II. The Interests of Antichrists

Today we’ll continue fellowshipping on the topic from our last gathering. Last time we fellowshipped on the second section of the interests of antichrists within item nine of the various manifestations of antichrists. In this section we fellowshipped on their own reputation and status, right? (Right.) Think back and give Me an approximate summary. How many points did we primarily fellowship on concerning antichrists’ own reputation and status? (God fellowshipped on two points last time. The first was on antichrists’ attitude toward being pruned. Antichrists can never accept or submit to being pruned, nor can they accept it as the truth. The second was on how antichrists protect their reputation and status in a group of people and what manifestations they have. The essence of antichrists is one of competing, and they must compete for their reputation and status.) So, let’s continue fellowshipping on this today. What homework did I give you last time? What did I ask you to contemplate and fellowship on after our gathering? Do you remember? (God asked us to hold ourselves against the fellowship and dissection of the manifestations of antichrists for comparison to see which of the dispositions of antichrists we possess, and to see which of the natures of antichrists we rely upon to do things.) This was the main topic. What was the subtopic about? (It was about which competing natures antichrists display while safeguarding their reputation and status, and holding ourselves up against these for comparison to see how we reveal them in our real lives, and how we do things, what we say, and what we do for the sake of reputation and status, and which manifestations of vying for fame and gain with brothers and sisters we display in order to safeguard our status.) Can anyone else add to this? (God told us to not always talk about what other people are like while fellowshipping on these manifestations of antichrists, but to instead hold ourselves up against them for comparison and fellowship on which dispositions and revelations we have that are the same as antichrists’.) That’s pretty much it. What was the motto for how antichrists act in a group of people that we fellowshipped about last time? Did this not leave an impression on you? (Their motto is, “I must compete! Compete! Compete!”) You remember this. How come you’ve been able to remember this? (Because this motto of antichrists that God spoke of, “I must compete! Compete! Compete!” is something I myself usually manifest and often reveal. Also, the tone of God’s fellowship was quite vivid, and the way in which God expressed these words matched the state of my own heart, so it left quite a deep impression on me.) Sometimes, when I fellowship on and dissect antichrists’ various manifestations and their different kinds of nature essences, I use some everyday language, as well as certain tones and methods which are easy for people to accept, and which leave a deep impression on people, and I also use some examples that are quite close to real life. Doing this really helps people to come to know the essence of antichrists and to come to know themselves. It is also beneficial to people coming to know themselves and experiencing God’s words in their real life, and it is even more conducive to them changing this kind of disposition of antichrists, right? (Right.) You’ve given an approximate recollection of the last fellowship, but the details go beyond these things—there are many more details. You should come up with a summary after listening to a fellowship. At the very least, after listening to a fellowship, you should gather together and listen to it again several times, and then everyone can make a summary together. After listening to your recollections and summaries of our last fellowship, I can tell that it’s quite rusty to you, it’s as though you listened to the fellowship a year or two ago and it left no impression on you. You may have been left with some concept and impression of a section, a sentence or two, or a matter or two, but it seems as though most people have no concept or impression of more of the essential knowledge and dissection of exposing antichrists. You must therefore ruminate and fellowship more among yourselves on the matters we discussed. Don’t just listen to them and then put them to one side without taking them seriously at all. If you do that, then your entry into the truth will be too slow—it won’t do to not ruminate on these sermons! So, how do you work in concert with these sermons in your church life? Do you fellowship on these sermons at your gatherings every week? Or do you listen to the latest sermons and fellowships several times over, so that most of you get an impression and in-depth knowledge of them, and then understand the truth through them? Do you do this? (God, at our gatherings every week we first eat and drink God’s latest fellowships.) Church leaders, preachers, and those who are in charge of the church life in decision-making groups must take responsibility for this; only in this way can the church work be done well.

C. Scheming for Their Own Benefits

1. Embezzling the Assets of God’s House

Today we will fellowship on the third section of the interests of antichrists—benefits. What are benefits? (Receiving blessings, and interests.) This is a very simple explanation; this is the literal meaning. Add a bit more to it—what are benefits? (They are the material and non-material interests, desirable things, and conveniences people can receive from doing their duty or from working in the world.) This explanation is correct. Benefits are kinds of good treatment that people receive in addition to their salary, and include things like daily necessities, food, or coupons. They also refer to conveniences and the material or non-material treatment one gets while doing one’s duty; all of these things are benefits. Now that I’ve explained what this term means, do you all know the areas, examples, and manifestations that we will fellowship on in this section? Certain people’s behaviors and actions are flashing through your minds right now, as well as the people who are capable of doing these things, right? Who are the first people you think of? (People who take advantage of their status to live off the church.) This is one type of person. These people do their duties, too. Some of them have status, they are leaders and workers at various levels or supervisors, while others do ordinary duties. What manifestation do they all have in common? While doing their duties, they continuously do some work and do certain things for their own flesh, their families, and their own enjoyment. Every day they rush around and pay a price, and the thing they always bear in mind is what desirable things they will obtain through doing this task or doing this duty. They are always planning and calculating about what conveniences and preferential treatment they can get out of it. Once they know, they will do whatever it takes to get these things, and, even more so, they will certainly not pass up any such opportunity to get these conveniences and these interests for themselves. When it comes to this matter, you could say that they are ruthless and unfeeling, and they certainly give no consideration to their own integrity and dignity. They are not afraid that the brothers and sisters might view them negatively, and they certainly do not worry about how God might evaluate them because of it. All they do is secretly contemplate and plot how to take advantage of the duties they are doing so as to be able to enjoy all the beneficial treatment they can. Thus, people like these have a sort of thought and argument which, on a surface level, cannot be considered wrong, which is that: “God’s house is my family, and my family is god’s house; what is mine is god’s, and what is god’s is mine. People’s duties are their responsibilities, and all the benefits that they can enjoy from their duties are graces bestowed by god; people cannot refuse them and should accept them from him. If I do not obtain them, then someone else will, so I might as well go ahead and enjoy these benefits and not pretend to be humble, and I certainly should not modestly decline anything. I just need to strive for these benefits and reach out my hand to accept them with a submissive heart and a candid attitude.” They see such benefits as a kind of treatment that they naturally deserve and ought to take possession of; it’s like when a person works and puts in time and hard work, so he feels like the salary and remuneration he receives are his fair share. So, even if they’ve embezzled these things and obtained these benefits through striving for them, they do not see that as wrong or something that God would detest, let alone do they care if the brothers and sisters have any sort of opinion about them. As if it were perfectly right and natural to do so, antichrists enjoy all of these things, they strive for these things, and even more so, they scheme for all of these things in their hearts every day. This is the regular status of antichrists doing their duties, and it is also the regular status of antichrists contriving for their personal interests while doing their duties. So, what is the mindset of antichrists? “While people do their duty, they have to try to get something in return. Since I’ve forsaken my family in order to do this duty, and since I’ve given my hard work, energy, and time for god and his house, I should therefore get to enjoy all the good treatment I want.” Antichrists see all of these as things that they naturally deserve, as things that God should grant to people without them needing to strive for them. This is the viewpoint antichrists have. And so, while doing their duty, they’re constantly working hard for benefits, and always afraid that someone else might take one of those benefits, and leave them with less. This is a status of antichrists doing their duties. What do all their intentions, motives, and goals in doing their duty ultimately boil down to? These all boil down to them scheming to get all the benefits for themselves, thinking that otherwise they’ll just be big idiots and life will have no meaning. This is the mindset of antichrists.

