God’s Appearance and Work
Daily Words of God Excerpt 46
Praise has come to Zion and God’s dwelling place has appeared. The glorious holy name is extolled by the myriad peoples and it is spreading. Ah, Almighty God! The Head of the universe, Christ of the last days—He is the shining Sun that has risen within the whole universe, above the majestic and grand Mount Zion …
Almighty God! We call out to You in jubilation; we dance and sing. You are truly our Redeemer, the great King of the universe! You have made a group of overcomers and fulfilled God’s management plan. The myriad peoples shall flow to this mountain. The myriad peoples shall kneel before the throne! You are the one and only true God and You deserve glory and honor. All glory, praise, and authority be to the throne! The spring of life flows out from the throne, watering and feeding all of God’s people. Our life changes with each day; new light and revelations follow us, constantly affording new insights about God. Amidst experiences, we arrive at complete certainty about God. His words constantly appear, appearing within those who are right. We are indeed so blessed! We are face-to-face with God each day, we fellowship with God in all things, and let God take charge over everything. Carefully do we ponder God’s word, our hearts rest quiet in God, and thus do we come before God, where we receive His illumination. Every day, in our lives, actions, words, thoughts, and ideas, we live within God’s word, and we are able to discern things at all times. God’s word guides the thread through the needle; unexpectedly, the things hidden inside us come to light, one after another. Fellowship with God brooks no delay; our thoughts and ideas are laid bare by God. At every moment we are living before the seat of Christ where we undergo judgment. Every place within our bodies remains occupied by Satan. Today, in order to recover God’s kingship, His temple must be cleansed. To be completely occupied by God, we must go through a life-and-death struggle. Only when our old selves have been crucified can the resurrected life of Christ reign supreme.
Now the Holy Spirit mounts a charge into our every corner to do battle for our reclamation! So long as we are ready to deny ourselves and willing to cooperate with God, God will surely illuminate and purify us from within at all times, and reclaim anew that which Satan has occupied, so that we may be made complete by God as quickly as possible. Do not waste time—live every moment within God’s word. Be built up with the saints, be brought into the kingdom, and enter into glory together with God.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Utterances of Christ in the Beginning, Chapter 1
Daily Words of God Excerpt 47
The church of Philadelphia has taken shape, which is entirely due to the grace and mercy of God. God-loving hearts are born in the myriad saints, and they do not waver on their spiritual journey. They hold fast to their belief that the one true God has become flesh, that He is the Head of the universe, who commands all things: This is confirmed by the Holy Spirit, it is as immovable as the mountains! And it shall never change!
Oh, Almighty God! Today it is You who have opened our spiritual eyes, allowing the blind to see, the lame to walk, and lepers to be healed. It is You who have opened the window to heaven, allowing us to perceive the mysteries of the spiritual realm. Being permeated by Your holy words and saved from our humanity, which was corrupted by Satan—such is Your inestimably great work and Your inestimably great mercy. We are Your witnesses!
Long have You remained hidden, humbly and silently. You have undergone resurrection from death, the suffering of crucifixion, the joys and sorrows of human life, and persecution and adversity; You have experienced and tasted the pain of the human world, and You have been forsaken by the age. God incarnate is God Himself. For the sake of God’s will, You have saved us from the dunghill, holding us up with Your right hand, and freely giving us Your grace. Sparing no pains, You have wrought Your life into us; Your heart’s blood and the price You have paid are crystallized upon the saints. We are the product of[a] Your heart’s blood; we are the price You have paid.
Oh, Almighty God! It is because of Your lovingkindness and mercy, Your righteousness and majesty, Your holiness and humility that all peoples shall bow down before You and worship You for all eternity.
Today You have made complete all churches—the church of Philadelphia—and Your 6,000-year management plan has been fulfilled. The saints can humbly submit themselves before You, connected in spirit and following along in love, joined to the source of the fountain. The living water of life runs without cease, washing away and purging all the mud and filthy water in the church, once again purifying Your temple. We have come to know the practical true God, walked within His words, recognized our own functions and duties, and done everything that we can to expend ourselves for the sake of the church. Ever quiet before You, we must heed the work of the Holy Spirit, lest Your will be obstructed in us. Among the saints there is mutual love, and the strengths of some will compensate for the failings of others. They are able to walk in the spirit at all times, enlightened and illuminated by the Holy Spirit. They put the truth into practice immediately upon understanding it. They keep pace with the new light, and follow God’s footsteps.
Actively cooperate with God; letting Him take control is to walk with Him. All of our own ideas, notions, opinions, and secular entanglements vanish into thin air like smoke. We let God reign supreme in our spirits, walk with Him and so gain transcendence, overcoming the world, and our spirits fly free and attain release: This is the outcome when Almighty God becomes King. How can we not dance and sing in praise, offering up our praises, offering up new hymns?
There truly are many ways to praise God: calling out His name, drawing near to Him, thinking of Him, pray-reading, engaging in fellowship, contemplating and pondering, prayer, and songs of praise. In these kinds of praise there is enjoyment, and there is anointment; there is power in praise, and there is also a burden. There is faith in praise, and there is new insight.
Actively cooperate with God, coordinate in service and become one, satisfy Almighty God’s intentions, hasten to become a holy spiritual body, trample over Satan, and put an end to Satan’s fate. The church of Philadelphia has been raptured into God’s presence and is made manifest in His glory.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Utterances of Christ in the Beginning, Chapter 2
Footnotes:
a. The original text does not contain the phrase “the product of.”
Daily Words of God Excerpt 48
The triumphant King sits upon His glorious throne. He has accomplished redemption and led all His people to appear in glory. He holds all things in His hands and with His divine wisdom and might He has built and made firm Zion. With His majesty He judges the sinful world; He has passed judgment on the myriad nations and peoples, the earth and the seas and all the living things in them, as well as those who are drunk on the wine of promiscuity. God shall surely judge them, and He shall surely be angry with them and therein will be revealed the majesty of God, whose judgment is instantaneous and delivered without delay. The fire of His wrath shall surely incinerate their heinous sins and calamity befall them at any moment; they shall know no avenue of escape and have no place to hide, they shall weep and gnash their teeth, and they shall bring destruction upon themselves.
The triumphant sons, beloved of God will surely stay in Zion, never to depart from it. The myriad peoples shall listen closely to His voice, they will carefully heed His actions, and the sounds of their praise shall never cease. The one true God has appeared! We shall be certain about Him in spirit and follow Him closely; we shall rush forward with all our might and hesitate no more. The end of the world is unfolding before us; a proper church life as well as the people, affairs, and things that surround us are even now intensifying our training. Let us make haste to take back our hearts that so love the world! Let us make haste to take back our vision that is so obscured! Let us stay our steps, that we may not exceed the boundaries. Let us stop our mouths so that we may walk in God’s word, and no longer contest our own gains and losses. Ah, let go of it—your greedy fondness for the secular world and for wealth! Ah, free yourselves from it—your clinging attachment to husbands and daughters and sons! Ah, turn your back on them—your viewpoints and prejudices! Ah, wake up; time is short! Look up, look up, from within the spirit, and let God take control. Whatever happens, do not become another Lot’s wife. How pitiful it is to be cast aside! How pitiful indeed! Ah, wake up!
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Utterances of Christ in the Beginning, Chapter 3
Daily Words of God Excerpt 49
Mountains and rivers change, waters flow along their course, and man’s life does not endure as do the earth and the sky. Only Almighty God is life eternal and resurrected, which continues, generation after generation, forever! All things and all events are in His hands, and Satan is under His foot.
Today, it is by God’s predetermined selection that He delivers us from Satan’s grip. He is truly our Redeemer. The eternal, resurrected life of Christ has actually been wrought inside us, destining us to connect with God’s life, that we may actually be able to come face to face with Him, eat Him, drink Him, and enjoy Him. This is the selfless dedication of God’s heart’s blood.
The seasons come and go; God passes through wind and frost, and meets with so many of life’s sufferings, persecutions, and tribulations, so many of the world’s repudiations and calumnies, so many of the government’s false accusations, yet neither God’s faith nor His resolve is diminished in the least. Wholeheartedly dedicated to God’s will, and to God’s management and plan, that they may be accomplished, He sets His own life aside. For all the multitudes of His people, He spares no pains, carefully feeding and watering them. No matter how benighted we are, or how difficult we are, we must only submit before Him, and the resurrected life of Christ will change our old nature…. For all these firstborn sons, He labors tirelessly, forgoing food and rest. How many days and nights, through how much scorching heat and freezing cold, He watches wholeheartedly in Zion.
The world, home, work and all, totally forgone, gladly, willingly, and worldly enjoyments have nothing to do with Him…. The words from His mouth actually strike into us, exposing things hidden deep in our hearts. How can we not be convinced? Every sentence that comes from His mouth may come true in us at any time. Whatever we do, in His presence or hidden away from Him, there is nothing He does not know, nothing He does not understand. All will indeed be revealed before Him, despite our own plans and arrangements.
Sitting before Him, feeling joy within our spirit, at ease and calm, yet feeling always empty and truly indebted to God: This is a wonder unimaginable and impossible to achieve. The Holy Spirit is sufficient to prove that Almighty God is the one true God! It is proof incontrovertible! We of this group are indescribably blessed! If not for God’s grace and mercy, we could only go to perdition and follow Satan. Only Almighty God can save us!
Ah! Almighty God, the practical God! It is You who have opened our spiritual eyes, allowing us to behold the mysteries of the spiritual realm. The prospects of the kingdom are boundless. Let us be watchful as we wait. The day cannot be too far off.
The flames of war swirl, cannon smoke fills the air, the weather turns warm, the climate shifts, a plague will spread, and people can only die, with no hope of survival.
Ah! Almighty God, the practical God! You are our impregnable fortress. You are our refuge. We huddle under Your wings, and calamity cannot reach us. Such is Your divine protection and care.
We all raise our voices in song; we sing in praise, and the sound of our praise rings throughout Zion! Almighty God, the practical God, has prepared for us that beautiful destination. Be watchful—oh, be on the watch! As yet, the hour is not too late.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Utterances of Christ in the Beginning, Chapter 5
Daily Words of God Excerpt 50
Since the time when Almighty God—the King of the kingdom—has been witnessed, the scope of God’s management has unfolded in its entirety throughout the whole universe. Not only has God’s appearance been witnessed in China, but the name of Almighty God has been witnessed in all nations and all places. They are all calling out this holy name, seeking to fellowship with God by any means possible, grasping the intentions of Almighty God and serving Him cooperatively in the church. This is the wondrous way in which the Holy Spirit works.
The languages of various nations are different from each other, but there is only one Spirit. This Spirit conjoins churches throughout the universe and is absolutely one with God, without the slightest difference. This is something that is beyond doubt. The Holy Spirit now calls to them, and His voice keeps them alert. It is the voice of God’s mercy. They are all calling out the holy name of Almighty God! They also give praise and they sing. There can never be any deviation in the work of the Holy Spirit; these people go to any length to advance along the right path, they do not back out—wonders heap upon wonders. This is something that people find hard to imagine and impossible to speculate on.
Almighty God is the King of life in the universe! He sits upon the glorious throne and judges the world, holds sovereignty over all, and rules all nations; all peoples bend their knee to Him, pray to Him, get close to Him and communicate with Him. Regardless of how long you have believed in God, how high your status or how great your seniority, if you go against God in your hearts then you must be judged and must prostrate yourselves before Him, issuing sounds of painful entreaty; this is indeed reaping the fruits of your own actions. This wailing sound is the sound of being tormented in the lake of fire and brimstone, and it is the cry of being chastened by God’s iron rod; this is judgment before the seat of Christ.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Utterances of Christ in the Beginning, Chapter 8
Daily Words of God Excerpt 51
God’s appearance has already arisen in all churches. It is the Spirit that speaks; He is a raging fire, bears majesty, and is judging. He is the Son of man, clothed with a garment that hangs down to His feet, and a golden belt is tied around His chest. His head and hair are white like wool, and His eyes are like flames; His feet are akin to fine brass, as if they had been wrought in a furnace, and His voice is like the sound of many waters. He holds in His right hand seven stars and in His mouth, a sharp double-edged sword, and His countenance shines fiercely like the burning sun!
The Son of man has been witnessed, and God Himself has been openly revealed. God’s glory has issued forth, shining fiercely like the burning sun! His glorious countenance blazes with dazzling light; whose eyes dare treat Him with resistance? Resistance leads to death! Not the slightest bit of mercy is shown for anything you think in your heart, any word you utter, or anything you do. You will all come to understand and come to see what it is you have obtained—nothing but My judgment! Can I abide it when you do not put your effort into eating and drinking of My words, and instead disrupt arbitrarily and destroy My construction? I will not treat this kind of person gently! If your behavior degenerates more seriously, you will be consumed in flames! The almighty God manifests in a spiritual body, without the slightest bit of flesh or blood connecting head to toe. He transcends the universe world, seated on the glorious throne in the third heaven, ruling over all things! The universe and all things are within My hands. If I speak it, it will be so. If I ordain it, thus it shall be. Satan is beneath My feet; it is in the bottomless pit! When My voice issues forth, heaven and earth will pass away and come to nothing! All things will be renewed; this is an unalterable truth that is absolutely right. I have overcome the world, as well as all evil ones. I sit here talking to you, and all who have ears should listen and all who are living should accept.
