Will the Lord Jesus Come Again in a Jewish Image?

Will the Lord Jesus Come Again in a Jewish Image?

In 1994, I accepted the gospel of the Lord Jesus. At that time, my third elder sister gave me a Bible, and we made an appointment to attend a meeting on Sunday. That day, as soon as I entered the church, a rectangular stereoscopic oil portrait of the Lord Jesus Christ came into my view: He bears the image of a Jew and wears a white robe, with long curly blond hair spilling over His shoulders, with blue eyes, a high nose, and a kindly face…. I was quite amazed and thought within: actually the God I believe in bears a Jewish image…. Due to my zealous pursuit, I became a preacher soon. On a Sabbath day, when it was my turn to give a sermon, I looked at the believers down there and said gently, “Brothers and sisters, it is because of the Lord’s great love that we poor people are chosen from different places. The Lord Jesus is full of lovingkindness and mercy, and He promised us that He would come again. Please turn to Acts 1:11, ‘Which also said, You men of Galilee, why stand you gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as you have seen him go into heaven.’ As we all know, the Lord Jesus ascended to heaven in a Jewish image. So, when He returns, He shall still descend among His sincere believers in the image and clothes of a Jew. We must hold on to the Lord’s way firmly to welcome His return.” After hearing that, the believers all nodded in agreement. With such an expectation, I was more zealous in my pursuit and service. However, I had never seen the return of the Lord Jesus….

Later, Sister Yang, at her old age, came to our church. During my contact with her, I found she was quite spiritual. So, I often fellowshipped with her about the verses in the Bible. One day, she said to me, “I have a good news for you. The Lord Jesus has come back, and He has returned to flesh and is doing a new work in China.” I was absolutely shaken and asked, “You said that the Lord Jesus has come back and is doing a new work in China. Then, what does He look like?” She answered with a smile, “Of course He takes the image of a Chinese.” I said, “Acts 1:11 says, ‘…this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as you have seen him go into heaven.’ The Lord Jesus went away in a Jewish image, so He shall still appear to all peoples in a Jewish image when He returns. How can He come in the image of a Chinese? It’s impossible.” Sister Yang said, “As to this question, we may look back on what kind of images God took when He appeared to man. As a matter of fact, in God’s work, God never appeared to man in a fixed image. In the Age of Law, God appeared to Abraham in the image of a man (referring to Genesis 18); and He also appeared to Moses in the brambles and fire (referring to Exodus 3:1-4). In the Age of Grace, although God became flesh in the image of the Lord Jesus and did His work in Judea for several years, He didn’t ask man to memorize His Jewish image. For instance, the Lord Jesus was once transfigured before His disciples, with His face shining as the sun, which was definitely not a Jewish image; after He was nailed to the cross and resurrected, His image was not the previous image, so that the two disciples on their way to Emmaus and Mary Magdalene didn’t recognize Him. From these, we know that the image of God is beyond man’s definition. Let’s read a passage of Almighty God’s words, ‘God is the greatest in the entire universe, so could He fully explain Himself using the image of a flesh? God puts on the flesh in order to do a stage of His work. There is no significance to the image of the flesh, and it bears no relation to the passing of ages, and has nothing to do with God’s disposition. … Although the image of man was created in the image of God, how could the appearance of man represent the exalted image of God? When God becomes flesh, He merely descends from heaven into a particular flesh. His Spirit descends into a flesh, through which He does the work of the Spirit. The Spirit is expressed in the flesh, and the Spirit does His work in the flesh. The work done in the flesh fully represents the Spirit, and the flesh is for the sake of work, but that does not make the image of the flesh a substitute for the true image of God Himself; this is not the purpose and significance of God become flesh. He becomes flesh only so that the Spirit can have somewhere appropriate to reside when doing His work, so that He can achieve His work in the flesh—so that people can see His work, come into contact with His disposition, hear His words, and know the wonder of His work. His name represents His disposition, His work represents His identity, but He has never said that His appearance in the flesh represents His image; that is merely a notion of man. … The portrait of Jesus was painted by man so that man could worship Him. At the time, no special instructions were provided by the Holy Spirit, and so man passed the portrait on until today. In fact, according to the original intention of God, man should not have done this. It is only the zeal of man which has caused the portrait of Jesus to remain until this day. God is Spirit, and man will never be capable of summing up exactly what His image is. His image can only be represented by His disposition.’ (“The Vision of God’s Work (3)”) From Almighty God’s words, we know that God is the supreme Ruler. He is the invisible Spirit, who is formless and imageless. God can ascend to the highest place and humble Himself to be a man. No matter which image He appears in, His substance is still God Himself. When God becomes flesh to carry out His work, it is totally because of the needs of His work, not for the purpose of replacing the true image of God Himself with the image of His flesh. The appearance of His flesh can’t represent God’s disposition or God’s true identity. The image of God incarnate has nothing to do with God’s substance or God’s true image. Only from His work and word can we know God’s disposition, substance, and identity, and that God is the truth, the way, and the life. Man must not regard the appearance of God’s flesh as God’s true image or make such a conclusion that ‘God took the image of a Jew, so God will look like this forever.’ It is a blasphemy and slander against God. Whatever image God takes to do His work, it is meaningful. When God becomes flesh, He will take the image of people in the country where He does His work, for it is advantageous to people’s contact with Him and the smooth progress of His work in the flesh. For example, in the Age of Grace, God became flesh in Judea and did His work among the Jews, so He bore a Jewish image, wore the clothes of the Jews, and spoke Hebrew. In this way, it was relatively easy for the Jews to contact Him and know more about His word and work and thus receive His salvation. Similarly, God becomes flesh in China in the last days, and so He appears in the image of a Chinese and speaks Chinese. In this way, it is convenient for the chosen people of China to accept God’s work and receive the truth expressed by God. If God, when incarnated in China, still took a Jewish image and spoke Hebrew, the Chinese wouldn’t be able to understand His word, much less would they understand the truth expressed by Christ. In that case, wouldn’t God’s work of salvation yield no effects? Thus, it is so logical that wherever God becomes flesh to do His work, He will take the image of people there. But we should know that no matter which country’s people God incarnate resembles in looks, His substance is still God Himself, which is beyond all doubt. As Almighty God says, ‘Although the image God’s flesh takes in the work of today is totally different from Jesus, Their substance and origin are one after all, and They are from one source. Maybe They have many differences in Their outer shells, but the inside truth of Their works is not in the least different. After all, the ages are completely different. How could God’s works be completely the same or be contradictory to each other?’”

