How to Distinguish Antichrists From People Who Have the Disposition of Antichrists

Distinguishing Them Based on Their Attitudes Toward the Truth

Today we will continue fellowshipping on the responsibilities of leaders and workers. Before formally starting the fellowship, let’s review one of the topics concerning antichrists that was previously fellowshipped on: how to distinguish people with the disposition of antichrists from those with the essence of antichrists, and what the differences between these two types of people are. First, we will fellowship on how to discern antichrists; this is not very difficult. First of all, you should clearly see what the obvious characteristic manifestations are that those who are antichrists exhibit, so that you can identify a genuine antichrist in a short time, determining that they are definitely not someone who only has the disposition of antichrists or someone walking the path of antichrists. This way, you will have discernment about antichrists and will no longer be misled, ensnared, and controlled by them. Now the most crucial thing is to be able to distinguish the obvious differences between people with the nature essence of antichrists and those with the disposition of antichrists. To discern these two types of people, you must first grasp their main characteristics. Some people only grasp antichrists’ revelations of corruption in daily life, such as their tendencies to assert their status and lecture others, but cannot discern the nature essence of antichrists. Is this okay? (No.) There are also those who say that the most prominent manifestations of antichrists are their arrogance and conceitedness, and they label all arrogant and conceited people as antichrists. Is this correct? (No.) Why is it not correct? Because arrogance and conceitedness are not the most prominent manifestations of antichrists; they are corrupt dispositions shared by all corrupt humans. Everyone has an arrogant and conceited disposition, so labeling all arrogant and conceited people as antichrists is a serious mistake. So, what manifestations are the essential manifestations of antichrists, which can make the essential differences between antichrists and people with the disposition of antichrists clear at a glance, and enable one to discern that the essences of these two types of people are different, and that such people should be treated differently? In certain aspects, such as actions, behaviors, and dispositions, do these two types of people have similarities and resemblances? (Yes.) If you do not observe carefully, distinguish seriously, or have an accurate understanding and discernment of the disposition and essence of these two types of people in your heart, it is very easy to treat these two types of people the same. You might even mistake an antichrist for a person with the disposition of antichrists and vice versa, that is, easily make these kinds of erroneous judgments. So, what are the main characteristics and differences between these two types of people that can allow one to distinguish with solid evidence who is an antichrist and who is a person with the disposition of antichrists? You should not be unfamiliar with this topic, so let’s hear your thoughts. (One aspect used to distinguish between antichrists and people with the disposition of antichrists is through their attitude toward the truth; another is through their humanity. In their attitude toward the truth, antichrists hate the truth and do not accept it at all. No matter how many evil deeds they commit that cause disruptions and disturbances, and no matter how you fellowship with them or prune them, they do not acknowledge it and are staunchly unrepentant. People with the disposition of antichrists may also do wrong things when they do not understand the truth or grasp principles, but when they are pruned, they can accept the truth, reflect on and know themselves, and are able to feel remorse and repent. From the perspective of their attitude toward the truth, the essence of antichrists is that they hate the truth, while people with the disposition of antichrists can accept the truth. From the perspective of their humanity, antichrists are evil people without a sense of conscience or a sense of shame, whereas people with the disposition of antichrists have a sense of conscience and a sense of shame.) You mentioned two characteristics; was this content fellowshipped about before? Are these considered obvious characteristics? (Yes.) The attitudes of antichrists and people with the disposition of antichrists toward the truth are completely different. This is a very important point, and is a manifestation with obvious characteristics. Antichrists are averse to the truth and do not accept it at all. They would rather die than admit that God’s words are the truth. No matter how you fellowship about the truth, they internally resist and are averse to it. They may even inwardly curse you, mock you, and despise you, treating you with contempt. Antichrists are hostile toward the truth; this is an obvious characteristic. And what are the characteristics of people with the disposition of antichrists? To be accurate and objective, people with the disposition of antichrists but with some conscience and reason can change their notions and accept the truth through others fellowshipping the truth with them. If they are pruned, they can also submit. That is, as long as people with the disposition of antichrists sincerely believe in God, most of them can accept the truth to varying degrees. In summary, people with the disposition of antichrists can accept the truth and submit through such means as reading God’s words themselves, accepting God’s discipline and enlightenment, or the pruning, help, and support of the brothers and sisters. This is an obvious characteristic. Antichrists, however, are different. No matter who fellowships the truth, they neither listen nor submit. They have only one attitude: They’d rather die than accept the truth. No matter how you prune them, it’s useless. Even if you fellowship the truth as clearly as possible, they do not accept it; they even internally resist and feel averse to it. Can someone with such a disposition that hates the truth submit to God? Definitely not. Therefore, antichrists are God’s enemies, and they are people who are beyond redemption.

