2. Venting Negativity While Refusing to Accept Pruning

There is another situation in which people are likely to vent negativity: When they face being pruned and cannot accept some words of pruning, they will harbor disobedience, dissatisfaction, and grievance in their hearts, and sometimes even feel wronged. They believe there’s been an injustice: “Why am I not allowed to explain or clarify myself? Why am I being continually pruned?” What kinds of negativity do these people typically vent? They also look for reasons to justify and defend themselves. Instead of dissecting, making up for, or remedying their mistakes, they argue their case, saying things like why they didn’t do something well, the causes behind it, what the objective factors and conditions were, and how they didn’t do it intentionally; they use these excuses to justify and defend themselves to achieve their aim of refusing the pruning. These people do not acknowledge that the pruning is correct, and they analyze the pruning incident with many other people, trying to explain the matter clearly in front of everyone. They even say: “This kind of pruning will discourage people from doing their duties. No one will be willing to do their duties anymore. People won’t know how to proceed and won’t have a path of practice.” There are even some people who, on the surface, fellowship about how they accept being pruned, but in actuality, they are using the fellowship to justify and defend themselves, making more people believe that God’s house does not consider people’s feelings at all in how it treats them and that even a small mistake can result in being pruned. Those who are prone to vent negativity never reflect on themselves. Even when faced with being pruned, they don’t reflect on the nature of their mistakes or what caused them. They don’t dissect these issues but instead consistently argue, justify and defend themselves. Some people even say, “Before I was pruned, I felt there was a path to follow. But when I was pruned, I became confused. I don’t know how to practice or how to believe in God anymore, and I can’t see the way forward.” They also tell others, “You must be very careful not to be pruned; it’s so painful, like peeling off a layer of skin. Don’t follow my old path. Look at what’s become of me after being pruned. I’m stuck, unable to move forward or backward; nothing I do is right!” Are these words correct? Is there any problem with them? (Yes. They are justifying themselves and arguing, saying they did nothing wrong.) What message is being conveyed through this justification and argument? (They are saying that God’s house is wrong to prune people.) Some people say, “Before being pruned, I felt like I had a path to follow, but after being pruned, I don’t know what to do.” Why is it that they don’t know what to do after being pruned? What’s the reason for this? (When faced with pruning, they don’t accept the truth or attempt to know themselves. They harbor some notions and don’t seek the truth to resolve them. This leaves them without a path. Instead of finding the cause within themselves, they claim the opposite, that it was being pruned that caused them to lose their way.) Isn’t this recrimination? It’s like saying, “What I did was in accordance with principles, but your pruning of me makes it clear that you’re not letting me handle things according to principles. So, how am I supposed to practice in the future?” This is what people who say such things mean. Are they accepting being pruned? Do they accept the fact that they made mistakes? (No.) Doesn’t this statement actually mean that they know how to recklessly commit misdeeds, but when pruned and asked to act according to principles, they don’t know what to do and become confused? (Yes.) So, how did they do things before? When someone faces being pruned, isn’t it because they didn’t act according to principles? (Yes.) They recklessly commit misdeeds, don’t seek the truth, and don’t do things according to principles or the rules of God’s house, so they receive pruning. The purpose of pruning is to enable people to seek the truth and act according to principles, to prevent them from recklessly committing misdeeds again. However, when faced with being pruned, those people say they don’t know how to act or how to practice anymore—do these words contain any element of self-knowledge? (No.) They have no intention to know themselves or seek the truth. Instead, they imply: “I used to do my duties very well, but since you pruned me, you’ve thrown my thoughts into disarray and confused my approach to my duties. Now my thinking is not normal, and I’m not as decisive or bold as I was before, I’m not as brave, and this is all due to being pruned. Since I was pruned, my heart has been deeply wounded. So, I must tell others to be very careful when doing their duties. They must not reveal their flaws or slip up; if they slip up, they’ll be pruned, and then they’ll become timid and lose the drive they once had. Their bold spirit will be significantly dulled, and their youthful courage and desire to give it their all