Hearing that, I realized such fellowship was very reasonable and irrefutable, and found the viewpoint baseless that the Lord Jesus would return in a Jewish image, which I had preached for many years…. At that time, Sister Yang continued, “No matter what image God takes, where He appears, or in which way He appears to man, God can accomplish His own work. Man shouldn’t confine God within a limited scope or within his notions and imaginations, thinking that God will surely reappear in the image of the Lord Jesus. We shall come out of our own notions and imaginations to seek and investigate the truth, and only in this way will we see the appearance of God and truly welcome the return of the Lord. Let’s read another passage of Almighty God’s words, ‘The objective of God’s appearance free from the constraints of any form or country is for Him to be able to complete the work in His plan. For example, when God became flesh in Judea, His aim was to complete the work of crucifixion to redeem all mankind. Yet the Jews believed that it was impossible for God to do this, and they thought it impossible that God could become flesh and assume the form of the Lord Jesus. Their “impossible” became the basis by which they condemned and opposed God, and ultimately led to the destruction of Israel. Today, many people have committed a similar error. They wantonly proclaim the imminent appearance of God, yet also condemn His appearance; their “impossible” once more confines the appearance of God within the limits of their imagination. … Put your conceptions to one side! Stop and carefully read these words. If you yearn for the truth, God will enlighten you to understand His will and His words. Put aside your view of “impossible”! The more that people believe something is “impossible,” the more likely it is to occur, for the wisdom of God soars higher than the heavens, God’s thoughts are higher than man’s thoughts, and the work of God transcends the limits of man’s thinking and conception. The more that something is impossible, the more there is the truth to be sought; the more that something is beyond the conception and imagination of man, the more it contains the will of God.’” Almighty God’s words shook my heart. I would no longer hold on to the notion that the Lord Jesus would return in a Jewish image….

