The Church of Almighty God | The Lord Has Appeared in the East

The Lord Has Appeared in the East

Qiu Zhen, China

One day, my sister phoned me and said that she was back from the north and that she had something important to tell me. She asked me to come over right away. I had a feeling about what might have happened and went to my sister’s house after the phone call. As soon as I entered and saw that my sister was reading a book, I felt relieved. My sister saw that I had arrived, suddenly stood up and said: “Sister! This time in the north I got some good news: The Lord Jesus has returned!”

Do You Know What Principles You Should Understand When Making Offerings to God?

Do You Know What Principles You Should Understand When Making Offerings to God?

Li Hui

Because of some trouble at home, in 1997 I began to believe in the Lord Jesus. Afterward, through practicing the Lord’s words, there was no longer any arguing at home. The Lord saved my family, saved me from my pain and gave me hope in life.

I remember the first time I went to a meeting at a church. The pastor read chapter 12, verses 1 to 8 from the Gospel of John, and he preached about Mary anointing the Lord Jesus with perfumed oil, as well as the offering made by the poor widow and, after I’d heard these stories, I felt very moved.

Eastern Lightning | Catholic Beliefs: I Have Welcomed the Lord’s Return

Catholic Beliefs: I Have Welcomed the Lord’s Return

By Amy, USA

“Meeting with the Lord is the greatest hope of all believers. By the grace of the Lord, I have welcomed the Lord’s return and I am full of gratitude to Him….” It’s nighttime, and the clear moonlight spills into the room through the window. Under the soft light of her lamp, Amy is quickly typing out her experience of welcoming the Lord’s return. Thinking of God’s love and salvation for her, Amy stands up and softly walks to the window and gazes out at the full moon, reminiscing on the past …

The Church of Almighty God | What is the difference between an honest person and a deceitful person?

What is the difference between an honest person and a deceitful person?

What is the difference between an honest person and a deceitful person?

Relevant Words of God:

Honesty means to give your heart to God; to never play Him false in anything; to be open with Him in all things, never cover the truth; to never do that which deceives those above and deludes those below; and to never do that which is done merely to ingratiate yourself with God. In short, to be honest is to refrain from impurity in your actions and words, and to deceive neither God nor man. What I speak is very simple but is doubly arduous to you. Many would rather be condemned to hell than to speak and act honestly. Little wonder that I have other treatment in place for those who are dishonest. Of course, I understand the great difficulty you face in being an honest man. You are all very clever and adept at judging others from your own perspective, so this renders My work much simpler. And since you each harbor secrets in your heart, well then, I shall send each of you into disaster to undergo a “trial” by fire, so that thereafter you shall be utterly committed to belief in My words. Finally, I shall wrest from your mouth the words “God is a God of faithfulness,” then shall you beat upon your breast and lament that “devious is the heart of man.”

The Church of Almighty God | What is an honest person? Why does God like honest people?

What is an honest person? Why does God like honest people?

What is an honest person? Why does God like honest people?

Relevant Words of God:

Honesty means to give your heart to God; to never play Him false in anything; to be open with Him in all things, never cover the truth; to never do that which deceives those above and deludes those below; and to never do that which is done merely to ingratiate yourself with God. In short, to be honest is to refrain from impurity in your actions and words, and to deceive neither God nor man.

The Church of Almighty God | What Truly Are the Wise Virgins?

What Truly Are the Wise Virgins?

    Bible Verses for Reference:

    “shall the kingdom of heaven be likened to ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. … But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. … And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom comes; go you out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. … and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut” (Mat 25: 1, 4, 6-7, 10).

    “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (Jhn 10:27).

    “These are they which follow the Lamb wherever he goes” (Rev 14:4).

    “For the Lamb which is in the middle of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them to living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes” (Rev 7:17).

    “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you” (Mat 7:7).

The Church of Almighty God | What is the difference between wheat and tares?

What is the difference between wheat and tares?

What is the difference between wheat and tares?

