“How are you fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how are you cut down to the ground, which did weaken the nations! For you have said in your heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also on the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High” (Isaiah 14:12-14).
“And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceives the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him … And when the dragon saw that he was cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child” (Rev 12:7-9, 13).
Relevant Words of God:
These are the facts: When the earth did not yet exist, the archangel was the greatest of heaven’s angels. It had jurisdiction over all the angels in heaven; this was the authority that God granted it. With the exception of God, it was the greatest of heaven’s angels. When God later created humanity, the archangel carried out a greater betrayal toward God upon the earth. I say it betrayed God because it wanted to manage humanity and to surpass God’s authority. It was the archangel that tempted Eve into sin; it did so because it wished to establish its kingdom upon earth and to make humanity betray God and obey it instead. It saw that there were many things that obeyed it; the angels obeyed it, as did the people upon the earth. The birds and beasts, trees, forests, mountains, rivers and all things upon the earth were under the care of man—that is, Adam and Eve—while Adam and Eve obeyed it. The archangel thus desired to surpass God’s authority and to betray God. Later on it led many angels to betray God, which then became various unclean spirits.
from “You Should Know How the Whole of Humanity Has Developed to the Present Day” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
God works, God cares for a person, looks upon a person, and Satan dogs His every step. Whoever God favors, Satan also watches, trailing along behind. If God wants this person, Satan would do everything in its power to obstruct God, using various evil ways to tempt, harass and wreck the work God does in order to achieve its hidden objective. What is its objective? It does not want God to have anyone; it wants all those that God wants, to occupy them, control them, to take charge of them so they worship it, so they commit evil acts alongside it. Is this not Satan’s sinister motive? … Satan is at war with God, trailing along behind Him. Its objective is to demolish all the work God wants to do, to occupy and control those whom God wants, to completely extinguish those whom God wants. If they are not extinguished, then they come to Satan’s possession to be used by it—this is its objective.
from “God Himself, the Unique IV” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Knowledge of ancient culture has quietly stolen man from the presence of God and turned man over to the king of devils and its sons. The Four Books and Five Classics have taken the thinking and concepts of man into another age of rebellion, causing man to further worship those who wrote the Books and Classics, furthering their notions of God. The king of devils heartlessly cast out God from the heart of man without their awareness, while it gleefully took over the heart of man. From then on, man was possessed of an ugly and wicked soul with the face of the king of devils. A hatred of God filled their chests, and the maliciousness of the king of devils spread within man day by day until man was utterly consumed. Man no longer had freedom and was unable to break free from entanglement with the king of devils. Therefore, man could only stay in place and be seized, surrendering to it and becoming subjugated to it. It long ago planted the seed of the tumor of atheism within the young heart of man, teaching man fallacies such as “learn of science and technology, realize the Four Modernizations, there is no God in the world.” Not only that, it repeatedly proclaimed, “Let us build a beautiful homeland through our industrious labor,” asking all to be prepared from childhood to serve their country. Man was unconsciously brought before it, and it unhesitatingly took the credit (referring to God holding all of mankind in His hands). Never once did it feel ashamed or have a sense of shame. Moreover, it shamelessly captured God’s people into its house, while it leaped like a mouse onto the table and had man worship it as God. Such a desperado it is! It cries out such shocking scandals, “There is no God in the world. The wind is due to natural laws; the rain is moisture that condenses and falls in drops to the earth; an earthquake is the shaking of the surface of the earth due to geological changes; drought is due to dryness in the air caused by nucleonic disruption on the sun’s surface. These are natural phenomenon. Which part is an act of God?” It even shouts out[a] such shameless statements: “Man evolved from ancient apes, and the world today has progressed from a primitive society of approximately a billion years ago. Whether a country flourishes or falls is decided by the hands of its people.” In the back, it has man hang it upside down on the walls and place it on tables to be enshrined and worshiped. While it cries out, “There is no God,” it regards itself as God, pushing God out of bounds of the earth relentlessly. It stands in God’s place and acts as the king of devils. How utterly ludicrous! It causes one to be consumed by a poisonous hatred. It seems that God is its sworn enemy and God is irreconcilable with it. It schemes to chase God away while it remains unpunished and at large.[1] Such a king of devils it is! How could we tolerate its existence? It will not rest until it has disturbed the work of God and left it in tatters and a complete shambles,[2] as if it wants to oppose God until the end, until either the fish dies or the net breaks. It deliberately opposes God and moves ever closer. Its odious face has long ago been completely unmasked and is now bruised and battered,[3] in a terrible plight, yet it does not relent in its hatred of God, as if it wishes it could devour God entirely at one mouthful to relieve the hatred in its heart.
