Believing in God is the right path in life. God has chosen you all, and you have all chosen to follow Him and to embark on the right path in life. Ideally, you will manage to satisfy God’s will, do your duties properly, gain the truth, and be perfected by God. Is this not your dream and aspiration? (It is.) It is a good thing, a positive thing, for a believer to have such a dream, and God fulfills people’s positive dreams and aspirations. Do people sometimes have negative or incorrect dreams and aspirations? This is possible, as people’s states are unsettled before they gain the truth, even regressing at times. When those negative things appear, do they not affect your life entry and impact your normal relationship with God? If people live in those states, will their conditions not worsen and become negative and weak? What should they do at such times? (Come before God in prayer.) Well, are there not times when people do not wish to pray, when they want to keep living in a depraved state, letting Satan manipulate them as it pleases, while they indulge themselves and do whatever they wish, without thinking about what their outcome will be? Does such a state exist? (It does.) What problem is this a manifestation of? (They have turned away from God.) And what led them to turn away from God? Is this not a manifestation of their insufficient stature and their lack of the truth? It is indeed due to their inadequate understanding of the truth, and their insufficient stature. Every time such a situation occurs, when a person finds themselves in a state like that, they must pray to God, rely on Him, and seek the truth. If their stature is too small and they fall short of the truth, they should seek out and fellowship with someone who does understand the truth, and get provision and support from them. Sometimes, they will also need to be pruned by another person, or disciplined by God. If they lack the ability to stand on their own two feet, it is because they do not understand enough of the truth and they are lacking in stature. Inadequate stature makes people unable to resist all manner of negative, depraved states and thoughts. Is this not an exhausting way to live? In what states do those lacking in stature usually live? Do any of you have first-hand experience of this? What sort of states make you feel lonely, miserable, indecisive, and very exhausted and lost, like there is no path forward, leaving you feeling gloomy all day, in no mood to pray or pursue the truth? When you encounter a seemingly insurmountable problem, do you ever think about giving up? (Yes.) So what causes these states to arise? Are they intentionally thought up and planned out in people’s minds? Certainly not. So, ponder on this question—what do you think causes them? Tell Me, if a person understands the truth, then they will truly know their own corrupt disposition, they will be able to see clearly the truth of their own corruption, they will know what truths they need to be equipped with in order to live out human likeness, and they will know how to satisfy God in different situations, as well as the proper ways to handle certain matters and the principles that must be upheld while doing so—when a person who is possessed of such a stature is faced with difficulties, what will their state be like? Surely, they will still feel negative and weak to some extent, right? (Right.) So, where does this negativity and weakness come from, and how can it be resolved? Have you never pondered or sought out these issues before? (Rarely.) So, you have managed to muddle through your difficulties and times of weakness and negativity, without ever taking these matters seriously. In that case, you are very lucky to have made it this far, and it was only thanks to the grace of God, who led you through these difficulties. Now what was the question that I just posed? (What leads people to live in a negative and weak state?) Think about it for a minute; do you have an answer? Theoretically, it is because they do not understand the truth. In that case, what guides people’s lives before they understand the truth? (Their corrupt, satanic dispositions.) Yes, is that not your answer? Have you figured it out now? When people are faced with difficulties, they want to give up, they feel anxious, weak, miserable, constrained, and shackled, like there is no way forward, and then they become negative, they lack faith, and think that believing in God is meaningless. What causes this? (Their corrupt, satanic dispositions.) When people do not understand the truth, what sort of disposition do they live with? What nature do they live with? What guides their life? (Their corrupt, satanic dispositions.) What things can arise within a person as a result of a corrupt, satanic disposition? Arrogance, resistance against God and the betrayal of God, and opposition toward God. All these corrupt dispositions bring people nothing but misery, negativity, and weakness. Now, why is it that corrupt, satanic dispositions can bring people misery, negativity, and weakness, but cannot provide peace, joy, comfort, or happiness to a person’s mind? Why can these negative things make a person negative? Corrupt dispositions are negative things, and they are hostile toward the truth, so they cannot perform any positive functions, only negative ones. They cannot provide people with positivity, drive, or an upward-facing mindset, they only bring people weakness, negativity, and misery. When a satanic disposition has taken root in people and become their nature, this is enough to plant darkness and evil in their hearts, and to lead them to pursue and choose the wrong path. Under the driving force of a corrupt satanic disposition, what are people’s ideals, hopes, ambitions, and life goals and directions? Do they not run contrary to positive things? For example, people always want to have renown or be celebrities; they wish to gain great fame and prestige, and to bring honor to their ancestors. Are these positive things? These are not at all in line with positive things; moreover, they run counter to the law of God’s sovereignty over the fate of mankind. Why would I say that? What kind of person does God want? Does He want a person of greatness, a celebrity, a noble person, or a world-shaking person? (No.) So, then, what kind of person does God