Corrupt mankind loves reputation and status. They all pursue power. You who are now leaders and workers, do you not feel that you bring your title or rank to bear on your actions? So do antichrists and false leaders, who all feel themselves to be the officials in God’s house, standing a head above the rest, superior to them. If they did not have official titles and ranks, they would have no burden in performing their duties, and they would not go about their work in earnest. Everyone treats being a leader and worker as equivalent to being an official, and everyone is willing to take action as an official. Presented in a favorable light, we call this pursuing a career—but in an uglier light, this is called engaging in one’s own business. It is setting up an independent kingdom in order to satisfy one’s own ambitions and desires. In the end, is it a good thing or a bad thing to have status? In the eyes of men, it is a good thing. When you have an official title, speaking and acting are different. Your words have force, and people will heed them. They will fawn on you, marching on in front of you with shouts and supporting you from behind. But without your status and titles, they would turn a deaf ear to your words. Though your words may be true, full of good sense, and beneficial to people, no one will heed you. What does this show? All men venerate status. They all have ambitions and desires. They all seek the worship of others and love to handle affairs from a position of status. Can one accomplish good from a position of status? Can they do things that are beneficial to people? That’s not certain. It depends on the path you take and how you treat status. If you don’t pursue the truth, but always want to gain others’ favor, wishing to satisfy your own ambitions and desires and to fulfill your yearning for status, then you are walking the path of antichrists. Can someone who walks the path of antichrists conform to the truth in their pursuit and their performance of their duty? Absolutely not. This is because the path one chooses determines everything. If one chooses the wrong path, all their efforts, their performance of their duty, and their pursuit are in no way aligned with the truth. What about them is at odds with the truth? What are they after in their actions? (Status.) What do all people who do things for the sake of status display? Some say, “They always speak words and doctrines, they never fellowship the truth reality, they always show off, they always speak for their own sake, they never exalt or testify to God. People in whom such things are exhibited act for the sake of status.” Is this right? (Yes.) Why do they speak words and doctrines and show off? Why do they not exalt and testify to God? Because, in their hearts, there is only status, and their fame and gain—God is utterly absent. Such people especially idolize status and authority. Their fame and gain are of huge importance to them; their fame, gain, and status have become their life. God is absent from their hearts, they do not fear God, much less submit to Him; all they do is exalt themselves, testify to themselves, and show off to gain others’ admiration. Thus, they often brag about themselves, about what they’ve done, how much they’ve suffered, how they satisfied God, how forbearing they were when they were pruned, all in order to earn people’s sympathy and admiration. These people are the same type of people as antichrists, they walk the path of Paul. And what is their ultimate outcome? (They become antichrists and are eliminated.) Do these people know that such an outcome awaits them? (They do.) They do? If they know, why do they keep doing as they do? They don’t know, in fact. They believe that their actions are good and right. They never examine themselves to find which of the things they do are resistant against God or displeasing to God, or which of the things they do have some intent behind them, or what path it is they’re walking. Such things always escape their examination.

