Corrupt man loves to pursue status and enjoy its benefits. This holds for any person, whether you presently have status or not: It is exceedingly difficult to abandon status and be rid of its temptations. This requires much cooperation on man’s part. What does such cooperation entail? Mainly, seeking the truth, accepting the truth, understanding God’s intentions, and clearly penetrating the essence of problems. With these things, one will have the faith to overcome the temptation of status. In addition, you must think of effective ways to rid yourself of temptation and satisfy God’s intentions. You must have paths of practice. This will keep you on the correct path. Without paths of practice, you will often fall into temptation. Though you will want to take the right path, your efforts will not come to much in the end, no matter how hard you try. So, what are the temptations you often encounter? (When I achieve some success in performing my duty and win the high regard of the brothers and sisters, I feel self-satisfied and enjoy this feeling greatly. Sometimes I don’t realize it; sometimes I do realize that this state is wrong, but I still can’t rebel against it.) That is a temptation. Who else will speak? (Because I am a leader, our brothers and sisters sometimes give me special treatment.) That is also a temptation. If you are not conscious of the temptations you encounter, but handle them poorly and can’t make the correct choices, these temptations will bring you to grief and misery. As an example, say the brothers’ and sisters’ special treatment of you includes the material perks of feeding you, clothing you, housing you, and providing your daily necessities. If what you enjoy is nicer than what they give you, you’ll look down on it, and you may spurn their gifts. However, if you met a rich man and he gave you a fine suit of clothes, saying that he does not wear it, could you stand firm in the face of such temptation? You might think over the situation, saying to yourself, “He is rich, and these clothes mean nothing to him. He doesn’t wear them anyway. If he doesn’t give them to me, he’ll just pack them away somewhere. So, I will keep them.” What do you make of that decision? (They are already enjoying the benefits of status.) Why is this enjoying the benefits of status? (Because they accepted fine things.) Is it enjoying the benefits of status just to accept the fine things offered to you? If you are offered something ordinary, but it is just what you need and so you accept it, does this also count as enjoying the benefits of status? (Yes. Whenever they accept things from others to satisfy their own selfish desires, it counts.) It seems you’re not clear on this. Have you ever thought about this: If you were not a leader and had no status, would he still offer this gift? (He wouldn’t.) He certainly would not. It is because you are a leader that he makes this gift to you. The nature of the thing has changed. This is not normal charity, and herein is the problem. If you asked him, “If I were not a leader, but simply an ordinary brother or sister, would you make such a gift to me? If this item were needed by a brother or sister, would you give it to them?” He would say, “I couldn’t. I can’t give things willy-nilly to anyone. I give it to you because you are my leader. If you did not have this special status, why would I give you such a gift?” Now see how you have failed to understand the situation. You believed him when he said he had no use for that fine suit of clothes, but he was deceiving you. His purpose is to have you accept his gift so that, in the future, you will be good to him and afford him special treatment. This is the intention behind his gift. The fact is that you know in your heart that he would never give you such a gift if you had no status, but you still accept it. With your tongue, you say “Thanks be to God. I have accepted this gift from God, it is God’s benevolence to me.” Not only do you enjoy the benefits of status, but you also take enjoyment in the things of God’s chosen people, as though they were your proper due. Is this not shameless? If man has no sense of conscience and lacks all shame, then that is the problem. Is this just a matter of behavior? Is it simply wrong to accept things from others and right to refuse them? What should you do when you encounter such a situation? You must ask this giver of gifts if what they are doing conforms to the principles. Say to them, “Let us look for guidance from God’s word or the administrative decrees of the church and see if what you are doing is in line with principles. If not, I cannot accept such a gift.” If those resources inform the giver that their action violates the principles but they still wish to give you the gift, what should you do? You must act according to principles. Ordinary people can’t overcome this. They long eagerly for others to give them more, and they wish to enjoy more special treatment. If you are the right kind of person, you should immediately pray to God when faced with such a situation, saying, “Oh God, what I’m faced with today is certainly a sign of Your goodwill. It’s a lesson You’ve set out for me. I’m willing to seek the truth and act according to the principles.” The temptations facing those with status are too great, and once a temptation comes, it is hard indeed to overcome. You need the protection and assistance of God; you must pray to God, and you must also seek the truth and frequently reflect on yourself. In this way, you will feel grounded and at peace. However, if you wait until after you receive such gifts to pray, will you still feel such groundedness and peace? (Not anymore.) What will God think of you then? Will God be pleased by your actions, or will He detest them? He will detest your actions. Is the problem simply one of whether you accept a thing? (No.) So, where is the problem? The problem lies in the opinions and attitude you adopt when confronting such a situation. Do you decide for yourself or do you seek the truth? Do you have any standard of conscience? Do