Distinguishing Them Based on Their Humanity

Just now, you also mentioned another characteristic for distinguishing antichrists from people who have the disposition of antichrists, which is from the perspective of humanity. Who would like to fellowship some more about this characteristic? (Antichrists have a particularly malicious humanity; they can suppress and torment people, and no matter how much evil they commit, they do not know to repent.) That’s right, the main characteristic of antichrists is their malicious humanity, their shamelessness, and their lack of conscience and reason. No matter how many evil deeds they commit in the church or how much damage they cause to the church’s work, they do not think it shameful, nor do they see themselves as sinners. Whether God’s house exposes them or the brothers and sisters prune them, they remain unfazed, and do not feel reproached or upset. This is the manifestation of antichrists in terms of humanity. Their main characteristics are a lack of conscience and reason, and a lack of shame, and an extremely vicious disposition. Anyone who touches upon their interests is judged and tormented by them, and they have a particularly strong desire for revenge, sparing no one, not even their own relatives. This is how vicious antichrists are. On the other hand, people with the disposition of antichrists, regardless of how much corruption they reveal, are not necessarily evil people. No matter what shortcomings or deficiencies they have in their humanity, what mistakes they can make, or in what regards they can fail and stumble, they can reflect on themselves and learn lessons afterward. When they face being pruned, they are able to admit their mistakes and feel remorse; and when the brothers and sisters criticize or expose them—even though they might try to defend themselves a bit and be unwilling to acknowledge it at the time—they have actually already acknowledged their mistake in their hearts and submitted. This proves that they can still accept the truth and can be reformed. When they make mistakes or encounter any problems, their conscience and reason can still function; they are aware, not numb and unfeeling, or intransigent and refusing to admit things. Additionally, although this type of person has the disposition of antichrists, they are relatively empathetic and somewhat kinder. When they encounter various matters, the characteristics they display in terms of humanity can be described—in the most apt and easy-to-understand way—as relatively reasonable. If pruned severely, at most they might feel a bit resentful in their hearts, but looking at it from the manifestation of their humanity, it can be seen they still know shame, that their conscience is able to accuse them, and that their reason can exert a certain restraining effect. If they cause losses to the interests of God’s house or cause harm to any brothers and sisters, they always feel uneasy inside and feel that they have failed God. These manifestations are revealed to varying degrees by people with the disposition of antichrists. Even if they do not immediately make amends or make the right choices and practice correctly after things happen, these people still have a sense of awareness in their hearts. Their conscience accuses them; they know they have done wrong and should not act that way again, and they also feel that they are not good people—subtly, they can all have these feelings. What’s more, over time, their state will turn around, and they will have genuine repentance. They will feel deep remorse, regretting that they did not initially make the right choices or practice correctly. These manifestations are precisely the most common and ordinary manifestations of corrupt humans. However, those who are antichrists are special; they are not humans but devils. No matter how much time passes after they commit evil or sin, they have no remorse at all; they remain stubborn, and persistent until the end. People with the disposition of antichrists can submit when they encounter ordinary pruning. When faced with severe pruning, they might argue their case, deny things, and refuse to accept it at the time, but later they are able to reflect on and know themselves, and feel remorse and repent. Even if someone mocks them and judges them as having no humanity, they might feel pain in their hearts but will not fight back or treat that person as an enemy. They can also understand the other person, thinking, “I have only myself to blame for making that mistake; however others treat me is no more than I deserve.” These manifestations reveal themselves to varying degrees in different people. In short, these revelations are the normal and natural manifestations of people with the disposition of antichrists, people with corrupt dispositions, and this is where they clearly differ from antichrists. Through the different manifestations of these two states, it becomes immediately clear just which individuals are evil people and antichrists, and which are people who merely have the disposition of antichrists but are not evil people.