The days will come to an end; all things in this world will come to nothing, and all things will be born anew. Remember this! Remember! You cannot be careless about this. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall remain! Let Me exhort you once again: Do not run in vain! Wake up! Turn around, and the shore is at hand! I have already appeared amongst you, and My voice has arisen. My voice has arisen before you; every day it confronts you, face-to-face, and each day it is fresh and new. You see Me and I see you; I speak to you constantly, and am face-to-face with you. Nevertheless, you reject Me and do not know Me. My sheep can hear My voice, yet still you hesitate! You hesitate! Your heart is waxed gross, your eyes have been blinded by Satan, and you cannot see My glorious countenance—how pitiful you are! How pitiful!
The seven Spirits before My throne have been sent to all corners of the earth and I will send My Messenger to speak to the churches. I am righteous and faithful; I am the God that scrutinizes the deepest parts of man’s heart. The Holy Spirit speaks to the churches, and it is My words that issue forth from inside My Son; all those who have ears should listen! All those who are living should accept! Simply eat and drink them, and do not doubt. All those who submit and heed My words will receive great blessings! All those who seek My countenance in earnest will surely have new light, new enlightenment, and new insights; all will be fresh and new. My words will appear to you at any time, and they will open the eyes of your spirit so that you can see all the mysteries of the spiritual realm. The kingdom is among man. Enter the refuge, and all grace and blessings will be upon you; famine and plague will not be able to come near you, and wolves, serpents, tigers, and leopards will be unable to harm you. You will go with Me, walk with Me, and enter glory with Me!
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Utterances of Christ in the Beginning, Chapter 15
Daily Words of God Excerpt 52
Almighty God! His glorious body appears in the open, the holy spiritual body arises, and He is the complete God Himself! The world and the flesh are both changed, and His transfiguration on the mount is the person of God. He wears the golden crown atop His head, His clothing is pure white, across the chest is a golden belt, and the world and all things are His footstool. His eyes are like flames, He holds a sharp double-edged sword in His mouth, and He has the seven stars in His right hand. The way to the kingdom is boundlessly bright, and His glory arises and shines; the mountains are joyful and the waters laugh, and the sun, moon, and stars all revolve in their orderly arrangement, welcoming the unique, true God whose triumphant return heralds the completion of His six-thousand-year management plan. All leap and dance with joy! Cheer! The almighty God sits upon His glorious throne! Sing! The victorious banner of the Almighty is raised high upon the majestic, magnificent Mount Zion! All nations are cheering, all peoples are singing, Mount Zion is laughing joyfully, and the glory of God has arisen! I never even dreamed that I would see God’s countenance, yet today I have seen it. Face-to-face with Him every day, I lay bare my heart to Him. He bountifully provides food and drink. Life, words, actions, thoughts, ideas—His glorious light illuminates them all. He leads every step of the way, and His judgment immediately befalls any rebellious heart.
Eating, residing together, and living together with God, being together with Him, walking together, enjoying together, gaining glory and blessings together, sharing the kingship with Him, and existing together in the kingdom—oh, what a pleasure it is! Oh, how sweet it is! We are face-to-face with Him every day, speaking with Him every day and talking constantly, and being granted new enlightenment and new insights every day. Our spiritual eyes are opened, and we see everything; all the mysteries of the spirit are revealed to us. The holy life really is carefree; run fast and do not stop, and forge onward continuously—there is a more wondrous life ahead. Do not be satisfied with mere sweet taste; seek continuously to enter into God. He is all-encompassing and bountiful, and has all kinds of things that we lack. Cooperate proactively and enter into Him, and nothing will ever be the same again. Our lives will be transcendent, and no person, matter, or thing will be able to disturb us.
Transcendence! Transcendence! True transcendence! God’s transcendent life is within, and all things have become truly relaxed! We transcend the world and worldly things, feeling no attachment to husbands or children. We transcend the constraints of sickness and environments. Satan dare not disturb us. We completely transcend all disasters. This is allowing God to take the kingship! We trample Satan underfoot, stand witness for the church, and thoroughly expose the ugly face of Satan. The construction of the church is in Christ, and the glorious body has arisen—this is living in rapture!
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Utterances of Christ in the Beginning, Chapter 15
Daily Words of God Excerpt 53
Almighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace, our God is King! Almighty God sets His feet on the Mount of Olives. How beautiful it is! Listen! We watchmen lift up our voices; with our voices we sing together, for God has returned to Zion. We see with our own eyes the desolation of Jerusalem. Break forth into joyful noise and sing in unison, for God has brought comfort to us and has redeemed Jerusalem. God has bared His holy arm in the eyes of all the nations, the real person of God has appeared! All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
Oh, Almighty God! The seven Spirits have been sent forth from Your throne to every church to reveal all of Your mysteries. Sitting on Your throne of glory, You have managed Your kingdom and made it firm and stable with justice and righteousness, and You have subdued all the nations before You. Oh, Almighty God! You have loosed the girdle of kings, You have made the gates of the city open wide before You, never to close. For Your light has come and Your glory rises and shines forth its brilliance. Darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples. Oh, God! You, however, have appeared to and shone Your light upon us, and Your glory will be seen on us; all the nations shall come to Your light and the kings to Your radiance. You raise Your eyes and look around: Your sons gather before You, and they come from afar; Your daughters are carried in the arms as they come. Oh, Almighty God! Your great love has caught hold of us; it is You who lead us forward on the road to Your kingdom, and it is Your holy words that permeate us.
Oh, Almighty God! We give thanks and we praise You! Let us look up to You, bear witness to You, exalt You, and sing to You with a heart that is sincere, calm, and undivided. Let us have but one mind and be built together, and may You soon make us into those who accord with Your intentions, to be put to use by You. Would that Your will may be carried out without hindrance upon the earth!
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Utterances of Christ in the Beginning, Chapter 25
Daily Words of God Excerpt 54
Almighty God is the all-powerful, all-achieving, and complete true God! He not only holds the seven stars, is endowed with the seven Spirits, has seven eyes, opens the seven seals, and opens the scroll, but more than that, He administers the seven plagues and the seven bowls, and reveals the seven thunders. Long ago, too, He sounded the seven trumpets! All things that He created and made complete should praise Him, render Him glory, and exalt His throne. Oh, Almighty God! You are everything. You have accomplished everything, and with You, all is complete, bright, emancipated, free, strong, and powerful! There is nothing at all hidden or concealed; with You, all mysteries are revealed. Furthermore, You have judged the multitudes of Your enemies, You reveal Your majesty, manifest Your raging fire, You exhibit Your wrath, and, moreover, You display Your unprecedented, everlasting, utterly infinite glory! All peoples should awaken to cheer and sing without reserve, extolling this almighty, completely genuine, all-living, bountiful, glorious, and true God who is from everlasting to everlasting. His throne should be exalted constantly, His holy name praised and glorified. This is My—God’s—eternal intention, and is a boundless blessing that He reveals and bestows upon us! Who among us does not inherit it? To inherit God’s blessing, one must exalt His holy name and come to encircle His throne in worship. All those who go before Him with other motives and other intentions will be melted away by His raging fire. Today is the day His enemies will be judged, and it is also on this day that they will perish. Furthermore, that is also the day on which I, Almighty God, will be revealed and on which I will gain glory and honor. Oh, all peoples! Rise quickly to extol and welcome Almighty God who, from time immemorial to eternity, sends out to us lovingkindness, implements salvation and bestows upon us blessings, makes His sons complete, and successfully achieves His kingdom! This is God’s wonderful deed! This is God’s eternal predestination and arrangement—that He Himself has come to save us, to make us complete, and to bring us into glory.
All those who do not rise up and bear witness are the forbears of the blind and the kings of ignorance. They will become the eternally ignorant, the perpetual fools; the eternally dead who are blind. It is for this reason that our spirits should awaken! All the people should arise! Cheer, praise, and extol without end the King of glory, the Father of mercy, the Son of redemption, the bountiful seven Spirits, the Almighty God who brings majestic raging fire and righteous judgment and who is utterly sufficient, bountiful, almighty, and complete. His throne will be exalted forever! All the people should see that this is God’s wisdom; it is His wonderful path to salvation and the achievement of His glorious will. If we do not rise up and bear witness, then once the moment has passed, there will be no going back. Whether we will gain blessings or misfortune is being decided during this current stage of our journey, based on what we do, what we think, and what we are living out right now. How should you act? Bear witness for and exalt God forever; exalt Almighty God, Christ of the last days—the eternal, unique, true God!
From now on, you should see clearly that all those who do not bear witness for God—who do not bear witness for this unique, true God, as well as those who harbor doubts about Him—they are all sick and dead, and are ones who defy God! God’s words have already been proved from ancient times: All those who do not gather with Me scatter, and those who are not with Me are against Me; this is an unalterable truth that is etched in stone! Those who do not bear witness for God are Satan’s lackeys. Such people have come to disturb and mislead God’s children, and to disrupt His management; they must be dealt with by the sword! All those who show them good intentions seek their own destruction. You should listen to and believe the utterances of God’s Spirit, walk the path of God’s Spirit, and live out the words of God’s Spirit. Moreover, you should exalt the throne of the almighty God to the end of time!
Almighty God is the God of seven Spirits! That of the seven eyes and seven stars is He, too; He opens the seven seals, and the entire scroll has been unfurled by Him! He has sounded the seven trumpets, and the seven bowls and the seven plagues are in His grasp, to be unleashed at His will. Oh, the seven thunders that have always been sealed! The time to reveal them has come! He who will bring forth the seven thunders has already appeared before our eyes!
Almighty God! With You, all is emancipated and free; there are no difficulties, and all flows smoothly! Nothing dares to obstruct or hinder You, and all submit before You. Any that do not submit shall die!
Almighty God, the God with seven eyes! All is perfectly clear, all is bright and uncovered, and all is revealed and laid bare. With Him, all is crystal clear, and not only is God Himself like this, but His sons are this way, too. No one, no object, and no matter can be concealed before Him and His sons!
The seven stars of Almighty God are bright! The church has been perfected by Him; He establishes His church messengers, and the entire church is within His provision. He opens all seven seals, and He Himself brings His management plan and His will to completion. The scroll is the arcane spiritual language of His management, and has been unfurled and revealed by Him!
All the people should hearken to His seven resounding trumpets. With Him, all is made known, never again to be hidden, and there is no more sorrow. All is revealed, and all is victorious!
The seven trumpets of Almighty God are open, glorious, and victorious trumpets! They are also the trumpets that judge His enemies! In the midst of His triumph, His horn is being exalted! He rules over the entire universe!
He has prepared the seven bowls of plagues, His enemies are targeted, and they are unleashed in an extreme torrent, and those enemies will be consumed in the flames of His raging fires. Almighty God shows the might of His authority, and His enemies all perish. The final seven thunders are no longer to be sealed before Almighty God; they are all revealed! They are all revealed! He puts His enemies to death with the seven thunders, stabilizing the earth and making it render service to Him, never again to be laid waste!
The righteous Almighty God! We extol You forever! You deserve unending praise, and eternal acclaim and exaltation! Your seven thunders are not just to be used for Your judgment, but are more to be used for Your glory and authority, in order to complete all things!
All peoples celebrate before the throne, extolling and praising Almighty God, Christ of the last days! Their voices shake the entire universe like thunder! Absolutely all things exist because of Him and arise because of Him. Who dares not attribute all glory, honor, authority, wisdom, holiness, victory, and revelations entirely to Him? This is the accomplishment of His will, and it is the final completion of the construction of His management!
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Utterances of Christ in the Beginning, Chapter 34
Daily Words of God Excerpt 55
Seven thunders come forth from the throne, shake the universe, overturn heaven and earth, and resound through the skies! The sound pierces the ear, and the people cannot escape it, nor can they hide from it. Thunder and lightning burst forth, and in an instant, heaven and earth transform, and the people are on the verge of death. Then, at lightning speed, the entire cosmos is enveloped in a violent rainstorm, falling from heaven! In the furthest corners of the earth, as thoroughly as a shower, it brooks no stain as it washes all from head to toe; nothing can be hidden from it, nor can any person be shut away from it. Peals of thunder, like flashes of lightning, gleam with chill light and make men tremble with fear! The sharp double-edged sword strikes down the sons of rebellion, and the enemy faces catastrophe, with nowhere to hide; they become dazed in the rush of wind and rain, and, reeling from the blow, they drop dead at once into the flowing waters and are washed away. There is only death, and no way for them to survive. The seven thunders issue from Me and convey My intention, which is to strike down the eldest sons of Egypt, to punish the evil and to cleanse My churches, so that all may have affinity with each other, act truly to themselves, and be of one heart with Me, and so that all the churches in the cosmos can be built into one. This is My purpose.
The thunder sounds, and the sounds of wailing roll in its wake. Some are awakened from their slumber, and, greatly alarmed, they search deep in their souls and rush back before the throne. They cease their rampant trickery and outrageous acts; it is not too late for such people to be awakened. I watch from the throne. I look deep into the hearts of men. I save those who desire Me earnestly and fervently, and I take pity on them. I will save into eternity those who love Me in their hearts more than all else, those who understand My intentions and follow Me to the very end of the road. My hand will hold them safely, so that they will not encounter this scene and will come to no harm. Some, when they see this sight of flashing lightning, have inexpressible misery in their hearts and are regretful in the extreme. If they persist in behaving in this way, it is too late for them. Oh, all and every thing! It will all be done. This, too, is one of My means of salvation. I save those who love Me and strike down the evil, I make My kingdom steady and stable on earth, and let all nations and all peoples, all in the universe and at the ends of the earth, know that I am majesty, I am raging fire, I am the God who searches the innermost heart of every man. From this time forward, the judgment of the great white throne is openly revealed to the masses, and to all peoples, it is announced that judgment has commenced! It is beyond doubt that all whose words are not heartfelt, those who doubt and dare not be certain, those time wasters who understand My desires but are unwilling to put them into practice—they all must be judged. You must take care to examine your own intentions and motives, and assume your proper place; practice My words in earnest, value your life experience, and do not act with superficial enthusiasm, but make your lives grown, mature, stable, and experienced—only then will you be in line with My intentions.