Later, Sister Yang fellowshipped with me about several pieces of words expressed by Almighty God: The Substance of the “Flesh” God Is In, The Two Incarnations Complete the Significance of Incarnation, God Is the Lord of All Created Beings, The Age of Kingdom Is the Age of the Word, and so on. Under the unending supply of Almighty God’s word, I understand more and more truths and increasingly feel that what God has and is is so rich. Before God, man is only a handful of dust. As a created being, man can never fathom the wisdom and wonderfulness of God’s work, much less define God’s true image. So, we should seek and investigate more about God’s return to flesh.

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Inquiring Into the Facts (II)

Xiangyi

Inquiry IV

Xunguang: What on earth is the true meaning of fleeing? Now that the man used by the Holy Spirit was wanted by the CCP in China, why did he run a risk of going abroad?

Xiangming: People with some common sense of law are clear that fleeing means that one absconds to avoid punishment after breaking the law and escapes the government’s arrest in a premedi0tated and planned way. The man used by the Holy Spirit is a man who preaches the gospel to testify to and serve God, yet he, without breaking any law or regulation of the state, is wanted throughout China by the CCP government. Under this circumstance, as a rule, one will choose to hide out, rather than appear rashly at the Chinese customs which is heavily guarded. Nevertheless, the man used by the Holy Spirit took the risk. Unexpectedly, he passed the careful examination of the CCP’s military guard and then left China smoothly. In fact, it was completely God’s care and protection, because what he did followed God’s will.

Zhengyi: That’s right. Let’s read Almighty God’s words, “You must know that when My work is expanding, I will scatter you, and I will strike you just as Jehovah struck the tribes of Israel. All this will be done so that My gospel may be enlarged over all the earth, so that My work may spread to the Gentile nations. Thus, My name will be magnified by adults and children alike and My holy name will be exalted by the mouths of people from all tribes and nations” (“The Work of Spreading the Gospel Is Also the Work of Saving Man” in The Word Appears in the Flesh). “Let all come before My throne to see My glorious countenance, hear My voice, and watch My deeds. This is the entirety of My will; it is the end and climax of My plan, as well as the purpose of My management. Let every nation worship Me, every tongue acknowledge Me, every man trust Me, and every people be subject unto Me!” (“The Seven Thunders Peal—Prophesying That the Kingdom Gospel Shall Spread Throughout the Universe” in The Word Appears in the Flesh).

To spread the kingdom gospel to all countries and regions abroad, and to make all nations as well as all peoples return before God’s throne and worship the only true God are the will which God is going to accomplish in the end of His six-thousand-year management plan. The man used by the Holy Spirit going abroad is precisely to carry out His will. Just like in the Age of Law, when God called Moses to bring Israelites out of Egypt, he was fully aware that he had been chased by Egyptian Pharaoh to the wilderness, and that if he returned to Egypt he would surely be in danger. But he deeply knew that it was God’s will for him to return to Egypt, which he must obey. He believed as well that since God had promised to lead Israelites out of Egypt, His promise must be fulfilled. Consequently, he accepted God’s commission and went back to Egypt. God descended ten plagues on Egypt to force the Egyptian Pharaoh to give Moses permission to bring Israelites out of Egypt, and He clove the Red Sea in order that Moses could succeed in leading Israelites out of the hunting of Egyptian soldiers. Ultimately, Moses accomplished God’s will under His leadership and guidance. Similarly, under the circumstances that the man used by the Holy Spirit in the Age of Kingdom was wanted by the CCP, if he was not for following God’s will, and if there were no God’s care and protection, it would be impossible for him to avoid the CCP’s arrest easily and pass the examination of Chinese customs smoothly without any assist from outside forces. Almighty God says, “Of everything that occurs in the universe, there is nothing that I do not have the final say in. What exists that is not in My hands? All that I say goes …” (“The First Utterance” of God’s Utterances to the Entire Universe in The Word Appears in the Flesh). The man used by the Holy Spirit could leave China successfully to shoulder the work of expanding the kingdom gospel abroad. This is entirely God’s sovereignty and arrangement and is led and guided by the Holy Spirit Himself.

Inquiry V

Xunguang: After your fellowship, the background and the reason for the man used by the Holy Spirit who could avoid the CCP’s arrest and go abroad smoothly are perfectly clear. After he arrived in America and soon got political asylum from the American government, the CCP spread again that the American authorities who were unaware of the facts approved his application for political asylum. Could it be possible that the American government grants one political asylum so casually?