As leaders and workers, have you ever pondered these questions: The commission that God entrusted to me is a special commission, not the ordinary duty of an ordinary follower. This duty entails special responsibility and has a special significance. So, in performing this special duty and shouldering this responsibility, what path should I take to accord with God’s intentions, or at least to avoid God’s detestation? How should I pursue in order to be made perfect by God and avoid being eliminated after taking the path of antichrists? Have you ever considered these questions? (I felt that God had exalted me when I first started serving as a leader and worker. Though I knew I should pursue the truth and perform my duty well, due to my arrogant nature, I couldn’t help but always pursue reputation and status. After I recognized this, I was able to pray to God and find relevant passages in His words to find a solution. I was able to reverse my course somewhat at the time, but this situation would occur again in the future, and though I hated myself at heart, it was difficult to resolve this problem completely.) You can’t control your thoughts and ideas, and your ambition and desire to pursue reputation and status are likewise beyond your control. This is evidence that a corrupt disposition has taken root in your heart. This is not a passing mood or a momentary emotion, nor is it imposed on you by others. You don’t need to be taught it by someone else; it is the natural bent of your thoughts and the natural course of your action. This is your nature. The things that are inherent in one’s nature are those least amenable to change. With satanic nature, therefore, once people gain status they are then in danger. So, what should be done? Do they have no path to follow? Once they have fallen into that dangerous situation, is there no way back for them? Tell Me, once corrupt people gain status—regardless of who they are—do they then become antichrists? Is this absolute? (If they do not pursue the truth, then they will become antichrists, but if they do pursue the truth, then they will not.) That is absolutely right: If people do not pursue the truth, they are sure to become antichrists. And is it the case that all who walk the path of antichrists do so because of status? No, it is chiefly because they have no love of the truth, because they are not right people. Regardless of whether they have status or not, people who do not pursue the truth all walk the path of antichrists. No matter how many sermons they have heard, such people do not accept the truth, they do not walk the right path, but are determined to go toward the crooked path. This is akin to how people eat: Some do not consume food that can nurture their bodies and support a normal existence, but instead insist on consuming things that do them harm, ultimately shooting themselves in the foot. Is this not their own choice? After being eliminated, some leaders and workers spread notions, saying, “Don’t be a leader, and don’t let yourself gain status. People are in danger the minute they gain any status, and God will reveal them! Once they are revealed, they will not even be qualified to be ordinary believers, and will receive no blessings at all.” What sort of thing is that to say? At best, it represents a misunderstanding of God; at worst, it is blasphemy against Him. If you do not walk the right path, do not pursue the truth, and do not follow God’s way, but instead you insist on walking the path of antichrists and end up on Paul’s path, ultimately meeting the same outcome, the same end as Paul, still complaining about God and passing judgment on God as unrighteous, then are you not the genuine article of an antichrist? Such behavior is cursed! When people do not understand the truth, they always live by their notions and imaginings, frequently misinterpret God, and feel God’s actions to be at odds with their own notions, which produces negative emotions in them; this happens because people have corrupt dispositions. They say negative things and complain because their faith is too paltry, their stature too small, and they understand too few truths—which is all forgivable, and not remembered by God. And yet, there are those who do not walk the right path, who specifically walk the path of deceiving, resisting, betraying God, and fighting against God. These people are ultimately punished and cursed by God, and plunged into perdition and destruction. How do they get to this point? Because they have never reflected on and known themselves, because they do not accept the truth at all, and are reckless and willful, and stubbornly refuse to repent, and even complain about God after they are revealed and eliminated, saying that God is not righteous. Could such people be saved? (No.) They could not. So, is it the case that everyone who is revealed and eliminated is beyond salvation? It cannot be said that they are utterly beyond redemption. There are those who understand too few truths, and are young and inexperienced—who, once they become leaders or workers and have status, are directed by their corrupt disposition, and pursue status, and enjoy this status, and so naturally walk the path of antichrists. If, after being exposed and judged, they are able to reflect on themselves, and truly repent, forsaking wickedness like the people of Nineveh, no longer walking the path of evil as they used to, then they still have the opportunity to be saved. But what are the conditions of such an opportunity? They must be truly repentant and able to accept the truth. If they are, they still have some hope. If they are incapable of reflecting on themselves, don’t accept the truth at all, and have no intention of truly repenting, they will be completely eliminated.

