Item Nine: They Do Their Duty Only to Distinguish Themselves and Feed Their Own Interests and Ambitions; They Never Consider the Interests of God's House, and They Even Sell Out Those Interests, Trading Them for Personal Glory (Part Five) Section Four
Case Six: Making an Arduous Effort to Win Office for the Sake of Food and Clothes
After coming to believe in God, many people always pursue status and pursue having other people think highly of them. In God’s house, they always want to stand out from the crowd and be at the head of the flock. For the sake of these things, they forsake their families and forgo their careers, suffer hardship and pay a price, then finally they get their wish and become a leader. After becoming a leader, these people’s lives are truly different. They manifest every aspect of the image and style they used to have in their head of how people in office are, from the way they dress and make themselves up, to the way they talk and act. They learn how to talk like an official, learn how to order people around, and learn how to make people handle their private affairs for them. Simply put, they learn how to be an official. When they go to a place to be a leader, it means they are going there to be an official. What does being an official mean? That they “make an arduous effort to win office for the sake of food and clothes.” This is a matter that pertains to physical pleasures. After becoming a leader, what about their life is different from before? What they eat, wear and the things they use are different. When they eat, they are particular about it being nutritious and tasty. They are particular about the brand and style of clothes they wear. After being a leader in a certain place for a year, they have become pale and fat; they are dressed from head to toe in designer clothes; and their cell phone, computer and the appliances in their home are all from high-end brands. Did they have these conditions before they were a leader? (No.) After becoming a leader they didn’t put effort into making money, so where did they get the money to buy all these things? Did the brothers and sisters donate these things to them, or did God’s house allocate these things to them? Have you ever heard of God’s house allocating these things to every leader and worker? (No.) So, how did they get them? In any case, these weren’t things they acquired through their own hard work; rather, they were things they got after gaining status and becoming an “official”—where they enjoyed the benefits of status—by extorting others, and through fraud and seizures. In churches everywhere, were there any people like this amongst all the different ranks of leaders and workers that you came into contact with? When they first become a leader, they have nothing, but in less than three months they have high-end brand-name computers and cell phones. After becoming a leader, some people think they should enjoy a high standard of treatment—when they go out they should ride in a car; the computers and cell phones they use should be better than the ones average people use, must be a high-end brand, and when the model is old they must replace it with a new one. Does God’s house have these rules? God’s house has never had these rules, and there is not one brother or sister who thinks so. So where do these things these leaders enjoy come from? For one thing, they got these things by extorting brothers and sisters and getting rich people to buy these things for them by flying the banner of doing the work of God’s house. Besides this, they bought these things themselves by misappropriating and stealing offerings. Aren’t they scum who fraudulently acquire food and drink? Is this any different from the people in the previous few cases I shared? (No.) What do they have in common? They all used their position to embezzle offerings and get offerings by extortion. Some people say, “By working in God’s house and being a leader or worker, aren’t they qualified to enjoy these things? Aren’t they qualified to share in God’s offerings along with Him?” Tell Me, are they? (No.) If they need to buy some things to do the work of God’s house, in this case God’s house has rules which say they can buy those things, but are these people buying things within the stipulations of the rules? (No.) What do you see that shows you they are not? (If they really needed it for work, they would think something was fine so long as it could be used, but what antichrists pursue are high-end designer things, and they use the best of everything. Judging from this, we can see they are using their status to enjoy these material things.) That’s right. If it was needed for work, something would be fine so long as it could be used. Why do they need to use such fancy and expensive things? Also, when they bought these things did other people participate in the decision and agree with it? Isn’t this a problem? If other people participated in the decision, could all of them have agreed with them buying these high-end things? Absolutely not. It is very obvious that they got these things by stealing offerings. This is clear as day. Also, God’s house has a rule—whether each church is safeguarding offerings or partnering on work, it is never just one person’s job. So, why could these people, as individuals, make use of and spend offerings as they pleased? This is not in line with the principles. Isn’t the nature