Do you understand now what is judgment and what is truth? If you have understood, then I exhort you to submit obediently to being judged, otherwise you shall never have the opportunity to be commended by God or to be brought by Him into His kingdom. Those who only accept judgment but can never be purified, that is, those who flee in the midst of the work of judgment, shall forever be detested and rejected by God. Their sins are more numerous, and more grievous, than those of the Pharisees, for they have betrayed God and are rebels against God. Such men who are not worthy even to do service shall receive more severe punishment, a punishment that is moreover everlasting. God shall not spare any traitor who once evinced loyalty with words but then betrayed Him. Men like these shall receive retribution through punishment of the spirit, soul, and body. Is this not precisely a revelation of the righteous disposition of God? Is this not God’s purpose in judging man, and revealing him? God consigns all those who perform all kinds of wicked deeds during the time of judgment to a place infested with evil spirits, letting these evil spirits destroy their fleshly bodies at will. Their bodies give off the stench of corpses, and such is their fitting retribution. God writes down in their record books each and every one of the sins of those disloyal false believers, false apostles, and false workers; then, when the time is right, He casts them amidst the unclean spirits, letting these unclean spirits defile their entire bodies at will, so that they may never be reincarnated and never again see the light. Those hypocrites who did service at one time but are unable to remain loyal to the end are numbered by God among the wicked, so that they walk in the counsel of the wicked and become part of their disorderly rabble; in the end, God shall annihilate them. God casts aside and takes no notice of those who have never been loyal to Christ or dedicated any effort, and shall annihilate them all in the change of ages. They shall no longer exist on earth, much less gain passage into the kingdom of God. Those who have never been sincere to God but are forced by circumstance into dealing with Him perfunctorily are numbered among those who do service for His people. Only a small number of such men can survive, while the majority shall perish along with those who are not qualified even to do service. Finally, God shall bring into His kingdom all those who are of the same mind as God, the people and the sons of God as well as those predestined by God to be priests. Such is the distillate obtained by God through His work. As for those who are unable to fall into any of the categories set by God, they shall be numbered among the unbelievers. And you can surely imagine what their outcome shall be. I have already said to you all that I should say; the road that you choose shall be your decision to make. What you should understand is this: The work of God never waits for any that cannot keep pace with Him, and the righteous disposition of God shows no mercy to any man.
from “Christ Does the Work of Judgment With the Truth” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Now is the time I determine the ending for each person, not the stage at which I began to work man. I write down in My record book, one by one, the words and actions of each person, as well as their path in following Me, their inherent characteristics, and their final performance. In this way, no manner of man shall escape My hand and all shall be with their own kind as I assign. I decide the destination of each person not on the basis of age, seniority, amount of suffering, and least of all, the degree to which they invite pity, but according to whether they possess the truth. There is no other choice but this. You must realize that all those who do not follow the will of God will be punished. This is an immutable fact. Therefore, all those who are punished are so punished for the righteousness of God and as retribution for their numerous evil acts. …
My mercy is expressed upon those who love Me and deny themselves. And the punishment visited upon the wicked is precisely proof of My righteous disposition and, even more, testimony to My wrath. When disaster comes, famine and plague will befall all those who oppose Me and they will weep. Those who have committed all manner of wickedness, but who have followed Me for many years, will not escape indictment; they too, falling into disaster, the like of which has seldom been seen throughout the ages, will come to live in a constant state of panic and fear. And those of My followers who have shown loyalty to Me alone shall rejoice and applaud My might. They will experience ineffable contentment and live in a joy that I have never before bestowed upon mankind. For I treasure the good deeds of men and abhor their evil deeds. Since I first began to lead mankind, I have been eagerly hoping to gain a group of men of the same mind with Me. I have never forgotten those who are not of the same mind with Me; I have held them with loathing in My heart, awaiting only the opportunity to visit My retribution on them, which will give Me relish to see. My day has finally come today, and I need no longer wait!
