The Gospel Reached Me When the Church Was Desolate

In April, 2015, I had meetings in Overseas Chinese Christian Church. At first, I saw a lively scene in the church. The brothers and sisters took the initiative in holy communions, and what’s more, there were varieties of Christian fellowships in the church. The pastor seemed to be very pious and to have love for the brothers and sisters as well. For example, when someone fell ill, the pastor would lead his co-workers to pray for him or her; they would pay a visit to a believer who didn’t attend meetings. I ardently pursued at that time, so the pastor prepared to train me to study theology. However, a period of time later, though I found there were various Christian fellowships, yet very few people came to have meetings or listen to sermons. For instance, every week twenty to thirty people came to eat before the Bible study meeting; however, when it began, there remained only six or seven persons. Some believers stayed to join in the Bible study meeting, but they dozed off. Seeing this phenomenon, the pastor not only could never solve this problem, but he said they were better than those who didn’t have gatherings. I also found some fellowships made different kinds of snacks and refreshments so that more people could take part in the activities they organized. I appeared to serve the Lord, yet my spirit felt dark and empty. For this reason, I often prayed and waited for the Lord to descend upon the clouds to take us into heaven.

Thank the Lord for His listening to my prayers. At the beginning of 2017, when I, along with the sisters in the church, had a spring outing, I knew Brother Zheng and Brother Liu of the Church of Almighty God. After that, we talked about the cause of the desolation of the church together. From their fellowship, I knew that the whole religious world is currently bleak and desolate. Therefore, the brothers and sisters are weak in their faith and love. In addition, the pastors have nothing new to preach. This phenomenon just fulfills 8:11 of the Book of Amos, “Behold, the days come, said the Lord Jehovah, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of Jehovah.” Then, we talked of the topic of the Lord’s return. Because I had been aspiring for the Lord’s return all the time, I intended to continue seeking and exploring the topic.

My Notions Removed, I Rejoiced the Lord’s Return

Subsequently, the two brothers of the Church of Almighty God testified to me that the Lord Jesus has already turned back in the flesh and is doing the work of judgment in the last days. Almighty God is the returned Lord Jesus. This just fulfills what records in the Bible, “For as the lightning, that lightens out of the one part under heaven, shines to the other part under heaven; so shall also the Son of man be in his day” (Luke 17:24). Brother Zheng also fellowshiped with me about the mystery of the coming of the Son of man. When hearing the news from them that the Lord Jesus has already returned in the flesh, I was both surprised and pleased. I couldn’t help thinking of the words in the Bible, “And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom comes; go you out to meet him” (Matthew 25:6). “Therefore be you also ready: for in such an hour as you think not the Son of man comes” (Matthew 24:44). In the past, when I read these verses, I didn’t understand what they are all about. Are they about the secret work of the Lord’s incarnation in the last days? At this moment, however, I thought: In the Bible there are also a lot of places with prophecies that say the Lord will descend upon the clouds for all to see. What on earth does this mean? After I spoke my confusion, Brother Liu fellowshiped, “There are many prophecies in the Bible saying the Lord will descend upon a cloud with His power and great glory. This is a fact. However, there are several places which prophesy the Lord will arrive in secret, like ‘I come as a thief’ (Revelation 16:15). ‘Therefore be you also ready: for in such an hour as you think not the Son of man comes’ (Matthew 24:44). ‘But of that day and that hour knows no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father’ (Mark 13:32). From these scriptures we can see the way of the Lord’s arrival must not be as easy as we imagine. There are two ways in which the Lord comes back: One way is in secret and the other is in public. That is to say, the Lord’s incarnation arrives secretly in the last days to do the work of judging, purifying and saving man. After He makes a group of overcomers in His end-time work, the work of God incarnate at His secret arrival will come to an end. And thus God will send down big disasters and start to reward good and punish evil. After the disasters, the Lord will appear publicly to myriad people on the clouds. Then, the prophecies about the Lord Jesus’ descending openly will come true, as it is written: ‘And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory’ (Matthew 24:30). ‘Behold, he comes with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him’ (Revelation 1:7). When we see the Lord appearing publicly to man on the clouds, whoever refuses to accept the secret work of God incarnate will absolutely lose the opportunity to be saved; those who have pierced Him, or we can say, who have resisted and condemned Almighty God—Christ of the last days, will beat their breasts in despair, wail and grind their teeth, for they will have seen Almighty God they resisted and condemned is precisely the returned Lord Jesus. So then, at that moment, there will appear the scene of all the tribes of the earth mourning. But during the period of the incarnated God’s doing His work of judgment secretly, we will certainly not see the Lord’s appearing in public atop clouds.”