No matter how God exposes the nature of antichrists or their manifestations of not loving the truth, they will not give up on these intentions and pursuits of theirs; they keep on striving for benefits. For example, after some people begin doing the duty of hosting, the church or the brothers and sisters buy some food or appliances or even give some money to the hosting families. If the person who does this duty is an antichrist, the desirable things that they try to get for themselves are not as simple as a mere match or a little spoon. They say, “I am providing my home to host these brothers and sisters, and offering a service for them while they do their duties, so god’s house should of course provide all the materials and money. I am providing my house and cooking for you all and guaranteeing your safety; that’s pretty good already. As for the rest—what you eat, drink, and use—it should be provided by the church.” It is indeed not wrong that the church will provide these things, but what I want to fellowship on here is the difference between how antichrists do hosting duties and how other people genuinely do this duty. When antichrists do hosting duties, this action cannot be simply taken at face value; they have ulterior motives. They think, “I’m doing this hosting duty, so I need to scheme to get something out of it. The church is providing some food and other necessities, so my family members need to eat that food along with the brothers and sisters and use all those things as they please, too. My family is of god’s house, so what belongs to god’s house belongs to my family, too.” This is the attitude with which antichrists do their duties, is it not? (Yes.) Therefore, once some people begin doing hosting duties, their hearts begin to change, they’re constantly thinking about the material things and money that are used for hosting brothers and sisters, and if no one looks carefully into these things, then the opportunity for these antichrists to get some benefits has arrived. What sort of opportunity? They will secretly calculate, “This is how much one person spends in a day, so whatever money is left over, I won’t give back to the church; I’ll just keep it for myself. This at the very least is money that I earned, so no one can blame me for keeping it; this is only what I deserve, of course!” They will then put the leftover money in their pocket. Some antichrists will look for all manner of excuses to keep for themselves some of the material things donated by brothers and sisters or provided by God’s house. In some places, when the brothers and sisters go to stay there again, the mattress on the bed is gone, the pillows and quilts are gone, the meat and vegetables are all gone, and when they ask their hosts about this, these antichrists say, “If you keep food for a long time, it won’t taste as good, so we ate it.” Aren’t these greedy people? (Yes.) As soon as the material things provided by God’s house, as well as the things bought for the host family by brothers and sisters, get brought into the domains of these antichrists, they become theirs; they use or eat them as they please, or even directly treat them as their own possessions and hide them away. Once the brothers and sisters go there again, these things are nowhere to be seen. If the church needs to use these antichrists’ places of residence again, it needs to spend money to purchase those things again, and brothers and sisters have to bring those things to their houses again. Seeing this, the antichrists get happy, thinking, “Believing in god sure is great! I can’t get rich this fast doing anything else; this is the most convenient way to get things by far. Also, no one would dare make a report to the police that these church belongings have gone missing; if you were to actually try to report me, then I’d report you first! So all you can do is shut up and take it, there’s nowhere for you to complain about this. I’ve taken possession of these things and eaten this food. What can you do to me? God doesn’t pick favorites. I’m providing my house for hosting brothers and sisters, so that’s the contribution I’ve made, and god will remember me for it. What’s there to be afraid of if I take a bit? This is only what I deserve! What’s to fear in eating some of this food? What, you’re allowed to eat it but I’m not? You are members of god’s house, but aren’t I one, too? I’m not only going to benefit from the situation, I’m going to eat things by myself and dine on them alone!” This is antichrists’ attitude toward their duties. In doing their duties, their goal is to get these things, and they see them as the greatest benefits, saying, “These are the greatest grace bestowed by god; nothing is more tangible than this grace, and nothing is more real and tangibly beneficial than this blessing. This is just so great! Everyone says believing in god means ‘receiving a hundredfold in this life and eternal life in the world to come’; this fulfills that saying. I’m now having a foretaste of this blessing. This truly is god’s kindness!” Thus, antichrists have no qualms at all about taking possession of things that belong to God’s house, and ruthlessly take them for themselves. How do antichrists see these assets of God’s house? They treat them like the public property of nonbelievers; they’re all greedy, they all want to take the things of God’s house for themselves, and yet they still believe these to be the grace and blessings that they deserve to enjoy for doing their duties. Furthermore, they never feel any remorse or shame about this, nor do they recognize their own wickedness or lack of integrity. Some of these antichrists even get increasingly greedy and ambitious. While doing their hosting duties, they never feel that their actions would be detested by God or that their actions would offend Him. Instead, they just keep calculating and comparing in their minds, thinking, “That family served as hosts and got those things. If I were to host the same people, then those things should rightfully be mine. That host lives in more comfort than I do, and they eat better too. How come I haven’t taken advantage like that, too?” They calculate and vie for these things too. As soon as an opportunity comes along, they are merciless and absolutely will not pass it up. Thus, when antichrists are doing hosting duties, they covet and try to take possession of anything they can—from objects as small as a pair of insoles to something as large as a piece of equipment purchased by God’s house. They take advantage of the opportunity of doing their duties to find all kinds of excuses and ways to take things for themselves, misappropriating the property of God’s house, while shamelessly saying that they are only doing it to protect the property of God’s house, and that these things are only what they deserve for doing their duties. These things happen among people who believe in and follow God.

While antichrists are doing their hosting duties, they may present themselves externally as though they do not covet or try to take things, refusing to accept any payment for hosting brothers and sisters, and when they see certain worthless objects, they’ll hurry to keep them safe. When it comes to valuables belonging to God’s house, however, they absolutely will not let them go like this. They will perhaps hand over something worth one yuan, but with anything worth a hundred yuan, a thousand yuan, ten thousand yuan, or something even more valuable, they’ll firmly stuff it into their wallets and keep it for themselves. For some people, a dangerous situation arises locally while they’re taking care of the assets of God’s house, and the people who know they’re doing this perhaps flee elsewhere or get arrested, and so no one but them knows about these assets that they’re keeping safe—it is in situations like these when people are tested. Those who truly believe in God, who love the truth and possess a God-fearing heart, can keep to their duty at all times, and they will have no idea or thought of misappropriating these assets. Antichrists are not like this, however; they will rack their brains and think of any way possible to take these assets for themselves. As soon as something happens to the people who know they’re safeguarding the assets, antichrists secretly feel happy in their hearts and even jump for joy. They immediately take the assets for themselves without feeling afraid at all, much less feeling any self-reproach or guilt. Some antichrists use these assets for their own household expenses and dispose of them at will, some immediately use the money to buy things they want for their home, and some even put the money directly into their bank account and keep it for themselves. And when the brothers and sisters go to collect the assets, are antichrists then able to admit what they’ve done? Antichrists will absolutely never admit it. Their aim in believing in God and doing their duty is to obtain desirable things, and these desirable things include God’s offerings, the property of God’s house, and even the personal belongings of the brothers and sisters. Therefore, antichrists do their duty with greed, desire, and personal ambition; they aren’t here to pursue the truth, to accept God’s judgment and chastisement, or to accept God’s salvation, but rather they came here in order to get every benefit, all the conveniences, and all the assets. These people can be said to be filled with greed and desire. Upon what do they set their hearts? They set their hearts upon the assets of God’s house. That’s why when they do hosting duties, they focus on what God’s house buys for whom, how much money God’s house issues to whom, and how great advantages and what desirable things certain people obtain from God’s house and the brothers and sisters for doing hosting duties—these are the things they keep their eyes on. If they’re asked to host ordinary brothers and sisters and can’t get anything desirable from doing so, they’ll come up with all kinds of excuses so that they don’t have to. The moment they’re asked to host an upper-level leader, their attitude does a 180-degree turn, it changes, they’re all smiles, and they await the leader eagerly; they can’t wait to invite this “big shot” they’re to host to their home and worship this leader like god. They think that their ship has come in, that this is their cash cow, and if they miss this opportunity then their chance to get rich will be gone, so how could they possibly let it pass them by? With greed, desire, and the motivation and intent to misappropriate the assets of God’s house, they accept this duty that can bring them desirable things—what is their final aim? Is it to do their duty well? Is it to host brothers and sisters well? Is it to offer up their loyalty? Is it to gain the truth? No, it’s none of these; they want to use this opportunity to obtain desirable things. They won’t host ordinary people, but when they hear that they are to host a leader or worker with status, they’ll fall over themselves to do this, and then they’ll come up with various excuses for God’s house to purchase all kinds of daily necessities and household equipment for them, saying, “Leaders can’t stay in poor conditions when they come to stay here. Shouldn’t everything be prepared to make hosting convenient? We don’t enjoy the things provided by god’s house; if we do, we’re just basking in the light alongside the leaders. Besides, if a leader comes, I’m afraid they won’t be used to the food we eat here every day. Leaders have to manage a lot of things every day, and if they become unwell, wouldn’t we be remiss in our duty as hosts? So, the church should prepare three meals a day for leaders. We have to have milk, bread, eggs, and all kinds of vegetables, fruit, meat, and health supplements ready for them.” Isn’t this a wonderful and considerate thought? Antichrists speak human language out loud, but are they really thinking of the leaders in their hearts? What exactly is their hidden aim? Their aim is not that simple. They may be poor and have never eaten or seen nice things before, and they want to use this opportunity to gain experience, to live like the rich, to live a life where all their basic necessities are taken care of, to use this opportunity to take care of their health, to eat things ordinary people can’t eat and enjoy some treatment that ordinary people can’t enjoy. That’s why their thoughts appear so considerate. But what lies behind their consideration? They want to scheme for their own sakes, they want to obtain these things, seize these things, and they are certainly thinking over every aspect of their own schemes—they wouldn’t do this for anyone else. And when they host a leader, these antichrists really are living the good life. Afterward, they wonder, “Living like this is great, but these things don’t actually belong to me. When will these things be mine? If I get rid of this leader, I won’t be able to enjoy these things anymore, but if I don’t get rid of him, I really don’t have the goodwill to keep hosting him. There’s no way I would do this duty if it wasn’t for these desirable things. Every day, I have to get up early and go to bed late, I’m constantly in a state of fear, and I have to wait on him. I always think now that there is more to lose from doing this duty than there is to gain, and that the advantages and pleasures I get from it aren’t enough. What will I do if the leader keeps living here long term? I’ll have to think of a way to make him leave, and then I’ll have peace and quiet in my home again.” Is this how people think? Would people who possess normal humanity and who genuinely do their duty think this way? (No.) This is how antichrists think. No matter how great the desirable things or advantages they obtain are, their greed and desire can never be satiated; they are insatiable, they think they haven’t gained anything, and they don’t think doing this duty is the job they ought to do. On the contrary, they think this is an additional sacrifice and price. No matter how many things they obtain or how great advantages they gain, they feel they’ve lost out and think that it’s God’s house that’s benefitting at their expense, that it’s the brothers and sisters who are benefitting at their expense, and that they themselves aren’t getting anything desirable out of it. As time goes on, they feel that these desirable things can’t satisfy them and their greed cannot be satiated. Tell Me, what humanity do antichrists possess? Do they possess any humanity? (No.) And do people with no humanity have a conscience? Can they do their duty while harboring a desire to perform it genuinely, as well as a desire to be humble, to be sincere, and to genuinely exert themselves? Can they do their duty without requiring payment, without seeking any remuneration, and without seeking any reward? (No.) Why not? They have no awareness of conscience, and no matter how great the advantages they obtain, they think them well deserved. Isn’t this “well deserved” something which normal people can’t think of and something which they would never think of? Is there any sense of shame to be found in this kind of thought and attitude? (No.) Do people with no sense of shame possess any humanity? This matter exposes a nature which antichrists possess, which is that of being without shame or conscience.

