I Finally Understand That Obeying Pastors Is Not Obeying God

By Shixing, Malaysia

    “Take heed therefore to yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to feed the church of God” (Acts 20:28).

    Pastors and elders frequently use this verse of Scripture to teach us that pastors are established by God, and that obeying our pastors is obeying God. Especially when I saw how my pastors were familiar with the Bible, how they labored and paid a price, and how they could devote their entire lives to the church, I felt that they were a worthy example to imitate, so I actively took part in serving the church and later became a church worker.

Questions and Answers on God’s Work of Judgment in the Last Days (8)

Question 8: How exactly does God perform His judgment work to save and cleanse mankind in the last days?

      Answer: Currently, all those who seek and study the true way want to know how Almighty God does judgment work in the last days. Pertaining to this aspect of the truth, Almighty God has expressed ample words. Let us look at a few passages of His words:

      “When God becomes flesh this time, His work is to express His disposition, primarily through chastisement and judgment. Using this as the foundation, He brings more truth to man, shows more ways of practice, and so achieves His objective of conquering man and saving man from his corrupt disposition. This is what lies behind the work of God in the Age of Kingdom” (from Preface to The Word Appears in the Flesh).

Gospel Movie Clip (6) - Differences Between the Way of Repentance and the Way of Eternal Life

Gospel Movie Clip (6) - Differences Between the Way of Repentance and the Way of Eternal Life

The Lord Jesus and Almighty God are one God. The Lord Jesus carries out the work of redemption, He preaches the way of repentance. Almighty God of the last days carries out the work of judgment to cleanse mankind, He brings the way of eternal life. Now, if you want to know the differences between the way of repentance and the way of eternal life, please watch this short video.

Learn More About Christ's Second Coming:

"The Eastern Lightning" has testified that the Lord Jesus has already returned, expressed the truth, and made complete a group of overcomers. Does this fulfill the prophecies from the Bible?

Question 9: If we accept Almighty God, are we guaranteed to enter the kingdom of heaven?

　　Answer: Almighty God has spoken very clearly about this problem. Let’s first take a look at what he has said.

　　“The return of Jesus is a great salvation for those who are capable of accepting the truth, but for those who are unable to accept the truth it is a sign of condemnation. You should choose your own path, and should not blaspheme against the Holy Spirit and reject the truth. You should not be an ignorant and arrogant person, but someone who obeys the guidance of the Holy Spirit and longs for and seeks the truth; only in this way will you benefit.”(“When You Behold the Spiritual Body of Jesus Will Be When God Has Made Anew Heaven and Earth” in The Word Appears in the Flesh).

　　“I will let all who follow Me know this fact: Those who cannot fully accept My words, those who cannot practice My words, those who cannot find a purpose in My words, and those who cannot receive salvation because of My words, are those who have been condemned by My words and, moreover, have lost My salvation, and My rod shall never stray from them” (“You Ought to Consider Your Deeds” in The Word Appears in the Flesh).

Questions and Answers on Being Saved and Being Finally Saved (6)

Question 6: You say that if people want to be freed from sin and be cleansed, they must accept Almighty God’s work of judgment in the last days. How does God judge and cleanse people in the last days? Throughout all these years that I’ve believed in the Lord, I thought that it’d be great if there came a time when people no longer sinned. At that time, my life would no longer be painful!

　　Answer: As for how Almighty god judges and cleanses people in the last days, let’s read some more of Almighty God’s words! Almighty God says, “When God becomes flesh this time, His work is to express His disposition, primarily through chastisement and judgment. Using this as the foundation, He brings more truth to man, shows more ways of practice, and so achieves His objective of conquering man and saving man from his corrupt disposition. This is what lies behind the work of God in the Age of Kingdom” (Preface to The Word Appears in the Flesh).

The Word of God | "Only the Perfected Can Live a Meaningful Life"

Almighty God says, "Those who have been perfected are not just able to achieve obedience after being conquered, but they are also able to have knowledge of the work of judgment, change their disposition, and know God. They experience the path of loving God and are filled with the truth. They know how to experience God’s work, are able to suffer for God, and have their own wills. …The perfected refers to those who, after the conquering work ends, are able to pursue the truth and be gained by God. It refers to those who, after the conquering work ends, stand firm in tribulation and live out the truth."

