I. Being Capable of Leaving at Any Time

The ninth manifestation is: “Being capable of leaving at any time.” This type of person who is capable of leaving God’s house at any time is not someone who only leaves when they encounter a special situation, or when they encounter a great disaster beyond what an average person can bear, exceeding their limit. Rather, they are capable of leaving at any time—even a small matter can cause them to leave; even a small matter can cause them to not want to do their duty anymore, to not want to believe in God anymore, and to want to leave God’s house. This type of person is also a huge pain. On the surface, they may seem slightly better than people who are Judases, but they are capable of leaving God’s house at any time and any place. Whether or not they are capable of selling out the brothers and sisters is uncertain. Do you think this kind of person is reliable? (No.) So, do they have principles when it comes to how to be a person? Do they have a foundation in believing in God? (No.) Do they show any sign of truly believing? (No.) Then what kind of person are they? (A disbeliever.) They believe in God and do their duty as if it were all a joke. They’re like someone not attending to proper tasks going out to buy some soy sauce, who sees street acrobats or performers creating a lively scene and gets caught up in the excitement and forgets about buying the soy sauce, ending up delaying proper matters. People of this sort do not stick to anything for long; they are half-hearted and fickle. Their belief in God is also based on their interest—they feel it is quite fun to believe in God, but at some point when they lose interest in it, they will leave immediately without any reluctance. Some who leave go into business right away, some pursue an official career path, some get involved in romantic relationships and prepare for marriage, and some who want to get rich quickly head straight to the casino. People say that after not seeing someone for three days, they should be looked at with fresh eyes. For someone who is capable of leaving God’s house at any time, if you don’t see them for just one day, when you meet them again, they are like a completely different person. Yesterday, they were still dressed decently and properly, appearing well-behaved and presentable. They even prayed to God with tears streaming down their face, saying they wanted to dedicate their youth and shed their blood for God, to die for God, to be loyal unto death, and to enter the kingdom. They shouted such lofty slogans, but shortly afterward, they went to the casino. Yesterday, they were happy to do their duty, and during the gathering, they read God’s words with a glowing face and boiling with enthusiasm, moved to the point of wailing tearfully. So how is it they ran off to the casino today? They gambled late into the night without wanting to go home, having plenty of fun and boiling with enthusiasm. Yesterday, they were still attending gatherings, but today they’ve run off to the casino—so, just which manifestation is the real them? (The latter one is the real them.) If one does not understand the truth, they really cannot see through to just what this person is. The two manifestations, both before and after, are actually displayed by the same person—so how is it that it seems like they are displayed by two different people? A person such as this cannot be seen through by most people. You see that as a believer in God they often attend gatherings, do not commit evil, and are quite able to endure hardship and pay a price in doing their duty. When sitting in front of the computer, they are focused and diligent, working hard and putting their heart into it. You would think that as someone who believes in God, they shouldn’t be playing Mahjong, right? But after just one day without seeing them, they’ve run off to the Mahjong hall or the casino to gamble. And they’re a first-rate Mahjong player—they don’t look like a person who believes in God at all! They’ve got you totally stumped—are they someone who believes in God, or a nonbeliever who plays Mahjong? How can they switch roles so quickly? When they believe in God, then, do they have God in their heart? (No.) They believe in God just to have fun and pass the time, to see what believing in God is all about and whether it can bring happiness to their life. If they aren’t happy, they are capable of leaving at any time. They never planned to believe for their entire life, and they certainly never planned to do their duty and follow God for their entire life. So what have they planned? In their mind, if they are truly to believe in God, then at the very least it must not hinder their ability to have fun, must not involve doing any work, and must still guarantee they can live a happy life. If they have to read God’s words and fellowship about the truth every day, then they won’t be interested or happy. Once they get tired of it, they will leave the church and run back to the world. They think, “Life is not easy, so people shouldn’t mistreat themselves. We must be the masters of our own fate and not mistreat our flesh. We must ensure that we’re happy every day—that’s the only way to live freely. Believing in god shouldn’t be done obdurately. Look at how easygoing I am—wherever there’s happiness, that’s where I go. If I’m not happy, I’ll leave. Why should I make things uncomfortable for myself? Being capable of leaving at any time is my highest credo for how to be a person, being a ‘free-spirited believer’—living like this is so comfortable and carefree!” What kind of songs do people of this sort often sing? “Don’t ask me where I come from, my hometown is far away.” If not, then what else do they sing? “Why not live freely just once?” When they feel it’s