Do not provide any opportunities for exploitation to Satan’s lackeys or to evil spirits’ deeds of disrupting and destroying that which I build. They must be limited severely and restrained; they can only be dealt with by means of a sharp sword. The worst ones must be rooted out immediately, to prevent future trouble. And the church will be perfected, free of all deformity, and it will be healthy, full of vitality and energy. Following the flashing lightning, thunderclaps ring out. You must not be negligent, and you must not give up, but do your utmost to catch up, and you will surely be able to see what My hand does, what I mean to gain, what I mean to discard, what I mean to perfect, what I mean to root out, what I mean to strike down—all this will unfold before your eyes, allowing you clearly to see My omnipotence.
From the throne to the universe and the ends of the earth, the seven thunders echo. A large group of people will be saved and will surrender themselves before My throne. Following this light of life, people seek for a way to survive and cannot help but come to Me, to kneel down in worship, and with their mouths to call out the name of the almighty true God and voice their entreaties. But those who resist Me, those who harden their hearts, the thunder resounds in their ears, and without a doubt they must perish. This is simply the outcome that awaits them. My beloved sons who are triumphant will stay in Zion, and all peoples will see what they will obtain, and immense glory will appear before you. Truly, this is a great blessing, and it is a sweetness that is difficult to relate.
The clap of the seven thunders coming forth is the salvation of those who love Me, who desire Me with true hearts. Those who belong to Me and whom I have predestined and chosen are all able to come under My name. They can hear My voice, which is God calling to them. Let those at the ends of the earth see that I am righteous, I am faithful, I am lovingkindness, I am compassion, I am majesty, I am raging fire, and, ultimately, I am merciless judgment.
Let all in the world see that I am the real and complete God Himself. All men are fully convinced and none dare to resist Me again, nor to judge Me or slander Me again. Otherwise, curses come at once upon them, and disaster befalls them. They can only weep and gnash their teeth, having brought on their own destruction.
Let all peoples know, let it be known through the universe and at the ends of the earth, in every household and by all people: Almighty God is the one true God. All, one after another, will fall to their knees and worship Me, and even children who have just learned to speak will call out “Almighty God”! Those officials who wield power will also see with their own eyes the true God appearing before them, and they will also prostrate themselves in worship, begging for mercy and forgiveness, but this is indeed too late, for the time of their demise has come. They can only be finished and sentenced to the unfathomable abyss. I will bring the entire age to an end, and strengthen My kingdom all the more. All nations and peoples will yield before Me for all of eternity!
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Utterances of Christ in the Beginning, Chapter 35
Daily Words of God Excerpt 56
Almighty true God, the King enthroned, rules the entire universe, facing the myriad nations and peoples, and God’s glory shines throughout the world. All living things in the universe and unto the ends of the earth shall see. The mountains, the rivers, the lakes, the lands, the oceans, and all living beings have drawn open their curtains in the light of the true God’s countenance, and they are revived, as if waking from a dream, as if they were sprouts breaking through the soil!
Ah! The one true God appears before the people of the world. Who dares approach Him with resistance? All tremble with fear. All are utterly convinced, and all beg forgiveness repeatedly. The myriad people fall to their knees before Him, and myriad mouths worship Him! The continents and oceans, the mountains, the rivers, and all things praise Him endlessly! The warm breezes, accompanied by the breath of spring, bring with them light, unceasing spring rain. The babbling brooks and the multitudes are alike, both are filled with grief and joy, shedding tears of indebtedness and self-reproach. The rivers, the lakes, the surf and the swells all are singing, lauding the true God’s holy name! The sound of praise rings out with such clarity! Old things that were once corrupted by Satan—each and every one of them will be renewed and changed and will enter into an entirely new realm …
This is the sacred trumpet, and it has begun to sound! Hearken to it. That sound, so sweet, is the utterance of the throne. It announces to each nation and people that the time has come, the outcome of the last days is here, My management plan is finished, My kingdom has appeared openly on earth, and the kingdoms of the world have become the kingdom of Mine, who am God. My seven trumpets sound from the throne, and such wondrous things will occur! People at the ends of the earth will rush together from every direction with the force of an avalanche and the power of thunderbolts….
I look with joy upon My people, who are able to hear My voice and gather from every nation and land. The multitudes, keeping the true God ever in their mouths, praise and jump endlessly! They bear witness to the world, and the sound of their witness to the true God is like the thundering sound of many waters. The multitudes will crowd into My kingdom.
My seven trumpets sound, rousing those who slumber! Get up quickly, it is not too late. Look to your life! Open your eyes and see what time it is now. What is there to seek? What is there to think about? And what is there to cling to? Have you never considered the difference in value between gaining My life and gaining all that you love and cling to? Be no longer willful nor gambol. Do not miss this opportunity. This time will not come again! Stand up right away, practice exercising your spirit, use various tools to see through and thwart Satan’s every plot and trick, and triumph over Satan, so that your life experience may be deepened and you may live out My disposition, so that your life may become mature and seasoned and you may always follow My footsteps. Undaunted, not weak, moving always ahead, step by step, straight until the end of the road!
When the seven trumpets sound again, it will be the call to judgment, judgment of the sons of rebellion, judgment of all nations and all peoples, and each nation will yield before God. God’s glorious countenance will surely appear before all nations and all peoples. Everyone will be convinced utterly, and endlessly call out to the true God. The almighty God will be more glorious, and My sons and I will share in the glory and share in the kingship, judging all nations and all peoples, punishing the evil, saving and having mercy on those who belong to Me, and making the kingdom strong and stable. Through the sound of the seven trumpets, a great many people will be saved, returning before Me to kneel and worship with constant praise!
When the seven trumpets sound once again, it will be the coda of the age, the trumpet blast of victory over devils and Satan, the salute that heralds the beginning of living openly in the kingdom on earth! How lofty a sound, this sound reverberating around the throne, this trumpet blast shaking heaven and earth, which is the sign of My management plan’s victory, which is Satan’s judgment; it sentences this old world entirely to death, to return to the bottomless pit! This trumpet blast signifies that the gate of grace is about to close, that the kingdom’s life will begin on earth, which is right and proper. God saves those who love Him. Once they return to His kingdom, the people on earth will face famine and pestilence, and God’s seven bowls and seven plagues will take effect in succession. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My word shall not!
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Utterances of Christ in the Beginning, Chapter 36
Daily Words of God Excerpt 57
Christ of the last days brings life, and brings the enduring and everlasting way of truth. This truth is the path by which man gains life, and it is the only path by which man shall know God and be approved by God. If you do not seek the way of life provided by Christ of the last days, then you shall never gain the approval of Jesus, and shall never be qualified to enter the gate of the kingdom of heaven, for you are both a puppet and prisoner of history. Those who are controlled by regulations, by words, and by the shackles of history will never be able to gain life nor gain the perpetual way of life. This is because all they have is turbid water which has been clung to for thousands of years instead of the water of life that flows from the throne. Those who are not supplied with the water of life will forever remain corpses, playthings of Satan, and sons of hell. How, then, can they behold God? You only try to hold on to the past, only try to stand still and keep things as they are, and do not try to change the status quo and discard history, so will you not always be antagonistic toward God? The steps of God’s work are vast and mighty, like surging waves and rolling thunders—yet you sit passively awaiting destruction, clinging to your folly and doing nothing. In this way, how can you be considered someone who follows the footsteps of the Lamb? How can you justify the God that you hold on to as a God who is always new and never old? And how can the words of your yellowed books carry you across into a new age? How can they lead you to seek the steps of God’s work? And how can they take you up to heaven? What you hold in your hands are words that can provide but temporary solace, not truths that are capable of giving you life. The words of scriptures you read can only enrich your tongue and are not words of philosophy that can help you know human life, much less the path that can lead you to perfection. Does this discrepancy not give you cause for reflection? Does it not make you realize the mysteries contained within? Are you capable of delivering yourself to heaven to meet God on your own? Without the coming of God, can you take yourself into heaven to enjoy family happiness with God? Are you still dreaming now? I suggest, then, that you stop dreaming and look at who is working now—look to see who is now carrying out the work of saving man during the last days. If you do not, you shall never gain the truth, and shall never gain life.
Those who wish to gain life without relying on the truth spoken by Christ are the most ridiculous people on earth, and those who do not accept the way of life brought by Christ are lost in fantasy. And so I say that those who do not accept Christ of the last days shall forever be loathed by God. Christ is man’s gateway to the kingdom during the last days, and there are none who can go around Him. None may be perfected by God except through Christ. You believe in God, and so you must accept His words and submit to His Word. You cannot only think of gaining blessings while not accepting the truth and not accepting the provision of life. Christ comes during the last days so that He may provide all those who sincerely believe in Him with life. This work exists for the sake of concluding the old age and entering the new one, and this work is the path that must be taken by all those who would enter the new age. If you do not acknowledge Christ, and moreover condemn, blaspheme, or persecute Him, then you are bound to burn for eternity and shall never enter the kingdom of God. This is because this Christ is Himself the expression of the Holy Spirit, the expression of God, the One whom God has entrusted to do His work on earth, and so I say that if you cannot accept all that is done by Christ of the last days, then you blaspheme the Holy Spirit. The due retribution for those who blaspheme the Holy Spirit is self-evident to all. I also tell you this: If you resist Christ of the last days, if you reject Christ of the last days, then no one else can bear the consequences for this on your behalf. Furthermore, from that point onward you will not have another chance to gain the approval of God; even if you wish to redeem yourself, you won’t be able to behold the face of God again. This is because what you are resisting is not a human being, what you are rejecting is not some insignificant person, but Christ. Do you know what the consequences of this are? You are not making a small mistake, but committing a heinous sin. And so I advise every person to not bare your fangs and brandish your claws or make arbitrary criticisms before the truth, for only the truth can bring you life, and nothing except the truth can enable you to be reborn and behold the face of God again.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Only Christ of the Last Days Can Give Man the Way of Eternal Life
Daily Words of God Excerpt 58
That My mysteries are revealed and openly manifest, and no longer hidden, is entirely due to My grace and mercy. Moreover, that My word appears among men, and is no longer concealed, is also due to My grace and mercy. I love all who sincerely expend themselves for Me and devote themselves to Me. I hate all who are born of Me yet who do not know Me, and even resist Me. I will not abandon anyone who is sincerely for Me; rather, I will double that person’s blessings. I will doubly punish those who bite the hand that feeds them, and I will not let them off easily. In My kingdom there is no crookedness or deceit, and no worldliness; that is, there is no smell of the dead. Rather, all is rectitude and righteousness; all is purity and openness, with nothing hidden or concealed. Everything is fresh, everything is enjoyment, and everything is edification. Anyone who still reeks of the dead can in no way remain in My kingdom, and will instead be ruled by My iron rod. All endless mysteries, from time immemorial to the present day, are fully revealed to you—the group of people who are gained by Me in the last days. Do you not feel blessed? The days when all is openly revealed are, moreover, the days in which you share My reign.
The group of people who truly reign as kings depend upon My predestination and selection, and there is absolutely no human will within it. Anyone daring to take part in this must suffer a blow from My hand, and such people will be objects of My raging fire; this is another side of My righteousness and majesty. I have said that I rule all things, I am the wise God who wields full authority, and I am lenient to no one; I am utterly ruthless, completely devoid of personal feelings. I treat anyone (no matter how well he speaks, I will not let him off) with My righteousness, rectitude, and majesty, meanwhile enabling everyone to better see the wonder of My deeds, as well as what My deeds mean. One by one, I punished evil spirits for all manner of actions they commit, casting them each into the bottomless pit. This work I finished before time began, leaving them with no position, leaving them no place to do their work. None of My chosen people—those predestined and selected by Me—can ever be possessed by evil spirits, and will instead always be holy. As for those I have not predestined and selected, I will turn them over to Satan, and no longer allow them to remain. In all aspects, My administrative decrees involve My righteousness and My majesty. I will not let go of even a single one of those on whom Satan works, but cast them along with their bodies into Hades, for I hate Satan. I shall by no means spare it easily, but shall utterly destroy it, allowing it not the least opportunity to do its work. Those whom Satan has corrupted to a certain degree (that is, those who are objects of disaster) are under the wise arrangement of My own hand. Do not think this has happened as a result of Satan’s ferocity; know that I am Almighty God that rules the universe and all things! For Me, there are no problems that cannot be resolved, and much less is there anything that cannot be accomplished or any word that cannot be uttered. Humans must not act as My advisers. Beware of being struck down by My hand and cast into Hades. I tell you this! Those who are proactively cooperating with Me today are the smartest ones, and they will avoid losses and escape the pain of judgment. All of these are My arrangements, predestined by Me. Make no indiscreet remarks and do not speak bombastically, thinking you are so great. Is all of this not through My predestination? You, who would be My advisers, know no shame! You know not your own stature; how pathetically small it is! Even so, you think this is no great matter, and do not know yourselves. Time after time, you turn a deaf ear to My words, causing My painstaking efforts to be in vain and not at all realizing that they are manifestations of My grace and mercy. Rather, you try to show off your own cleverness again and again. Do you remember this? What chastisement must people receive, who think they are so smart? Indifferent and unfaithful to My words, and not engraving them in your hearts, you use Me as a pretense to do this and that. Evildoers! When will you be able to fully consider My heart? You have no consideration for it, so calling you “evildoers” is not a mistreatment of you. It fits you perfectly!