Distinguishing Them Based on Whether They Truly Repent or Not

Two aspects of the differences between antichrists and people with the disposition of antichrists were just mentioned: The first aspect is their attitude toward the truth; people’s attitude toward the truth is their attitude toward God. In this aspect, there is a clear distinction between these two types of people. Secondly, in terms of humanity, these two types of people also have a clear essential difference. These two characteristics are very obvious; they are completely different types of people. Besides these two differences, another aspect is whether there is any manifestation of repentance after committing evil. In the case of those who are antichrists, no matter what evil deeds they commit—whether they torment people, establish independent kingdoms, vie with God for status, steal offerings, or anything else—even if they are directly exposed, they do not admit to these deeds. If they do not admit them, can they repent? They would rather die than repent. They do not accept the facts of their evil deeds. Even if they realize that the exposure is entirely accurate, they resist and oppose it. They absolutely will not reflect on whether they are on the wrong path or say, “I am characterized as an antichrist. This is very dangerous, and I need to repent.” They absolutely do not have these kinds of thoughts in their minds. Their humanity does not possess these qualities. Therefore, antichrists have an obvious characteristic: No matter how many years they believe in God, they do not accept the truth at all and show no real change. When they first start believing in God, they like to stand out in the crowd, vie for power and profit, torment people, and form cliques and divide the church. Their purpose in trying to hold power is to leech off the church and establish an independent kingdom. After three to five years of believing, when you see them again, they still exhibit these same manifestations and characteristics without any change. Even after eight or ten years, they remain the same. Some people say, “Maybe they’ll change after 20 years of believing!” Can they change? (No.) They will not change. They exhibit these same manifestations whether they are interacting with a few individuals or with the majority, whether doing ordinary duties or acting as leaders or workers. They never repent or turn back, persisting in the same path to the end. They absolutely will not repent. This is what antichrists are like. As for people with the disposition of antichrists, even if some are not evil people, they also have corrupt dispositions. They reveal arrogance, deceitfulness, selfishness, baseness, and other types of corruption. They also display poor humanity. When they first start believing in God, they also want to vie for fame and gain, stand out to garner people’s admiration, and have ambitions and desires to be leaders and hold power. These manifestations are present to varying degrees in corrupt humans and are not much different from those of antichrists. However, in the process of believing in God, they come to understand some truths through experiencing the judgment and exposure of God’s words, and they reveal these corrupt dispositions less and less. Why are these corrupt dispositions revealed less and less? It is because after understanding the truth, they realize that these behaviors and manifestations are revelations of corrupt dispositions. Only at this point does their conscience become aware, and they see that they are deeply corrupt and do indeed lack the semblance of a human. They then become willing to pursue the truth and think about how to cast off these corrupt dispositions, and how they can break free from their bondage, and become someone who pursues and practices the truth. What is this manifestation? Isn’t this gradually repenting? (Yes.) In the process of experiencing God’s work, they discover their own problems, recognize their corrupt dispositions, and understand their various states. They also come to know their humanity essence, and their conscience becomes increasingly aware; they increasingly feel that they are deeply corrupt and unfit for God’s use and that they have earned God’s loathing, and they detest themselves inside. Unconsciously, they gradually repent deep down in their hearts, and with this repentance, some slight changes occur, slight changes that can be seen in their behavior. For example, originally, when someone exposed their problems, they would feel resentful, fly into an embarrassed rage, and try to explain and justify themselves, making every effort to find various excuses and reasons to defend themselves. Through continuous experiences, however, they come to realize that this behavior is wrong and begin to rectify this state and behavior, working hard to accept correct views, striving for harmonious collaboration with others. When matters befall them, they learn to seek from and fellowship with others, and they learn to communicate from the heart and get along amicably with others. Are these manifestations of repentance? (Yes.) After believing in God, they gradually gain a true understanding of some of the dispositions, behaviors and manifestations of antichrists which they reveal. They then gradually cast off their corrupt dispositions, and are able to abandon their previous wrong ways of living, and give up the pursuit of fame and status, and are able to act, conduct themselves, and do their duty according to the truth principles. How is such a change achieved? Is it achieved through accepting the truth and continuously turning themselves around and repenting? (Yes.) These things are all achieved in the process of continuous repentance. Subsequently, their state certainly improves, their stature also grows as their experiences deepen, and when things befall them, they are able to reflect on themselves. Whether they encounter setbacks or failures, or they are pruned, they bring these matters before God and pray to Him, and can also correlate, dissect, and understand their corrupt state while reading God’s words. Although they may still reveal corruption and develop erroneous thoughts when things befall them, they are able to reflect on and rebel against themselves. As long as they become aware of these issues, they can continuously seek the truth to resolve them and practice repentance. Although this progress is very slow and the results are minimal, they are continuously changing in the innermost depths of their hearts. People of this type always maintain a proactive, positive, self-motivated attitude and state of turning themselves around and repenting. Although they sometimes vie with others for fame and status and reveal some manifestations and actions of antichrists to varying degrees, after experiencing some prunings, judgments, and chastisements, or God’s discipline, these corrupt dispositions are cast off and transformed to varying degrees. The main root cause for the achievement of these results is that this type of person can, in the depths of their heart, reflect on and understand their corrupt dispositions and the wrong paths they have taken, and can turn themselves around. Although the changes, growth, and gains from their turnaround are very small, and progress is very slow, to the extent that they themselves might not even notice, after three to five years of such experiences, they can feel some changes in themselves, and those around them can also see it. In any case, there is a difference between such people who have the disposition of antichrists and those who are antichrists. What is the main characteristic in this regard? (People with the disposition of antichrists are able to repent.) When they do something wrong, commit a transgression, or encounter pruning, judgment and chastisement, chastening or discipline, they can repent. Even when they realize that they have done wrong or made a mistake, they can reflect on themselves and have an attitude of turning themselves around and repenting within their hearts. This is a characteristic difference that sets people with the disposition of antichrists completely apart from antichrists.