There are some antichrists who hide themselves very well, simply smiling without speaking when they see something, maintaining silence on many matters, feigning profundity and not expressing any stance. When you first come into contact with them, it’s not easy to see through them; you might even think they are substantial and remarkable. How do you discern such antichrists? You must pay close attention and observe what they really like, what they focus on, what interests them, and whom they interact with. By observing these aspects, you can gain an understanding of them. Additionally, there is one thing you all need to be aware of: No matter the level of a leader or worker, if you worship them for understanding a bit of the truth and for having a few gifts, and believe that they possess the truth reality and can help you, and if you look up to and depend on them in all things, and through this, you try to attain salvation, then this is foolish and ignorant of you. In the end, it will all come to nothing, because your starting point is inherently wrong. No matter how many truths someone understands, they cannot stand in the stead of Christ, and no matter how gifted someone is, this does not mean they possess the truth—so anyone who worships, looks up to, and follows other people will ultimately all be eliminated and condemned. Believers in God can only look up to and follow God. Leaders and workers, whatever their rank, are still common people. If you see them as your immediate superiors, if you feel that they are superior to you, that they are more competent than you, and that they should lead you, that they are in all ways a cut above anyone else, then you are wrong—that is a delusion. And what consequences will this delusion visit on you? It will lead you unconsciously to measure your leaders against requirements that do not conform with reality, and to be unable to treat correctly the problems and deficiencies they have; at the same time, without your knowing it, you will also be profoundly drawn to their flair, gifts, and talents, such that before you know it, you are worshiping them, and they are your god. That path, from when they start to become your role model, the object of your worship, to when you become one of their followers, is one that will lead you unconsciously away from God. And even as you gradually move away from God, you will still believe that you are following God, that you are in His house, that you are in His presence, when actually, you will have been drawn away by minions of Satan, by antichrists. You will not even sense it. This is a very dangerous state of affairs. To solve this problem requires, in part, the ability to discern the nature essence of the antichrists, and the ability to see through to the ugly face of the antichrists’ hatred of the truth and resistance to God; so, too, does it require being familiar with the antichrists’ commonly used techniques of misleading and ensnaring people, as well as the way they do things. The other piece is that you must pursue knowledge of God’s disposition and essence. It must be clear to you that only Christ is the truth, the way, and the life, that worshiping any person shall visit catastrophe and misfortune on you. You must trust that only Christ can save people, and you must follow and submit to Christ with absolute faith. This alone is the correct path of human life. Some might say: “Well, I do have my reasons for worshiping leaders—in my heart, I naturally worship anyone who is talented. I worship any leader who is in line with my notions.” Why do you insist on worshiping man though you believe in God? When all is said and done, who is it who will save you? Who is it who truly loves you and protects you—can you truly not see? If you believe in God and follow God, you should heed His word, and if someone speaks and acts correctly, and it accords with the truth principles, just submit to the truth—isn’t it as simple as that? Why are you so base? Why do you insist on finding someone whom you worship to follow? Why do you like to be Satan’s slave? Why not be a servant of the truth instead? In this, it is seen whether a person has reason and dignity. You should start with yourself: Equip yourself with truths of all sorts, be able to identify the various ways in which different matters and people manifest, know what the nature is of various people’s behavior and what dispositions they pour forth, learn to distinguish the essences of various kinds of people, be clear about what kinds of people are around you, what kind of person you are, and what kind of person your leader is. Once you see all this clearly, you will be capable of approaching people in the right way, according to the truth principles: If they are brothers and sisters, you will treat them with love; if they are not brothers and sisters but evil people, antichrists, or disbelievers, you will keep your distance and forsake them. And if they are people who possess the truth reality, though you might admire them, you will not worship them. No one can take the place of Christ; only Christ is the practical God. Only Christ can save people, and only by following Christ can you obtain the truth and life. If you can see these things clearly, then you are possessed of stature and not likely to be misled by the antichrists, nor do you need to fear being misled by the antichrists.