Today I am showing you, one by one, things that were once hidden. The great red dragon is cast into the bottomless pit and utterly destroyed, for keeping it would be of no use at all; this means it cannot do service for Christ. Hereafter, red things will no longer exist; gradually, they must waste away to nothing. I do what I say; this is the completion of My work. Remove human notions; everything I have said, I have done. Whoever tries to be clever is just bringing destruction and contempt upon themselves, and does not want to live. Therefore, I will satisfy you, and will definitely not keep such people. Hereafter, the population will increase in excellence, whereas all who do not proactively cooperate with Me will be swept away into nothingness. Those of whom I have approved are the ones I shall perfect, and I shall not cast away a single one. There are no contradictions in what I say. Those who do not proactively cooperate with Me will suffer more chastisement, although, ultimately, I will surely save them. By that time, however, the extent of their lives will be quite different. Do you want to be such a person? Rise up and cooperate with Me! I certainly will not treat shabbily any who sincerely expend themselves for Me. Those of you who devote yourselves to Me in earnest, I shall bestow all My blessings upon you. Offer up yourself entirely to Me! What you eat, what you wear, and your future are all in My hands; I will arrange everything properly, allowing you to enjoy endlessly and have an inexhaustible supply. This is because I have said, “Those of you who sincerely expend for Me, I shall surely bless you greatly.” All blessings will come to every person who sincerely expends himself for Me.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Utterances of Christ in the Beginning, Chapter 70
Daily Words of God Excerpt 59
The multitude of My people cheer Me, the multitude of My people praise Me; the myriad mouths name the one true God, the myriad people lift their eyes, looking into the distance to watch My deeds. The kingdom descends upon the world of men, My person is rich and bountiful. Who would not rejoice at this? Who would not dance for joy? Oh, Zion! Raise your triumphant banner to celebrate Me! Sing your triumphant song of victory to proclaim My holy name! All creation unto the ends of the earth! Hasten to cleanse yourselves that you may be made as offerings to Me! The multitude of stars above! Hasten back to your places to show My mighty power in the firmament! I lend My ear to listen intently to the voices of My people on earth, who pour out their infinite love and reverence for Me in song! On this day, when all creation is reinvigorated, I come down into the world of men. At this very moment, all flowers burst into riotous bloom, all birds sing as with one voice, all things throng with joy! Amid the cannon salutes of the kingdom, Satan’s kingdom topples down, annihilated in the thundering of the kingdom anthem, never to rise again!
Who on the earth dares to rise and resist? As I descend to earth, I bring burning, bring wrath, bring all catastrophes. The earthly kingdoms are now My kingdom! Up in the sky, the clouds tumble and billow; beneath the sky, lakes and rivers surge and joyously churn out a stirring melody. Resting animals emerge from their dens, and the myriad of My people are aroused from their slumbers by Me. The day awaited by the myriad of My people has come at last! They offer up the most beautiful songs to Me!
At this beautiful moment, at this exhilarating time,
praise rings out everywhere, in the heavens above and earth below. Who would not be excited at this?
Whose heart would not lighten? Who would not weep at this scene?
The sky is not the sky of old, now it is the sky of the kingdom.
The earth is not the earth it was, now it is the holy land.
After a heavy rain has passed, the filthy old world is wholly made anew.
The mountains are changing … the waters changing …
people too changing … all things changing….
Ah, ye silent mountains! Arise and dance for Me!
Ah, ye still waters! Go on flowing!
You men dreaming dreams! Rouse yourselves and give chase!
I am come … I am King….
All shall see with their own eyes My face, shall hear with their own ears My voice,
shall live for themselves the life of the kingdom….
How sweet … how beautiful….
Unforgettable … impossible to forget….
In the burning of My wrath, the great red dragon struggles;
in My majestic judgment, devils show their true forms;
at My stern words, people all feel deep shame, and have nowhere to hide themselves.
They recall the past, how they mocked and derided Me,
how there was never a time when they did not show off themselves, never a time when they did not rebel against Me.
And yet today, who does not weep? Who does not condemn themselves?
The entire universe world is filled with weeping …
filled with the sounds of rejoicing … filled with mirthful voices….
Incomparable pleasure … pleasure without compare….
A small rain pattering … heavy flakes of fluttering snow….
Inside people, sorrow and joy commingling … some laughing …
some sobbing … and some cheering….
As if everyone’s forgotten … whether this is a spring rife with rain and clouds,
a summer of flowers bursting into bloom, an autumn of rich harvests,
or a winter cold as frost and ice, no one knows….
In the sky clouds are drifting, on the earth the oceans are roiling.
The multitude of My sons wave their arms … the multitude of My people move their feet in dance….
The angels are at work … the angels are shepherding….
The people on earth are all a-bustle, and all the things on earth multiply.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God’s Words to the Entire Universe, Kingdom Anthem
Daily Words of God Excerpt 60
Every person in mankind should accept being scrutinized by My Spirit, should closely inspect their every word and action, and, moreover, should look upon My wondrous deeds. How do you feel at the time of the kingdom’s arrival on earth? When My sons and people stream to My throne, I formally commence judgment before the great white throne. This is to say, when I begin My work on earth in person, and when the era of judgment nears its end, I start to direct My words to the entire universe, and release the voice of My Spirit to the entire universe. Through My words, I will wash clean all the people and things among all that is in heaven and on earth, so that the land is no longer filthy and licentious, but is a holy kingdom. I will renew all things, so that they will be provided for My use, so that they will no longer bear the earthy breath, and no longer be stained with the flavor of the ground. On earth, man has groped for the goal and origins of My words, and has observed My deeds, yet no one has ever truly known the origins of My words, and no one has ever truly beheld the wondrousness in My deeds. It is only today, when I personally come among man and speak My words, that man has a little knowledge of Me, removing the place occupied by “Me” in their thoughts, and instead creating a place for the practical God in their consciousness. Man has notions and is full of curiosity; who would not want to see God? Who would not wish to encounter God? Yet the only thing that occupies a definite place in man’s heart is the God that man feels is vague and abstract. Who would realize this if I did not tell them plainly? Who would truly believe, with certainty and not even a hint of doubt, that I indeed exist? There is a vast difference between the “Me” in man’s heart and the “Me” of reality, and no one is capable of drawing comparisons between them. If I did not become flesh, man would never know Me, and even if he came to know Me, would not such knowledge still be a notion? Each day I walk among the unceasing flow of people, and each day I operate within every person. When man truly sees Me, he will be able to know Me in My words, and will grasp the means by which I speak as well as My intentions.
When the kingdom formally arrives on earth, what, among all things, is not silent? Who, among all people, is not afraid? I walk everywhere throughout the universe world, and everything is personally arranged by Me. At this time, who does not know that My deeds are wonderful? My hands uphold all things, yet I am also above all things. Today, is not My incarnation and My personal presence among man the true meaning of My humility and hiddenness? Outwardly, many people applaud Me as good and praise Me as beautiful, but who truly knows Me? Today, why do I ask that you know Me? Is My aim not to shame the great red dragon? I do not wish to force man to praise Me, but to make him know Me, through which he will come to love Me, and thus praise Me. Such praise is worthy of its name, and is not empty talk; only praise such as this can reach My throne and soar into the skies. Because man has been tempted and corrupted by Satan, because he has been taken over by notions and thinking, I have become flesh in order to personally conquer all of mankind, to expose all the notions of man, and to tear apart the thinking of man. As a result, man no longer parades about in front of Me, and no longer serves Me using his own notions, and thus the “Me” in man’s notions is completely dispelled. When the kingdom comes, the first thing I do is begin this stage of work, and I do so among My people. As My people who are born in the country of the great red dragon, surely there is not only a little, or a part, of the great red dragon’s venom within you. Thus, this stage of My work is primarily focused on you, and this is one aspect of the significance of My incarnation in China. Most people are unable to grasp even a fragment of the words I speak, and when they do, their understanding is hazy and muddled. This is a turning point in the method by which I speak. If all people were able to read My words and understand their meaning, then who among man could be saved, and not cast down into Hades? When man knows Me and submits to Me, that will be the time when I rest, and that will be the very time that man is able to grasp the meaning of My words. Today, your stature is too small—it is almost pitifully small, not even worthy to be lifted up—to say nothing of your knowledge of Me.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God’s Words to the Entire Universe, Chapter 11
Daily Words of God Excerpt 61
When lightning issues from the East, which is also precisely the moment that I begin to utter My words—when the lightning issues, the whole universe is illuminated, and a transformation occurs in all the stars. The entire human race is as if it had undergone a purging. Under the glow of this shaft of light from the East, all of mankind is revealed in their original form, their eyes dazzled, unsure what to do, and less sure still how to conceal their ugly features. They are also like unto animals that flee from My light and take refuge in mountain caves—yet not one among them can be effaced from within My light. All humans are astounded, all are waiting, all are watching; with the advent of My light, all rejoice at the day they were born, and likewise all curse the day they were born. Conflicting emotions are impossible to articulate; tears of self-castigation form rivers, and are borne away in the sweeping torrent, gone without trace in an instant. Once again, My day presses close upon all humanity, once again arousing the human race, giving humanity another new beginning. My heart beats and, following the rhythms of My heartbeat, the mountains leap for joy, the waters dance with joy, and the waves beat upon the rocky reefs. It is difficult to express what is in My heart. I want to make all unclean things burn into ashes under My gaze; I want to make all the sons of rebellion disappear from before My eyes, never more to tarry in existence. Not only have I made a new beginning in the dwelling place of the great red dragon, I have also embarked on new work in the universe. Soon, the kingdoms of the earth will become My kingdom; soon, the kingdoms of the earth will forever cease to exist because of My kingdom, because I have already achieved victory, because I have returned triumphant. The great red dragon has exhausted every conceivable means to disrupt My plan, hoping to erase My work on the earth, but can I grow disheartened by its deceitful stratagems? Can I be frightened into losing confidence by its threats? There has never been a single being in heaven or on earth that I have not held in the palm of My hand; how much the more is this true of the great red dragon, this device that serves as a foil to Me? Is it not also an object to be manipulated in My hands?
During My incarnation in the human world, mankind has come, under My guidance, unwittingly to this day and has come unwittingly to know Me. But, as for how to walk the path that lies ahead, no one has an inkling, no one is aware—and less still does anyone have a clue in what direction that path will take them. Only with the Almighty watching over them will anyone be able to walk the path to the end; only guided by the lightning in the East will anyone be able to cross the threshold that leads to My kingdom. Among men, there has never been one who has seen My face, one who has seen the lightning in the East; how much the less has there been one who has heard the utterances from My throne? In fact, from ancient times, not one human being has come into direct contact with My person; only today, now that I have come into the world, do men have a chance to see Me. But even now, men still do not know Me, just as they only look upon My face and only hear My voice yet do not understand My meaning. All human beings are like this. Being one of My people, do you not feel deep pride when you see My face? And do you not feel abject shame because you do not know Me? I walk among men and I live among men, for I have become flesh and I have come into the human world. My aim is not merely to enable humanity to look upon My flesh; more importantly, it is to enable humanity to know Me. What is more, I will, through My incarnate flesh, convict humanity of their sins; I will, through My incarnate flesh, vanquish the great red dragon and annihilate its lair.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God’s Words to the Entire Universe, Chapter 12
Daily Words of God Excerpt 62
All people in the universe celebrate the arrival of My day, and angels walk among My chosen people. When Satan causes disturbance, the angels, because of their service in heaven, always help My people. The angels are not misled by the devil because of human weakness but, because of the onslaught of the forces of darkness, endeavor all the more to experience the life of man through the fog. All My chosen people yield beneath My name, and never does anyone rise up to oppose Me openly. Because of the work of the angels, man accepts My name, and all are amid the stream of My work. The world is falling! Babylon is in paralysis! Oh, the religious world! How could it not be destroyed by My authority on earth? Who still dares to rebel against and oppose Me? The scribes? All of the religious officials? The rulers and authorities on earth? The angels? Who does not celebrate the perfection and fullness of My body? Among the myriad of my chosen people, who does not sing praises without cease, and who is not unfailingly happy, because of Me? I live in the land of the great red dragon’s lair, yet this does not cause Me to tremble with fear or run away, for all of its people have already begun to hate it. Never has anything done its “duty” before the dragon for the dragon’s sake; instead, all things act as they see fit, and each goes its own way. How could the countries on earth not perish? How could the countries on earth not fall? How could My people not cheer? How could they not sing with joy? Is this the work of man? Is it the doing of man’s hands? I gave man the root of his existence, and provided him with material things, yet he is dissatisfied with his current circumstances and asks to enter My kingdom. But how could he enter My kingdom so easily, without having paid a price, unwilling to offer his selfless dedication? Instead of exacting anything from man, I make requirements of him, so that My kingdom on earth may be filled with glory. Man has been guided by Me into the present age, he exists in this condition, and he lives amid the guidance of My light. If it were not thus, who among the people on earth would know their prospects? Who would understand My intentions? I add My provisions to the requirements of man; is this not in line with the laws of nature?