Relevant reading:

Message from God | Almighty God's Word "The Savior Has Already Returned Upon a 'White Cloud'"

Gospel Movie Clip "The Gospel Messenger" (2) - Christ Is God Incarnate

For the last two thousand years, although believers in the Lord have known that the Lord Jesus is Christ, that He is God in the flesh, no one has been able to understand the mysteries of the truth pertaining to what God's incarnation truly is and how we should know the incarnate God. This is why, when Almighty God of the last days became flesh to come do His work of judgment, some people treated Him as if He were just a regular person and refused to accept Almighty God's work of the last days. People are very likely to lose God's salvation of the last days this way. It is evident that understanding the truth of incarnation is critical for welcoming the Lord's return.

Relevant reading:

The Christians of The Church of Almighty God pray to the name of Almighty God. 

The Church of Almighty God | Christian song | Welcoming Your Smiling Face Appearing Before Me

I

You raised me from the dust

and into Your embrace.

You woke my heart from

the long and dark night's slumber.

Looking through my haze,

I see Your smiling face.

It draws my heart and my love.

Never dreamed I'd see Your face.

Such a blessing

has caught me by surprise.

Such a blessing

when I saw Your appearance.

For I am from the dust

and without any worth.

Yet the glorious Almighty God

has come to me face to face.

Quiet before You,

I listen when You talk.

Your words are gentle,

yet Your words are strong.

Judgment and chastisement

awaken my heart.

A love sincere and beautiful

that I'll always hold dear.

Your loveliness is beyond words.

It's wondrous!

Taken my heart, rousing my love too.

I've memorized Your every

lovely attribute.

It's my biggest wish

to give all my love to You.

Give all my love to You, to You.

Tribulation Inspired My Love for God

Meng Yong Shanxi Province

I am by nature an honest person, which is why I have always been bullied by other people. As a result, I have tasted the coldness of the world of man and felt my life empty and without meaning. After I started believing in Almighty God, through the reading of God’s words and living the church life, I enjoyed an earnestness and joy in my heart I had never felt before. Seeing the brothers and sisters of The Church of Almighty God love each other like a family made me realize that only God is righteous, and that only in The Church of Almighty God is there light. Through several years of personally experiencing Almighty God’s work, I have come to truly appreciate that the words of Almighty God can indeed change people and save people. Almighty God is love, and He is salvation. So that more people can enjoy God’s love and seek and receive God’s salvation, my brothers and sisters and I all strived to do our best to spread the gospel, but we never expected to be captured and persecuted by the Communist Party.

God redeemed mankind in the Age of Grace, so why does He still need to do His work of judgment in the last days?

Bible Verses for Reference:

“You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy”(Lev 11:45).

“Holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord” (Heb 12:14).

“And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejects me, and receives not my words, has one that judges him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day” (Jhn 12:47-48).

Relevant Words of God:

At the time Jesus’ work was the redemption of all mankind. The sins of all who believed in Him were forgiven; as long as you believed in Him, He would redeem you; if you believed in Him, you were no longer a sinner, you were relieved of your sins. This is what it meant to be saved, and to be justified by faith. Yet in those who believed, there remained that which was rebellious and opposed God, and which still had to be slowly removed. Salvation did not mean man had been completely gained by Jesus, but that man was no longer of sin, that he had been forgiven his sins: Provided you believed, you would never more be of sin.

from “The Vision of God’s Work (2)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh

Praise and Worship Song | "God's Deeds Fill the Vast Expanse of the Universe"

Impression after watching:   🎵🎧🐑🐐🐑

I saw the substance of God is love and God’s grace is with us all the time. God's word has authority and power, can purify the corrupt disposition of man. Praise and thanks be to God!

1. God looks down upon all things from on high, and dominates all things from on high. At the same time, God has sent His salvation over the earth. God is watching from His secret place all the time, man’s every move, everything they say and do. God knows man like the palm of His hand. The secret place is God’s abode, the firmament is the bed He lies on. Satan’s force cannot reach unto God, for He is full of majesty, righteousness, and judgment.

Best Christian Music | Praise and Worship Song | "God's Deeds Fill the Vast Expanse of the Universe"

Having a fear of God when pondering: 

Yup, it's thanks to God's love. The mystery of the universe

How many galaxies and stars are there in the universe, we're unable to count;

For hundreds of millions of years, all the planets orbit in their fixed track orderly, the angle and speed are never disorganized. When a star appears, when a star falls, when a star has a collide and is destroyed, all are ordained, without any error.