will disappear, leaving them meekly wimpish, fearful of their own shadow, and feeling that nothing they do is right. They’ll no longer feel God’s presence in their hearts, and will feel increasingly distant from Him. Even praying and crying out to God will seem to go unanswered. They’ll feel they don’t have the same vitality, exuberance, and lovableness, and will even start to look down on themselves.” Are these the heartfelt words fellowshipped by someone with experience? Are they genuine? Do they edify or benefit people? Isn’t this just twisting facts? (Yes, these words are quite absurd.) They say, “Don’t follow in my footsteps or repeat my old path! You see me as quite well-behaved now, but in fact I was just scared after that pruning and haven’t been as free and liberated as I was before.” What impact do these words have on the listeners? (They make people more guarded against God, causing them to act cautiously for fear of being pruned.) They have this kind of negative impact. After hearing this, people will think, “Tell me about it! One little oversight and you wind up getting pruned—there’s nothing you can do to prevent it! Why’s it got to be so hard doing duties in God’s house? Always going on about the truth principles—it’s really demanding! Isn’t it okay to just live a simple, steady life? That’s not a high demand or an extravagant hope, but why is it so difficult to achieve? I sure hope I don’t get pruned. I’m a very timid person; normally, when people glare at me and speak loudly, my heart starts pounding. If I truly face pruning and the words are that stern, dissecting the facts like that, how could I handle it? Wouldn’t it give me nightmares? Everyone says pruning is good, but I don’t see how that’s the case. Wasn’t that person scared by it? If I got pruned, I’d be scared too.” Isn’t this the impact caused by the words of those who vent negativity? Is this impact affirmative and positive or negative and adverse? (Negative and adverse.) These negative statements can cause immense harm to those who are willing to pursue the truth! So, tell Me, are those who frequently vent negativity and spread death servants of Satan? Are they people who disturb the work of the church? (Yes.)

Some people act according to their own ideas and go against principles. After being pruned, they feel that despite working so hard and paying a price, they were still pruned, so their hearts become filled with disobedience, and they don’t accept exposure or dissection. They believe that God is unrighteous and that God’s house is unfair to them, in that such a useful person of talent as they are, who endures so much suffering and pays so high a price, goes unpraised by God’s house and even gets pruned. From their disobedience emerge grievances, and they’ll vent their negativity: “The way I see it, there’s nothing harder than believing in God; it’s really difficult to receive some blessings and enjoy a bit of grace. I’ve paid so high a price, but I got pruned for doing one thing poorly. If someone like me isn’t up to the task, how could anyone be? Isn’t God righteous? Why is it that I’m not up to recognizing His righteousness? How is God’s righteousness so inconsistent with people’s notions?” They don’t dissect what they’ve done that goes against principles or what corrupt dispositions they’ve revealed. They don’t just lack even a hint of remorse or submission—they even judge and resist openly. After hearing them make such a statement, most people start to sympathize somewhat with them and are swayed by them: “It’s true, isn’t it? They’ve believed in God for twenty years and still faced such pruning. If someone who’s believed for twenty years may not necessarily be saved, then people like us have even less hope.” Haven’t they been poisoned? Once negativity is vented, poison is sown, like a seed planted in people’s hearts, taking root, sprouting, blooming, and bearing fruit in their minds. Before people know it, they’re poisoned, and resistance and complaints against God arise in them. When those people have been pruned, they become disobedient toward God and dissatisfied with how God’s house handled them. Instead of adopting an attitude of repentance and confession, they argue, give justifications, and defend themselves. They make it known far and wide how many hardships they’ve endured, what work they’ve done, and what duties they’ve done over their many years of faith, and that instead of receiving rewards now, they face pruning. Not only do they fail to recognize from being pruned their own corruption and the mistakes they’ve made, but they also spread the idea that the way God’s house has treated them is unfair and less than reasonable, that they shouldn’t be treated like that, and that if they are, then God isn’t righteous. The reason they vent this negativity is that they cannot accept pruning or the fact that they made mistakes, much less do they accept or acknowledge the fact that they caused harm to the life entry of the brothers and sisters and to the work of the church. They believe that they acted correctly, and that it was God’s