Through what the two brothers shared, I understood: The Lord first became incarnated to utter His word in a secret way, and then, after He attains a group of overcomers in doing His work, He will reveal Himself to the myriad hosts of humanity, rewarding good and punishing evil. Their fellowship made me thoroughly convinced. I was determined to really examine the Church of Almighty God. After a period of investigation, I knew many aspects of the truth, such as, the inside story of God’s three stages of work, the means and meaning of the judgment work during the final age, and the incarnation of God. I was firmly sure that Almighty God is exactly our long-held Lord Jesus. Soon, I began to attend gatherings in the Church of Almighty God.

Fighting Head-on With the Pastor

In May，2017，Pastor Li suspected that I had accepted the work of Almighty God in the last days, so he sent messages, twice, to inform me of talking to him alone in the church. After reading his messages, I felt amazed and nervous. I thought: He previously convicted Almighty God publicly in the meetings, as well as hindered and prevented us from contacting the brothers and sisters of the Church of Almighty God. Recently he also shared videos of him resisting and convicting Almighty God in the chat group. If he knew I had accepted the work of Almighty God in the last days, I wonder how he will deal with me. Can he force me to blaspheme Almighty God or let me give up investigating the true way? I was very afraid. Thereupon, I came before God to pray, “Almighty God. The pastor and elders in my original church have probably known my accepting Your new work. They made an appointment to talk with me in the church. I don’t know what they want to do. God! You are the Sovereign in control of the heavens and earth, and all things. You are God who sees into the depth of man’s heart. No matter what they will say, may You give me right words as well as confidence and wisdom, letting me stand up to them.” After praying, I told this thing to the brothers and sisters of Almighty God at once. They told me to pray more before God. Additionally, they also told me if the pastor and elders didn’t have a heart to seek or investigate the truth, but directly condemned and resisted Almighty God, then I ought to stand on the side of God to safeguard the truth and bear testimony to Him. Thank God. The words of the brothers and sisters made me particularly faithful, and strong enough to meet them.

At the arranged time, I arrived at the church and was called into a room, where Pastor Li and two ministers were all waiting for me. I was immediately nervous and quickly prayed to God within: May God safeguard my heart and give me proper words, so that I can bear witness to You. After I was seated, Pastor Li asked me straight, “I heard you had received some strangers at your home to listen to them preach. Why didn’t you consult with us? You accepted the Lord’s work in our church, so we must care for you. We’re worried about you. We’re doing this for your good.” Hearing his words, I was uneasy in my heart, and thought: Why do you always restrict and bind me? Why do you always want to cage and control me? I have freedom to study and investigate the true way. Then, I said solemnly with justice, “Yes. I willingly believed in the Lord and was baptized, and then betook myself in this church. This way, am I not able to listen to sermons from others? It says in the Bible, ‘So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God’ (Romans 10:17). You don’t allow us to receive strangers or listen to others’ sermons. Is that in accord with the teaching of the Lord? In fact, through a few fellowships with the brothers and sisters of the Church of Almighty God, I think their preaching is very great and has a new enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. They can solve various difficulties in my life through fellowshiping the truth, making me have some knowledge of God’s work and mysteries in the Bible. There is the work of the Holy Spirit in their fellowship and sermons …” Before I could finish my words, Pastor Li interrupted my speech angrily. Subsequently, he said fiercely some words of blaspheming Almighty God. I said to him furiously, “Have you contacted the brothers and sisters of Eastern Lightning? Have you sought and investigated the work of Almighty God? Without doing that, why dare you randomly condemn the Church of Almighty God? As believers, we should have a heart that reveres God, for the sin of blaspheming God is unforgivable in this life or in the afterlife.”

A fight with the pastor is going on. What will happen next? The following keeps narrating the experience of Jia’nan.