from “Work and Entry (7)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
From top to bottom and beginning to end, it has been disturbing the work of God and acting in discord with Him. All the talk of ancient cultural heritage, valuable knowledge of ancient culture, teachings of Taoism and Confucianism, and Confucian classics and feudal rites has taken man into hell. Advanced modern-day science and technology, as well as developed industry, agriculture, and business are nowhere to be seen. Rather, it simply emphasizes the feudal rites propagated by the ancient “apes” to deliberately disrupt, oppose, and destroy the work of God. Not only has it afflicted man until this day, but it wants to consume[4] man completely. The teaching of the feudal code of ethics and passing down of knowledge of ancient culture has long infected man and turned man into devils big and small. There are but few who would readily receive God and jubilantly welcome the coming of God. Man’s face is filled with murder, and in all places, death is in the air. They seek to cast God out from this land; with knives and swords in hand, they arrange themselves in battle formation to annihilate God. Idols are spread across the land of the devil where man is constantly taught there is no God. Above this land permeates a nauseating odor of burning paper and incense, so thick that it is suffocating. It seems to be the smell of sludge that wafts up when the serpent twists and coils, and is enough that man cannot help but vomit. Besides, there can faintly be heard evil demons chanting scriptures. This sound seems to be coming from faraway in hell, and man cannot help but feel a chill down his spine. Across this land are scattered idols, with all colors of the rainbow, which turn the land into a dazzling world, and the king of devils keeps a smirk on its face, as if its evil plot has succeeded. Meanwhile, man is completely unaware of it, nor does man know that the devil has already corrupted him to such degree that he has become senseless and defeated. It wishes to wipe out God’s all in one blow, to again insult and assassinate Him, and attempts to tear down and disturb His work. How could it allow God to be of equal status? How can it tolerate God “interfering” with its work among men on earth? How can it allow God to unmask its odious face? How can it allow God to disrupt its work? How could this devil, fuming with rage, allow God to govern its court of power on earth? How could it willingly admit defeat? Its odious countenance has been revealed for what it is, hence one finds himself not knowing whether to laugh or cry, and it is truly difficult to speak of. Is this not its essence?
from “Work and Entry (7)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
For thousands of years this has been the land of filth, it is unbearably dirty, misery abounds, ghosts roam its every corner, tricking and deceiving, making groundless accusations,[5] being ruthless and vicious, trampling this ghost town and leaving it littered with dead bodies; the stench of decay covers the land and pervades the air, and it is heavily guarded.[6] Who can see the world beyond the skies? The devil tightly trusses all of man’s body, it puts out both his eyes, and seals his lips firmly shut. The king of devils has rampaged for several thousand years, right up until today, when it still keeps a close watch on the ghost town, as if it were an impenetrable palace of demons; this pack of watchdogs, meanwhile, stare with glaring eyes, deeply fearful that God will catch them unawares and wipe them all out, leaving them without a place of peace and happiness. How could the people of a ghost town such as this have ever seen God? Have they ever enjoyed the dearness and loveliness of God? What appreciation have they of the matters of the human world? Who of them can understand God’s eager will? Small wonder, then, that God incarnate remains completely hidden: In a dark society such as this, where the demons are merciless and inhumane, how could the king of devils, who kills people in the blink of an eye, tolerate the existence of a God who is lovely, kind, and also holy? How could it applaud and cheer the arrival of God? These lackeys! They repay kindness with hate, they have long since disdained God, they abuse God, they are savage in the extreme, they have not the slightest regard for God, they plunder and pillage, they have lost all conscience, and have not a trace of kindness…. Religious freedom? The legitimate rights and interests of citizens? They are all tricks for covering up sin! … Why put up such an impenetrable obstacle to the work of God? Why employ various tricks to deceive God’s folk? Where is the true freedom and legitimate rights and interests? Where is the fairness? Where is the comfort? Where is the warmth? Why use deceitful schemes to trick God’s people? Why use force to suppress the coming of God? Why not allow God to freely roam upon the earth that He created? Why hound God until He has nowhere to rest His head? Where is the warmth among men? Where is the welcome among people? Why cause such desperate yearning in God? Why make God call out again and again? Why force God to worry for His beloved Son? Why does this dark society and its sorry guard dogs not allow God to freely come and go among the world which He created?
