c. Why those who only desire to see signs and wonders will be cast out

Words of Almighty God of the Last Days

Today, it should be clear to all of you that, in the last days, it is principally the fact of “the Word becomes flesh” that is accomplished by God. Through His actual work on earth, He causes man to know Him and to engage with Him, and to see His actual deeds. He causes man to clearly see that He is able to display signs and wonders and that there are also times when He is unable to do so; this depends on the age. From this, you can see that God is not incapable of displaying signs and wonders, but instead changes His way of working according to the work to be done and according to the age. In the current stage of work, He does not show signs and wonders; that He showed some signs and wonders in the age of Jesus was because His work in that age was different. God does not do that work today, and some people believe Him incapable of displaying signs and wonders, or else they think that if He does not display signs and wonders, then He is not God. Is that not a fallacy? God is able to display signs and wonders, but He is working in a different age, and so He does not do such work. Because this is a different age, and because this is a different stage of God’s work, the deeds made plain by God are also different. Man’s belief in God is not the belief in signs and wonders, nor the belief in miracles, but the belief in His real work during the new age. Man comes to know God through the manner in which God works, and this knowledge produces in man the belief in God, which is to say, the belief in the work and deeds of God. In this stage of work, God mainly speaks. Do not wait to see signs and wonders; you will not see any! This is because you were not born during the Age of Grace. If you had been, you could have seen signs and wonders, but you were born during the last days, and so you can see only the reality and normality of God. Do not expect to see the supernatural Jesus during the last days. You are only able to see the practical God incarnate, who is no different from any normal human being. In each age, God makes plain different deeds. In each age, He makes plain part of the deeds of God, and the work of each age represents one part of the disposition of God, and one part of the deeds of God. The deeds that He makes plain vary with the age in which He works, but they all give man a knowledge of God that is deeper, a belief in God that is truer and more down-to-earth. Man believes in God because of all of the deeds of God, because God is so wondrous, so great, because He is almighty and unfathomable. If you believe in God because He is able to perform signs and wonders and can heal the sick and cast out demons, then your view is wrong, and some people will say to you, “Are not evil spirits also able to do such things?” Does this not constitute confusing the image of God with the image of Satan? Today, man’s belief in God is because of His many deeds and the great amount of work He does and the many ways in which He speaks. God uses His utterances to conquer man and make him perfect. Man believes in God because of His many deeds, not because He is able to show signs and wonders; people only get to know God by witnessing His deeds. Only by knowing the actual deeds of God, how He works, what wise methods He uses, how He speaks, and how He makes man perfect—only by knowing these aspects—can you comprehend the reality of God and understand His disposition, knowing what He likes, what He loathes, and how He works upon man. By understanding the likes and dislikes of God, you can differentiate between that which is positive and negative, and through your knowledge of God there is progress in your life. In short, you must gain a knowledge of God’s work, and you must put straight your views about believing in God.

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Knowing God’s Work Today

In the work of the last days, the word is mightier than the manifestation of signs and wonders, and the authority of the word surpasses that of signs and wonders. The word exposes all the corrupt dispositions buried deep in the heart of man. You have no way of recognizing them on your own. When they are laid bare before you through the word, you will naturally come to discover them; you will not be able to deny them, and you will be utterly convinced. Is this not the authority of the word? This is the result achieved by the work of the word today. Therefore, it is not through the healing of sickness and casting out of demons that man can be fully saved from his sins, nor can he be made fully complete by the manifestation of signs and wonders. The authority to heal sickness and cast out demons only gives man grace, but the flesh of man still belongs to Satan and the corrupt satanic disposition still remains within man. In other words, that which has not been made clean still pertains to sin and to filth. Only after he has been made clean through the agency of the word can man be gained by God and become sanctified. When the demons were cast out of man and he was redeemed, this meant only that he was wrested out of Satan’s hands and returned to God. However, without being made clean or changed by God, he remains as corrupt man. Within man still exist filth, opposition, and rebelliousness; man has only returned to God through His redemption, but he has not the slightest knowledge of God and is still capable of resisting and betraying Him. Before man was redeemed, many of Satan’s poisons had already been planted within him and, after thousands of years of being corrupted by Satan, he has within him an established nature that resists God. Therefore, when man has been redeemed, it is nothing more than a case of redemption in which man is bought at a high price, but the poisonous nature within him has not been eliminated. Man that is so defiled must undergo a change before becoming worthy to serve God. By means of this work of judgment and chastisement, man will fully come to know the filthy and corrupt essence within his own self, and he will be able to change completely and become clean. Only in this way can man become worthy to return before the throne of God.