house that was wrong to prune them. By venting negativity, they mean to tell people that God’s house is unfair in how it treats people: Once someone makes a mistake, God’s house will use it as ammunition against them, seizing upon this issue and pruning them ruthlessly, to the point where they become compliant and think they haven’t made any contributions, where they no longer have anyone who idolizes them, no longer appreciate themselves, and no longer dare to ask God for rewards—only then will God’s house have achieved its purpose. Their aim in venting this negativity is to make more people come to their defense, to get more people to understand “the truth of the matter” and to see how much suffering they’ve endured over their many years of belief in God, how significant their contributions have been and how qualified they are, and how seasoned a believer they are. With this, they want to get others to stand on their side in shared opposition to the rules of God’s house and the pruning God’s house dealt them. Isn’t this in nature drawing people over to their side? (Yes.) Their goal in venting negativity in this way is to draw people over to their side and mislead them, and they disturb the work of the church to give vent to their resentment. Regardless of the effect it ultimately has on people when they’ve vented their negativity, the effect and consequence is that people are misled and disturbed, that they’re harmed. It’s not edifying. It’s a negative effect.

When people are faced with pruning, these are basically the kinds of negativity they vent. They cannot accept being pruned and are dissatisfied and disobedient in their hearts, unable to accept it from God. Their first response isn’t to seek the truth regarding the pruning and to reflect on, know, and dissect themselves, to see what exactly they did wrong, whether their actions aligned with principles, why God’s house pruned them, and whether their being treated this way was due to personal resentment or was fair and reasonable. Their first response is not to seek these things—instead, their first response is to rely on their qualifications, endured hardships, and expenditure to oppose the pruning. In doing so, everything that arises within their hearts is bound to be negative and adverse, with nothing affirmative or positive. So, when they fellowship about their feelings and understanding after being pruned, they are certainly venting negativity and spreading notions. The venting of negativity and spreading of notions should be promptly stopped and restricted, not indulged and ignored. These negative things will obstruct, disturb, and damage each person’s life entry, and they cannot play an affirmative, positive role, much less can they inspire people’s loyalty to God or their loyal performance of their duties. Therefore, when such people vent negativity, they are disturbing church life and should be restricted.

3. Venting Negativity When One’s Reputation, Status, and Interests Are Harmed

Besides venting negativity after being dismissed or pruned, in what other situations do people vent negativity? (When people’s interests are harmed and they feel they’ve suffered a loss.) (Some people have done their duties for many years, but when they fall ill or disasters strike their families, they say, “What have I gained from believing in God for so many years?”) The common “catchphrase” of Negative Nancys is “What have I gained?” What other situations are there? (Some people not only fail to achieve results in their duties, but they frequently make mistakes, so they say, “Why does God enlighten others but not me? Why did God give them such good caliber while my caliber is so poor?” Instead of reflecting on their own issues, they shift the responsibility to God, saying God hasn’t enlightened or guided them, and then they keep complaining about God.) They claim that God is unfair, asking why He enlightens and bestows grace to others but not them, grumbling about why they don’t achieve results in their duties—they’re complaining. The examples you provided are good. Any more? (Some people become full of resentment when their duties are reassigned, questioning why they were reassigned, and suspecting that the leaders and workers are targeting them and are making things difficult for them.) Do they feel that God’s house looks down on them? (Yes.) Some people who don’t do actual work get dismissed and eliminated, and they feel that their reputation and status have been damaged. To pour out their dissatisfaction, they are always beefing in private: “I’ve believed in God for a short time, my comprehension ability is no good, and I’m of poor caliber. I don’t measure up to the others. If they say I’m not capable, I must not be!” On the face of it, they’re acknowledging their shortcomings, but in fact, they’re trying to regain the benefits they’ve lost, incessantly beefing, and saying things to gain people’s sympathy and make them feel God’s house is unfair. As soon as their interests are harmed, they become reluctant, and are always hoping to recover their losses and receive