from “Work and Entry (8)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Satan wins its fame through deceiving the public. It often establishes itself as a vanguard and role model of righteousness. Under the banner of safeguarding righteousness, it harms man, devours their souls, and uses all sorts of means to benumb, deceive and incite man. Its goal is to make man approve of and follow along with its evil conduct, to make man join it in opposing God’s authority and sovereignty. However, when one grows wise to its schemes, plotting and vile features and does not wish to continue to be trampled upon and fooled by it or to continue slaving away for it, or to be punished and destroyed together with it, Satan changes its previously saintly features and tears off its false mask to reveal its true evil, vicious, ugly and savage face. It would love nothing more than to exterminate all those who refuse to follow it and those who oppose its evil forces. At this point Satan can no longer assume a trustworthy, gentlemanly appearance; instead, its true ugly and devilish features under the sheep’s clothing are revealed. Once Satan’s schemes are brought to light, once its true features are exposed, it will fly into a rage and expose its barbarity; its desire to harm and devour people will only be intensified. This is because it is enraged by man’s awakening; it develops a strong vindictiveness toward man for their aspiration to yearn for freedom and light and to break free of its prison. Its rage is intended to defend its evil, and it is also a true revelation of its savage nature.
… The reason why Satan is exasperated and furious is thus: Its unspeakable schemes have been exposed; its plots are not easily gotten away with; its wild ambition and desire to replace God and act as God have been struck and blocked; its goal of controlling all of humanity has now come to nothing and can never be achieved.
from “God Himself, the Unique II” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Sermon and Fellowship Excerpts for Reference:
We all know, the CCP is an atheistic party. The CCP is in power and that means Satan is in power. The CCP sees God as the enemy. As soon as they see Christ appear and do His work, they will send out the armed forces and never withdraw until the work of Christ is completely eradicated. They’ll never stop until they crucify Christ! Ever since the CCP came to power, they’ve been publicly denying God, condemning and blaspheming God. They have labeled Christianity as heterodoxy and the Bible a heterodox book; they confiscate it and burn it! They have declared religious groups as heterodox organizations and subjected them to oppression and persecution. Especially when it comes to those Christians who believe in the true God, and bear witness to Him, the CCP is always fanatically suppressing, capturing and persecuting them. They carry out inhuman tortures and inflict savage harm. It really is ruthless, unwarranted killing!
The demonic CCP runs counter to right principles and goes against Heaven. Its evil behavior in defiance of God is countless and its sins are many! The facts are enough to demonstrate that the CCP is an evil satanic force, an enemy of God. Why does the CCP hate and persecute those that believe in the true God so much? What is its purpose? It is most afraid that the Chinese people will all start believing in and following God. It’s afraid that people will pursue the truth and gain salvation. In that case, no one will be enslaved by or have to serve the CCP anymore. Therefore, the CCP devil uses any means to persecute Christians. It wants to ban God’s work and ban religious beliefs; it seeks to turn China into a godless land, so it will secure its place as the dictator of China for thousands of generations. This is enough to demonstrate that the CCP is the evil satanic regime that most hates the truth and hates God. It is a devilish organization that resists God! The CCP’s ruling is Satan’s ruling.