Some people become worried when they see certain antichrists being revealed and eliminated, saying: “Though antichrists don’t seem like evil people on the surface, why is it that upon discerning the things they do, they turn out to be so evil? It seems that antichrists are indeed quite devious. But I am of poor caliber, and if I encounter such antichrists again, I’m afraid I won’t be able to discern them. How should I guard against antichrists?” Even if you are of poor caliber, you don’t need to always worry about being misled or always think about how to guard against them. You just need to focus on understanding the truth, read more of God’s words, and when you have time, seriously ponder over the evil deeds committed by the antichrists, asking yourself, “Where does their evil lie? What drove them to commit such evil? Can ordinary people commit such evil? How do those who understand the truth discern them? How do I discern them?” Once you clearly see the essence of people through God’s words, you will understand everything. As you constantly think about these things, you will unconsciously learn to discern, and naturally, you will be able to discern when faced again with antichrists trying to mislead people. This requires going through many experiences; it’s not something you can learn just by listening to more sermons. It’s like gaining experience in society after being taken advantage of too much or suffering too many losses—“a fall into the pit, a gain in your wit.” It’s the same idea. In our belief in God, the main thing is to understand the truth. The more truth you understand, the more things you will see through. If you don’t understand any truth, even having knowledge is useless. With knowledge alone, you can’t see through anything; your views are the same as those of secular people, and whatever you comment on will be nonsense and fallacies. Don’t worry if you can’t see through some people right now. Once you understand the truth, you will naturally gain discernment. For now, just focus on doing your own duty well, eat and drink more of God’s words, and ponder more on the truth. When the day comes that you understand the truth, you will be able to discern people. Just by observing someone’s behavior, you will know what’s going on with them in your heart; just by listening to someone report on some issue, you will be able to see through the essence of the issue; and just by hearing someone’s thoughts and viewpoints, you will know their stature. Without much effort, you will be able to understand everything about any matter or person—this is the result of understanding the truth. However, if you do not pursue the truth, but instead rely on your imagination to assess people, worship them, depend on them, and blindly flatter them, and if you do not follow the path of pursuing the truth, what will be the end result? Anyone could mislead you; you won’t be able to see through anyone, not even the most obvious antichrist. They will play you for a fool, and you’ll still admire them for their ability, orbiting them every day. Then, you are truly a muddler, and it can be definitively said that you believe in a vague god, not the practical God, and you are definitely not a person who pursues the truth.

Some people, even after listening to several sermons on discerning antichrists, still can’t discern them. They only understand some methods of discernment but lack practical experience. When they actually face the evil deeds of antichrists, they fail to discern them again. Although they cannot discern antichrists after listening to sermons, they compare themselves with what they’ve heard and increasingly start to feel that they are like an antichrist. Eventually, they come to believe that they themselves are antichrists. There is nothing wrong with this kind of discernment. They are fully aware of the details in discerning antichrists, but they are just lacking in the principles of judgment. This is not a major issue; it shows that their listening to the sermons has been effective. Although they haven’t discerned the real antichrists, they have discerned themselves, which is also a good thing. They first save themselves, and avoid becoming antichrists, which is a fruitful outcome of listening to these sermons exposing antichrists. Being able to discern oneself as an antichrist is not simple; such discernment involves detailed observation, and I believe this already counts as having discernment. Discerning oneself now is a good thing; it’s not too late to do so. If you had committed evil or caused disasters and were then identified as an antichrist, it would have been too late. If you can discern now, at most, it means that you exhibit traits similar to those of antichrists, that you are walking the path of antichrists, and that you have chosen the wrong path. This is the extent of your current judgment. There is still time to change course, but it’s dangerous if you choose not to. The topic of discerning antichrists has been fellowshipped many times, and by now some people really can discern. They can identify their own antichrist dispositions that they reveal, which is a result and proves that they have gained discernment. If they can further distinguish between those who possess the nature essence of antichrists and those who only have antichrist dispositions, then they will have fully mastered discernment. This is something that can be achieved soon, so there is no need to rush. If people can discern their own antichrist dispositions, recognize whether they are walking the path of antichrists, and understand what the nature essence of antichrists is, then they have already learned how to discern antichrists. Being able to discern antichrists is not about how many years one has believed in God, but whether a person can strive for the truth and understand it. Some people have believed in God for many years and have listened to