After fellowshipping on the topic of what a church is, you now have some understanding of the formation of a church, the work a church does, and the results it achieves. You can also understand some of the value and significance of a church’s existence. So, can we now make an accurate definition of what exactly a church is? First of all, a church is not a place to provide people with emotional comfort, nor is it a place to ensure people are well-fed and clothed or to give people refuge. A church is not a place to ensure people’s physical rights and interests or resolve the difficulties they face in life. It is not a place to fill people’s spiritual voids and provide spiritual sustenance. Since churches are not what people assume them to be according to their notions and imaginings, then just what is the specific definition of a church? What exactly is a church? In the Bible, the Lord Jesus gave a fundamental description of the designation of a church. How exactly did He put it? (“For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the middle of them” (Matthew 18:20).) These words mean that no matter how many people are gathered together, so long as they have the work of the Holy Spirit and they feel God there with them, that place is a church—exactly that. In the last days, God has appeared to work and express the truth. When people come together to eat and drink, pray-read and fellowship God’s words, God is present there, and so is the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, which means that God recognizes it as a church. If people gather but do not eat and drink the words of God, if they merely parrot empty spiritual doctrines, and they are unable to feel the work of the Holy Spirit, then it is not a church, for it is not recognized by God, and so it does not have the work of the Holy Spirit. Gatherings where God is present are blessed and guided by Him, and when people come together at such gatherings, no matter whether they are eating and drinking God’s words, fellowshipping the truth, or using the truth to resolve problems, these are all connected to God’s requirements and leadership, and are therefore all blessed by Him. That is why, as long as a kind of gathering has the guidance, leadership, and presence of God, it can be called a church. This is the simplest, most fundamental definition of a church, and it was the definition of a church during the Age of Grace. It was born out of the context of God’s work at that time, and is therefore accurate and holds true. But during this stage of work of judgment in the last days, because God has spoken more words, and has done greater work, the definition of a church must go deeper than that fundamental definition from the Age of Grace. God’s work has progressed further. A church no longer merely features the work of the Holy Spirit and the presence of God. Now God is personally working in His churches, guiding and shepherding them; God’s chosen people are able to eat and drink His present words, and follow and bear testimony to Christ. Therefore, the definition of a church in the last days is more advanced than it was in the Age of Grace; it is a more profound, more accurate, and more specific description than before, and it is of course inseparable from the truth and the words of God. So what is the most accurate and appropriate way of defining a church? Firstly, the basic definition should be a group of people who sincerely follow God. More specifically, a church is a group of people who sincerely follow God, who are governed by His words, pursue the truth, practice and experience His words, and can submit to and worship God, follow His will, and attain His salvation. The key part of this definition is “a group of people.” A church is not a place, or a collective, or a community, much less is it a mere gathering of people with faith. The “group” can be made up of a dozen or so people, or thirty to fifty people, or of course even greater numbers. They can gather together, or they can split into smaller groups to gather; this is flexible and changeable. In short, when these followers of God exalt, testify to, and worship Him, and follow His will, they are a church. No matter how many of them gather together, they are still a church. For example, 50 people are called a small church, and 100 people are called a large church—the size of the church is determined by the number of members. There are large-, medium-, and small-scale churches, the number of people in a church is not fixed. Let us look once more at the definition of a church: a group of people who sincerely follow God, who are governed by His words, pursue the truth, practice and experience His words, and can submit to and worship God, follow His will, and attain His salvation. Why is a church defined in this way? Because God wants to work in the churches, and God wishes to save that group of people. Only this kind of group of people can be called a church. And it is only when a group of people like this come together that they can eat and drink God’s words normally and practice them, and truly pray to God, submit to Him, and worship Him. That group of people is governed and led by God’s words; so, it is through such a group of people that the definition of a church is produced. Because people in religions do not accept the truth and do not accept God’s work, and God does not save them, they are not a church, they are a religious community. This is the clearest difference between a church and religion. Only a church is governed by God’s words, and only a church personally shepherded by Christ is governed by God’s words. What does it mean to be governed by God’s words? Do we need to mention the work of the Holy Spirit, or the guidance, enlightenment, and illumination of the Holy Spirit here? (No.) Tell Me, which is more practical: being governed by God’s words, or having the work of the Holy Spirit? (Being governed by God’s