You must know how to differentiate God’s work from the work of man. What can you see in the work of man? There are many elements of man’s experience in his work; what man expresses is what he is. God’s own work also expresses what He is, but His being is different from man’s. Man’s being represents man’s experience and life (what man experiences or encounters in his life, or the philosophies for living he has), and people living in different environments express different beings. Whether you have experiences of society and how you actually live in your family and experience within it can be seen in what you express, whereas you cannot see in the work of God incarnate whether He has social experiences. He is well aware of the substance of man and can reveal all kinds of practices pertaining to all kinds of people. He is even better at revealing the corrupt dispositions and the rebellious behavior of humans. He does not live among worldly people, but He is aware of the nature of mortals and all the corruptions of worldly people. This is His being. Though He does not deal with the world, He knows the rules of dealing with the world, because He understands human nature fully. He knows about the Spirit’s work that man’s eyes cannot see and man’s ears cannot hear, both of today and of the past. This includes wisdom that is not a philosophy for living and wonders that are hard for people to fathom. This is His being, open to people and also hidden from people. What He expresses is not the being of an extraordinary person, but the inherent attributes and being of the Spirit. He does not travel the world but knows everything of it. He contacts the “anthropoids” who have no knowledge or insight, but He expresses words that are higher than knowledge and above great men. He lives within a group of obtuse and numb people who are without humanity and who do not understand the conventions and life of humanity, but He can ask mankind to live out normal humanity, at the same time revealing the base and low humanity of mankind. All this is His being, higher than the being of any flesh-and-blood person. For Him, it is unnecessary to experience a complicated, cumbersome, and sordid social life to do the work He needs to do and reveal the substance of corrupt mankind thoroughly. A sordid social life does not edify His flesh. His work and words only reveal man’s disobedience and do not provide man with experience and lessons for dealing with the world. He does not need to investigate society or man’s family when He supplies man with life. Exposing and judging man is not an expression of the experiences of His flesh; it is His revelation of man’s unrighteousness after having known man’s disobedience for a long time and abhorring mankind’s corruption. The work He does is all meant to reveal His disposition to man and to express His being. Only He can do this work; it is not something a flesh-and-blood person could achieve.

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God’s Work and Man’s Work

Christ Expresses What the Spirit Is

I

God incarnate knows man’s essence, reveals all things all people do, most of all, man’s corrupt disposition and rebellious conduct too. He does not live with worldly ones, but knows their nature, corruption. This is what He is. Though He does not deal with the world, yet He knows every rule to engage with it. For He understands mankind, fully understands their nature.

II

He knows about the Spirit’s working of today and the past as well, that human eyes just cannot see, that human ears just cannot hear. This shows wonders man can’t comprehend, wisdom that is not philosophy. This is what He is, both revealed and hidden from man. His expression is not that of an extraordinary man, but the inherent being and attributes of the Spirit.

III

He does not travel round the world, yet knows all things about it. He meets with those with no knowledge or insight, yet His words are above great men. He lives among the dumb and numb people, who don’t know human ways, how to live. But He can ask them to live out true human life, while revealing how low, how base they are! This is what He is, higher than those of flesh and blood. Exposing, judging man is not from His experience. Knowing, hating man’s disobedience, He reveals their unrighteousness. The work that He does serves to reveal His disposition and being to man. No flesh can do such work, but Christ, oh.

Adapted from The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God’s Work and Man’s Work