By Han Feng, China

On September 10, 2024, I received a letter from the leaders, saying that Zhao Hui, a leader from the Nancheng Church, had been arrested and turned Judas, selling out many brothers and sisters. Over thirty people in the church had already been arrested. Since I used to be a district leader and understood some of the custody houses there quite well, they wanted me to take charge of moving the offerings. The situation was urgent. Knowing it was my responsibility to protect God’s offerings, I prayed to God, expressing my willingness to cooperate earnestly.

When I arrived at the Nancheng Church, I learned that the deacons and important workers had all been arrested. Every day, we heard about multiple brothers and sisters being arrested. Some were even harassed by the police in their homes. A few of the brothers and sisters who had been arrested knew the houses where the offerings were stored. I thought to myself, “The environment is so hostile. If I go to move the offerings, will I be followed and watched? Zhao Hui knows I used to do leadership duty. Could he have sold me out, too? Besides, I was sold out by a Judas back in 2019, and the police investigated me then. It was only with God’s wondrous protection that I escaped disaster. This time, if I’m arrested while moving the offerings, the police definitely won’t let me off easily. They’d skin me alive!” The thought of videos of brothers and sisters being brutally tortured by the police terrified me. If I were arrested, I didn’t know if I could endure it. If I couldn’t stand the torture and betrayed God, turning Judas, wouldn’t my faith in God end in failure? If I were arrested and imprisoned for several years, I wouldn’t be able to read God’s words or do my duty. How could I prepare good deeds or pursue salvation then? The more I thought, the more timid I became. I realized my state was wrong. I had faced dangerous environments many times before and had seen God’s wondrous protection in those times. Why did I still have no faith at all? I cried out to God in my heart to give me faith. Later, I read God’s words: “God does the work of perfection on people, and they cannot see it, cannot touch it; under such circumstances, faith is required. When something cannot be seen by the naked eye, faith is required. When you cannot let go of your own notions, faith is required. When you do not have clarity about God’s work, what is required is for you to have faith and to take a solid stance and stand firm in your testimony. When Job reached this point, God appeared to him and spoke to him. That is, it is only when you have faith that you will be able to see God. When you have faith, God will perfect you, and if you do not have faith, He cannot do this. God will bestow upon you whatever you hope to gain. If you do not have faith, then you cannot be perfected and you will be unable to see God’s deeds, much less His almightiness. When, in your real experiences, you have the faith to see His deeds, God will appear to you, and He will enlighten and guide you from within. Without that faith, God will be unable to do that. If you have lost hope in God, how will you be able to experience His work? Therefore, only when you have faith and you do not harbor doubts toward God, only when you have true faith in Him no matter what He does, will He enlighten and illuminate you through your experiences, and only then will you be able to see His deeds. These things are all achieved through faith. Faith comes only through refinement, and in the absence of refinement, faith cannot develop. What does faith refer to? Faith is the genuine belief and the sincere heart that humans should possess when they cannot see or touch something, when God’s work does not align with human notions, or when it is beyond human reach. This is the faith that I speak of” (The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Those Who Are to Be Made Perfect Must Undergo Refinement). “Regardless of how ‘immensely powerful’ Satan is, how audacious and ambitious it is, how great its ability to inflict damage is, how wide-ranging its capabilities for corrupting and luring man are, how clever the tricks and schemes with which it intimidates man are, or how varied the forms of its existence are, it has never been able to create a single living thing, set down laws or rules for the existence of all things, or govern or hold sovereignty over any object, whether animate or inanimate. Within the cosmos and the firmament, there is not a single person or thing that was brought into being by it or that exists because of it; there is not a single person or thing that is under its sovereignty or governed by it. On the contrary, it not only has to exist under the dominion of God, but must also obey all of God’s commands and orders. Without God’s permission, Satan cannot easily touch even a drop of water or a grain of sand upon the land; without God’s permission, Satan cannot even mess with the ants upon the land, let alone mankind, who was created by God. In the eyes of God, Satan is inferior to the lilies on the mountain, to the birds flying in the air, to the fish in the sea, and to the maggots on the earth. Its role among all things is to serve all things, to serve mankind, and to serve God’s work and His management plan” (The Word, Vol. 2. On Knowing God. God Himself, the Unique I). From God’s words, I understood that God holds sovereignty over all things and events. Without His permission, no matter how rampant or wicked Satan is, it cannot take my life. It’s just like when Job was being tried. God did not allow Satan to take his life, and Satan dared not cross the boundary God had set for it. But my faith in God was too small. When I saw that the environment was hostile, I was afraid of being identified by a Judas or being monitored and arrested by the police, so I lived in timidity and fear and didn’t dare move the offerings. Thinking of this, I felt ashamed. “I can’t just hide away like a cowardly turtle in its shell: All things and events are in God’s hands, so isn’t whether I get arrested also under God’s sovereignty? If God allowed me to be arrested, it would be a test of me. I need to rely on God and swear that I would die rather than become a Judas or betray the interests of God’s house.” So I prayed, “Almighty God, my faith in You is so small. I don’t want to live in timidity. Please, give me faith and strength. I’m willing to place myself in Your hands, submit to Your orchestrations and arrangements, and move the offerings as soon as possible.”