boring or not fun anymore, they quickly leave, thinking, “Why stick to one place when there’s so much more to see in the world?” What’s another famous saying they use? “Why give up an entire forest for the sake of one tree?” What do you think—do people of this sort have true belief? (No, they are disbelievers.) When it comes to disbelievers, since we are talking about how their problems are all problems of humanity, then what exactly is wrong with the humanity of such people? Do you think people of this sort have ever considered questions like how to be a person, what path people should walk, or what kind of outlook on life and values people should have as they live? (No.) So, what is the problem with the humanity of this kind of person? (This kind of person lacks the conscience and reason of normal humanity; they do not consider such questions.) That’s for sure. In addition, to be precise, this kind of person has no soul; they are just a walking corpse. They have no requirements of their own regarding how to be a person or what path one should walk, nor do they consider these things. The reason they don’t consider these things is because, although they have the appearance of a human on the outside, their essence is actually that of a walking corpse, a hollow shell. This kind of person has an attitude of just drifting through life when it comes to matters of human life and survival. To be specific, “drifting through life” means just muddling along and waiting for death, not learning and remaining ignorant, spending their days eating, drinking, and having fun. They go wherever there is happiness, and whatever makes them feel happy and joyful, and comfortable in the flesh, is what they will do. But they will avoid and stay far away from anything that causes their flesh to suffer or brings inner pain; they simply don’t want their flesh to endure hardship. However, there are some people who experience life through enduring hardship. Or, by going through and experiencing various things, they make it so that their lives are not empty and they can gain something from it. In the end, they come to the conclusion of what path one should walk and what kind of person one should be. Through life experiences, they gain a lot. For one thing, they are able to see through certain people; additionally, they are able to conclude what principles and methods a person should use to treat various people, events, and things, and how a person should live their whole life. Regardless of whether what they ultimately conclude aligns with the truth or goes against it, at the very least, they have given it thought. On the other hand, those who are capable of leaving God’s house at any time have no interest in pursuing the truth or doing their duty in believing in God. They are always looking for opportunities to satisfy their own lustful desires and their preferences, and never want to diligently learn a professional skill in doing their duty, do their duty well, or live out a meaningful life. They just want to be like nonbelievers, happy and joyful every day. Thus, wherever they go, they look for fun and amusement, just to satisfy their own interests and curiosity. If they have to keep doing one duty, they lose interest and no longer have the motivation to continue doing it. With people of this sort, their attitude toward life is just to muddle along. On the surface, it seems as if they live in a very free and easygoing way, not fussing over things with others. They appear cheerful and carefree every day, able to adapt to circumstances wherever they go. Some even seem unaffected and unrestrained by worldly customs or conventions of human relations, giving the outward impression that they are extraordinary and above the common crowd. But actually, their essence is that of a walking corpse, a thing without a soul. Those who believe in God but are capable of leaving the church at any time never stick with anything they do for long—they can only maintain a temporary enthusiasm. But people with a conscience and reason are different. No matter what duty they are doing, they learn it seriously and strive to do it well. They are able to accomplish something and create some value. For one thing, they are able to gain the recognition of those around them, and at the same time, they can feel confident inside, seeing that they are capable of doing something and are useful people, not worthless ones. This is the minimum that a person with the conscience and reason of normal humanity can achieve. But as for those who drift through life, they never think about these things. Wherever they go, it’s just eating, drinking, and having fun. Outwardly, it may seem like they live very freely and at ease, but actually such people have no thoughts in their heads. In everything they do, they are never serious; they are always cursory and motivated by a short-lived enthusiasm, never accomplishing anything. They want to muddle along for their entire lives, and wherever they go, they carry this same attitude—not even their belief in God is an exception to this. You may see that during a certain period, it seems like they are quite serious about doing their duty and are able to endure hardship and pay a price, but no matter who points out their problems or tells them how to do things, they never take it seriously and do not accept the truth at all. They just do things however they want—as long as they are happy, it’s fine for them. And if they are not happy, they go off to have fun, not listening to anyone’s advice. In their hearts, they think, “I never planned to believe in god for the long term anyway.” If someone prunes them, they are capable of leaving immediately. This is one of the manifestations of people who are capable of leaving the church at any time.

