Next, we’ll fellowship on a somewhat easier topic. Do you like listening to stories? (Yes.) Then I’ll tell you a story. What story should I tell you? What kind of topic would you like to hear? Do you prefer listening to storytelling, or discussing current affairs, politics, or hearing about history? We’re not going to talk about those things as it’s pointless to talk about them. I’m going to tell you a story about the behavior of people who believe in God, people’s dispositions, and the various states people experience in daily life.

Supplement:

A Discussion on Capital:
“Just Let It Be!”

There were five people having a chat together, and one among them named Mr. Uni said, “Of my time at university, campus life is what I miss the most. The campus was filled with all kinds of plants, and during spring and autumn, the scenery was so beautiful, it made me feel relaxed and happy. Also at that time, I was young and full of ideals and innocent, without so much pressure. Life was so easy during my three years at university. If I could go back ten or twenty years and return to campus life, I think that would be the most wonderful thing in this life….” This was the first person, whose name was Mr. Uni. What does Uni mean? It means a university student; this is where the name Mr. Uni comes from. Mr. Uni’s wonderful life had not yet been fully recalled and enjoyed before Mr. Graduate spoke up, saying, “Can a three-year course be considered a university course? That’s a vocational course. A bachelor’s degree at university is usually four years long; only that can be considered a university course. I was at university for four years. During my university years, I found that there were many university students in the talent market, and it was difficult to find a job. So, before I graduated, I thought about it and decided to pursue a graduate degree. There weren’t many graduate students at the time, and finding a job would be easy. As expected, after I graduated from my graduate degree, I found a great job with a good income, and I lived very well. This was the outcome of being a graduate student.” What message do you get from hearing this? Mr. Uni graduated from a vocational course while Mr. Graduate graduated from a graduate course and earned a rich income, and had status and respect in society. Mr. Graduate was talking happily, and then Mr. Manager said, “You’re still young, kid! You don’t have any experience in society. It doesn’t matter whether you study for a graduate degree or a doctorate, nothing can beat choosing a good major at university. Before I started university, I researched the market and saw that businesses of all sizes needed people with management skills, so when I got to university I chose to study market management, and when I graduated I would be one of the top managers of a company, otherwise known as a CEO. When I graduated, it was a time when various businesses of all sizes needed talents like me. The market was huge, and when I started applying for jobs, several companies tried to snap me up. In the end, I had my pick of them. I chose the best foreign company and immediately became a manager with a high income. Within five years I’d bought my own car. Pretty clever, huh? Can I make good choices or what?” While Mr. Manager was talking, the two before him felt somewhat defiant but they didn’t say anything. In their hearts they thought, “He’s a top manager and he’s far-sighted. He has much more capital than us. Even though we feel somewhat defiant, we won’t say anything. We’ll just admit defeat.” When Mr. Manager had finished speaking he was very pleased with himself, thinking that these young people were not as experienced as himself. Just as he was feeling so pleased, someone called Mr. Official then began to speak. Mr. Official hadn’t thought much of what the other three had said. He leisurely held his tea, took a sip of it, looked around, and said, “Everyone’s a university student these days. Who can’t get into university? It’s not enough to just go to university, and it’s not enough to get into business either. Even if you’re a top manager, that’s not a lifelong job, it’s not stable. The key is to find a secure job and then you’re set up for life!” When the others heard this, they said, “Lifelong job? Who talks about that kind of thing these days? That’s a thing of the past!” Mr. Official said, “Thing of the past? Hmph, you say that only because you’re all short-sighted and lack insight! When you get a lifelong job, even though your income is a little less, it ensures a stable life, and you have authority and can have your finger in every pie! Most people didn’t understand when I took the exam to be a public servant and asked why someone so young would want to work for the government agencies. After I passed the exam to be a public servant, friends and relatives who wanted a job or who got involved in litigation sought me out. Now that’s a lot of authority, right? Even though the income isn’t great, I was provided with housing and a car. My benefits are better than yours. Besides, I can also have my expenses reimbursed when I go out to eat and go shopping, and I can also travel by taxi or plane for free. Your jobs aren’t good enough; you all have insecure jobs. I’ve done so much better than you!” The others felt uncomfortable after hearing him say this, and they said, “Even though your benefits are pretty good, you have a bad reputation. You