Relevant Words of God:

As I have said, Satan has sent those who do service for Me to interrupt My management; these service-doers are tares, yet wheat does not refer to the firstborn sons, but rather to all the sons and the people who are not the firstborn sons. Wheat will always be wheat, tares will always be tares; this means that those of Satan’s nature can never change. So, in short, they remain as Satan. Wheat means the sons and the people, because before the creation of the world I added to these people My quality. Because I have said before man’s nature does not change, wheat will always be wheat.

Sermons and Fellowship: What’s Wise About the Wise Virgins Who Welcome the Lord?

Sermons and Fellowship: What’s Wise About the Wise Virgins Who Welcome the Lord?

Sermons and Fellowship: What’s Wise About the Wise Virgins Who Welcome the Lord?

    “During the Age of Grace, Jesus talked about the wise virgins. What is this mystery all about? What does the term wise virgin mean? The main point is that she recognizes God’s voice. When she hears it, she thinks, ‘Why do I think that the things this Son of man is saying are God’s words? Why does it seem like He has God’s voice? These are things that man cannot say. This is God’s voice. So I must believe in Him. He is Christ. This is God incarnate.’ Look, this is why she is wise. Now, why are foolish virgins foolish? It is because they think, ‘Isn’t this just a man? Isn’t this Jesus of Nazareth? Isn’t this just a normal person? How can he be God? We will not believe in him. We believe in the God in heaven.’ You see, they do not understand spiritual matters, right? These people believe that they themselves are correct and that they are in the right. The result was that God takes the wise in their own craftiness. Aren’t you wise? Aren’t you someone who does not believe in man? Today, God has become incarnate. He has become man. If you do not believe, you will be destroyed, and you will perish. If you think that you are clever and wise, you will have fooled yourself.”

Awake in the Tribulation of Persecution —A Seventeen-year-old Christian’s True Experience of Being Persecuted

Awake in the Tribulation of Persecution —A Seventeen-year-old Christian’s True Experience of Being Persecuted

Wang Tao Shandong Province

I’m a Christian in the Church of Almighty God. Compared with the kids at my age, I’m the luckiest, for I was uplifted and selected by God and accepted the end-time work of Almighty God with my parents at the age of eight. At that time, although I was young, I was very willing to believe in God and read God’s word. As I constantly read God’s word and listened to the fellowship of the uncles and aunties, over the years, I understood some truths. As I grew older, I saw that the brothers and sisters all pursued the truth and practiced being honest and lived in harmony, without intriguing against each other as between my classmates at school. I felt that it was my happiest and most joyful time to stay with the brothers and sisters. Later, I heard these words in Fellowship and Preaching About Life Entering In, “To believe in God and pursue the truth and follow God in Mainland China, one has to tie his head to the waist of his trousers, which is absolutely true….” At that time, I didn’t understand the meaning of those words. Through the fellowship of the brothers and sisters, I knew that believers in Almighty God would be arrested by the police because China is an atheistic country without freedom of belief. But at that time, I didn’t believe those words. I thought that I was just a child, and even if I was arrested by the “policemen,” they wouldn’t hurt me. Not until later I personally experienced the police’s arrest and affliction did I see clearly that the “policemen” in my mind are actually a gang of devils!

The Church of Almighty God | The Overcomers’ Testimonies | Rise Up in the Dark Oppression

Rise Up in the Dark Oppression

Mo Zhijian Guangdong Province

I was born in a poor remote mountain village. People there burned incense and worshiped Buddha for generations. Temples were everywhere, and each household burned incense. No one believed in God. In 1995, my wife and I believed in the Lord Jesus in another place. After returning home, we began to preach the gospel. Later, the number of the believers gradually increased to over one hundred. Because more and more people believed in God, the local government was alarmed. One day in 1997, the police asked me to go to the local police station. The director of the County Public Security Bureau, the director of the County Bureau for State Security, the director of the County Administration of Religious Affairs, the chief of the local police station, and some policemen had already been waiting there. The director of the County Public Security Bureau questioned me, “Why do you believe in God? Who do you get in touch with? Where do you get the Bibles? Why don’t you go to the church to have meetings?” I answered, “The constitution stipulates explicitly that the citizens enjoy freedom of belief. Why don’t you allow us to believe in God freely?” The director of the County Administration of Religious Affairs said, “There is a scope for the freedom of religious belief. It’s just like a bird in a cage. Although its wings and feet are not bound, it can only move around in the cage.” Hearing his fallacy, I was very indignant. I said angrily, “Then the government is deceiving the common people!” Hearing my word, they knew they were in the wrong, so they had nothing to say and could only let me go home. At that time I had no knowledge of the CCP government’s substance of persecuting people in believing in God. In 1999, I accepted Almighty God’s end-time work. Only through reading God’s word and experiencing the crueler persecution of the CCP government did I see clearly that it is exactly the embodiment of satan the evil spirit and is God’s enemy. It is just as the Bible says, “And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceives the whole world.” (Revelation 12:9)

