Question 13: All of you believe in God; I believe in Marx and Lenin. My specialty is research of various religious beliefs. Through many years of research, I have discovered a problem. All religious belief holds that there is a God. Yet of all the people who believe in God, none has ever seen God. Their belief is based solely on their own feelings. I therefore have reached a conclusion about religious belief: Religious belief is purely imaginary; it is superstition, and has no basis in science. Modern society is a society in which science is highly developed. Everything must be based on science in order for there to be no mistakes. We Communist Party members believe in Marxism-Leninism. We don’t believe that there is a God. How does The Internationale go? “There has never been any Savior of the world, nor deities, nor emperors on which to depend. To create humankind's happiness, we must entirely depend on ourselves!” The Internationale clearly states “There has never been any Savior of the world.” The reason that the human race in the past believed in God and practiced superstition is mainly because human beings at that time, facing such phenomena of the natural world as the sun, moon, and stars; wind, rain, thunder, and lightning, had no way to produce a scientific explanation. Hence, fear and wonder arose in their minds about supernatural powers. Thus the earliest concepts of religion were formed. Also, when humans could not solve such difficulties as natural disasters, and disease, they hoped to attain spiritual comfort through respectfully making obeisance to God. This is how religion came into being. Obviously, this was not rational, and it was not scientific! Nowadays, the human race has advanced, and science is flourishing. In such fields as the aerospace industry, biotechnology, genetic engineering, and medicine, the human race has made considerable progress. In the past, human beings did not understand, and had no way to solve many problems. Nowadays these problems can all be explained through science, and science can be relied on to provide solutions. In this age of developed science and technology, if people still believe in God, is this not foolish and ignorant? Wouldn’t such people be left behind by this age? The only practical thing is for us to believe in science.
Answer: You say that religious belief is due to humans lagging behind in scientific knowledge, and is formed from fear and wonder in the face of supernatural powers, and that it is superstition. This argument is incorrect, and is unfounded. Religious belief and the feudal superstition of which you speak are two entirely different things. You Communists condemn and ban religious belief under the pretense of opposing feudalistic superstition. This is absurd. Of the main world religions, Judaism, Catholicism, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and Christianity believe in God and in the Lord Jesus. Only this is authentic religious belief. Three thousand years ago, the work of God during the Age of Law gave rise to Judaism. A long time ago, the Israelites heard the voice of God, and they knew the name of God. All along, they prayed to Jehovah God, observing all of the laws and commandments proclaimed by Jehovah. They all worshiped Jehovah God. We may therefore ascertain that Judaism came into being because of the work of God during the Age of Law. When the Age of Grace arrived, God became incarnate as the Lord Jesus, and began to work. He accomplished the atonement for the human race when He was crucified. Ever greater numbers of people professed belief in the Lord Jesus, and the church of the Lord Jesus was formed. With the passage of several hundred years, Christianity, Catholicism, and the Eastern Orthodox Church evolved. They are the largest religions in the world. All of them formed because of the Lord Jesus' work of redemption. Almighty God of the last days has expressed truth and done judgment work, and has conquered and saved people of various sects and factions. People who sincerely believe in God have heard the voice of God, and come to pledge allegiance at the throne of God. Thus The Church of Almighty God came into being. These facts suffice to show that religious belief was produced completely from God's appearance and work. God's appearance and work is verified by the life experiences of countless Christians. No force can topple or ban the church of God or God's chosen people. This is fact. Since the beginning of human history, God has been at work guiding human beings, redeeming the human race, and saving the human race. The appearance and work of God leads the entire human race to grow forward. These facts cannot be denied by anyone. You specialize in research of religious belief. You should understand these things. Why do you distort historical facts, saying that religious belief is a product of an ignorant and backward human race? Aren't these statements rather absurd?
You have studied religious belief for so many years. You are not even able to distinguish between feudal superstition and religious belief. This illustrates that you really don't understand religious belief. Nowadays, more and more people believe in God. The number of believers exceeds one-third of the world's population. Many of the world's greatest scientists have been Christians, for instance, Newton, Galileo, Copernicus, and others. Would you say that these people were superstitious, and did not believe in science? Science can produce some results in research of the material world, but it is powerless to explore and study the spiritual realm. Our belief in God is not based on science. Rather our belief is based on the words and work of God. The Holy Bible is the witness of the work of God, and it is a historical record of the human race's experience of God's work. Prophets in the Bible predicted thousands of years ago what would happen in the last days. These prophecies have basically all come true, which suffices to show that God's appearance and work is real, Amen! and that it is God who rules the human race, and who rules the entire universe. No one can deny these facts.
You say that because people cannot see God, God does not exist. So, when you burn imitation money and kowtow at the ancestral tablet of the deceased, do you see the soul of the dead person? In seeking evil spirits and psychics to tell fortunes, can you see the realm of departed spirits? If not, then why do you burn imitation money, kowtow, practice divination, and tell fortunes? You repeat over and over again that God does not exist, and preach atheism on a large scale, but privately, however, you believe in fake gods, and worship evil spirits. Isn’t this action of yours telling lies and deceiving the people, duping the people? You plainly see that the words and work of the true God are truth, and that they bring to the human race light and salvation, yet you obstinately deny, resist, and oppose human beings' belief in the true God under the banner of atheism, wildly suppressing religious belief, and ruthlessly persecuting Christians. Ultimately what problem is this? God is Spirit; though people cannot see God's spiritual body, they can hear God speaking words, and can see the work of God. This is a fact that is absolutely true. For thousands of years, God has been speaking, guiding the human race, saving the human race, and ruling the fate of the human race. God has also revealed many deeds. Humans’ experience and practical knowledge of these things gave rise to many proverbs, such as “Trust the will of Heaven,” “Man proposes, God disposes,” “Humans may sow the seed, but the harvest depends on Heaven,” “Heaven always provides a way,” “Heaven’s plans supersede our own,” “Mans fortune is written in the stars,” etc. All of this proves that there is a Ruler who is managing and arranging all the human world, leading, blessing, and nurturing this human race. There are also the oft-heard sayings, “There is a spirit watching right above your head,” “As people act, Heaven watches,” and “What goes around comes around.” This all shows that God is the Lord of creation, and that God has been ruling over all things all along. God’s Spirit keeps watch over all. God metes out retribution according to people’s actions, and decides the fate of human beings.
