3. Why is the truth expressed by God in the last days able to purify man, perfect man and become man’s life?
Relevant Words of God:
The way of life is not something that can be possessed by just anyone, nor is it easily obtainable by all. That is because life can only come from God, which is to say, only God Himself possesses the substance of life, there is no way of life without God Himself, and so only God is the source of life, and the ever-flowing wellspring of living water of life. From when He created the world, God has done much work involving the vitality of life, has done much work that brings life to man, and has paid a great price so that man might gain life, for God Himself is eternal life, and God Himself is the way by which man is resurrected.
God is never absent from the heart of man, and lives among man at all times. He has been the driving force of man’s living, the fundament of man’s existence, and a rich deposit for man’s existence after birth. He causes man to be reborn, and enables him to tenaciously live in his every role. Thanks to His power, and His inextinguishable life force, man has lived for generation after generation, throughout which the power of God’s life has been the mainstay of man’s existence, and for which God has paid a price that no ordinary man has ever paid. God’s life force can prevail over any power; moreover, it exceeds any power. His life is eternal, His power extraordinary, and His life force not easily overwhelmed by any created being or enemy force. The life force of God exists, and shines its brilliant radiance, regardless of time or place. God’s life remains forever unchanged throughout the upheavals of heaven and earth. All things pass away, but God’s life still remains, for God is the source of the existence of all things, and the root of their existence. Man’s life originates from God, the existence of the heaven is because of God, and the existence of the earth stems from the power of God’s life. No object possessed of vitality can transcend the sovereignty of God, and no thing with vigor can break away from the ambit of God’s authority. In this way, regardless of who they are, everyone must submit under the dominion of God, everyone must live under God’s command, and no one can escape from His control.
…………
God Himself is life, and the truth, and His life and truth coexist. Those who are incapable of gaining the truth shall never gain life. Without the guidance, support, and provision of the truth, you shall only gain letters, doctrines, and, moreover, death. God’s life is ever-present, and His truth and life coexist. If you cannot find the source of truth, then you will not gain the nourishment of life; if you cannot gain the provision of life, then you will surely have no truth, and so apart from imaginations and conceptions, the entirety of your body shall be nothing but flesh, your stinking flesh. Know that the words of books do not count as life, the records of history cannot be feted as the truth, and the doctrines of the past cannot serve as an account of words presently spoken by God. Only that which is expressed by God when He comes to earth and lives among man is the truth, life, God’s will, and His actual manner of working. If you apply the records of words spoken by God during past ages to today, then you are an archaeologist, and the best way of describing you is as an expert on historical heritage. That is because you always believe in traces of the work that God did in times gone by, only believe in the shadow of God left from when He previously worked among man, and only believe in the way that God gave to His followers in former times. You do not believe in the direction of God’s work today, do not believe in the glorious countenance of God today, and do not believe in the way of truth presently expressed by God. And so you are undeniably a daydreamer who is completely out of touch with reality. If now you still cling to words that are incapable of bringing life to man, then you are a hopeless piece of deadwood,[a] for you are too conservative, too intractable, too impervious to reason!
from “Only Christ of the Last Days Can Give Man the Way of Eternal Life” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Christ of the last days brings life, and brings the enduring and
everlasting way of truth. This truth is the path through which man shall
gain life, and the only path by which man shall know God and be
approved by God.
from “Only Christ of the Last Days Can Give Man the Way of Eternal Life” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
In the last days, Christ uses a variety of truths to teach man,
reveal the essence of man, and dissect his words and deeds. These words
comprise various truths, such as man’s duty, how man should obey God,
how man should be loyal to God, how man ought to live out the normal
humanity, as well as the wisdom and disposition of God, and so on. These
words are all focused on the essence of man and his corrupt
disposition. In particular, those words that reveal how man spurns God
are spoken in regard to how man is an embodiment of Satan and an enemy
force against God. When God does the work of judgment, He does not
simply make clear the nature of man with just a few words, but carries
out revelation, dealing, and pruning over the long term. Such manner of
revelation, dealing, and pruning cannot be substituted with ordinary
words but with the truth that man does not possess at all. Only such
manner of work is deemed judgment; only through such judgment can man be
persuaded, be thoroughly convinced into submission to God, and gain
true knowledge of God. What the work of judgment brings about is man’s
understanding of the true face of God and the truth about his
rebelliousness. The work of judgment allows man to gain much
understanding of the will of God, of the purpose of God’s work, and of
the mysteries that could not be understood by man. It also allows man to
recognize and know his corrupt substance and the roots of his
corruption, as well as to discover the ugliness of man. These effects
are all brought about by the work of judgment, for the substance of such
work is actually the work of opening up the truth, way, and life of God
to all those who have faith in Him. This work is the work of judgment
done by God.