numerous sermons about exposing antichrists, but their antichrist dispositions and manifestations haven’t changed at all. No matter how I fellowship the truth, they remain unaware. They may identify with the content of the fellowship at the moment, but when it comes to taking action or doing their duties, they revert to their old ways. Isn’t this troublesome and dangerous for such people? It’s very dangerous! Regardless of how I fellowship, no matter how self-reproachful or upset they feel at the time of listening to Me, they don’t change at all afterward. They don’t reflect on why they always promote and cultivate people who flatter and fawn, nor do they reflect on why they treat others not based on principles, but according to their own whims. They are not sickened by people they like, even if they are evil or bad, and continue to promote and use them. Even more so they don’t reflect on why they don’t pursue the truth at all and have embarked on the path of antichrists. Having committed so much evil without any real reflection or change is dangerous. In recent gatherings, the fellowship has been about exposing the dispositions and essence of antichrists. The disposition of antichrists is more hidden and wicked than the commonly seen corrupt dispositions. Antichrists are averse to the truth, they hate the truth, and absolutely cannot accept the truth or God’s judgment and chastisement. What then is the outcome, the end of antichrists? They are certain to be eliminated. How does God characterize antichrists? As those who hate the truth and oppose God—they are God’s enemies! Opposing the truth, hating God, and hating all positive things—this is not the momentary weakness or foolishness found in ordinary people, nor is it the revelation of incorrect thoughts and viewpoints that arise from a moment’s distorted comprehension; this is not the problem. The problem is that they are antichrists, the enemies of God, hating all positive things and all truth; they are characters who hate and oppose God. How does God view such characters? God does not save them! These people despise and hate the truth, they have the nature essence of antichrists. Do you understand this? What is being exposed here is wickedness, viciousness, and hatred of the truth. It’s the most severe of satanic dispositions among corrupt dispositions, representing Satan’s most typical and substantial characteristics, not the corrupt dispositions revealed by ordinary corrupted mankind. Antichrists are a force inimical to God. They can disturb and control the church, and they have the capacity to dismantle and disrupt God’s management work. This is not something that ordinary people with corrupt dispositions can do; only antichrists are capable of such actions. Do not underestimate this matter.

Evil people all have wicked dispositions. Some wickedness is expressed through vicious dispositions, as in frequently bullying guileless people, treating them in a satirical or sarcastic way, always making them the butt of jokes, and taking advantage of them. Evil people bow and scrape in deference when they see another evil person, but when they see a weak person, they trample on them and throw their weight around. These are extremely vicious and wicked people. Anyone who bullies or oppresses Christians is a devil disguised as a person; they are a soulless beast, and the reincarnation of a devil. If there are those among the throng of evil people who do not bully guileless people, do not brutalize Christians, who only unleash their wrath on those who harm their self-interest, then these people are considered good people among the nonbelievers. But how does the wickedness of antichrists differ? The wickedness of antichrists is chiefly manifested in their particular penchant for competition. They dare to vie with Heaven, vie with the earth, and vie with other people. Not only do they not allow others to bully them, but they also bully and punish others. Every day, they contemplate how to punish people. If they are jealous of someone or hate someone, they will never let it go. These are the ways in which antichrists are wicked. Where else is this wickedness manifested? It can be seen in their devious way of doing things, which people with some brains, with some knowledge and some social experience, find difficult to detect. They do things in an exceptionally devious way, and this rises to wickedness; it is not ordinary deceitfulness. They can play shadow games and tricks, and do so at a higher level than most people. Most people cannot compete with them and cannot deal with them. This is an antichrist. Why do I say that ordinary people cannot deal with them? Because their wickedness is so extreme that they possess an enormous power to mislead people. They can think of all sorts of ways to make people worship them and follow them. They can also exploit all sorts of people to disturb and damage the church’s work. In such circumstances, the house of God repeatedly fellowships on every sort of manifestation, disposition, and essence of antichrists, so that people can discern them. This is necessary. Some people do not understand, and say, “Why always fellowship on how to discern antichrists?” Because antichrists are all too able to mislead people. They can mislead many people, like a lethal plague, which, through its contagion, can harm and kill many in a single outbreak; it is highly contagious and wide-reaching, and its infectiousness and mortality rates are quite high. Are these not severe consequences? If I don’t fellowship like this with you, can you break free from being misled and constrained by antichrists? Can you truly turn to God and submit to Him? This is very difficult. When ordinary people reveal an arrogant disposition, at most, it makes others see the ugly state of their arrogance. Sometimes they boast, sometimes they flaunt and show off themselves, and sometimes they love to