What kind of people are those without shame? What kind of people within mankind have no shame? (Schizophrenic people.) Mentally ill people have no shame, they run naked through the streets, unaware of all the people looking at them, perhaps even laughing at the people wearing clothes, and saying, “Look at how troublesome it is for you to wear clothes. I’m running naked through the street without clothes, and I feel so free and unrestrained!” Isn’t this what it is to be without shame? (Yes, it is.) This is what it is to be without shame. People with no shame have no awareness of conscience and they are mentally ill; they benefit at everyone else’s expense, they want to take whatever belongs to anyone else, their greed and desire have surpassed the scope of normal human rationality—they’ve reached the point where they cannot control themselves and have no awareness of conscience. Can people like this gain the truth? Certainly not. They pursue only fame, gain, status, and material interests, and they never gain the truth. So, will they have a place in the kingdom of heaven? God does not save or perfect such people. Are these people to be pitied? (No.) These people are to be hated; they are disgusting, loathsome, and despicable. The character of these people is despicable and lowly; they are without dignity or shame. Their hearts are filled with greed, ambition, and desire. They just want to take advantage of the opportunity to do their duty to try to obtain interests for themselves, and they do not accept the truth at all, nor do they do things according to the truth principles. When they pray to God, they also ask for desirable things, for interests, and for God’s blessings. They describe to God how they’ve suffered and sacrificed, and they come before God to pray about these things only in order to use the suffering they’ve endured and the prices they’ve paid to strike bargains with Him, to ask for blessings and rewards from God, and to even openly stretch out their hands to God and ask for the material treatment they want. What they want to express when they come before God are their complaints, their defiance, their dissatisfaction, their grievances, and their resentment, as well as their disappointment about their greed and desires not being satisfied. When God sees these manifestations, does He love them or detest them? (He detests them.) When they make some small exertion for the sake of the church, they immediately come before God to declare it and claim the credit, to tell God about their sacrifices and what they’ve dedicated when doing various duties or doing various jobs; they’re terrified that God won’t know about these things, that God can’t see these things, and that God will forget the prices they’ve paid. Therefore, these people are seen as evil and quite dead to shame before God. When they come before God to describe and declare the prices they’ve paid, to describe to Him what things they wish to get, and to stretch out their hands to God and ask for the rewards they want, God says, “Depart from Me, you that work iniquity.” What is God’s attitude? “People like you don’t deserve to come before Me. I’m disgusted with you and feel an aversion toward you. I’ve given you all that you want; you’ve already received the hundredfold that you wish to obtain in this life. What else do you want?” What God wants to give to mankind is not primarily material, instead He wants to bestow the truth upon mankind, so that through the truth they may attain salvation. Antichrists, however, brazenly oppose God’s work, they don’t seek the truth, and they don’t practice the truth. Rather, they want to use the opportunity of doing their duty during God’s work to improperly obtain desirable things for themselves; they exploit loopholes and profit at others’ expense in everything, yet they often feel like they’re losing out and haven’t profited much. They also often feel like they’ve sacrificed and dedicated too much, that their losses outweigh the gains and, even more so, they often regret their sacrifices, and they think they haven’t thought things through enough or thought of an exit route for themselves. So, they often feel angry in their hearts for not receiving timely rewards for their sacrifices, and they are also full of complaints toward God. In their hearts, they are often calculating, thinking, “Isn’t god righteous? God doesn’t play favorites, right? Isn’t god the god who blesses people? Doesn’t god remember all one’s good deeds and all that one has devoted and expended of oneself? I forsook my family for god’s work and I’ve paid the price, but what do I get from god?” If their greed and desire are not satisfied in the short term, they become negative and begin to complain. If their greed and desire are not satisfied in the long term, then their innermost hearts become filled with accumulated rancor. And what are the consequences of this accumulated rancor? In their hearts, they will begin to doubt and question God, they will begin to judge God’s righteous disposition, and they will even begin to doubt God’s love and essence. If this rancor accumulates for a long time, these things turn into malignant tumors and begin to spread, and they will become capable of betraying God at any time. Especially when they’re before some people who are negative and weak and who are of relatively immature stature, or before some people who are new to the faith, every now and then they will reveal and spread these negative emotions, spreading their dissatisfaction with God and blasphemy about God, and they will even misguide some people who lack discernment to have doubts about God’s righteous disposition and His essence. Isn’t this done by antichrists? Because their ambitions, desires, pursuits, and intents are not satisfied, they are capable of doing these things and can produce this kind of attitude toward God—what disposition is this? This is clearly an antichrist’s disposition and a satanic disposition.

Whatever bit of suffering an antichrist experiences or whatever price they pay in the church, they do not feel that it is part of their obligation, that it is the duty a created being should do, but consider it to be their contribution, which God ought to remember. They think that if God remembers their contribution, then He should deliver at once, giving them blessings, promises, and special material favors, and allowing them to gain advantages and obtain certain special benefits. Only then will the antichrist be satisfied. What is an antichrist’s understanding of duty? They do not feel that duty is an obligation that created beings should undertake, nor that it is a responsibility that those who follow God are bound to fulfill. Instead, they feel the performance of duty is a bargaining chip in a transaction with God, something that can be exchanged for His rewards, and a way to satisfy their own ambitions and desires and obtain blessings for their belief in God. They think that having God’s grace and blessing ought to be a precondition for doing their duty and that it gives people true faith in God, that people can only be at ease in doing their duties if God ensures that they are free from future worries. They also think that God should provide every convenience and preferential treatment to those who do their duties, and that people should enjoy all of the benefits provided by the house of God during their performance of duties. These are the things that people should receive. This is how antichrists think in their hearts. These ways of thinking are precisely the antichrists’ perspective and maxim, and they represent their attitude toward duty. No matter how the house of God fellowships regarding the truth about doing one’s duty, the things antichrists harbor in their hearts will never change. They will forever stick to their point of view toward doing their duty. There is a phrase we can use in relation to this manifestation—what is it? It is placing material things above all else; that is, only things they can hold in their hands are real, and making promises is pointless. The essence of the manifestations these people have is materialistic, right? (Right.) Materialism is atheism; they only go by what they can see and touch, only what they can see counts, and they deny the existence of anything they cannot see. It can therefore be determined that an antichrist’s knowledge and understanding of duty is definitely at odds with the truth principles, and that it is entirely the same as the viewpoint of nonbelievers; truly, they are disbelievers. They do not believe in the existence of God, and they do not believe that all the words of God are the truth, the true way. They only believe that fame, gain, and status are real, and that everything they pursue and enjoy can only be obtained through human effort and struggle, and through the price they pay. How is that different from the point of view that says, “People must create happiness with their own two hands”? There is no difference. They do not believe that people ultimately gain the truth and the life by expending themselves and paying the price to do their duties well for God’s sake. They also do not believe that people who act according to God’s requirements and thereby attain the adequate performance of their duties can gain the approval and blessings of the Creator. This shows that they do not believe in God’s promise to humanity or God’s blessings. They do not believe in the fact of God’s sovereignty over all, so they do not possess true faith. They only believe, “I do my duty, so I should enjoy special treatment from the house of god and material blessings. The house of god should provide me with every material privilege and enjoyment. That would be realistic.” That is an antichrist’s mindset and point of view. They don’t believe that God’s promises are faithful, or the fact that by gaining the truth one gains life and is blessed by God. When it comes to doing their duty, they simply don’t seek the truth, they don’t accept the truth, and even less so do they acknowledge this truth: That man is able to perform the duty of a created being is God’s greatest blessing and is something that will be remembered by God, and during this process, man can gain the truth and can ultimately be saved by God—this is the greatest promise God has made to man. If you believe the promises made to you by God and can accept these promises, then you have true faith in God. How do antichrists and disbelievers feel when they hear these words? (They don’t believe what God says and they think it’s a deception.) They think these words God speaks are just Him feeding people illusions in order to get some foolish and simple-minded idiots to render service for God, and then kick them out when their service is over. They think, “Gain the truth? Ha! Who can see what the truth is? Who can touch what god’s promises are? Who has received them? God’s promises are not realistic; only obtaining fame and gain and enjoying the benefits of status are realistic; only striving for fame and gain and enjoying the benefits of status are real. I’ve been hearing about the promises god bestows on man and the truth he provides to man for years, and I haven’t changed at all, I haven’t gained any benefit, much less have these things allowed me to live an exalted life with status. Although some people bear testimony saying that they’ve gained the truth and changed, and have received god’s blessings, they still look so ordinary, they’re all normal people, so how can they gain god’s blessings and enter the kingdom of heaven?” They think that only the things they can grasp and obtain with their hands are most real. Isn’t this the disbelievers’ point of view? It absolutely is. So, once these antichrists get into the church, they regard everything with suspicion, always pondering where they can get some benefit, what opportunity they can use to grab some advantage and get greater practical benefits from their faith in God—they’re often calculating these things in their minds. They have the feeling that only by obtaining fame, gain, and status can they receive every benefit, and so they choose to pursue status and devote themselves solely to striving for these things. They never contemplate the truth or seek God’s intentions, and they eat and drink God’s words only to comfort their hearts and fill the emptiness, not to pursue the truth. At any time, if you ask an antichrist to let go of their greed and desires, to utterly relinquish their pursuit of fame, gain, and status, and to give up these benefits they want from their faith in God, they won’t be able to do it. Getting them to let go of these things makes them feel like you’re trying to peel off their skin or pull out their tendons; without these things, they feel as though their heart has been taken from them, as though they’ve lost their soul, and without these ambitions and desires they feel there is no hope for their faith in God, and life loses its meaning. In their eyes, those who expend and devote themselves and pay a price only for the sake of their duty, who don’t seek personal benefits, are all idiots. The principle for worldly dealings that antichrists adopt is “Every man for himself and the devil take the hindmost.” They think, “How can people not think about themselves? How can people not strive for their own benefit?” In their hearts, they despise those who give everything up and sincerely expend themselves for God, they despise those who loyally do their duty and who live very frugally and simply in terms of their material lives, and they despise those who are persecuted because they believe in God and perform a duty and consequently cannot return home. They often laugh at these people in their hearts, saying, “You’ve lost your home due to your faith in god. You can’t be with your family and you’re living on a shoestring—you’re so stupid! No matter what a person does, including in their faith in god, they must adopt a principle for worldly dealings: They must absolutely not suffer loss. They must be able to see and touch god’s promises and blessings, and the only appropriate attitude to adopt is one of not releasing the hawk until you’ve seen the hare. You’re so stupid! Look at me. I both believe in god and pursue fame, gain, and status. I enjoy all the good treatment of god’s house and I can gain blessings in the future, too. I don’t need to endure any suffering, and the blessings I receive will be greater than yours. I don’t pay a price like you, giving up your families and jobs and not being able to go back home, without any certainty about whether you’ll be able to receive any blessings in the future.” What things are these people? They don’t pursue the truth, they don’t sincerely do their duty, and yet they despise those who pursue the truth and who give up their families and jobs, endure suffering and pay a price for the sake of doing their duty, accomplishing God’s commission, and following God’s will. Are there many people like this? (Yes.) There are some in every church. Are these people true believers in God? Can they be saved? (No.) They are not true believers in God, much less is it possible for them to be saved.