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. The Mystery of the Incarnation (4)

What is spoken of today is entry into reality—not ascending to heaven, or ruling as kings; all that is spoken of is the pursuit of entry into reality. There is no pursuit more practical than this, and to talk of ruling as kings is not practical. Man possesses great curiosity, and he still measures God’s work today by his religious notions. Having experienced so many of God’s methods of working, man still does not know the work of God, still seeks signs and wonders, and still looks to see whether God’s words have been fulfilled. Is this not stupendous ignorance? Without the fulfillment of God’s words, would you still believe that He is God? Today, many such people in the church are waiting to behold signs and wonders. They say that if God’s words are fulfilled, then He is God; if God’s words are not fulfilled, then He is not God. Do you, then, believe in God because of the fulfillment of His words, or because He is God Himself? Man’s view of belief in God must be put right! When you see that God’s words have not been fulfilled, you scamper away—is this belief in God? When you believe in God, you must leave everything to the mercy of God and obey all the work of God. God spoke so many words in the Old Testament—which of them did you see fulfilled with your own eyes? Can you say that Jehovah is not the true God because you did not see that? Even though many words may have been fulfilled, man is incapable of seeing that clearly because man does not have the truth and understands nothing. … Today, God has come to earth to provide man with life. He does not, as people imagine, coax you by showing signs and wonders in order to ensure a peaceful relationship between God and man. All those whose concentration is not on life, and who instead focus on making God show signs and wonders, are Pharisees! And it was the Pharisees who nailed Jesus to the cross. If you measure God according to your own view of belief in God, believing in God if His words are fulfilled, and being doubtful and even blaspheming against God if they are not, then do you not nail Him to the cross? People such as this are negligent of their duties, and greedily revel in comfort!