words.) Being governed by God’s words is more practical and more concrete. The work of the Holy Spirit merely provides people with some enlightenment and illumination to help them understand the truth and lead them to find principles of practice in God’s words. The achieved result is that they are governed by God’s words. If the Holy Spirit did not work, could people still fulfill their duties by understanding God’s words and grasping principles? (Yes.) Now, God’s words have been spoken so much; people often listen to sermons and can understand God’s words. Even without the work of the Holy Spirit, people know what to do. Those who love the truth can practice God’s words and submit to God’s work as long as they understand the truth. Those who do not love the truth will not understand God’s words even if they hear them, and even if they understand a little, they will be unwilling to practice, and thus can only be eliminated. In the last days, God directly expresses the truth to personally lead and shepherd people. The work of the Holy Spirit is only auxiliary. It is like when a child is just learning to walk; sometimes an adult will lend a hand to help. Once the child can walk steadily and run, there is no need for someone to support them. Therefore, the work of the Holy Spirit is not absolute, nor is it crucial. When people are governed by God’s words, it means that they understand God’s words, understand the truth, and know what God’s words mean and what the principles and standards that God requires of people are, and that they can understand and apply these principles and standards. This is what it means for people’s hearts to be governed by God’s words. God has already spoken about these things with sufficient clarity and perspicuity, so there is no need to mention the work of the Holy Spirit here. In the last days, God has expressed so many truths, making each truth clear and understandable to people. Therefore, the work of the Holy Spirit is not as important and is only auxiliary. It is only when people do not understand the truth or when God had not spoken so many words with such thoroughness and clarity that the Holy Spirit does some work of an auxiliary, prompting nature, which provides people with some simple light and serves to urge them a bit, helping them to make correct choices and walk the right path in their lives and various environments. Now is the era of God’s words, where God personally speaks to lead humankind, and God’s words dominate everything. The work of the Holy Spirit is only auxiliary. When people understand the truth, can practice God’s words, and live by God’s words, God’s intentions are satisfied.

Let’s look at the first phrase in the basic definition of a church: “Sincerely follow God.” This “sincerely” has a specific meaning. It does not refer to those who are just passing time, those who are merely filling up seats in name only, those who eat their fill of loaves, those who rely on grace for salvation, or those who have any ulterior motives and goals. So, what does “sincerely” mean? The most basic and simplest explanation is this: As long as someone hears about God, the truth, or the Creator, they feel a yearning in their hearts, willingly forsake, willingly devote themselves, willingly endure hardship, and are willing to come before God to accept God’s call, and abandon everything to follow God. As long as they have a sincere heart, that is enough. Some people say: “Why don’t You say it is a group of people full of faith who follow God?” People cannot reach that level. Of those doing their duties now, some have believed for about ten years, and some have believed for twenty or thirty years; having this sincerity is basically enough. Defining it as being full of faith is not accurate. Our definition of a church is based on a basic and specific situation, without nitpicking words or setting the definition and standard too high, as that would be impractical. Some people say, “Saying ‘sincerely’ and ‘full of faith’ is not enough. It should be called a group of righteous people who fear God and shun evil—that would be great!” If we set the standard this high, then the subsequent phrases, “pursue the truth, practice and experience His words,” would all be unnecessary. The key point is that all the members of the church are those whom God wants to save. This group of people is filled with Satan’s corrupt dispositions and full of notions and imaginings about God. Speaking more realistically, they are full of rebellion, lack submission, do not understand the truth, and have no knowledge of God at all—this is the most realistic situation. Therefore, in God’s eyes, church members are in such a real situation and actual status. God’s selection of people is based on this basic condition: whether they can sincerely follow God, and genuinely expend themselves and forsake. Some people say, “If they are sincere, then why do they still have extravagant desires? If they are sincere, why do they still want to gain blessings?” These will gradually change as people experience God’s work. Right now, we are defining the basic concept of a church. This basic concept is the minimum requirement and the lowest standard for God’s selection of people. These standards are not empty or exaggerated at all; they are particularly in line with your real situation. In other words, when God chooses you and decides to save any one of you, these are the criteria God looks at. If you meet these requirements, you are brought into God’s house by God and become a member of the church. This is the actual situation. Therefore, the first phrase in the definition of a church is “sincerely follow God”; this is relatively accurate. This group of people fall short of fearing God and shunning evil, they fall short of being able to break away from the dark influence, and they fall short of completely rebelling against the world and the great red dragon. They