you have a God-fearing heart at all? Do you pray to God whenever you encounter the situation? Do you first seek to satisfy your own desires, or do you first pray and seek God’s intentions? You are revealed in this matter. How should you handle such a situation? You must have principles of practice. First, externally, you must refuse these special material considerations, these temptations. Even when you are offered something you especially desire or precisely the thing you need, you must likewise refuse it. What is meant by material things? Food, clothing, and shelter, and items for daily use are all included. These special material considerations must be refused. Why must you refuse them? Is doing so merely a matter of how you act? No; it’s a matter of your cooperative attitude. If you want to practice the truth, satisfy God, and shun temptation, you must first have this cooperative attitude. With this attitude, you will be able to shun temptation, and your conscience will be at peace. If you are offered something you want and you accept it, your heart will feel the reproach of your conscience, to some degree. However, due to your excuses and self-justifications, you will say that you ought to be given this thing, that it’s your due. And then, the pangs of your conscience won’t be so accurate or evident. Sometimes, certain reasons or thoughts and views may sway your conscience, so that its pangs are not obvious. So, is your conscience a reliable standard? It is not. This is an alarm bell that warns people. What kind of warning does it give? That there’s no security in relying on feelings of conscience alone; one must also seek the truth principles. That is what’s reliable. Without the truth to constrain them, people can still fall into temptation, giving various reasons and excuses that let them satisfy their greed for the benefits of status. Therefore, as a leader, you should adhere in your heart to this one principle: I will always refuse, always shun, and absolutely reject any special treatment. Absolute rejection is the prerequisite for shunning evil. If you possess the prerequisite for shunning evil, you are already under the protection of God to some degree. And if you have such principles of practice and hold fast to them, you are already practicing the truth and are satisfying God. You are already walking the correct path. When you are walking the correct path and already satisfying God, do you still require the test of your conscience? Acting according to principles and practicing the truth is higher than the standards of conscience. If someone has the determination to be cooperative and is able to act according to principles, they have already satisfied God. This is the standard God requires of men.

To a great extent, someone’s ability to fear God and shun evil depends on their cooperation. Cooperation is critical. As Job feared God and shunned evil, with the stature and reality he possessed, he must not have feared falling into any temptation. Had he been seated at a banquet table, he would not easily have offended God by any word or deed. So why, then, did he still refuse to attend such banquets? (He did not like them.) He disliked such occasions. This is an objective reason, but there is also a practical issue that you may not have considered. Job feared God and shunned evil. He took measures and adopted practices so that he would receive the protection of God, guarding against committing sin or offending God. He adopted human methods of cooperation. This is one side of the matter. In addition, there are some situations in which man cannot control his corrupt nature by himself, so Job would not attend occasions where he would be tempted. In this way, he avoided temptation. Now do you understand why Job would not attend such banquets? It is because such an occasion would be too great a temptation for anyone. What does it mean when something is too great of a temptation? People can commit sin and offend God at any time, wherever they may be. Alone, your God-fearing heart, and your faith in God and your determination, are not enough to allow you to free yourself of temptation. It cannot keep you from offending God when tempted. Do you understand? You must absolutely refuse the special treatment offered to you by others. You must refuse every time. What sort of way of doing things is this? At which realm of man’s problems are such principles and regulations directed? (They target man’s greedy nature.) Due to man’s corrupt disposition, he is prone to fall into temptation. Therefore, you must adopt certain principles or methods to avoid such temptations so as not to offend God. This is a powerful and effective way to cooperate. If you fail to do this, if you judge the situation and sometimes accept special treatment and other times refuse it, do you have a good grasp of the matter? (No.) Why is your grasp on it poor? (Because man has a satanic nature and can’t control himself.) Those without a God-fearing heart have no principles when confronted with such circumstances. They accept everything and never reject anything. If someone tells them that it is an offering, something dedicated to God, even then they are not afraid. They just put it in their own pocket. They dare to snatch up and commandeer such offerings, without even a bit of self-reproach. It is evident that they are entirely without a God-fearing heart, falling naturally into such conditions, as they do. Are they even believers in God? This is the consequence of seeking out comfort and ease and enjoying the benefits of status. If you often fall into temptation and do not shun it, you will inevitably be led, imperceptibly, down this path. Man’s corrupt disposition leads him to take the wrong path. Can things go well with this problem unresolved? That is why, regardless of the problems you encounter, you should adhere to the truth principles, adopting special means to cope with special problems. A rigid following of regulations is not the way. Whatever means allow you to win victory over temptation, they are acceptable.

