I

God becomes flesh as an ordinary person, hidden in the midst of people, doing the new work of saving us. He offers us no explanations, nor does He tell us why He has come, but simply does the work He intends to do according to His plan and His procedure. His words and utterances become ever more frequent. From consoling, exhorting, reminding, and warning, to reproaching and disciplining; from a tone that's gentle and mild, to words that are fierce and majestic—all of it makes man feel great mercy and utter terror. Everything that He says hits home at the secrets hidden deep within us; His words sting our hearts and spirits, and leave us filled with unbearable shame, hardly knowing where to hide ourselves.

II

From Him we enjoy an unending supply of living water, and through Him we live face-to-face with God. But we're only thankful for the grace of the Lord Jesus in heaven, and have never paid any heed to the feelings of this ordinary person who's possessed of divinity. Still, as before, He does His work humbly hidden in the flesh, giving expression to the voice of His heart, as though insensible to mankind's rejection of Him, as though eternally forgiving of man's childishness and ignorance, and forever tolerant of man's irreverent attitude toward Him.

III

God's words carry life power, they provide us with the way we should walk, and enable us to comprehend what exactly the truth is. He works His heart out for us, loses sleep and appetite for us, weeps for us, sighs for us, and groans in sickness for us; He endures humiliation for the sake of our destination and salvation; and our numbness and rebelliousness draw tears and blood from His heart. No ordinary person has this being and these possessions, and no corrupted human being can have or attain them. He has tolerance and patience possessed by no ordinary person, and His love isn't something that any created being has.

from The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Appendix 4: Beholding the Appearance of God in His Judgment and Chastisement