I

Satan has been corrupting mankind for thousands of years. It has wrought untold amounts of evil, has misled generation after generation, and has committed heinous crimes in the human world. It has grievously harmed man, misled man, seduced man to oppose God, and has committed countless evil acts that disturb and impair God's plan of management. Yet, all things and living beings under the authority of God continue to abide by the rules and laws set down by God, as they always have. Compared to the authority of God, Satan's wicked nature and its ferocity and wantonness are so ugly, so disgusting and detestable, and so minuscule and incapable of withstanding a single blow. Even though Satan roams among all things created by God, it is unable to bring about the slightest change in the people, events, and things ordained by God.

II

Although mankind has been corrupted and misled by Satan, he still cannot be without the water, the air, and all things made by God, and mankind still multiplies and lives in this space created by God. The instincts of mankind have not changed. Mankind still relies on his eyes to see, on his ears to hear, on his brain to think, on his heart to comprehend, on his legs and feet to walk, on his hands to work. The faculties through which mankind cooperates with God have not changed, mankind's faculty for fulfilling the duty of a created being has not changed, the needs of mankind's heart have not changed, mankind's desire to find his origins and return to his roots has not changed, mankind's desire to be saved by the Creator has not changed. Such are the current circumstances of mankind, who lives under the authority of God, and who has endured the bloody ravaging wrought by Satan.

III

Mankind has been subjected to much of the ravaging of Satan, and is no longer Adam and Eve who were created in the beginning, but is instead full of things that are antagonistic to God, such as knowledge, imaginings, notions, and so on, and full of Satan's corrupt dispositions. However, in the eyes of God, it is still the mankind that He created. Mankind is still under the sovereignty and orchestrations of God, and still lives within the course set out by God, and so in the eyes of God, mankind, who has been corrupted by Satan, is merely covered in dirt, with a rumbling stomach, reactions that are a little slow, and a memory that has somewhat deteriorated, and is slightly older, that is all—whereas all the functions and instincts of man are completely intact. This is the mankind that God intends to save.

IV

This mankind has but to hear the call of the Creator, and hear the voice of the Creator, and he will be able to stand up and rush to locate the source of this voice. This mankind has but to see the figure of the Creator and he will disregard all else and forsake everything to expend himself for God, and will even lay down his life for Him. When mankind comprehends from his heart the voice of the Creator's heart, he will discard Satan and come to the side of the Creator; when mankind has completely washed the dirt from his body, and has once more received the nourishment and provision of the Creator, the memory of mankind will be restored, and at this time mankind will have truly returned to the dominion of the Creator.

from The Word, Vol. 2. On Knowing God. God Himself, the Unique I