go racketeering and you act like a tyrant everywhere, and you don’t serve the people. You just harm people and do all kinds of bad things.” Mr. Official replied, “So what if I have a bad reputation? I do well out of it!” Everyone fell to discussing the matter, until finally the last person couldn’t restrain himself any longer, stood up and said, “See, you’ve been to university, you’ve studied a graduate degree, you’re a top business manager, you are an official, and I haven’t had the experiences you have. Even though I’m just an insignificant person, I have to share my experiences with you. When I went back to ‘mater’….” The others were surprised and asked, “What is this ‘mater’? Passing the public service exam makes one a public servant, studying for a graduate degree makes one a graduate, being the top manager of a company makes one a CEO, so what does this ‘mater’ mean? Can you explain this?” This person said, “So you can go to university, study for a graduate degree, be a top business manager and become a public servant, but I can’t go back to my alma mater to have a look around?” You see? He got angry. This insignificant person had little education but was still vain. The others said, “We all know what it is to go back to one’s alma mater. You don’t need to say you returned to ‘mater.’ Just say you went back to your alma mater.” The others then asked him what education level his alma mater was at, whether it was a senior high school, technical college, a university, or a graduate school. He replied saying, “I never went to university, I never studied for a graduate degree, and I never took the exam to be a public servant. Isn’t it okay to just go to elementary school? Just let it be!” He felt embarrassed; he had revealed his background, and it could not be covered up anymore. He had been keeping up a pretense all along. In associating with the others, he had never revealed to them his level of education. Now it had all come out, he had lost face, and he grabbed for the door and fled. The others didn’t understand why he’d run away and they all said together, “Didn’t you only graduate from elementary school? What are you running for? And you were so proud of it!” I’ll end the story here; this more or less covers it.

There are five people in this story. What is the topic they are discussing? (Their academic backgrounds.) And what does academic background really mean to people? (It’s their social status.) One’s academic background relates to one’s social status—this is an objective fact. So, why do people want to discuss their social status? Why do they want to bring their social status and identity to light as a topic for discussion? What are they doing? (They’re showing themselves off.) So, what should the title of this story be? (Comparing Academic Backgrounds.) If the story was titled “Comparing Academic Backgrounds,” wouldn’t that be too blunt? (Yes, it would. How about “Flaunting Status”?) That’s a little too direct, it’s not implicit, and it’s not profound enough. What if we say the main title is “A Discussion on Capital,” and the subtitle is “Just Let It Be”? It’s a little satirical, isn’t it? “A Discussion on Capital” means that everyone is discussing their own capital, including their academic backgrounds and social status. And what does “Just Let It Be” mean? (Not admitting that anyone else is better.) That’s right, there is a kind of disposition here. “So what if you’re a graduate student? So what if you’ve been educated to a higher level than me?” No one admits that anyone else is better than themselves. This is what it means to discuss capital. Isn’t this kind of conversation often heard when around other people? There are people who flaunt their family’s wealth, people who flaunt their family’s prestigious background, people who flaunt the fact that certain emperors and celebrities carry their surname, and some people talk about what university they graduated from, how glorious they were, and there is even a beauty salon massage girl who says, “I learned massage from a renowned teacher with expert correction and personal inspection. In the end, I became a first-class professional massage therapist, and the 2000s was my most glorious time….” This “glorious” is misplaced. Even a massage girl in the service industry was talking about her “most glorious time”—this really was her bragging and boasting. What we’re mainly talking about with this topic are certain conversations that are often heard, the behavior that is often seen, and the dispositions that are often revealed when around people in real life. Why do people talk about such capital? What disposition or motivation is at work here? Can these things that are talked about be considered glorious? Glory has nothing to do with it. So then, do people benefit from talking about such things? (No.) And do you also talk about these things? (Yes.) You know they are of no benefit, so why do you talk about them? Why do people enjoy talking about such things? (These things are the capital that people flaunt.) What is the purpose of flaunting them? (To be held in high esteem by others.) It’s because no one wants to be an ordinary, commonplace person. Even someone who graduated from elementary school talked about going back to their “mater” to have a look around, wishing to use this kind of literary language to fool and benumb others so that others hold him in high esteem. What is the purpose of getting