Many brothers and sisters are unable to take heed whenever they hear someone talking about Almighty God’s gospel of the last days, and don’t dare accept what is preached because they have been spooked by the sensationalized rumors fabricated within religious circles.
They may hear someone say: “Those who believe in Almighty God are really something—you’ll be taken in as soon as you have contact with them. There are many true believers from every religious sect who are good sheep and even bellwethers of good caliber, but they are being stolen by believers in Almighty God….” Or some have said: “The believers in Almighty God are really enthusiastic about spreading the gospel. If they convert a believer they receive a prize of 2,000 RMB, if they convert a church leader they can get 10,000 to 20,000 RMB….” And still others have said: “They don’t maintain good boundaries between men and women—they are all very promiscuous….” Some have even said: “Eastern Lightning is a criminal underworld organization. If you get involved with them, you’ll never escape. If you try, they’ll gouge out your eyes and cut off your ears, or they’ll break your legs….” and so on, and so forth. It is rumors like these that stop some brothers and sisters who are not clear on the facts from seeking and studying Almighty God’s work of the last days. Brothers and sisters who believe the rumors, have you earnestly considered or investigated whether there is any basis for these things, and if they are in line with the facts? Have you ever thought about what sort of dire consequences there will be if you blindly believe all the rumors you hear and miss the opportunity to welcome the Lord’s arrival? For now, we will first have a simple fellowship on these rumors so that our brothers and sisters can clearly see their substance, and have clear discernment regarding who is really spreading them, what the motivations are behind their fabrication, and what goal they want to achieve.
They may hear someone say: “Those who believe in Almighty God are really something—you’ll be taken in as soon as you have contact with them. There are many true believers from every religious sect who are good sheep and even bellwethers of good caliber, but they are being stolen by believers in Almighty God….” Or some have said: “The believers in Almighty God are really enthusiastic about spreading the gospel. If they convert a believer they receive a prize of 2,000 RMB, if they convert a church leader they can get 10,000 to 20,000 RMB….” And still others have said: “They don’t maintain good boundaries between men and women—they are all very promiscuous….” Some have even said: “Eastern Lightning is a criminal underworld organization. If you get involved with them, you’ll never escape. If you try, they’ll gouge out your eyes and cut off your ears, or they’ll break your legs….” and so on, and so forth. It is rumors like these that stop some brothers and sisters who are not clear on the facts from seeking and studying Almighty God’s work of the last days. Brothers and sisters who believe the rumors, have you earnestly considered or investigated whether there is any basis for these things, and if they are in line with the facts? Have you ever thought about what sort of dire consequences there will be if you blindly believe all the rumors you hear and miss the opportunity to welcome the Lord’s arrival? For now, we will first have a simple fellowship on these rumors so that our brothers and sisters can clearly see their substance, and have clear discernment regarding who is really spreading them, what the motivations are behind their fabrication, and what goal they want to achieve.
The rumor goes: “Those who believe in Almighty God are really something—you’ll be taken in as soon as you have contact with them. There are many true believers from every religious sect who are good sheep and even bellwethers of good caliber, but they are being stolen by believers in Almighty God.…” Today, most of the believers in Almighty God do indeed come from many different religious sects and among them, a great many are those from their sects that have caliber, insight, and are dedicated seekers, but saying that they are all taken in is malicious slander, pure and simple. Just think about it: Could so many devout people all be deceived who come from various religious sects to accept Almighty God’s work of the last days? Does it make sense that they’d be believers for so many years and know the Bible well without having some discernment? Even people are deceived, they could only be those who are not seekers, those who eat the loaves and are filled, and those who are muddled in their faith. How is it even possible that so many seekers and so many with sincere faith in God have been deceived? As everyone knows, it was prophesied in the Bible long ago that God would come in the last days “like a thief” to “steal” treasures, that He would “steal” those who are “treasures.” This means that all of those who are “stolen” are of good caliber, they can understand and accept the truth, and know God’s voice. Those who have been “stolen” are all good sheep and the Lord’s return is to save and perfect them. It is clear that being “stolen” is actually being raptured to meet the Lord. Those with true faith in the Lord from different sects read Almighty God’s words, and see that He has unveiled the mysteries of God’s management plan for saving mankind as well as the relationship between the Age of Law, the Age of Grace, the Age of Kingdom (the three stages of God’s work), the truth and inside story of the Bible, the significance of God’s work of judgment in the last days, how God classifies people according to their kind and determines their outcome, and finally how God will bring the age to an end and how Christ’s kingdom will be realized. Seeing these, they are able to confirm in their hearts that this is the voice of God, and that Almighty God’s words are what was prophesied several times in Revelation: “what the Spirit says to the churches.” It is all the truth, and they have recognized that Almighty God is the returned Lord Jesus and so have turned toward Him, one by one. If it weren’t God’s appearance and work, who else would have the authority and power to conquer brothers and sisters from all sects and have all faiths become one? It is because Almighty God is the Lord Jesus, who has returned and who has appeared and works in the last days, that those true seekers of God have heard God’s voice and seen God’s appearance and so they accept the work of Almighty God in the last days. Who wouldn’t want to be a wise virgin and follow the footsteps of the Lamb? This is the reason so many seekers from different religious sects have accepted Almighty God’s work of the last days. The idea that people who have accepted Almighty God’s work of the last days are deceived is clearly an outright lie, it is defamatory, and it is blasphemous to God.