No matter what issue antichrists encounter or what they do, the first thing they think of is not whether they can gain the truth and attain salvation, but rather they think of all their fleshly benefits. In their hearts, all benefits related to their flesh take the most important place, the highest place, the supreme place. In their hearts, they never consider God’s intentions, they never consider God’s work, much less do they consider what duty man should perform. No matter how God requires people to perform their duty adequately, no matter how God requires people to be qualified created beings, antichrists are completely indifferent. No matter what methods He adopts or what words He speaks, God can’t move these people, and thereby make them change their agendas and relinquish their greed and desires. These people are in both name and fact materialists and disbelievers among the antichrists. So, can these people be considered the dregs of the antichrists’ ranks? (Yes, because some antichrists can still render some service for the sake of status, whereas these people aren’t even willing to render service.) That’s right. These people want benefits, all they fix their gaze on and think of all day long are benefits, and everything they do revolves around benefits. Some people do hosting duties and when they run out of eggs, rice, or flour, they immediately tell the church to send someone out to buy these things. They don’t buy anything themselves; it’s as though they never ate these things in their house before they began doing hosting duties. Before they began doing this duty, they bought all these things themselves, but as soon as they start with this duty, they come up with excuses, they feel right and self-assured, and they become debt-collectors, the creditors of God’s house, as though God’s house owes them something—people like this are not good.

I’ve stayed in some host homes in mainland China, and some of the brothers and sisters had fantastic humanity. Even if they had only believed for two or three years and didn’t understand much truth, yet they did their hosting duties sincerely. If God’s house tried to give them money, they’d turn it down; they’d give money in return for anything brothers and sisters gave them, and they’d attentively keep anything belonging to God’s house safe; if anything bought by God’s house wasn’t used up, then they would even give its equivalent value in money to God’s house. Some who were better off financially were willing hosts, and they wouldn’t take a single penny given by God’s house. Some people were not well-off, yet even they wouldn’t take any money given by God’s house. No matter what the church or brothers and sisters gave to their house for use in hosting, they wouldn’t embezzle any of it. Was this because they understood the truth? No, it was a matter of character. Moreover, and more importantly, they were true believers, and together with being of good character, they were able to do this, otherwise they wouldn’t have been able to. I’ve been to some host homes and the hosts brought out their best quilts and blankets for Me to use, and I said, “These are brand new and unused. Put them back in their packaging, I won’t use them.” They insisted that I use them. Then there have been some host families who have bought all new things for Me to use, and I said, “Don’t buy new things, it’s such a waste of money. I’ll just use what you have here. Don’t spend any money. I don’t suggest that people buy this and that everywhere I go. It’s not necessary to always use new things.” Some people still insisted on spending this money. There were also some host families who made many dishes at mealtimes. Because they didn’t know what I liked to eat, they made a lot of dishes so that I’d have a choice, because if they only made a few dishes, they’d worry that I wouldn’t eat very well. There are many people like this, too. Some host homes, however, are different. When I went there, the hosts randomly got some daily necessities for Me to make do with, the ingredients they used when cooking were only things that brothers and sisters had brought them, and when they needed to go and buy more, they’d hold their hands out to Me for money. Then there are some other host homes in which I left some belongings for safekeeping. When I didn’t go back for a while, they pried open the drawer and some things went missing. They all believe in God and they all do hosting duties, but is the difference between them a substantial one? Some who believe in God are capable of such things—is this something humans do? This is what robbers, bandits, villains, and rogues do. Are true believers capable of doing such things? If a true believer keeps something safe for you, then no matter how long you’re away, even if it’s eight or ten years, they’ll always keep it safe for you; they won’t touch it, look at it, or rifle through it. With some host families, however, if you leave something then they’ll open it and have a look as soon as you’re out the door. What are they rifling through? They’ll rifle through your bag to see if there’s anything valuable in there, such as jewelry, mobile phone, or money—they rifle through all these things. What do some women tend to go rifling through? They want to see if you have any nice clothes. Once they’ve had a rummage, they think, “Oh, these clothes are so nice. I’ll try them on.” Tell Me, don’t these things happen? (Yes.) How do you know? Have you seen this happen? I have solid evidence for saying that these things happen. One year, toward the end of fall, I left some clothes at a host home. One day, I suddenly thought of some of these clothes that I should be wearing and I planned to go get them, so I went to that host home. Guess what happened. When I entered the house, the old host lady was there trying on My woolen coat. It just happened to be a coincidence that I saw it. I said, “What are you doing?” She was taken aback. She never imagined such a coincidence whereby I’d see what she was doing, and she was so embarrassed. People like this, however, are thick-skinned, and she immediately said, “Oh, don’t you think your woolen coat suits me perfectly?” I said, “That’s My coat. I can’t wear it if you’re wearing it.” She said, “Here you go, I don’t want it.” I replied, “What are you trying it on for if you don’t want it? Wasn’t the closet door locked?” She said, “It just so happens that I didn’t have anything to do today so I took it out for a look.” I said, “It’s not yours so you shouldn’t have touched it.” This is an example of something that actually happened. I don’t know what her intent was in doing this. Tell Me, is someone like this a person who believes in God? Should I regard them as a believer in God and a member of God’s family? (No.) They aren’t worthy of being God’s follower, they are one of Satan’s gang, without shame, without conscience or rationality, without any humanity at all—they are a scoundrel. Will God save such people? People like this don’t even have the bare minimum of integrity and dignity or the bare minimum of respect for God—God cannot possibly save them. The truth which God speaks and the life which He provides to man are not provided to such people; these people are not members of God’s family but rather are disbelievers outside of God’s house, and they are of devils. Besides the nature essence of antichrists being one that doesn’t love the truth and is averse to the truth, their character is also incredibly low and despicable, and such people are disgusting, contemptible, and detestable. From the manifestations of these people who embezzle the assets of God’s house which we just talked about, this is sufficient to show that no matter what duty these people do, they never truly expend themselves and they never do it with sincerity. Instead, they come with their own agendas, greed, and desires, they come running for benefits, and not to gain the truth. Therefore, however you look at it, the humanity of such people is inadequate to God. So tell Me, do you consider the humanity of such people to be adequate, and do you consider them to be good people? (No.) You hold such people in contempt as well, right? (Right.) When some people hear that God’s house has bought something, they want their share of it, and when they see brothers and sisters donating clothes, then regardless of whether they deserve to have it or whether they ought to have it, they go try to get it, springing into action more proactively than anyone else; when they hear that God’s house has a job that needs doing or that there are some dirty or tiring jobs that need performing, they immediately hide and you can’t find them anywhere. Such people are cunning and sly, of low character—they are contemptible, detestable, and disgusting!