others to hold him in high esteem? It’s so that he can be a cut above other people, to have a place and a position among others, a halo on his head, to have the things he says carry authority, to have the support of others, and to have prestige. If you were to throw off these things and be an ordinary, run-of-the-mill person, what should you possess? First, you should have the correct perspective. How does this correct perspective come about? It comes about by reading God’s words and understanding what attitude you should have toward certain things that is in accord with God’s intentions and that people should possess with their normal humanity—this is the correct perspective. So, as an ordinary, commonplace and normal person, what is the most appropriate and correct perspective to have toward all these things, toward social status, social capital, or family background and so on? Do you know? Say there is someone who has believed in God for many years, who believes themselves to have understood many truths, who believes that they follow God’s way and are loyal to God and their duty, yet they regard their status in society and among people and their worth as very important and they greatly cherish these things, and they even often flaunt their capital, their glorious background, and their worth—is such a person really someone who understands the truth? Clearly not. So, is someone who doesn’t understand the truth a person who loves the truth? (No.) No. What’s the relationship between discussing capital and whether someone understands and loves the truth? Why do I say that someone who cherishes their worth and flaunts their capital is not someone who loves and understands the truth? How should someone who truly loves and understands the truth approach these matters of social status and personal capital and worth? What things are included in social status? Family background, education, reputation, achievements in society, personal talents, and your ethnicity. So how do you approach these things to verify that you are someone who understands the truth? This question should be easy to answer, right? You should understand a lot about this aspect in theory. Say whatever you’ve come up with. Don’t think, “Oh, I haven’t thought it through so I can’t say anything.” If you haven’t thought it through, just say what you think right now. If you can only speak once you’ve thought something through, then that’s called writing articles. We’re just chatting right now; I’m not asking you to write an article. Speak first from a theoretical perspective. (I understand from God’s words that God doesn’t look at how highly educated someone is or what their social status is, but mainly looks at whether they pursue the truth, whether they can practice the truth, and whether they truly submit to God and perform their duty up to standard. If someone has high social status and is highly educated but they don’t have spiritual understanding, they don’t walk the path of pursuing the truth, and they don’t fear God or shun evil, then they will still be eliminated in the end and will not be able to stand firm in God’s house. Therefore, one’s academic background and status are unimportant. What is important is whether one pursues the truth.) Excellent, this is a most fundamental concept. Why do I say it is most fundamental? It’s because these topics and this content are basically what people ordinarily talk about. Does anyone else have a different understanding? Someone add to what has already been said. (If someone can pursue the truth, they can then see that the pursuit of fame, gain and status is really a kind of bondage, a shackle they wear, and the more they pursue these things, the more they will feel empty, and the more they will come to appreciate the damage and pain that fame, gain and status cause people. When they understand this and they see someone who regards these things as capital, they’ll think such a person is really pitiful.) (A person who truly loves and understands truth will measure social status and reputation using God’s words, they’ll look at what God says and requires, what God wants people to pursue, what people will ultimately get by pursuing these things, and whether what they get is consistent with the results God hopes to see in people.) You’ve touched on it here, but does what you say have much to do with the truth? Are you able to make an assessment of this? Most people have some perceptual knowledge, and if I asked you to give a sermon, it would be a sermon of exhortation. Why do I say it would be a sermon of exhortation? A sermon of exhortation is a sermon whereby you say things that give people advice and encouragement—it cannot solve real problems. Although every sentence may sound right and reasonable, in line with human reason and rational requirements, it has little to do with truth, but is just the little bit of superficial and perceptual knowledge people have. If you were to fellowship these words with others, would you be able to solve people’s problems and difficulties at their source? No, you wouldn’t, and that’s why I say it would be a sermon of exhortation. If you can’t solve people’s difficulties and problems at their source, then you are not solving people’s problems using the truth. Those who do not understand the truth will always advocate knowledge, reputation, and status, and will be unable to escape the constraints and bondage of these things.