On the one hand, the biggest problem with man is that he does not know the work of God. Though man’s attitude is not one of denial, it is one of doubt. Man does not deny, but he also does not fully acknowledge. If people have a thorough knowledge of God’s work, they will not run away. The other problem is that man does not know reality. Today, it is with the word of God that each person has engaged; indeed, in the future, you should not think of beholding signs and wonders. I tell you plainly: During the present stage, all you are capable of seeing are the words of God, and though there are no facts, the life of God can still be wrought into man. It is this work which is the main work of the Millennial Kingdom, and if you cannot perceive this work, then you will become weak and topple down; you will descend amid trials and, yet more grievously, be taken captive by Satan. God has come to earth principally to speak His words; what you engage with is the word of God, what you see is the word of God, what you hear is the word of God, what you abide by is the word of God, what you experience is the word of God, and this incarnation of God principally uses the word to make man perfect. He does not show signs and wonders, and especially does not do the work Jesus did in the past. Although They are God, and are both flesh, Their ministries are not the same. When Jesus came, He also did part of God’s work and spoke some words—but what was the main work He accomplished? What He mainly accomplished was the work of crucifixion. He became the likeness of sinful flesh to complete the work of crucifixion and redeem all mankind, and it was for the sake of all mankind’s sins that He served as a sin offering. This is the main work He accomplished. Ultimately, He provided the path of the cross to guide those who came later. When Jesus came, it was primarily to complete the work of redemption. He redeemed all mankind, and brought the gospel of the kingdom of heaven to man, and, furthermore, He brought forth the path to the kingdom of heaven. As a result, all those who came after said, “We should walk the path of the cross, and sacrifice ourselves for the cross.” Of course, in the beginning, Jesus also did some other work and spoke some words to make man repent and confess his sins. But His ministry was still the crucifixion, and the three and a half years He spent preaching the way were in preparation for the crucifixion that came after. The several times that Jesus prayed were also for the sake of the crucifixion. The life of a normal man that He led and the thirty-three and a half years that He lived on earth were primarily for the sake of completing the work of crucifixion; they were to give Him strength to undertake this work, as a result of which God entrusted the work of crucifixion to Him. What work will God incarnate accomplish today? Today, God has become flesh primarily to complete the work of “the Word appearing in the flesh,” to use the word to make man perfect, and make man accept the dealing with the word and the refinement of the word. In His words He causes you to gain provision and gain life; in His words you see His work and deeds. God uses the word to chastise and refine you, and thus, if you suffer hardship, it is also because of the word of God. Today, God does work not with facts, but with words. Only after His word has come upon you can the Holy Spirit work within you and cause you to suffer pain or feel sweetness. Only the word of God can bring you into reality, and only the word of God is capable of making you perfect. And so, at the very least you must understand this: The work done by God during the last days is principally the use of His word to make every person perfect and to guide man. All the work that He does is through the word; He does not use facts to chastise you. There are times when some people resist God. God does not cause you great discomfort, your flesh is not chastised, nor do you suffer hardship—but as soon as His word comes upon you, and refines you, it is unbearable for you. Is that not so? During the time of the service-doers, God said to throw man into the bottomless pit. Did man really arrive at the bottomless pit? Simply through the use of words to refine man, man entered into the bottomless pit. And so, during the last days, when God becomes flesh, He principally uses the word to accomplish all and make all clear. Only in His words can you see what He is; only in His words can you see that He is God Himself. When God incarnate comes to earth, He does no other work but the speaking of words—thus there is no need for facts; words suffice. That is because He has principally come to do this work, to allow man to behold His power and supremacy in His words, to allow man to see in His words how He humbly hides Himself, and to allow man to know His entirety in His words. All that He has and all that He is are in His words. His wisdom and wondrousness are in His words. In this are you made to see the many methods with which God speaks His words. Most of God’s work during all this time has been provision, revelation, and dealing to man. He does not curse a person lightly, and even when He does, it is through the word that He curses them. And so, in this age of God become flesh, do not try to see God heal the sick and cast out demons again, and stop constantly looking for signs—there is no point! Those signs cannot make man perfect! To speak plainly: Today, the practical God Himself of the flesh does not act; He only speaks. This is the truth! He uses words to make you perfect, and uses words to feed and water you. He also uses words to work, and He uses words in place of facts to make you know His reality. If you are capable of perceiving this manner of God’s work, then it is difficult to be negative. Instead of focusing on things that are negative, you should focus only on that which is positive—which is to say, regardless of whether or not the words of God are fulfilled, or whether or not there is the advent of facts, God causes man to gain life from His words, and this is the greatest of all signs; and even more so, it is an undisputable fact. This is the best evidence through which to know God, and is an even greater sign than signs. Only these words can make man perfect.

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. All Is Achieved by the Word of God