My final work is not only for the sake of punishing man but also for the sake of arranging the destination of man. Even more, it is for the sake of receiving acknowledgment from all for everything that I have done. I want each and every man to see that all I have done is right, and that all I have done is an expression of My disposition; it is not man’s doing, least of all nature, that brought forth mankind. On the contrary, it is I who nourish every living being in creation. Without My existence, mankind will only perish and undergo the scourge of calamities. No human being will ever again see the beauteous sun and moon or the green world; mankind shall encounter only the frigid night and the inexorable valley of the shadow of death. I am mankind’s only salvation. I am mankind’s only hope and, even more, I am He on whom the existence of all mankind rests. Without Me, mankind will immediately come to a complete standstill. Without Me, mankind will suffer catastrophe and be trodden down by all manner of ghosts, even though no one takes heed of Me. I have done work that can be done by no other, My only hope is that man can repay Me with some good deeds. Though those who can repay Me are very few, I will still conclude My journey in the human world and begin the next step of My unfolding work, because all My rushing to and fro in man’s midst these many years has been fruitful, and I am very pleased. What I care about is not the number of men but rather their good deeds. In any case, I hope that you prepare a sufficiency of good deeds for your own destination. Then will I be satisfied; otherwise, none of you shall escape the disaster that befalls you. The disaster originates with Me and is of course orchestrated by Me. If you cannot appear as good in My eyes, then you will not escape suffering the disaster. In the midst of tribulation, your actions and deeds were not considered entirely appropriate, for your faith and love were hollow, and you only showed yourselves to be either timid or tough. Regarding this, I will only make a judgment of good or bad. My concern continues to be the way in which each of you acts and expresses himself, on the basis of which I shall determine your end. However, I must make this clear: I will give no more mercy to those who gave Me no jot of loyalty in times of tribulation, for My mercy only extends so far. Furthermore, I have no liking for anyone who has once betrayed Me, much less do I like to associate with those who sell out the interests of their friends. This is My disposition, regardless of who the person may be. I must tell you this: Anyone who breaks My heart shall not receive clemency from Me a second time, and anyone who has been faithful to Me shall forever remain in My heart.
from “You Ought to Prepare a Sufficiency of Good Deeds for Your Destination” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
The kingdom is expanding in humanity’s midst, it is forming in humanity’s midst, it is standing up in humanity’s midst; there is no force that can destroy My kingdom. Of My people who are in the kingdom of today, which of you is not a human being among human beings? Which of you lies outside the human condition? When My new starting point is announced to the multitude, how will humanity react? You have seen with your own eyes the state of mankind; surely you do not still harbor hopes of enduring forever in this world? I am now walking abroad in the midst of My people, I live in the midst of My people. Today, those who bear genuine love toward Me, people like these are blessed; blessed are those who submit to Me, they will surely stay in My kingdom; blessed are those who know Me, they will surely wield power in My kingdom; blessed are those who seek after Me, they will surely escape from Satan’s bonds and enjoy blessing in Me; blessed are those who are able to forsake themselves, they will surely enter into My possession, and inherit My kingdom’s bounty. Those who run around for My sake I will commemorate, those who go to expense for My sake I will joyfully embrace, those who make offering to Me I will give enjoyments. Those who find enjoyment in My words I will bless; they will surely be the pillars that hold up the ridgepole in My kingdom, they will surely have matchless bounty in My house, and no one can compare with them. Have you ever accepted the blessings that you were given? Have you ever sought the promises that you were made? You will surely, under the guidance of My light, break through the stranglehold of the forces of darkness. You will surely not, in the midst of darkness, lose the light guiding you. You will surely be the master of all creation. You will surely be an overcomer before Satan. You will surely, at the downfall of the kingdom of the great red dragon, stand up amid the myriad throngs to bear witness to My victory. You will surely be resolute and unwavering in the land of Sinim. Through the sufferings you endure, you will inherit the blessing that comes from Me, and will surely irradiate within the entire universe with My glory.
from “The Nineteenth Utterance” of God’s Utterances to the Entire Universe in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Following the completion of My words, the kingdom is gradually formed on earth and man is gradually returned to normality, and thus there is established on earth the kingdom in My heart. In the kingdom, all the people of God recover the life of normal man. Gone is the frosty winter, replaced by a world of cities of spring, where it is spring all year round. No longer are people faced with the gloomy, miserable world of man, no longer do they endure the cold chill of the world of man. People do not fight with each other, countries do not go to war against each other, no longer is there carnage and the blood that flows from carnage; all lands are filled with happiness, and everywhere teems with warmth between men. I move throughout the world, I enjoy from atop My throne, I live among the stars. And the angels offer unto Me new songs and new dances. No longer does their own fragility cause tears to run down their faces. No longer do I hear, before Me, the sound of the angels weeping, and no longer does anyone complain of hardship to Me. Today, you all live before Me; tomorrow, you will all exist in My kingdom. Is this not the greatest blessing that I bestow upon man?