After that, I went to the first custody house to move the offerings. I had only been there once before and couldn’t remember the exact unit or floor. I had to wait outside for the custodian to return. But a sister nearby had been arrested a few months ago, and the police had been secretly monitoring brothers and sisters recently. I was worried I’d be spotted if I stayed there a long time, so I didn’t dare to wait too long. Just as I was about to leave, the custodian came back from buying groceries. That noon, we successfully moved the offerings out of there. Right after, I went to find Sister Xin Cheng to ask about the other custodians. As soon as I walked in, she said in fear, “I was arrested and detained for five days. I was just released last night. Zhao Hui sold out every brother and sister he knows of. The books of God’s words must be moved right away!” I thought, “Xin Cheng was just released. Are the police secretly staking out her home? Will I be spotted?” I was flustered and panicked, and hurried away after speaking for a few minutes. My heart pounded with fear the whole way. I kept thinking, “Have I already been spotted? I’m not going to move the books tomorrow night. I’ll get other brothers and sisters to handle it.” The next day, my heart was constantly uneasy. I knew Zhao Hui had been to all the houses where the books were stored, and the books needed to be moved immediately. There was no one else suitable to do it at that time: I had to shoulder this task. I thought of all the brothers and sisters who had been pursued by the great red dragon and put on the wanted list, but who still relied on God to do the church’s work. Even when arrested, they were able to risk their lives to stand firm in their testimony for God. Yet I hadn’t even been arrested, and here I was shrinking back in timidity just because the environment was hostile. I fell so far short of them. I felt ashamed and guilty. Then I remembered the words of God we’d read in the gathering two days before: “Some churches are in hostile environments in which people are often arrested, and because of this, there’s a great chance that the locations of houses where offerings are safeguarded will be betrayed, and raided and searched by the great red dragon—the offerings may be plundered by evil demons at any time. Are such places appropriate for storing offerings? (No.) So, if they’ve already been put there, what’s to be done? Move them right away. … Leaders and workers should have a clear understanding of this situation when they encounter it: ‘One of the places where offerings are being stored isn’t suitable. The environment’s too dangerous, and quite a few brothers and sisters have been arrested, tailed, or put under surveillance in the vicinity. We need to think of a way to get the offerings out of there. Getting them to a relatively safe place would be a better move than leaving them where they are and waiting for them to get snatched.’ When a situation has just arisen and they foresee that the offerings are in danger, they should move them promptly, to keep them from being taken possession of and devoured by the great red dragon, the evil devil. This is the only way to ensure the safety of the offerings, and to avoid any pitfalls or slip-ups occurring. This is work leaders and workers should do. As soon as there’s the slightest sign of danger, as soon as someone is arrested, as soon as a situation arises, leaders’ and workers’ first thought should be whether the offerings are safe, whether they might fall into the hands of evil people, or be taken into their possession, or be snatched away by evil demons, and whether the offerings have suffered any losses. They should promptly take measures to protect the offerings. This is the responsibility of leaders and workers. Some leaders and workers may say, ‘Doing these things requires us to take risks. Can we not do them? Isn’t it the case that people are our first priority, which means that there’s no need to put the offerings first and people should be put first?’ What do you think of their question? Do these people have humanity? (No.) Safeguarding offerings well, managing them well, and watching over them well—these are responsibilities that a good steward should fulfill. In more serious terms, even if you have to sacrifice your life, it’s worth it and it’s what you ought to do. It’s your responsibility” (The Word, Vol. 5. The Responsibilities of Leaders and Workers. The Responsibilities of Leaders and Workers (12)). From God’s words, I realized that now the locations of the custody houses had been betrayed by a Judas, the offerings and the books of God’s words could be seized by the CCP at any moment. They had to be moved immediately, and this was my bounden duty. I had often fellowshipped with brothers and sisters about safeguarding the interests of the Church at critical moments, but when this environment came upon me, my first thought was to preserve myself. I wanted to push this task onto others and hide away like a deserter. Wasn’t that a betrayal of God? Protecting God’s offerings and the books of His words is a responsibility and obligation that every believer in God must fulfill. I had to rely on God to fulfill my responsibility, and promptly move and protect God’s offerings. Whether I would be arrested or not, and whatever environment I might experience, I would submit to God’s sovereignty and arrangements.