fall short of all these things. Why? Because the definition further mentions being able to pursue the practice of God’s words. In the process of pursuing, because people have a heart that loves the truth and yearns for the truth, they can experience and practice God’s words, and ultimately, they can worship God. Worshiping God entails submitting to God, listening to God’s words, accepting God’s orchestrations, and accepting God’s sovereignty and arrangements. Ultimately, this group of people can attain salvation. This is the actual status of church members in God’s eyes. Is this not the most basic condition? (Yes.) Some people say, “You didn’t mention casting off Satan’s corrupt dispositions and achieving purification. This definition of a church doesn’t include these.” Are they included in this definition? (Yes.) Which part includes them? Pursuing to practice God’s words. If you can pursue to practice God’s words, aren’t your corrupt dispositions gradually resolved? Aren’t you able to cast off Satan’s corrupt dispositions and achieve a change in disposition? (Yes.) During the period of achieving a change in disposition, you gradually understand God’s words and resolve your own corrupt dispositions. As you resolve some of your corrupt dispositions, does your faith in God and submission to God increase? Is there a connection between these? (Yes.) The more you worship God, the more submission to God you will have. As your submission to God increases, aren’t you getting closer to attaining salvation? (Yes.) So, what kind of people are this group? They are those who can attain salvation. This is the actual situation of church members. Some say, “This definition of a church doesn’t mention the work the church engages in.” Is there any part here related to the essential work a church engages in? (Pursuing the attainment of salvation.) This part is closely related. The work a church does, whether it is spreading God’s words or leading people to eat and drink God’s words, helping people to know themselves and cast off Satan’s corrupt dispositions, ultimately aims to help people attain salvation. So, can you accept this most basic and simplest concept of a church now? (Yes.) This definition is not exaggerated or empty, and it does not use high-sounding terms and phrases, but it includes the most basic needs for the formation or definition of a church.

Do you understand the background of the definition of the concept of a church, now that I’ve explained it to you? (Yes.) If I hadn’t explained it this way, you would think that the essential work of a church and the definition of a church were very profound. Now that you understand the definition of a church, you feel that your understanding of a church is so superficial. The definition of a church has been made clear—it is just that practical. The more practical things are, the more people often feel they are superficial. Actually, if you look closely, every word of this definition is linked and closely related to practical and specific situations, and isn’t superficial at all. The first phrase in the definition of a church is “sincerely follow God.” This “sincerely” is what God wants. How many people possess such sincerity? Is it easy for people to have this sincerity? It is not easy. As for “governed by God’s words,” have you achieved that yet? You think this phrase is superficial and easy to achieve. If God says, “Rise, follow Me, and do your duty,” and people obey, does this mean they are governed by God’s words? This only means that people are willing to believe in God and follow God, but they have not reached the point where they are governed by God’s words—they are still far from it! What do you need to possess in order to be governed by God’s words? The minimum requirement is that you must understand God’s words; you need to know what the requirements in God’s words are referring to, what principles are required by God’s words, and, when facing various people, events, and things, how to apply God’s words, and how to turn God’s words into your practice to satisfy God. This is not easy. A long period of eating and drinking, pray-reading, experiencing, tasting, and understanding God’s words, and an understanding of God’s intentions and God’s disposition, are required in order to gradually come to be somewhat governed by God’s words. Therefore, the phrase “governed by God’s words” seems simple on the surface, as if most people are governed by God’s words, but actually that is not the case. Judging from people’s actual situations, it is clear that this phrase is merely God’s requirement of people, which they have not achieved yet at all. The next phrase, “pursue to practice His words,” is God’s requirement for people. You have not yet achieved the practice of God’s words; you are merely pursuing to practice God’s words. How should you pursue? When you encounter situations, practice according to God’s requirements. Do not lie; be an honest person. Can you do that? It is not easy to do. When you are pruned, you should be able to submit and reflect upon and know yourself, and practice according to the truth. Can you achieve this? If it feels strenuous or if your own will is too strong, and you always want to let your impetuousness burst forth, then you must pursue to handle matters according to principles, and not expose your impetuousness or act in a willful and arbitrary way; you must do as God’s words say, accept pruning, come to know your transgressions, and understand where you went wrong. This is called pursuing to practice God’s words. Does starting to practice God’s words mean that a person has changed? It’s not that simple. If you are chosen as a leader or worker, can you refrain from acting willfully and arbitrarily? It is not easy; it requires you to understand the truth, be able to practice God’s words, and experience for a period of time; only then can you achieve this. If you say you want to