compensation. If they don’t, they lose their faith in God and no longer know how to believe in Him, saying things like, “I used to think believing in God was great, and that acting as a leader or worker in the church would definitely bring great blessings. I never expected to be dismissed and eliminated, and to be rejected by others. To think that something like this could happen in God’s house! Not everyone who believes in God is necessarily a good person, and not everything God’s house does represents God or justice.” What is the nature of statements like this? Their words, both explicitly and implicitly, convey an attack. They convey judgment and resistance. On the surface, they seem to target a certain leader or the church, but what they’re really aiming these words at in their hearts is God, His words, and the administrative decrees and rules of His house. They’re purely giving vent to their resentment. Why are they giving vent to their resentment? They feel they’ve suffered a loss; in their hearts, they feel unfairness and discontent, and they want to solicit things and receive compensation. While the negativity vented by such people does not pose a significant threat to most, these foul words are like pesky flies or bedbugs that form a moderate disturbance to people’s minds. Most people feel repulsed and averse when they’ve heard these words, but there will inevitably be those of the same ilk as such people, those with the same dispositions, essences, and penchants, who are birds of the same rotten feather as those people, and who are swayed and disturbed by them. It’s inevitable. What’s more, some people of small stature who lack discernment can be disturbed by these negative remarks, and their faith in God can be influenced. These people already don’t know what belief in God is for, exactly, and they’re unclear about the truths of visions, and their ability to comprehend the truth is poor, too. When they’ve heard these negative statements, they are extremely likely to take them in involuntarily, and so to suffer their influence. These words are poison. They can easily be planted in people’s hearts. Once someone has accepted these negative remarks, when God’s house asks them to do a duty, they respond with indifference. When God’s house asks for their cooperation in some task, they’re lukewarm. They’ll only take it up if they feel like it; otherwise, they won’t, always with reasons and excuses of all sorts. Before they heard those negative remarks, there was a bit of sincerity in their belief in God, and they had something of a positive, proactive attitude when doing their duties. But after hearing those negative remarks, they grow indifferent, and they’re cold toward their brothers and sisters, too. They’re guarded toward them. When the church arranges for them to do a duty, they keep evading and repeatedly pushing it away, showing great passivity. Before, they punctually attended gatherings, but after hearing those remarks, their attendance becomes sporadic—they come when they’re in a good mood, but don’t when they’re not. If something unpleasant happens at home, they worry that some disaster might occur, so they attend more gatherings and read more of God’s words. If they’re thrilled, happy, and moved after reading God’s words, they’ll even offer some money. But once things are calm at home, they once again stop attending gatherings. When the brothers and sisters attempt to fellowship with them in hopes of supporting them, they find excuses to refuse; and when brothers and sisters go to their house, they won’t open the door, even when they’re clearly at home. What’s going on here? They have been influenced by those negative remarks—they have been poisoned and believe that believers in God are unreliable. At first, they trusted these people quite a lot, and when they read God’s words they thought, “These are God’s words, these people are my brothers and sisters, this is God’s house—how wonderful!” But after they heard the negative remarks spread by certain people, they changed. Haven’t they been influenced? Hasn’t their life entry been damaged? (Yes.) Who influenced them? It’s the people who vent negativity, those who made those remarks. If someone hasn’t yet laid a solid foundation in the true way or eaten and drunk God’s words to the point where they understand the truth, they can easily be influenced by negative things. And in particular, those who have no ability to comprehend the truth, but simply watch trends, observe the situation, and look at surface phenomena—they are even more easily swayed by negative words. Especially when they’ve heard people speak fallacies like, “God’s house isn’t necessarily fair, and not everything God’s house does is positive,” their guardedness grows even more. A statement that aligns with the truth isn’t always readily accepted, but a negative statement, an absurd statement, a statement that contradicts the truth—these can too easily take root in people’s hearts, and removing them isn’t easy. It’s so difficult for people to accept the truth and so easy for them to accept fallacies!