of these things they do that of stealing offerings? They bought these things and acquired these things without getting the agreement and approval of other leaders and workers, let alone notifying other people, and without anyone else knowing what they were doing. Isn’t the nature of this a bit like stealing? This is called stealing offerings. Stealing is cheating. Why is it called cheating? Because they bought these fancy things and obtained them by flying the banner of doing the work of God’s house. This sort of behavior is called fraud, and it is called cheating. Have I gone too far by defining it this way? Am I making a big deal out of nothing? (No.) Not only this, but after these so-called leaders stay in a place for a while, they feel out very clearly what work the brothers and sisters there do in the world, what social connections they have, and what benefits they can swindle and get from these people, and what connections they can use. For example, whichever brothers and sisters work at a hospital, for a government department, or at a bank, or whoever is an entrepreneur, whoever’s family owns a store, owns a car, or a big house, and so on, they feel those things out very clearly. Are these things within the scope of these leaders’ work? What are they doing feeling these things out? They want to use these connections, and use these brothers and sisters who have special positions in the world to do service for them, serve them, and provide them with conveniences. You think they are doing this in order to do the church’s work, and fellowship on the truth to address the difficulties of God’s chosen people? Is that what they are doing? There is an intent and an objective behind all these things they do. When true leaders and workers work, they focus on solving problems, and focus on doing the church’s work well. They pay no attention to things that have nothing to do with the church’s work. They just focus on asking who in the church is doing their duty sincerely, who is effective in their duty, who can accept the truth and practice the truth, and who is loyal in doing their duty. Then, they promote them, and investigate those people who cause disruptions and disturbances and deal with them according to principle. Only people who practice like this are true leaders and workers. Do antichrists do these things? (No.) What do they do? They do things and make preparations in order to glean desirable things for themselves, and for the sake of their own interests, but do not apply themselves to the church’s work, and do not treat it with importance. Therefore, after they gain their footing in a certain place, they have pretty much felt out which brothers and sisters can provide what services for them. For example, whoever works in a pharmaceutical factory can give them free medicine when they’re sick, and give them high-quality imported medicine; whoever works at a bank can make it convenient for them to make deposits or withdrawals; and so on. They feel all these things out very clearly. They gather these people before themselves with no regard for whether these people’s humanity is good or not. So long as these people follow them and are willing to be their helpers and wingmen, antichrists will give them desirable things, and keep them close and nurture and protect them, while these people work in order to solidify the position of these antichrists in the church, and to maintain the forces of these antichrists. So, when you want to see whether a church leader is doing real work, ask them about the real situation of the brothers and sisters in that church, and how the church’s work is going, and you will be able to see clearly whether they are actually someone who does real work. Some people feel out clearly the family matters and living circumstances of brothers and sisters in the church. If you ask them who works at a pharmaceutical factory, whose family owns a store, whose family has a car, whose family does big business, or who works at whatever local department and can do things for brothers and sisters, they can tell you exactly. If you ask them who pursues the truth, who is perfunctory in their duty, who is an antichrist, who tries to win people over, who is effective in sharing the gospel, or how many potential gospel recipients there are locally, they do not know these things. What sort of people are these? They want to use all of the social connections in the place they are, and unite them to become a small social group. Therefore, the place where these leaders are cannot be called a church. After they are done with it, it has become a social group. When these people get together, they do not open up their hearts and fellowship each other’s experiences and understanding; instead, they look at who has the stronger connections, who has a high standing in society and is very accomplished, who is well-known in society, who has influence in society, and who can provide especially convenient services and desirable things to the leader. Whoever these people are, they have standing in the leader’s heart. Isn’t this what antichrists do? (Yes.) What is it that antichrists are doing? Are they building the church? They are tearing down the church and destroying the church, and disturbing and disrupting the work of God’s house. They are creating their own independent kingdom, their own private group, and clique. This is what antichrists do.