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God’s Words to the Entire Universe, Chapter 22
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In the kingdom, all things begin to revive and regain their life force. Due to changes in the state of the earth, the boundaries between one land and another also begin to shift. I have prophesied that when land is divided from land, and land unites with land, this will be the time I will smash each country to pieces. At this time, I will renew all things and repartition the entire universe, thereby putting the universe in order and transforming the old into the new—this is My plan and these are My deeds. When each country and each of My chosen people returns before My throne, I will therewith grant all the bounty of heaven to the human world, so that, thanks to Me, that world will brim with matchless bounty. While the old world exists, I will hurl forth My wrath upon each country and promulgate the administrative decrees that are made public to the whole universe, and whoever violates them shall be chastised:
When I speak to the whole universe, all people hear My voice, that is, all people see all the deeds I have carried out throughout the universe. Those who go against My intentions, that is to say, who oppose Me with the deeds of man, will fall down amid My chastisement. I will renew the multitudinous stars in the heavens; thanks to Me, the sun and the moon will be renewed, the skies no longer being as they were; and all things on the earth will be renewed—this will all be accomplished because of My words. All the countries within the universe will be partitioned afresh and be replaced by My kingdom, so that the countries upon the earth will disappear forever, and there will only be the kingdom that worships Me; all the countries of the earth will be destroyed and cease to exist. Of the human beings within the universe, all those who are of devils will be annihilated. All who worship Satan will fall down amid My burning fire—that is, except for those now within the stream, all will be turned to ashes. When I chastise each people, religious communities will, to varying extents, return to My kingdom, and be conquered through My deeds, because they will have seen that “the Holy One riding on a white cloud” has already arrived. All people will be sorted according to their kind, and will receive various chastisements commensurate with their actions; all those who have resisted Me will perish, and as for those whose deeds on earth have not involved Me, they will, because of how they have behaved, continue to exist on the earth under the governance of My sons and My people. I will appear to the myriad countries and myriad peoples, and I will express My own voice on earth, proclaiming the completion of My great work, allowing all people to see this with their own eyes.
As My utterances grow more profound, I also observe the state of the universe. Through My words, all things are made new. Heaven changes, as does the earth. Humanity is exposed in its original form and, slowly, people are all sorted according to their kind, and are unknowingly returned to their “families.” This pleases Me greatly. I am free from disturbance and, imperceptibly, My great work is accomplished, and all things are transformed. When I created the world, I sorted all things according to their kind, categorizing all things that had form. When the end of My management plan draws near, I will restore the former state of creation; I will restore everything to the way it originally was, thoroughly changing everything, and make everything fall within My plan. The time has come! The last stage of My plan is about to be completed. Ah, unclean old world! It shall surely fall amid My words! It shall surely be reduced to nothingness by My plan! Ah, all things! They will all gain new life amid My words—they shall have their Sovereign! Ah, holy and unblemished new world! It shall surely revive amid My glory! Ah, Mount Zion! Be silent no more—I have returned in triumph! I observe the whole earth in the midst of all things. The people on earth have begun a new life and have new hopes. Ah, My people! How can you not come back to life amid My light? How can you not jump for joy under My guidance? The lands are shouting in jubilation, the waters are raucous with gleeful laughter! Ah, the resurrected Israel! How can you not feel pride on account of My predestination? Who has wept? Who has wailed? The Israel of old has ceased to be, and today’s Israel has risen up, erect and towering in the world, and has stood up in the hearts of all humanity. Today’s Israel shall surely attain the foundation for existence through My people! Ah, hateful Egypt! Surely you do not still resist Me? How can you take advantage of My mercy and try to escape My chastisement? How can you not live within My chastisement? All those I love will surely exist for eternity, and all those who resist Me will surely be chastised by Me for eternity. For I am a jealous God and will not lightly spare all men for everything that they have done. I will scrutinize the whole earth and, appearing in the East of the world with righteousness, majesty, wrath, and chastisement, I shall reveal Myself to the myriad people!
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God’s Words to the Entire Universe, Chapter 26
Daily Words of God Excerpt 64
When the angels play music in praise of Me, this cannot but stir up My sympathy for man. My heart is instantly filled with sadness, and it is impossible to rid Myself of this painful emotion. In the joys and sorrows of being sundered from and then reunited with man, we are unable to exchange sentiments. Separated in heaven above and on earth below, rare are the times that man and I can meet. Who can break free from nostalgia for former feelings? Who can stop reminiscing about the past? Who would not hope for the continuance of the sentiments of the past? Who would not pine for My return? Who would not long for My reunion with man? My heart is deeply troubled, and man’s spirit is deeply worried. Though alike in spirit, we cannot often be together, and we cannot often see each other. Thus the life of all mankind is fraught with grief and lacking in vitality, for man has always yearned for Me. It is as if human beings were objects knocked down out of heaven; they cry out My name upon the earth, lifting up their gaze to Me from the ground—but how can they escape the jaws of the ravening wolf? How can they free themselves from its threats and its temptations? How can human beings not sacrifice themselves because of submission to the arrangement of My plan? When they loudly entreat, I turn My face away from them, I cannot bear to look on any longer; but how could I not hear their tearful cries? I will correct the injustices of the human world. I will do My work with My own hands throughout the world, forbidding Satan from harming My people again, forbidding the enemies from doing whatever they please again. I will become King on earth and move My throne there, making all My enemies fall to the ground and confess their crimes before Me. In My sadness, anger is commingled, I will trample the whole universe flat, sparing no one, and striking terror into the hearts of My enemies. I will reduce the whole earth to ruins, and make My enemies fall into the ruins, that henceforth they may corrupt mankind no more. My plan is already fixed, and no one, no matter who they are, must change it. As I roam in majestic pomp above the universe, all humanity will be made new, and everything will be revived. Man will no longer weep, no longer cry out to Me for help. Then My heart will rejoice, and the people will return in celebration to Me. The whole universe, from top to bottom, will roil in jubilation …
Today, among the nations of the world, I am doing the work that I have set out to accomplish. I move about in the midst of humankind, doing all the work within My plan, and all humanity is breaking up the sundry nations according to My intentions. The people on the earth have their attention fixed on their own destination, for the day is indeed drawing closer and the angels are sounding their trumpets. There will be no more delays, and all creation will thereupon begin to dance in jubilation. Who can extend My day at their will? A human of the earth? Or the stars in the sky? Or the angels? When I make an utterance to initiate the salvation of Israel’s people, My day presses in upon all of mankind. Every man fears the return of Israel. When Israel returns, that will be My day of glory, and so, too, will it be the day when everything changes and becomes renewed. As righteous judgment imminently faces the whole universe, all men grow timid and fearful, because in the human world, righteousness is unheard of. When the Sun of righteousness appears, the East will be illuminated, and then it will in turn illuminate the whole universe, reaching everyone. If man can really carry out My righteousness, what would there be to fear? My people all await the arrival of My day, they all long for the coming of My day. They wait for Me to bring retribution upon all mankind and to arrange mankind’s destination in My role as the Sun of righteousness. My kingdom is coming into shape above the whole universe, and My throne occupies the hearts of hundreds of millions of people. With the angels’ cooperation, My great accomplishment will soon be brought to fruition. All My sons and My people eagerly await My return, longing for Me to reunite with them, never to be separated again. How could the multitudinous populace of My kingdom not race toward one another and rejoice because of My being together with them? Can this be a reunion for which no price need be paid? I am honorable in all men’s eyes, I am proclaimed in the words of all. When I return, moreover, I shall conquer all enemy forces. The time has come! I will put My work in motion, I will reign as King among men! I am on the point of return! And I am about to depart! This is what everyone is hoping for, it is what they wish. I shall let the whole of humanity behold the arrival of My day, and they shall all welcome the coming of My day with joy!
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God’s Words to the Entire Universe, Chapter 27
Daily Words of God Excerpt 65
On the day that all things were resurrected, I came among man, and I have spent wonderful days and nights with him. Only at this point does man sense a little of My approachability, and as his interaction with Me becomes more frequent, he sees some of what I have and am—as a result, he gains some knowledge of Me. Among all people, I raise My head and watch, and they all see Me. Yet when disaster befalls the world, they immediately grow anxious, and My image vanishes from their hearts; panic-stricken by the arrival of the disaster, they pay no regard to My exhortations. Many years have I passed among man, yet he has always remained unaware, and has never known Me. Today I tell him of this with My own mouth, so that all people may come before Me to receive something from Me, but still they keep their distance from Me, and so they do not know Me. When My footsteps tread across the universe and to the ends of the earth, man will begin to reflect upon himself, and all people will come to Me and bow down before Me and worship Me. This will be the day I gain glory, the day of My return, and also the day of My departure. Now, I have begun My work among all mankind, formally unfolding the final portion of My management plan within the universe. If anyone is still imprudent, they will be plunged amid merciless chastisement at any moment. This is not because I am heartless; rather, it is a step of My management plan; all must proceed according to the steps of My plan, and no man can change this. When I formally begin My work, all people move as I move, such that people in the universe busy themselves along with Me, the whole universe is in a state of “jubilation,” and man is spurred onward by Me. In consequence, even the great red dragon itself is thrown into a state of disorderliness and flustered uncertainty by Me, and it serves My work, and, despite being unwilling, it is unable to follow its own desires, but is left with no choice but to let Me orchestrate as I wish. In all of My plans, the great red dragon is My foil, My enemy, yet it is also My servant; as such, I have never relaxed My “requirements” of it. Therefore, the final stage of the work of My incarnation is completed in its household—this is more conducive to the great red dragon doing service for Me properly, through which I will conquer it and complete My plan. As I work, all angels embark upon the decisive battle with Me and resolve to satisfy My intentions in the final stage, so that the people on earth surrender before Me like the angels, and have no desire to oppose Me, and do nothing that betrays Me. These are the dynamics of My work in the universe.
The purpose and significance of My arrival among man is to save all mankind, to bring all mankind back to My household, to reunite heaven with earth, and to make man convey the “signals” between heaven and earth, for such is the inherent function of man. At the time when I created mankind, I had made all things ready for mankind, and later, I allowed mankind to receive, according to My requirements, the riches I gave him. Thus, I say that it is under My guidance that all mankind has reached today. And this is all My plan. Among all mankind, countless numbers of people exist under the protection of My love, and countless numbers live under the chastisement of My hate. Though people all pray to Me, still they are unable to change their present circumstances; once they have lost hope, they can only let nature take its course and cease to rebel against Me, for this is all that can be accomplished by man. When it comes to the state of man’s life, man has yet to find the real life, he still has not seen through to the injustice, desolation, and miserable conditions of the world—and so, were it not for the advent of disaster, most people would still embrace Mother Nature, and would still engross themselves in the flavors of “life.” Is this not the reality of the world? Is this not the voice of salvation that I speak forth to man? Why, among mankind, has no one ever truly loved Me? Why does man love Me only when amidst chastisement and trials, yet no one loves Me while being under My protection? I have bestowed My chastisement many times upon mankind. They take a look at it, but then they ignore it, and they do not study and contemplate it at this time, and so all that comes upon man is merciless judgment. This is only one of My methods of working, but it is still in order to change man and make him love Me.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God’s Words to the Entire Universe, Chapter 29
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I reign in the kingdom, and, moreover, I reign throughout the entire universe; I am both the King of the kingdom and the Head of the universe. From this time onward, I will assemble all those who are not the chosen ones and will begin My work among the Gentiles, and I will announce My administrative decrees to the whole universe, so that I may successfully embark upon the next step of My work. I will use chastisement to spread My work among the Gentiles, which is to say, I will use “force” against all those who are Gentiles. Naturally, this work will be carried out at the same time as My work among the chosen ones. When My people rule and wield power on earth, that will also be the day that all people on earth have been conquered, and, moreover, it will be the time when I rest—and only then will I appear to all those who have been conquered. I appear to the holy kingdom, and hide Myself from the land of filth. All who have been conquered and become submissive before Me are able to see My face with their own eyes, and able to hear My voice with their own ears. This is the blessing of those who are born during the last days, this is the blessing predestined by Me, and this is unalterable by any man. Today, I work in this way for the sake of the work of the future. All of My work is interrelated, in all of it, there is a call and response: Never has any step halted suddenly, and never has any step been carried out independently of any other. Is this not so? Is the work of the past not the foundation of the work of today? Are the words of the past not the precursor to the words today? Are the steps of the past not the origin of the steps of today? When I formally open the scroll, that is when people throughout the universe are chastised, when people all over the world are subjected to trials, and it is the climax of My work; all people live in a land without light, and all people live amid the threats posed by their environment. In other words, it is the life that man has never experienced from the time of creation until the present day, and no one throughout the ages has ever “enjoyed” this kind of life, and so I say that I have done work that has never been done before. This is the true state of affairs, and this is the inner meaning. Because My day draws near to all mankind, because it does not appear distant but is right before man’s eyes, who could not be fearful as a result? And who could not be delighted in this? The filthy city of Babylon has finally come to its end; man has met with a brand-new world again, and heaven and earth have been changed and renewed.
