What is an antichrist’s most obvious manifestation? Firstly, they do not accept the truth, which is something everyone can see. Not only do they not accept other people’s suggestions, but most importantly, they also do not accept being pruned. It is certain beyond doubt that antichrists do not accept the truth; if they could accept the truth then they would not be antichrists. So why do antichrists still do their duties? What exactly is their intention in doing their duties? It is to “receive a hundredfold in this life and eternal life in the world to come.” They are entirely following this saying in their duties. Is this not a transaction? This is absolutely a transaction. Judging by the nature of this transaction, is this not a wicked disposition? (Yes.) So in what way are they wicked? Can anyone tell Me? (Although antichrists hear so many truths expressed by God, they never pursue them. They firmly hold on to their status and don’t let go, only doing their duty for their personal benefit and to wield power over others.) That answer is kind of right, you’ve sort of got it, but it’s not specific enough. If they know full well that it is wrong to make transactions with God, but still persist to the end and refuse to repent, then this problem is serious. Nowadays, most people do their duties with the intention of gaining blessings. They all want to use the performance of their duties to be rewarded and get a crown, and they do not understand the significance of performing one’s duty. This problem needs to be fellowshipped on clearly. So, let’s first talk about just how people’s duty came into being. God works to manage and save humankind. Of course God has requirements of people, and these requirements are their duty. It is evident that people’s duty arises from God’s work and His requirements of humankind. Regardless of what duty one performs, it is the most proper thing they could do, the most beautiful and just thing among humankind. As created beings, people ought to perform their duty, and only then can they receive the approval of the Creator. Created beings live under the Creator’s dominion, and they accept all that is provided by God and everything that comes from God, so they should fulfill their responsibilities and obligations. This is perfectly natural and justified, and was ordained by God. From this it can be seen that, for people to perform the duty of a created being is more just, beautiful, and noble than anything else done while living on earth; nothing among humankind is more meaningful or worthy, and nothing brings greater meaning and worth to the life of a created person, than performing the duty of a created being. On earth, only the group of people who truly and sincerely perform the duty of a created being are those who submit to the Creator. This group does not follow worldly trends; they submit to the leadership and guidance of God, only listen to the words of the Creator, accept the truths expressed by the Creator, and live by the words of the Creator. This is the truest, most resounding testimony, and it is the best testimony of belief in God. For a created being to be able to fulfill the duty of a created being, to be able to satisfy the Creator, is the most beautiful thing among humankind, and is something that should be spread as a tale to be praised by all people. Anything the Creator entrusts to created beings should be unconditionally accepted by them; for humankind, this is a matter of both happiness and privilege, and for all those who fulfill the duty of a created being, nothing is more beautiful or worthy of commemoration—it is something positive. And as for how the Creator treats those who can fulfill the duty of a created being, and what He promises them, this is a matter for the Creator; it is no business of created humankind. To put it a little more plainly and simply, this is up to God, and people have no right to interfere. You will get whatever God gives you, and if He gives you nothing, then there is nothing you can say about it. When a created being accepts God’s commission, and cooperates with the Creator to perform their duty and do what they can, this is not a transaction or a trade; people should not try to trade expressions of attitudes or actions and behaviors to gain any promises or blessings from God. When the Creator entrusts this work to you, it is right and proper that, as created beings, you accept this duty and commission. Is there anything transactional about this? (No.) On the Creator’s side, He is willing to entrust to each and every one of you the duties that people ought to perform; and on the created humankind’s side, people should gladly accept this duty, treating it as their life’s obligation, as the value they should live out in this life. There is no transaction here, this is not an equivalent exchange, much less does it involve any reward or other statements that people imagine. This is by no means a trade; it is not about exchanging the price people pay or the hard work they provide when performing their duty for something else. God has never said that, and it should not be understood in this way by people. The Creator gives humankind a commission, and a created being, having received from the Creator the commission God gives, undertakes to perform their duty. In this matter, this process, there is nothing transactional; it is quite a simple and proper thing. It is just as with parents, who, having given birth to their child, raise them without conditions or complaints. As for whether the child grows up to be filial, their parents had no such requirements since the day they were born. There isn’t a single parent who, after giving birth to a child, says, “I’m only raising him so that he’ll serve and honor me in the future. If he won’t honor me, I’ll throttle him to death right now.” There is not a single parent like this. So, judging from the way parents raise their children, it is an obligation, a responsibility, right? (Yes.) Parents will go on raising their child, no matter if they are filial or not, and whatever the hardships, they will raise them until they become a grown adult, and hope for the best for them. There is nothing conditional or transactional in this responsibility and obligation that parents have for their child. Those with relevant experience can understand this. Most parents have no required standards for whether their child is filial. If their child is filial, they