Some people with bad humanity place great importance on their own prestige, fame, fleshly enjoyment, and personal property and interests. When their reputation, status, and direct interests suffer losses, they do not accept this from God, or accept the environment God has laid out for them, and they are unable to let go of these things and disregard their personal gain and loss. Instead, they use various opportunities to vent their dissatisfaction and disobedience, and vent their negative emotions, causing some people to suffer greatly as a result. Therefore, when such people vent negativity, church leaders must first promptly grasp the situation, and stop and restrict those people in a timely manner. Of course, church leaders should also proactively expose those people, and fellowship with the brothers and sisters on how to discern them, and why they say these negative and absurd things, as well as how to treat and discern these words in order to prevent oneself from being misled and grievously harmed by them. It is necessary to be able to discern and dissect such people, and thereby avoid and reject them, and no longer be misled by them. This is the work that church leaders should do. Of course, if ordinary brothers and sisters discover such people and discern their humanity essence, they should also stay away from them. If you do not have sufficient ability to resist, or the stature to support, help, and change them, and you feel that you cannot withstand their negative remarks and their words of dissatisfaction and disobedience, the best approach is to stay away. If you feel that you are very strong, have some stature, and can exercise discernment and remain unaffected no matter what anyone says, that no matter how severe the negativity they vent is, it will not change your faith in God, that you can discern such people, and that you can also expose and stop them when they vent negativity—then you do not need to avoid or guard against such people. But if you feel that you do not have such stature, the way and principle to deal with such people is to stay away from them. Is this easy to achieve? (Yes.) Some people say, “Can I tolerate them, endure them, and forgive them?” That’s also fine, and it’s not wrong, but it’s not the most crucial or the best practice. Say that you endure, tolerate, and indulge them, and in the end, you are misled by them and drawn over to their side. And suppose that no matter how God’s house provisions and supports you, you don’t feel it; or that when you read God’s words, you are often swayed by their thoughts and remarks, and as soon as you think of something they said, your mind is affected, and you aren’t able to continue reading. And when the brothers and sisters fellowship their understanding of the truth—especially when they fellowship about discerning such people’s remarks—you are again swayed and affected by their words, causing your mind to be in disarray. If this is the case, then you should stay away from such people. Your tolerance and endurance will be ineffective, and are not the best way to defend against such people. Say that your tolerance and endurance are not a disguised, external behavior, but rather you actually do have enough stature to face such people. No matter what they say, even if you don’t speak up, you can still discern them in your heart; you are able to exercise forbearance toward them and ignore them, but any adverse, negative words or words of misunderstanding and complaint about God they say will not affect your faith in God in the slightest, nor will it affect your loyalty in doing your duty or your submission to God. In that case, you may tolerate and endure them. What is the principle of practicing tolerance and endurance? Not being harmed. Ignore them, let them say whatever they want—after all, such people are just unreasonable troublemakers, and they are shamelessly stubborn. No matter how you fellowship the truth with them, they will not accept it; they belong to the category of devils and Satans, and it is useless to fellowship with them. Therefore, before God’s house clears out and deals with them, if you have the stature to tolerate and endure them without being harmed, that is best. Do you usually adopt this principle of tolerance and endurance? You put up with all kinds of people, but sometimes you’re not careful and get misled a bit; afterward you become aware of it, feel indebted to God, pray for a couple of days, and turn your state around, and you get closer to God. Most of the time, you can clearly see that such people are no good, and that they belong to the category of devils. Although you can interact with them normally, you are inwardly distant and repelled by them. No matter what they say or what negative remarks and views they voice, you turn a deaf ear, ignoring it, and think, “Say whatever you want. I can discern you. I simply don’t associate with people like you.” Is this the principle you follow most of the time when dealing with such matters? Achieving this is also not bad; it’s not easy and requires understanding some truths and having a certain stature. If you don’t even have this level of stature, then you won’t be able to stand firm, and you won’t do your duty well.