Bible Verses for Reference:

“What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26).

Relevant Words of God:

Now is the time when My Spirit performs great work, and the time when I commence My work among the Gentile nations. More than that, it is the time when I classify all created beings, putting each one into their respective category, so that My work may proceed more swiftly and is more capable of achieving results. And so, what I ask of you is still that you offer up your whole being to all My work, and, even more so, that you clearly discern and see with accuracy all the work I have done on you, and expend all your energy so that My work can achieve greater results. This is what you must understand. Desist from vying with one another, looking for a contingency plan, or seeking comfort for your flesh, so as to avoid delaying My work, and impeding your wonderful future. Far from protecting you, doing so could only bring destruction upon you. Wouldn’t this be foolish of you? That which you indulge in today is the very thing that is ruining your future, whereas the pain you endure today is the very thing that is protecting you. You must be clearly aware of these things, so as to avoid falling prey to temptations from which you will find it hard to extricate yourself, and to avoid blundering into the dense fog and being unable to find the sun ever again. When the dense fog clears, you will find yourself amid the judgment of the great day.

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. The Work of Spreading the Gospel Is Also the Work of Saving Man

Those who live outside My word and flee the suffering of trial, are they all not drifting through the world? They are akin to autumn leaves fluttering here and there, with no place to rest, much less My words of consolation. Although My chastisement and refinement do not follow them, are they not beggars drifting from place to place, wandering the streets outside the kingdom of heaven? Is the world really your place of rest? Can you really, by avoiding My chastisement, attain the faintest smile of gratification from the world? Can you truly use your fleeting enjoyment to cover up the emptiness in your heart, the emptiness that cannot be concealed? You might be able to deceive everyone in your family, but you can never deceive Me. Because your faith is too meager, you still, to this day, cannot find the joy of living. This is My exhortation to you: Rather than spend your whole life in mediocrity for the sake of the flesh, enduring all the suffering a person can hardly bear, you’d be better off spending half your lifetime sincerely expending yourself for Me. What purpose does it serve to treasure yourself so much and flee from My chastisement? What purpose does it serve to hide yourself from My momentary chastisement only to reap an eternity of embarrassment, an eternity of chastisement? I do not force My requirements on man. If someone is truly willing to submit to all My arrangements, I would not treat them poorly. But I require that all people believe in Me, just as Job believed in Me, Jehovah. If your faith exceeds that of Thomas, then your faith will attain My approval, your loyalty will please Me, and you will surely find My glory in your days.

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. What It Means to Be a Real Person

Awaken, brothers! Awaken, sisters! My day will not be delayed; time is life, and to reclaim lost time is to save life! The time is not far off! If you fail the college entrance examination, you can study for it again and again. However, My day will not be delayed. Remember! Remember! These are My kind words of exhortation. The outcome of the world has unfolded before your very eyes, and the great disasters will soon arrive. Which is more important: your life, or your sleep, your food and drink and clothing? The time has come for you to weigh these things! Doubt no longer! You’re too afraid to take these things seriously, aren’t you?

How pitiful! How poor! How blind! How cruel man is! You actually turn a deaf ear to My word—am I speaking to you in vain? You are still so sluggish—why? Why is that? Have you really never had such a thought? For whom do I say these things? Believe in Me! I am your Savior! I am your Almighty One! Keep watch! Keep watch! Time lost will never come again—remember this! There is no medicine in the world that cures regret! So, what else could I possibly say to you? Is My word not worthy of your careful pondering, your repeated pondering? You are so careless with My word and so irresponsible with your life; how could I bear it? How could I?

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Utterances of Christ in the Beginning, Chapter 30