from “Only Christ of the Last Days Can Give Man the Way of Eternal Life” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
People cannot change their disposition themselves; they must undergo
the judgment and chastisement and painful refinement of God’s words, or
being dealt with, disciplined, and pruned by His words. Only after that
can they achieve obedience and devotion to God, and not try to fool Him
and deal with Him perfunctorily. It is under the refinement of God’s
words that people have a change in disposition. Only those who undergo
the exposure, judgment, disciplining, and dealing with of His words will
no longer dare to do things recklessly, and will become calm and
collected. The most important point is that they are able to obey God’s
actual words and obey God’s work, and even if it is not in line with
human notions, they can put them aside and intentionally obey.
from “Those Whose Disposition Has Changed Are
Those Who Have Entered Into the Reality of God’s Words” in The Word
Appears in the Flesh
In the work of the last days, the word is mightier than the
manifestation of signs and wonders, and the authority of the word
surpasses that of signs and wonders. The word reveals all the corrupt
dispositions in the heart of man. You are unable to recognize them on
your own. When they are revealed to you through the word, you will
naturally come to the realization; you will not be able to deny them,
and you will be utterly convinced. Is this not the authority of the
word? This is the result achieved by the present work of the word.
Therefore, man cannot be fully saved from his sins by the healing of
sickness and casting out of demons and cannot be fully made complete by
the manifestation of signs and wonders. The authority to heal and cast
out demons only gives man grace, but the flesh of man still belongs to
Satan and the corrupt satanic disposition still remains within man. In
other words, that which has not been made clean still belongs to sin and
filth. Only after man has been made clean through words can he be
gained by God and become sanctified. If no more is done than casting out
the demons within man and redeeming him, that is only seizing him from
the hands of Satan and returning him to God. However, he has not been
made clean or changed by God, and he remains corrupt. Within man still
exists filth, opposition and rebelliousness; man has only returned to
God through redemption, but man has no knowledge of Him and still
resists and betrays God. Before man was redeemed, many of Satan’s
poisons were already planted within him. After thousands of years of
Satan’s corruption, man already has within him a nature that resists
God. Therefore, when man has been redeemed, it is nothing more than
redemption, where man is bought at a high price, but the poisonous
nature within has not been eliminated. Man that is so defiled must
undergo a change before being worthy to serve God. Through this work of
judgment and chastisement, man will fully come to know the filthy and
corrupt substance within him, and he will be able to completely change
and become clean. Only in this way can man be worthy to return before
the throne of God. All the work done this day is so that man can be made
clean and be changed; through judgment and chastisement by the word, as
well as refinement, man can cast away his corruption and be made pure.
Rather than deeming this stage of work to be that of salvation, it would
be more apt to say it is the work of purification. In truth, this stage
is that of conquest as well as the second stage of salvation. Man is
gained by God through judgment and chastisement by the word; through the
use of the word to refine, judge and disclose, all of the impurities,
notions, motives, and individual hopes within man’s heart are completely
revealed. Though man has been redeemed and forgiven of his sins, it is
only considered as God not remembering the transgressions of man and not
treating man in accordance with man’s transgressions. However, when man
lives in the flesh and he has not been set free from sin, he can only
continue to sin, endlessly revealing the corrupt satanic disposition.