Using the various manifestations of antichrists in their embezzling the assets of God’s house to dissect their concern for their own benefits in every aspect allows us to see that these people are disbelievers, materialists, people of contemptible, lowly, and inferior character, detestable, and not objects whom God will save. The definition of such people need not be raised to the height of them being averse to the truth; we can already see through them in terms of their humanity and character, so there’s no need to ramp it up to such a high level as being related to the truth. Therefore, whether in God’s house or in any group of people, such people should always be the lowliest and most lacking in character. Of course, if they’re to be measured in God’s house using the truth, then they appear even more contemptible and lowly. Do you have any more examples of this manifestation which antichrists display? (An antichrist was handling the matter of printing books for God’s house, and he embezzled hundreds of thousands of yuan of God’s offerings through false accounting. After he was investigated, it was found that before he’d started doing this duty, his family had had very little money, but after he’d started doing this duty, he’d bought a house and a car, but these things couldn’t be detected from the accounts. His family were all really vicious and so the offerings couldn’t be recovered.) Didn’t leaders and workers bear direct responsibility for this occurrence? (Yes. Later, once more details came to light, it was discovered that the leaders and workers who bore responsibility at that time had never checked the accounts managed by this antichrist. They were derelict in their duty and the situation was caused by them not being responsible. They were definitely directly responsible.) So, should their transgressions be recorded in God’s record book? (Yes.) How were these people handled in the aftermath? (Some were cleared out and expelled, and some are paying back the offerings.) This is an appropriate way to handle them. The leaders and workers neglected their duty and failed to fulfill their supervisory responsibilities in this matter. In particular, they used the wrong person and they didn’t make any effort to keep an eye on or supervise this person, they weren’t able to discover in time the problems with this person they were using, and so severe consequences arose, which caused God’s offerings and the assets of God’s house to suffer significant loss; it was the responsibility of all these people who were directly responsible, and their transgressions should all be recorded. This was the disastrous consequence they brought upon themselves by not using the right person for the job and it caused God’s house to suffer loss, and in the end God’s offerings were the price that was paid. Tell Me, are antichrists always greedy, or do these evil ideas only occur to them when they see something valuable? (They are always greedy.) This is why when you associate and interact with such people, you absolutely can discover their greed and desires. This consequence was brought about by leaders and workers not being responsible, not discerning people, not seeing people clearly, and misusing people, and so the responsibility fell heavily upon them and they deserved to be expelled.

We previously fellowshipped around the major aspects of antichrists’ nature, essence, dispositions, and the path they follow. What we’re fellowshipping on and dissecting today are the manifestations within the domain of antichrists’ humanity, and this is in relation to real life. Although this is a minor aspect, it can still help people to identify certain manifestations of antichrists; these are also certain obvious characteristics, signs, and symbols of antichrists. For example, an antichrist loves status, fame, gain, and influence, and they’re very selfish, contemptible, and vicious, and they don’t love the truth, so what is their humanity and character like? Some say, “Even though some antichrists love reputation and status, yet they have honorable and noble characters, and they possess conscience and reason.” Is this right? (No, it’s not.) Why not? Let’s not talk about what disposition essence antichrists have; first look at their humanity and character. They’re certainly not good people, they aren’t people with dignity, conscience, or noble character, much less are they people who love the truth. Can people with such humanity as this follow the right path? Certainly not, because their character is not possessed of the essence that follows the right path, and so these people can’t possibly love the truth, much less can they accept it. Judging by the intent and attitude with which antichrists do their duty, the character and humanity of antichrists make people reject and feel averse toward them, and even more so they are spurned by God. No matter what duty they do, they always want to embezzle the assets of God’s house, and ask Him for rewards, money, items, and benefits. And what kind of people does God view them as? These people are definitely not good people. So then, in God’s eyes, how exactly does He define such people? What name does He give such people? There is a story recorded in the Bible from the Age of Grace: Judas often stole from the money bag, and in the end he was used by God to render a service, that of selling out the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus was nailed to the cross, and Judas, who had played the role of selling out his Lord and friends, died from his belly bursting open. Therefore, these people who embezzle the assets of God’s house and steal offerings made to God are all Judases in God’s eyes, the implication being that these people are named Judases by God. Although these antichrists who are now condemned as Judases don’t do things like selling out their Lord and friends like Judas did, their nature essence is the same. What do they have in common? They take advantage of their position and the opportunity for doing their duty to steal and embezzle the assets of God’s house. That’s why these people are named Judases by God, and they are on a par with him who sold out his Lord and friends. That is, these antichrists who embezzle and seize the assets of God’s house are the equivalent of Judas who sold out his Lord and friends, and it doesn’t take much thought to figure out what outcome lies in store for such people.

2. Using Brothers and Sisters to Serve Them and Work for Them

The benefits antichrists strive to obtain when doing their duty are not limited to what we’ve already discussed—money, material objects, food, and things of use—the scope of these benefits is very large. For example, when antichrists do a duty, they exploit brothers and sisters in the name of doing that duty, getting the brothers and sisters to serve them and work for them, and ordering them about—is this not a benefit which antichrists strive to obtain? (It is.) Some people always do everything themselves at home before they become church leaders, and they appear to have no ambitions or ill intents. However, once they are elected to be church leaders and gain status, do they still do everything themselves? They think they’re different once they gain status, that they should have special treatment in God’s house, and must learn how to mobilize the “power of the masses” in order to jointly accomplish their own “duty”; every job in their home becomes work that falls within the church’s remit, and they share out their household chores and daily tasks among the brothers and sisters. For instance, when they have some job that needs doing in their home, they tell the brothers and sisters, “I’ve been busy with the church work these last couple of days. Do any of you have the time to help me with a job?” Three or five people volunteer and, after a bit of time, the job is done. These leaders think, “Many hands make light work. It’s good to be a leader, I just have to say something and it gets done. Whenever I have something that needs doing at home in the future, I’ll get the brothers and sisters to help me.” As this goes on, they don’t get much of the work of church leaders done, but they do an awful lot of arranging people to go work for their own home, and they even put this on the schedule—what “busy” church leaders they are! They never have that much to do at home before they become leaders, yet after they do, there are many more jobs to perform at home. Some brothers and sisters plant crops for them, some water the land for them, some plant vegetables for them, some do weeding, some apply fertilizer, and some help them out by selling their vegetables and then give them all the money they take in, without keeping a penny for themselves. After they become church leaders, their home life flourishes; no matter what they do, people always support and help them, and their every word is very effective. They feel so happy and pleased, and they increasingly think, “This title of church leader is great, and having status is fantastic. If I’m ever short of food at home, I just have to say the word and people give food to me, and they don’t even want money for it. What a comfortable life this is! I’m really being blessed by god because of my belief. This is a great blessing, and it really is god’s grace! God is so great; thanks be to god!” Whenever someone is done serving them or being ordered about by them, they always “give thanks to god” and “accept it from god.” These insignificant church leaders can use their position to this extent—could you do this? Would you be capable of doing something like this? Why do people compete to become leaders? Why do they compete for status? If there were no advantage to be gained, would anyone compete for status? If the status they competed for meant toiling and working like a workhorse, then no one would bother. It’s precisely because there are so many advantages to be gained from having status that people bust their guts to grab it and compete for it. Being an insignificant church leader brings them such great benefits, and it brings such great conveniences and so many advantages to their life—what kind of person behaves this way? Are they someone who pursues the truth? Are they someone with humanity and conscience? Are they someone with a God-fearing heart? (No.) They believe that they act as a church leader for everyone and for God’s house, and they don’t think of it as a duty. They believe that any work they do as a church leader is done on the basis of them sacrificing their home life, so the brothers and sisters should compensate them for the price they pay. If they don’t have time to do housework, then the brothers and sisters should help them do it; if they don’t have time to work in the fields, then the brothers and sisters should appear in their fields and do the work for them as if they were duty-bound to do so. No matter what they’ve given up due to being a church leader, the brothers and sisters should compensate them double for it. These are some of the things that antichrists use brothers and sisters to serve them in and order brothers and sisters to do for their own personal life while they are doing their duty. Once an antichrist becomes a leader, they absolutely will not let such an opportunity pass them by and they absolutely will not stand by and watch these advantages slip through their fingers. Instead, they do the exact opposite: They use every moment and grasp every opportunity to use brothers and sisters to work for them, and to get them to work for them like beasts of burden. They exploit the foolishness and honesty of the brothers and sisters, and they even exploit the mentality of the brothers and sisters to willingly do their duties and pay a price for God, to get them to serve them. Meanwhile, they also pretend that some words are the truth and use them to educate the brothers and sisters, so that they learn this idea: Leaders are human, too, leaders have families, too, and leaders must live their lives, too, and if a leader has no time to handle their household matters, then the brothers and sisters should regard these matters as their own duties; they shouldn’t need the leader to ask them to do these things, but should actively and voluntarily do these things which the leader is not able to do. Many brothers and sisters serve these leaders willingly under this kind of bewitchment and inducement. This is the aim antichrists wish to achieve by seizing power and status, and it is one of the tasks that they wish to carry out and one of the benefits they wish to strive for by seizing power and status. Are there many people like this? (Yes.) These people are Satans. People who are without the truth and who don’t follow the right path are capable of such things, even if they only have a speck of status—are these people pitiful? What do you think of their character? Do they have any conscience or reason?