The word “status” is neither a trial nor a temptation, in itself. It depends on how people handle status. If you take leadership work as your duty, as a responsibility you must discharge, you will not be constrained by status. If you accept it as an official title or position, you will be in trouble and surely fall to the ground. What, then, is the mentality one should adopt upon becoming a leader and worker of the church? Where should your pursuit focus? You must have a path! If you do not seek the truth and have no path of practice, then this status of yours will become your trap, and you will tumble down. Some people are different once they gain status, and their mentality changes. They do not know how to dress themselves up, how to talk to others, what tone to adopt, how to interact with people, or what expressions to wear. As a result, they start to construct an image for themselves. Is this not a perversion? Some people look to the hairstyles of the nonbelievers, the clothes they wear, and the qualities of their speech and bearing. They imitate them and follow the direction of the nonbelievers down this path. Is this a positive thing? (It is not.) What is happening here? Though these seem to be superficial practices, they are actually a sort of pursuit. They’re an imitation. This is not the right way. Now, you can distinguish right from wrong in these obvious images and disguises, but can you reject and rebel against the wrong? (Yes, when we’re aware of it.) This is your current stature. When these ideas are fresh in your heart, you can discern and identify them. If you are motivated to pursue status, you can moderate this desire yourself, so you won’t be like the obsessed fan who chases after their idol like a brute animal that has lost its reason. Subjectively, you can identify those ideas. You can rebel against the flesh without any temptation when you’re not surrounded by people. But what if people were to follow you, to revolve around you, to care for your daily necessities, feed and clothe you, and satisfy your every need? What feelings would stir in your heart? Would you not be enjoying the benefits of status? Would you still be able to rebel against the flesh then? When people cluster around you, when they revolve around you as if you were a star, how would you handle your status then? The things in your consciousness, that is, those things amid your thoughts and ideas—appreciation of status, enjoyment of status, greed for, or even infatuation with, status—can you examine your heart to find these things? Can you recognize them? If you can examine your heart and recognize these things inside it, could you rebel against the flesh in that situation? If you don’t have the will to practice the truth, you will not rebel against these things. You will enjoy them and revel in them. Full of self-satisfaction, you will say, “To have status as a believer in God is truly wonderful. As a leader, everyone does as I say. What a great feeling. I am the one who is leading and watering these people. They are now obedient to me. When I say go east, no one goes west. When I say pray, no one dares to sing. That’s an achievement.” You will then have started to enjoy the benefits of status. What will status be to you then? (Poison.) And though it is poison, you do not need to fear it. It is precisely in this situation that you need to have the correct pursuit and the correct methods of practice. Often, when people have status, but their work has yet to achieve results, they will say, “I don’t enjoy status, and I don’t enjoy everything that status brings me.” However, once their work shows some success, and they feel their status is secure, they lose their reason and enjoy the benefits of status. Do you believe that, just because you can recognize the temptation, you can rebel against the flesh? Do you really have that stature? The fact is that you don’t. Your recognition and rebellion are achieved by no more than human conscience and the baseline rationality possessed by man. Those are what tell you not to act in this way. It is the standard of conscience and the bit of rationality you gain from having found faith in God that help you or keep you off the wrong path. What is the context for this? It is that when you love status but have not yet obtained it, you may still possess your little bit of conscience and reason. These words can still restrain you and make you realize that the enjoyment of status is not good and does not conform to the truth, that it is not the right way, and is resistant against God, and displeasing to Him. Then, you can consciously rebel against the flesh and forgo the enjoyment of status. You can rebel against the flesh when you have no accomplishments or merits to show, but once you have done meritorious work, will your sense of shame, your conscience, your rationality, and your moral concepts restrain you? The little standard of conscience you possess comes nowhere near having a God-fearing heart, and your little faith will be of no avail at all. So, is that little bit of conscience you now possess equivalent to the truth reality? Obviously not. And since it is not the truth reality, what you are capable of can be no more than that which comes from the limitations of human conscience and human reason. As you do not now have the reality of God’s words as your life, what will become of you once you have status and official