God does His work throughout the entire universe. All those who believe in Him must accept His word, and eat and drink His word; no one can be gained by God by seeing the signs and wonders shown by God. Throughout the ages, God has always used the word to make man perfect. Thus you should not devote all your attention to signs and wonders, but should strive to be made perfect by God. In the Old Testament Age of Law, God spoke some words, and in the Age of Grace, Jesus, too, spoke many words. After Jesus had said many words, the later apostles and disciples led people to practice according to the commandments issued by Jesus and experienced according to the words and principles spoken of by Jesus. In the last days, God principally uses the word to make man perfect. He does not use signs and wonders to oppress man, or convince man; this cannot make plain the power of God. If God only showed signs and wonders, then it would be impossible to make plain the reality of God, and thus impossible to make man perfect. God does not make man perfect by signs and wonders, but uses the word to water and shepherd man, after which is achieved the complete obedience of man and man’s knowledge of God. This is the aim of the work He does and the words He speaks. God does not use the method of showing signs and wonders to make man perfect—He uses words, and uses many different methods of work to make man perfect. Whether it be the refinement, dealing, pruning, or provision of words, God speaks from many different perspectives to make man perfect, and to give man a greater knowledge of the work, wisdom and wondrousness of God. When man is made complete at the time that God concludes the age in the last days, then he will be qualified to look upon signs and wonders. When you come to know God and are able to obey God no matter what He does, you will no longer have any notions about Him when you see signs and wonders. At the moment, you are corrupt and incapable of complete obedience to God—do you think you are qualified to see signs and wonders in this state? When God shows signs and wonders, that is when God punishes man, and also when the age changes, and, moreover, when the age concludes. When God’s work is being carried out normally, He does not show signs and wonders. Showing signs and wonders is laughably simple for Him, but that is not the principle of God’s work, nor is it the aim of God’s management of man. If man saw signs and wonders, and if the spiritual body of God were to appear to man, would all people not believe in God? I have previously said that a group of overcomers are gained from the East, overcomers who come from amid the great tribulation. What is meant by these words? They mean that these people who have been gained only truly obeyed after undergoing judgment and chastisement, and dealing and pruning, and all kinds of refinement. The belief of these people is not vague and abstract, but real. They have not seen any signs and wonders, or any miracles; they do not speak of abstruse words and doctrines, or profound insights; instead they have reality, and the words of God, and a true knowledge of the reality of God. Is such a group not more capable of making plain the power of God? God’s work during the last days is real work. During the age of Jesus, He did not come to make man perfect, but to redeem man, and so He displayed some miracles to make people follow Him. For He principally came to complete the work of crucifixion, and showing signs was not part of the work of His ministry. Such signs and wonders were work that was done in order to make His work effective; they were extra work, and did not represent the work of the entire age. During the Old Testament Age of Law, God also showed some signs and wonders—but the work God does today is real work, and He would definitely not show signs and wonders now. If He showed signs and wonders, His real work would be thrown into disorder, and He would be unable to do any more work. If God said to use the word to make man perfect, but also showed signs and wonders, then could it be made plain whether or not man truly believes in Him? Thus, God does not do such things. There is too much of religion within man; God has come during the last days to expel all the religious notions and supernatural things within man, and make man know the reality of God. He has come to remove an image of a God that is abstract and fanciful—an image of a God who, in other words, does not exist at all. And so, now the only thing that is precious is for you to have a knowledge of reality! The truth overrides everything. How much truth do you possess today? Is all that shows signs and wonders God? Evil spirits can also show signs and wonders; are they all God? In his belief in God, what man searches for is the truth, and what he pursues is life, rather than signs and wonders. This should be the goal of all those who believe in God.

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. All Is Achieved by the Word of God