The Church of Almighty God | The Overcomers’ Testimonies | God’s Light Led Me in the Tribulation

God’s Light Led Me in the Tribulation

Zhao Xin Sichuan Province

From childhood, I lived in the mountain. I didn’t see much of the world or have higher expectations. After I got married and had children, both my sons were sensible and obedient and my husband was hardworking. Although our family wasn’t very well-off, we lived together harmoniously, feeling very happy and satisfied. In 1996, I suddenly had a serious illness, so I began to believe in Jesus. From then on, I often read the Bible and actively attended meetings. Unexpectedly, my illness got better gradually. Since then, I had greater faith in following Jesus.

God’s Light Led Me in the Tribulation

The Church of Almighty God | The Overcomers’ Testimonies | God’s Word Is My Real Life

God’s Word Is My Real Life

Xu Zhigang Tianjin City

In the past, I was deeply influenced by Chinese traditional concepts and regarded purchasing property for my children as my life goal. Therefore, I devoted myself to studying car repairing technique and opened up a garage. The business was doing very well. At that time, I thought that man’s destiny was in his own hand. When my wife’s elder sister preached the gospel of Jesus to me, I refused and mocked at her. However, good times didn’t last long. The profits of my garage decreased day by day. No matter how hard I tried, it was in vain. As a result, I was tormented so much that I was exhausted physically and mentally and felt extremely miserable. Every day I sought solace in drink. Once, due to my distraction, I had an accident when driving. The car was badly smashed, but I survived miraculously.

The Church of Almighty God | Experiencing the Cruel Persecution, I Believe in God More Firmly

Experiencing the Cruel Persecution, I Believe in God More Firmly

Zhao Rui Shanxi Province

My name is Zhao Rui. By God’s grace, our whole family followed the Lord Jesus in 1993. In 1996, I, sixteen years old, was attracted by the Lord Jesus’ love and began to work and preach. However, before long, I saw the bitterly disappointing scenes: The co-workers fought overtly and covertly, pushed others aside, and contended for power and interest. The Lord’s teaching of “loving one another” seemed to have long been forgotten. The church life brought no enjoyment at all. Many brothers and sisters were passive and weak and stopped attending meetings. Facing the desolate miserable condition of the church, I was distressed and helpless. On the evening of the Chinese New Year’s Eve in 1998, I fell down to the ground and wept out my grief to God, “O Lord, where are you? When will you come back? Without your leading, how shall I walk the future way?” I thanked God that he heard my prayer. In July, 1999, under God’s wonderful manipulation and arrangement, I heard the end-time gospel of Almighty God, the returned Lord Jesus. Through living the church life, I tasted the enjoyment brought by the working of the Holy Spirit. The brothers and sisters gathered together to have meetings, and the past religious life was gone. Everyone spoke freely, fellowshipping about the light from the Holy Spirit’s revelation and talking about how they experienced God’s word and how they relied on God to solve their corruptions and be purified. Moreover, the living out of the brothers and sisters was very godly and decent. If anyone had a defect or expressed a corruption, others would forbear with and forgive and help them with love. Nobody would belittle or look down upon anyone who had a difficulty, and we would fellowship about the truth to help solve it together. That was exactly the church life I had always wanted to have and the true way I had sought for years! I, who had been lost for many years, had finally come back to God again! I made a resolution to God, “I’m willing to bring before God those innocent souls that are still living in darkness, so that they can also live under the leading and blessing of the Holy Spirit’s working and receive the watering of the living water of life from God. This is my bounden duty as a created being and is the most meaningful and worthy life.” So, I joined in performing duty.