During the process of people acquiring knowledge, by employing all manner of methods, whether it be telling stories, simply providing them with some piece of knowledge, or allowing them to satisfy their desires or aspirations, just what road does Satan want to lead people down? People think there is nothing wrong with learning knowledge, that it is perfectly natural and justified. To put it in a way that sounds appealing, to establish lofty aspirations or to have ambitions is to have drive, and this should be the right path in life. If one can realize their own aspirations, or establish a successful career in their lifetime, is that not a more glorious way to live? In this way, one can not only honor one’s ancestors but also have the chance to leave one’s mark for generations to come—is this not a good thing? This is a good thing in the eyes of worldly people, and to them it should be proper and positive. Does Satan, however, with its insidious motives, lead people down such a road and then that’s it? Of course not. In fact, no matter how grand man’s aspirations are, no matter how realistic man’s wishes are or how proper they may be, all that man wants to achieve, all that man pursues, is inextricably linked to two words. These two words are vitally important to every person throughout their life, and they are things Satan intends to instill in man. What are these two words? They are “fame” and “gain.” Satan uses a very mild method, a method that’s very much in line with people’s notions, and that isn’t very aggressive, to cause people to unknowingly accept its means and laws of survival, develop life goals and life directions, and come to possess life aspirations. No matter how high-sounding people’s descriptions of their life aspirations may be, these aspirations always revolve around fame and gain. Everything that any great or famous person—or, in fact, any person—chases throughout their life relates only to these two words: “fame” and “gain.” People think that once they have fame and gain, they have the capital to enjoy high status and great wealth, and to enjoy life. They think that once they have fame and gain, they have the capital to seek pleasure and to engage in wanton enjoyment of the flesh. For the sake of this fame and gain which they desire, people happily and unknowingly hand over their bodies, hearts, and even all that they have, including their prospects and fates, to Satan. They do so without reservation, without even a moment’s doubt, and without ever knowing to reclaim everything that they once had. Can people retain any control over themselves once they have given themselves over to Satan and become loyal to it in this way? Certainly not. They are completely and utterly controlled by Satan. They have completely and utterly sunk into this quagmire, and are unable to free themselves. Once someone is mired in fame and gain, they no longer seek that which is bright, that which is just, or those things that are beautiful and good. This is because the enticement of fame and gain is too great for people, and these are things that people can pursue without end throughout their lives and even for all eternity. Is this not the actual situation?

—The Word, Vol. 2. On Knowing God. God Himself, the Unique VI

Satan uses fame and gain to control man’s thoughts, making him think of nothing but these two things, and getting him to struggle for fame and gain, suffer hardships for fame and gain, endure humiliation and bear heavy burdens for fame and gain, sacrifice everything he has for fame and gain, and make every judgment or decision for the sake of fame and gain. In this way, Satan places invisible shackles upon man, and, with these shackles upon him, he has neither the ability nor the courage to break free. Unknowingly, he bears these shackles as he trudges ahead step by step, with great difficulty. For the sake of this fame and gain, mankind strays from God and betrays Him, and becomes increasingly wicked. In this way, one generation after another is destroyed in the midst of Satan’s fame and gain.

—The Word, Vol. 2. On Knowing God. God Himself, the Unique VI

God is seeking those who long for Him to appear, seeking those who heed His words, seeking those who do not forget His commission and offer up their hearts and bodies to Him, and seeking those who are as submissive and unresistant as babes before Him. If you devote yourself to God, unimpeded by any force, then God shall look upon you with favor and shall bestow His blessings upon you. If you have high status, a great reputation, a wealth of knowledge, a multitude of assets, and the support of many people, yet you remain untroubled by these things and still come before God to accept His call and His commission and to do what God asks of you, then all that you do shall be the most meaningful cause on earth and the most just undertaking of mankind. If you reject the call of God for the sake of status or your own goals, all that you do shall be cursed and, even more so, loathed by God. Perhaps you are a president, a scientist, a pastor, or an elder, but no matter how high your office, if you use your ability and knowledge to carry out your own undertaking, then you shall always be a failure and shall always be bereft of the blessings of God, because God accepts nothing that you do, and He does not acknowledge that your undertaking is a just one, or recognize that you are working for the benefit of mankind. He will say that everything you do is using human knowledge and strength to try to push away God’s protection of man, and that it is a denial of the blessings of God. He will say that you are leading mankind toward darkness, toward death, and toward the start of a limitless existence in which man is without God and has lost His blessings.

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Appendix 2: God Holds Sovereignty Over the Fate of All Mankind

God laments the future of mankind, He grieves at the fall of mankind, and is pained that mankind is marching, step by step, toward decay and the path of no return. No one has ever given thought to this: Where might such a mankind, who has thoroughly broken the heart of God and forsaken Him to seek the evil one, be headed? It is precisely for this reason that no one tries to sense the anger of God, that no one seeks the way that pleases God or tries to draw closer to God, and even more so that no one tries to appreciate God’s grief and pain. Even after hearing the voice of God, man continues on his own path, continues turning away from God, evading God’s grace and care, and shunning His truth, preferring to sell himself to Satan, the enemy of God. And who has given any thought to, should man persist in his obduracy, how God will treat this mankind that so utterly disregards Him? No one knows that the reason for God’s repeated reminders and exhortations toward man is that He has prepared in His hands catastrophes like never before, those that will be unbearable to the flesh and soul of man, not merely a punishment of the flesh, but those that target the soul of man. You need to know this: What kind of anger will God unleash when His plan falls through, and when His reminders and exhortations are not repaid? It will be like nothing that has ever been experienced or known by any created being. And so I say, these catastrophes are without precedent, and will never be repeated. For God’s plan is to create mankind only this once, and to save mankind only this once. This is the first time, and it is also the last. Therefore, no one can appreciate the painstaking intentions and fervent anticipation with which God saves mankind this time.

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God Is the Source of Man’s Life