You say that because no one sees God, God does not exist. This point of view is incorrect! Have you sought the appearance and work of God? Have you read The Holy Bible, and The Word Appears in the Flesh? The Bible says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (Jhn 1:1). Though human beings have not seen the Spirit of God, they can hear the voice of God, can see the words expressed by God, and can experience the actions of God for themselves. Over the millennia, God has done three stages of work. In Israel, He did the work of the Age of Law, proclaiming His laws and commandments to the people of Israel. In the Age of Grace, God incarnate did the work of redemption. The sins of countless people were forgiven through their belief in the Lord Jesus. They lived in God's presence and enjoyed the peace and happiness that God gave. In the Age of Kingdom, God has been incarnated again, and expresses truth to do the work of judgment, purifying people, and saving people. God has done so many things. How can people not see this? How can people still make irresponsible remarks, claiming that God does not exist? We don’t only rely on eyes for our belief in God. The main basis of belief is the appearance and work of God. God incarnate has said very many words. The words of God are completely different from those of people. No person could say such words. The words of God have authority and power. Every day they come true, and are being fulfilled. Every stage of God’s work saves many people, bringing them to face God, allowing them to see that God exists and to know God’s disposition. For these reasons more and more people turn toward God. How can it be that you are unable to see this actuality? I will share with you a few passages of Almighty God’s words. When you have heard the words of Almighty God, you will better understand the facts of God’s universal creation and sovereignty over everything.
Almighty God says, “In the vastness of the cosmos and the firmament, countless creatures live and reproduce, follow the cyclical law of life, and adhere to one constant rule. Those who die take with them the stories of the living, and those who are living repeat the same tragic history of those who have perished. And so, mankind cannot help but ask himself: Why do we live? And why do we have to die? Who commands this world? And who created this mankind? Was mankind really created by Mother Nature? Is mankind really in control of his own fate? … Mankind simply does not know who the Sovereign of the universe and all things is, much less the beginning and future of mankind. Mankind merely lives, perforce, amidst this law. None can escape it and none can change it, for among all things and in the heavens there is but One from everlasting to everlasting who holds sovereignty over everything. He is the One who has never been beheld by man, the One whom mankind has never known, in whose existence mankind has never believed—yet He is the One who blew the breath into mankind’s ancestors and gave life to mankind. He is the One who provides and nourishes mankind, allowing him to exist; and He is the One who has guided mankind up to the present day. Moreover, He and He alone is the One mankind depends on for survival. He holds sovereignty over all things and rules all living beings in the universe. He commands the four seasons, and it is He who calls forth wind, frost, snow, and rain. He brings mankind sunshine and ushers in the night. It was He who laid out the heavens and earth, providing man with the mountains, lakes, and rivers and all of the living things within them. His deeds are omnipresent, His power is omnipresent, His wisdom is omnipresent, and His authority is omnipresent. Each of these laws and rules is the embodiment of His deeds, and each one reveals His wisdom and authority. Who can exempt themselves from His sovereignty? And who can discharge themselves from His designs? All things exist beneath His gaze, and moreover, all things live under His sovereignty. His deeds and His power leave mankind with no choice but to acknowledge the fact that He really does exist and holds sovereignty over all things” (The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Man Can Only Be Saved Amidst God’s Management).
“Since the day man came into existence, God has ever worked thus, managing the universe, directing the rules of change for all things and the trajectory of their movement. Like all things, man is quietly and unknowingly nourished by the sweetness and rain and dew from God; like all things, man unknowingly lives beneath the orchestration of God’s hand. Man’s heart and spirit are held in the hand of God, everything of his life is beheld in the eyes of God. Regardless of whether or not you believe this, any and all things, whether living or dead, will shift, change, renew, and disappear in accordance with God’s thoughts. Such is the way in which God presides over all things” (The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God Is the Source of Man’s Life).
“Though humanity does not admit that God exists nor accept the fact that the Creator made and has dominion over everything, and moreover does not recognize the existence of the Creator’s authority, human scientists, astronomers, and physicists are nonetheless finding more and more that the existence of all things in the universe, and the principles and patterns that dictate their movements, are all governed and controlled by a vast and invisible dark energy. This fact compels man to confront and acknowledge that there is a Mighty One in the midst of these patterns of movement, orchestrating everything. His power is extraordinary, and though no one can see His true face, He governs and controls everything at every moment. No man or force can reach beyond His sovereignty. Faced with this fact, man must recognize that the laws governing the existence of all things cannot be controlled by humans, cannot be changed by anyone; he must also admit that human beings cannot fully understand these laws, and they are not naturally occurring, but are dictated by a Sovereign” (The Word, Vol. 2. On Knowing God. God Himself, the Unique III).
—The movie script of The Lies of Communism