titles? Will you walk the path of antichrists? (That’s unsure.) This is the time of greatest peril. Can you see this clearly? Tell Me, is it dangerous to be a leader and worker? (It is.) Knowing the danger, are you still willing to perform this duty? (Yes.) This willingness to perform your duty is human will, and it is a positive thing. However, will this positive thing alone allow you to put the truth into practice? Will you be able to rebel against the wants of the flesh? Relying on human good intentions and human will, and relying on human desires and ideals, will you be able to bring your will to fulfillment? (No.) Then you must ponder what you must do to make your wishes, your ideals, and your will into your reality and into your true stature. That is not so much of a problem, really. The true problem is that given man’s current state and stature, and given the qualities of his humanity, he is far from satisfying the conditions of God’s approval. Your human character has no more than a bit of conscience and reason, not the will to pursue the truth. When performing your duty, you may wish not to be perfunctory, nor to attempt to trick God, but you will. Given your current, true state and stature, you are already in a perilous place. Would you still maintain that to have status is dangerous, but to lack it means you are safe? In fact, to lack status is also dangerous. As long as you live in a corrupt disposition, you are in peril. Now, is it the case that it is only dangerous to be a leader, while those who are not leaders are safe? (No.) If you are not a person who pursues the truth and do not possess the slightest truth reality, you are in danger whether you are a leader or not. So, how should you pursue the truth so as to escape this danger? Have you considered this question? If you have only a small desire and simply follow some regulations, will that work? Can you truly escape the place of peril in this way? It may work in the short term, but it’s hard to say what will happen in the long term. So, what’s to be done? Some people say that pursuing the truth is the best way. This is absolutely correct, but in what way must one pursue in order to enter the truth reality? How can man’s life grow? None of these are simple matters. First, you must understand the truth, and then you must put it into practice. So long as one understands the truth, half of these problems are already resolved. They will be able to reflect on their own state and see it clearly. They will feel the peril they are living in. They will be able to put the truth into practice proactively. Such practice naturally leads one to submission to God. Is a person who submits to God out of danger? Do you really need an answer? Those who truly submit to God will no longer rebel against or resist God, much less betray Him. Their salvation is assured. Is such a person not completely out of danger? Therefore, the best means of resolving problems is to bring one’s seriousness to bear on the truth and put one’s efforts into the truth. Once people have truly understood the truth, all problems will be solved.

For you, what is special about being a leader and worker? (Taking on more responsibility.) Responsibility is part of it. This is something you are all conscious of, but how can you fulfill your responsibilities well? Where do you start from? Fulfilling this responsibility well is, in fact, fulfilling one’s duty well. The word “responsibility” may sound as if there’s something special about it, but in the final analysis, it is one’s duty. For you, it is no easy thing to perform your duty well, because there are many things in front of you that obstruct you, things such as the barrier of status, which is the most difficult for you to break through. If you lack any status and are just an ordinary believer, you may face fewer temptations and it will be easier for you to perform your duty well. You can live a spiritual life every day, as ordinary people do, eating and drinking of God’s words, and fellowshipping on the truth, and performing your duties well. This is enough. If you have status, however, you must first break through the obstacle that status presents. You must pass this test first. How can you break through this barrier? This is not easy for ordinary people, because corrupt dispositions are deeply rooted in man. All people live in their corrupt dispositions and are inherently enamored of the pursuit of fame, gain, and status. After finally gaining status with such difficulty, who wouldn’t enjoy its benefits to the fullest? If you have the love of truth in your heart and have somewhat of a God-fearing heart, you will carefully and cautiously handle your status, while also being able to seek the truth in the performance of your duty. In this way, fame, gain, and status will find no place in your heart, nor will they hamper the performance of your duty. If you are too small of stature, you must pray frequently, restrain yourself with God’s words. You will have to find ways to do certain things or consciously avoid some environments and some temptations. For example, say you are a leader. When you are in the company of several ordinary brothers and sisters, will they not think you are somewhat superior to them? Corrupt mankind would see it this way, and this is already a temptation for you. This is not a trial, but a temptation! If you also believe that you are superior