practice God’s words but only have this verbal willingness and no motivation in your heart, that won’t do. When your heart is willing, and you really want to practice the truth, you can put the truth into practice. When you are unwilling to practice the truth in your heart, even if you make an oath or if others support you, it will be of no use. You must have the resolve, that is, you must have a heart with a tremendous desire for God. You need to know how God defines a matter and what He requires in regard to it, find and collect all of God’s words related to this aspect, and then pray-read and understand them. Write them down in a notebook or place them where you can easily see them. During your work breaks, look at them, read them, and over time, you will memorize these words of God and keep them in your heart. Every day, ponder the true meaning of God’s words and contemplate just what way of speaking and acting counts as practicing God’s words. This is called pursuing to practice God’s words. Is it easy to achieve? It is not easy; it is not something that can be accomplished overnight or with a burst of effort. Some people say, “I swear an oath in blood,” but it is useless. You say, “I will fast and pray without eating or drinking,” but it is useless. You say, “I will stay up all night and suffer,” but it is useless, too. You must pursue the truth; you must possess manifestations of pursuing the truth, and you must have a path for pursuing the truth; you must have the right means and methods. No matter what kinds of means or methods you have, you cannot depart from God’s words; you must put effort into God’s words, compare everything against God’s words, use God’s words to solve problems in every situation, and make God’s words your top priority. This is called pursuing the truth. For example, in terms of interacting with others, you need to see what God’s words say about this and find the words of God that relate to interacting with others. For harmonious cooperation, also find God’s words regarding this aspect. Regarding loyally performing a duty, find God’s words about the up-to-standard performance of duties and memorize the essential words of God, keeping them in your heart. As for what a false leader is, what manifestations false leaders have, whether they have conscience and reason, and how God defines false leaders, find these key words of God and write them down in a notebook, place them where you can easily see them, and pray-read them whenever you have time. For every matter that relates to your life entry and dispositional change, practice and exert effort in this way. This is called pursuing the truth. If your effort does not reach this level, it is not called pursuing the truth; it is called going through the motions, skimming the surface, and muddling through your days.

Let’s look at “worship God.” Worshiping God involves genuine dread, fear, respect, and sincerity, as well as treating God as God, having a place for God in one’s heart, dealing rationally with the environments God has arranged and the commissions God has given, and seriously and responsibly treating every word that God has said, etc. All these manifestations are called worship. Whether it is words spoken to you face-to-face by God or all the words that He has ever expressed, as long as you know and remember them, and as long as you understand and confirm them in your heart, you should treat them as the criteria for how you conduct yourself, live, etc.—this is the manifestation of worshiping God. When faced with matters, regardless of whether they conform to your own tastes, desires, or notions, you should still be able to quiet your heart and consider, “Was this done by God? Did it originate from God? Why did God do this? What does God want to refine in me, what does He want to transform in me? What exactly is God’s intention? How should I submit to God’s arrangements? How should I satisfy God’s intention? How should I fulfill my responsibility as a human being?” All of these manifestations, in addition to other such ones, are manifestations of worshiping God. Even if you do not understand more truth, as a normal person, as someone who believes in the existence of God, as someone who sincerely follows God, this is the attitude you should at least have toward God. Everything involving God, everything concerning God’s words, everything about God’s commission to you, your duty, and your responsibility, you should treat all these with care and caution, not carelessly, not negligently, not contemptuously—this is called worshiping God. To deal with everything related to God with a cautious, careful, God-fearing, God-dreading heart—this is called worshiping God. Is this easy to achieve? It is not easy. Without real experience, even understanding the two words “worship God” is difficult, let alone actually practicing worshiping God. The last phrase of the definition of a church is “attain His salvation.” How should this be understood? The path to attaining salvation is long, and even more is required here. First, the path you walk must be right; you must be able to accept all the truths in God’s words, and be someone who pursues to practice God’s words and submits to God. Your life must be governed by God’s words. You must not only acknowledge God’s existence but also love the truth and act according to the truth; you must have genuine fear of and submission to God, often pray to God in your heart, and gradually transition to worshiping God. Then you are someone who loves the truth and submits to God; you are precisely the kind of person God wants to save. A person who sincerely believes in God must be a right person. What is the benefit of being a right person? The benefit is that attaining salvation will not be too difficult for you; you will have hope of attaining it. This is all the fellowship we will carry out on the specific details of the definition of a church.

