworthy of God, who has provided us with everything.

A Selection From God’s Word | Eastern Lightning

A Selection From the Three Passages of God’s Word on “The Vision of God’s Work”

1. John began to spread the gospel of the kingdom of heaven seven years before the baptism of Jesus. To the people, the work he did seemed above the subsequent work of Jesus, yet he was, nevertheless, still only a prophet. He worked and spoke not within the temple, but in the towns and villages outside of it. This he did, of course, among the Jewish nation, particularly those who were impoverished. Rarely did John come into contact with people from the upper echelons of society, only spreading the gospel among the ordinary people of Judea in order to prepare the right people for the Lord Jesus, and prepare suitable places for Him to work in. With a prophet such as John to pave the way, the Lord Jesus was able to embark upon His way of cross as soon as He arrived. When God became flesh to do His work, He did not have to do the work of choosing people, and did not need to personally seek people or a place in which to work. He did not do such work when He came; the right person had already prepared for Him before He arrived. … John worked for seven years, which is to say he spread the gospel for seven years. During his work, John did not perform many miracles, for his work was to pave the way, it was the work of preparation. All other work, the work Jesus was going to do, was unrelated to him; he only asked man to confess his sins and repent, and baptized people, so that they could be saved. Though he did new work, and opened a path that man had never walked upon before, still he only paved the way for Jesus. He was merely a prophet that did the work of preparation, and was incapable of doing the work of Jesus. Though Jesus was not the first to speak of the gospel of the kingdom of heaven, and though He continued along the path that John had embarked upon, still there was no one else who could do His work, and it was above the work of John. Jesus could not prepare His own way; His work was carried out directly on behalf of God. And so, no matter how many years John worked, he was still a prophet, and still one who paved the way. The three years of work done by Jesus surpassed the seven years of work by John, for the substance of His work was not the same.

from “The Vision of God’s Work (1)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh

Promises to Those Who Have Been Perfected | Eastern Lightning

Promises to Those Who Have Been Perfected

What is the path through which God perfects man? Which aspects are included? Are you willing to be perfected by God? Are you willing to accept the judgment and chastisement of God? What do you know of these questions? If you cannot speak of such knowledge, then this shows that you still know not of God’s work and have not been enlightened at all by the Holy Spirit. Such kind of man cannot be perfected. They can only receive a small amount of grace to enjoy briefly and it cannot be maintained in the long term. If one merely enjoys God’s grace, he cannot be perfected by God. Some may be satisfied with the peace and enjoyment of the flesh, a life of ease without adversity or misfortune, living in peace with their family without fights or quarrels. They may even believe this to be the blessing of God, but in truth, it is merely the grace of God. You cannot be satisfied merely with enjoying the grace of God. This kind of thinking is too vulgar. Even if you read the word of God daily, pray every day, and your spirit feels particular enjoyment and peace, yet in the end you cannot speak of any knowledge of God and His work or have no experience with such, and no matter how much of God’s word you have eaten and drunk, if you merely feel peace and enjoyment in your spirit and that the word of God is sweet beyond compare, as if you cannot enjoy it enough, but you have no real experience with and no reality of the word of God, then what can you receive from such manner of faith in God? If you cannot live out the essence of God’s word, your eating and drinking and prayers are entirely concerned with religion. Then such kind of man cannot be perfected and cannot be gained by God. All those gained by God are those who pursue the truth. What God gains is not man’s flesh nor his possessions, but the part within him that belongs to God. That is why I say that God perfects not the flesh of man but his heart, so that the heart of man may be gained by God. In other words, the essence of saying that God perfects man is that God perfects the heart of man so that it may turn to God and love Him.

The flesh of man is mortal. It serves no purpose for God to gain the flesh of man, for it is that which inevitably decays. It cannot receive the inheritance of God or His blessings. If God only gains the flesh of man and keeps man’s flesh in this stream, man would be in this stream in name, but man’s heart would belong to Satan. Then not only would man be unable to become the expression of God, he would instead become His burden. Thus God’s choosing men would become meaningless. Those who will be perfected by God are those who will receive God’s blessings and His inheritance. That is, they take in what God has and is, so that it becomes what they have within; they have all the words of God wrought into them; whatever the being of God, you are able to take it all in exactly as is, thereby living out the truth. This is the kind of man perfected by God and gained by God. Only such kind of man is eligible to inherit these blessings bestowed by God:

1. Receiving the whole of God’s love.

2. Acting in accordance with the will of God in all things.

3. Receiving the guidance of God, living under the light of God, and being enlightened by

God.

