Fellowship From the Brother Above – August 1, 2025 (Part One)

Now, most of those who have accepted Almighty God have been pursuing the truth. After reading God’s words, their hearts feel brighter and they are full of vigor, but when they do their duties, they feel that their strength is not equal to their will. What is the problem here? (The words of God they have read have not taken root in their hearts, so after a while, they lose their vigor.) Some people have read many of God’s words and feel that they understand some truths, but why can they not solve the difficulties they encounter in their duties, and why can they not answer the questions they encounter when preaching the gospel? (Because they understand too few truths.) You may all know that this is because of a lack of the truth. In fact, there are many truths that people seem to understand in terms of doctrine, but when it comes to solving real problems, they cannot apply them. This is because merely understanding words, doctrines, and spiritual theories cannot solve real problems. Today, we will mainly fellowship on how to solve this problem. Nowadays, those who believe in God all understand that by following Almighty God, they can gain all truths. If they believe in the names of Jehovah and the Lord Jesus, they will not gain any truth. Are you clear on why believing in the names of Jehovah and the Lord Jesus does not lead to gaining the truth? Why have religious people read the Bible for two thousand years and still not been able to gain the truth? This allows us to see that the religious world indeed has no truth, and that it is far behind us. So why are they so far behind us? Is it because they are wrong to believe in the name of the Lord Jesus? Of course, there is nothing wrong with believing in the Lord Jesus. Then what is the reason? (They have not kept up with God’s new work, and they have not followed the footsteps of the Lamb.) This is correct. The Book of Revelation in the Bible prophesies that when Christ comes in the last days, He will open the scroll. What does “open the scroll” refer to? It refers to disclosing the mysteries and aims of God’s management work to save mankind, and expressing all the truths that mankind needs to be completely saved and perfected by God in the last days, thereby leading God’s chosen people into all truths. This is what is meant by opening the scroll. The work of Almighty God has fulfilled this prophecy. Almighty God has expressed all truths and opened the scroll. Only by following Almighty God can one enter into and gain all these truths. If you believe in Jehovah God and the Lord Jesus in the religious world, you will not gain the truth even if you believe your whole life. You will never gain the truth. Some people do not understand, and they wonder, “Are the words expressed by Jehovah God not the truth? Are the words expressed by the Lord Jesus not the truth? How can we not gain the truth by believing in Jehovah God and the Lord Jesus?” Tell me, are the words of Jehovah God and the Lord Jesus the truth? (They are.) Whether in the Age of Law or the Age of Grace, the words spoken by God are the truth. Since they are all the truth, why is it that by believing in Jehovah God and the Lord Jesus, one cannot gain the truth? This is a question that people should ponder. Although the words of the Lord Jesus are all the truth, can you understand the Lord’s words thoroughly? Can you practice the Lord’s words? Can you make the Lord’s words your life? You cannot do any of these things, and no pastor or elder can either. No one can do these things, because the work God did in the Age of Grace wasn’t the work of perfecting people. God’s plan is to do the work of perfecting people in the last days. To be specific, the work of perfecting people is the work of changing people’s dispositions, and of working the truth into people to become their life. In the last days, Almighty God has expressed all the truths that corrupt mankind needs to be saved and perfected, and He works these truths into people to become their life. This is the work of perfecting people that the Holy Spirit does in the last days. God did not do this work in the Age of Grace, nor did He do this work in the Age of Law. Therefore, by believing in Jehovah God and the Lord Jesus, you cannot gain the truth as your life, and you cannot be saved or perfected. You must see through to this matter! Almighty God has come in the last days. If you do not follow Almighty God or accept and submit to the work of Almighty God, you cannot be saved, and you will never have the opportunity to enter the kingdom of heaven. You must see through to this matter. This is the greatest vision that man should understand. If you cannot see through to this matter and do not understand this vision, then no matter how many years you have believed in God, even if your family has all believed in God for generations, it is useless, and all your previous efforts will be for nothing. Is that understood? (Yes.) Then some people say, “We have believed in Almighty God for several years, and we have read many of God’s words. Why do we still feel that we have only come to understand doctrines and that we haven’t gained the truth? Why can we never solve real problems in our duties?” Do you think you have gained the truth just by reading God’s words? Is gaining the truth such a simple matter? (No.) According to people’s notions and imaginings, they think, “As long as we read more of God’s words and can verbally speak of our knowledge of the truth, we understand the truth and possess the truth reality.” Then why can you still not solve real problems in your duties? Why do you shrink back when you encounter a little difficulty? Why do you become negative when you feel a little pressure? This is because you have not gained the truth, and because you do not yet have the truth as your life. Then what result can be achieved by having the truth as your life? First, with the truth as your life, you can know yourself and repent and change. Second, with the truth as your life, you will have strength, you will be able to rebel against your flesh and triumph over Satan, and you will be able to practice the truth and achieve submission to God. Third, with the truth as your life, there will be no problems you cannot solve, no truths you cannot practice, and no testimonies you cannot stand firm in. If a person, in their pursuit of the truth, can achieve these results, then the truth will not only have become their life, but it will also have become their sovereign, their everything. Gaining the truth brings such great results.