Afterward, I reflected, “Why do I always think of my own fleshly interests when I’m in a dangerous environment? What is the root cause of this?” As I pondered, I remembered God’s words: “Antichrists are extremely selfish and despicable. They do not have true faith in God, much less loyalty to God; when they encounter an issue, they only protect and safeguard themselves. For them, nothing is more important than their own safety. As long as they can live and won’t get arrested, they don’t care how much harm is done to the work of the church. These people are extremely selfish, they don’t think of the brothers and sisters at all, or of the work of the church, they only think of their own safety. They are antichrists. So when such things befall those who are loyal to God and have true faith in God, how do they handle them? How does what they do differ from what antichrists do? (When such things befall those who are loyal to God, they will think of any way to safeguard the interests of the house of God, to protect against losses to the offerings of God, and they will make the necessary arrangements for the leaders and workers, and the brothers and sisters, to minimize losses. Antichrists, meanwhile, make sure they are protected first. They are not concerned about the work of the church or the safety of God’s chosen people, and when the church is faced with arrests, it results in a loss to church work.) Antichrists abandon the work of the church and God’s offerings, and they do not arrange for people to handle the aftermath. This is the same as permitting the great red dragon to seize God’s offerings and His chosen people. Is this not a covert betrayal of God’s offerings and His chosen people? When those who are loyal to God know clearly that an environment is dangerous, they still brave the risk of doing the work of handling the aftermath, and they keep the losses to God’s house to a minimum before they themselves withdraw. They do not give priority to their own safety. Tell Me, in this wicked country of the great red dragon, who could ensure that there is no danger at all in believing in God and doing a duty? Whatever duty one takes on, it entails some risk—yet the performance of duty is commissioned by God, and while following God, one must take on the risk of doing their duty. One should exercise wisdom, and one has need of taking measures to ensure their safety, but one should not put their personal safety first. They should consider God’s intentions, putting the work of His house first and putting the spread of the gospel first. Completing God’s commission of them is what matters most, and it comes first. Antichrists give top priority to their personal safety; they believe that nothing else has anything to do with them. They do not care when something happens to someone else, regardless of who it might be. As long as nothing bad happens to the antichrists themselves, they feel at ease. They are devoid of any loyalty, which is determined by the antichrists’ nature essence. … Antichrists show no loyalty to God. When they are assigned work, they accept it quite happily, and make some nice declarations, but when danger comes, they run away the fastest; they are the first to run, the first to escape. This shows that their selfishness and despicableness are particularly severe. They have no sense of responsibility or loyalty at all. When faced with a problem, they only know how to flee and how to hide, and think only of protecting themselves, never considering their responsibilities or duties. For the sake of their own personal safety, antichrists consistently display their selfish and despicable nature. They do not prioritize the work of God’s house or their own duties. Even less do they prioritize the interests of God’s house. Instead, they prioritize their own safety” (The Word, Vol. 4. Exposing Antichrists. Item Nine (Part Two)). “There’s a difference in the nature of how people with loyalty to God work compared to those without it. When they both encounter matters that involve danger, those with loyalty are able to face the danger and do their work, using wisdom and methods to implement the work arrangements. However, antichrists don’t engage in concrete work, regardless of whether danger is involved or not, and work arrangements are never implemented by them. That’s the distinction. … They lack loyalty, they’re selfish and despicable, and consider