I have had contact with you for so many years, but do I ask about what your families do, how well off your families are and what your backgrounds are? (No.) Why don’t I ask these things? There is no point in asking those things. God’s house is not society. There is no need to ingratiate yourself to others or grease connections with others. Asking about these things has no connection with believing in God at all. Do not turn God’s house into society. No matter what your family background is, whether it is poor or wealthy, what environment you live in, whether it is a city or a rural area, it doesn’t matter. If you don’t pursue the truth, no matter how high a standing you used to have in society, it doesn’t matter. I will not look at that. When I chat with people, I have never asked about their family situation. If they are willing to talk about it, then I listen, but I have never treated these things as important information I must ask about, let alone tried to glean some sort of information with which to use people. However, when antichrists ask about these things, they are certainly not doing it just to chat; rather, they are doing it to glean some desirable things. For example, whoever’s family owns a store that sells health products and can let them buy health products at wholesale price, they cozy up to this family; or, whoever has a friend they can use to help them buy nice things, they will remember it. They keep a list of these “connections” and these people who they think are special talents, and use them at crucial moments. They think these people are all talented and of great use to them. Is this view correct? (No.) People who do not pursue the truth, and who are of the world and of Satan see these things as more important than life and the truth. If a certain person used to be a regular worker in society, and as soon as a leader hears this they do not want to pay the person any attention no matter how earnestly they pursue in their faith, but when the leader sees that someone used to be a cadre and their family is well-off, has a superior lifestyle and lives life at the top, and they suck up to them, is this a good leader? (No.) Have you ever been subjected to this sort of treatment? What did you think inside after being subjected to this sort of treatment? Did you feel there was no love or warmth in God’s house? Do antichrists represent God’s house? They do not represent God’s house. They represent Satan. The way they act and conduct themselves, and their essence are all of Satan and have nothing at all to do with the truth. They only represent themselves. There are also some antichrists who, after they get these “connections” in their palm and contact them, use these connections to handle private matters for them, or even to arrange work for their family members. Tell Me, do these sorts of things happen? (Yes.) Antichrists are all too capable of doing these things. A person with no conscience, who has no shame, and who is selfish and base to the extreme is capable of doing anything—they are capable of doing any sort of thing which does not accord with the truth, and which flies in the face of morality and one’s conscience. So, in antichrists’ eyes, using their position to handle their private affairs, glean benefits and that sort of thing is the most normal thing in the world, and it should not be brought up and discerned or understood. It is just like how nonbelievers say, “Make an arduous effort to win office for the sake of food and clothes.” This is the goal antichrists pursue by being a leader, too. Just like their pursuit, they are also working hard in this direction without an ounce of self-reproach, using the power in their hands and using their position to threaten brothers and sisters into doing things, as though it were only reasonable, and bringing up all sorts of practices and demands to brothers and sisters which do not accord with the principles. Some muddleheaded people who lack discernment are used and ordered around by these leaders against their will, and there could even be some people who use their own money to do things for them but cannot say anything, and think that by doing this they are doing their duty and preparing good deeds. Let Me tell you: You are actually wrong. In doing this, you are not preparing good deeds; rather, you are assisting a bad person in doing bad things, and are increasing the might of an evil person. Why do I say this? When you do these things it is not in line with the principles. You are not doing your duty. You are helping an antichrist scheme for their personal benefits, and handling private matters for them. This is not your duty; it is not your responsibility. It is not the commission God gave you, nor is it the work of God’s house. By doing this, you are attending to Satan and working for Satan. Will God commemorate you for working for Satan? (No.) Then what will God commemorate? There is a phrase in the Bible. The Lord Jesus said: “Truly I say to you, Inasmuch as you have done it to one of the least of these My brothers, you have done it to Me” (Matthew 25:40). This is what God stipulated. What do these words mean? If you are able to do something for the least of the brothers and sisters, then that thing is certainly done according to the principles and according to God’s demands. You do not look at how high a person’s status is, but rather do things according to principle. Some people only do things, put in effort and work for those with status, and enthusiastically support them, but should a person with no status ask them to do something, even if it is a duty or responsibility they should do, they pay them no heed. So, how are the things they do defined? From where God stands, these things are defined as working for Satan, and He will not commemorate these things at all. This is the sixth case. Have any of you seen cases like this? (I saw one, God. Before, when there was an antichrist who was a leader where we were, she used her position to keep the good food, useful items, makeup and other things donated by the brothers and sisters for herself. Some things had already expired but she still didn’t give them to the brothers and sisters; she embezzled all these things. Also, she bought a down jacket, but later when she saw a sister had bought a down jacket that didn’t cost much and was of good quality, she thought of all sorts of things to say to the sister to defraud her of her jacket, and made the sister spend more money to buy her own down jacket.) It can be said that every antichrist is an evil person, and that they have no humanity, no conscience, and their character is particularly base. These people must eventually be revealed and eliminated.