This is the life that man leads, an endless cycle of sin and
forgiveness. The majority of men sin in the day only to confess in the
evening. As such, even if the sin offering is forever effective for man,
it would not be able to save man from sin. Only half the work of
salvation has been completed, for man still has corrupt disposition. For
instance, when people realized that they were descended from Moab, they
issued words of complaint, no longer sought life, and became utterly
passive. Does this not show that they are still unable to fully submit
under the dominion of God? Is this not precisely the corrupt satanic
disposition? When you were not being subjected to chastisement, your
hands were raised higher than all others, even that of Jesus. And you
cried out in a loud voice: Be a beloved son of God! Be an intimate of
God! We would rather die than submit to Satan! Revolt against the old
Satan! Revolt against the great red dragon! Let the great red dragon
completely fall from power! Let God make us complete! Your cries were
louder than all others. But then came the times of chastisement and,
once again, was the corrupt disposition of people revealed. Then, their
cries ceased, and they no longer had resolution. This is the corruption
of man; it runs deeper than sin, planted by Satan and deeply rooted
within man. It is not easy for man to become aware of his sins; man is
unable to recognize his own deeply rooted nature. Only through judgment
by the word can such effects be achieved. Only thus can man gradually be
changed from that point onward. Man shouted thus in the past because
man had no understanding of his original corrupt disposition. Such are
the impurities within man. Throughout such a long period of judgment and
chastisement, man lived in an atmosphere of tension. Was this not all
achieved through the word? Did you not also cry out with a very loud
voice prior to the trial of service-doers? Enter the kingdom! All those
who accept this name shall enter into the kingdom! All shall partake of
God! When the trial of service-doers came, you no longer cried. At
first, all cried out, “God! Wherever You place me, I shall submit to
being steered by You.” Upon reading the words of God, “Who will be My
Paul?” man said, “I am willing!” Then he saw the words, “And what of the
faith of Job?” So he said, “I am willing to take the faith of Job. God,
please test me!” When the trial of service-doers came, he collapsed at
once and almost could not stand up again. After that, the impurities in
man’s heart gradually diminished. Was this not achieved through the
word? So, what you have experienced in the present are results achieved
through the word, even greater than that achieved through Jesus’ working
of signs and wonders. The glory of God and authority of God Himself
that you see are not merely seen through the crucifixion, healing of
sickness and casting out of demons, but more so through His judgment by
the word. This shows you that not only the working of signs, healing of
sickness and casting out of demons are the authority and power of God,
but judgment by the word is better able to represent the authority of
God and to reveal His almightiness.
from “The Mystery of the Incarnation (4)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
The greatest significance of the work of words is allowing people to
put the truth into practice after having understood the truth, achieve
changes in their disposition, and achieve the knowledge of themselves
and the work of God. Only the means of working through speaking can
communicate the relationship between God and man, only words can explain
the truth. Working in this way is the best means of conquering man;
apart from the utterance of words, no other method is capable of giving
man a clearer understanding of the truth and the work of God, and so in
His final stage of work, God speaks to man in order to open up to man
all the truths and mysteries that they do not understand, allowing them
to gain the true way and the life from God, and thus satisfy the will of
God. … This stage of work—the work of words—opens up to man all of the
ways and mysteries that they do not understand, so that man can
understand the will of God and God’s requirements of man, so that they
can have the conditions to put God’s words into practice and achieve
changes in their disposition.
from “You Should Put Aside the Blessings of
Status and Understand God’s Will for the Salvation of Man” in The Word
Appears in the Flesh
… during the last days, when God becomes flesh, He principally uses
the word to accomplish all and make all plain. Only in His words can you
see what He is; only in His words can you see that He is God Himself. …
to allow man to behold His power and supremacy in His words, to allow
man to see in His words how He humbly hides Himself, and to allow man to
know His entirety in His words. All that He has and is are in His
words, His wisdom and wondrousness are in His words. In this are you
made to see the many methods with which God speaks His words. … God
causes man to gain life from His words, and this is the greatest of all
signs, and even more so, it is an undisputable fact. This is the best
evidence through which to have knowledge of God, and is an even greater
sign than signs. Only these words can make man perfect.
from “All Is Achieved by the Word of God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Footnotes:
a. A piece of deadwood: a Chinese idiom, meaning “beyond help.”
from"The Twenty Truths of Bearing Witness to God"
Recommendation:
The Church of Almighty God was founded by Almighty God personally
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