their own safety in everything. They never inquire about whether the work arrangements of God’s house are being implemented, or about the progress of the work of God’s house, and they don’t care about these things. They haven’t offered their loyalty, and they do not show their loyalty. For them, going through the motions with regard to these matters is enough; they consider this doing work. If the risk is small, they might reluctantly do some work. But if the risk is large, and there is a possibility of them being captured, they won’t do it, no matter how crucial the task is. That is the essence of antichrists” (The Word, Vol. 4. Exposing Antichrists. Item Nine (Part Two)). I saw from God’s words that people who are loyal to God are able to not consider personal gains or losses when danger befalls them. When they see the offerings are at risk, they’ll risk their lives to protect them. They’re loyal to God unto death, and safeguard the interests of God’s house. But antichrists have an extremely selfish and treacherous nature. In dangerous environments, they only consider their own safety and have no sense of responsibility for their duty. Wasn’t my behavior just like that of an antichrist? I had found out that Zhao Hui had turned Judas and sold out many leaders, workers, and brothers and sisters, so the houses where the offerings were stored were at risk. The offerings had to be moved immediately. But at that crucial moment, my first thought was for my own safety, my prospects, and a way out for myself. I wanted to shrink into my shell like a cowardly turtle. I was so selfish and despicable! If my selfishness and irresponsibility led to the offerings falling into the hands of the great red dragon, how would I be any different from a Judas who saves their own skin by betraying their own side? I thought of Brother Zhong in My Belated Testimony, who risked his life to move the books of God’s words and hold fast to his duty. And in the experiential testimony video A Choice in a Dangerous Environment, the protagonist risked her life to handle the aftermath. Though she was weak and afraid, she sought the truth to resolve her corrupt disposition and was willing to give her life to safeguard the interests of God’s house. They both bore beautiful, resounding testimonies for God. Thinking of this, I felt deeply ashamed and prayed to God, “Almighty God, so many brothers and sisters in the church have been arrested, and the aftermath must be handled urgently. But I’m afraid of being arrested and just keep wanting to escape this environment. I am so selfish and lacking in humanity! God, I am willing to repent. I will rely on You to handle the aftermath well.”

I also pondered, “Why do I always keep shrinking back in timidity whenever things befall me?” The main reason was my fear of death; I hadn’t truly understood its meaning. Then I read God’s words: “How did those disciples of the Lord Jesus die? Among the disciples, there were those who were stoned, dragged behind a horse, crucified upside down, dismembered by five horses—various forms of death befell them. What was the reason for their deaths? Is it that they engaged in some wrongdoing and were then executed by the law? No. They propagated the Lord’s gospel, but the people of the world did not accept it, and instead condemned, beat, and reviled them, and even put them to death—that is how they were martyred. Let us not speak of the final outcome of those martyrs, or of God’s verdict on their deeds, but ask this: When those martyrs arrived at the end, did the ways their lives ended accord with human notions? (No, they did not.) From the perspective of human notions, those martyrs paid such a great price to propagate the work of God, but were ultimately grievously harmed to death by Satan. This does not accord with human notions. However, those things are precisely what befell them—this is what God allowed. What truth can be sought in this? Was God allowing them to die this way His curse and condemnation, or was it His arrangement and blessing? It was neither. What was it? It brings people heartache to think about the deaths of those martyrs, yet these are indeed the facts. What explanation should be given for believers in God dying in this way? When we mention this topic, you put yourselves in their position, so in your hearts do you feel upset and a bit of hidden pain? You think, ‘These people did their duty to propagate God’s gospel and should be considered good people, so how could they come to such an end and such an outcome?’ Actually, this was how their bodies died and passed away; this was their manner of departure from the human world, yet that did not mean their outcome was the same. No matter what the manner of their death and departure was or how it happened, it was not how God determined the final outcomes of those lives, of those created beings. This is something you must see clearly. On the contrary, this was precisely the manner by which they condemned this world and bore witness to God’s deeds. These created beings used their most precious lives—they used the last moment of their lives to bear witness to God’s deeds, to bear witness to God’s great power, and to declare to Satan and the world that God’s deeds are right, that the Lord Jesus is God, that He is the Lord, and God’s incarnate flesh. Even down to the final moment of their lives, they never denied the name of the Lord Jesus. Was this not a form of judgment upon this world? They used their lives to proclaim to the world, to prove to human beings that the Lord Jesus is the Lord, that the Lord Jesus is Christ, that He is God’s incarnate flesh, that the work of redeeming all of mankind He did allows this mankind to live on—this fact is forever unchanging. To what extent did those who were martyred for propagating the gospel of the Lord Jesus perform their duty? Was it to the ultimate extent? How was the ultimate extent manifested? (They offered their lives.) That’s right, they paid the price with their lives. Family, wealth, and the material things of this life are all external things; the only thing that is related to the self is life. To every living person, life is the thing most worthy of being treasured, the most precious thing and, as it happens, these people were able to offer their most precious possession as confirmation of and testimony to God’s love for mankind. All the way up until their deaths, they did not deny God’s name, nor did they deny God’s work, and they used their last moments of life to bear witness to the existence of this fact—is this not the highest form of testimony? This is the best way of performing one’s duty; this is what it is to fulfill one’s responsibility.” “If at the moment that your life is about to be taken from you, you are at ease, willing, and submit without complaint, you feel that you have fulfilled your responsibilities, obligations, and duties to the end, and your heart is joyful and at peace—if you go like this—then for God, you have not gone at all. Rather, you are living in another realm and in another form. All that’s happened is that your manner of living has changed—you are not truly dead. As man sees it, ‘This person died at such a young age, how pitiful!’ But in the eyes of God, you have not died or gone to suffer; rather, you have gone to enjoy blessings and come closer to God. This is because, as a created being, you are already up to standard in the performance of your duty in God’s eyes, you have now completed your duty, and God does not need you to perform this duty any longer among the ranks of created beings. To God, your ‘going’ is not called ‘going,’ you are ‘taken away,’ ‘brought away,’ or ‘led away,’ and it is a good thing” (The Word, Vol. 3. The Discourses of Christ of the Last Days. Preaching the Gospel Is the Duty All Believers Are Bound to Fulfill). After reading God’s words, I understood that to give up one’s life to fulfill God’s commission is a meaningful and valuable death, one that God remembers. Though the flesh dies, the soul returns to God. It’s like the saints throughout history who were persecuted for spreading the Lord’s gospel. Some were dismembered by five horses, some were dragged behind horses until they died, some were stoned to death, and others were crucified. They used their precious lives to testify to God’s deeds and His great power. Though their bodies died, their souls returned to God and received His approval. But I was terrified of being tortured to death, so I refused my duty to preserve myself. That is betraying God. To live on in such a craven and cowardly way is worthless and meaningless; it’s like being a walking corpse. If the offerings were seized by the police because I failed to move them in time, that would be an eternal transgression and stain on me, and I would deserve God’s punishments and curses. Understanding this, I was willing to let go of all my worries and misgivings and place my life and death in God’s hands. If God allowed me to be arrested, I would submit to His sovereignty and arrangements and rely on Him to stand firm in my testimony. After that, when I moved the books, I still had worries and misgivings, but I prayed and looked to God in my heart and no longer shrank back in timidity. I disguised myself when I went out and did my best to avoid surveillance cameras. Under God’s leadership, the offerings and books of God’s words from all three custody houses in that church were moved to safety.

Through handling the aftermath this time, I gained some understanding of my selfish and despicable satanic disposition. I also understood a little more about the meaning of death and found the resolve to rebel against my flesh and hold fast to my duty. I also saw God’s wisdom in using the great red dragon to render service in revealing and perfecting people. Thank God!