So what kind of person can become an overcomer? Someone who has gained the truth. When a person has gained the truth, they can rebel against their flesh and triumph over Satan, and they can stand firm in their testimony and satisfy God. This is what it means to become an overcomer. Then what does standing firm in one’s testimony refer to? It refers to being able to follow God’s will and complete God’s commission. This is bearing beautiful and resounding testimony for God. Throughout the ages, who has borne beautiful and resounding testimony for God? Regarding the bearing of testimony, there were standards in the Age of Law, and there were standards in the Age of Grace. According to the standards of the Age of Law, Job bore resounding testimony for God. His most obvious characteristic was that he had true faith. Therefore, in the Age of Law, as long as people had true faith in God, they could bear beautiful and resounding testimony. Then in what way was Job’s true faith mainly manifested? He believed in God his whole life and was blessed by God. He clearly recognized that “Everything I have comes from God; it is all a gift from God. My children and my family were given to me by God, and my wealth was also given to me by God. It was not earned through my own labor; I do not have such great wisdom and ability. All that I have received is God’s blessing.” After he had come to see this matter clearly, he came to a conclusion: A person’s whole life, whether they are rich or poor, whether they receive blessings or suffer misfortune, is inseparable from God’s sovereignty. Everything is ordained by God. Job had this understanding. When he had this understanding, he had true faith, and it was at this time that God’s trial came upon him. God used this trial to perfect Job’s faith, and also to have Job bear witness before Satan, and to have Job’s faith be confirmed. This trial stripped Job of the wealth he had gained in his life. What kind of attitude did Job have? He was silent for several days before he spoke. He had been pondering this matter in his heart, thinking, “All my wealth was given to me by God; there’s no question about that. Why has it suddenly all been taken away? Is it this gang of robbers who want to strip me of everything? No, this is permitted by God, and since God has permitted it, it is God who has stripped me of everything. God bestowed all this on me, and today God has taken it away. What is at the heart of this matter? Although I do not know why God has done this, in this life of mine, I have enjoyed God’s grace so much. God has been truly gracious to me, and it is right for God to take these things away from me. No matter what God does, He should be blessed, He should be praised, and He should be thanked.” After he had thought this matter through, he said the words, “Jehovah gave, and Jehovah has taken away; blessed be the name of Jehovah.” As soon as Satan heard Job’s words, it was shamed. When Job spoke these words, not only was God listening, but so were the angels, Satan, and people. When the trial befell Job, several of his friends were by his side watching. What were these people thinking? “Job, you always used to testify to God to us, saying how God had been gracious to you, blessed you, and protected you. With this having come upon you, let’s see what you have to say now.” Therefore, when Job spoke as he did, those people found what he said to be inconceivable, “Has your faith taken you to the point of confusion? Have you gone mad? What do you mean, Jehovah gave, and Jehovah has taken away? Is that not a contradiction?” Job bore such resounding testimony, yet these people could not see or understand it, and they even judged Job based on their own notions and imaginings. They truly did not have the slightest bit of the truth. They were truly ignorant and arrogant! But in God’s eyes, Job’s testimony shamed Satan and satisfied God, so God blessed Job twofold. The wealth that Job later enjoyed was double what he had before, and his lifespan was also doubled. In the end, he died, being full of days. Thus, Job’s testimony in the Age of Law was a model, an example, that is, the beautiful and resounding testimony spoken of by God. In the Age of Grace, the testimony borne by Peter was much higher than Job’s. In what way was Peter’s testimony higher? Job only recognized that “Jehovah gave, and Jehovah has taken away; blessed be the name of Jehovah,” but Peter’s testimony was not just a testimony of true faith like Job’s. Peter had true love for God. He achieved love for God to the extreme, and submission unto death. Tell me, was Peter’s life experience deep or not? (It was.) Peter’s testimony was much higher than Job’s. Peter achieved love for God to the extreme, that is, among the love that man possesses, his love for God reached its peak, its zenith, and his submission to God also reached its zenith. To what degree has submission reached its zenith? It is in being able to submit unto death, to offer up one's life when God requires one to die. The most precious thing to a person is their own life. If you can offer up your life and bear testimony of submission unto death, this is submission to the highest point. Some people who believe in God in mainland China, after being arrested by the great red dragon and being brutally tortured, can’t hold out any longer. They worry, “The CCP treats believers in Almighty God as if they can be beaten to death with nothing being done about it. They are beating me so brutally now. Will I be beaten to death? If I die, can I still see the day of God’s glory? Can I still see the appearance of the beauty of the kingdom? No, I cannot die!” They cannot bring themselves to die, so in the end, they kneel and surrender to Satan, signing the Three Statements, and betraying God. Among these people, there were some who had believed