will be a bit more cheerful than they would otherwise be, and they will be a bit happier in their old age. If their child is not filial, they will just let that be the case. This is how most parents who are relatively open-minded will think. All in all, whether it’s parents raising their children or children supporting their parents, the matter is one of responsibility, of obligation, and it falls within a person’s expected role. Of course, these are all petty matters compared to a created being’s performance of their duty, but of the matters of the human world, they are among the more beautiful and just ones. Needless to say, this applies even more to a created being’s performance of their duty. As a created being, when one comes before the Creator, they ought to perform their duty. This is a very proper thing to do, and they should fulfill this responsibility. On the basis that created beings perform their duties, the Creator has done even greater work among humankind, and He has carried out a further stage of work on people. And what work is that? He provides humankind with the truth, allowing them to gain the truth from Him as they perform their duties and thereby to cast off their corrupt dispositions and be purified. Thus, they come to satisfy God’s intentions and embark on the right path in life, and, ultimately, they are able to fear God and shun evil, attain complete salvation, and no longer be subjected to Satan’s afflictions. This is the effect that God would have humankind achieve in the end by performing their duties. Therefore, during the process of performing your duty, God does not merely make you see one thing clearly and understand a little truth, nor does He merely let you enjoy the grace and blessings you receive by performing your duty as a created being. Rather, He allows you to be purified and saved, and, ultimately, come to live in the light of the face of the Creator. This “light of the face” of the Creator involves a large amount of extended meaning and content—we won’t go into this today. Of course, God is sure to issue promises and blessings to such people, and make different statements about them—this is a further matter. In terms of the here and now, what does everyone who comes before God and performs their duty as a created being receive from God? Truth and life, the most valuable and beautiful things among humankind. Not a single created being among mankind can receive such blessings from the hand of the Creator easily. Such a beautiful and such a great thing is twisted by the ilk of the antichrists into a transaction, in which they solicit crowns and rewards from God’s hand. Such a transaction turns something most beautiful and just into something most ugly and wicked. Is this not what the antichrists do? Judging from this, are the antichrists not wicked? They are quite wicked indeed! This is a manifestation of their wickedness.

In the last days, God comes incarnate to work, expresses many truths, opens up to humankind all the mysteries of God’s management plan, and supplies all the truths that people must understand and enter into in order to be saved. These truths and these words of God are treasures to all who love positive things. The truths are the needs of corrupt humankind, and they are also priceless treasures for humankind. Every one of God’s words, requirements, and intentions are things people should understand and grasp, they are things people must abide by to achieve salvation, and they are truths that human beings must gain. But antichrists regard these words as theories and slogans, they even turn a deaf ear to them, and worse still, they despise and deny them. Antichrists regard the most precious things among humanity to be the lies of charlatans. Antichrists believe in their hearts that there is no Savior, let alone truth or positive things in the world. They think anything beautiful or any benefit must be won by human hands and taken forcefully through human struggle. Antichrists think people without ambitions and dreams will never succeed, but their hearts are filled with aversion and hatred for the truth expressed by God. They consider the truths expressed by God to be theories and slogans, but they regard power, interests, ambition, and desire as just causes to be managed and pursued. They also use the service done with their gifts as a means to transact with God in an attempt to enter the kingdom of heaven, obtain crowns, and enjoy greater blessings. Isn’t this wicked? How do they interpret God’s intentions? They say, “God determines who is the boss by seeing who expends and suffers the most for him and who pays the highest price. He determines who can enter the kingdom and who receives crowns by seeing who is able to run around, speak eloquently, and who has the spirit of a bandit and can seize things by force. As Paul said, ‘I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: From now on there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness’ (2 Timothy 4:7–8).” They follow these words of Paul and believe that his words are true, but they ignore all of God’s requirements and statements for humankind, thinking, “These things are unimportant. All that matters is that once I have fought my fight and finished my course, I will receive a crown in the end. This is true. Isn’t that what god means? God has spoken thousands upon thousands of words and delivered countless sermons. Ultimately what he means to tell people is that if you want crowns and rewards, it’s up to you to fight, struggle, seize, and take it.” Is this not the logic of antichrists? In the depths of their hearts, this is how antichrists always view God’s work, and this is how they interpret God’s word and management plan. Their disposition is wicked, isn’t it? They twist God’s intentions, the truth, and all positive things. They regard God’s management plan to save humankind as a naked transaction, and regard the duty the Creator requires humankind to perform as a naked expropriation, aggression, deception, and transaction. Isn’t this the wicked disposition of antichrists? Antichrists believe that to obtain blessings and enter the kingdom of heaven, they must obtain it through a transaction, and that this is fair, reasonable, and most legitimate. Isn’t this wicked logic? Isn’t this satanic logic? Antichrists always hold such views and attitudes deep in their hearts, which proves that the disposition of antichrists is too wicked.

