Words of Almighty God of the Last Days

It is something within a corrupt disposition to handle things so flippantly and irresponsibly: It is scumminess people often refer to. In all matters they do, they do it to the point of “that’s about right” and “close enough”; it is an attitude of “maybe,” “possibly,” and “four-out-of-five”; they do things perfunctorily, are satisfied to do the minimum, and are satisfied with bluffing their way through; they see no point in taking things seriously or being meticulous, and they see less point in seeking the truth principles. Is this not something within a corrupt disposition? Is it a manifestation of normal humanity? It is not. To call it arrogance is right, and to call it dissolute is also entirely apt—but to capture it perfectly, the only word that will do is “scummy.” Most people have scumminess within them, just to different degrees. In all matters, they wish to do things in a perfunctory and slipshod manner, and there is a whiff of deceit in everything they do. They cheat others when they can, cut corners when they are able, save time when they can. They think to themselves, “So long as I avoid being revealed, and cause no problems, and am not called to account, then I can muddle through this. I don’t have to do a very good job, that’s too much trouble!” Such people learn nothing to mastery, and they do not apply themselves or suffer and pay a price in their studies. They want only to scratch the surface of a subject and then call themselves proficient at it, believing they have learned all there is to know, and then rely on this to muddle their way through. Is this not an attitude people have toward other people, events, and things? Is it a good attitude? It is not. Simply put, it is to “muddle through.” Such scumminess exists in all of corrupt mankind. People with scumminess in their humanity take the view and attitude of “muddling through” on anything they do. Are such people able to do their duty properly? No. Are they able to do things with principle? Even more unlikely.

—The Word, Vol. 4. Exposing Antichrists. Item Eight: They Would Have Others Submit Only to Them, Not the Truth or God (Part Two)

“Scummy” contains many meanings—being base, depraved, sordid, selfish, immoral, not behaving oneself, not being open or aboveboard in one’s actions, and instead acting in a sneaky way, and only doing improper things. These are the various behaviors and manifestations of scummy people. For example, if a normal person wants to do something, as long as it is proper, they go about doing it in an open manner, and if it violates the law they will give up and not do it. Scummy people are not the same; they will achieve their goals by hook or by crook and have strategies to countermeasure the limitations of the law. They get around the law and seek ways to achieve their goals, regardless of whether doing so is in line with ethics, morality, or humanity, and regardless of what the consequences are. They do not care about any of these things, and only seek to achieve their goals by any means possible. This is being “scummy.” Do scummy people have any integrity or dignity? (No.) Are they noble or lowly people? (Lowly.) In what way are they lowly? (There is no moral baseline to their comportment.) That is right, this kind of person has no baseline or principles in their comportment; they do not consider consequences, and just do whatever they want. They do not care about the law, about morality, about whether their consciences can accept their actions, or whether anyone denounces, judges, or condemns them. They are indifferent to all of this, and do not mind as long as they are gaining benefits and enjoying themselves. Their way of doing things is depraved, their thinking is despicable, and both are shameful. This is what it means to be scummy. … So, what exactly does being scummy refer to? What are its primary symptoms and manifestations? See whether My summary is accurate or not. What are scummy people equivalent to? They are equivalent to untamed, poorly raised, wild animals, and the primary manifestations of this are arrogance, brutishness, a lack of restraint, acting recklessly, not accepting the truth in the slightest, as well as doing whatever one pleases, not listening to anyone, or allowing anyone to manage them, daring to go against anyone, and having no regard for anyone else. Tell Me, are the various manifestations of being scummy severe? (They are.) At the very least, this disposition of arrogance, of lacking reason, and of acting recklessly, is very severe. Even if a person like this appears to not do things that judge or resist God, because of their arrogant disposition, it is extremely likely that they will do evil and resist Him. All of their actions are revelations of their corrupt dispositions. When a person becomes scummy to a certain point, they become a bandit and a devil, and bandits and devils will never accept the truth—they can only be destroyed.

—The Word, Vol. 4. Exposing Antichrists. Item Four: They Exalt and Testify About Themselves