When I appear to all nations and all peoples, the white clouds churn in the sky and enshroud Me. So, too, do the birds on earth sing out and dance with joy for Me, highlighting the atmosphere on earth, and thus causing all things on earth to come alive, to no longer “drift slowly downward,” but to instead live amid an atmosphere of vitality. When I am among the clouds, man dimly perceives My face and My eyes, and at this time he feels a little afraid. In the past, he has heard historical records about Me in legends, and as a result he is only half believing and half doubtful toward Me. He knows not where I am, or just how large My face is—is it as wide as the sea, or as boundless as the green pastures? No one knows these things. It is only when man sees My face in the clouds today that man feels that the Me of legend is real, and so he becomes a little more favorably disposed toward Me, and it is only because of My deeds that his admiration for Me becomes a little greater. But man still does not know Me, and he only sees one part of Me in the clouds. Thereafter, I stretch out My arms and show them to man. Man is astonished, and claps his hands over his mouth, deeply afraid of being struck down by My hand, and so he adds a little fear to his admiration. Man fixes his eyes upon My every move, profoundly afraid that he will be struck down by Me when he is not paying attention—yet I am not restricted because of being watched by man, and I continue to do the work on My hands. It is only in all the deeds I do that man has some favor toward Me, and thus gradually comes before Me to associate with Me. When I am revealed to man in My entirety, man will see My face, and from then on I will no longer hide or obscure Myself from man. Throughout the universe, I will appear publicly to all people, and all those who are of flesh and blood will behold all of My deeds. All those who are of the spirit will surely dwell in peace in My household, and will assuredly enjoy wonderful blessings together with Me. All those whom I care for will surely escape chastisement and will certainly avoid the pain of the spirit and the agony of the flesh. I will appear publicly to all peoples and rule and wield power, so that the smell of corpses no longer will pervade the universe; instead, My crisp fragrance will spread across the whole world, because My day is drawing near, man is awakening, everything on earth is in order, and the days of survival of the earth are no more, for I have arrived!
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God’s Words to the Entire Universe, Chapter 29
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I shall fill the empyrean with the manifestations of My actions and make everything on earth fall prostrate under My power, thus implementing My plan for “global unity” and bringing this one wish of Mine to fruition, so that humanity will no longer “roam about” on the face of the earth, but soon have a suitable destination. I take thought for the human race in every way, making it so that all mankind will shortly come to live in a land of peace and happiness, so that the days of their lives will no longer be desolate, and so that My plan will not come to naught upon the earth. Because of man’s existence, I shall build My kingdom upon the earth, for a part of the manifestation of My glory is upon the earth. In heaven above, I shall set My city aright and so make everything new above and below. I shall render all that exists above and below heaven into one unity, so that all things on earth will be united with all that is in heaven. This is My plan; it is what I shall accomplish in the final age—let no one interfere with this part of My work! Spreading My work among the Gentile nations is the last part of My work on earth. No one is able to fathom the work I shall do, and because of this, people are quite befuddled. And because I am busily occupied with My work on earth, people take the opportunity to “play around.” To keep them from acting rashly, I have first placed them under My chastisement to receive the “training” of the lake of fire. This is one step in My work, and I shall use the might of the lake of fire to accomplish this step of My work; otherwise, it would be difficult to carry out My work. I shall have human beings throughout the universe surrender before My throne, divided into different categories due to My judgment, classified according to these categories, and further sorted into their families, so that the whole of humanity will cease to rebel against Me, falling instead into a neat and orderly arrangement according to the categories that I have named—let no one move about at will! Throughout the universe and above it, I have wrought new work; all humans in the universe are dazed and dumbstruck by My sudden appearance, their horizons greatly expanded by My appearance in the open. Is today not just so?
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God’s Words to the Entire Universe, Chapter 43
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I am spreading My work among the Gentile nations. My glory flashes throughout the universe; all the star-star-dot-dot people bear My intentions within them, and they are all steered by My hand and set about the tasks I have assigned. From this point on, I have entered into a new age, bringing all men into another world. When I returned to My “homeland,” I commenced yet another part of the work in My original plan, so that man would come to know Me more deeply. I regard the universe in its entirety and see that[a] it is an opportune time for My work, so I hurry all about, doing My new work upon man. This is a new age, after all, and I have brought new work to take more new people into the new age and to discard more of those that I shall eliminate. In the country of the great red dragon, I have carried out a stage of work unfathomable to human beings, causing them to sway in the wind, after which many quietly drift away with the blowing of the wind. Truly, this is the “threshing floor” I am about to clear; it is what I yearn for and it is also My plan. For many evil ones have crept in while I am at work, but I am in no hurry to drive them away. Rather, I shall disperse them when the time is right. Only after that shall I be the fountain of life, allowing those who truly love Me to receive from Me the fruit of the fig tree and the fragrance of the lily. In the land where Satan sojourns, the land of dust, there remains no pure gold, only sand, and so, meeting with these circumstances, I do such a stage of work. You should know that what I gain is pure, refined gold, not sand. How can the evil remain in My house? How can I allow foxes to live as parasites in My paradise? I employ every method to drive them away. Before My intentions are revealed, no one is aware of what I am about to do. Taking this opportunity, I drive away those evil ones, and they are forced to leave My presence. This is what I do to the evil, but there will still be a day for them to do service for Me. The desire of men for blessings is much too strong; therefore I turn My body around and show My glorious countenance to the Gentiles, so that men may all live in a world of their own and judge themselves, while I go on saying the words that I should say, and supplying men with what they need. When men come to their senses, I will have long since spread My work. I shall then express My intentions to men, and begin the second part of My work upon men, letting all men follow Me closely so as to cooperate with My work, and letting men do everything in their ability to carry out with Me the work that I must do.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. The Seven Thunders Peal—Prophesying That the Gospel of the Kingdom Shall Spread Throughout the Universe
Footnotes:
a. The original text does not contain the phrase “see that.”
Daily Words of God Excerpt 69
None have faith that they will see My glory, and I do not compel them, but rather remove My glory from mankind’s midst and take it to another world. When men once again repent, then I shall take My glory and show it to even more of those of faith. This is the principle by which I work. For there is a time when My glory leaves Canaan, and there is also a time when My glory leaves the chosen. Furthermore, there is a time when My glory leaves the whole earth, causing it to grow dim and plunging it into darkness. Even the land of Canaan shall not see the sunlight; all men will lose their faith, but none can bear to leave the fragrance of the land of Canaan. Only when I pass into the new heaven and earth do I take the other part of My glory and reveal it first in the land of Canaan, causing a glimmer of light to shine forth across the whole pitch-dark earth. This is so that the whole earth may come to the light. It’s so that men all over the earth may come to draw on the power of the light, allowing My glory to increase further and appear anew to each nation, and that all humanity may realize that I have long ago come to the human world and long ago brought My glory from Israel to the East, for My glory shines from the East and it was brought over from the Age of Grace to this day. But it was from Israel that I departed and from there that I arrived in the East. Only when the light of the East gradually turns white will the darkness across the earth begin to turn to light, and only then will man discover that I have long ago gone from Israel and am rising anew in the East. It could not be the case that I, having once descended into Israel and later departed from it, would once again be born into Israel, because My work leads all of the universe and, what is more, the lightning comes from the East and flashes all the way to the West. For this reason I have descended in the East and brought Canaan to My chosen people in the East. I shall bring My chosen people from all over the earth to the land of Canaan, and so I continue to issue forth utterances in the land of Canaan to control the entire universe. At this time, there is no light in all the earth. Apart from those in Canaan, all men are imperiled by hunger and cold. I gave My glory to Israel and then took it away, thereby bringing the Israelites to the East, and also bringing all people to the East, bringing them all to the light so that they may be reunited with it, and be in association with it, and search no longer. I shall make it so that all who are seeking can see the light again, see the glory I had in Israel, see that I have long since come down on a white cloud into the midst of mankind, and see the clusters of white clouds and the fruits in their abundant bunches. Even more so, I shall make it so that they can see Jehovah God of Israel, see the “Master” of the Jews, see the longed-for Messiah, and see the full appearance of Me, He who has been persecuted by kings throughout the ages. I shall work upon the entire universe and I shall perform great work, revealing all My glory and all My deeds to man in the last days, and revealing My entire glorious countenance to those who have waited many years for Me, to those who have longed for Me to come upon a white cloud, to Israel that has longed for Me to appear once again, and to all mankind that persecutes Me, so that all will know that I have long since taken away My glory and brought it to the East, and that it is no longer in Judea, for the last days have already come!
Throughout the universe I am doing My work, and in the East, thunderous booming issues forth endlessly, shaking all nations and denominations. It is My utterances that have led all men to the present day. I cause all men to be conquered by My utterances, to fall into this stream, and to surrender before Me, for I have long since withdrawn My glory from all the earth and issued it forth anew in the East. Who does not long to see My glory? Who does not anxiously look forward to My return? Who does not thirst for My reappearance? Who does not long for My loveliness? Who would not come to the light? Who would not behold the richness of Canaan? Who does not long for the return of the Redeemer? Who does not admire Him who possesses great power? My utterances shall be propagated throughout the earth; I will utter and speak words more to My chosen people, like mighty thunder shaking the mountains and rivers. I speak My words to the whole universe and to mankind. Hence the words from My mouth have become man’s treasure, and all men cherish My words. The lightning flashes from the East all the way to the West. My words are such that man is loath to part with them, and they are also unfathomable to man, and even more so they cause man to feel joy. Like newborn infants, all men feel glad and joyful, and celebrate My coming. By means of My utterances, I shall bring all men before Me. Thenceforth, I shall formally enter into the midst of men, and make it so that they will come to pay homage to Me. With the glory that I issue forth and the words from My mouth, all men come before Me, and see that the lightning flashes from the East, that I have also descended unto the “Mount of Olives” in the East, and have long since come to earth, and that I am no longer the Son of Jews, but the Lightning of the East. For I have long since been resurrected, and have departed from mankind’s midst, and then reappeared with glory among men. I am He who was worshiped countless ages before now, and I am also the infant that was forsaken by the Israelites countless ages before now. Even more so, I am the all-glorious Almighty God of the present age! Let all come before My throne and see My glorious countenance, hear My utterances, and behold My deeds. This is the entirety of My intention; it is the end and the climax of My plan, as well as the purpose of My management: to have the myriad nations pay homage to Me, the myriad mouths acknowledge Me, the myriad people put their trust in Me, and the myriad of My chosen people surrender to Me!
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. The Seven Thunders Peal—Prophesying That the Gospel of the Kingdom Shall Spread Throughout the Universe
Daily Words of God Excerpt 70
For several millennia, man has longed to be able to witness the arrival of the Savior. Man has longed to behold Jesus the Savior riding a white cloud as He descends, in person, among those who have pined and yearned for Him for thousands of years. Man has also longed for the Savior to return and be reunited with them; that is, longed for Jesus the Savior, who has been separated from people for thousands of years, to come back, and to once again carry out the work of redemption that He did among the Jews, to be merciful and loving toward man, to forgive the sins of man and bear the sins of man, and even bear all of man’s transgressions and save man from sin. What man longs for is for Jesus the Savior to be the same as before—a Savior who is lovable, kind, and venerable, who is never wrathful toward man, and who never reproaches man, but who forgives and takes on all of man’s sins, and who will even, as before, die upon the cross for man. Since Jesus departed, the disciples who followed Him, as well as all of the saints who were saved in His name, have been desperately pining for Him and awaiting Him. All those who were saved by the grace of Jesus Christ during the Age of Grace have been longing for that exultant day in the last days when Jesus the Savior descends on a white cloud to appear before the myriad people. Of course, this is also the collective wish of all those who accept the name of Jesus the Savior today. Everyone in the universe who knows of the salvation of Jesus the Savior has been desperately yearning for Jesus Christ to suddenly arrive to fulfill what Jesus said while on earth: “I shall arrive just as I departed.” Man believes that, following the crucifixion and resurrection, Jesus went back to heaven upon a white cloud to take His place at the Most High’s right hand. In like manner, Jesus shall descend again upon a white cloud (this cloud refers to the cloud that Jesus rode upon when He returned to heaven), among those who have desperately yearned for Him for thousands of years, and He shall bear the image and wear the clothing of the Jews. After appearing to them, He shall bestow food upon them, and cause living water to gush forth for them, and shall live among man, full of grace and full of love, vivid and real. All such notions are what people believe. Yet Jesus the Savior did not do this; He did the opposite of what man conceived. He did not arrive among those who had yearned for His return, and He did not appear to the myriad people while riding upon the white cloud. He has already arrived, but man does not know, and remains ignorant. Man is merely awaiting Him aimlessly, unaware that He has already descended upon a “white cloud” (the cloud which is His Spirit, His words, His entire disposition and all that He is), and is now among a group of overcomers that He will make during the last days. Man does not know this: Despite all the affection and love the holy Savior Jesus has for man, how can He work in those “temples” inhabited by filth and unclean spirits? Though man has been awaiting His arrival, how could He appear to those who eat the flesh of the unrighteous, drink the blood of the unrighteous, and wear the clothes of the unrighteous, who believe in Him but do not know Him, and who constantly extort Him? Man knows only that Jesus the Savior is full of love and overflowing with mercy, and that He is the sin offering, filled with redemption. However, man has no idea that He is God Himself, who is brimming with righteousness, majesty, wrath, and judgment, possessed of authority, and full of dignity. Therefore, even though man eagerly yearns for and craves the return of the Redeemer, and even his prayers move “Heaven,” Jesus the Savior does not appear to those who believe in Him but do not know Him.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. The Savior Has Already Returned Upon a “White Cloud”
Daily Words of God Excerpt 71
God’s six-thousand-year plan of management is coming to an end, and the gate of the kingdom has already been opened to all those who seek His appearance. Dear brothers and sisters, what are you waiting for? What is it that you seek? Are you waiting for God to appear? Are you searching for His footsteps? How the appearance of God is to be longed for! And how difficult it is to find God’s footsteps! In an age such as this, in a world such as this, what must we do to witness the day on which God appears? What must we do to keep pace with the footsteps of God? Questions of this kind are faced by all those who are waiting for God to appear. You have all considered them on more than one occasion—but with what outcome? Where does God appear? Where are God’s footsteps? Have you got the answers? Many people would reply in this way: “God appears among all those who follow Him and His footsteps are in our midst; it’s that simple!” Anyone can provide a formulaic answer, but do you understand what is meant by the appearance of God or His footsteps? The appearance of God refers to God personally coming to earth to work, descending among mankind to conduct the work of initiating an age and ending an age with His own identity and disposition, and in the way that is innate to Him. This kind of appearance is not a sort of ceremony. It is not a sign, a picture, a miracle, or a kind of grand vision, and even less is it a kind of religious process. Rather, it is a real and actual fact that can be touched and beheld by anyone. This kind of appearance is not for the sake of going through the motions, or for the sake of a kind of short-term work. Instead, it is for the sake of a stage of work in God’s management plan. The appearance of God is always meaningful and always has some relation to His management plan. What is called “appearance” here is absolutely different from the kind of “appearance” in which God guides, leads, and enlightens man. Every time God appears, He carries out a stage of His great work. This work is different from that of any other age. It is unimaginable to man, and has never been experienced by man before. It is work that starts a new age and concludes the old age, and it is a newer and higher stage of work for the salvation of mankind; even more so, it is work that leads mankind into the new age. This is the significance of the appearance of God.