In some churches, there are brothers and sisters who don’t usually stay in their own homes, but instead stay in their church leader’s home for a long time. Why do they often stay in their leader’s home? Because ever since the leader took on the position of “leader,” their home became in need of a long-term housekeeper. They select a sister, and this sister becomes the dedicated housekeeper for the leader’s home. This sister becomes a housekeeper, and so what does her duty become? She isn’t doing the work that falls to her or work related to the church but is instead waiting on all generations of the leader’s family in their everyday lives, and she feels that it is completely justified for her to be taking care of household chores for the leader, and doesn’t have any complaints or notions about this. Who is the problem here? No matter how much work a church leader has to do or how many people they lead, are they really so busy? Can they really not get by in their everyday lives? Even if they can’t, then that’s their own business. What’s it got to do with anyone else? If brothers and sisters are inattentive or idle, such leaders give them attitude and take advantage of this to “fellowship on the truth” with them, and because of this matter the brothers and sisters get pruned—what is happening here? When the bedding in their home is dirty, the brothers and sisters have to wash it, when their home is untidy, the brothers and sisters have to tidy it up, and the brothers and sisters have to cook at mealtimes; these leaders become loafers, and this is how they act as leaders. When such people have these manifestations and this kind of humanity, are they capable of pursuing the truth? (No.) Why not? (Such people are too lacking in humanity and are too despicable. They simply will not be interested in the truth.) If they won’t be interested in the truth, why do they become leaders? (They do so in order to pursue reputation and status, and to showcase themselves.) You can’t explain it clearly, can you? What kind of people can exploit brothers and sisters to get them to work for them and serve them? Isn’t this one of the obvious characteristics of antichrists? Seeking only their own benefits in all things, being concerned only with their own gain and loss, and not considering whether acting in this way accords with the truth, whether there is humanity in it, whether it pleases God, whether the brothers and sisters can derive any benefit or edification from it—they don’t consider these things, but consider only their own gain and loss, and whether they can obtain tangible benefits. This is the path followed by antichrists, and it is the character of antichrists. This is one type of person who possesses status. Some people have no status and do ordinary duties, and when they gain some qualifications, they also want to get others to serve them. Some people do a few risky duties and also want to order others to serve them. There are also some who do special duties and who regard their duties as a basic condition, a bargaining chip, and as a kind of capital with which to get brothers and sisters to serve them. For instance, some people know special professional skills which others haven’t learned or grasped. When they start doing a duty in God’s house related to these professional skills, they think they’re different from other people, that they’re being put in an important position in God’s house, that they’re now in the upper echelons, and they especially feel that their worth has doubled, and that they’re respectable. Consequently, they think that there are certain tasks they don’t need to do themselves, that it’s only natural to order others to serve them without remuneration when it comes to such daily tasks as bringing them food or doing their laundry. There are even some who use the excuse that they’re busy with their duty to get the brothers and sisters to do this or that for them. Apart from the things they absolutely must do themselves, everything else that they can make others serve them in or order others to carry out, they get other people to do. Why is this? They think, “I have capital, I’m respectable, I’m a rare talent in god’s house, I do a special duty, and I’m a primary recipient of god’s house cultivation. None of you are as good as me, you’re all on a lower level than me. I can make a special contribution to god’s house, and you can’t. Therefore, you should serve me.” Aren’t these excessive and shameless demands? Everyone harbors these demands in their hearts, but of course antichrists ruthlessly and shamelessly demand these things even more, and no matter how you fellowship on the truth with them, they won’t give them up. Ordinary people possess these manifestations of antichrists, too, and if they have a little talent or make some slight contribution, they believe they’re entitled to enjoy some special treatment. They don’t wash their own clothes and socks and get others to do this for them, and they make some unreasonable demands that go against humanity—they’re so lacking in reason! These ideas and demands people have are not within the realm of rationality; to first look at the bottom end of the scale, they do not accord with the standards of humanity and conscience, and at the top end of the scale, they do not accord with the truth. These manifestations can all be put in the category of antichrists striving for their own benefits. Everyone who possesses corrupt dispositions is capable of doing these things, and they dare to do them, too. If someone has a bit of talent and capital and makes some contribution, they then want to exploit others, they want to use the opportunity of doing their duty to strive for their own benefits, they want to have things ready-made for them and to enjoy the happiness and treatment that come from ordering others to serve them. There are even some who give up their families and jobs to do their duty, and during this time they develop some minor illness and consequently get emotional, and complain that no one is concerned about them or looking after them. You’re doing your duty for yourself, you’re doing your own duty and fulfilling your own responsibility—what does this have to do with other people? Whatever duty one does, it is never done for someone else or in the service of someone else, and so no one is under any obligation to serve others without recompense or to be ordered around by others. Is this not the truth? (It is.) Although God requires that people be loving, and that they be patient and tolerant toward others, one cannot subjectively require others to be this way, and to do so is unreasonable. If someone can be tolerant and patient toward you and show you love without you demanding this, then that’s up to them. However, if brothers and sisters serve you because you demand it of them, if they are forcibly ordered about and exploited by you, or serve you on the basis of you hoodwinking them into it, then there’s a problem with you. Some even take advantage of the opportunity to do their duty and often use it as an excuse to extort things from certain wealthy brothers and sisters, getting them to buy this or that and provide services for them. For example, if they need some more clothes, they say to a brother or sister, “You can make clothes, can’t you? Go and make me something to wear.” That brother or sister says, “Get your wallet out then. You buy the material and I’ll make you something.” They don’t get their money out but instead coerce the brother or sister into buying the material for them—isn’t the nature of this act deceptive? Exploiting the relationship between brothers and sisters, exploiting their own capital, exploiting the opportunity to do their duty to demand all kinds of services and treatment from brothers and sisters, to order brothers and sisters to work for them—these are all the manifestations of antichrists’ inferior character. Can such people pursue the truth? Can they change at all? (No.) Hearing Me fellowship in this way, perhaps some people will realize that it’s bad to do these things and be able to rein themselves in a bit, but is reining themselves in the equivalent of being able to seek and practice the truth? Reining oneself in is just coming to a realization, and having regard for one’s image and vanity. After hearing Me make this dissection, these people see the severity of the problem and realize that they can’t slip up again, and that they’ll be exposed and rejected if they allow the brothers and sisters to discern them. Their realization extends only to this point, but their desires and greed cannot be removed from their hearts.