From the few items of content just fellowshipped, were you able to see the wicked disposition of antichrists? (Yes.) The first item was how antichrists treat their duty, wasn’t it? So how do antichrists treat their duty? (Antichrists consider their duty as a transaction that they exchange for their own destination and their own interests. No matter how much God has worked on people, how many words He has spoken to them, and how many truths He has expressed to them, they brush all this off and still do their duty with the intention of making a transaction with God.) Antichrists consider their duty as a transaction. They do their duty with the intention of making a transaction and gaining blessings. They think that believing in God should be for the sake of gaining blessings, and that gaining blessings through doing their duty is appropriate. They distort the positive thing that is performing one’s duty and denigrate the value and significance of performing one’s duty as a created being, while also denigrating the legitimacy of doing this; they turn the duty that created beings should naturally perform into a transaction. This is the wickedness of antichrists; this is the first item. The second item is that antichrists do not believe in the existence of positive things or the truth, and do not believe and do not acknowledge that God’s words are the truth. Is this not wicked? (Yes, it is.) What is wicked about it? God’s words are the reality of all positive things, yet antichrists cannot see it and do not acknowledge it. They regard God’s words as slogans, as a type of theory, and they distort the fact that God’s words are the truth. What is the biggest and principal problem here? God wants to use these words to save mankind, and man must accept God’s words before he can be cleansed and attain salvation—this is a fact, and it is the truth. Antichrists do not acknowledge or accept this promise of God to humankind. They say, “Being saved? Being cleansed? What use is that? It’s useless! If I am cleansed, can I really be saved and enter the kingdom of heaven? I don’t think so!” They pay no heed to this matter and are not interested in it. What is the unspoken implication of this? It is that they do not believe that the words of God are the truth; they believe that they are just sayings and doctrines. They do not believe or acknowledge that the words of God can cleanse or save people. This can be likened to when God defined Job at that time as someone who feared God and shunned evil, and as a perfect man. Are these words that God said the truth? (Yes.) So why would God say such a thing? What is the basis? God observes people’s behavior, scrutinizes their hearts, and sees their essence, and based on this He said that Job feared God and shunned evil and was a perfect man. God observed Job for more than just a day or two, and Job’s manifestations of fearing God and shunning evil also spanned more than just a day or two, and certainly did not cover just one or two matters. So what attitude did Satan take toward this fact? (A skeptical and doubting attitude.) Satan was not just skeptical, it denied it. Its words, put plainly, were “You gave Job so much, including cows, sheep and countless possessions. He has reasons to worship you. You say Job is a perfect man, but your words do not hold water. Your words are not the truth, they are not real, they are inaccurate, and I deny your words.” Is this not what Satan meant? (Yes, it is.) God said, “Job fears God and shuns evil, he is a perfect man.” What did Satan say? (Would he worship god with no reason?) Satan said, “Wrong, he is not a perfect man! He has received benefits and blessings from you, so he fears you. If you take away these benefits and blessings, he will not fear you—he is not a perfect man.” So, for every sentence spoken by God, Satan will put a question mark against it and a cross through it. Satan denies God’s words, and denies God’s definitions or statements on anything. Can we say that Satan denies the truth? (Yes.) This is the fact. So, what is the attitude of antichrists toward God’s words which expose, judge and chastise humankind, and put forward various specific requirements to humankind? Do they acknowledge them and say “Amen”? Can they follow them? (No, they can’t.) You could say that antichrists’ immediate response to all sorts of God’s words in their hearts is, “Wrong! Is this really how it is? How come what you say is what it is? That’s not right—I don’t believe that. Why is what you said so unpleasant? God wouldn’t talk like this! If I were to speak, it should be said this way.” Judging by these attitudes of antichrists toward God, can they abide by God’s words as the truth? Absolutely not. This is what is wicked about them; this is the second item. The third item is what antichrists think about the purpose of God’s management plan, which is that God wants to save humankind, and allow humankind to break away from Satan’s corrupt disposition and the forces of darkness and attain salvation. Why is their disposition said to be wicked? They believe that this is a transaction, and they even believe that it is just a game. A game between whom? A game between a god of legend and a group of ignorant and foolish people who want to enter the kingdom of heaven and be freed from the world of suffering. This is also a transaction in which both sides are willing participants, where one side is willing to give and the other is willing to receive. It is this kind of game. This is how they see God’s