Think about it—how should you approach man’s worth, social status, and family background? What is the correct attitude you should have? First of all, you should see from God’s words how He approaches this matter; only in this way will you come to understand the truth and not do anything that goes against the truth. So, how does God regard someone’s family background, social status, the education they received, and the wealth they possess in society? If you don’t see things based on God’s words and cannot stand on God’s side and accept things from God, then the way you see things will certainly be a far cry from what God intends. If there is not much difference, with only a little discrepancy, then that’s not a problem; if the way you see things goes completely against what God intends, then it is at odds with the truth. As far as God is concerned, what He gives people and how much He gives is up to Him, and the status people have in society is also ordained by God and is absolutely not contrived by people themselves. If God causes someone to suffer pain and poverty, does that mean they have no hope of being saved? If they are of low worth and low social position, will God not save them? If they have a low status in society, are they then of low status in the eyes of God? Not necessarily. What does this depend on? It depends on the path this person walks, on what they pursue, and on their attitude toward the truth and God. If someone’s social status is very low, their family is very poor, and they have a low level of education, yet they believe in God in a down-to-earth manner, and they love the truth and positive things, then in God’s eyes do they have a high or low worth, are they valuable or worthless? They are valuable. Looking at it from this perspective, what does someone’s worth—whether high or low, noble or lowly—depend on? It depends on how God sees you. If God sees you as someone who pursues the truth, then you have worth and are valuable—you are a valuable vessel. If God sees that you do not pursue the truth and you do not sincerely expend yourself for Him, then you are worthless and are not valuable—you are a lowly vessel. No matter how highly educated you are or how high your status in society is, if you don’t pursue or understand the truth, then your worth can never be high; even if many people support you, praise you, and adore you, you are still a contemptible wretch. So, why does God see people this way? Why is such a “noble” person, with such a high status in society, with so many people praising and admiring them, with even their prestige being so high, seen by God as lowly? Why is the way God sees people totally contrary to the views people have of others? Is God setting Himself against people on purpose? Absolutely not. It’s because God is truth, God is righteousness, whereas man is corrupt and has no truth or righteousness, and God measures man by His own standard, and His standard for measuring man is the truth. It may sound a little abstract to say that, so to say it another way, God’s standard of measurement is based on a person’s attitude toward God, their attitude toward truth, and their attitude toward positive things—this is no longer abstract. Say there is someone who has a high status in society, a high level of education, is very educated and cultivated, and they have a particularly glorious and splendid family history, yet there is one problem: They don’t love positive things, they feel repulsion, detestation, and hatred toward God from the bottom of their heart, and when anything comes up related to God, related to the topics of God or the work of God, they grit their teeth in hatred, their eyes blaze, and they even want to strike other people. If someone mentions a topic related to God or truth, they feel repulsion and hostility, and their animalistic nature erupts. Is such a person valuable or worthless? How much is their academic background, and their so-called social status and social prestige worth in God’s eyes? Nothing at all. How does God see such people? How does God determine the nature of such people? Such people are devils and Satans, and they are the most worthless contemptible wretches. Looking at it now, what is the basis for defining someone’s worth as either noble or lowly? (It is their attitude toward God, truth, and positive things.) That’s right. First of all, one must understand what God’s attitude is. To first understand God’s attitude and understand the principles and standards by which God defines people, and then to measure people based on the principles and standards God has for people—only this is most accurate, appropriate, and fair. We now have a basis for measuring people, so how should we put it into practice specifically? For instance, someone is very highly educated and popular wherever they go, everyone thinks well of them, and they appear to others to have great prospects—will they then definitely be seen as noble in God’s eyes? (Not necessarily.) So how should we take this person’s measure? The nobleness and lowliness of a person is not based on their status in society, nor on their academic background, much less is it based on their ethnicity, and of course it is not based on their nationality, so what must it be based on? (It must be based on God’s words and on the person’s attitude toward the truth and God.) That’s correct. For example, you came from mainland China to the U.S., and even if you one day become an American national, would your worth and status change? (No.) No, it wouldn’t; you would still be you. If you believe in God yet cannot gain the truth, then you are still the kind that will perish. Some superficial people do not truly believe in God or pursue the truth, they follow the secular world and, after becoming American nationals, they say, “You Chinese people” and “You people from mainland China.” Tell Me, are such people noble or lowly? (Lowly.) They’re so lowly! They act as if by becoming an American national they become noble—aren’t they so superficial? They’re so superficial. If a person can approach fame and gain, social status, wealth, and academic achievements with an ordinary heart—of course, this ordinary heart doesn’t mean that you’ve already experienced these things and have become numb, but rather it means you have a standard of measurement and you don’t regard these things as the most important things in your life, and the standards and principles with which you measure and see these things, as well as your values, have undergone a change, and you can approach these things correctly and see them with an ordinary heart—what does this prove? It proves you have been liberated