Once you have understood what the appearance of God means, how should you search for God’s footsteps? This question is not hard to explain: Wherever God appears, there you will find His footsteps. Such an explanation sounds straightforward, but is not so easy in practice, for many people do not know where God appears, much less where He is willing to, or where He should, appear. Some impulsively believe that wherever the Holy Spirit is at work, there God appears. Or else they believe that wherever there are spiritual figures, there God appears. Or else they believe that wherever there are people of high renown, there God appears. For the moment, let us leave aside whether such beliefs are right or wrong. To explain such a question, we must first have a clear objective: We are searching for the footsteps of God. We are not searching for spiritual figures, much less are we following figures of renown; we are following the footsteps of God. For this reason, since we are searching for the footsteps of God, it behooves us to search for God’s intentions, for the words of God, for His utterances. This is because wherever there are new words spoken by God, the voice of God is there, and wherever there are the footsteps of God, God’s deeds are there; wherever there is the expression of God, there God appears, and wherever God appears, there the truth, the way, and the life exist. In searching for God’s footsteps, you have ignored the words “God is the truth, the way, and the life.” And so, many people, even when they receive the truth, do not believe that they have found God’s footsteps, and still less do they acknowledge the appearance of God. What a grave mistake! The appearance of God cannot conform to man’s notions, less still can God appear in the manner that man demands Him to. God makes His own choices and His own plans when He does His work; moreover, He has His own objectives and His own methods. Whatever work He does, He has no need to discuss it with man or seek his advice, much less to notify each and every person of His work. This is the disposition of God, and it should, moreover, be recognized by everyone. If you desire to witness the appearance of God, to follow God’s footsteps, then you must first walk away from your own notions. You must not demand that God do this or that, much less should you place Him within your own confines and limit Him to your own notions. Instead, you should demand of yourselves how you ought to seek God’s footsteps, how you ought to accept God’s appearance, and how you ought to submit to the new work of God: This is what man should do. Since man is not the truth, and is not possessed of the truth, he should seek, accept, and submit.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Appendix 1: The Appearance of God Has Ushered in a New Age
Daily Words of God Excerpt 72
Regardless of whether you are American, British, or any other nationality, you should step outside the confines of your own nationality, transcending your own self, and view the work of God from the identity of a created being. In this way, you will not limit God’s footsteps to any particular scope. This is because, nowadays, many people conceive it to be impossible that God will appear in a particular country or among the people of a certain nation. How profound is the significance of God’s work, and how important is the appearance of God! How can man’s notions and thinking possibly take their measure? And so I say, you should break through notions of nationality and ethnicity in order to seek the appearance of God. Only thus will you not be bound by your own notions; only thus will you be qualified to welcome the appearance of God. Otherwise, you will remain in eternal darkness, and never gain the approval of God.
God is the God of the entire human race. He does not consider Himself the private property of any country or nation, but does His work as He has planned it, without being confined to any form, country, or nation. Perhaps you have never imagined this form, or perhaps your attitude to this form is one of denial, or perhaps the country or nation where God appears just happens to be discriminated against by everyone and just happens to be the most backward on earth. Yet God has His wisdom. With His great power, and by means of His truth and His disposition, He has truly gained a group of people who are of one mind with Him, and a group of people that He wished to make complete—a group, conquered by Him, who, having endured all manner of trials and suffering and all manner of persecution, can follow Him to the very end. The aim of God’s appearance, which is not limited to any form or country, is to enable Him to complete His work as He has planned it. This is just as when God became flesh in Judea: His aim was to complete the work of the crucifixion in redeeming the entire human race. Yet the Jews believed that it was impossible for God to do this, and they thought it impossible that God could become flesh and assume the form of the Lord Jesus. Their “impossible” became the basis on which they condemned and opposed God, and ultimately led to the destruction of Israel. Today, many people have committed a similar error. They proclaim with all their might the imminent appearance of God, yet at the same time condemn His appearance; their “impossible” once more confines the appearance of God within the limits of their imagination. And so I have seen many people break into wild and raucous laughter after coming upon the words of God. But is this laughter any different from the condemnation and blasphemy of the Jews? You are not reverent in the presence of the truth, still less do you possess an attitude of yearning. All you do is doggedly study, and wait with blithe unconcern. What can you gain from studying and waiting like this? Do you think you will receive personal guidance from God? If you cannot discern God’s utterances, in what way are you qualified to witness the appearance of God? Wherever God appears, there the truth will be expressed, and there the voice of God will be. Only those who can accept the truth will be able to hear the voice of God, and only such people are qualified to witness the appearance of God. Let go of your notions! Quiet yourself and read these words carefully. As long as you have a heart that yearns for the truth, God will enlighten you so that you will understand His intentions and His words. Let go of your arguments of “impossibility”! The more that people believe something is impossible, the more likely it is to occur, because the wisdom of God is higher than the heavens, God’s thoughts are higher than man’s thoughts, and God performs His work beyond the limits of man’s thinking and notions. The more that something is impossible, the more there is truth to be sought in it; the more something can’t be imagined by man’s notions, the more it contains the intentions of God. This is because, no matter where He appears, God is still God, and His essence will absolutely not change on account of the location or manner of His appearance. The disposition of God will not change regardless of where His footsteps are, and no matter where the footsteps of God are, He is the God of all mankind, just as the Lord Jesus is not only the God of the Israelites, but is also the God of all the people of Asia, Europe, and America, and even more than that, He is the one and only God above and throughout the entire universe. So let us search for God’s intentions and discover His appearance in His utterances and words, and keep pace with His footsteps! God is the truth, the way, and the life. His words and His appearance exist concurrently, and His disposition and footsteps are shown publicly to mankind at all times. Dear brothers and sisters, I hope that you can all see the appearance of God in these words, begin to catch up with His footsteps and stride forward into a new age, and enter into the beautiful new heaven and earth that God has prepared for those who await His appearance!
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Appendix 1: The Appearance of God Has Ushered in a New Age
Daily Words of God Excerpt 73
God is silent, and has never appeared to us, yet His work has never stopped. He scrutinizes the whole earth, and rules over all things, and beholds all the words, deeds, and movements of man. He conducts His management with a plan and with steps, silently and without shaking the heavens and the earth, yet His footsteps advance, one by one, ever closer to mankind, and His judgment seat is deployed in the universe at the speed of lightning, following which His throne immediately descends into our midst. What a majestic scene that is, what a stately and solemn tableau! Like a dove, and like a roaring lion, the Spirit comes into the midst of us multitudes. He is wisdom, He is righteousness and majesty, and He quietly descends into our midst, wielding authority and filled with lovingkindness and mercy. No one is aware of His arrival, no one welcomes His arrival, and, even more so, no one knows all that He is about to do. Man’s life goes on as before, his heart no different, and the days go by as usual. God lives among us, like an ordinary person, as one of the most insignificant of the followers and an ordinary believer. He has His own pursuits, His own goals, and, even more so, He has divinity not possessed by ordinary men. No one has noticed the existence of His divinity, and no one has perceived the difference between His essence and that of man. We live together with Him, unconstrained and unafraid, for in our eyes He is but an insignificant believer. He watches our every move, and all of our thoughts and ideas are laid bare before Him. No one takes an interest in His existence, no one imagines anything about the function He performs, and, even more so, no one has the faintest suspicion about His identity. All we do is carry on our pursuits, as if He has nothing to do with us …
By chance, the Holy Spirit expresses a passage of words “through” Him, and even though it feels very unexpected, we nevertheless recognize it as an utterance coming from God and readily accept it from God. That is because, regardless of who expresses these words, as long as they come from the Holy Spirit, we should accept them and may not deny them. The next utterance could come through me, or through you, or through someone else. Whoever it is, all is the grace of God. Yet no matter who it is, we may not worship this person, for no matter what, this person cannot possibly be God, nor would we by any means choose an ordinary person like this to be our God. Our God is so great and honorable; how could such an insignificant person stand in His place? What is more, we are waiting for God to come and take us back to the kingdom of heaven, so how could someone so insignificant be up to such an important and arduous task? If the Lord comes again, it must be upon a white cloud, so that the myriad people may see. How glorious that will be! How is it possible that He can hide surreptitiously among a group of ordinary people?
And yet it is this ordinary person, hidden in the midst of people, who is doing the new work of saving us. He offers us no explanations, nor does He tell us why He has come, but simply does the work He intends to do according to His plan and His procedure. His words and utterances become ever more frequent. From consoling, exhorting, reminding, and warning, to reproaching and disciplining; from a tone that is gentle and mild, to words that are fierce and majestic—all of it makes man feel great mercy and utter terror. Everything that He says hits home at the secrets hidden deep within us; His words sting our hearts, sting our spirits, and leave us filled with unbearable shame, hardly knowing where to hide ourselves. We begin to have doubts about whether the God in this person’s heart truly loves us and what exactly He is up to. Perhaps we can only be caught up after enduring these sufferings? In our heads, we are calculating … about the destination to come and about our future fate. Still, as before, none of us believes that God has already assumed flesh to work in our midst. Even though He has accompanied us for such a long time, even though He has already spoken so many words face-to-face with us, we remain unwilling to accept such an ordinary person as the God of our future, and still less are we willing to entrust control of our future and our fate to this insignificant person. From Him we enjoy an unending supply of living water, and through Him we live a life of man and God being face-to-face. But we are only thankful for the grace of the Lord Jesus in heaven, and have never paid any heed to the feelings of this ordinary person who is possessed of divinity. Still, as before, He does His work humbly hidden in the flesh, giving expression to the voice of His heart, as though insensible to mankind’s rejection of Him, as though eternally forgiving of man’s immaturity and ignorance, and forever tolerant of man’s irreverent attitude toward Him.
Unbeknownst to us, this insignificant man has led us into one step after another of God’s work. We undergo countless trials and innumerable chastenings, and we are tested by death. We learn of God’s righteous and majestic disposition, enjoy, too, His lovingkindness and mercy, come to appreciate God’s great power and wisdom, witness the loveliness of God, and behold God’s eager intention to save man. In the words of this ordinary person, we come to know the disposition and essence of God, to understand God’s intentions, to know the nature essence of man, and see the way to salvation and perfection. His words cause us to “die,” and they cause us to be “reborn”; His words bring us comfort, yet also leave us wracked with guilt and a sense of indebtedness; His words bring us joy and peace, but also infinite pain. Sometimes we are like lambs in His hands, to be slaughtered as He wills; sometimes we are like the apple of His eye, and enjoy His tender love; sometimes we are like His enemy, and under His gaze are turned to ashes by His wrath. We are the human race saved by Him, we are the maggots in His eyes, and we are the lost sheep that, day and night, He is bent on finding. He is merciful toward us, He loathes us, He raises us up, He comforts and exhorts us, He guides us, He enlightens us, He chastens and disciplines us, and He even curses us. Night and day, He never ceases to worry about us and to protect and care for us, never leaving our side. He pours out all His heart’s blood and pays the entire price for us. Within the utterances of this insignificant and ordinary flesh, we have enjoyed the entirety of God and beheld the destination that God has bestowed upon us. Notwithstanding this, vanity still stirs up trouble within our hearts, and we are still unwilling actively to accept a person like this as our God. Though He has given us so much manna, so much to enjoy, none of this can take the Lord’s place in our hearts. We honor this person’s special identity and status only with great reluctance. As long as He does not open His mouth to ask us to acknowledge that He is God, we will never take it upon ourselves to acknowledge Him as the God that is soon to arrive and yet has long been working in our midst.