want? (Someone with their feet planted firmly on the ground who fulfills the role of a created being.) Yes, and what else? (God wants an honest person who fears Him and shuns evil, and submits to Him.) (Someone who stands with God in all matters, who strives to love God.) Those answers are also correct. It is anyone who is of the same heart and mind as God. Does it say anywhere in God’s words that people must keep to their position as humans? (It does.) What does it say? (“As one member of created humanity, a person must keep their own position, and behave conscientiously. Dutifully guard that which is entrusted to you by the Creator. Do not act out of line, or do things beyond your range of ability or which are loathsome to God. Do not try to be great, or become a superman, or above others, nor seek to become God. This is how people should not desire to be. Seeking to become great or a superman is absurd. Seeking to become God is even more disgraceful; it is disgusting, and despicable. What is commendable, and what created beings should hold to more than anything else, is to become a true created being; this is the only goal that all people should pursue” (The Word, Vol. 2. On Knowing God. God Himself, the Unique I).) Since you know what God’s words require of people, are you able to stick to God’s requirements in your pursuit of human conduct? Do you always want to spread your wings and take flight, do you always wish to fly solo, to be an eagle rather than a little bird? What disposition is this? Is this the principle of human conduct? Your pursuit of human conduct should be based on God’s words; only God’s words are the truth. You have been too deeply corrupted by Satan, and always take traditional culture—the words of Satan—as the truth, as the object of your pursuit, which makes it easy for you to take the wrong path, to walk the path of resisting God. The thoughts and views of corrupt mankind, and the things they strive for are contrary to the will of God, to the truth, and to the laws of God’s sovereignty over everything, His orchestration of everything, and His control over mankind’s fate. So no matter how proper and reasonable this kind of pursuit is according to human thoughts and notions, from God’s perspective they are not positive things, and they are not in line with His will. Because you go against the fact of God’s sovereignty over mankind’s fate, and because you wish to go solo, taking your fate into your own hands, you are always hitting walls, so hard that blood flows from your head, and nothing ever works out for you. Why does nothing work out for you? Because the laws that God established are inalterable by any created being. God’s authority and power are above all else, inviolable by any created being. People think far too much of their abilities. What is it that makes people always wish to be free of God’s sovereignty, and always wish to grab hold of their own fate and plan their own future, and wish to control their prospects, direction, and life goals? Where does this starting point come from? (A corrupt satanic disposition.) What then does a corrupt satanic disposition bring to people? (Opposition to God.) What comes of people opposing God? (Pain.) Pain? It is destruction! Pain isn’t the half of it. What you see right before your eyes is pain, negativity, and weakness, and it is resistance and complaints—what outcome will these things bring? Annihilation! This is no small matter, and it is no game. People who do not have a God-fearing heart can’t see this.

Some people become negative and weak as soon as they encounter a bit of trouble, but when there isn’t any, they are full of ambitions and desires, always hoping to become a celebrity or some kind of expert. When people live with such a mindset they are simply being dominated by their satanic nature. When people are always full of ambitions and desires, will they be able to live happy lives? If you don’t cast these things off, your suffering will not abate. Suffering will always follow you; it will feel like a knife twisting in your heart. How can this problem be resolved? (By seeking and pursuing the truth.) You are all more or less able to speak about the broad concept of seeking the truth, and you are all aware of it. When faced with a problem, you must first seek the truth. Man’s corrupt dispositions can only be resolved by seeking, understanding, and gaining the truth. Only after resolving their corrupt dispositions can people experience true joy, peace, comfort, and happiness, and only then can they truly come before God. This solves the problem right from the root. Now, how should one set about seeking the truth? What particulars are involved? Who can explain? (When you sense that you are thinking about or actively pursuing status and reputation, do not ignore these thoughts and behaviors. Try to understand them and dissect them according to God’s word. Recognize that this is the harm brought on man by satanic, corrupt dispositions. Recognize the incorrect path that you have been walking, and then eat and drink the word of God, pray to God, and rely on Him to break this shackle that Satan uses to bind man.) (The most important part is recognizing the fallacious views that you harbor about what you should pursue, understanding the harm that satanic, corrupt dispositions cause people, and reversing your views on things. Then you must come before God in prayer more, get closer to Him, and gradually build a normal relationship with Him.) Anything else? (If you sometimes feel weak and negative, and can’t identify the cause or the corrupt disposition that those feelings come from, you should first pray to God, and ask Him to enlighten you. You can also lay yourself bare before some brothers and sisters and fellowship with them. By hearing their fellowship about their experiences, you can clarify your understanding of this state, after which you should look for relevant passages in God’s word with which to resolve it.) Keep going. (If, when something does not go the way you wanted it to, you always split hairs, analyzing who was right and who was wrong, then at these times you should first quiet your heart before God and submit to the situation—pray to God and seek from God with faith in His sovereignty. God will then enlighten you and allow you to understand His