Zhengyi: The Bible says, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he has chosen for his own inheritance” (Psalms 33:12). One former president of the United States also said, “If we ever forget that we are ‘One nation, under God,’ then we will be one nation gone under.” Hence, America has been respecting for the freedom of belief since its establishment, and its government has been providing political asylum for foreigners who suffer political or religious persecution. According to the American laws, asylum may be granted to people who are unable or unwilling to return their home country because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion. The immigration office will decide whether or not to offer them political asylum on the basis of their evidences of being persecuted. It is thus evident that the American government has a justified and lawful procedure for examining and approving political asylum applications. That the man used by the Holy Spirit could receive political asylum from the American government shows it acknowledged the fact that he was persecuted by the CCP government. Accordingly, it is also completely legitimate and legal for him to get political asylum.

Xiangming: In fact, including America, in many countries with relatively sound democracy and legal system, all cases are handled in accordance with the law, the fact, and the evidence. None of the governments of democracies will grant refugee status to an applicant without evidences at random, much less ignore the asylum application submitted by the applicants who are persecuted by the CCP. The CCP slanders that the American authorities granted Zhao XX political asylum because they were unaware of the facts, from which we can see that in order to defame him, the CCP becomes frenzied with anxiety, being desperate and disregarding anything. It would rather flout international human rights regulations and make enemies of all democracies than not discredit him so as to conceal the fact that God has appeared and worked in the last days. It just wants to hinder man from seeking and investigating God’s work of the last days, and ruin man’s opportunity of being saved. This is its real purpose.

Xunguang: Well, it appears that rumors are not frightful, and the crux is that when facing rumors, one can seek the truth and rely on God to ascertain the fact and see through the rumormonger’s intentions and purposes. Through today’s fellowship and discernment, the CCP’s plots to discredit the Church of Almighty God and to slander the man used by the Holy Spirit are exposed thoroughly, and the facts have floated before our eyes. The Lord Jesus said, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27). Only if one investigates God’s work and utterance practically, can he see God’s appearance and keep pace with God’s work. Anyone believing rumors blindly may lose his life, while the one seeking and investigating the truth is the most blessed one. God once said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). My friends, now, do you still believe the CCP’s rumors and refuse to seek and investigate God’s work of the last days?

Thank God for leading our interview. Thank you for watching. See you!

The End.

Part One: Inquiring Into the Facts (I)

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Whom Do You Actually Believe in? II

Whom Do You Actually Believe in? II

My wife thought for a while and then said to me, “Aiguang’s explanation accords completely with the fact. Most people in the religious world think that pastors and elders are predestined by God to be His servants, and that God raises them up to lead people to His kingdom. I also have been seeing it this way. But just now what Aiguang fellowshiped is right. The Lord Jesus indeed never told us to obey the pastors and elders in all things, nor did He say obeying the pastors and elders in belief in God was obeying God. So, is there anything wrong with our viewpoint that obedience to the pastors and elders equals obedience to God?”

I responded defiantly, “Aiguang, I acknowledge your fellowship is right. However, the pastors and elders have been serving God for years, toiling and laboring. Their knowledge of the Bible is more than ours anyway. Listening to and obeying them shouldn’t be the wrong thing to do.”