to them, this is very dangerous, but if you think that they are your equals, your mentality is normal and you will not be disturbed by corrupt dispositions. If you think that as the leader, your status is greater than theirs, how will they treat you? (They will look up to the leader.) Will they just look up to you and admire you, nothing more? No. They will have to speak and act on it. For example, if you catch a cold and an ordinary brother or sister also catches a cold, who will they tend to first? (The leader.) Is that not preferential? Is this not one of the benefits of status? If you get into a dispute with a brother or sister, will they treat you fairly because of your status? Will they take the side of the truth? (No.) These things are temptations you face. Can you avoid them? How should you deal with this? If someone treats you poorly, you may dislike them and consider how to attack them, exclude them, and get revenge on them, when in fact, there is nothing wrong with that person. On the other hand, some people may flatter you, and not only may you not object to it, but actually enjoy the feeling. Is that not troubling? Wouldn’t you promptly begin to promote and train your flatterer so that they become your confidant and do your bidding? If you did, what path would you be on? (The path of antichrists.) If you fall into these temptations, you are in danger. Is it a good thing to have people in your orbit all day? I’ve heard that some people, after becoming leaders, do not do their own work or solve practical problems. Instead, all they think about are the pleasures of the flesh. Sometimes they even eat food made just for them, while having others wash their soiled clothes. After a time, they wind up being revealed and eliminated. What should you do when you encounter something like this? If you possess status, people will flatter you and treat you with special consideration. If you can overcome and refuse these temptations and continue to treat people fairly, regardless of how they treat you, this proves that you are the right kind of person. If you possess status, some people will look up to you. They will always be around you, fawning and flattering. Can you put an end to this? How do you handle such situations? When you don’t need to be taken care of, but someone extends you a “helping hand” and panders to you, you might secretly rejoice, thinking that having status makes you different and that special treatment is to be enjoyed to the fullest. Do such things not happen? Is this not a real problem? When such things befall you, does your heart reproach you? Do you feel disgust and detestation? If someone doesn’t feel disgust and detestation, and doesn’t reject it, and is free at heart from accusation and blame, but instead loves to enjoy these things, feeling that it is good to have status, does such a person have a conscience? Do they possess rationality? Is this someone who seeks the truth? (No.) What does this show? This is a lust for the benefits of status. Although this does not classify you as an antichrist, you have already started down the path of antichrists. When you become accustomed to enjoying special treatment, if one day, you can no longer receive such special treatment, will you not become angry? If some brothers and sisters are poor and don’t have the money to host you, will you treat them fairly? If they tell you a truth that displeases you, will you use your power against them and ruminate on how to punish them? Will you feel displeasure when you see them and wish to teach them a lesson? Once these thoughts come to you, you are then not far from committing evil, are you not? Is it easy for people to walk the path of antichrists? Is it easy to become an antichrist? (Yes.) This is very vexing! As leaders and workers, if you do not seek the truth in all things, you are walking the path of antichrists.

Some people do not understand the work of God, and they do not know how or whom God saves. They see that all people have the disposition of antichrists and can walk down the path of antichrists, and thus feel that such people must have no hope of salvation. In the end, they will all be judged to be antichrists. They cannot be saved and must all perish. Are such thoughts and views correct? (No.) So, how is this problem to be solved? First, you must have an understanding of God’s work. It is corrupt man whom God saves. Corrupt man can walk the path of antichrists and resist God. That is why he requires God’s salvation. So, how can a man be made truly to follow God, rather than going down the path of antichrists? He must understand the truth, reflect on and know himself, know his own corrupt disposition, and know his own satanic nature. Then, he must go on to seek the truth and solve his corrupt disposition. It is only thus that you can ensure you won’t walk the path of antichrists, avoid becoming an antichrist yourself, and avoid becoming that which God spurns. God does not work in supernatural ways. Rather, He scrutinizes deep in the hearts of people. If you are always enjoying the benefits of status, God will only reprimand you. He will make you conscious of this fault so that you reflect on yourself and know that this is unaligned with the truth and not pleasing to God. If you can come to this realization, and reflect on and know yourself, you will not have difficulty solving the problem. But if you live in such