I have previously said that “All who focus on beholding signs and wonders will be forsaken; they are not those who will be made perfect.” I have spoken so many words, yet man has not the slightest knowledge of this work, and, having arrived at this point, still people ask for signs and wonders. Is your belief in God nothing more than the pursuit of signs and wonders, or is it in order to gain life? Jesus also spoke many words, and some of them have yet to be fulfilled. Can you say that Jesus is not God? God witnessed that He was Christ and the beloved Son of God. Can you deny this? Today, God only speaks words, and if you do not know this thoroughly, then you cannot stand fast. Do you believe in Him because He is God, or do you believe in Him based on whether or not His words are fulfilled? Do you believe in signs and wonders, or do you believe in God? Today, He does not show signs and wonders—is He really God? If the words He speaks are not fulfilled, is He really God? Is the essence of God determined by whether or not the words He speaks are fulfilled? Why is it that some people are always waiting for the fulfillment of God’s words before they will believe in Him? Does this not mean they do not know Him? All those who possess such notions are those who deny God. They use notions to measure God; if God’s words are fulfilled, they believe in Him, and if they are not, then they do not believe in Him; and they always pursue signs and wonders. Are these people not the Pharisees of modern times? Whether or not you are able to stand firm depends on whether or not you know the practical God—this is crucial! The greater the reality of God’s word in you, the greater your knowledge of the reality of God, and the more you are able to stand fast during trials. The more you focus on seeing signs and wonders, the less you are able to stand firm, and you will fall amid trials. Signs and wonders are not the foundation; only the reality of God is life. Some people do not know the effects that are to be achieved by God’s work. They spend their days in bewilderment, not pursuing the knowledge of God’s work. The aim of their pursuit is only ever to make God fulfill their desires, and only then will they be serious in their belief. They say that they will pursue life if the words of God are fulfilled, but that if His words are not fulfilled, then there is no possibility of them pursuing life. Man thinks that belief in God is the pursuit of beholding signs and wonders and the pursuit of ascending to heaven and the third heaven. None of them say that their belief in God is the pursuit of entry into reality, the pursuit of life, and the pursuit of being gained by God. What is the value in pursuit such as this? Those who do not pursue the knowledge of God and the satisfaction of God are those who do not believe in God; they are the ones who blaspheme God!

Now do you understand what belief in God is? Does belief in God mean beholding signs and wonders? Does it mean ascending to heaven? Believing in God is not easy in the slightest. Those religious practices should be purged; pursuing the healing of the sick and the casting out of demons, focusing on signs and wonders, coveting more of God’s grace, peace and joy, pursuing the prospects and comforts of the flesh—these are religious practices, and such religious practices are a vague kind of belief. What is real belief in God today? It is the acceptance of God’s word as your life reality and the knowing of God from His word in order to achieve a true love of Him. To be clear: Belief in God is so that you may obey God, love God, and perform the duty that should be performed by a creature of God. This is the aim of believing in God. You must achieve a knowledge of the loveliness of God, of how worthy God is of reverence, of how, in His creatures, God does the work of salvation and making them perfect—these are the bare essentials of your belief in God. Belief in God is principally the switch from a life of the flesh to a life of loving God; from living within corruption to living within the life of God’s words; it is coming out from under the power of Satan and living under the care and protection of God; it is being able to achieve obedience to God and not obedience to the flesh; it is allowing God to gain your entire heart, allowing God to make you perfect, and freeing yourself from the corrupt satanic disposition. Belief in God is principally so that the power and glory of God may be manifested in you, so that you may do God’s will, and accomplish God’s plan, and be able to bear testimony to God before Satan. Belief in God should not revolve around the desire to behold signs and wonders, nor should it be for the sake of your personal flesh. It should be about the pursuit of knowing God, and being able to obey God, and, like Peter, obeying Him until one’s death. These are the main aims of believing in God. One eats and drinks the word of God in order to know God and satisfy Him. Eating and drinking the word of God gives you a greater knowledge of God, only after which can you obey Him. Only with knowledge of God can you love Him, and this is the goal man should have in his belief in God. If, in your belief in God, you are always trying to behold signs and wonders, then the viewpoint of this belief in God is wrong. Belief in God is principally the acceptance of the word of God as the life reality. The aim of God is only attained by putting into practice the words of God from His mouth and carrying them out within yourself. In believing in God, man should strive to be made perfect by God, to be able to submit to God, and for complete obedience to God. If you can obey God without complaint, be mindful of God’s desires, achieve the stature of Peter, and possess the style of Peter spoken of by God, then that will be when you have achieved success in belief in God, and it will signify that you have been gained by God.