How can one tell the difference between noble and base people? Simply look at their attitude and actions toward duties, and look at how they treat things and behave when issues arise. People with integrity and dignity are meticulous, conscientious, and diligent in their actions, and they are willing to pay a price. People without integrity and dignity are careless and slipshod in their actions, always up to some trick, always wanting to just muddle through. No matter what technique they study, they do not learn it diligently, they are unable to learn it, and no matter how much time they spend studying it, they remain utterly ignorant. These are people of low character. Most people are perfunctory in doing their duties. What disposition is at play there? (Scumminess.) How do scummy people treat their duty? Certainly, they don’t have the correct attitude toward it, and they’re certainly perfunctory with it. This means they don’t have normal humanity. Seriously scummy people are like animals. It’s like keeping a dog as a pet: If you don’t keep an eye on it, it’ll chew things up and destroy all your furniture and appliances. That would be a loss. Dogs are animals; they don’t think to treat things with loving care, and you can’t argue with them—you just have to handle them. If you don’t, but let an animal run riot and disturb your life, that shows that there’s something missing in your humanity. You’re not much different from an animal, then. Your IQ is too low—you’re a good-for-nothing. So, how do you handle them well, then? You need to think of a way to restrain them within certain parameters, or keep them caged, letting them out at two or three set times each day, so that they get enough activity in. That will curb their wanton chewing, and provide them with exercise, too, to keep them healthy. That way, the dog is well handled, and your environment is protected, too. If a person can’t handle the things they encounter and doesn’t have the correct attitude, they’re missing something in their humanity. It can’t meet the standard of normal humanity.

—The Word, Vol. 4. Exposing Antichrists. Item Eight: They Would Have Others Submit Only to Them, Not the Truth or God (Part Two)

Dissolute and unrestrained people employ the same choice of words as bandits and hooligans of the nonbelieving world; they particularly enjoy imitating the speech and style of stars and negative figures from society, with most of their language carrying a scummy tone that feels like something a hooligan or a hoodlum would say. For instance, when a nonbeliever arrives, uttering a few odd phrases after knocking on the door, the brothers and sisters say, “Something’s off; why is it this person seems like a scout or a spy?” Although they can’t be sure at the moment, it makes most people feel uneasy. Yet, the person who is dissolute and unrestrained speaks boldly, even with a certain air, saying, “A scout? Doesn’t scare me! Why fear them? If you’re scared, you don’t have to go out. I’ll go see what their deal is.” Look how courageous and bold they are. Would you speak like this? (No, this is not how normal people talk; it’s like something a bandit would say.) Bandits speak differently from normal people; they are especially insolent and unreasonable. People learn the language of their kind; streetwise people adopt the popular lingo of society, bandits and hooligans their jargon, and disbelievers speak just like nonbelievers. Good, dignified, upright people feel disgust and loathing upon hearing the speech of nonbelievers; none of them try to imitate that kind of speech. Some disbelievers, even after believing for ten or twenty years, still use the language of nonbelievers, deliberately choosing such speech, and even their gestures, the look in their eyes, their expressions, and their body language while speaking mimic those of nonbelievers. Can such individuals be pleasing in the eyes of brothers and sisters in the church? (No.) Most brothers and sisters find them disagreeable and uncomfortable to look at. What do you think God feels about them? (Detestation.) The answer is clear: detestation. From their living out, their pursuits, and the people, events, and things they revere in their hearts, it is evident that their humanity does not embody dignity or uprightness and falls far short of devoutness and fitting the decorum of the saints. It is rare to hear from their mouths the words that believers or saints should speak, and the words that edify others and convey integrity and dignity; they are not likely to say these. What they revere, aspire to, and pursue in their hearts is fundamentally incompatible with what saints should pursue and aspire to, making it difficult for that which they outwardly live out, their speech, and their behavior to be restrained. Asking them to be restrained, not dissolute or indulgent, and to maintain dignity and uprightness is a tall order. Let alone living like someone with humanity and reason who understands the truth and enters the truth reality, they cannot even achieve being a normal person with integrity and dignity who fits the decorum of the saints, abides by the rules, and appears rational on the outside. Previously, there was a person who went to the countryside to spread the gospel and saw that some brothers and sisters had impoverished families and lived in run-down houses. He sarcastically and mockingly said, “This house is so run-down, it’s not fit for people; it’s barely suitable for pigs. You should move out quickly!” The brothers and sisters responded, “Moving out is easy enough, but who will provide us with another house to live in?” He spoke recklessly and impulsively, saying whatever came to mind without considering the impact it might have on others. This is having a scummy nature. The brothers and sisters asked, “If we move out, who will give us a house to live in? Do you have a house?” He had no reply. When you see someone in difficulty, you must be able to resolve their difficulty before speaking; if you speak recklessly without the ability to resolve their difficulty, what consequence does it bring? Is this a problem of being too frank and outspoken? Absolutely not. The problem is that their scumminess is too severe; this is someone who is dissolute and unrestrained. Such people completely lack any conception of integrity, dignity, consideration, tolerance, care, respect, understanding, sympathy, compassion, thoughtfulness, assistance, and so on—qualities essential to normal humanity, which people should possess. Not only do they lack these qualities, but in their interactions with others, upon seeing someone’s difficulties, they can ridicule, mock, and deride; not only are they incapable of understanding or assisting them, but they also bring sadness, helplessness, pain, and even trouble to them. For those with such severe scumminess, most people see them clearly and endure them repeatedly. Do you think such people can have genuine repentance? I don’t think it’s likely. Given their nature essence, they are not lovers of the truth, so how could they accept being pruned, being disciplined? Nonbelievers have terms to describe such behavior as “sticking to one’s own way” or “walking one’s own path regardless of what others say”—what ridiculous logic is this? These so-called famous sayings and idioms are often viewed as positive things in this society, which twists the facts and confuses right and wrong.