Just now, we fellowshipped about what a church is, the essential work a church does, and what people imagine about and require from a church within their notions. Finally, we provided a definition for the concept of a church. Now that it has been defined, you should now have an accurate understanding of the designation “church”; you should have a basic understanding of the work a church should do, the role a church plays in helping people gain the truth and attain salvation, and the significance of a church for everyone who follows God. We also briefly carried out a representative dissection and exposure of what people believe is the value of the existence of a church and the work a church should do in their notions. Is there anything you are unable to see through or comprehend about the understandings and interpretations that people have regarding churches in their notions? Some people think a church should engage in some kind of work in society or have some sort of role in society, such as upholding justice. In people’s notions, the church represents a positive image, so why can’t it uphold justice? Does upholding justice have anything to do with a church’s work or God’s requirements? (No.) What does this “upholding justice” that people speak about refer to? (What people call upholding justice is not true justice. It’s just safeguarding the interests of the flesh and it does not align with the truth.) Does this justice have anything to do with the truth? (No.) This is what humankind calls justice. For example, beating down some evil forces, rectifying some injustices and instances of people being wronged and humiliated, or rendering deserved punishment onto evil people, and restoring and protecting the interests of vulnerable groups, and so on—these are what people call upholding justice. What is the main purpose of this upholding of justice? Does it have anything to do with people pursuing the truth? Does it have anything to do with people being saved? (No.) This is merely a saying that arises on the basis of human morality and ethics; it has absolutely nothing to do with the truth. Can we say it does not rise to the level of the truth? (Yes.) Can we? (No; the two are unrelated.) Right, they are completely unrelated; they are two different things. What sort of justice does humankind uphold? It is the sort where, after a common person of slightly lower social status is oppressed or deprived of any rights or interests by evil people, the evil people are duly punished, and the common or ordinary person no longer suffers mistreatment. It is about restoring and guaranteeing people’s fleshly interests, achieving relative equality between people, eliminating gaps between social tiers, and ensuring that evil people do not succeed in their evil deeds, and that the grievances of those wronged are redressed. This is what humankind calls upholding justice, and it has absolutely nothing to do with the truth. How can you still say that it does not rise to the level of the truth? Is it related to the truth? No, it is not. Tell Me, are those ordinary and common people who have suffered grievances necessarily good people? (Not necessarily.) To stop them from suffering grievances—is that justice? Does that accord with the truth? Can those people then be saved? These are clearly two different matters—how can they be conflated? There is no question of this rising to the level of the truth; it is simply not the same thing as the truth. If you have some contentions about this issue, then perhaps the majority of you cannot see through the matter of upholding justice and are still somewhat attached to it, thinking, “How can this be wrong? How can this not be the work a church should do?” In fact, this has nothing to do with the work of a church. There are also some people who think that a church should be a place where evil is punished and good is promoted, that it should serve this function, punishing evil deeds and evil, dark forces, while promoting good and virtuous things. Is this the case? Can punishing evil and promoting good rise to the level of the truth? When it comes to evil and good, people cannot distinguish between them clearly. What do people mean by punishing evil and promoting good? Is it related to the punishing of evil, rewarding of good, and separating of all according to their own kind that God speaks of? (No.) It is unrelated. What is humankind’s standard for defining evil and good? According to the definition of Chinese people, what is evil and what is good? What is the basis for their definition of evil and good? It is Buddhist culture. Buddhism speaks of concepts like helping the world and saving people, abstaining from killing, and so on—these are considered good, while eating chicken, fish, beef, or lamb is considered evil and people who do so should be punished. No meat should be eaten, and no living creatures should be killed. Killing is considered evil, and those who kill should confess and plead for forgiveness before Buddha. This is the Buddhist definition of evil; is it the same as the evil that God speaks of? (No.) They are two different things, so that definition of evil has absolutely nothing to do with the truth and certainly cannot rise to the level of the truth. So, what does Buddhism mean by good? It is even more absurd, superficial, and hypocritical. Buddhists believe that not killing any living creatures is good and freeing captive animals is good. Regardless of how many people an evil person has killed or how many sins they have committed, if they lay down the butcher’s knife, they can immediately become a Buddha—this is considered good. There’s also the saying, “Saving one life beats building a seven-tier pagoda,” which means blindly saving people unconditionally and without principles—even saving devils, evil people, thugs, hooligans, and anyone else—is considered good. What kind of good is this? Such people are dimwits, without any discernment, stance, or principles. Saving anyone and forgiving anyone—can that be considered good? It is not even worthy of the word; this is a pretense of Satan and devils. They do not kill animals but have devoured countless souls. This is their so-called good, which is actually just a pretense. So, does the human notion that the church should play the role of punishing evil and promoting good hold up? (No.) Regardless of the cultural background of any race or religion, punishing evil and promoting good has nothing to do with the work of a church or the testimony of a church. Do not think that because these terms seem just and commendatory, they should be related to a church’s work or that this is the role a church should play in society. This is a human notion and imagining. Besides “upholding justice” and “punishing evil and promoting good,” other good terms according to human notions like “fighting for people’s rights and interests” and “alleviating worries and resolving difficulties” also have no connection to a church’s work or the testimony of a church. You all should be able to understand this. The definition of a church, the work a church should do, and the value and significance of a church’s existence have more or less been fellowshipped clearly.