Chapter 6
Be perceptive toward matters of the spirit, attentive toward My word, and truly capable of regarding My Spirit and My being, and My word and My being, as an inseparable whole, so that all people can satisfy Me in My presence. I have set foot upon all there is, I have looked out across the vast expanse of the universe, and I have walked among all people, tasting the sweetness and bitterness among man—yet never has man truly known Me, never has he paid Me any heed during My travels. Because I was silent, and never performed supernatural acts, no one ever truly saw Me. Today is unlike the past: I shall do things never beheld since the time of creation, shall speak words never heard throughout the ages, for I ask that all people come to know Me in the flesh. These are the steps of My management, but man has not the slightest inkling. Though I have spoken plainly, people remain addled; it is difficult to get through to them. Is this not the lowliness of man? Is it not precisely what I wish to remedy? For years, I did nothing in man; for years, despite being in direct contact with My incarnate flesh, no one ever heard the voice that issued directly from My divinity. Thus do people inevitably lack knowledge of Me, though this has not affected their love for Me through the ages. Today, however, I have performed in you miraculous work, work that is unfathomable and without measure, and I have spoken many words. And yet, under such circumstances, there are still many who resist Me directly in My presence. Let Me now give you a few examples.
Daily you pray to a vague God, trying to grasp My intentions and get a sense of life. Yet when faced with My words, you look at them differently; you regard My words and Spirit as a whole, yet kick aside My being, believing the person that I am fundamentally incapable of uttering such words, that they are directed by My Spirit. What of your knowledge in such circumstances? You believe in My words to a point yet have notions of varying severity toward the flesh with which I clothe Myself. You spend every day studying it, and say, “Why does He do things in that way? Do they really come from God? Impossible! He is not much different from me—He is a normal, ordinary person as well.” How can such circumstances be explained?
Who among you does not possess the above? Who is not occupied by such things? They appear to be things you hold onto like pieces of personal property, never willing to let them go. Still less do you pursue subjective efforts; instead, you wait for Me to do it Myself. Truth be told, not a single person who does not seek comes to know Me with ease. These are not frivolous words that I teach you. For I can give you another example from another perspective for your reference.
At the mention of Peter, people have no end of good things to say about him. They immediately recall the three times that he disowned God, how he tempted God by giving service to Satan, and how he was ultimately crucified upside down for God, and so on. Now I am going to focus on describing to you how Peter knew Me and what his final end was. Peter was of good caliber, but his circumstances were not like those of Paul: His parents persecuted Me, they were demons that had been possessed by Satan and, as a result, they taught nothing of God to Peter. Peter was clever, gifted, and doted on by his parents from a young age. Yet as an adult, he became their enemy because he never stopped pursuing the knowledge of Me, and subsequently turned his back on them. This was because, above all else, he believed that heaven and earth and all things are in the hands of the Almighty and that all positive things come from God and are directly issued from Him without being processed by Satan. The contradistinction of Peter’s parents gave him a greater knowledge of My lovingkindness and mercy, thus heightening his desire to seek Me. He focused not just on eating and drinking My words, but, moreover, on grasping My intentions, and was ever vigilant in his heart. As a result, he was always sensitive in his spirit, and hence he was in accordance with My intentions in all he did. He maintained a constant focus on the failures of people in the past to spur himself on, profoundly fearful of becoming ensnared in failure. So, too, did he concentrate on assimilating the faith and love of all those who had loved God throughout the ages. In this way—not only in negative aspects, but much more importantly, in positive aspects—he grew more quickly, such that his knowledge became the greatest of all in My presence. It is not difficult to imagine, then, how he put everything he had in My hands, how he even surrendered making decisions about food, clothing, sleeping and where he lived, and instead enjoyed My riches upon the basis of satisfying Me in all things. I subjected him to countless trials—trials, naturally, that left him half-dead—but amidst these hundreds of trials, he never once lost faith in Me or felt disappointed in Me. Even when I said I had forsaken him, still he was not discouraged, and continued to love Me in a practical way and in accordance with past principles of practice. I told him that I would not praise him even though he loved Me, that I would ultimately cast him into Satan’s hands. But amid such trials, trials that did not come upon his flesh, but were of words, he still prayed to Me and said, “O God! Among heaven and earth and all things, is there any person, any thing, or any event that is not in the hands of You, the Almighty? When You are merciful toward me, my heart greatly rejoices with Your mercy. When You judge me, unworthy though I may be, I gain a greater sense of the unfathomableness of Your deeds, because You are filled with authority and wisdom. Though my flesh suffers hardship, my spirit is comforted. How could I not give praise to Your wisdom and deeds? Even if I were to die after knowing You, how could I not do so gladly and happily? Almighty One! Do You really not wish to let me see You? Am I really unfit to receive Your judgment? Could it be that there is something in me You do not wish to see?” During such trials, even though Peter was not able to accurately grasp My intentions, it was evident that he was proud and honored to be used by Me (even though he received My judgment so that humanity might see My majesty and wrath), and that he was not distressed by these trials. Because of his loyalty before Me, and because of My blessing of him, he has been an exemplar and model to man for thousands of years. Is this not precisely what you should emulate? Think long and hard about why I have given such a lengthy account of Peter; these should be the principles by which you act.
Though few people know Me, I do not unleash My wrath upon man, for people are too lacking, and it is hard for them to attain the level that I ask of them. Thus, I have been tolerant of man for thousands of years, right up until today, yet I hope that you will not go easy on yourselves on account of My tolerance. Through Peter, you should come to know Me and seek after Me; from all of his exploits, you should be enlightened as never before, and thus attain realms never before reached by man. Throughout the cosmos and the firmament, among everything in heaven and on earth, all things upon the earth and in heaven give their every effort to My final stage of work. Surely you do not wish to be spectators, ordered about by the forces of Satan? Satan is ever present devouring the knowledge of Me in people’s hearts, gnashing its teeth and flexing its claws in its final death throes. Do you wish to fall prey to its cunning schemes at this time? Do you wish to ruin your life at the time when My work is finally completed? Are you waiting for Me to show My tolerance once more? Pursuing knowledge of Me is key, but focusing on practice is indispensable. My words are revealed to you directly, and I hope that you can follow My guidance, and no longer have plans and ambitions for yourselves.
February 27, 1992