brandish their status and lecture others. But is this the case with antichrists? On the surface, they may not seem to brandish their status or to be fond of it, they may never seem interested in status, but deep inside, they have a strong desire for it. It’s like some emperors or brigand lords of the nonbelievers: When fighting for their land, they suffer hardships together with their companions, appearing humble and unambitious. But have you seen the desires hidden deep in their hearts? Why can they endure such hardships? It’s their desires that bolster them. They harbor a grand ambition inside, ready to endure any suffering or withstand any slander, defamation, offenses, and insults so that they may one day ascend the throne. Isn’t this devious? Can they let anyone know about this ambition? (No.) They conceal it and keep it under wraps. What is visible on the surface is a person who can endure what others cannot, who can bear unbearable hardships, who appears tenacious, unambitious, down-to-earth, and good to those around them. But the day they ascend the throne and gain real power, to consolidate their authority and prevent usurpation, they kill all those who suffered and fought beside them. Only when the truth is revealed do people realize how deeply cunning they are. When you look back and see that everything they did was driven by ambition, you discover their disposition was that of wickedness. What tactic was this? It was deviousness. This is the disposition of how antichrists operate. Antichrists and the devil kings that wield official power are of the same ilk; they absolutely will not suffer and endure in the church for no reason if they don’t get power and status. In other words, these people are absolutely not content with being ordinary followers, compromising in God’s house as common worshipers of God, or doing some duty quietly and anonymously; they would certainly not be willing to do this. If someone with status is replaced because they walked the path of an antichrist, and they think, “Without status now, I’ll just straightforwardly act as an ordinary person, doing whatever duty I can; I can still believe in God just as well without status,” are they an antichrist? No, this person once walked the path of an antichrist, once taking the wrong path because of momentary foolishness, but they are not an antichrist. What would a true antichrist do? If they lose their status, they won’t believe anymore. Not only that, but they will also think of various ways to mislead others, making others worship and follow them, to fulfill their ambition and desire to have power. This is the difference between those who walk the path of antichrists and actual antichrists. We analyze and dissect these disposition essences and manifestations of antichrists because the nature of this issue is very serious. Most people cannot discern antichrists. Not to mention ordinary brothers and sisters, even some leaders and workers who think they understand some truth have not completely mastered discerning antichrists. It’s hard to say how much they’ve mastered, which indicates their stature is too small. Only those who can accurately discern antichrists are people with true stature.

What is a major issue you are all facing now? Most people cannot discern and are easily misled by false leaders and antichrists, which is very dangerous if not resolved. Therefore, I require that you learn to distinguish various kinds of people. Discern what disposition is represented by people’s various behaviors and statements, and based on these, discern the essence of the person. In addition, you need to be able to distinguish between what is the truth reality and what are just words and doctrines. If you cannot discern these, then you will not be able to enter the truth reality. How can you have the path to enter reality without discernment? Some leaders and workers only spout words and doctrines, thinking that understanding words and doctrines means they possess reality. So, while spouting words and doctrines, they feel content and justified, becoming more and more enthusiastic. But when temptations come upon them, they falter and, not even knowing how they faltered, they still say, “Why didn’t God protect me?” Isn’t this a shameful failure? So, some leaders and workers always talk about words and doctrines—can you discern this? (No.) Sometimes I hear from some brothers and sisters that some leaders only talk about words and doctrines and are unsuitable to be leaders, and they ask to replace them. However, after they are asked to elect a new leader, most people lack discernment, and the elected leaders and workers are also those who speak only of words and doctrines without having much reality. This is a very serious issue, a very difficult one. When you listen to My words of fellowship on these matters, can you discern any difference from what ordinary leaders say? If you can discern the difference, then you know what the truth reality is. If you cannot discern it and think it’s all the same, thinking, “We have also learned to speak God’s words, and what we say is the same as what God says,” then that’s problematic. It proves that you don’t understand the truth at all, only know how to mimic God’s words and recite a bit of them, without really understanding the truth. Most antichrists possess certain gifts and eloquence, which gives them the capital to mislead people. Coupled with their wicked disposition and manipulative ways in speech and action, they are indeed able to mislead people. If you are only capable of spouting words and doctrines and cannot discern what the truth reality is, you can only be misled by antichrists. This is something beyond your control! For those who do not understand the truth, it is impossible not to be misled by antichrists, despite what they may wish. Breaking free from Satan’s influence is no simple matter, is it?

June 11, 2019