Case Four: Fraudulently Using Offerings to Pay Off Debts

Before, when I was in mainland China, we needed to find a relatively safe place for co-workers to meet, so we found a host family. This family was willing to host us and helped protect that place. However, after some time had passed, the family started to think, “It looks like you’re planning on meeting here long term. You can’t meet anywhere other than my house, so I should take the opportunity to take advantage of the situation. Wouldn’t I be a fool to do otherwise?” One time when we gathered for a co-worker meeting and not all of the attendees had arrived yet, a person came to the host family’s house for no apparent reason, and sat in the living room and did not leave. The host family came and said that this person had come to collect a debt, and that they had borrowed his money several years ago and had not paid it back. What do you think was happening here? This person could have come before, or they could have come later, but they just so happened to come at this exact time to collect a debt. Was this just a coincidence, or did someone intentionally plan it this way? One couldn’t help but be suspicious. There was something fishy going on. What was it that was going on? Wasn’t it that the family had bad intentions, and purposely called that person to come over? (Yes.) I said, “Get him out of here right away.” The family said, “He won’t leave until he is paid.” I said, “Why don’t you pay him back?” The family hummed and hawed, implying that they wouldn’t pay him even if they had the money—they wanted a free loan. The debt collector waited there and still hadn’t left by the time some of the other co-workers were about to arrive. What was the host family planning to do? Wasn’t this a premeditated scheme? (Yes.) Later, I told someone to give the family money and make them get rid of the debt collector right away. After giving them the money, the debt collector left within half an hour. Common sense tells us that the debt collector should not come back, but this matter was not over yet. A month later, the debt collector came again before a co-worker meeting. The host family said that last time only a portion of the debt was paid off, not all of it. What was their goal in saying this? To make God’s house pay off debt for the family again. It was the same as last time, after giving them the money, the debt collector left. From that point on, whenever we went there to meet, the debt collector never came again because we had already paid off the family’s debt in two payments. They were worried that if they asked for so much money up front, we wouldn’t agree to pay, so they asked for it in two portions. How should this money be viewed? Did God’s house lend it to the family, or did the family manipulate God’s house into giving it to them? (They manipulated God’s house.) In fact, the family tricked God’s house into giving them the money. So, why did God’s house give them the money? Couldn’t we have not given them the money? After all, it is reasonable and legal for us not to give it to them, but that would mean the co-workers could not meet. So what was our rationale in giving it to them? At the time, My thinking was to treat this money as rent. If we rented a hostel or sports arena, wouldn’t it cost us money too? We can’t meet in those places and it is not safe, either. Here, the family helps protect this place and our safety is guaranteed, so is it reasonable for God’s house to spend some money to pay off their debts? (Yes.) It is just that the money wasn’t given in an aboveboard manner. However, in an environment like the country of the great red dragon, it is often necessary to do this sort of thing.

Some people have evil humanity, and they are not entirely willing to do the duty of hosting. We use them to protect the place we are in, so we must allow them to take some advantage of the situation. However, after they take advantage, can they still obtain salvation? No, they can’t. It is not that God would not save them, but that this sort of person cannot achieve salvation. They trick anyone and take advantage of anyone. When they do their duties and try to prepare some good deeds, they always have to swindle something desirable out of it, and no matter who they interact with, they abide by the principle of only ever taking advantage and never getting the short end of the stick. This is the principle they follow for doing duties in God’s house. So, where do these “good deeds” come from? They are bought and paid for by God’s house, rather than these people preparing the good deeds themselves; they do not prepare good deeds. They provide a place, God’s house spends money, and treats it as rent. This has nothing to do with good deeds, and it is not a good deed of theirs. What sort of behavior is it when a person flies the banner of providing a place for brothers and sisters on behalf of God’s house in order to fraudulently acquire money or items from God’s house? What sort of character does this sort of person have? Is their behavior capable of being commemorated by God? Where does their character rank in people’s hearts and in God’s heart? Preparing good deeds is something you are supposed to prepare—you prepare good deeds for your destination’s sake, and everything you do is for yourself, not others. By doing what you should, you have already received a reward, and you have obtained the desirable thing you intended to, so how does God see you in His heart? You do good things in order to gain something in your interests, not in order to gain the truth or gain life, let alone to satisfy God. Can God still save people like this? No, He can’t. They just prepare a small good deed and perform a small obligation and duty, yet they reach out their hands and ask for payment from God’s house, they nickel and dime God’s house, think of all sorts of ways to trick God’s house and gain desirable things, and make sure they never get the short end of the stick, as if they were doing business. As such, this good deed is not a good deed—it has turned into an evil deed, and not only will God not commemorate it, but He will dissolve and strip these people of their right to be saved. When that host family made God’s house pay off their debt for them, was it a bit fraudulent in nature? This is what antichrists do. When they want money, they do not go about it in an aboveboard way; rather, they go about it in a way that is fraudulent in nature, seizing the opportunity to extort things. Does God save those who extort the offerings to God? (No, He doesn’t.) If these people repent and have true belief, should they be saved? (No.) Why? (The fact that these people could act fraudulently toward God’s house means God has no place in their hearts—they are typical disbelievers.) Will disbelievers repent? The sort of disbelievers that are antichrists will not repent. Their own interests are at the center of everything they do, and they will never repent even if they die. They do not admit they have done something wrong, nor do they admit they have done evil, so what would they repent for? Repentance is for people who have humanity, who have a conscience and reason, and who can see their corruption clearly and admit it. When that host family did a small duty they had to swindle something desirable out of it, and did not even pass up an opportunity like this. They were big conmen. This is the fourth case.