The Church of Almighty God | The Light of Life Shining in the Devil’s Dark Den

The Light of Life Shining in the Devil’s Dark Den

Lin Ying Shandong Province

My name is Lin Ying. I’m a Christian in the Church of Almighty God. Before I believed in Almighty God, I always tried to work with my own ability for a better life. But things ran counter to my wish; I got into trouble and was frustrated everywhere. Having fully experienced life’s hardships, I felt exhausted mentally and physically and felt extremely miserable. Just when I was distressed and helpless, a sister preached Almighty God’s end-time gospel to me. I read God’s words, “When you feel tired and when you slightly feel a sense of desolation of this world, do not feel perplexed and do not weep. Almighty God, the Watcher, is ready to embrace your coming at any time.” (from “The Sighs of the Almighty” in The Word Appears in the Flesh) I couldn’t help shedding tears. The motherly words of Almighty God greatly comforted me. I felt that I, like an orphan wandering for years, returned to the bosom of my family and was no longer lonely and helpless. From then on, I thirstily read God’s word every day. Through having meetings and fellowshipping with the brothers and sisters in the Church of Almighty God, I saw that they were so kind and honest. There was no jealousy, dispute, or intrigue among them. No matter who met any difficulty, others would sincerely fellowship about the truth and help him solve it, without making bargains or seeking rewards. What they lived out was God’s love. There, I received the release and happiness that I had never had. I deeply felt that the Church of Almighty God is a holy pure land and became certain that Almighty God is the only true God who can save men from the abyss of misery. Just when I was enjoying God’s love, the CCP government arrested and persecuted me illegally, breaking my joyful and pleasant life.

The Church of Almighty God | On the Way of Tribulation, God’s Word Encouraged Me

On the Way of Tribulation, God’s Word Encouraged Me

Chen Hui Jiangsu Province

I was born in an ordinary family. My father was a soldier. Influenced and nurtured by my father from childhood, I thought in my heart that soldiers should take serving their country and obeying orders as their bounden mission and dedicate themselves selflessly to the Party and the people, and I aimed to become a soldier in the future and walk along my father’s path. However, things that happened later changed my viewpoint of pursuit and way of life little by little. In 1983, I heard Jesus’ gospel. Because of the special leading and guidance of the Holy Spirit, I, who had been poisoned by atheism and Red Education since childhood, was deeply moved by the Lord Jesus’ love. From then on, I stepped onto the way of believing in God. I began to attend church services, pray, and sing hymns to praise God. Such a life made me feel very secure and peaceful in my heart. But gradually I found that a problem always puzzled me and made me feel troubled and perplexed. That is, although I knew that the Lord Jesus taught people not to commit sins, I always involuntarily lived in a condition of “committing sins in the day and confessing them at night” and couldn’t hold on to the Lord’s teachings anyway. In order to solve this problem, I went to other house churches to have meetings, hoping to find a way out. But in the end, I was disappointed. In 1999, one of my relatives preached Almighty God’s end-time gospel to me, but as I was concentrating on making money at that time, I simply had no mind to follow God and pursue the truth. Not until one year later did I formally begin to attend meetings. Through constantly reading God’s word and having meetings and fellowshipping with the brothers and sisters, I understood many truths and knew God’s eager intention to save man, and felt that the responsibility and mission God gave to every one of us were great, so I joined in preaching the gospel actively. When I saw that many people came before God and gained God’s blessings and salvation, my faith became greater.