from external things such as the so-called social status, man’s worth, and so on. You may perhaps not be able to achieve this right now, but when you can truly understand the truth, then you will be able to see through these things. I’ll give you an example. Someone encounters wealthy brothers and sisters and sees them wearing only brand labels and that they look well-to-do, and they don’t know how to talk to them or associate with them, and so they humble themselves, they fawn on and flatter the wealthy brothers and sisters and behave in a repugnant way—isn’t this them debasing themselves? There is something dominating them here. Some people call out “big sister” when they meet a wealthy woman and call out “big brother” when they meet a wealthy man. They always want to fawn on these people and recommend themselves. When they see someone who is poor and nondescript, who comes from the countryside with a low level of education, they look down on them and refuse to pay any heed to them, and their attitude changes. Do such common practices go on in the church? They do, and you cannot deny it, because there are some among you who have revealed just such behavior. Some call out “big brother,” some call out “big sister,” and some call out “auntie”—these social practices are serious. Judging by these people’s behavior, they are not people who pursue the truth and they don’t possess the slightest bit of truth reality. This kind of person makes up the majority among you, and if they don’t change, they will all be eliminated in the end. Even though these mistaken views don’t affect people’s acceptance of the true way, they can affect people’s life entry and the performance of their duties; if they are not someone who accepts the truth, they will likely cause disturbances in the church. If you can understand God’s intention, you can grasp the principles and standards by which these things are measured. There is another aspect, and that is no matter what kind of social status or educational background a person has, or what kind of family background they come from, there is one fact that you must acknowledge: Your educational achievements and family background cannot change your character, nor can they influence your disposition. Isn’t that so? (It is.) Why do I say this? Regardless of the kind of family a person is born into or the kind of education they go on to receive, whether they become highly educated or not, and regardless of the kind of social background they’re born into, whether their social status is high or low, their corrupt dispositions are just the same as anyone else’s. Everyone is the same—this is unavoidable. Your social status and worth cannot change the fact that you are a member of the human race that has been corrupted by Satan, nor can they change the fact that you are a corrupted human being with corrupt dispositions who is opposed to God. What do I mean by this? I mean that, no matter how wealthy a family you are born into or how highly educated you are, you all have corrupt dispositions; regardless of whether you are noble or lowly, rich or poor, with a high or low status, you are still a corrupted human being. Therefore, after you have accepted God’s work, you are all equal, and God is fair and righteous to all. Isn’t this an understanding people should have? (Yes.) What person is not corrupted by Satan and is without corrupt dispositions because they have a high status in society and have been born into the most noble race of all mankind? Is this a tenable thing to say? Has this fact ever occurred throughout the history of mankind? (No.) No, it hasn’t. Actually, including Job, Abraham and those prophets and ancient saints, as well as the Israelites, no human being could avoid living with this undeniable fact: In living in this world, all mankind has been corrupted by Satan. In Satan’s corruption of man, it doesn’t care whether you’re highly educated or not, what your family history is, what your surname is, or how large your family tree is, the final result is: If you live among mankind, you have been corrupted by Satan. Therefore, the fact that you have satanic corrupt dispositions and that you live with your satanic corrupt dispositions cannot be changed by your worth and academic background. Isn’t this an understanding people should have? (Yes, it is.) Once you’ve understood these things, then in the future when someone flaunts their gifts and capital, or you again discover someone “superior” among you, how will you treat them? (I’ll treat them according to God’s words.) Correct. And how will you treat them according to God’s words? If you’re at a loose end, and you belittle and mock them, saying, “See how educated you are, what are you showing off for? You’re talking about your capital again, but can you perform your duty well? No matter how highly educated you are, haven’t you still been corrupted by Satan?” then is this a good way to treat them? This isn’t in line with principles, and it is not something someone with normal humanity should do. So, how should you treat them in a way that is in line with principles? You shouldn’t look up to them, but neither should you belittle them—isn’t this a compromise? (It is.) Is it right to make a compromise? No, it isn’t. You should treat them correctly, and if you can use the truth you understand to help them, then help them. If you can’t help them, then if you’re a leader and you see that they’d suit a particular duty, then get them to perform that duty. Don’t look down on them because they have some high level of education, thinking, “Hmph, what use is being highly educated? Do you understand the truth? I’m not highly educated but I’m still a leader. I’m of good caliber, I’m better than you, so I’ll belittle you and put you to shame!” This is being mean and without humanity. What does “treat them correctly” mean? It means to handle matters according to truth principles. And what is the truth principle here? It is to treat people fairly. Don’t hold people in high esteem and look up to them, and don’t humble yourself before them, feeling like you’re on a lower level, and don’t flatter them either, don’t trample them down, and don’t belittle them; they may not think their own worth very high and may not be flaunting themselves. Is it right for you to always be afraid that they will flaunt themselves and so always be trampling them down? No, it’s not right. This is being mean and without humanity—if you’re not leaning too far to one side, you’re leaning too far to the other. To treat people correctly, to treat people fairly—this is the principle. This principle sounds simple, but it’s not easy to put into practice.