—The Word, Vol. 5. The Responsibilities of Leaders and Workers. The Responsibilities of Leaders and Workers (25)

Many people perform their duties in a perfunctory way, never taking it seriously, as if they are working for nonbelievers. They do things in a crude, superficial, indifferent and negligent way, as if everything is a joke. Why is this? They are nonbelievers laboring; disbelievers performing duties. These people are exceedingly roguish; they are dissolute and unrestrained, and they are no different to nonbelievers. When they do things for themselves, they are certainly not perfunctory, so why then are they not in the least bit earnest or diligent when it comes to performing their duties? Whatever they do, whatever duty they perform, there is a quality of playfulness and mischief. These people are always perfunctory and have a quality of deceit about them. Do people like this have humanity? They certainly do not have humanity; neither do they have the least degree of conscience and reason. Like wild donkeys or wild horses, they require constant management and supervision. They deceive and trick God’s house. Does this mean they possess any sincere belief in Him? Are they expending themselves for Him? They certainly fall short and are not qualified to labor. If such people were employed by anyone else, they would be fired within a few days. In God’s house it is entirely accurate to say that they are laborers and hired workers, and they can only be eliminated. Many people are frequently perfunctory while performing their duties. When faced with being pruned, they still refuse to accept the truth, stubbornly argue their point, and even complain that God’s house is unfair to them, lacking mercy and tolerance. Is this not unreasonable? To put it more objectively, this is an arrogant disposition, and they lack the slightest conscience and reason. Those who truly believe in God must at least be able to accept the truth and do things without violating conscience and reason. People who are unable to accept or submit to being pruned, are too arrogant, self-righteous, and simply unreasonable. To call them beasts is not an exaggeration because they are utterly indifferent to everything they do. They do things exactly as they please and without any regard for the consequences; if problems arise, they do not care. People like this are not qualified to labor. Because they treat their duties in this way, others can’t stand to watch them and lack confidence in them. Is God then able to have confidence in them? By not even meeting this minimum standard, they are unqualified to labor and can only be eliminated.

—The Word, Vol. 3. The Discourses of Christ of the Last Days. Part Three

Those things that touch on humanity—the attitudes, thoughts, and opinions that people reveal in their treatment of other people, events, and things—are very telling. Of what do they tell? They tell of how one can see a person’s character, of whether they are a decent and upright person. What is it to be decent and upright? Is being traditional decent and upright? Is being civil and well-mannered decent and upright? (No.) Is following rules to the letter decent and upright? (No.) None of this is. So, what is it to be decent and upright? If someone is a decent and upright person, then, no matter what they do, they do it with a certain mentality: “No matter whether I like doing this thing or not, nor whether it falls within the scope of my interests or is something in which I have little interest—it was given to me to do, and I will do it well. I will begin studying it from scratch, and, with my feet on the ground, I’ll undertake it one step at a time. In the end, no matter how far I’ve gotten in the task, I’ll have done my best.” At the very least, you must possess a sort of the attitude and mentality that is down-to-earth. If, from the moment you take over a task, you do it in a muddle and do not care about it in the least—if you do not treat it earnestly, and do not refer to relevant resources, make detailed preparations, or seek and consult with others; and if, beyond that, you do not increase the time you spend studying this thing so that you may constantly improve at it, attaining mastery of this skill or profession, but maintain a cavalier attitude toward it and an attitude of just getting by in your treatment of it, then this is a problem in your humanity. Is this not just muddling along? Some say, “I don’t like it when you give me this kind of duty.” If you do not like it, do not accept it—and if you do accept it, you should approach it with an earnest, responsible attitude. That is the sort of attitude you should have. Is this not what people with normal humanity ought to possess? This is what it is to be decent and upright. In this aspect of normal humanity, you need, at the very least, attentiveness, conscientiousness, and a willingness to pay a price, along with the attitudes of being down to earth, earnest, and responsible. To have these things is enough.

—The Word, Vol. 4. Exposing Antichrists. Item Eight: They Would Have Others Submit Only to Them, Not the Truth or God (Part Two)