1. God looks down upon all things from on high, and dominates all things from on high. At the same time, God has sent His salvation over the earth. God is watching from His secret place all the time, man’s every move, everything they say and do. God knows man like the palm of His hand. The secret place is God’s abode, the firmament is the bed He lies on. Satan’s force cannot reach unto God, for He is full of majesty, righteousness, and judgment.

The Testimony of a Christian | The Fire That Shocked the Nation in Ji County, Tianjin City

Chen Yao, Tianjin

　The Laide building was one of Ji County’s biggest shopping centers. June 30, 2012 was a Saturday, and Laide was holding a promotion, so there were huge numbers of customers. Some time after 3:00 that afternoon, the building suddenly caught fire. The boss, afraid that in the chaos customers would take things or not pay, closed and shuttered the main entrance on level one, and drove customers to the second and third floors. What hadn’t been anticipated was that the fire grew fiercer and fiercer, eventually becoming completely uncontrollable. The electricity across the whole building went out. From the first floor to the fourth, the lifts were out of order, and the closed entrance on the first floor couldn’t be opened. Black smoke rolled through the whole building, sparks flew up into the air. Huge flames leapt from every window, the smoke covered the county, the air was choking for people several hundred meters away. At the time many of the people trapped above the third floor chose to flee by jumping from the building, and some died where they fell, a horrible sight.

Christian English Song | "Humanity’s Only Path to Enter Into Rest"

My understanding:

Hymn Videos: singing calm our hearts, lead us to come before God

🎶🎵🎶🎵🎶🎵🎤🎤🎤📯📯📯

I

Those who stand firm during God’s final cleansing 

by chastisement and judgment will enter into the final rest. 

Those who have broken free from Satan’s influence 

will be obtained by God and enter the final rest.

The essence of judgment and chastisement 

is to cleanse man for his final rest. 

Without this work, people won’t be able to follow their own kind. 

It’s the only way to enter rest. 

The Testimony of a Christian | The Essence of Personal Revenge

Zhou Li    Xintai City, Shandong Province

📕🌱🌳📕🌱🌳📕🌱🌳📕🌱🌳📕🌱🌳

　Some time ago, we needed to plot out districts within our area, and based on our principles for the selection of leaders, there was one brother who was a relatively suitable candidate. I prepared to promote him to district leader. One day when I was chatting with this brother, he mentioned that he felt I was overbearing in my work, too intense, and that in a gathering with me there wasn’t much enjoyment…. When I heard this, I felt that I had been belittled. I felt terrible; I immediately developed a certain opinion of this brother, and no longer planned to promote him to district leader.

The Testimony of a Christian | Service of This Kind Is Truly Contemptible

Ding Ning    Heze City, Shandong Province

🙏✝️🌈🙏✝️🌈🙏✝️🌈🙏✝️🌈🙏✝️🌈🙏✝️🌈

　　Over the past few days, the church has arranged a change in my work. As I received this new assignment, I thought, “I need to take this final opportunity to call a meeting with my brothers and sisters, speak to them clearly about matters, and leave them with a good impression.” Therefore, I met with several deacons, and at the close of our time together, I said, “I have been asked to leave here and move on to different work. I hope you will accept the leader who is coming to replace me and work together with her with one heart and one mind.” As soon as they heard me say these words, some of the sisters who were present blanched, and the smiles fell from their faces. Some of them grasped my hands, some of them embraced me, and weeping they said, “You cannot leave us! You cannot cast us aside and ignore our needs! …” The sister of the host family was especially unwilling to let me go. She said to me, “It is so good that you are here with us. You are someone who can endure hardship, and you are good at fellowshiping about the truth. No matter when we needed you, you were always there to patiently help us. If you go, what will we do? …” Seeing their reluctance to part from me, my heart was full of joy and satisfaction. I comforted them with these words: “Depend on God. When I can, I will come back and visit you….”

The Church of Almighty God | The Testimony of a Christian｜I Have Found a True Home

Yangyang, USA

　　When I was three years old my father passed away. At that time my mother had just given birth to my younger brother, and my grandmother, owing to superstition, said that it was my mother and younger brother that caused my father’s death. For lack of a better option mother had to take my younger brother to her father’s house to live, so from the start of my earliest memories I was living together with my grandpa and grandma. Although my grandpa and grandma treated me well I still felt lonely and really wanted to be together with my mom and little brother. I hoped for the same kind of motherly love that other kids received. Really, what I was asking for wasn’t much, all I wanted was a true family, a mother who loved me dearly, who I could share my true feelings with. But even this small ask turned into an extravagant hope. I was only able to see my mother on the weekends. Whenever I got into trouble at school mom was never there by side either, I was like a small patch of grass by the side of the road, nobody showed any interest in me. Over time I became very self-abased, I held everything back in my heart and didn’t take initiative to interact with others. When I was sixteen there were some people in my village who were going abroad for work, and the idea tempted me. I thought to myself: My family conditions aren’t very good, if I were to go abroad then I could earn my own living, and even give some of my earnings to my family. That way I could help my family live a little better.