Material temptations are easier to overcome. So long as you have food to eat, clothes to wear, and a contented heart, you can do it. Then, such temptations are easily vanquished. The temptations of fame, gain, and status, however, are the hardest of all to overcome. For example, when two people are working together, if the other person’s status is lower than yours, if your status is higher than his, you will feel glad. But if your status is lower than his, you will be unhappy. Your heart will be in discomfort, you will feel constrained, negative, and weak, and you will not pray. Is this problem easy to solve? It does not have an easy solution. People can reject and shun material temptations, avoiding their contamination, but status, fame, gain, vanity, and reputation are the hardest to overcome. Although it is not easy, there is in fact a solution. As long as you can seek the truth, pray to God, and see through the emptiness of fame, gain, and status to penetrate to their essence, you will have the confidence to discard fame, gain, and status. As such, you will not fall into their temptations. Humans have a corrupt nature, which causes them to reveal and live out various corrupt dispositions. This leads them to resist and rebel against God. That which they live out is inhumane and inconsistent with truth. Whether it is human arrogance and self-righteousness that refuse to bow to the truth, or human deceitfulness that acts with crooked intent, or human greed, ambition, and desire, what is it that gives rise to all these vices? (Satan’s corrupt disposition.) They arise from the corrupt disposition of Satan and are produced by the satanic nature that controls man. Man’s striving after status is just one manifestation of this. This manifestation, like man’s arrogant disposition, like his rebellion and resistance to God, arises from his satanic nature. What method can be used to solve this? You must still use the most basic method. As long as you follow the way of God and walk the path of pursuing the truth, all these problems can be solved. When you have no status, you can dissect yourself often and come to know yourself. Others can benefit from this. When you have status and can still dissect and understand yourself often, allowing people to see your strengths, that you understand the truth, that you have practical experience, and that you truly change, can’t others still benefit from this? No matter whether you have status or not, so long as you can practice the truth and have genuine experiential testimony, allowing people to understand God’s intentions and the truth from your experience, doesn’t this benefit people? So, what does status mean to you? In fact, status is simply an extra, additional thing, like a piece of clothing or a hat. It is just an ornament. It has no real use, and its presence doesn’t affect anything. Whether you have status or not, you are still the same person. Whether people can understand the truth and gain the truth and life has nothing to do with status. As long as you do not take status as too great a matter, it cannot constrain you. If you love status and place special emphasis on it, always treating it as a matter of importance, then it will have you under its control; you will not be willing to open up, lay yourself bare, know yourself, or set aside your leadership role to act, speak and interact with others and perform your duty. What sort of problem is this? Is this not a matter of being constrained by status? This happens because you speak and act from a place of status and can’t step down from your high horse. Aren’t you just tormenting yourself by doing this? If you really understand the truth, and if you can have status without holding yourself like you do, but can instead focus on how to perform your duties well, do everything you should and fulfill the duty you ought, and if you see yourself as an ordinary brother or sister, then will you not be constrained by status? When you are not constrained by status and have a normal life entry, would you still compare yourself against others? When others occupy a higher status, would you still feel discomfort? You must seek the truth and free yourself of the constraints of status and the constraints of all other people, events, and things. There is nothing better than doing your duty well. Only then will you be a person who possesses the truth reality.