My son said sternly and solemnly, “Dad, mom, people believe that pastors and elders know the Scriptures very well and suffer much, so they must be after God’s heart and it is undoubtedly right to follow them on the path of belief in God. However, the chief priests, scribes, and Pharisees in Judaism were all religious leaders. They were familiar with the Bible and suffered a lot of hardships. Do you think they were people after God’s heart? Then who crucified the Lord Jesus? Who led the Jewish people down a road of no return? Weren’t they the hypocritical Pharisees? The Pharisees were familiar with the Bible, and they knew the coming of the Messiah prophesied in the Scriptures. But when the Lord Jesus came, did they recognize that He was the Messiah? Did they bring the Jewish people before God? This fact is sufficient to prove that the Pharisees did not know God. What they understood were just letters and doctrines. They explained the scriptures in the temple according to the knowledge summed up from their mind and their imaginations and conceptions, without the enlightenment and guidance of the Holy Spirit. They were not fellowshiping about the truth, but evidently exalting and testifying about themselves through the sermons. They used their biblical knowledge to deceive and shackle people, and drew the believers into their presence to worship and follow them. What’s more, the Pharisees did not at all know the direction of the Holy Spirit’s work. They worshiped their notions and imaginations as the truth, so that they ended up committing a heinous crime of nailing the Messiah to the cross though anxiously waiting for Him. The Pharisees had undergone many sufferings, but their suffering and sacrifice were all for their fame, gain and positions. They worked for their status and jobs, hindered people from following the Lord Jesus, and had people listen to them and obey them. The Lord Jesus exposed them with the words, ‘But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for you neither go in yourselves, neither suffer you them that are entering to go in’ (Matthew 23:13). ‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, you make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves’ (Matthew 23:15). ‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. You blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you are like to white washed sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but within you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity’ (Matthew 23:25-28). The Lord Jesus also revealed them to be blind guides and cursed them for their being the generation of vipers. Seen from the Lord Jesus’ revelation of the Pharisees, they were the ones who hindered God’s work and opposed God, and God loathed and despised their actions. God observes the depths of man’s heart while we focus solely on man’s appearances. The Pharisees gave the appearance of piety yet hated the truth and opposed God inside. Dad, mom, the pastors and elders in the last days are believing in God yet opposing Him following the path of the Pharisees. Outwardly they are pious, faithful, and can bear hardships, but behind the facade lies their ulterior evil intentions. They’re no different from the Pharisees, working for status and jobs, adhering to letters and doctrines and theologies, but not practicing the truth. For example, the Lord Jesus prophesied, ‘I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth …’ (John 16:12-13), and chapter 2, verse 7 in Revelation says, ‘He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit said to the churches.’ These scriptures clearly state that the Lord will surely express new words when He comes back, and that man must seek with caution. But why do pastors and elders not practice the Lord’s words and lead the brothers and sisters to seek and investigate Almighty God’s work in the last days? Why do they arbitrarily judge and condemn Almighty God and nail the returned Lord Jesus to the cross again? It is plain to see that they don’t know the new trend and direction of the Holy Spirit’s work like the Pharisees, and that neither do they know the work of God. What’s more, they only exalt what man says instead of what the Lord says while expounding on the Bible, and don’t follow the Lord’s way. They make the Lord’s words ring hollow and replace them all with man’s words. For example, the Lord said, ‘Not every one that said to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven’ (Matthew 7:21). Have the pastors and elders ever led us to follow the will of God? They only tell us that as long as we endure hardships, run and expend ourselves for the Lord, preach the gospel more and bear fruits, then we will be able to enter the kingdom of heaven and there will be laid up for us a crown. Isn’t it holding on to man’s teachings but making void the Lord Jesus’ requirements for us? Isn’t the path they lead contrary to or even poles apart from God’s will? When the Lord Jesus returns to do new work in the last days, they refuse to accept it and even hinder the brothers and sisters from seeking and investigating the true way. Isn’t it restricting man’s freedom of investigating the true way? Is there any difference between them and the Pharisees who hindered the Jews from accepting the Lord Jesus’ work? Christ of the last days, Almighty God, has already revealed the essence of the pastors and elders. Let’s read Almighty God’s words.

Almighty God says, ‘Those who read the Bible in grand churches recite the Bible every day, yet not one understands the purpose of God’s work. Not one is able to know God; moreover, not one is in accord with the heart of God. They are all worthless, vile men, each standing on high to teach God. Though they brandish the name of God, they willfully oppose Him. Though they label themselves believers of God, they are ones who eat the flesh and drink the blood of man. All such men are devils who devour the soul of man, demons who purposefully disturb those who try to step onto the right path, and stumbling blocks that impede the path of those who seek God. Though they are of “robust flesh,” how are their followers to know that they are antichrists who lead man in opposition to God? How are they to know that they are living devils who specially seek souls to devour?’ (“All Who Do Not Know God Are Those Who Oppose God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh). Dad, mom, Almighty God’s words sharply lay bare the real situation of the religious world. It has been controlled by antichrists and false shepherds. Though these pastors and elders label themselves as believers in God, they stand in God’s place to restrain and lecture people. They are arrogant and conceited, lawless and defiant of God, and they simply don’t have a heart that fears God. In order to keep their position and bread and butter, they hinder people from investigating the true way, for fear that God’s sheep will hear God’s voice and hence reject them so that they will lose the place in man’s heart. Thus, they clutch God’s sheep tightly in their hands, intentionally disturb God’s work and don’t allow people to seek and investigate the true way. Are they not antichrists? Many people have been deceived by them, believing in God in name yet following and obeying antichrists and false shepherds. If, even today, we are still deceived by these people and obey these hypocritical pastors and elders, sooner or later, we will be eliminated by the Lord and stripped of our chance for salvation. When the time comes, our outcome can only be being punished by God. God is righteous. He will not spare anyone who resists and betrays Him.”