management plan—isn’t this the revelation of the wicked disposition of antichrists? Because antichrists are full of ambitions, and because they desire a destination and blessings, they twist humankind’s most beautiful undertaking and God’s management work to save humankind into a game, a transaction—this is the wicked disposition of antichrists. In addition, antichrists have another manifestation, which sounds quite comical and ludicrous. Why is it ludicrous? Antichrists do not believe in all the work that God has done, nor do they believe that everything God has said is the truth and can save humankind, but they are inexhaustible in their willingness to endure hardship, pay the price, and make and facilitate this transaction. Isn’t this funny? Of course, this is not the wickedness of antichrists, but the stupidity of antichrists. In one respect, they do not believe God exists, do not acknowledge that God’s words are the truth, and even distort God’s management plan, but in another respect they still want to gain personal benefits from God’s words and His management plan. In other words, in one respect they do not believe in the existence of all these facts, let alone their authenticity, while in another, they still want to angle for profits and take every advantage, wanting to be opportunistic and gain the things that they cannot acquire in the world, all while still thinking that they are extremely clever. Isn’t this funny? They are deceiving themselves and are extremely stupid.

Just now we dissected the wicked disposition of antichrists using three manifestations, and concluded with one more: Antichrists are so stupid that one knows not whether to laugh or cry. What are the three manifestations? (First, antichrists regard doing their duty as a transaction; second, antichrists do not acknowledge the word of God, do not believe that God’s word is a positive thing, and do not acknowledge that God’s word can save people, instead they regard God’s word as theories and slogans; third, antichrists regard the purpose of God’s management plan—His work to save people—as a naked transaction and a game.) And one more manifestation? (The ludicrousness and extreme stupidity of antichrists.) Aren’t these quite specific? (Yes.) Would you say that the sort of person who possesses this disposition has a somewhat abnormal mental state and reason? (Yes.) In what way are they abnormal? (Antichrists want to make transactions with God and receive prospects and a destination from God, but they still don’t believe in God’s management plan or that God can save humankind. Their thinking is contradictory, the things they want are the things that they deny. This fundamentally does not make sense, so their reason is abnormal and there is something wrong with their mental state.) This shows that they are lacking in terms of normal humanity. They do not know that they are contradicting themselves with these ways of thinking and calculations. How does this come about? (They always follow the wrong path because they never accept the truth or practice the truth.) And do they know the path they are walking is the wrong one? They certainly do not. If they knew doing so would lead to suffering loss, then surely they wouldn’t do so. They think that doing so gives them an advantage: “Look at how smart I am. None of you can see through to things; you’re all foolish. How can you be so guileless? Where is god? I can’t see or touch him, and there’s no guarantee that god’s promises can be realized! See how astute I am—when I take a step forward, I’m thinking ten steps ahead, but you don’t even make any calculations for a single step.” They think they are so clever. Therefore, after doing their duty for two or three years, some people think: “I’ve been doing my duty for a few years and still haven’t gained anything, witnessed any miracles or seen any unusual phenomena. I ate three meals a day before, and I still eat three meals. If I skip a meal, then I am hungry. If I lose one or two hours of sleep at night, then I am still sleepy in the day. I haven’t developed any special powers! Everyone says god is omnipotent and you can receive great blessings if you do your duty. I’ve done my duty for several years and nothing is different. Isn’t it still like this? I often have weakness, negativity, and complaints. Everyone says the truth can change people and god’s word can change people, but I haven’t changed at all. In my heart I still often miss my parents, miss my children, and even reminisce about my days in the world before. So just what does god do on people? What have I gained? Everyone says that when people believe in god and obtain the truth, then they gain something, but if they had, wouldn’t they be different from the rest? Now I’m getting older, and my health is not as it was. The wrinkles on my face have grown a lot. Don’t they say that people who believe in god get younger the longer they live? Why have I got older instead of younger? God’s words aren’t accurate anyway, I need to make plans on my own behalf. I see that this is all there is to believing in god, every day busy reading god’s word, attending gatherings, singing hymns, and doing my duty. It seems boring and I don’t feel any different from before.” As soon as they think like this, they’re going to be in trouble, aren’t they? They go on thinking, “Now I’m really suffering in doing my duty, god’s promises and blessings seem very distant. Also, some people who believe in god die in disasters, so is there even such a