Learning to Discern in the Spiritual Battle

Afterward, the pastor also said, “Eastern Lightning witnesses that the Lord Jesus has returned in the flesh. This is impossible. It is plainly said in the Bible, ‘Behold, he comes with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him’ (Revelation 1:7). Therefore, the Lord must come back on a cloud in the last days.” After hearing his words, I thought of what we appreciated and knew about this verse when Brother Zheng fellowshiped with me. Hence, I said to them, “It’s unsuitable for us to define God’s work merely by the literal meaning of the verse. As a matter of fact, there are many places that mention the coming of the Son of man. For example, ‘For as the lightning, that lightens out of the one part under heaven, shines to the other part under heaven; so shall also the Son of man be in his day’ (Luke 17:24). ‘I come as a thief’ (Revelation 16:15). The verses all mention the coming of the Son of man. Since the Son of man is mentioned, then it must be referring to the incarnate Christ.” Pastor Li cut in and said, “The Son of man refers to the Lord Jesus.” I said, “If this refers to the Lord Jesus Christ, then how can this word ‘But first must he suffer many things, and be rejected of this generation’ (Luke 17:25), still be said, after the Lord Jesus already became flesh and finished His work of redemption? As can be seen, this refers to God incarnate for the second time in the last days. If the returned Lord in the last days appears not in the form of becoming flesh but in His spiritual body, it goes without saying He won’t suffer a lot, let alone be rejected of this generation.” After that, regardless of how I fellowshiped with them, they didn’t listen to me or examine the true way, but still held onto the surface meaning of the Bible.

At this time, I clearly knew in my heart that they are absolutely not those who sincerely yearn for the returned Lord. I thought of a passage of God’s words, “Look at the leaders of each denomination—they are all arrogant and self-righteous, and their interpretations of the Bible lack context and are guided by their own imaginings. They all rely on gifts and erudition to do their work. If they could not preach at all, would people follow them?” (“Only to Pursue the Truth Is Truly to Believe in God”). Everything that God’s words reveal is true. In many parts of the Bible it is predicted the Son of man arrives and that the Lord will come like a thief. The pastor and elders all have graduated from seminary, mastered the Bible, and worked for the Lord for many years. However, they can’t read the true meaning of the prophecies in the Bible. It can be seen that while believing in the Lord, they pay attention only to studying the surface meaning of the Bible and to equipping themselves with theological theories in order to show them off, so that people will worship them. On account of that, having learned the Bible by heart, and preached and worked for many years, they not only don’t have the slightest understanding of God, but delimit God by adhering to religious concept when the Lord Jesus turns back. They are indeed people who blindly lead.

At last, seeing I didn’t give in, Pastor Li, before the co-workers, said in an indignant way, “I announce a decision on behalf of the church. From now on, you are stopped all of your service in the church. Calm down at home and consider this carefully.” At that moment, I felt my heart wrenching, and could not stop my tears from falling. That I was sad was not because they had cancelled my service, but because though I had gotten on with Pastor Li for so long and on the surface, he seemed to be very godly and tried his best to work for the Lord, yet they should besiege and abandon me just for my examination of the true way. They preached to believers, telling them to watch and await the coming of the Lord all along. Nowadays, the Lord has returned in the flesh. They don’t seek out or look into God’s end-time work. On the contrary, they obstruct and condemn the people examining the true way. Having experienced this scene, I couldn’t help thinking of what the Lord Jesus said to condemn the Pharisees, “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you are like to white washed sepulchers, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness” (Matthew 23:27). Look back to the Pharisees of that time. They often explained the Bible to the believers in the synagogues, prayed before people, and convicted others using the rules of the Bible. From the outside, they observed the Bible and were very pious. However, they gave heed only to engaging in religious rituals and observing religious rules instead of putting God’s words into practice and keeping the commandments of God. Their actions and deeds ran in the opposite direction to God’s will and requirements. This is the essence of the Pharisees’ hypocrisy and resistance of God. Let’s see the pastors and elders of today again. They put blind faith in the Bible, worship and exalt it; they only focus on sorts of religious rituals and on attending regular services, morning watch, breaking bread, partaking of Holy Communion, and so on; they lay stress only on preaching humility, patience, devoutness and love, to believers. Yet actually they don’t love or obey God, nor do they have a heart that reveres God at all. When they work and preach, they attach importance only to clinging to and expounding on the biblical knowledge and theological theories. When it comes to how to practice and experience the word of the Lord, how to observe the Lord’s commandments and His requirements, and so forth, they don’t seek or explore, nor do they lead people to practice and observe them. They work for the purpose of showing off and building up themselves, allowing people to look up to and worship them.