Previously, a leader would move someplace to live. I told him he could take the relevant team leaders and members with him, as that way it would be convenient for them to discuss work together. What I said was not difficult to understand—one understands it as soon as one hears it. In the end, the relevant personnel he took with him had quite the “credentials”: Some brought him tea, some washed his feet and rubbed his back—they were all a bunch of sycophants. Just how disgusting was this leader? There was someone with an infectious disease who fawned on him and flattered him every day, following him around and serving him. He was even willing to risk catching this disease so that he could enjoy the feeling of being flattered. Finally, because this person with the infectious disease suffered a recurrence of their condition after they’d moved, this false leader was revealed as well. Therefore, whether people understand the truth or not, they absolutely must not do bad things, not do things relying on their ambitions and desires, and not have a chance-taking mentality, for God scrutinizes the hearts of man and scrutinizes all the earth. What does “all the earth” include? It includes both material and immaterial things. Don’t try to measure God, God’s authority, or God’s almightiness using your own brain. People are created beings and their lives are so insignificant—how can they measure the greatness of the Creator? How can they measure the almightiness and wisdom of the Creator in His creation of all things and sovereignty over all things? You must absolutely not do ignorant things or do evil. Doing evil will inevitably incur retribution, and when one day God reveals you, you’ll get more than you bargained for, and that day you will weep and gnash your teeth. You must conduct yourself with self-knowledge. In certain matters, before God has revealed you, it would be better for you to compare yourself with God’s words, reflect on yourself and bring buried things to light, discover your own problems, and then seek the truth to resolve them—don’t wait for God to reveal you. Once God has revealed you, doesn’t that then make you passive? At that time, you will already have committed a transgression. From God scrutinizing you to you being revealed, your worth and God’s opinion of you may perhaps undergo a huge change. This is because while God is scrutinizing you, He is giving you opportunities and entrusting you with His hopes, up until the moment you are revealed. From God entrusting someone with His hopes to His hopes coming to nothing in the end, what is God’s mood like? It undergoes a tremendous drop. And what will the consequence for you be? In not so serious cases, you may become an object for God to detest, and you will be put aside. What does “put aside” mean? It means you will be retained and observed. And what will the consequence be in more serious cases? God will say, “This person is a calamity and doesn’t deserve even to render service. I will absolutely not save this person!” Once God forms this idea, you will no longer have any outcome at all, and once that happens, you can kowtow and bleed but it won’t do any good, because God will have already given you sufficient chances but you never repented and you have gone too far. Therefore, no matter what problems you have or what corruption you reveal, you should always reflect on and know yourself in the light of God’s words or ask brothers and sisters to point these things out to you. What is most important is that you should accept God’s scrutiny, come before God, and ask Him to enlighten and illuminate you. No matter what method you use, discovering problems early and then resolving them is the effect achieved by self-reflection, and this is the best thing you can do. You must not wait until God has revealed and eliminated you before you feel remorse, as it will be too late to regret! When God reveals someone, is He profoundly wrathful or abundantly merciful? This is difficult to say, it is unknown, and I won’t give you this guarantee—the path you walk is up to you. Do you know what My responsibility is? I am telling you all that I have to say, every word that I ought to say, leaving out not a single word. No matter what method I use, whether it be written words, storytelling, or producing small programs, in any case, I am conveying the truth that God wants you to understand through various means, while simultaneously informing you of the problems that I can see. I am warning, reminding, and exhorting you, and providing you with some supply, help, and support. Sometimes I also say harsh things. This is My responsibility, and it’s up to you how to go the rest of the way. You don’t need to examine My speech and facial expressions, and you don’t have to attentively observe what My opinion of you is—it is not necessary for you to do these things. What your outcome will be in the future has nothing to do with Me; it is related only to what you yourself pursue. Today, I’m opening the window and speaking frankly, I’m speaking totally clearly. Have you heard and understood every word and every sentence I’ve said, and what I must say, what I should say, and