… Actually, the Lord Jesus revealed this to us long ago. “This is an evil generation” (Luk 11:29). “And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil” (Jhn 3:19). The Bible also says, “The whole world lies in wickedness” (1Jhn 5:19). The Lord Jesus got to the heart of the matter and revealed the true state and source of this world’s evil and darkness. All of humanity lives under Satan’s influence. There is no space for God or the truth to exist. In the religious communities, no one dares to publicly bear witness to God’s incarnation in the church. There definitely aren’t any people that will dare testify in the church or in public about the truth that Christ expresses. If anyone in any denomination is found to be testifying about the incarnate Christ, they will be condemned. They will be driven out of the church or maybe even handed over to the government. Isn’t this humanity as evil as you can get? Every corner of the earth is filled with the sounds of denying God, denying the truth or condemning Christ. Isn’t this because this world has been ruled by those evil satanic forces that resist God? Think back to 2000 years ago, when the Lord Jesus incarnate was born, He was hunted by the Roman government. When the Lord Jesus preached and did His work, He was crucified on the cross by an alliance of Jewish leaders and Roman officials. When the Lord Jesus’ gospel came to China, it was met with fanatical condemnation and resistance by the Chinese government. There is no telling how many missionaries were afflicted or slaughtered. Since the CCP took over, the number of Christians that have been captured or killed is even harder to count. What does this all prove? Why does the CCP hate believers so much? Why have Christians been persecuted so much throughout history? Why are humans always rejecting and condemning the truth? Why can’t the will of God be carried out on the earth and throughout the countries of the world? Because Satan is controlling humanity. Because the whole world lies under Satan’s domain. Because the earth is ruled by Satan’s evil forces and atheistic regimes that resist God! In particular, the CCP regime is a typical representative of Satan’s evil forces. That’s the reason that humanity is filled with evil and darkness.
from Classic Questions and Answers on the Gospel of the Kingdom
Why does the CCP government have so much enmity toward Almighty God? Why is it so madly persecuting The Church of Almighty God throughout the country? What is the root of it? It’s because it is so terrified of Almighty God. It is so terrified of the way of the truth that Almighty God expresses, and it is so terrified that the people of China will see His words, then accept and follow Him. It feels that Almighty God is a thorn in its side, and that He is even more detestable and formidable than enemy states. That’s why it has mobilized the army to eradicate The Church of Almighty God. Can you see that clearly? On the outside, Almighty God is a regular person, just a normal person, so why would it be so terrified of Him? It is because He actually is extraordinary, and what He says has the capacity to transform the entire world, and transform all of mankind! If this person can exist in the world for a single day and can continue to speak this way, then the entire world will be renewed and transformed, and everything will be turned on its head. That is why it is so frightened, and says “Even though the people of The Church of Almighty God are all unarmed and they don’t even have a single stick, they are formidable. If we don’t mobilize the army, we won’t be able to resolve this!” What does this show that it is afraid of? It’s afraid of the truth, and it’s afraid that as soon as the words uttered from the mouth of Almighty God are accepted by the Chinese people, then they will all follow Him…. This is the true reason that it is launching the “Hundred Days Battle” and mobilizing national forces in order to thoroughly eradicate The Church of Almighty God. And some say: “We accept the words of Almighty God and we live the life of the church and perform our duties every day. Why are they so scared? Why do they treat us that way? It really is inconceivable!” And some say: “The great red dragon is insane! They’re crazy!” Are these words true? Are they insane? They see things even more clearly than you! You don’t have a thorough understanding of them, but they have a thorough understanding of you. They have thoroughly researched the work of The Church of Almighty God, the words of Almighty God, the books, films, and videos of the house of God, and the more they research these things the more afraid they are. That is their hearts breaking out into a cold sweat! They say: “As for this way, not only traditional Chinese culture, but even traditional cultures worldwide will be undermined by it. It’s formidable!” They also say: “These people believe in God and they don’t have guns or artillery, but they are more formidable than millions of soldiers with guns and artillery!”
from “Sermons and Fellowship About God’s Word ‘God’s Work, God’s Disposition, and God Himself III’ (IX)” in Sermons and Fellowship on Entry Into Life XI
The great red dragon is currently madly resisting and opposing Almighty God in the entire country. Why does it want to do that? The majority of people can’t explain it. What is it that they acknowledge? “The great red dragon is atheistic, and it oppresses God. That’s why it opposes Almighty God.” And some say: “The great red dragon is a demon, which is why it persecutes Almighty God and His followers.” On the outside, these words seem totally right. But why does it so madly resist and condemn Almighty God? What is the root of that? It is because the great red dragon is afraid of the truth, and it hates the truth. It doesn’t acknowledge that God has become flesh, and it doesn’t acknowledge that this person is God. It has such extreme hate in its heart for all of the truth expressed by Almighty God, and has such extreme hate for the true way, and it is afraid that the Chinese people will all rise up to accept the true way. Particularly over these last few years, the great red dragon has seen one fact through its persecution of God’s chosen people of The Church of Almighty God: Once God’s chosen people gain a grasp on Almighty God’s words, they are incorruptible, and they cannot be turned. They have become “godized people” it speaks of. It has seen that the power of God’s word is so great, and the might of the truth is so great that as soon as the truth goes deep into people’s hearts, it sees those people as unsalvageable. They can no longer be educated or converted, and no matter how they are brainwashed or imprisoned, it’s all useless. Those people have been completed and obtained by God. Inside, they think: “The truth expressed by Almighty God is formidable! Once these truths gain steam among the people of China, the consequences will be unthinkable!” So, they wantonly arrest and persecute God’s chosen people, and deludedly try to completely eradicate The Church of Almighty God. This is the root of the problem.