from “The Twentieth Utterance” of God’s Utterances to the Entire Universe in The Word Appears in the Flesh
The life in rest is one without war, without filth, without persisting unrighteousness. This is to say that it lacks Satan’s harassment (here “Satan” refers to hostile forces), Satan’s corruption, as well as the invasion of any force opposed to God. Everything follows its own kind and worships the Lord of creation. Heaven and earth are entirely tranquil. This is humanity’s restful life. When God enters into rest, no more unrighteousness will persist upon the earth, and there will be no more invasion of any hostile forces. Humanity will also enter a new realm; they will no longer be a humanity corrupted by Satan, but rather a humanity that has been saved after having been corrupted by Satan. Humanity’s day of rest is also God’s day of rest. God lost His rest due to humanity’s inability to enter into rest; it was not that He was originally unable to rest. Entering into rest does not mean that all things will cease to move, or that all things will cease to develop, nor does it mean that God will cease to work or man will cease to live. The sign of entering into rest is as thus: Satan has been destroyed; those wicked people who join Satan in its evildoing have been punished and wiped out; all forces hostile to God cease to exist. God entering into rest means that He will no longer carry out His work of humanity’s salvation. Humanity entering into rest means that all of humanity will live within God’s light and under His blessings; there will be none of Satan’s corruption, nor will any unrighteous things occur. Humanity will live normally upon earth, and they will live under God’s care. When God and man enter into rest together, it will mean that humanity has been saved and that Satan has been destroyed, that God’s work among man has finished entirely. God will no longer continue to work among man, and man will no longer live under Satan’s domain. Therefore, God will no longer be busy, and man will no longer rush about; God and man will enter into rest simultaneously. God will return to His original position, and each person will return to his or her respective place. These are the destinations that God and man will respectively reside in after the end of God’s entire management. God has God’s destination, and man has man’s destination. While resting, God will continue to guide all of humanity in their lives upon earth. While in God’s light, man will worship the one true God in heaven. God will no longer live among humanity, and man will also be unable to live with God in God’s destination. God and man cannot live within the same realm; rather, both have their own respective manners of living. God is the One who guides all of humanity, while all of humanity is the crystallization of God’s management work. It is humanity who is led; in regard to essence, humanity is not similar to God. To rest means to return to one’s original place. Therefore, when God enters into rest, it means that God returns to His original place. God will no longer live upon the earth or share in humanity’s joy and suffering while among humanity. When humanity enters into rest, it means that man has become a true creation; humanity will worship God from upon the earth and have normal human lives. People will no longer be disobedient to God or resist God; they will return to the original life of Adam and Eve. These are the respective lives and destinations of God and humanity after they enter into rest. Satan’s defeat is an inevitable trend in the war between God and Satan. In this way, God’s entering into rest after the completion of His management work and man’s complete salvation and entrance into rest likewise become inevitable trends. Man’s place of rest is on earth, and God’s place of rest is in heaven. While man rests, he will worship God and also live upon earth, and while God rests, He will lead the remaining portion of humanity; He will lead them from heaven, not from earth. God will still be the Spirit, while man will still be flesh. God and man both have their different respective manners of resting. While God rests, He will come and appear among man; while man rests, he will be led by God to visit heaven and also to enjoy life in heaven. After God and man enter into rest, Satan will no longer exist, and like Satan, those wicked people will also no longer exist. Before God and man enter into rest, those wicked individuals who once persecuted God upon earth and the enemies who were disobedient to Him upon earth will have already been destroyed; they will have been destroyed by the great disasters of the last days. After those wicked individuals have been completely destroyed, earth will never again know Satan’s harassment. Humanity will obtain complete salvation, and it will only be then that God’s work ends completely. These are the prerequisites for God and man to enter into rest.
from “God and Man Will Enter Into Rest Together” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Because they are able to testify to God, and devote all their efforts to God’s work, those who truly love God can walk anywhere beneath the heavens without anyone daring to oppose them, and they can wield power on earth and rule all the people of God. These people have come together from across the world, they speak different languages and have different skin colors, but their existence has the same meaning, they all have a heart that loves God, they all bear the same testimony, and have the same resolve, and the same wish. Those who love God can walk freely throughout the world, those who testify to God can travel across the universe. These people are beloved by God, they are blessed by God, and they will forever live in His light.
from “Those Who Love God Will Forever Live Within His Light” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Those who will be perfected by God are those who will receive God’s blessings and His inheritance. That is, they take in what God has and is, so that it becomes what they have within; they have all the words of God wrought into them; whatever the being of God, you are able to take it all in exactly as is, thereby living out the truth. This is the kind of man perfected by God and gained by God. Only such kind of man is eligible to inherit these blessings bestowed by God:
1. Receiving the whole of God’s love.
2. Acting in accordance with the will of God in all things.
3. Receiving the guidance of God, living under the light of God, and being enlightened by God.
4. Living out the image loved by God on earth; loving God truly as Peter did, crucified for God and worthy to die in recompense for God’s love; having the same glory as Peter.