Those who are capable of leaving the church at any time have another type of manifestation. Some people—no matter how many years they have believed in God, no matter whether they appear to have a foundation or not, and no matter what duty they may have performed before—once they encounter a special circumstance that involves their own personal interests, can just up and disappear. At any time, it’s possible for other people to lose contact with them, and no longer see them in the church, while having no idea what’s going on with them. Some people, when they encounter someone of the opposite sex trying to seduce them, stop doing their duty and go off to date, becoming completely unreachable. There are also others whose children have reached the age of marriage, and they become busy arranging their children’s marriages, no longer doing their duty and no longer participating in gatherings. No matter who looks for them, they are turned away at the door. Some people, when their parents or spouse are sick and hospitalized, or when something major happens or an unexpected disaster occurs at home, will—if they are true believers in God—give an explanation, saying, “There have been some matters at home recently that I need to take care of, so I can’t attend gatherings. I need to request a leave of absence, and if you can find someone suitable, please have them temporarily take over my duty without delay.” At the very least, they will give some notice and explanation. But those who are capable of leaving the church at any time cut off contact with the church without saying a word, and no matter how the brothers and sisters try, they can’t get in touch with them. It’s not that they don’t have the means to be contacted—any method could reach them—but they simply don’t want to contact or respond to the brothers and sisters. They say, “Why should I get in touch with you? I do my duty voluntarily; I’m not getting paid for it. If I want to leave, I’ll leave! If there’s something going on at home, that’s my personal business. I’m not obligated to inform you, and you don’t have any right to know!” Some people leave for a month or two and then come back to report in without even feeling embarrassed, acting as if nothing happened. Others leave for two or three years and are completely unreachable. People in the church, not knowing the situation, think that since this person has believed in God for many years, it’s impossible that they would leave the church. They assume something unexpected must have happened and worry whether they were arrested by the CCP. In actuality, it’s just that the person doesn’t want to believe in God anymore and left without notifying the brothers and sisters. Some people leave for about ten days and then come back; this doesn’t mean they’ve stopped believing. Some people leave and then are gone for two or three years—would you say they’ve stopped believing? (Yes.) They have indeed stopped believing, and they should be struck off. This isn’t an ordinary departure; they’ve stopped believing. From a human perspective, this is called no longer believing. How does God view this? In God’s eyes, this is called denying God, not following God, and it is rejecting God. But from their perspective, they think, “I haven’t rejected god; I still believe in god in my heart!” See? They just brush it off lightly. There are also others who stop attending gatherings and stop doing their duty just because they are in a bad mood or feel upset inside, because they think that doing their duty is too hard and tiring, or because they were pruned a little. They leave without even explaining anything about the work they had on hand, saying, “No one contact me. I’m not happy, and I don’t want to believe anymore!” When they get upset, it can last for a year or so. Their temper is really something—they can’t snap out of it for a year or so! Some people take on the work of leaders and workers in the church, but not only do they fail to do the work well, they also recklessly commit misdeeds, bringing disruptions and disturbances to the church’s work. Later, the brothers and sisters don’t elect them, and also discern and expose them in fellowship. So they start thinking, “Is this a criticism session against me? I just didn’t do the work well, is it really such a big deal? Why are they fellowshipping and exposing me like this? In all my years, I’ve never suffered such grievance! Before I believed in god, I was always the one upbraiding others; nobody ever upbraided me. When have I ever endured such hardship before? You’re all picking on me, making me feel humiliated. I won’t believe anymore!” Just like that, they stop believing. Those who say this are not just young people—some are those who have believed in God for eight or ten years and are in their forties or fifties, yet they can also say such things when they’re unhappy. Do such people have a place for God in their hearts? Do they take believing in God as the most important thing in life? It’s normal to feel a bit negative and weak when pruned or when encountering disasters or setbacks, but these things shouldn’t lead one to not believe in God. Such people are not sincere believers in God. Sincere believers in God can persist in their belief even when they are arrested and persecuted—only these are people who have testimony. Some people, when encountering a bit of natural disaster, if the brothers and sisters either don’t know about it or find out a bit late and don’t help them in time, start thinking, “I’m facing difficulties and no one is paying attention to me. So, they look down on me! Believing in god is pointless. I won’t believe anymore!” Just because of such a small matter, they can stop believing in God. This is one of the manifestations of people who are capable of leaving the church at any time.

There is another situation for those who are capable of leaving the church at any time. The CCP, in order to win them to its side, offers them a good job, saying to them, “You earn nothing by believing in god. What prospects could you possibly have? We’ve found you a position at a foreign company with a high monthly salary, good benefits, and labor insurance. There’s no future for you in believing in god; it’s better to work, earn money, and live a good life.” In the end, they leave the church and go to work. Someone says, “Yesterday this person was still doing their duty in the church. Why have they packed their things and left today?” They are going to work and earn money; they no longer believe in God. They leave without saying a word, and from then on, they go a separate way from the brothers and sisters, becoming people on a different path. They want to pursue fame and gain, to rise high and stand out, and they no longer believe in God. There are also people who, while preaching the gospel, meet someone they like, get involved with them, and go off to live out their days together. Not only do they stop doing their duty, but they even stop believing in God. Their parents at home are still unaware, thinking that they are doing their duty in God’s house. In actuality, this person vanished long ago—who knows, they might even have had a child by now. Doing one’s duty is so important, yet they can even abandon such crucial work as preaching the gospel. When they meet someone they like, or someone who likes them, a few simple seductive and enticing words from that someone are enough to lead them away. They are so frivolous and casual, capable of leaving God and betraying God at any time and place. No matter how many years such people have believed in God or how many sermons they have listened to, they still don’t understand a bit of the truth. To them, believing in God is simply not important, and doing their duty doesn’t matter either—for the sake of gaining blessings, they feel they have no choice but to do these things. As soon as there is a personal matter or a family issue, they are capable of leaving just like that. When they encounter a bit of natural disaster, they can stop believing just like that. Anything can interfere with their belief in God; any matter can cause them to become negative and give up their duty. What kind of people are they? This question is truly worth deep reflection!