Some people have said: “The believers in Almighty God are really enthusiastic about spreading the gospel. If they convert a believer they receive a prize of 2,000 RMB, if they convert a church leader they can get 10,000 to 20,000 RMB….” Within this lie, it is mentioned that believers in Almighty God are very enthusiastic about spreading the gospel of Almighty God. While this part is indeed factual, the rest about being bribed with money to spread His gospel and about their enthusiasm being driven by personal benefit, is purely fabricated nonsense and a defamatory rumor. The fact is, believers in Almighty God who spread His gospel do not receive an award of any kind. On the contrary, they spend their own savings to do so, and sometimes all they have. The reason they are so enthusiastic is not because they are bribed with money, rather, it’s because they have understood the truth from Almighty God’s words, truly seen the appearance of God, received His great salvation, experienced God’s love, and felt God’s eagerness to save people. Therefore, they are willing to spend all they have and endure any hardship or humiliation to spread the gospel of God’s kingdom. They are just like the original disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ, who heard the voice of God through Jesus’ work and words, recognized that the Lord Jesus was the Messiah they had been waiting for, and saw that He was willing to sacrifice Himself to save mankind, to be crucified. God’s love is so great, so real! Moved by the Holy Spirit, spurred on by God’s love, they were willing to give up homes and careers and to withstand all kinds of oppression and difficulties to spread the news, to bear witness for the Lord. It’s true! Perhaps some brothers and sisters have seen and heard what kind of “compensation” believers in Almighty God get when they spread the gospel: Some are humiliated, others are beaten with clubs, some are chased off, and others have even been sentenced and imprisoned at the hands of those in power; they suffer all manner of persecution…. I urge everyone to consider this: Who would willingly submit themselves to curses, beatings, and humiliation to spread God’s gospel of the last days if it were not for God’s great love and the work of the Holy Spirit? Who would risk the dangers of prison and even his life to spread the gospel of God’s salvation in the last days if it were not for God’s work? Thus “If they convert a believer they receive a prize of 2,000 RMB, if they convert a church leader they can get 10,000 to 20,000 RMB” is nothing but a lie, a pure fabrication.
There are still others who have said: “They don’t maintain good boundaries between men and women—they are all very promiscuous….” Regarding this point, let’s take a look at Almighty God’s words: “I am the holy God Himself, I cannot be sullied, and I cannot possess an unclean temple” (“The One Hundred and Ninth Utterance” in The Word Appears in the Flesh). And the regulation is very clear in “The Ten Administrative Decrees That Must Be Obeyed by God’s Chosen People in the Age of Kingdom”: “Man has corrupt disposition and, moreover, he is possessed of emotions. As such, it is absolutely prohibited for two members of the opposite sex to work together when serving God. Any who are discovered doing so will be expelled, without exception—and no one is exempt.” We can see from Almighty God’s words that God’s disposition is holy and righteous and does not tolerate any offense from mankind. He does not live in an unclean temple. God does not want a single one that engages in promiscuous behavior. Every follower of Almighty God must strictly adhere to God’s administrative decrees, or they will be expelled from the church—no exceptions. Besides, the brothers and sisters who are believers in Almighty God are primarily drawn from those genuine seekers from various religious sects; some of them are leaders and co-workers from different denominations. They know from the Age of Grace that God is a jealous God and despises promiscuous behavior. They have always maintained the Lord Jesus’ commandments, something which truly reverent people have always done in the past. Would someone like this intentionally violate the administrative decrees of the Age of Kingdom today? So you can see, the root of this rumor is simply nonsensical and purely meant as a smear campaign.