5. Being beloved, respected, and admired by all on earth.
6. Overcoming all the bondage of death and Hades, giving no opportunity for Satan’s work, being possessed by God, living within a fresh and lively spirit, and having no feeling of weariness.
7. Having an unspeakable sense of elation and excitement at all times throughout life, as if he has seen the coming of the day of God’s glory.
8. Receiving glory with God, and having a countenance similar to God’s beloved saints.
9. Becoming that which God loves on earth, that is, the beloved son of God.
10. Changing form and ascending with God to the third heaven, transcending the flesh.
from “Promises to Those Who Have Been Perfected” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
When man enters the eternal destination, man will worship the Creator, and because man has gained salvation and entered eternity, man will not pursue any objectives, nor, moreover, will he need to worry that he is besieged by Satan. At this time, man will know his place, and will perform his duty, and even if they are not chastised or judged, each person will perform their duty. At that time, man will be a creature in both identity and status. There will no longer be the distinction of high and low; each person will simply perform a different function. Yet man will still live in an orderly, suitable destination of mankind, man will perform his duty for the sake of worshiping the Creator, and a mankind such as this will be the mankind of eternity. At that time, man will have gained a life illuminated by God, a life under the care and protection of God, and a life together with God. Mankind will lead a normal life on earth, and the whole of mankind will enter onto the right track.
from “Restoring the Normal Life of Man and Taking Him to a Wonderful Destination” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Once the work of conquest has been completed, man will be brought into a beautiful world. This life will, of course, still be on earth, but it will be totally unlike man’s life today. It is the life that mankind will have after the whole of mankind has been conquered, it will be a new beginning for man on earth, and for mankind to have such a life will be proof that mankind has entered a new and beautiful realm. It will be the beginning of the life of man and God on earth. The premise of such a beautiful life must be that, after man has been purified and conquered, he submits before the Creator. And so, the work of conquest is the last stage of God’s work before mankind enters the wonderful destination. Such a life is man’s future life on earth, it is the most beautiful life on earth, the kind of life that man longs for, the kind that man has never before achieved in the history of the world. It is the final outcome of the 6,000 years of work of management, it is what mankind yearns for most, and it is also God’s promise to man. But this promise cannot come to pass immediately: Man will enter the future destination only once the work of the last days has been completed and he has been completely conquered, that is, once Satan has been utterly defeated. Man will be without a sinful nature after he has been refined, because God will have defeated Satan, which means that there will be no encroachment by hostile forces, and no hostile forces that can attack the flesh of man. And so man will be free, and holy—he will have entered eternity. Only if the hostile forces of darkness are bound will man be free wherever he goes, and without rebelliousness or opposition. Satan has but to be bound for man to be okay; today, he is not okay because[a] Satan still stirs up trouble everywhere on earth, and because the entire work of God’s management has yet to reach its end. Once Satan has been defeated, man will be completely liberated; when man gains God and comes out from under the domain of Satan, he will behold the Sun of righteousness. The life due to normal man will be regained; all that should be possessed by normal man—such as the ability to discern good from evil, and understanding of how to eat and clothe oneself, and the ability to live normally—all of this will be regained.
from “Restoring the Normal Life of Man and Taking Him to a Wonderful Destination” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
When man achieves the true life of man on earth, the entire forces of Satan will be bound, and man will live easily upon earth. Things will not be as complex as they are today: Human relationships, social relationships, complex familial relationships…, they are such bother, so painful! Man’s life here is so miserable! Once man has been conquered, his heart and mind will change: He will have a heart that reveres God and a heart that loves God. Once all those within the universe who seek to love God have been conquered, which is to say, once Satan has been defeated, and once Satan—all the forces of darkness—has been bound, then man’s life on earth will be untroubled, and he will be able to live freely upon earth. If man’s life is without the fleshly relationships, and is without the complexities of the flesh, then it would be so much easier. Man’s relationships of the flesh are too complex, and for man to have such things is proof that he has yet to free himself of the influence of Satan. If you had the same relationship with the brothers and sisters, if you had the same relationship with your regular family, then you would have no concerns, and would not need to worry about anyone. Nothing could be better, and in this way man would be relieved of half of his suffering. Living a normal human life on earth, man will be similar to an angel; though still being of the flesh, he will be much like an angel. This is the final promise, it is the last promise that is bestowed upon man.
from “Restoring the Normal Life of Man and Taking Him to a Wonderful Destination” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Footnotes:
a. The original text reads “today, it is because.”
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