Some people think, “I exert effort for god’s house, I’ve made so many contributions to god’s house, I do a duty in which no one can replace me. When I have needs, the brothers and sisters and god’s house are duty-bound to lend me a helping hand to meet my requirements. At all times, they should serve me unconditionally and without recompense.” Isn’t this a shameful way to think? Isn’t this a manifestation of low character? For instance, everyone gets sick sometimes, but when some people do, they never go around telling other people about it, but instead continue to do their duties as they should. No one knows or cares about them, and they don’t complain privately or delay their duties. Yet, some people pretend to be sick even when they’re not, they act like empresses or nobles, trying all means to get people to wait on them, and doing everything possible to obtain special treatment. They pretend to be sick when they’re not, and if they actually do get sick, then that’s even more bothersome, as who knows then how many people will suffer at their hands and be ordered all over the place by them. It’s a misfortune that falls on everyone when such a person gets sick; some make them chicken soup, some give them a massage, some feed them, and some help them to walk—don’t many people suffer? (Yes.) Originally it was just an ordinary, minor illness, but they have to pretend that it is a serious, terminal illness—why do they have to pretend? They do it to trick brothers and sisters into rendering service for them, into waiting on them and serving them. Aren’t these people shameful? (Yes.) Are there many people like this? Aren’t you all like this? (I haven’t recognized this in myself yet.) If you haven’t recognized this that proves you ordinarily don’t examine your behavior in your daily life, you don’t examine your thoughts and nature essence, and you don’t accept God’s scrutiny. Some people get a bit more tired while doing their duties and lose a bit of sleep at night, and they make out like this is a terrible situation. When they get up the next morning, they moan, “I didn’t sleep a wink last night. I’ve been so busy with my duty these last couple of days that I’ve been too tired to sleep. Hurry up and get someone to give me a massage!” In fact, they slept for six hours. Whatever issues they have, they always push the blame for them onto their duty; whether they’re tired, they’re suffering, or they’re sick and feel uncomfortable, they always blame these things on their duty. Why do they blame their duty? It’s just about gaining some advantages, making everyone sympathize with them, and then they can be justified in asking people to serve and wait on them. What kind of things are these people who always want to act like emperors and empresses and to get others to wait on them? These people are of low character and they’re disgusting. When some people feel a little unwell, and occasionally can’t stomach any food, they make out like it’s desperately serious, they make a tremendous fuss, and immediately find someone to give them a massage. When the massage hurts them a tiny bit, they cry out and yell loudly, the meaning being: “Even receiving a massage involves suffering for me. If god doesn’t give me a reward and make me perfect, then I’ll really be losing out!” When they endure a little suffering and pay a little price, they want to announce it to the whole world so that everyone on earth knows. Don’t you do your duty for yourselves? Don’t you do your duty before God? What are you announcing your suffering to people for? Isn’t that superficial? Such people are of low character and they are so disgusting! In what other ways are these people lowly? They also display some special habits and quirks, hoping to let people know that they are different from everyone else, and very precious and in need of great care and protection. For example, when someone says that they don’t have a good appetite and can’t eat anything, a person like this will clutch at their belly and say they have a bad stomach too, but they are persisting in doing their duty, and order somebody to hurry and bring them some stomach medicine. There was also someone to whom I said, “You see, I can only eat small portions, and My stomach has an intolerance to cold foods and drinks.” When this person heard Me say this, they replied, “Your stomach has an intolerance to cold things? Mine too.” I said, “How is your stomach intolerant to cold things?” They said, “As soon as I get cold, my tummy hurts; it has an intolerance to cold things.” As they said this, they peeled a banana and wolfed it down in a few bites. I said, “Your stomach must really have an incredible intolerance to cold things, with you scoffing down that banana in a few bites. Does your stomach really have an intolerance to cold things?” Aren’t such people shameless and without rationality? If a person lacks rationality and a sense of shame in their normal humanity, they are not human at all, but are a beast. Beasts can’t understand the truth, and they don’t possess the integrity, dignity, conscience, and reason of normal humanity. Because these people have no shame or dignity, when they do a little bit of a duty and endure some bit of hardship, they want to announce it to the whole world so that everyone acknowledges their efforts, looks up to them with new admiration, and so that God gives them special treatment, treats them kindly and blesses them. At the same time, someone must immediately serve them, respond to their demands, and be on call for them. When they’re thirsty, someone has to pour tea for them; when they’re hungry, someone has to serve them food. They must always have someone serving them, doing what they say, and meeting their needs. It’s as if their flesh had been born for someone else, and they inherently need someone to wait on them; it’s as though they lack the ability to take care of themselves if no one waits on them, and are disabled. When they don’t have anyone to tell what to do, or anyone they can order to work for them and serve them, they feel lonely and empty, and that life has no meaning or hope. When they find an opportunity and an excuse to get others to serve and wait on them, they feel satisfied and happy, as though they’re living on cloud nine. They think life is this wonderful, faith in God is this wonderful, that this is the meaning of faith in God, and that this is how a believer ought to believe in God. Their understanding of a duty is that it’s about exerting effort and fulfilling their responsibilities on the basis of having others serve them and being able to freely order others about—this is their duty. They believe they should always receive a reward for their duty, that they must always be obtaining something and trying to get something. If they’re not trying to get money or material things, then they’re trying to get fleshly pleasures and joys, and at the very least their flesh should be in a state of delight and comfort, and then they’ll feel happy, then they’ll have the energy to do their duty and will be able to do it with some loyalty. Do such people have a distorted understanding of the truth, or do they just not accept the truth because of their inferior character? (They have inferior character, so they don’t accept the truth.) These people are disbelievers through and through, the filial progeny of antichrists, and the embodiment of antichrists.

There are some actors in God’s house who enjoyed performing and liked the profession of acting when they were out in the world, but weren’t able to achieve their ambitions there. Now they’ve come to God’s house and finally their wishes have come true: They can work in the profession they like, their hearts are filled with indescribable joy, and at the same time they thank God for giving them this opportunity. One of these people ended up being fortunate enough to clinch a main role, and then they felt that they were a person with standing and worth, and that they should do something for the sake of their standing and worth. They looked at what celebrities and stars in the world did, how they acted, what their style was, and what kind of lifestyle they had, and they copied and imitated them, believing that this was living a life of quality and nobility. So, from the moment they got the main role and became a “star,” they began to put on airs. To what extent did they put on airs? There was once a minor incident that can explain this problem. When everyone on the crew was ready to start filming, an eyebrow of this particular “star” hadn’t been drawn on well, and everyone had to wait for them, revolve around them, and serve them. Ten minutes went by, then twenty minutes, and the star felt their eyebrow hadn’t been drawn on very well, so they got the make-up artist to wipe it off and draw it on again. An hour went by, and all the cast and crew were waiting for this “star” to have their eyebrow drawn on well before they could start filming—everyone had to serve this person and revolve around them. What kind of person is this? Are they a normal person? Are they someone with humanity? No. They are a person of Satan’s camp, they are of Satan, and they are not someone of God’s house. Does God’s house have stars in it? God’s house does not have stars in it, only brothers and sisters; there are only different duties, there is no differentiation between high and low positions. So, on what basis did this one person make the brothers and sisters wait for them? One thing is for sure, they thought they were more important than other people, that their duty was more weighty than other people’s, that the performance couldn’t be filmed without them, and that without them, other people would be doing their duties for nothing. That’s why everyone else had to serve them, pay a price and exercise patience in order to wait for them, and no one should complain. Apart from lacking humanity, where do people like this get the principles for acting in this way? Do their principles come from the truth and from God’s words, or do they come from human corrupt dispositions? (Human corrupt dispositions.) Not only do those who come from Satan’s camp have the corrupt dispositions of Satan, but their actions, behavior, and manifestations within groups of people are also detestable. Why are they detestable? They always want to take hold of a situation, manipulate other people, and get other people to revolve around them and make them the central figure. In doing this, they are clearly placing themselves in a position higher than everyone else; they want to tower above and control everyone else. Is this something people ought to do? (No.) Who does this? (Satan.) This is something Satan does. Among the truths where God requires people to do their duties, is there any requirement for people to take hold of a situation and control everyone’s thoughts and behavior while doing their duties? (No.) So where does this come from? This is a satanic nature that people are born with. People are Satans and they have possessed this nature since birth. There is no need for them to learn it, they don’t need anyone to teach it to them, and no matter how you fellowship on the truth with them, they won’t let go of this thing. There was also someone who had a few stray hairs that hadn’t been tidied into place before they took to the stage to give their performance. In terms of their appearance, they looked fine, yet they wouldn’t get onto the stage to perform on time; no matter how much the brothers and sisters urged them to, it was all to no avail. They regarded themselves as a star, as a leading light; they made everyone pay a price and expend their time for the sake of these few strands of hair, and everyone had to serve them alone. Is this a manifestation someone with normal humanity ought to have? What is the nature of this act? Were they not putting on airs? They were not being responsible and they were deaf to all reason. As far as they were concerned, no one’s duty was as important as theirs, and everyone had to serve them. They thought, “If it takes a whole day to blow-dry these two strands of hair into place, then you’ll have to wait for me for a whole day; if it takes two days, then you’ll have to wait for two days; and if it takes a lifetime, then you’ll have to wait for a lifetime. What of the work and interests of god’s house—my interests come first! If I can’t blow-dry my hair into place, then won’t my image be hurt when I go in front of the camera? My image is so important. The interests of god’s house mean nothing!” What kind of thing is this person? This kind of person would also say, “I love god, I bear witness to god, I do my duty for god, and I forsake everything.” Isn’t this all a lie? They can’t let go of something like blow-drying a hair or two, so what can they let go of? What can they forsake? All of their forsaking is fake! People like this are totally irrational, they are without conscience, and they are of inferior character, and they fall even shorter of loving the truth. Since their humanity isn’t up to par, no one will speak of the truth with them, they aren’t worthy of it, and their character isn’t up to par. And with such a base humanity, wouldn’t speaking of the truth with them be like speaking of the truth with a pig or a dog? When they have some human likeness and can speak like a human being, then people will speak of the truth with them, but right now they don’t deserve it. There are plenty of people like this, there are quite a few. So, why do some people not manifest these things? It’s because they haven’t yet seized an opportunity; it’s only because their caliber and talent are so ordinary, and they haven’t had the chance to get into the limelight and haven’t obtained some capital, but in their hearts, they are scheming, their plans are still in the gestation state. That’s why they haven’t shown this kind of revelation. Not having this revelation, however, doesn’t mean that they don’t have this nature. If you don’t pursue the truth and you follow the path of antichrists, then sooner or later a day will come when you let this revelation slip out. You are you, and to be without humanity is to be without humanity; you cannot become someone with humanity by pretending or because you have no talent and are of poor caliber. There is therefore only one path: When a person can accept the truth and accept being pruned, then their character can be improved somewhat. When they can face these facts, approach these facts correctly, and are then able to frequently examine and check their own behavior and innermost heart, they can then become better and restrain themselves a bit. What purpose can be achieved by restraining oneself a bit? You won’t embarrass yourself so much, your reputation will get a little better, people won’t be disgusted by you, God won’t detest you, and in this way you may yet have a chance to be saved by God. Isn’t this the bare minimum of reason a human being should possess? Isn’t it easy for someone with a modicum of conscience and reason to practice and enter like this?