in God for ten or twenty years. No matter how much enthusiasm they had before, because they cherished their lives, they lost their testimony and surrendered before Satan. How can there be any submission in this! In God’s eyes, they not only did not testify to God, but they also brought shame upon God. God spurns these people and eliminates them. Then, under the persecution of the great red dragon, are there any who have stood firm in their testimony? There are quite a few who have stood firm in their testimony. Those who were beaten to death and martyred stood firm in their testimony, and those who endured all kinds of torture from the great red dragon yet did not deny God or betray God, and refused to sign the Three Statements, and were finally sentenced to prison, also stood firm in their testimony. Look at the experience of the protagonist in the movie “My Belated Testimony.” He had once denied God before Satan, and in this matter, he felt remorse and indebtedness toward God. He began to reflect on himself: “Others can give up their lives to bear witness for God. Why can’t I?” He often read God’s words to equip himself with the truth, and after ten years of equipping himself, he came to understand some truths and had some knowledge of God. He decided to offer up his life to God to bear testimony for God once, and he was even willing to die. What he never expected was that when he was willing to give up his life, the police actually released him. You see, when a person truly offers up their life to God, some things take a turn for the better. This is orchestrated by God and under His sovereignty. Therefore, whether a person lives or dies is in God’s hands. If God does not permit Satan to bring harm upon your life, then unexpected results will come about.

The reason we are fellowshipping about the standard for bearing witness today is to let you know that you must be able to bear resounding testimony for God to have gained the truth. Do not think that gaining the truth is easy. Do not think that because your caliber is good and you can understand God’s words after reading them a couple of times, you have gained the truth. Is gaining the truth such a simple matter? (No.) Although you have understood the literal meaning of God’s words after reading them a couple of times, does this mean that you have the truth? (No.) Does being able to speak lots of words and doctrines mean that you have the truth? (No.) Then what can show that you have the truth as your life? It is by having true testimony. Then what does true testimony involve? It means that in your normal life, you must be able to practice the truth, do things according to principles, and use the truth to solve many problems. Finally, when you can use the truth to solve any problem you encounter and people can see that you have the truth reality and are convinced by you from their hearts, this proves that you have the truth as your life. You will not only have cast off your corrupt disposition, but you will also have become able to use the truth to solve problems, and to practice the truth and submit to God. All of this has become beautiful testimony. In addition, before Satan, you can submit to God unto death. No matter how Satan cruelly tortures you, you still insist on believing in and following God, and you would rather die than sign the Three Statements. This is also testimony that you can bear before Satan. Also, whether it is before God’s chosen people or before nonbelievers, you never sin or resist God, and you do not do things that bring shame upon God. What you practice is all the truth, and your words, actions, and conduct all manifest God at every turn. Is this not good testimony? (It is.) After believing in God for many years, you will have changed more and more. You will have become more and more principled in your actions, and your views in speaking and your stance will have become more and more in line with the truth, without the adulteration of corruption and rebellion. This is testimony. When your nonbelieving spouse, parents, and children see these testimonies you have lived out, they will surely admire you and say, “We have seen such a great change in you in the few years since you have found God. The God you believe in is the true God! He can truly change people!” This proves that you have the truth reality. If what you do in the church is said to be very good and right by everyone, but your family sees that you are still particularly selfish like a nonbeliever, and that you tend to judge people and have no love for people, and they do not see much change in you, can they say that the God you believe in is the true God? Can they say that what you believe in is the true way? (No.) If they cannot see the testimony of your practicing the truth, and if they cannot see your living out of the truth reality, they will not be able to say such things. Therefore, is gaining the truth a simple matter? (No.) Does understanding some of the literal meaning of God’s words and being able to speak some spiritual doctrines mean that you understand the truth? (No.) No matter how many spiritual doctrines you can speak, it does not mean that you understand the truth. You must live out the reality of the truth to show that you understand the truth. Then what does living out the reality of the truth mainly refer to? It is to be principled in your words and actions. This is most crucial. In addition, no matter what difficulties or pressures you encounter, you do not shrink back, and you can seek the truth and stand firm. When you reveal your corruption, you can reflect on yourself and achieve true repentance. People must go through these processes to be able to live out and gain the truth. That is to say, there must be a process of dispositional change for people to go from understanding the truth to gaining the truth.