All corrupted humans suffer from a common problem: When they have no status, they do not put on airs when interacting or speaking with anyone, nor do they adopt a certain style or tone in their speech; they are simply ordinary and normal, and do not need to package themselves. They do not feel any psychological pressure, and can fellowship openly and from the heart. They are approachable and are easy to interact with; others feel that they are very good people. As soon as they attain status, they become high and mighty, they ignore ordinary people, nobody can approach them; they feel that they have a sort of nobility, and that they and ordinary people are cut from different cloths. They look down on ordinary people, put on airs when they speak, and stop fellowshipping openly with others. Why do they no longer fellowship openly? They feel that they now have status, and are leaders. They think that leaders must have a certain image, be a bit loftier than ordinary people, have more stature and are better able to assume responsibility; they believe that compared to ordinary people, leaders must have more patience, be able to suffer and expend more, and be able to withstand any temptation from Satan. Even if their parents or other family members die, they feel they must have the self-control to not cry, or that they must cry in secret at the very least, out of sight of others, so that no one can see any of their shortcomings, defects, or weaknesses. They even feel that leaders cannot let anyone know if they have become negative; instead, they must hide all such things. They believe this is how one with status should act. When they repress themselves to this extent, has status not become their God, their Lord? And this being so, do they still possess normal humanity? When they have these ideas—when they put themselves in this box, and put on this kind of act—have they not become enamored with status? Whenever another is stronger and better than them, this touches their vital weakness. Can they overcome the flesh? Can they treat the other person as is proper? Certainly not. To free yourself from status’s control over you, what must you do first? You must first purge it from your intentions, your thoughts, and from your heart. How is this achieved? Before, when you were without status, you would ignore those who were not appealing to you. Now that you have status, if you see someone who is unappealing, or who has issues, you feel responsible for helping them, and so spend more time fellowshipping with them, trying to solve some of the practical problems they have. And what is the feeling in your heart when you do such things? It is a feeling of joy and peace. So, too, should you confide in people and more often open up to them when you find yourself in difficulty or experience failure, fellowshipping your problems and weaknesses, how you rebelled against God, and how you then emerged from this, and were able to satisfy God’s intentions. And what is the effect of confiding in them in this way? It is, without doubt, positive. No one will look down on you—and they may well envy your ability to go through these experiences. Some people always think that when people have status, they should act more like officials and speak in a certain way so as to be taken seriously and respected. Is this way of thinking correct? If you are able to realize that this way of thinking is wrong, then you should pray to God and rebel against fleshly things. Do not put on airs, and do not walk the path of hypocrisy. As soon as you have such a thought, you should address it by seeking the truth. If you do not seek the truth, this thought, this viewpoint, will take form and become rooted in your heart. As a result, it will come to dominate you and you will disguise yourself and craft your image to such an extent that no one will be able to see you through it or understand your thoughts. You will talk to others as through a mask that hides your true heart from them. You must learn to let others see your heart, and learn to open your heart to others and become close to them. You must rebel against the wants of the flesh and conduct yourself according to God’s requirements. In this way, your heart will know peace and happiness. Whatever events befall you, first reflect on what problems exist in your own ideology. If you still wish to construct an image for yourself and disguise yourself, you should immediately pray to God: “Oh God! I again want to put on a disguise. I am once again deceptively scheming. What a true devil I am! I must truly be detestable to You! I am now completely disgusted by myself. I beseech You to rebuke, discipline, and punish me.” You must pray, bring your attitude out into the open, and rely on God to expose it, dissect it, and restrict it. If you thus dissect and restrict it, your actions will produce no problems because your corrupt disposition is thwarted and does not reveal itself. At this time, what emotions are in your heart? At the very least, you will feel some release. Your heart will be joyful and at peace. Your pain will be lessened, and you will not suffer from refinement. In the worst case, there will be times when you momentarily feel a bit lost and think to yourself, “I am a leader, a person of status and standing, how can I be just like ordinary people? How can I converse with ordinary people in a heartfelt, genuine, and open way? This would be such a lowering of myself!” As you see, this is a bit troublesome. Man’s corrupt disposition cannot be shed entirely all at once, nor can it be completely solved in a short period of time. You thought that solving your corrupt disposition would be so simple, that it’s like what people imagine it to be—that once they fellowship clearly on the truth and recognize their corrupt disposition, then they will be able to promptly cast it off. It is not so simple a thing. The process by which man practices the truth is the process of fighting against his corrupt disposition. Man’s individual will, imagination, and extravagant desires are not completely resolved by rebelling against and overcoming them once and for all through prayer. Rather, they can only be finally abandoned after many repeated