XV. One Must Fellowship Clearly How to Discern the Essence of the Pharisees and of the Religious World That Defies God
6. In the religious world, is it the truth and God that hold the power, or is it antichrists and Satan that hold the power?
Bible Verse(s) for Reference:
“But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for you neither go in yourselves, neither suffer you them that are entering to go in” (Mat 23:13).
“And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, And said to them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but you have made it a den of thieves” (Mat 21:12-13).
Relevant Words of God:
Look at the leaders of every denomination and sect. They are all arrogant and self-right, and they interpret the Bible out of context and according to their own imagination. They all rely on gifts and erudition to do their work. If they were incapable of preaching anything, would those people follow them? They do, after all, possess some learning, and can speak a little of doctrine, or know how to win over others and how to use some artifices, through which they have brought people before themselves and have deceived them. Nominally, those people believe in God—but in reality they follow their leaders. If they encounter those who preach the true way, some of them would say, “We have to consult him about our belief in God.” See how they require someone’s consent to c; is that not a problem? What have those leaders become, then? Have they not become Pharisees, false shepherds, antichrists, and stumbling blocks to people’s acceptance of the true way? …
from “Only the Pursuit of the Truth Is the True Belief in God” in Records of Christ’s Talks
After working for some time, the people who God used on earth assumed
God’s position and said, I want to surpass the universe! I want to
stand in the third heaven! We want the reigns of sovereign power! They
would become arrogant after several days of work; they wanted sovereign
power on earth, they wanted to establish another nation, they wanted all
things under their feet and wanted to stand in the third heaven. Do you
not know that you are merely a man used by God? How can you ascend to
the third heaven? … Those religious pastors who heal the sick and cast
out demons, lecture others from the pulpit, give long and pompous
speeches and discuss unrealistic matters, are arrogant to the core! They
are descendants of the archangel!
from “Corrupt Mankind Is More in Need of the Salvation of God Become Flesh” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Those who do not accept the new work of God are bereft of the
presence of God, and, moreover, devoid of the blessings and protection
of God. Most of their words and actions hold to the past requirements of
the Holy Spirit’s work; they are doctrine, not truth. Such doctrine and
regulation are sufficient to prove that the only thing that brings them
together is religion; they are not the chosen ones, or the objects of
God’s work. The assembly of all those among them can only be called a
grand congress of religion, and cannot be called a church. This is an
unalterable fact. They do not have the Holy Spirit’s new work; what they
do seems redolent of religion, what they live out seems replete with
religion; they do not possess the presence and work of the Holy Spirit,
much less are they eligible to receive the discipline or enlightenment
of the Holy Spirit. These people are all lifeless corpses, and maggots
that are devoid of spirituality. They have no knowledge of man’s
rebelliousness and opposition, have no knowledge of all of man’s
evildoing, much less do they know all of God’s work and God’s present
will. They are all ignorant, base people, they are scum that are unfit
to be called believers! Nothing that they do has a bearing on the
management of God, much less can it impair God’s plans. Their words and
actions are too disgusting, too pathetic, and simply unworthy of
mention. Nothing done by those who are not within the stream of the Holy
Spirit has anything to do with the new work of the Holy Spirit. Because
of this, no matter what they do, they are without the discipline of the
Holy Spirit, and, moreover, without the enlightenment of the Holy
Spirit. For they are all people who have no love for the truth, and have
been detested and rejected by the Holy Spirit. They are called
evildoers because they walk in the flesh, and do whatever pleases them
under the signboard of God. While God works, they are deliberately
hostile to Him, and run in the opposite direction to Him. Man’s failure
to cooperate with God is supremely rebellious in itself, to say nothing
of these people’s deliberate flight from God. Will they not, then,
receive their just retribution? At the mention of these people’s
evildoing, some people cannot help but curse them, whereas God ignores
them. To man, it appears that their actions concern God’s name, but in
fact, to God, they bear no relation to His name or the testimony to Him.
No matter what these people do, it is unrelated to God: It is unrelated
to both His name and His work today. These people humiliate themselves,
and manifest Satan; they are evildoers who are hoarding for the day of
wrath. Today, regardless of their actions, and provided they do not
obstruct God’s management and have nothing to do with the new work of
God, such people will not be subjected to the corresponding retribution,
for the day of wrath has yet to arrive.
from “God’s Work and Man’s Practice” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Man does not know this: Although the holy Savior Jesus is full of
affection and love toward man, how could He work in “temples” inhabited
by filth and impure spirits? Though man has been awaiting His arrival,
how could He appear to those who eat the flesh of the unrighteous, drink
the blood of the unrighteous, wear the clothes of the unrighteous, who
believe in Him but do not know Him, and who constantly extort Him?
from “The Savior Has Already Returned Upon a ‘White Cloud’” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
The most disobedient person is one that intentionally defies and
resists God. He is the enemy of God and is an antichrist. Such a person
always retains hostility against the new work of God, shows no intent to
submit, and has never gladly obeyed or humbled himself. He exalts
himself before others and never submits to another. Before God, he
considers himself the most proficient in preaching the “word” and most
skillful in working on others. He never discards the treasures already
in his possession, but treats them as family heirlooms to be worshiped,
to be preached to others, and used to lecture those fools who adore him.
There are indeed some such people in the church. It can be said that
they are “indomitable heroes,” generation after generation sojourning in
the house of God. They think preaching the “word” (doctrine) to be
their highest duty. One year after another and one generation after the
other, they perform their holy and sacred duty. None dare touch them and
none dare openly reproach them. They became “king” in the house of God,
acting tyrannically through the ages. These demons seek to join hands
and together destroy My work; how can I allow these living devils to
exist before Me?
from “The Truly Obedient Shall Surely Be Gained by God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Those who read the Bible in grand churches recite the Bible every
day, yet not one understands the purpose of God’s work. Not one is able
to know God; moreover, not one is in accord with the heart of God. They
are all worthless, vile men, each standing on high to teach God. Though
they brandish the name of God, they willfully oppose Him. Though they
label themselves believers of God, they are ones who eat the flesh and
drink the blood of man. All such men are devils who devour the soul of
man, demons who purposefully disturb those who try to step onto the
right path, and stumbling blocks that impede the path of those who seek
God. Though they are of “robust flesh,” how are their followers to know
that they are antichrists who lead man in opposition to God? How are
they to know that they are living devils who specially seek souls to
devour?
from “All Who Do Not Know God Are Those Who Oppose God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
from"The Twenty Truths of Bearing Witness to God"
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