Then how long of an experience must a person go through before their disposition can change? In the first five years of their belief in God, there are only some changes in most people’s behavior. The biggest change that others see in you is that after you find God, you no longer do obvious bad things, and your words and actions can all be considered good behavior. From the fifth to the tenth year of their belief in God, if a person pursues the truth, then not only will their behavior change, but their life disposition will as well. What do changes in life disposition include? The first is a change in a person’s views on things. In the past, you looked at people and things based on the views of corrupt mankind, but now you look at people and things based on the truth and God’s words. Your views on things are different from those of nonbelievers, and also from those of religious people. This change is very great. This is the first change that occurs when a person has come to understand many truths in the process of their dispositional change. A change in disposition begins with a change in one’s views on things. When a person’s thoughts and views have changed, a change in their life disposition is produced. In fact, there are many deep things in a change of disposition. Tell me, for a person who has not gained the truth as their life, what are their outlook on life and their values? (They are the thoughts and views of Satan.) Intellectuals live by the thoughts and views of Satan. They live to pursue fame, gain, money, and status. Their outlook on life and their values are that fame, gain, money, and status are above all. Then what are the outlook on life and values of a person who has gained the truth? (To seek to submit to God and achieve salvation.) Let’s talk about this problem simply. Look at the outlook on life and values of religious people. In their belief in God, gaining blessings comes above all else. They believe in God to be able to go to heaven and not to hell after they die. This is their outlook on life, and this is also where their values lie. The outlook on life and values of a person who has gained the truth are on a higher level than those of religious people. Just as some people say, “In this life of mine, I must follow God’s will and complete God’s commission. Only following God’s will is above all, completing God’s commission is above all, and satisfying God and gaining God’s approval is above all. This is my outlook on life and where my values lie.” What do you think of this outlook on life and these values? (They are good.) Some other people say, “I just want to pursue the truth. Pursuing the truth is what is most important. Nothing else is important. It is useless to indulge in good food, clothing, and housing. Only practicing the truth can enable people to gain the truth and eternal life.” What do you think of this outlook on life and these values? (They are good.) Still others say, “Seeking to love God is most important. Loving one’s parents, wife, husband, and children, or any other person, is meaningless. Loving God comes first! Loving God is what is most important!” What do you think of this outlook on life and these values? (They are good.) These outlooks on life and values are on quite a high level. When a person has such an outlook on life and such values, their thoughts and views have changed, and the path they choose is the path of pursuing the truth to be perfected. The ultimate goal is to gain God’s approval. This is the outlook on life and values of a person who pursues and has gained the truth. But when you pursue the truth and reach this height, can your family and relatives understand you? Can the world understand you? (No.) What will they say? (They will judge us and say that our belief in God has made us foolish, and that we have gone mad.) Those devils among the nonbelievers will say, “This person has been godized. They only have God in their heart, and nothing else. Their faith has driven them mad. There’s something wrong with their mind.” Not only that, but they will also mock, slander, and reject us. Therefore, when a person believes in God to the highest realm, this world can no longer accommodate them, and they will receive much mockery, slander, and rejection. From this matter, we can find the reason why Christ is condemned and rejected by this age and by the entire religious world. It is precisely because Christ is the truth, the way, and the life, and because He follows God’s will that He is condemned and rejected by this age and by the entire religious world. If you are seeking to be perfected by God, then this is something that you too will face. Are you willing to walk this path? (Yes.) There are quite a few who are willing to do so. This is very good. Those who are willing are definitely people who have the resolve to seek to be perfected. But now some people do not have such great faith. What are they pondering in their hearts? “If I seek to be perfected, won’t the world reject me? Won’t my spouse divorce me and kick me out of the house? Won’t my children reject me? This path is too dangerous. I can’t walk it.” Does this kind of person think this way? (They do.) Then why do they say such things? (Their outlook on life and values have not changed. What they pursue is still family harmony; they