will. Then, when you reexamine the situation, you will understand what sort of corruption you were revealing and what God’s will is. This is how I entered into the truth.) You all need to practice fellowshipping on the truth—share your knowledge, experience, and ideas, and learn how to lay yourselves bare in fellowship. If you do so, you will gain more and more, and understand more and more. Some of you just shared your personal experiences and knowledge, and each of you had something different to say. Great job, you all shared something very practical. After listening to your fellowship, I can see that you have all grown and had some life entry over the past few years of performing your duties. You have some knowledge and experience regarding matters of belief in God, not just simple declarations, and you have laid down a foundation. This is excellent. It seems that believing in God is not that difficult: So long as one is sincere, listens to God’s words, and does whatever God says, and so long as they are able to practice the truth, they will be able to fulfill God’s demands. In conclusion, there is one fact you should understand in your faith in God above all others: Belief in God does not merely mean believing in God’s name, much less is it having faith in the vague God of your imagination. Believing in God means you must believe that God is real; you should believe in God’s essence, in His disposition, and in what He has and is; you must believe in the fact that God holds sovereignty over the destiny of mankind, and that He holds sovereignty over your destiny. So what does it mean to believe? Does it not mean that people need to actually cooperate and put it into practice? For example, when some people encounter an unfavorable situation, they’ll start complaining and blaming other people. They never consider that they might have brought it upon themselves, and instead always push the responsibility onto someone else. Then, they feel content and at ease, and they think, “Problem solved. Believing in God this way is so pleasant and easy!” What do you think of this method of solving problems? Can one gain the truth by practicing in this way? Does it show an attitude of submission to God? With what perspective, and by what means, do such people believe in God? Have they applied the words “God holds sovereignty over the destiny of mankind, all events and all things are in His hands” to their everyday lives? When they analyze the problem using the mind of man, when they address the matter using human means, are they believing in God’s sovereignty? Are they submitting to God’s sovereignty over and arrangement of people, events, and things? Obviously not. Firstly, they do not submit; this is already a mistake. Secondly, they are unable to accept from God the situation, people, events, and things He arranges for them; they do not look beyond the surface. They look only at how the situation appears from the outside, then analyze it using their human mind and try to resolve it with human methods. Is this not another mistake? Is it a big mistake? (It is.) How is it so? They do not believe that God holds sovereignty over everything. They think everything happens randomly. In their eyes, not a single thing is ruled by God, and most things happen because of the actions of men. Is this believing in God? Do they have true faith? (No.) Why not? They do not believe that God holds sovereignty over everything. They do not believe that God holds sovereignty over all matters and all objects—that God holds sovereignty over every situation. If something does not go as they imagined, they are unable to accept it from God. They do not believe that God can orchestrate these situations. Because they cannot see God, they think these situations happen randomly as a result of the actions of men, rather than being orchestrated by God. They do not believe in God’s sovereignty. Then what is the essence of their belief? (They are nonbelievers.) That is right, they are nonbelievers! Nonbelievers do not accept anything from God. Instead, they rack their brains trying to deal with things using human perspectives, minds and methods. This is the behavior of nonbelievers. When you run into this kind of person in the future, you should develop some discernment regarding them. Nonbelievers are good at engaging their brains and coming up with ideas when issues arise; they constantly study the matter at hand, and try to resolve it using human methods. They always view people and things using human reasoning and satanic philosophies, or based on the law, not believing that God’s word is the truth or that God’s sovereignty encompasses everything. Everything that happens is allowed by God, but nonbelievers are not able to accept these things from God, and they always view things based on human notions and imaginings. Though nonbelievers usually say they believe that a person’s fate is in God’s hands, and that they are willing to submit to God’s sovereignty and arrangement, when things actually befall them, they are unable to accept those things from God and they develop notions about God. This is the behavior of nonbelievers. Are there any people like this in your life? Do you yourselves ever behave this way? (Yes.) You behave like nonbelievers, but are you actually nonbelievers? Do you believe that God is sovereign over everything? Do you acknowledge the fact that every person, event, thing, and situation is in God’s hands? How many things can you accept from God? How many matters have you resolved using human methods? And how often do you live according to a corrupt disposition? How often are you able to submit to God? Ponder on these questions, you surely know the answers to them in your hearts. Is it easy to accept things from God? (There will be an internal struggle.) It is true that there will be a struggle, but what is the result of that struggle? Is it success or failure? (Sometimes failure, sometimes success.) If it’s an even split, then there is still hope for you, but if you fail often and rarely succeed, it proves that you are not someone who loves the truth. Failure is normal—do not be afraid of failure, do not be discouraged, do not become negative or back down, and keep trying hard. Failure is not a bad thing; people can, at the very least, benefit from failure, which is a good thing!