Stepping Over Stumbling Blocks and Following Almighty God

Later on, I was aware that the sister, who accepted the end-time work of Almighty God together with me, had also suffered the siege from the pastor and co-workers, and been expelled from the church. The pastor and elders also sealed off the church entirely, and investigated the believers, who attended meetings during the recent two years in the church, to see whether they are from Eastern Lightning. Moreover, now every Sunday afternoon, the pastor preached against Eastern Lightning in the church. At the news, I felt enraged. There are still some brothers and sisters in the church who have true belief in the Lord and bitterly long for His return. However, they are all, for the moment, bound and controlled by these hypocritical pastors and elders and have no chance to examine the true way at all. I was seized by anxiety in thinking of this. And I thought of the Lord Jesus’ words, “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” (Matthew 23:13). When the Lord Jesus came to work and preach, the Pharisees knew clearly that the words of the Lord Jesus have authority and power. They not only failed to seek or investigate them, but instead attacked and slandered the Lord Jesus with an ill intention, saying that He relied on the prince of the devils to cast out demons, so that they committed the sin of blaspheming against the Holy Spirit and seriously offended God’s disposition. The Pharisees not only blasphemed and condemned the Lord Jesus themselves, but incited and deluded believers to resist and condemn Him, making believers lose the Lord’s salvation and turn into their funerary objects and victims. Now the practices of the pastors and elders are the same as those of the Pharisees at that time. When people spread the gospel of the Lord Jesus’ return, they seal off the church to block the believers from examining the true way. Isn’t this the manifestation of such people who close the kingdom of heaven against men, and who neither enter themselves, nor let others enter? However, the most difficult point for me to comprehend is that the pastors and elders know plainly the fact that the Pharisees resisted the Lord Jesus, but why do they still take the path of the Pharisees? Why do they so frantically resist and convict God’s new work?

Afterward, I saw God’s words, “There are those who read the Bible in grand churches and recite it all day long, yet not one among them understands the purpose of God’s work. Not one among them is able to know God; still less can any one among them accord with God’s will. They are all worthless, vile people, each standing on high to lecture God. They willfully oppose God even as they carry His banner. Claiming faith in God, still they eat the flesh and drink the blood of man. All such people are devils that devour the soul of man, head demons that deliberately get in the way of those trying to step onto the right path, and stumbling blocks impeding those who seek God. They may appear of ‘sound constitution,’ but how are their followers to know that they are none other than antichrists who lead people to stand against God? How are their followers to know that they are living devils dedicated to the devouring of human souls?” (“All People Who Do Not Know God Are People Who Oppose God”). Through reading God’s words as well as according to my personal experience, I penetrated the true face of the pastors and elders in the religious circle. They are exactly the stumbling blocks—antichrists who wave the banner of faith in God to oppose God and to stop others from believing in God. Nominally, they nourish brothers and sisters in the church. In fact, they don’t care about the believers’ growth in life. The faith and love of the believers have grown cold, and simultaneously, they are negative and weak. In this case, the pastors and elders don’t lead the believers to seek the truth or go to discover a church that has the work of the Holy Spirit, but rather they keep the believers under their close control. Especially when Almighty God expresses the truth to provide people with life, they don’t investigate or accept it, but use every possible means to oppose and condemn the true way, and hinder the believers from investigating the true way instead. They don’t allow them to contact people from the Church of Almighty God or read Almighty God’s words. For the sake of their own status and livelihood, they even make rumors, slander and condemn God’s work in the final age everywhere. Do all the actions and deeds of the pastors and elders not oppose God? Are they not the evil servants or modern-day Pharisees spoken by the Lord Jesus? They block the believers from accepting God’s salvation of the last days as possible as they can. They are to pull us toward hell and to make us miss the chance of God’s end-time salvation. As can be seen, they are the devils devouring the soul of man and wolves in sheepskin. After I saw through the truth-hating, God-opposing nature and essence of the pastor and elders, I hated and rejected them from the bottom of my heart, being no longer constrained by them.

Right now, though I have been cancelled all the services in the original church, I perform my duty in the Church of Almighty God. Through frequent gatherings with my brothers and sisters and doing my duty, I feel I live a more valuable and meaningful life. Thank God. I finally stepped over the tumbling stones on the road of the kingdom of heaven and came into God’s presence. In the process of my following God, I will satisfy God and comfort His heart to the uttermost. All the glory be to Almighty God! Amen!