By Li Yang

When I was practicing spiritual devotions this morning, I saw the following verse in the Bible: “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3), and I thought: Why did the Lord Jesus ask people to be the poor in spirit? And why shall the poor in spirit enter into the kingdom of heaven? As I was contemplating this, some thoughts came to my mind: When the Lord Jesus came to do work, much of His work vastly differed from the work of Jehovah God. For instance, Jehovah God did His work and guided people in the temple, and His requirements of them were complying with the laws and the commandments, making sacrifices, and worshiping Him in the temple; while when the Lord Jesus came, He did not do His work in the temple. Instead, He led His disciples to the towns and villages to spread the gospel of the kingdom of heaven, asking people to repent and confess their sins. And He told the people at that time: “The hour comes, when you shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. … when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeks such to worship him” (John 4:21–23). As for how to treat the evil, Jehovah God required “Eye for eye, tooth for tooth” of people (Exodus 21:24), whereas the Lord Jesus said: “You have heard that it has been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: But I say to you, That you resist not evil: but whoever shall smite you on your right cheek, turn to him the other also” (Matthew 5:38–39). And so on. At that time people all held fast to Jehovah God’s laws. If they were not humble, did not seek the will of God, they would be much likely to deny and condemn the Lord Jesus, not to mention accepting the Lord Jesus’ work, which is impossible. People didn’t know that the Lord Jesus came to carry out new work and lead humans to progress forward. Therefore, the Lord Jesus taught us to be a man with humility, hoping that we would not lightly jump to conclusions or judge the things we don’t understand, but seek more. Only in this way can we be protected rather than be punished and lose the opportunity to enter into the kingdom of heaven because of blindly condemning God and thus offending His disposition.

Continue reading “Three Key Elements of Being the Poor in Spirit” →

Sister Kemu,

Hello! Every day I bustle about, being busy with my work and serving in the church as well as taking care of my family. So every day I find myself occupied with these things. Although I’ve dealt with many things, my heart is always empty. Not only do I have nothing to say to the Lord while praying to Him, but I become dry and barren in spirit. Besides this, I find it difficult to quiet my heart while reading the Bible, as my heart is always occupied with these external matters. For this reason, I feel rather upset and have no idea how to resolve this difficulty.

Zhuiqiu

Continue reading “How to Stay Close to God in a Busy Life” →

Every Christian knows that believing in God requires a normal spiritual life, namely spiritual devotion. It is the foundation of establishing a proper relationship with God and the way of practice that is absolutely necessary in the growth of our spiritual life. Then, do you know how to do daily devotions to achieve good results? Today, let’s communicate this aspect of the truth together.

First, we should focus on quieting our hearts before God in our spiritual devotions, which is the precondition for obtaining the work of the Holy Spirit.

Continue reading “3 Ways Tell You How to Do Daily Devotions Effectively” →

The Bible records, “The fear of Jehovah is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding” (Proverbs 9:10). Only by being a God-fearing person can we attain God’s enlightenment and guidance and be accepted by Him. So then, how can we become a person that fears God?

I have believed in the Lord for many years. In the past, I often prayed and read the Bible, put in effort to work for the Lord, and suffered and paid the price. Furthermore, I was tolerant and patient toward others, and I neither broke the laws nor walked the path of the wicked. Therefore, I thought that I had been sanctified from the world and was one who revered God, and that I would certainly gain the Lord’s approval and blessings. Recently, I read some fellowship about the truth of fearing God in a book, and gained a lot from it. Only then did I recognize that my knowledge of this aspect of truth was so shallow, and that I didn’t really understand the truth of fearing God, let alone had a God-fearing heart. Here, I’d like to share with you three paths of practice to fear God. I hope that after reading them we all can walk on the path of fearing God.

Continue reading “How to Be a God-Fearing Person” →

Relevant Words of God:

The standard by which humans judge other humans is based on their behavior; those whose conduct is good are righteous, while those whose conduct is abominable are wicked. The standard by which God judges humans is based on whether their essence submits to Him or not; one who submits to God is a righteous person, while one who does not is an enemy and a wicked person, regardless of whether this person’s behavior is good or bad and regardless of whether their speech is correct or incorrect. Some people wish to use good deeds to obtain a good destination in the future, and some people wish to use fine words to acquire a good destination. Everyone mistakenly believes that God determines people’s outcomes after watching their behavior or after listening to their speech; many people therefore wish to take advantage of this to deceive God into granting them a momentary favor. In the future, the people who will survive in a state of rest will all have endured the day of tribulation and will also have borne witness for God; they will all be people who have fulfilled their duties and who have deliberately submitted to God. Those who merely wish to use the opportunity to do service with the intention of avoiding practicing the truth will not be allowed to remain. God has appropriate standards for the arrangement of the outcome of every individual; He does not simply make these decisions according to one’s words and conduct, nor does He make them based on how one acts during a single period of time. He will absolutely not be lenient with regard to one’s wicked conduct due to their past service for Him, nor will He spare one from death because of any one-time expense for God. No one can evade retribution for their wickedness, and no one can cover up their evil behavior and thereby evade the torments of destruction. If people can truly fulfill their own duty, it means that they are eternally faithful to God and not seeking rewards, regardless of whether they receive blessings or suffer misfortune. If people are faithful to God when they see blessings, but lose their faithfulness when they cannot see any blessings, and if, in the end, they are still unable to bear witness for God or fulfill the duties incumbent upon them, then they will still be objects of destruction despite their having once previously rendered faithful service to God. In short, wicked people cannot survive through eternity, nor can they enter into rest; only the righteous are the masters of rest.