thing as god’s protection of man? Say there isn’t, then the testimony articles that some people have written saying god worked miracles to save their lives at the most perilous moments, are they true or false?” They mull it over and in their hearts they are uncertain, and when they continue doing their duty they feel listless and unenthusiastic, and are no longer proactive. They keep drawing back and begin to do things half-heartedly and perfunctorily. What calculations are they making in their minds? “If I don’t receive blessings, if it’s always like this, then I need to make other plans. I must replan whether I’ll continue doing my duty or not, and how I’ll do it in the future. I mustn’t be this foolish again. Otherwise in the future I won’t get my prospects and destiny, or my crown, and I won’t have enjoyed worldly happiness either. Then won’t all this effort be futile and in vain? If I continue to get nothing as I do now, then I was better off before, working and pursuing the world while nominally believing in god. If god never says when the work will end, when he will reward people, when the duty will come to an end, and when god will openly appear to humankind, if god never gives people precise explanations, then what is the point in wasting my time here? I’d be better off going back to earning money out in the world and enjoying worldly happiness. At least I won’t have wasted my life. As for the world to come, who knows? It’s all unknown, for now I’ll just live this life well.” Has a change not occurred in their minds? When they are calculating in this way and take the wrong path, can they still do the duties they hold well? (No, they can’t.) Some people say: “Antichrists like status, don’t they? If you give them a position, won’t they stay in God’s house?” Do antichrists need status at this time? Perhaps status isn’t the most important thing for them at this time. What is it that they need? What they need is for God to give them a precise explanation. If they cannot gain blessings, then they will leave. In one respect, if they cannot be placed in an important position throughout the course of doing their duty, then they feel their prospects are uncertain, bleak, and hopeless. In another respect, if in the process of doing their duty, things never go as they expect them to—if they do not personally witness God coming down with His glorification on the day His great work is completed, or if God does not tell them in clear language what year, month, day, hour and minute He will openly appear to humankind, when God’s work will come to an end, and when the great disasters will come, if He doesn’t tell them these things in clear language, then their hearts will be restless. They aren’t able to do their duties while keeping to their proper place, and they cannot feel content with this situation. What they want is a result, what they want is for God to give them a statement in precise language and enable them to precisely know whether they can receive all the things they want. If they are waiting too long in vain for this statement, they will make another calculation in their minds. What calculation? They will calculate who can give them happiness, who can give them the things they want, and if they can’t get the things in the world to come, then they must get everything they want in this life. If this world and humankind can give them blessings, comfort and pleasures of the flesh and a reputation and status in this life, then they will forsake God at any time, under any circumstances, and live their good life. These are the calculations of antichrists. In God’s house they can let go of their duty and put down the work in their hands at any time, under any circumstances, to pursue worldly happiness and prospects. Some people can even sell out the brothers and sisters, sell out the interests of God’s house and betray God to obtain worldly benefits and prospects. Therefore, however outstanding antichrists may appear in the performance of their duties, however competitive, they can all drop their duties, betray God and leave God’s house at any time, under any circumstances. They could sell out God’s house at any time, under any circumstances, becoming a Judas. If antichrists do their duties, they will inevitably use this as a bargaining chip. They will certainly attempt to satisfy their own desire to gain blessings in a short space of time—at the very least trying to first satisfy their desire for the benefits of status and gain the adoration of others, and then trying to enter the kingdom of heaven and receive their reward. Their time limit for doing their duty might be three years, or it might be five, even ten or twenty years. This is the allotted time they give to God, and is the longest time they give themselves for doing their duty. When this time limit is up, their endurance will also have reached its limit. While they can make concessions for their own desire for blessings, for a beautiful destination, a crown and rewards, and endure hardship and pay the price in God’s house, the passage of time will never cause them to forget or let go of their prospects and destiny, or their personal ambitions and desires, much less will these things change or weaken with the passage of time. Therefore, judging from this essence of antichrists, they are out-and-out disbelievers and opportunists who dislike positive things and love only negative things, a group of degenerates who want to bluff their way through in God’s house, these people are shameful.