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Whom Do You Actually Believe in? I

Whom Do You Actually Believe in? I

Liu Xiangming

One day, two brothers, my wife, and I had a meeting at our home. We were watching a film of the Church of Almighty God, Rapture in Peril, on the computer.

After we finished it, my wife was overwhelmed by emotion, saying, “This film is really so great. It thoroughly exposes the substance of God’s believers worshiping man and looking up to man. And it indeed sounds warnings for those who believe in God but in essence follow man and obey man.”

I also said with feeling, “Yes! Without the truth, man is apt to be deceived by false shepherds and antichrists, and even thinks that they can also be saved and enter the kingdom of heaven if they follow their pastors and elders. They are really muddled, foolish, and ignorant. I remember the Lord Jesus once said, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father, but by me’(John 14:6). Almighty God also says, ‘Christ of the last days brings life, and brings the enduring and everlasting way of truth. This truth is the path through which man shall gain life, and the only path by which man shall know God and be approved by God. If you do not seek the way of life provided by Christ of the last days, then you shall never gain the approval of Jesus, and shall never be qualified to enter the gate of the kingdom of heaven, for you are both a puppet and prisoner of history. Those who are controlled by regulations, by letters, and shackled by history will never be able to gain life, and will never be able to gain the perpetual way of life. That is because all they have is turbid water that has lain stagnant for thousands of years, instead of the water of life that flows from the throne. …

Those who wish to gain life without relying on the truth spoken by Christ are the most ridiculous people on earth, and those who do not accept the way of life brought by Christ are lost in fantasy. And so I say that the people who do not accept Christ of the last days shall forever be despised by God. Christ is man’s gateway to the kingdom during the last days, which none may bypass. None may be perfected by God except through Christ’ (“Only Christ of the Last Days Can Give Man the Way of Eternal Life” in The Word Appears in the Flesh). God’s words allow us to understand that only God is the truth, the way, and the life and that only God can save man and perfect man. Man’s gaining the truth and life is inseparable from God’s guidance and provision. If they don’t accept the truth expressed by Christ of the last days, there will be a faint hope for them to enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Brother Li said, “Yes! Only God can save man and lead man out of sin. When the Lord Jesus was crucified to redeem mankind, He redeemed man from under the law with His sinless flesh, so that man could continue to live. Today, the last days have come. God has returned to flesh, speaks and utters His voice among man, and judges and purifies man with the truth. These truths are the only way through which man can be purified and approved by God. If man leaves the provision of Christ of the last days, no one will be able to break free from Satan’s bondage and receive God’s promise. This is beyond doubt.”

I said with shame, “Alas! It shames me to say it. Looking back to the time when I didn’t accept Almighty God’s work of the last days, although I was a believer in the Lord, I worshiped man, looked up to man, and followed man. I listened to my pastors and elders in everything, thinking obeying them was obeying God and that they could surely take me into the kingdom of heaven as long as I followed them. Afterward, God’s work of the last days came upon me, but I listened to the words of my pastors and elders, neither seeking nor investigating the new work done by God. It was God’s mercy that allowed me to hear Almighty God’s words, and realize that I’m following man while believing in God and resisting God without even knowing it. Whenever I think of my former absurd viewpoints on belief in God and my attitude toward God’s work of the last days, I am beset by remorse and regret.”

Brother Liang looked at me, saying, “Brother Liu, we’re curious about how you accepted Almighty God’s work of the last days. Would you please share it with us?”