Excerpted from “God and Man Will Enter Into Rest Together” in The Word Appears in the Flesh

Continue reading “The Lord Jesus said: “Not every one that said to Me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of My Father which is in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name? and in Your name have cast out devils? and in Your name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess to them, I never knew you: depart from Me, you that work iniquity” (Mat 7:21–23). Those who say “Lord, Lord” all believe in and serve the Lord. They have always made sacrifices, expended themselves, and worked hard for the Lord, and they have spread the gospel and built churches. Have they not followed the Lord’s will by doing all this? When the Lord Jesus returns, why will they not be commended by the Lord, and instead be condemned by Him as evildoers?” →

Editor’s Note:

Not long after he accepted God’s work, Albee encountered a series of unfavorable things, and he felt very distressed and developed complaints about God. Later through William’s fellowship, he came to understand God’s will and emerged from his pain.

Exhausted and depressed after a busy day, Albee alone climbed up a mountain at dusk. Sitting in silence, he recalled the series of unfortunate things he encountered recently and felt very sad, tears uncontrollably streaming down his face. In weakness, he had a strong desire to pour out his depression to William, a good brother of his in the church, so he took out his cellphone and edited a message to William.

Continue reading “Why God allowed Bad Things to Happen” →

By Jingnian, the United States

God says: “[E]stablishing a good relationship with God is of the utmost importance to anyone who believes in God; everyone should regard it as a task of paramount importance and the biggest event in their life” (“How Is Your Relationship With God?”). We can see from God’s words that building a normal relationship with God in one’s faith in God is a truth of the utmost importance. If we wish to pursue God’s commendation and serve God’s will, only through building a normal relationship with God can these things be achieved. If we do not have a normal relationship with God, then we do not deserve to be called believers—that is why building a normal relationship with God is so important. So how are we to build a normal relationship with God? Below is a simple fellowship of the four principles.

Continue reading “4 Useful Steps to Build a Strong Relationship With God” →

By Song Yan

Faced with trials and refinement, many brothers and sisters in the Lord would get bewildered, not knowing how to experience them to be after God’s heart. Thanks to God’s leadership, I’ve grasped some principles on this aspect through studying the Bible and fellowshiping with my brothers and sisters in the church. Now I’d like to share them with you, which I hope can help the brothers and sisters who are undergoing trials.

Continue reading “What Should You a Christian Do in Trials? 3 Principles Give You the Answermost” →

By Huixin

Description: In the course of our believing in God, we will all encounter some trials, both big and small. Often times, however, we will be thrown into a panic or blame and misunderstand God, and thus live in torment. Then how shall we treat these trials in accordance with God’s wishes when faced with them?

Continue reading “When Facing God’s Trials, How Shall We Approach Them?” →

Relevant Words of God:

Before he was corrupted by Satan, man naturally followed God and obeyed His words. He was naturally of sound sense and conscience, and of normal humanity. After being corrupted by Satan, his original sense, conscience, and humanity grew dull and were impaired by Satan. Thus, he has lost his obedience and love toward God. Man’s sense has become aberrant, his disposition has become the same as that of an animal, and his rebelliousness toward God is ever more frequent and grievous. Yet man still neither knows nor recognizes this, and merely blindly opposes and rebels. … “Normal sense” refers to obeying and being faithful to God, to yearning for God, to being unequivocal toward God, and to having a conscience toward God. It refers to being of one heart and mind toward God, and not deliberately opposing God. Those who are of an aberrant sense are not like this. Since man was corrupted by Satan, he has produced conceptions about God, and he has had no loyalty or yearning for God, to say nothing of a conscience toward God. Man deliberately opposes and passes judgments on God, and, furthermore, hurls invective at Him behind His back. Man clearly knows He is God, yet still passes judgments on Him behind His back, has no intention of obeying Him, and merely makes blind demands and requests of God. Such people—people who have aberrant sense—are incapable of knowing their own despicable behavior or of regretting their rebelliousness. If people are capable of knowing themselves, then they have regained a little of their sense; the more people are rebellious against God but do not know themselves, the more they are of unsound sense

from “To Have an Unchanged Disposition Is to Be in Enmity to God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh

Continue reading “The Saintly Decency Believers of God Should Possess” →