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. All Is Achieved by the Word of God

Your loyalty is in word only, your knowledge is merely intellectual and conceptual, your labors are for the sake of gaining the blessings of heaven, and so what must your faith be like? Even today, you still turn a deaf ear to each and every word of truth. You do not know what God is, you do not know what Christ is, you do not know how to fear Jehovah, you do not know how to enter into the work of the Holy Spirit, and you do not know how to distinguish between the work of God Himself and the deceptions of man. You know only to condemn any word of truth expressed by God that does not conform to your own thoughts. Where is your humility? Where is your obedience? Where is your loyalty? Where is your desire to seek the truth? Where is your God-fearing heart? I tell you, those who believe in God because of the signs are surely the category that shall be destroyed. Those who are incapable of receiving the words of Jesus who has returned to flesh are surely the progeny of hell, the descendants of the archangel, the category that shall be subjected to everlasting destruction. Many people may not care what I say, but I still want to tell every so-called saint who follows Jesus that, when you see Jesus descend from the heaven upon a white cloud with your own eyes, this will be the public appearance of the Sun of righteousness. Perhaps that will be a time of great excitement for you, yet you should know that the time when you witness Jesus descend from the heaven is also the time when you go down to hell to be punished. That will be the time of the end of God’s management plan and it will be when God rewards the good and punishes the wicked. For the judgment of God will have ended before man sees signs, when there is only the expression of truth. Those who accept the truth and do not seek signs, and thus have been purified, shall have returned before the throne of God and entered the Creator’s embrace. Only those who persist in the belief that “The Jesus who does not ride upon a white cloud is a false Christ” shall be subjected to everlasting punishment, for they only believe in the Jesus who exhibits signs, but do not acknowledge the Jesus who proclaims severe judgment and releases the true way and life. And so it can only be that Jesus deals with them when He openly returns upon a white cloud. They are too stubborn, too confident in themselves, too arrogant. How could such degenerates be rewarded by Jesus? 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. I advise you to tread the path of belief in God with care. Do not jump to conclusions; what is more, do not be casual and thoughtless in your belief in God. You should know that, at the very least, those who believe in God should possess humble and God-fearing hearts. Those who have heard the truth and yet turn their nose up at it are foolish and ignorant. Those who have heard the truth and yet carelessly jump to conclusions or condemn it are beset by arrogance. No one who believes in Jesus is qualified to curse or condemn others. You should all be someone with sense and who accepts the truth. Perhaps, having heard the way of truth and having read the word of life, you believe that only one in 10,000 of these words are in line with your convictions and the Bible, and then you should continue to seek in that 10,000th of these words. I still advise you to be humble, to not be over-confident, and to not exalt yourself too highly. With the bit of a God-fearing heart you possess, you will gain greater light. If you carefully examine and repeatedly contemplate these words, you shall understand whether or not they are the truth, and whether or not they are life. Perhaps, having only read a few sentences, some people will blindly condemn these words, saying, “This is nothing more than some enlightenment of the Holy Spirit,” or, “This is a false Christ come to deceive people.” Those who say such things are blinded by ignorance! You understand too little of the work and wisdom of God, and I advise you to start again from scratch! You must not blindly condemn the words expressed by God because of the appearance of false Christs during the last days, and you must not be someone who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit because you fear deception. Would that not be a great pity? If, after much examination, you still believe that these words are not the truth, are not the way, and are not the expression of God, then you shall ultimately be punished, and you shall be without blessings. If you cannot accept such truth spoken so plainly and so clearly, then are you not unfit for God’s salvation? Are you not someone who is not blessed enough to return before the throne of God? Think about it! Do not be rash and impetuous, and do not treat belief in God as a game. Think for the sake of your destination, for the sake of your prospects, for the sake of your life, and do not play yourself. Can you accept these words?

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. By the Time You Behold the Spiritual Body of Jesus, God Will Have Made Heaven and Earth Anew

Related Hymns

Your Attitude Toward the Truth Is Vital

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