do not walk the path of pursuing the truth.) (They do not have the resolve to suffer, nor do they have a heart that wants God intensely.) What you have said is correct. Such people do not love the truth. They cannot see through to the essence and truth of the world. They cannot see clearly that this world is dark and wicked, and that it does not allow for the existence of light. If a truly righteous person, a saint, appears, this world will surely not be able to accommodate them. If a person pursues the truth to the degree that Peter did, and can love God to the extreme and submit unto death, this world will surely condemn and reject them, just as it condemned and rejected Christ, and it will not rest until it has nailed them to the cross. But such a person, no matter in what way they leave this world, is approved of by God, and they return to God. Just as it is recorded in the Bible that Enoch walked with God, and in the end, he was taken away by God. Is this not the most glorious thing in life? (It is.) Therefore, we must also drink the bitter cup that Christ drank, and we must also bear the cross that Christ bore. In the end, we will triumph with Christ and return to God, and we will no longer live in this world. There is nothing to enjoy in this world. Apart from darkness, there is only wickedness. When God has completely made those who can be saved into overcomers, God will send down catastrophes to destroy this dark and wicked world directly.

Are the disasters not getting bigger and bigger? (They are.) Why is that? (Because the human race is truly wicked.) The human race’s resistance to God has reached its peak, and God is going to destroy the human race. After corrupt mankind is destroyed, the kingdom of Christ will be realized on earth, and the millennial kingdom will descend. Therefore, God’s work is principled, law-based, planned, and carried out step-by-step. Tell me, is it good that God sends down the great catastrophes? (It is.) In what way is it good? (This is a step in God’s work. On the one hand, it is to warn people, to use catastrophes to awaken them so that they can seek and pursue the truth, and not miss the opportunity to be saved. On the other hand, God also uses catastrophes to punish and destroy the wicked human race.) God’s destruction of this wicked world is a blessing for those who are saved! After the great catastrophes descend, are not the people who survive those who are blessed by God? Those who are blessed and saved by God will survive, while those who are condemned and cursed by God will be destroyed. If God were not to destroy this old world, the old human race, where would this newborn mankind that has been saved be placed? If they were caught up into the air, could they survive in the clouds and mist? (No.) Therefore, this earth will still exist; it is just that God will send down catastrophes to destroy this wicked human race, and those who survive will still live on this earth, but by this point the environment of the earth will have changed. The earth has been damaged to a certain extent by the human race that is of Satan. The water, air, and land of the earth have all been polluted and damaged, and people cannot survive on such an earth. Therefore, the heavens will be renewed, the earth will be renewed, and even the stars and moon will be renewed. Everything must be renewed, and after this renewal, a new heaven and a new earth will descend. Tell me, what is going on with the enormous earthquakes and tsunamis that have been happening recently? What is going on with the volcanic eruptions? On the one hand, these great catastrophes are to destroy this wicked human race, and on the other hand, they are renewing the heaven and the earth. In the future, the land will become the sea, and the sea will become fields. A new heaven and a new earth will emerge, and the sun will also be renewed. At that time, all that the sun emits will be beneficial to mankind, and there will be no harmful substances. So tell me, is the descent of the great catastrophes a good thing or a bad thing? (A good thing.) Many people cannot recognize that this is a good thing. When they see the great catastrophes descending, they are full of worries and wallow in sorrow, and they are very afraid that they will not be able to live in the future, and even more afraid that they will die in the catastrophes. Are these ideas correct? (No.) In what way are they wrong? They do not know God’s work! God’s work has now reached this step, and God’s work of saving man is about to end. As soon as God’s work ends, the great catastrophes will immediately descend to destroy this wicked human race, and then a new heaven and a new earth will emerge. Many scientists have discovered that the sea and the land are about to change, and that the sun and the stars are also changing. This earth is about to face great catastrophes, and they want to quickly build a spaceship to fly to another planet to escape the catastrophes on earth. Is this idea realistic? (No.) You will not live long on any planet you flee to. Alien planets are not where God has arranged for man to survive. The place that God has arranged for man to survive is the earth. If you do not stay obediently on the earth and insist on going to another planet to live, then you are moving toward a dead end.