Christian Movie | God Set Me Free From Sin | "It's Wonderful to Cast off the Shackles of Status"

What I gain from this movie:

It’s not easy for us to take the wrong road if we accept God’s observation and inspection.

Christian Movie | "It's Wonderful to Cast off the Shackles of Status" | The Church of Almighty God

After Liang Zhi believed in God, he consistently sought with enthusiasm, and threw himself into fulfilling his duties. After a number of years, he was elected as a church leader. During the time that he performed his duties as a church leader, he realized that some of the brothers and sisters were more competent than he, which made him unhappy to the extent that he was jealous of them. In order to save face and protect his status, he secretly competed with them to see who was better, and he scrambled for fame and status. Fame and status seemed like invisible shackles binding him tightly, tying him down, leading him to do things in violation of the truth and rebelling against God. Because the carrying out of his duties was only for the sake of fame and status, and not in pursuit of the truth, the result was that he lost the work of the Holy Spirit. He could not do practical work, and was removed from his leadership duties and replaced. He suffered acutely as a result, and came before God to reflect on himself. After undergoing the judgment and chastisement of God's words, he came to realize that pursuit of fame and status was entirely brought about by his satanic disposition of arrogance and conceit, and worshiping power and influence and status. He grasped that the essence of seeking fame and status was following the path of the antichrist. If he did not repent and mend his ways throughout, the final outcome was that he was destined to sink into oblivion. At the same time he saw clearly that faith in God required walking on the road of pursuit of the truth and carrying out his duties with devotion. After that, in fulfilling his duties he attached importance to pursuit of the truth and practicing the truth. Whenever the corrupt disposition of scrambling for fame and status slipped out, he then prayed to God seeking the truth and, accepting the judgment and chastisement of God's words, according to the word of God he practiced forsaking the flesh, and set in order his intention to fulfill his own duty. Regardless of whether or not he had status, he was able most steadfastly to carry out his duties. Gradually he threw off the shackles of status that bound him and he no longer pursued fame and status, having walked on to the correct path of human life of seeking the truth and receiving salvation.

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Gospel Movie clip (4) - Christ of the Last Days Does the Work of Judgment With the Truth

The Church of Almighty God - Gospel Movie clip (4) - Christ of the Last Days Does the Work of Judgment With the Truth

In the Age of Law and the Age of Grace, God spoke some words which were stern and which rebuked people. What is the difference between these words and the words of judgment expressed by God as He does His work of judgment in the last days? What exactly is judgment? How does God's work of judgment in the last days judge and purify man?

Cho Yeonghan was a pastor of a church in Korea. He was zealous in serving the Lord for decades and earned great respect from the believers. In recent years, the church became desolate day by day. More and more evils emerged, and even he himself was often afflicted by sin. Thus, he felt extremely miserable and confused…. After much consideration, he gave up his post as a pastor and left his denomination to seek the true way that could free him from sin. He visited several other denominations, but their desolation and degeneration brought him into severer loss and helplessness. Earnestly, he prayed, “O Lord! Where are you? …” Out of surprise, when investigating the word of Almighty God, he found that the Lord Jesus has come back and He is Almighty God, the last Christ.

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From the Throne Flows the Water of Life (4) - Why Does God Carry Out the Work of Judgment in the Last Days?

The Church of Almighty God-Gospel Movie clip (4) - Why Does God Carry Out the Work of Judgment in the Last Days?

Even though our sins are absolved once we profess our faith in the Lord, we still frequently commit sins. This is a problem that perplexes all believers. Regardless of how many years we have believed in the Lord, and regardless of how we practice the Lord's words or how we rely on our willpower for self-control, all along we are still unable to break free from the control of our sinful nature. In our hearts we are all suffering deeply. What can we do to finally break free from the control of our satanic nature and achieve true salvation? This short video will help you answer that question.

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