In the past, there was a family of three that came overseas to do their duty. After arriving, they made the brothers and sisters take them out every day to buy things—some of them wanted down jackets, some wanted pants, and others wanted shoes. They made excuses, saying they hadn’t brought that much money. If they hadn’t brought that much money then they shouldn’t have been buying things, but they still wanted to, and they didn’t want average things, but fancy ones, which the brothers and sisters paid for with their own money. As the family did their duty for a period of time, people became disapproving of their behavior—the food they ate, the place they lived, and the things they used were all too lavish! The father in the family even made the brothers and sisters buy him milk, and when thirsty, he drank milk as though it were water. How many people are there in this world who can drink milk like water? What grade of people must they be? Later, he made the brothers and sisters buy tangerines and oranges, and they bought one big bag which the family finished in two days. After this, he said they wanted some supplementary vitamins, so he told the brothers and sisters to buy some cherries, even using Me as a pretext, saying, “You have to buy cherries for god!” I said, “It’s winter now. It isn’t the season to eat cherries. I won’t eat them; don’t buy them for Me.” He said, “We still have to buy them!” When the brothers and sisters bought a single box of cherries, his family polished it off in no time. I’d never seen someone who could eat like that—they ate fruit like it was rice and drank milk like it was water. And then, when it was time to eat a meal, they saw there was fish and ate it ravenously. The way they ate it would disgust you—they were like starving ghosts who had never eaten anything good before. They thought that this chance to have good things should be taken advantage of, so they eagerly scrambled to stuff themselves. In the end, the kid ate so much that something went wrong with him. After this, the kid said something that had twisted logic: “If I didn’t eat that fish in god’s place, I wouldn’t have gotten sick!” I wasn’t even there when he ate it, and I knew nothing about it. He ate it of his own accord—how could he blame it on Me? But he did blame Me. How should people like this be handled? (They should be cleared out.) What are they? (Devils and Satans.) They are devils. At the time, I said to the local church leaders, “Clear them out and get them out of here, as far away as possible. I never want to see their faces again!”
I’ve been to some churches and interacted with no small number of brothers and sisters. I have seen all sorts of bad and evil people, but the number of people I can associate with normally is fairly small. There really is no way to interact with the majority of people, and there are too many people who are impervious to reason. Everything they say has twisted and erroneous logic, and they present falsehoods as if they were true—they’re just beasts, devils, and Satans, and they don’t have an ounce of humanity or reason. People like this constitute at least about a third of the people in each church. None of them are worth anything, and none of them can be saved; they should all be eliminated as soon as possible. The people I like interacting with are those who can accept the truth, who are relatively honest, and who can speak from their hearts. Regardless of what corruptions they reveal or what deviations they have, as long as they are willing to fellowship on the truth and can accept the truth, I can get along with them. As for deceitful people and those who like to take advantage of others, I pay them no heed. Some people always want to flaunt themselves when they are in My presence and make Me think highly of them. They act one way in front of Me and another way behind My back to trick Me. People like this are devils, and they should be sent as far away as possible; I never want to see them again. When people have weaknesses and inadequacies I can support and provide for them, and when they have corrupt dispositions I can fellowship on the truth with them, but I do not engage with devils or listen to what devils say. Some people are new believers and there are some truths they don’t understand, so they are capable of speaking and acting ignorantly. We can fellowship on the truth, but if you understand some truths and then deliberately cause a ruckus, acting unreasonably toward Me and finding fault with Me, then I will not put up with you. Why won’t I put up with you? You aren’t someone who can be saved, so why should I put up with you? Putting up with someone means I can tolerate and be patient with them. I am patient with ignorant people and the average corrupt person, but not enemies or devils. If devils and enemies pretend to say pleasant-sounding things to you and bribe you, trick you, or give you momentary happiness, can you believe what they say? (No, we can’t.) Why? Because they cannot accept the truth, you have already seen this clearly, and these people have already been revealed. They are not honest in the things they say, when they fellowship on the truth it is all hypocritical, and it is hard to discern whether what they say is true or false. If you can see these things accurately, then you can be sure they are devils and Satans. Only by clearing them out or expelling them can the problem be thoroughly resolved. Some people say, “Why aren’t they given a little leeway?” These people have no chance of repenting; it’s not possible for them to repent. They are just like Satan—no matter how almighty and wise God is, from its perspective this is not the essence God should have. It does not treat God as God, and it thinks that its cunning schemes are wisdom, that its nature essence is the truth, and that God is not the truth. This is a pure Satan, and it is destined to be hostile to God until the end. So, evil people are destined to be unable to love the truth and pursue the truth, and as such, God does not save them. Clearing them out from the church and expelling them from God’s house is the most correct decision and is not wrong in the slightest.