battles. Only when one can practice the truth will this process truly bear fruit. Especially in larger things, the battle in your heart will be even more intense, with endless tossing and turning that can sometimes last as long as one or two months, sometimes six months or even a year. Man’s corrupt disposition is quite stubborn. No sort of corrupt disposition can be resolved through one or two fellowships on the truth. It will fight against you again and again, and you must continue to pursue the truth until you clearly understand the truth, thoroughly know your corrupt disposition, and begin to hate the flesh and hate Satan. Then, practice of the truth will become an ordinary thing to you, something that is natural and effortless. This is what it means to overcome the flesh and win victory over Satan. During the battle, people must pray to God at all times and spend more time reading God’s words. They must never go to nonbelievers or Satans and devils to find the way. They must rely on and look up to God. They must seek the truth and engage in fellowship on the truth in accordance with God’s words. Only when they truly understand the truth can they overcome the flesh and overcome Satan. How does God view this? God sees your heart. He sees that you love the truth, you fear God, and you are willing to cast off unrighteousness and shun evil. Although your corrupt disposition has produced thoughts, ideas, and intents in you, these thoughts and intents do not control your behavior, they do not knock down and trample on your will. Ultimately, you are able to defeat them, and God will remember you. If you practice this frequently, your inner state will improve. At what point can it be said that you have completely overcome this aspect of your corrupt disposition, that you have changed in this aspect of your disposition and entered into the truth reality? That is, although bad thoughts and ideas may sometimes still enter your mind, and they still produce some intents and desires, these things no longer hold sway over your heart. You already feel that these things are not important, and you can recognize them as soon as they emerge. You do not need to artificially restrain and rebel against them, and you do not need to intentionally ask God to scrutinize, discipline, and punish you. Such methods are not necessary for you. You can easily overcome it and give it up. Your heart is not discomforted and you feel no loss. This is well. You now possess stature and are of a changed disposition. Have you now gained entry to some extent? Have you changed somewhat? (No.) Then your stature is truly too lowly, and you still have to work hard to pursue truth and eat and drink the words of God. Then, when such things happen to you again, you will know how to practice the truth and act in accord with principles. You will know what you must do to stand firm in your witness. Then, you will truly possess stature. Only those who can practice the truth and stand firm in their witness can enter into the truth reality. This is currently beyond you. You are still in the stage of groping. Speaking of these actual situations, you feel that you have all these problems, yet you have never sought the truth to solve them. Does this mean that your stature is too small? If you have not entered into the truth reality, can you have life? You have not yet obtained the truth and you do not yet have life. If you live only by the life of the flesh and live only by your satanic disposition, then you are one living under the power of Satan. You have not yet attained God’s salvation. Salvation is not as simple as people imagine when they think that, if you can spout words and doctrines and abide by some regulations, you are saved. You must truly know yourself, be able to cast off some corrupt dispositions, be able to see through to the essence of reputation and status, be able to let go of status, and be able to truly submit to God. Only in this way is there salvation.

In fact, the solution to the problem of status is the same as the solution to other problems. These problems are all manifestations and revelations of corrupt dispositions. They are all human preferences and pursuits. What is My meaning in this? Provided you rid yourself of your corrupt disposition, status will not be a problem for you. People compete with each other for status, saying “You may stand above me today, but tomorrow I will raise myself above you.” What is the problem here? Does it arise solely due to status? (No.) What gave rise to it? (Man’s corrupt disposition.) This is correct. This problem arises from man’s corrupt disposition. Once this corrupt disposition is resolved, all these problems will be solved. In the end, those who want to choose the path of the pursuit of truth must focus on self-reflection and knowing themselves in all things. They must resolve their corrupt dispositions before they can embark on the path of the pursuit of the truth. If they fail to resolve their corrupt disposition, it will throw up many difficulties and obstacles. Even though they do their duties, they will go through the motions but achieve no result. To solve these problems, you must make every effort in the pursuit of truth, make every effort to know your corrupt disposition, and make every effort to solve problems. Don’t just say, “It is enough to pursue the truth, pray more, and read more of the word of God.” This is too vague. Without a practical path, it is not enough. Specific problems should be dealt with specifically. Do not just apply regulations by rote. Truth is a living, practical thing, and the haphazard application of regulations is not the way. You must solve practical problems according to the truth principle. If one is unable to solve practical problems by using the truth, such a person is not qualified to be a leader and worker. Anyone who cannot use the truth to solve problems is not a person who understands the truth. Even though they may become a leader and worker, they will be unable to use the truth to solve problems, they will not have the truth, and it will be impossible for them to act in accord with principles. Such a leader and worker has nothing at all of the truth reality.

February 16, 2017