I sighed slowly and said, “Oh. It’s a long story. I really hate myself for being so foolish and ignorant …” Then I told them my experience.

One day a year ago, I was told that Pastor Sun came to give a sermon. So, I grabbed a quick snack and went to the meeting place. That day was also when my son came back home (he had worked away from home for over one year), but I had no time to pick him up.

After the meeting, I went back home happily. Unexpectedly, my son was talking to his mother and elder sister about how he accepted the Eastern Lightning. I flew into a rage, and said to him, “Aiguang, we haven’t seen each other for just over a year, but you accepted the Eastern Lightning! Why did you not consult with me about such a great matter? Do your really take me as your father?”

My son said with a smile, “Dad, only after I sought from and investigated the words expressed by Almighty God many times and made certain that Almighty God is indeed the returned Lord Jesus, did I accept His work of the last days. This time I come back just to tell you the good news of the Lord’s return …”

“Stop!” I waved my hand and interrupted him, “With regard to any news of the Lord’s coming, which is a serious issue, we should listen to our pastors and elders. If they accept it, we’ll follow them. But if they deny it, we won’t accept it, either. They’re ordained by the Lord. The Bible says, ‘Let every soul be subject to the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whoever therefore resists the power, resists the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation’ (Romans 13:1-2). From this verse, we can see that we should listen to our pastors and elders in everything. Listening to their words means listening to God’s words, and obeying them is obeying God. Now that the pastors and elders tell us never to listen to or accept it when some people preach the Lord has come, we should act that way according to their words.”

My wife said in agreement, “Yeah. Aiguang, your father is right. While believing in the Lord, we should listen to our pastors and elders in all things. And this has a biblical basis. If we follow what the pastors and elders say, we cannot possibly be wrong.”

My son smiled and said, “Dad, mom, sister, according to the verse ‘Let every soul be subject to the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God’ (Romans 13:1), most believers think obeying their pastors and elders is obeying God and that what their pastors and elders speak and do is from God. But is that really the case? Are we right in holding on to such a viewpoint? Has the Lord ever spoken such words? Without the confirmation of the Lord Jesus’ words, what consequence will it bring to us if we carry on like that? Let us all recall this. In the Age of Grace, when the Lord Jesus was incarnated to do the work, those Jews without discernment obeyed the chief priests, scribes, and Pharisees who ruled in religion. They didn’t seek or investigate the Lord Jesus’ work, but followed the religious leaders to resist and condemn Him, and became accomplices who crucified Him. This is a fact. If obeying those in power were obeying God, how come there was such an outcome? Is it in accord with the truth and the fact? You’ve believed in the Lord for years, but why don’t you even have such knowledge?”

At that moment, my wife nodded and said to me, “Oh, what Aiguang fellowshiped is reasonable, but you are also right because it is what it says in the Bible. Could it be wrong? We can’t see it clearly. What is going on here?”

My son said unhurriedly, “Dad, mom, those words are indeed recorded in the Bible, but there is one thing we should be clear about: They were said by Paul, not by the Lord Jesus, nor were they the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. Why don’t you believe in God’s words but instead deny them using man’s words? We all know that when the Lord Jesus came to work, the Judaism of that time persecuted Him. Paul didn’t seek in the slightest whether the Lord Jesus is the incarnate God but blindly listened to the chief priests, persecuting, resisting, and condemning Him. From here we can see that what Paul obeyed was position and influence. He was not at all one who submitted to God. Moreover, he himself said that he was a chief sinner of resisting God. If we act in line with what he said, that is, obey whatever our pastors and elders say and follow them blindly without discerning whether their deeds are after the Lord’s will, aren’t we too foolish? Regarding how to treat God’s work, the Lord Jesus said, ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven’ (Matthew 5:3), and ‘Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God’ (Matthew 5:8). From these two verses, we can see that the Lord’s intention is for us to drop our notions and seek and investigate His work. We will know whether the Lord has really come back after making an investigation. However, where the news of the Lord’s coming is concerned, if we act as previously mentioned, that is, accept it when our pastors and elders accept and refuse it when they refuse, and neither seek nor investigate it, we are actually listening to man’s words rather than God’s words, and we have a place for man in our hearts rather than for God. Then whom do we actually believe in? This question concerns the serious matter of man’s life and death!”

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