The antichrists I fellowshipped about and dissected today will never change the direction and goals they pursue. They prioritize self-interest in everything they pursue, using their utmost strength and racking their brains to fraudulently acquire food and drink in God’s house. They have never sincerely expended themselves for God; they just want to cheat their way into food and drink, interests, and good treatment. They think God doesn’t see this, doesn’t know about it, and cannot scrutinize it, so they pursue these things single-mindedly. Of course, this is how their nature essence is—they do not love the truth, nor can they walk the path of pursuing the truth, so they are doomed to be defined as antichrists. These are the sort of people whom God eliminates, and the sort of people whom God’s house should expel once they are discovered. From discovering that a person is on the path of an antichrist, to them doing a series of things which do not accord with the truth, to the day when they are defined as an antichrist, this all shows everyone that antichrists do not change. Their ultimate outcome is to be expelled by God’s house and eliminated by God—they are incapable of change. So, what good does it do you to know these things? Some people say, “We don’t acquire food and drink by fraud. We pursue the truth and want to do our duty as created beings. We follow God and submit to His orchestrations and arrangements. We do not act like antichrists, nor do we plan on walking the path of antichrists. What use is there in us knowing about these cases?” For regular brothers and sisters, these manifestations and revelations of antichrists can serve as a warning for each person, and let them know which path is correct and which behaviors and ways of doing things are in line with God’s intentions. For church leaders and workers at all levels, this is real-life proof of discerning antichrists. What good does discerning antichrists do for the church’s work? It helps you accurately identify antichrists and expel them from the church at the appropriate time, making the church more pure and free from the disturbances, disruptions and damage of these antichrists, so that those who truly pursue the truth and who can sincerely expend themselves for God have a clean and tranquil environment, free from the disturbances of devils and Satans. So, when it comes to the truth of discerning antichrists, no matter whether you discern them from the perspective of facts and manifestations, or based on the truth principles, you must get a handle on both of these aspects. It is beneficial for your life entry and for the church’s work—this is something you should understand.
Today I talked about several cases. These matters are all some behaviors, ways of doing things and manifestations of antichrists’ viciousness, shamelessness, and complete lack of any moral bottom line. Such cases should all be ones which have happened around you, and it can be said that antichrists’ ways of doing things and their manifestations all exist within you to some extent. In other words, you all have some dispositions of antichrists and some of the practices of antichrists. Therefore, as you discern antichrists, you should also check, examine, and reflect on your own behavior. Some people might say, “You always talk about such cases, such gossip, and You go into such detail. How does this benefit our entering the truth? Right now, we are really busy with our duties, and we don’t want to take notes on these things or listen to them. When entering the truth, it’s enough to stick to two things—one is submitting to God, and the other is properly doing one’s duty. It’s so simple!” It may be that simple in theory, but precisely and specifically speaking, it is not so simple. If you understand few truths, your entry will be rough and shallow, and if the truths you understand are general ones, then the details you experience will also be few in number, and you will never be purified in God’s presence. God asks people to pursue the truth and enter into the truth realities, so people must understand these details. What do you see from this? God has made up His mind to save you, so He must be earnest with you and absolutely not be careless, muddled, or satisfied with being close enough or about right. To God, “being about right,” “four out of five,” “perhaps,” and “maybe” do not exist. If you want to be saved and want to walk the path of salvation, you must understand all these details of the truth. If you aren’t up to the task now, it’s okay—beginning to enter into the details of the truth now is not too late. If you are just satisfied with having an attitude of doing your duty well without making mistakes, and being able to submit when things happen to you, then you will never enter into the truth realities. Every truth God provides to people has a lot of specific details, and if people do not understand these details, they will never understand the truth or understand God’s intentions. Is it a good thing that God is serious with people? (Yes.) No matter whether it is in regard to doing their duties, their submission, their interpersonal relationships, or how they approach the matter of their prospects and fate, or even in regard to the things I am talking about now, like how to discern antichrists, how to not walk the path of an antichrist, and how to cast off the disposition of an antichrist, they should get a grasp on these one by one. Once you are truly able to discern these details and do not just know how to preach a bit of simple and empty doctrine, then you will have entered into the truth realities. Only people who enter the truth realities have a chance and a hope of being saved; merely preaching words and doctrines is just laboring. If people want to enter into the truth realities, they must begin with these details. Otherwise, they will never achieve dispositional change.
April 4, 2020
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