4. Living out the image loved by God on earth; loving God truly as Peter did, crucified for

God and worthy to die in recompense for God’s love; having the same glory as Peter.

5. Being beloved, respected, and admired by all on earth.

6. Overcoming all the bondage of death and Hades, giving no opportunity for Satan’s work,

being possessed by God, living within a fresh and lively spirit, and having no feeling of weariness.

7. Having an unspeakable sense of elation and excitement at all times throughout life, as if

he has seen the coming of the day of God’s glory.

8. Receiving glory with God, and having a countenance similar to God’s beloved saints.

9. Becoming that which God loves on earth, that is, the beloved son of God.

10. Changing form and ascending with God to the third heaven, transcending the flesh.

Only those able to inherit the blessings of God are those perfected by God and gained by God. Have you gained anything? To what extent has God perfected you? God does not perfect man at random. There are conditions and apparent results that can be seen by man. It is not as man believes, that as long as he has faith in God, he can be perfected and gained by God, and can receive on earth the blessings and inheritance of God. Such matters are exceedingly difficult, and much more so when it comes to the changing of form. At present, that which you should primarily seek is to be perfected by God in all things, and to be perfected by God through all people, matters, and things that you are faced with, so that more of what God is will be incorporated into you. You must first receive the inheritance of God on earth before you are eligible to inherit more and greater blessings from God. All such things are that which you should seek and which you should first understand. The more you seek to be perfected by God in all things, the more you will be able to see the hand of God in all things, thereby actively seeking to enter into the being of God’s word and the reality of His word through different perspectives and in different matters. You cannot be content with such negative states as merely not committing sins, or having no conceptions, no philosophy of life, and no human will. God perfects man in various ways, and it is possible in all matters for you to be perfected as a result. Not only can you be perfected in terms of the positive, but also of the negative, thereby enriching you. Every day there are opportunities to be perfected and time to be gained by God. After a period of such experience, you will be greatly changed. You will now naturally be able to gain insight into many things that you previously did not understand; without needing others to teach you, unknowingly, you will be enlightened by God, so that you have enlightenment in all things and all your experiences go into detail. God will guide you so that you veer not to either side. Then you will be set upon the path to perfection by Him.

Being perfected by God cannot be confined to perfection by eating and drinking God’s word. This manner of experience is too one-sided and does not encompass enough; it only restricts man to a very small scope. In this case, man lacks much needed spiritual nourishment. If you wish to be perfected by God, you must learn to experience all things and be enlightened in all that you face. Whenever you are faced with something, be it good or bad, you should benefit from it and it should not cause you to become passive. No matter what, you should be able to consider it by standing on the side of God, and not analyze or study it from the perspective of man (this is a deviation in your experience). If this is the manner of your experience, then your heart will be taken over by the burdens for your life; you will live constantly in the light of God’s countenance and will not easily deviate in your practice. Such kind of man has great prospects. There are so many opportunities to be perfected by God. It all rests on whether you are ones who truly love God and whether you have the resolution to be perfected by God, be gained by God, and receive His blessings and inheritance. It will not do for you to only have resolution. You must have much knowledge, otherwise you will always deviate in your practice. God is willing to perfect each and every one of you. As it stands now, though most have already accepted the work of God for much time, they have limited themselves to merely basking in the grace of God and are only willing to receive some comfort of the flesh from Him. They are unwilling to receive more and higher revelations, showing that the heart of man is still always on the outside. Though the work of man, his service, and his heart of love for God have fewer impurities, as far as the essence of man within and his unenlightened thinking are concerned, man still constantly seeks the peace and enjoyment of the flesh, and cares not what the conditions for and purposes of God perfecting man are. So the lives of most are still vulgar and decadent, without the slightest bit of change. They simply do not regard faith in God as a matter of importance. Rather, it is as if they just have faith for the sake of another, acting without earnestness or dedication, and getting by with the bare minimum, adrift in a purposeless existence. Few are those who seek to enter into the word of God in all things, gaining more enriching things, becoming ones of greater wealth in the house of God this day, and receiving more of God’s blessings. If you seek to be perfected by God in all things and are able to inherit the promises of God on earth; if you seek to be enlightened by God in all things and do not let the years slip idly by, this is the ideal path to actively enter in. Only in this way are you worthy and eligible to be perfected by God. Are you truly one who seeks to be perfected by God? Are you truly one who is earnest in all things? Do you have the same spirit of love for God as Peter? Do you have the will to love God as Jesus did? You have had faith in Jesus for many years; have you seen how it is that Jesus loved God? Is it truly Jesus that you believe in? You believe in the practical God of this day; have you seen how the practical God in the flesh loves the God in heaven? You have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; that is because the crucifixion of Jesus to redeem mankind and the miracles He performed are generally accepted truths. However, your faith comes not from knowledge and true understanding of Jesus Christ. You believe only in the name of Jesus but have no faith in His Spirit, for you show no regard for how Jesus loved God. Your faith in God is too juvenile. Though you have had faith in Jesus for many years, you know not how to love God. Does this not make you the world’s greatest fool? This shows that for years you have eaten the “food of the Lord Jesus Christ” in vain. Not only do I dislike such kind of man, I trust that so too does the Lord Jesus Christ, whom you worship. How can such kind of man be perfected? Are you not red-faced? Do you not feel ashamed? Do you still have the gall to face your Lord Jesus Christ? Do you all understand the meaning of My words?