The Church of Almighty God | The Overcomers’ Testimonies | Regenerated in God’s Word

Regenerated in God’s Word

Wang Gang Shandong Province

I was a peasant. As my family was poor, I kept working everywhere to make money, just wanting to live a better life through my own labor. However, in real life I saw that the lawful rights and interests of a rural worker like me couldn’t be guaranteed at all. My wages were often withheld for no reason. Deceived and exploited by others again and again, I couldn’t get the payment I deserved for a year’s hard work. I felt that the world was too dark! People lived by the law of the jungle like animals and contended with and fought against each other. There was simply no place for me to live. When I was extremely distressed and depressed in my heart and lost confidence in life, a friend preached Almighty God’s end-time salvation to me. From then on, I often had meetings with the brothers and sisters, and we prayed, sang, and fellowshipped about the truth together. We learned from each other and made up for each other’s deficiencies, and I felt especially happy and released. In the Church of Almighty God, I saw that there was no deception or distinction of position among the brothers and sisters. We were all simple and open and lived in harmony. In order to cast off the corrupt disposition and live out the likeness of a man and thus be saved, all of us were striving to pursue the truth, which let me taste the happiness of life and understand the value and meaning of life. Therefore, I always felt that I should preach the gospel so that more people who lived in darkness could come before God to be saved by God and see the light again. So, I joined in preaching the gospel to testify God. However, I never expected that I would be arrested by the CCP government for preaching the gospel and suffer the extremely cruel tortures and imprisonment.

The Church of Almighty God | After Undergoing the Devil’s Affliction, I Knew More Clearly God’s Grace Is Precious

After Undergoing the Devil’s Affliction, I Knew More Clearly God’s Grace Is Precious

Xu Qiang Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region

My name is Xu Qiang. I was once a project contractor. I led many people to undertake contracted projects every year and had a good income. In the eyes of my contemporaries, I had a happy family and smooth career and had a great future, so I should be the happiest man. However, while enjoying the material life, I felt an unexplainable emptiness in my heart. Especially in order to undertake contracted projects, I had to ingratiate myself with the leaders of the relevant departments all day, observing their speech and behavior and fawning and flattering them. All those had to be handled extremely well, or I couldn’t earn money. Moreover, people of the same trade intrigued against one another and guarded and schemed against one another, which made me exhaust all mental efforts…. Thus, I felt very bitter and tired and felt as if I became a puppet and a moneymaking machine, losing my dignity and integrity completely. In 1999, I accepted Almighty God’s end-time work. The feeling of release in the church life and the simplicity and honesty of the brothers and sisters made me deeply moved. I liked very much to live the church life and even more liked to stay with the brothers and sisters, and I treasured such time very much. As I read God’s word and attended meetings constantly, I understood many truths and was greatly released in my heart. I felt very thankful that I had found the true human life and the true happiness. And my heart was full of gratitude to God. If God didn’t save me from the sea of misery of the world, I would never have hope in my life. Later, I began to preach the gospel, running joyfully and tirelessly among the people who investigated the true way, so that they could receive Almighty God’s salvation earlier.

The Church of Almighty God | The Overcomers’ Testimonies | After the Afflictions, I Have a Firmer Love for God

After the Afflictions, I Have a Firmer Love for God

Zhang Ren Jiangxi Province

My name is Zhang Ren, and I’m a Christian in the Church of Almighty God. Since I began to know things, I saw my parents labor hard in the fields from morning till night every day for making money. Although they exerted much effort, they couldn’t earn much money after one year’s labor. So my family had been living a very poor life. When I saw those influential people live well without needing to labor hard, I envied them from the bottom of my heart. And I made a firm resolution that I would build up a career or get an official post after I grew up, so as to shake off our poverty and backwardness and let my parents live the life of the rich. However, after I strived for this ideal for years, it was still not fulfilled, and we still lived a very poor life. I often felt depressed and sighed for my accomplishing nothing, and I gradually lost my confidence in life. Just when I was discouraged and disappointed at life, Almighty God’s end-time salvation came upon me. From Almighty God’s word, I knew the root of man’s suffering in living in this world and also understood how to live in a most meaningful and worthy way. From then on, I, lost and helpless, found the direction of life, came out of depression and decadence, had vitality and vigor, and saw the hope of life. Later, in order that those who still lived in misery and helplessness could also receive this rare salvation, I ran around preaching God’s end-time salvation actively. But unexpectedly, during my preaching the gospel, I was arrested by the CCP government twice and suffered brutal and inhuman tortures…. In the dark den of the devil, Almighty God had always been with me, and his word gave me faith and strength, leading me to overcome satan’s influence of darkness time after time, so that my love for God became stronger.