what I have said in the past? There is nothing abstract about what I say, nothing you don’t understand; you have all understood, and so My responsibility has been fulfilled. Don’t think that I must still keep an eye on you after I’ve finished speaking and stay responsible for you, hand-in-hand, until the end. You have all believed in God for several years, you are all adults and not small children. You have leaders to be responsible for you when you do things, that is not My responsibility. I have My own scope of work, My own scope of responsibilities; I don’t have to, nor is it possible for Me to, follow behind each of you and keep supervising you and urging you on—I am not obliged to do that. As for what you pursue, what you say and do in private, and what path you follow, none of these things have anything to do with Me. Why do I say they have nothing to do with Me? If you can perform your duties in God’s house in a fit and proper manner, God’s house will be responsible for you until the end. If you are willing to perform your duty, pay the price, accept the truth and act according to principle, then God’s house will lead you, provide for you, and support you; if you are not willing to perform your duty and wish to go out to work and earn money, the doors of God’s house are wide open and you will receive a cordial send off. However, if you cause disturbances, do evil, and make waves in God’s house, then no matter who it is that does evil, God’s house has administrative decrees and work arrangements, and you will be handled according to these principles. Do you understand? You’ve all believed in God for years, you’ve read many of God’s words, and have attended gatherings and listened to sermons all these years, so why have you not repented or transformed in the slightest? There are many people who have listened to sermons for years and understood some truths, yet they still haven’t repented, they still perform their duties in a perfunctory manner, and these are people in danger. Let Me tell you something real: Don’t always expect Me to keep an eye on you, take care of you, and teach you while I hold your hand, so that you can do something practical and effective. If I don’t watch you or supervise you and urge you on, and you become perfunctory and work progress slows, then you will be finished. This shows that you perform your duty without any loyalty and are all laborers. Let Me tell you, My ministry has been performed, and I am not obliged to take care of you. This is because the Holy Spirit is working and scrutinizing you in these matters; what I’m supposed to do has been done, what I’m supposed to say has been said, I have kept to My ministry, I have fulfilled My responsibility, and what is left is for you to take responsibility for your own actions and behavior. If you don’t accept the truth but are continually perfunctory and never think to repent, then your punishment and your being eliminated will have nothing to do with Me.

One aspect of the story I just told was talking about how to regard people’s social status, worth, family background and academic background and so on, and what the standards and principles for regarding these things are; another aspect was how to approach these things and how to see through to their essence. Once you’ve seen through to the essence of these things, then even though they may still be present in your heart, you will not be constrained by them and will not live by them. When you see a nonbeliever flaunting their glorious history of having been to university and studied for a master’s or a doctorate, what then is your view and attitude? If you say, “Studying for an undergraduate at university is nothing. I graduated from my graduate degree years ago,” if you have this mentality, then that will be troublesome for you, and it shows that you haven’t changed much in your belief in God. If they ask you what your educational background is, and you say, “I didn’t even graduate from elementary school and can’t even write an essay,” and they see you’re a nobody and start ignoring you, then isn’t that just perfect? You can save time to read more of God’s words and perform your duty more, and this is the right thing to do. What’s the point in gossiping with nonbelievers and disbelievers? If you say you have a low level of education and no status in society, and someone belittles you, what will you do? Don’t take it to heart and don’t feel constrained, just let them talk, let them say whatever they want, it’s nothing to you. As long as it doesn’t cause delays to you pursuing the truth in your faith in God, then that’s fine. This is actually a minor topic, but in daily life, through the things people express, it can be seen that people attach great importance to these things of capital and they carry them always in their hearts. Not only can this affect people’s speech and behavior, but it can also affect their life entry and their choosing the right path of belief in God. Okay, I won’t talk about this kind of topic again. Let’s get back to the topic we were fellowshipping on last time and continue fellowshipping on and dissecting the various manifestations of antichrists.