from “The Church of Almighty God”

The Appearance of God Has Brought a New Age | Eastern Lightning

The Appearance of God Has Brought a New Age

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? Many people’s reply would be this: God appears among those who follow Him and His footprints are among us; it’s that simple! Anyone can provide a formulaic answer, but do you understand what the appearance of God is, and what the footprints of God are? The appearance of God refers to His personal arrival on earth to do His work. With His own identity and disposition, and in His inherent method, He descends among man to conduct the work of initiating an age and ending an age. This kind of appearance is not a form of ceremony. It is not a sign, a picture, a miracle, or a grand vision, and even less is it a kind of religious process. It is a real and actual fact that can be touched and beheld. This kind of appearance is not for the sake of following a process, or for the sake of a short-term undertaking; it is, rather, for the sake of a stage of work in His management plan. The appearance of God is always meaningful, and is always connected to His management plan. This appearance is completely different from the appearance of God’s guidance, leadership, and enlightenment of man. God carries out a stage of great work each time He reveals Himself. This work is different from that of any other age. It is unimaginable to man, and has never been experienced by man. It is work that starts a new age and concludes the old age, and it is a new and improved form of work for the salvation of mankind; moreover, it is work of bringing mankind into the new age. That is the significance of the appearance of God.

Beholding the Appearance of God in His Judgment and Chastisement | Eastern Lightning

Beholding the Appearance of God in His Judgment and Chastisement

Like hundreds of millions of other followers of the Lord Jesus Christ, we abide by the laws and commandments of the Bible, enjoy the abundant grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and gather together, pray, praise, and serve in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ—and all this we do under the care and protection of the Lord. We are often weak, and often strong. We believe that all of our actions are in accordance with the teachings of the Lord. It goes without saying, then, that we also believe ourselves to walk the path of obedience to the will of the Father in heaven. We long for the return of the Lord Jesus, for the glorious arrival of the Lord Jesus, for the end of our life on earth, for the appearance of the kingdom, and for everything as it was foretold in the Book of Revelation: The Lord arrives, and brings disaster, and rewards the good and punishes the wicked, and takes all those who follow Him and welcome His return into the air to meet Him. Every time we think of this, we can’t help but be overcome with emotion. We are thankful that we were born in the last days and are lucky enough to witness the coming of the Lord. Though we have suffered persecution, it is in return for “a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory”; what a blessing that is! All of this longing and the grace bestowed by the Lord make us often sober unto prayer, and bring us together more often. Maybe next year, maybe tomorrow, or maybe even sooner when man does not expect it, the Lord shall suddenly arrive, and shall appear among a group of people who have been attentively waiting for Him. We are all contending with each other, none wanting to fall behind, in order to be the first group to behold the appearance of the Lord, to become one of those who shall be raptured. We have given everything, regardless of the cost, for the coming of this day. Some have given up their jobs, some have abandoned their families, some have renounced marriage, and some have even donated all of their savings. What selfless devotion! Such sincerity and loyalty must be beyond even the saints of ages past! As the Lord bestows grace upon whomever He wishes, and has mercy on whomever He wishes, our devotion and spending, we believe, have already been beheld by His eyes. So, too, have our heartfelt prayers already reached His ears, and we trust that the Lord will reward us for our devotion. Moreover, God was graceful toward us before He created the world, and none shall take away God’s blessings and promises to us. We are all planning for the future, and take it for granted that our devotion and spending are bargaining chips or stock for our rapture into the air to meet the Lord. What’s more, without the slightest hesitation, we place ourselves on the future throne, presiding over all nations and all peoples, or ruling as kings. All this we take as a given, as something to be expected.