Some people have said that “Eastern Lightning is a criminal underworld organization. If you get involved with them you’ll never escape. If you try, they’ll gouge out your eyes and cut off your ears, or they’ll break your legs….” When they bring up underworld organizations, we all know that those involve murderers, arsonists, thieves, and robbers who do all manner of evil things. No one wants to provoke those sorts of people. Even the Chinese government and its police won’t dare mess with some of them, isn’t that right? So let’s take a look at the brothers and sisters who spread Almighty God’s gospel of the last days. When they go out to bring people to God, they endure being thrown out, insulted, beaten, attacked by dogs, arrested, imprisoned, and even tortured. They suffer all kinds of cruel treatment. If these brothers and sisters were really members of an underworld organization, would anyone really dare treat them that way? Would they endure verbal abuse and not respond? Would they be beaten and not fight back? Do you know of any gangsters like that? Could anyone involved in that kind of thing truly believe in God? If they did believe in God, could they have the work of the Holy Spirit? Would they be able to preach the gospel to relatively dedicated seekers? Furthermore, there are many brothers and sisters from various religious sects who have heard God’s gospel of the last days. Whether they accepted the gospel and then withdrew from the church for whatever reason, or they never accepted it in the first place, who among them has had their eyes gouged out, ears cut off, or legs broken? According to this, there must be a number of people who have had eyes gouged out, legs broken. Have you seen a single one? If there really were one, wouldn’t the CCP government have long ago brought this to trial in a court of law, and issued a sentence, and then mobilized all the presses to spread the news across the entire world? Is there any factual basis for the things these rumor mongers have said? Neither is there any factual basis when they say things like: “If you get involved with believing in Almighty God, once you go in, you’ll never get out.” It is written in “The Ten Administrative Decrees That Must Be Obeyed by God’s Chosen People in the Age of Kingdom”: “Kin who are not of the faith (your children, your husband or wife, your sisters or your parents, and so on) should not be forced into the church. God’s household is not short of members, and there is no need to make up its numbers with people who have no use. All those who do not believe gladly must not be led into the church.” The Church of Almighty God has no need of those who do not gladly believe in God just to make up the numbers and when preaching the gospel, people particularly cannot drag people along or force them to believe in God. This is God’s administrative decree and every person must strictly adhere to this—it cannot be violated. The truth is that the door of the Church is open, and those who want to leave the church and their faith can go at any time. Nobody will coerce them. The Church of Almighty God always gives each person the freedom to make their own choices. In fact, it’s not that those who accept God’s work in the last days are unable to leave, but that they themselves do not want to leave. Why is this? Almighty God says, “The incarnation of God has sent shockwaves through all religions and denominations, it has ‘thrown into disarray’ the original order of religious circles, and it has shaken the hearts of all of those who yearn for the appearance of God. Who is not adoring? Who doesn’t long to see God? God has personally been among man for many years, yet man has never realized it. Today, God Himself has appeared, and shown forth His identity to the masses—how could this not bring delight to man’s heart?” (“Work and Entry (10)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh). “During the last days, God once more became flesh, and when He became flesh this time, He ended the Age of Grace and brought the Age of Kingdom. All those who accept the second incarnation of God will be led into the Age of Kingdom, and be able to personally accept the guidance of God. … All those who submit under His dominion shall enjoy higher truth and receive greater blessings. They shall truly live in the light, and shall gain the truth, the way, and the life” (Preface to The Word Appears in the Flesh). The appearance and work of God incarnate in the last days has indeed sent shockwaves through the entire religious world and it has shaken the hearts of those who thirst for God’s appearance. The reason brothers and sisters from various sects have returned to God is because they have seen the appearance of God, heard His voice, understood that Christ of the last days is the truth, the way, and the life, and that only belief in Almighty God will allow them to achieve salvation and enter into the kingdom of heaven. Who would want to leave after receiving salvation like this? Therefore, it’s easy to see that rumors about people not wanting to leave due to being afraid of having their eyes gouged out, ears cut off, or legs broken are just being fabricated by people with ulterior motives.
From what we fellowshiped about above, we can see that the slanderous comments about God’s work in the last days are nothing but lies that are complete fabrications with no basis in the truth. If we apply just a little bit of discernment here these rumors really start to unravel. A believer concocting lies and bearing false witness is behavior that God most detests; it is condemned by God, just as the Bible says: “A false witness deceit” (Proverbs 12:17). “Lying lips are abomination to Jehovah” (Proverbs 12:22). The Lord Jesus said: “You are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father you will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and stayed not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it” (John 8:44). Knowing that concocting lies and bearing false witness is something God detests, why would they persist in doing this? John chapter 11 verses 47-48 say: “Then gathered the chief priests and the Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this man does many miracles. If we let him thus alone, all men will believe on him: and the Romans shall come and take away both our place and nation.” Matthew chapter 28 notes this fact: After the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, the Jewish chief priests, scribes, and the Pharisees were afraid that everyone would believe in the Lord Jesus and that they would then lose their status and income. They then colluded to cover up the fact that the Lord Jesus was resurrected. They bribed the soldiers with silver and made up lies to persuade people that the Lord Jesus had never resurrected, saying that His disciples took His body away when the soldiers were sleeping. We see from this that people can intentionally fabricate lies, and judge and slander God’s work as well as blaspheme God. They do this to protect their own reputations, statuses, and profits. This shows their evil nature, that they hate the truth and are enemies of God. It’s just the same now, in the last days. As Almighty God has expanded His work of the last days in mainland China, great swaths of believers from many different religious sects have come to accept God’s new work. When some leaders of these sects see more and more people believe in Almighty God while the believers under them dwindle, they fabricate all sorts of lies and slander to condemn Almighty God’s work of the last days so that they can protect their own status and income. This is how they deceive and frighten brothers and sisters to make them afraid to seek, investigate, and accept God’s work in the last days; their purpose is to trap and control their congregations forever. From this we can see that the leaders of various sects are the modern-day Pharisees revealed by God’s work of the last days. They make up rumors to protect their own status and income—they have their motives, their own goals in this.