from “Sermons and Fellowship About God’s Word ‘God’s Work, God’s Disposition, and God Himself III’ (IX)” in Sermons and Fellowship on Entry Into Life XI
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) demented suppression and attacks against Eastern Lightning have created a stir world-wide. Many people have no insight as to why they are so frenziedly resisting and opposing God. It is precisely because the incarnate Almighty God has uttered many truths in The Word Appears in the Flesh and it is this book that has shaken every religion and denomination. Many who believe in the Lord have heard Almighty God’s utterances and affirmed them as the voice of God and as His work, and they have turned toward Him. The constant increase of those who proclaim and bear witness for Almighty God has caused the CCP to panic. The CCP has arrested countless numbers of those who have borne witness to God in their evangelizing, and has confiscated many a copy of The Word Appears in the Flesh. They research this book day after day, and increasingly feel how very formidable it is. It has the capability to conquer all; no matter how the CCP tries to slander, to judge and discredit Almighty God, they dare not make The Word Appears in the Flesh known to the public. That is, they make not the slightest mention of what Almighty God has uttered. Why are they staying so cool in response to The Word Appears in the Flesh? They fear the whole world will see that God has manifested doing His work in the East, that the Savior of mankind has appeared in the East, and that there lies the hope of mankind. Why does the CCP fear mankind reading The Word Appears in the Flesh? Because this book is the utterance of God, it is the expression of the truth, and it is true light that has appeared in the East! The CCP is the regime of Satan who is the most evil of all and most hateful of the truth. It fears most of all that the truth will come into man’s world, that mankind will accept the truth, that God will take power as King to rule man’s world, and that the kingdom of Christ will appear on earth. Thus, the CCP so dementedly pursues and represses Christ, and uses the media networks for propaganda to wantonly frame, falsely charge and discredit The Church of Almighty God. They do not even spare mobilizing the nation’s armed police force to overwhelmingly suppress, arrest and persecute God’s chosen ones. With nowhere to hide, His chosen ones have been forced into exile because of the CCP’s persecution, and the Chinese government under the CCP has stretched out its evil hand into every country abroad and utilizing political, economic and diplomatic means puts pressure on some of them to have those Christians who have escaped abroad extradited back to China in order to torture and persecute them. Even more detestable is that the CCP also arrests and persecutes the relatives of those Christians who have gone abroad and treats them as hostages with which to threaten The Church of Almighty God. It forces them to get their passports to go abroad and disrupt The Church of Almighty God in every country, and attempts through diplomatic channels to frame and entrap His church, to mislead by rumor, to manipulate public opinion and discredit it. The CCP incites both the governments and people of other countries to oppose and reject The Church of Almighty God, and to extradite the church’s overseas members; its evil aim is to succeed in obstructing, restricting and suppressing the spread of The Church of Almighty God and its gospel work abroad. Would you not say that the CCP is the devil Satan who hates the truth and hates God? The CCP is expert in the cruel abuse of people and the devouring of souls; it is a demon that eats men without spitting out their bones. Now all of you see here the true picture of why the Chinese government under the CCP so dementedly resists and condemns Almighty God.
from Classic Questions and Answers on the Gospel of the Kingdom
Footnotes:
1. “Unpunished and at large” indicates that the devil goes berserk and runs amok.
2. “A complete shambles” refers to how the devil’s violent behavior is unbearable to see.
3. “Bruised and battered” refers to the ugly face of the king of devils.
4. “Consume” refers to the violent behavior of the king of devils, which plunders people in their entirety.
5. “Making groundless accusations” refers to the methods by which the devil harms people.
6. “Heavily guarded” indicates that the methods by which the devil afflicts people are especially vicious, and control people so much that they have no room to move.
a. The original text reads “Some even shout out.”
Bible Verses for Reference:
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