When you hear Me talking to you about such people, you feel quite at ease, but if I speak about certain people among you, how would you feel then? Would you react normally? Let Me tell you, if you want to achieve dispositional change and enter the truth reality, you must pass one test after another. Don’t underestimate these matters; if your humanity isn’t up to par, then not only will brothers and sisters be disgusted with you, but God won’t perfect you or save you, either. The most basic conditions for God to save someone is for that person to possess humanity, reason, and conscience, and they must know shame. When someone like this comes before God and hears His words, God will illuminate, lead, and guide them. People who do not possess humanity, conscience, reason, or a sense of shame will forever be unqualified to come before God. Even if you listen to sermons and know some doctrines, you’ll still not be enlightened, and so you will forever be unable to enter the truth reality. If you’re not able to enter the truth reality, then it doesn’t take much to realize that your hopes of attaining salvation are zero. If you possess only these manifestations of antichrists and the disposition and essence of antichrists, and you have none of the manifestations of normal humanity which God requires you to have, then you’re in great danger. If you can match yourself to every one of these manifestations and essences of antichrists that I am exposing, along with their actions and revelations, if you possess them all to a greater or lesser extent, then this is very dangerous for you. If you still do not pursue the truth and wait until you are classified as an antichrist, then you’ll be totally finished. Which is a mortal sickness: Having an antichrist’s essence or an antichrist’s disposition? (Having an antichrist’s essence.) Is it? (Yes.) Think about it carefully, and then answer again. (Having an antichrist’s essence and having an antichrist’s disposition are both mortal sicknesses.) Why is that? (Because people with the essence of an antichrist won’t pursue the truth, and the same goes for people with the disposition of an antichrist. No matter what issue they encounter, people with the disposition of an antichrist never focus on pursuing the truth, and they don’t even have the bare minimum of humanity and reason; people like this are incapable of gaining the truth, and they cannot attain salvation either—this is also a mortal sickness.) Who else would like to speak? (My understanding is that neither of these two is mortal sickness, but if someone doesn’t pursue the truth, then that is the mortal sickness.) This is a good take on it. However, there is a precondition to this, which is the essence of an antichrist—those people who possess the essence of an antichrist simply do not pursue the truth, they are disbelievers—possessing the essence of an antichrist is the most dangerous thing. What is meant by an antichrist’s essence? It means that these people simply don’t pursue the truth; they pursue only status, they are inherently the enemies of God, they are antichrists, they are the embodiment of Satan, they are devils from birth, they are without humanity, they are materialists, they are standard disbelievers, and such people are averse to the truth. What does “averse to the truth” mean? It means that they don’t believe God is the truth, they don’t acknowledge the fact that God is the Creator, much less do they acknowledge the fact that God holds sovereignty over all things and everything. So, when such people are given the chance to pursue the truth, can they do it? (No.) Because they can’t pursue the truth, and because they are forever the enemies of the truth and the enemies of God, they will never be able to gain the truth. To be forever unable to gain the truth is a mortal sickness. And all those who possess an antichrist’s disposition share, in terms of disposition, similarities with those who possess an antichrist’s essence: They display the same manifestations, the same revelations, and even the way they display these manifestations and revelations, their mode of thinking, and their notions and imaginings about God are all the same. However, for the people who possess an antichrist’s disposition, regardless of whether they can accept the truth and acknowledge the fact that God is the Creator, so long as they don’t pursue the truth, then their antichrist’s disposition becomes a mortal sickness, and it is because of this that their outcome will be the same as those with an antichrist’s essence. Yet there are luckily some among those with an antichrist’s disposition who possess humanity, reason, conscience, and a sense of shame, who love positive things, and who possess the conditions to be saved by God. Because they pursue the truth, these people achieve dispositional change, cast off their corrupt dispositions, and cast off their antichrist’s disposition, so their antichrist’s disposition is no longer a mortal sickness for them, and there is a possibility of them being saved. In what circumstance can it be said that possessing an antichrist’s disposition is a mortal sickness? There is a prerequisite to this, which is that although these people acknowledge God’s existence, believe in God’s sovereignty, believe in and acknowledge everything God says, and can do their duties, there is one thing amiss: They never practice the truth or pursue the truth. So their antichrist’s disposition becomes fatal for them, and it can take their life. When it comes to people with an antichrist’s essence, regardless of the circumstances, it is not possible for these people to love the truth or accept the truth, and they can never gain the truth. Do you understand? (Yes.) You understand. Repeat it back to Me. (People with an antichrist’s essence are inherently the enemies of God. They are absolutely not people who love and can accept the truth, and it is impossible for them to ever gain the truth, and so for them their antichrist’s disposition is a mortal sickness. Whereas for certain people who possess an antichrist’s disposition, with the prerequisite that they possess humanity, reason, conscience, and a sense of shame, and love positive things and pursue the truth, and then achieve dispositional change through pursuing the truth, they are following the right path, and for them their antichrist’s disposition is not a mortal sickness. This is all decided by these people’s essence and the path they follow.) That is to say, it is not possible for people with an antichrist’s essence to ever pursue the truth, and they can never attain salvation, whereas people with an antichrist’s disposition can be classified into two kinds: One kind pursues the truth and can attain salvation, and one kind does not pursue the truth at all and cannot attain salvation. Those who cannot attain salvation are all laborers; certain loyal laborers can remain, and it is possible that they may meet with a different result.

Why can’t people with an antichrist’s essence attain salvation? It’s because these people don’t acknowledge the truth, nor do they acknowledge that God is the truth. These people don’t acknowledge that there are positive things, and they don’t love positive things. Instead, they love wicked things and negative things; they are the embodiment of all things wicked and negative, and they are the expressers of all things negative and wicked, and that’s why they’re averse to the truth, hostile to the truth, and hate the truth. Can they pursue the truth with such an essence? (No.) Therefore, it is impossible to get these people to pursue the truth. Is it possible to turn an animal into another kind of animal? For instance, is it possible to turn a cat into a dog or a mouse? (No.) A mouse will always be a mouse, often hiding in holes and living in the shadows. A cat will always be the natural enemy of a mouse, and this cannot be changed—this can never be changed. Yet there are some among those with an antichrist’s disposition who love the truth and positive things, who are willing to exert everything to practice and pursue the truth; they practice whatever God says, they follow no matter how God leads them, they do whatever God asks, the path they follow is entirely in accordance with the path that God requires, and they pursue in accordance with the direction and objectives indicated by God. As for the others, apart from the fact that they don’t pursue the truth, they also follow the antichrist’s path, and it doesn’t take much to realize what these people’s outcome will be. Not only will they not gain the truth, but they will also lose the chance to be saved—how pitiful these people are! God gives them chances and also supplies them with the truth and life, but they don’t cherish these things, and they don’t follow the path to being made perfect. It’s not that God favors some people over others and doesn’t give these people chances, but rather it’s because they don’t cherish these chances or act as God requires that they lose the opportunity to be saved. Therefore, their antichrist’s disposition becomes fatal and causes them to lose their lives. They think that understanding some doctrines and exhibiting some external actions and good behavior means that God won’t look into the matter of their antichrist’s disposition, that they can conceal it, and that consequently they naturally do not need to practice the truth and can do whatever they want, and can act in accordance with their own understanding, methods, and wishes. In the end, no matter what chances God gives them, they persist in clinging to their own course, they follow the path of an antichrist, and they become the enemies of God. They don’t become the enemies of God because God defined them as such right from the start—God gave them no definition at first, because in God’s eyes they were not His enemies or people with an antichrist’s essence, but were rather just people with satanic, corrupt dispositions. No matter how many truths God expresses, they still don’t strive for the truth in their pursuit. They cannot set foot on the path to salvation, and they instead follow the path of an antichrist, and eventually lose their chance to be saved. Isn’t that a shame? It’s such a shame! These people are so pitiful. Why are they pitiful? They understand a few words and doctrines and think they understand the truth; they pay a bit of a price and exhibit some good behavior while doing their duty and think they are practicing the truth; they have some talent, caliber, and gifts, and can speak some words and doctrines, do some work, do some special duties, and they think they’ve gained life; they can endure a little suffering and pay a bit of a price and they mistakenly think that they can submit to God and give everything up for God. They use their external good behavior, their gifts, and the words and doctrines they’ve equipped themselves with to supplant practicing the truth—this is their biggest problem, their fatal flaw. It makes them mistakenly believe that they’ve already embarked upon the path to salvation, and that they already possess stature and life. In any case, if these people aren’t able to attain salvation in the end, then they have no one to blame but themselves; it is because they themselves aren’t focusing on the truth, aren’t pursuing the truth, and are more than willing to follow the path of antichrists.

There are now some people who, after listening to sermons for 30 years, still don’t know what the truth is, or what doctrine is. When they open their mouths, all they say are empty theories, words to lecture others, and empty slogans, and they only ever talk about how they endured suffering and paid a price in the past, thus laying out their seniority. They never talk about their self-knowledge, how they accept being pruned, how they reveal corrupt dispositions, how they vie for fame and gain, or what revelations of an antichrist’s disposition they have. They never talk about these things; they just talk about their contributions and do not speak of their transgressions. Aren’t these people in great danger? Some people have been listening to sermons for 20 or 30 years and still don’t know what the truth reality is or what it means to submit to God’s orchestrations and arrangements, and so I suspect that these people may not have the faculties to understand God’s words. After listening to sermons for 30 years, they think they have stature, but when they do not have status, they can still be negative, and in private they will cry and complain, and may even throw up their work. After listening to sermons for 30 years, when they get dismissed they can still be petulant and unreasonable, and set themselves against God. What have they understood after listening to sermons for so many years? If they haven’t understood what the truth is after listening to so many sermons, then haven’t they believed for nothing? This is what’s called a muddled faith!

March 14, 2020