Case Five: Demanding Wages for Working for the House of God

In mainland China, there is some work which is relatively dangerous and risky, and which needs people with some brains and certain qualifications to perform. At the time, there was a person who had these qualifications, so the Above arranged for him to do some work. While he was doing this work, he made a request, saying that as soon as he started doing this work, he could no longer go to his regular job every day, and his family was having a bit of a hard time getting by. God’s house gave him some money for living expenses, and he was very happy about it and took on the work given to him; however, his work performance was only average. After a period of time, his family had no problems getting by, but something else came up which he brought up with God’s house, and God’s house gave him some more money for living expenses, to ensure he could get by. He reluctantly agreed to continue doing his work, but how well did he do it? It was a big mess. If he felt like doing something, he did a little bit, and if he didn’t feel like doing something, he didn’t do it at all. This delayed the work and caused the church’s work to suffer some losses, and other people had to go fix it. Later, God’s house got in touch with him to tell him to put effort into his work, and that God’s house would continue to help him resolve any difficulties he had. He did not say it directly to God’s house face-to-face, but told a few brothers and sisters in private, “Are living expenses what I lack? What big problem can that bit of money solve? By doing this work I’m resolving such a huge issue for god’s house. God’s house should resolve big issues for me, too. Right now my son doesn’t have money for tuition, and this issue hasn’t been resolved. This small bit of money is not what I lack.” These words were what he truly thought, but he could not bring himself to tell God’s house face-to-face; instead, it was revealed when he vented in private. How should this situation be resolved? Should God’s house continue to use him, or find someone else? (Find someone else.) Why? His character and essence have already been revealed. Not only did he want God’s house to support his family’s livelihood, he also wanted God’s house to pay for his son’s tuition, and later he said his wife was sick and wanted God’s house to pay for her treatment. Wasn’t he asking for more and more? He thought by doing this small thing for God’s house he had made a big contribution, and that God’s house should provide everything he needed unconditionally. If he worked at a regular job, would he be able to afford to send his son to university? Would he be able to afford his wife’s treatment? Not necessarily. So, when he did this bit of work in God’s house, why did he constantly ask God’s house for money? What was he thinking? What was his view on the matter? He thought that without him, God’s house would have no one else to do the work, so he must take this opportunity to find reasons to ask God’s house for more money, should not forgo it for nothing, and that if he missed this chance it would be gone. Isn’t this what he meant? He thought that doing this work was like doing a job and earning money, so he should shake down God’s house. Afterward, when he realized he could not shake down God’s house, he did not do his work. Is this a person who truly believes in God? (No.)