a state for an extended time, always enjoying the benefits of status, failing to pray to God or reflect on yourself, and failing to seek the truth, then God will do nothing. He will forsake you, so that you do not feel Him to be with you. God will bring you to the realization that, should you go on like this, you will certainly become that which God detests. God will make known to you that this path is wrong, that your way of living is wrong. God’s purpose in giving people such awareness is to make known to them those actions that are right and those that are wrong, allowing them to make the correct choice. However, whether one can choose to walk the right path depends on their faith and cooperation. When God is doing these things, He guides you to an understanding of the truth, but beyond that, He leaves the power of choice to you, and that comes down to whether you’re walking the right path. God never imposes on you. He never forcibly controls you or commands you to do something, having you do this or that. God does not act thus. He allows you to choose freely. At such times, what should one do? When you realize that what you’re doing is wrong, that your way of living is wrong, can you come at once to practice in accord with correct methods? That would be very difficult. There is a battle to be fought in it, because the things loved by man are Satan’s philosophy and logic, which stand in opposition to the truth. At times, you know what would be right and what would be wrong, and there is a battle in your heart. During such a battle, you must pray frequently, let God guide you, and let God rebuke you, so that you become aware of the things you should not do. Then, actively rebel against, shun, and avoid such temptations. This requires your cooperation. During the battle, you will still make mistakes, and it is easy to take the wrong path. Though you may choose the right direction in your heart, it isn’t assured that you will take the right path. Is this not how things really are? With a moment’s carelessness, you’ll take the wrong path. What does “a moment’s carelessness” mean here? It means that a temptation is too great. To you, this may come down to considerations of face, or your mood, or some special context or a special environment. The most serious factor is, in fact, your corrupt disposition, which dominates and controls you. This is what makes it difficult for you to follow the right path. You may have a little faith, but you are still tossed about and swayed to and fro by circumstance. It will not be until you are pruned, until you are punished and disciplined, until obstacles litter your path and you see no way forward, that you will realize that the pursuit of fame, gain, and status is not the right way, but something detested and cursed by God, that only walking the path that God requires is the proper way in life, and that if you do not set your will on walking this path, you will be eliminated entirely. People don’t weep until they see the coffin! However, in the course of this battle, if a man has great faith, a strong determination to cooperate, and the will to pursue the truth, it will be easier for him to overcome these temptations. If your vital weakness is a particular care for dignity and a love of status, a greed for fame, gain, and the pleasures of the flesh, and these things are particularly strong within you, it will be difficult for you to emerge victorious. What does this mean, that it will be difficult for you to emerge victorious? It means that it will be difficult for you to choose the path of the pursuit of truth, so instead you may choose the wrong path, causing God to detest and forsake you. However, if you are always careful and prudent, and can often come before God to be rebuked and disciplined, and if you do not enjoy the benefits of status, nor covet fame, gain, or the comforts of the flesh, and if, when you have such thoughts, you rely on God to rebel against them with all your strength, before they give rise to action, and pray to God and seek the truth, and are ultimately able to walk the path of practice of the truth and enter that reality, regardless of all else, will you not then be more likely to choose the right direction when confronted with great temptation? (Yes.) This depends on your usual accumulated reserves. Tell Me: If a man encounters a great temptation, can he fully satisfy God’s intention by relying on his stature as it is, on his own will, or on his usual accumulated reserves? (No.) Can he satisfy it partially? (Yes.) Man may be able to satisfy it partially, but when he runs into great difficulties, God’s intervention is needed. If you wish to practice the truth, relying solely on human understanding of the truth and human will cannot afford you complete protection, nor can you satisfy the intentions of God and completely shun evil. The key is that man must have the determination to cooperate, and rely on the works of God for the rest. Suppose you say, “I have expended great effort to this end and done all I could. Whatever temptations or circumstances confront me in the future, my stature is only so large, and I can only do so much.” Seeing you act thus, what will God do? God will protect you from these temptations. When God protects you from these temptations, you will be able to practice the truth, your faith will become increasingly firm, and your stature will gradually grow.