God continues His utterances, employing various methods and many perspectives to admonish us about what we should do, while at the same time expressing the voice of His heart. His words carry life power, they provide us with the way we should follow, and enable us to comprehend what exactly the truth is. We begin to be drawn by His words, we begin to pay attention to the tone and manner of His speaking, and subconsciously we begin to take note of the voice of this inconspicuous person’s heart. He works His heart out for us, loses sleep and appetite for us, weeps for us, sighs for us, and groans in sickness for us; He endures humiliation for the sake of our destination and salvation; and our numbness and rebelliousness draw tears and blood from His heart. No ordinary person has this being and these possessions, and no corrupted human being can have or attain them. He has tolerance and patience possessed by no ordinary person, and His love is not something that any created being has. No one apart from Him can know all of our thoughts, or know our nature and essence like the back of their own hand, or judge the rebelliousness and corruption of mankind, or speak to us and work on us like this on behalf of God in heaven. No one apart from Him possesses the authority, wisdom, and dignity of God; the disposition of God and the possessions and being of God are brought forth, in their entirety, in Him. No one apart from Him can show us the way and bring us light. No one apart from Him can disclose the mysteries that God has not made known since creation until today. No one apart from Him can save us from Satan’s bondage and our own corrupt dispositions. He represents God; He expresses the voice of God’s heart, the exhortations of God, and God’s words of judgment toward all mankind. He has opened up a new age, a new era, and ushered in a new heaven and earth and new work, He has brought us hope and ended the life we led in a vague state, and He has enabled our whole beings to completely behold the path to salvation. He has conquered our whole beings and gained our hearts. From that moment onward, our hearts have gained awareness, and our spirits seem to be revived: This ordinary, insignificant person, this person who lives among us and has been rejected by us for so long—is this not the Lord Jesus, who is ever in our thoughts, waking or dreaming, and for whom we long night and day? It is He! It really is He! He is our God! He is the truth, the way, and the life! He has enabled us to live again and to see the light and has stopped our hearts from wandering. We have returned to the home of God, we have returned before His throne, we are face-to-face with Him, we have witnessed His countenance, and we have seen the road that lies ahead. At this time, our hearts are completely conquered by Him; we no longer doubt who He is, no longer oppose His work and His word, and we fall down prostrate before Him. We wish for nothing more than to follow the footsteps of God for the rest of our lives, and to be made perfect by Him, and to repay His grace, and repay His love for us, and to obey His orchestrations and arrangements, and to cooperate with His work, and to do everything we can to complete what He entrusts to us.
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Appendix 4: Beholding the Appearance of God in His Judgment and Chastisement
Daily Words of God Excerpt 74
God and man cannot be spoken of on equal terms. His essence and His work are most unfathomable and incomprehensible to man. If God does not personally do His work and speak His words among mankind, then, no matter what, man wouldn’t be able to understand the intentions of God. And so, even those who have devoted their entire lives to God would not be able to receive His approval. If God does not set to work, then however well man does, it will all be for naught, because God’s thoughts will always be higher than the thoughts of man, and God’s wisdom cannot be fathomed by any person. And so I say that those who claim to “fully understand” God and His work are an inept lot; they are all overweening and ignorant. Man should not delimit the work of God; moreover, man cannot delimit the work of God. In the eyes of God, man is simply smaller than an ant; so how can man fathom God’s work? Those who like to spout, “God does not work in this or that way,” or “God is like this or that”—are they not speaking arrogantly? We should all know that man, who is of the flesh, has been corrupted by Satan. Mankind’s very nature is to oppose God. Mankind cannot be on par with God, much less can mankind hope to advise the work of God. As for how God guides man, this is the work of God Himself. It is fitting that man should submit, without professing this or that view, for man is but dust. Since it is our intent to seek God, we should not superimpose our notions onto His work for God’s consideration, still less should we employ our corrupt disposition to deliberately and vigorously oppose the work of God. Would that not make us antichrists? How could such people believe in God? Since we believe that there is a God, and since we wish to satisfy Him and to see Him, we should seek the way of truth, and the way of compatibility with God. We should not stand in stiff-necked opposition to Him. What good could possibly come of such actions?
Today, God has done new work. You may not be able to accept these words, and they may seem unusual to you, but I would advise you not to expose your naturalness for now, as only those who truly hunger and thirst for righteousness before God can gain the truth, and only those who are truly devout can be enlightened and guided by Him. Results are obtained by seeking the truth with sober tranquility, not with quarrel and contention. When I say that “today, God has done new work,” I am referring to the matter of God’s returning to the flesh. Perhaps these words do not bother you; perhaps you detest them; or even perhaps they are of great interest to you. Whatever the case, I hope that all those who truly yearn for God to appear can face this fact and give it their careful scrutiny, rather than jump to conclusions about it; that is what a wise person should do.
It is not difficult to inquire into such a thing, but it requires each of us to first know this one truth: He who is God incarnate shall possess the essence of God, and He who is God incarnate shall possess the expression of God. Since God becomes flesh, He shall bring forth the work He intends to do, and since God becomes flesh, He shall express what He is, and shall be able to bring the truth to man, bestow life upon him, and point the way for him. Flesh that does not have the essence of God is decidedly not the incarnate God; of this there is no doubt. If man intends to inquire into whether it is God’s incarnate flesh, then he must corroborate this from the disposition He expresses and the words He speaks. Which is to say, to corroborate whether or not it is God’s incarnate flesh, and whether or not it is the true way, one must discriminate on the basis of His essence. And so, in determining whether it is the flesh of God incarnate, the key lies in His essence (His work, His utterances, His disposition, and many other aspects), rather than external appearance. If man scrutinizes only His external appearance, and as a result overlooks His essence, this shows that man is benighted and ignorant. External appearance cannot determine essence; what’s more, the work of God can never conform to the notions of man. Did not Jesus’ outward appearance run counter to the notions of man? Were not His countenance and dress unable to provide any clues as to His true identity? Did not the earliest Pharisees oppose Jesus precisely because they merely looked at His external appearance, and did not conscientiously accept the words from His mouth? It is My hope that each and every brother and sister who seeks the appearance of God will not repeat the tragedy of history. You must not become the Pharisees of modern times and nail God to the cross again. You should carefully consider how to welcome the return of God, and you should have a clear mind regarding how to be someone who submits to the truth. This is the responsibility of everyone who is waiting for Jesus to return riding upon a cloud. We should rub our spiritual eyes to make them clear, and not become mired in words of exaggerated fantasy. We should think about the realistic work of God, and take a look at the practical aspect of God. Do not get carried away or lose yourselves in daydreams, always longing for the day when the Lord Jesus, riding upon a cloud, suddenly descends among you, and takes you who have never known or seen Him, and who do not know how to follow His will. It is better to think upon more practical matters!
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Preface
Daily Words of God Excerpt 75
Do you wish to know the root of why the Pharisees opposed Jesus? Do you wish to know the essence of the Pharisees? They were full of fantasies about the Messiah. What is more, they believed only that the Messiah would come, yet did not pursue the life truth. And so, even today they still await the Messiah, for they have no knowledge of the way of life, and do not know what the way of truth is. How, say you, could such foolish, stubborn and ignorant people gain God’s blessing? How could they behold the Messiah? They opposed Jesus because they did not know the direction of the Holy Spirit’s work, because they did not know the way of truth spoken by Jesus, and, even more so, because they did not understand the Messiah. And since they had never seen the Messiah and had never associated with the Messiah, they made the mistake of clinging to the mere name of the Messiah while opposing the essence of the Messiah by any means possible. These Pharisees in essence were stubborn, arrogant, and did not obey the truth. The principle of their belief in God was: No matter how profound Your preaching, no matter how high Your authority, You are not Christ unless You are called the Messiah. Is this belief not preposterous and ridiculous? I ask you further: Is it not extremely easy for you to commit the mistakes of the Pharisees of that time, given that you have not the slightest understanding of Jesus? Are you able to discern the way of truth? Can you truly guarantee that you will not oppose Christ? Are you able to follow the work of the Holy Spirit? If you do not know whether you will oppose Christ, then I say that you are already living on the brink of death. Those who did not know the Messiah were all capable of opposing Jesus, of rejecting Jesus, of slandering Him. People who do not understand Jesus are all capable of rejecting Him and reviling Him. Even more so, they are capable of seeing the return of Jesus as the misleading of Satan, and the majority of these people shall condemn Jesus returned to flesh. Does not all of this make you afraid? What you face shall be blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, the ruination of the words of the Holy Spirit to the churches, and the spurning of all that is expressed by Jesus. What can you gain from Jesus if you are so befuddled? How can you understand the work that Jesus does when He returns to flesh on a white cloud, if you obstinately refuse to realize your errors? I tell you this: People who do not accept the truth, yet blindly await the arrival of Jesus upon white clouds, are surely those who blaspheme against the Holy Spirit, and they are surely the category that shall be destroyed. You merely wish for the grace of Jesus, and merely want to enjoy the blissful realm of heaven, yet you have never obeyed the words spoken by Jesus, and have never accepted the truth expressed by Jesus when He returns to flesh. What will you hold up in exchange for the fact of Jesus’ return upon a white cloud? Is it the sincerity in which you repeatedly commit sins, and then speak your confession, over and over? What will you offer in sacrifice to Jesus who returns upon a white cloud? Is it the capital of the many years of work with which you exalt yourselves? What will you hold up to make the returned Jesus trust you? Is it that arrogant nature of yours, which does not submit to any truth?
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. By the Time You Behold the Spiritual Body of Jesus, God Will Have Made Heaven and Earth Anew
Daily Words of God Excerpt 76
Your loyalty is in word only, your knowledge is that of thinking and notions, your toils are for the sake of gaining the blessings of heaven, and so what must your faith be like? Even today, you still turn a deaf ear to each and every word of truth. You do not know what God is, you do not know what Christ is, you do not know how to fear Jehovah, you do not know how to enter into the work of the Holy Spirit, and you do not know how to distinguish between the work of God Himself and the misleading of man. You know only to condemn any word of truth expressed by God that does not conform to your own thoughts. Where is your humility? Where is your submission? Where is your loyalty? Where is your attitude of seeking the truth? Where is your God-fearing heart? I tell you, those who believe in God because of the signs are surely the category that shall be destroyed. Those who are incapable of accepting the words of Jesus who has returned to flesh are surely the progeny of hell, the descendants of the archangel, the category that shall be destroyed forever. Many people may not care what I say, but I still want to tell every so-called saint who follows Jesus that, when you see Jesus descend from the heaven upon a white cloud with your own eyes, this will be the time of the public appearance of the Sun of righteousness. Perhaps that will be a time of great excitement for you, yet you should know that the time when you witness Jesus descend from the heaven is also the time when you go down to hell to be punished. That will be the time of the proclamation of the end of God’s management plan and it will be when God rewards the good and punishes the evil. For the judgment of God will have ended before man sees signs, when there is only the expression of truth. Those who accept the truth and do not seek signs, and thus have been purified, shall have been brought before the throne of God and entered the Creator’s embrace. Only those who persist in the belief that “The Jesus who does not ride upon a white cloud is a false christ” shall be subjected to everlasting punishment, for they only believe in the Jesus who exhibits signs, but do not acknowledge the Jesus who expresses severe judgment and releases the life and the true way. And so it can only be that Jesus deals with them when He openly returns upon a white cloud. They are too stubborn, too confident in themselves, too arrogant. How could such scum be rewarded by Jesus? The return of Jesus is a great salvation for those who are capable of accepting the truth, but for those who are unable to accept the truth it is a sign of condemnation. You should choose your own path, and should not blaspheme against the Holy Spirit and reject the truth. You should not be an ignorant and arrogant person, but someone who submits to the guidance of the Holy Spirit and thirsts for and seeks the truth; only in this way will you benefit. I advise you to tread the path of belief in God with care. Do not arbitrarily jump to conclusions; even more so, do not be casual and sloppy in your belief in God. You should know that, at the very least, those who believe in God should possess humble and God-fearing hearts. Those who have heard the truth and yet turn their nose up at it are foolish and ignorant. Those who have heard the truth and yet carelessly jump to conclusions or condemn it are arrogant people. No one who believes in Jesus is qualified to curse or condemn others. You should all be someone who has reason and accepts the truth. Perhaps, having heard the way of truth and having read the word of life, you believe that only one in 10,000 of these words are in line with your viewpoints and the Bible, and then you should continue to seek in that 10,000th of these words. I still advise you to be humble, to not be over-confident, and to not exalt yourself too highly. With the bit of a God-fearing heart you possess, you will gain greater light. If you carefully examine and repeatedly contemplate these words, you shall understand whether or not they are the truth, and whether or not they are life. Perhaps, having only read a few sentences, some people will blindly condemn these words, saying, “This is nothing more than some enlightenment of the Holy Spirit,” or, “This is a false christ come to mislead people.” Those who say such things are blinded by ignorance! You understand too little of the work and wisdom of God, and I advise you to start again from scratch! You must not blindly condemn the words expressed by God because of the appearance of false christs during the last days, and you must not be someone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit because you are afraid of being misled. Would that not be a great pity? If, after much examination, you still believe that these words are not the truth, are not the way, and are not the expression of God, then you shall ultimately be punished, and you shall be without blessings. If you cannot accept such truth spoken so plainly and so clearly, then are you not unfit for God’s salvation? Are you not someone who is not blessed enough to return before the throne of God? Think about it! Do not be rash and impetuous, and do not treat belief in God as a game. Think for the sake of your destination, for the sake of your prospects, for the sake of your life, and do not play yourself. Can you accept these words?
—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. By the Time You Behold the Spiritual Body of Jesus, God Will Have Made Heaven and Earth Anew