People who truly believe in God are not afraid of bearing hardship while doing their duty. Some people do not mention difficulties their family has while doing their duty. Some people in poor areas do host duties, and when brothers and sisters come and there is no rice to eat, they go out and borrow money but do not say anything. If they said something, could God’s house give them the money? (Yes.) God’s house can afford the things they need to host brothers and sisters. So, why don’t they say anything? If you offered it to them, they would refuse it. After going out and borrowing the money they will gradually repay it themselves. They do not want money from God’s house. Antichrists are the exact opposite. They set conditions and reach out their hands and make demands before having done any work. How is it so easy for them to reach out their hands? How can they reach out their hands in such a “self-assured” way? People like that have no shame, do they? After asking for some money, they want more. If they are not given money, they will not do any work—they will not release the hawk until they’ve seen the hare: “I will do as much work as you pay me for. If you do not pay me, then forget about making me do any other work for you. This is a job to me, and if there is no advantage to me I will not do it. I put myself at risk to do my duty, so there has to be something in it for me, and it must be commensurate with what I put in. I cannot get the short end of the stick!” So, they have to ask for the things they feel they deserve, and they have to look for excuses to ask for it—they have to rack their brains to ask for it, and think of all sorts of ways to ask for it. If it can be given to them that’s even better, and if it is not given to them, then they will drop everything and leave, and they will not have suffered any losses. Besides this, they think that all of this work God’s house does involves risk, and that if God’s house does not give them the things they ask for, it would be afraid they would report it, and that it does not have anyone else suitable, so it must use them, and that if it uses them, it must pay them. Isn’t this a bit fraudulent in nature? Isn’t this a bit exploitative in nature? Do people like this count as believers? These are disbelievers who are not part of God’s house—they are not even friends of the church. When friends of the church see that believers are great people, they help give them cover, and help do some things. People like this can be blessed a little. By contrast, antichrists believe in God purely to get desirable things. If they cannot get desirable things, then they will not do any duty, will not perform any obligation, and will not expend themselves at all. When God’s house arranges for them to perform a duty, they first ask what desirable things it offers, and if it does not offer anything desirable, then they will not do it. What difference is there between them and the conmen of the world of nonbelievers? These people still want to be saved, and to be blessed by God. Aren’t they asking for impossible things? If these people didn’t have base characters and no shame, then how would their hearts be capable of thinking up such twisted ways of acting? How can they have this sort of attitude toward doing their duty? Are you capable of doing these things? (Yes, we are too.) To what extent? Is there a limit? At what point would you think it was very serious, and that you couldn’t go on doing these things any longer? (Sometimes my heart feels reproached, and my conscience is accused. There are also times when I am scared others will expose the things I’ve done, so I don’t do them anymore.) No matter what people do, their character is of extreme importance. A person who has no shame at all is capable of doing any sort of bad thing. They are a thoroughly evil person. There is no limit to anything they do, and they do not act according to their conscience. What sort of people are those whose humanity has no conscience? They are beasts and demons, and God will not save them. People who are capable of fraudulently acquiring God’s offerings and extorting the offerings to God while God performs His work, and who ask for payment from God’s house are not good people. They think God’s house is easy to trick, and that no one is responsible for looking after the things in God’s house, and that no one owns the things in God’s house, so they can possess and fraudulently take these things as they please. They think by doing this they have acquired an advantage. Is this advantage really that easy to acquire? The advantage you acquired wasn’t big, but what is the consequence of acquiring it? Losing your life.

If a person truly has some humanity and a bit of a conscience will they be capable of doing these things? You believe in God, yet you are capable of defrauding Him and extorting the offerings to Him. What kind of person are you? Are you even a person? Only demons do these sorts of things. Beasts do not do these things. Just look at a dog. The dog’s owner brought it up and it protects the house for its owner. When a bad person comes, it sounds the alarm and attacks them. It chases after anyone who takes its owner’s things. When the chickens, ducks and geese in its owner’s home run off it helps look for them. When the pigs in its owner’s home are fighting it tries to break it up. The dog knows its owner wants it to watch the pigs, so it is able to fulfill this responsibility. The dog does not reason with its owner and say, “I watched the pigs for you, so how come you don’t give me some chicken or something to eat?” It never says this. Even a dog is able to protect its owner’s home, and perform its obligations for its owner without recompense, but these people do not even measure up to animals. After performing a small obligation, they think they have gotten the short end of the stick, and after fulfilling some responsibilities and putting in some effort, they feel uncomfortable, that the arrangement was uneven, and that they have been used, so they think of all sorts of ways to make it even. When you believe in God, God protects you and leads you, and bestows so many truths upon you. How can you not think of repaying Him? You don’t think of repaying Him, but God does not pursue the matter. However, when you perform a small obligation you go to God looking to make it even. When you perform a small obligation you want to extort things and fraudulently acquire something—you think of all sorts of ways to make up for it. Aren’t you looking to die? Is what God gave you not a lot? In terms of people’s manifestations, what do they deserve? Do people have the things they enjoy and have today because they were deserving of them? No. Those are things God bestowed upon you and things He blessed you with. You have already been treated to a lot. God bestowed the life, the truth, and the way upon you without asking for anything in return. How have you repaid Him? When you do a bit of your obligations and duties, inside you feel it is hard to take and that you have suffered a loss, and think of all sorts of ways to make it even. If you want to make it even God can give something to you in return, but after you get it will you still be able to be saved? A day will come when these people know exactly what is the most important and what is the most valuable. People who have the essence of an antichrist will never know the value of the truth. When the day comes when their outcome is revealed, and when everything is revealed and made public, then they will know. Won’t it be too late by then? The outcome of all things is nigh, and all things will pass away. Only God’s words and His truth will remain for eternity. Those who possess the truth and practice God’s words will remain along with His words, and with His truth. This is the value and might of God’s words. However, antichrists will never be clear on this fact, so they rack their brains, think of all sorts of ways and use any means possible to scheme for various benefits by flying the banner of believing in God, and use even more clumsily fraudulent means to acquire God’s offerings, and embezzle and seize His offerings. All of these people’s actions and behaviors are recorded in God’s notebook to the letter. When the day comes for their outcomes to be revealed, God will determine each person’s outcome based on these records. All these things are true. No matter whether you believe it or not, all these things will be revealed. This is the fifth case. What kind of person is this man? Is his character noble or base? (Base.) In God’s eyes, he is not an honorable person; he is lowly. He is referred to as a “lowlife” for short.