If we are unable to discern these lies fabricated by religious circles and blindly follow them, then we stand on the side of those who slander, resist, and disrupt God’s work. This not only causes one to lose God’s salvation in the last days, but also turns one into a target for God’s loathing, rejection and punishment. This is just like the Lord Jesus’ work among the Jewish people, where the Pharisees made up all kinds of lies and slander against Him, such as saying that the Lord Jesus’ ability to cast out demons was only because He was conjuring the prince of demons, Beelzebub, saying that He was possessed by demons, as well as other blasphemous things. Because of the Pharisees’ lies and rumors, because they lacked discernment, and because they did not carefully study the Lord Jesus’ work and word, many Jewish people took the evil path of resisting God, blindly accepting the lies of the Pharisees and joining them in abandoning and murdering the Lord Jesus. The Pharisees spread falsehoods and slandered and blasphemed God, and we can all guess what ending they met, but what about those Jewish people who took those lies and slander as truth—wasn’t their ending just as tragic? They suffered unprecedented national destruction and the Jewish people scattered to the four winds. They had no home to return to for 2,000 years. Aren’t these the consequences of taking the lies of the Pharisees as truth and resisting God? We can see then, that those that believe in God without a reverent heart, who do not seek or investigate God’s new work, and who easily believe lies become accomplices to Satan and evildoers who resist God. In the end, they sink down into destruction because of this resistance to God. This fulfilled what is written in the Bible: “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6). “But fools die for want of wisdom” (Proverbs 10:21).
It says in the Bible that demons lie from the very start. Lying and slandering are two common tricks Satan uses to resist God and deceive people, and its evil intentions and cunning are hidden within. However, God’s wisdom is always a step ahead of Satan’s tricks. Satan is not only incapable of ruining God’s work, but on the contrary, it renders its service to God’s work. Just like when the Jewish chief priests, scribes and Pharisees tried so hard to resist and condemn the Lord Jesus’ work; they colluded with Rome to have the Lord Jesus crucified, thinking that they were succeeding in their scheme and they would obliterate the Lord Jesus’ work, but to their great surprise, the Lord Jesus said: “It is finished.” This shows us that God used Satan’s tricks to achieve His management plan and to complete His redemption of mankind. Today is no different. Even though there are leaders in various religious sects who will stop at nothing to create lies and rumors to resist Almighty God’s work of the last days, not only is all of this incapable of harming God’s work, but in fact, they aid in the accomplishment of His work of the last days: the work of reaping and winnowing, of separating the wheat from the tares, the sheep from the goats, to classify man according to their kind, and to reward the good and punish the evil. Through our actual experience, we have seen that the lies of the CCP government and the religious world have deceived some brothers and sisters who don’t understand the true situation. However, through seeking and investigating God’s work of the last days and reading Almighty God’s words, those who genuinely believe in God and love the truth clearly see the fact that the true way has been subject to oppression since time immemorial. They understand that the more the CCP government and the religious world resists and condemns it, the more it is the true way—they thus turn back to God. But those who detest and hate the truth mindlessly listen to the lies and rumors and follow other people because they love evil and adore power. As a result, they are caught up in a web of lies and are stuck outside of the kingdom’s gate. Isn’t that God’s wisdom and almightiness? Lies may tightly bind together the “tares,” but these lies do not do the same to “grains of wheat.” The wind blows the chaff away, while the plump seeds will be gathered into the granary in the end. In this manner, Satan’s tricks end up only being the tools, the serving objects to complete God’s work in the last days of classifying man according to their kind, as well as rewarding the good and punishing the evil. God’s work is so wondrous and unfathomable.
As I get to this point, I trust that you have gained some knowledge of the rumors’ cause, their substance, and their harmfulness! And now, Almighty God’s work in the last days has reached unprecedented new heights—it approaches its glorious conclusion and Almighty God will reveal Himself for all nations and all peoples to see. At such a crucial time, are you willing to lose your life just for being taken in by some rumors? Are you willing to so narrowly miss God’s salvation of the last days for that? I believe that any intelligent person will certainly make the wise choice.
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