continue
Do God’s Words Exist Outside the Bible?
He continued, “The pastors and elders often say all of God’s word is contained in the Bible, and that if any of God’s words exist outside the Bible, this is adding to the Bible, which is heresy and false preaching, does this accord with the facts? Also, the Lord Jesus also prophesied, ‘I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will show you things to come’ (John 16:12–13). And in Revelation 2:17, He prophesied, ‘He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches; To him that overcomes will I give to eat of the hidden manna….’
The Lord Jesus clearly told us that He has many things yet to say to us, and asked that we wait for the Spirit of truth to come and guide us into all truth. The Book of Revelation also prophesies that the Lord Jesus will return to speak new words, do the work of judgment, and sort each according to his kind, but there are no detailed records regarding how God will do the work of judgment or the work of separating the wheat from the chaff and the goats from the sheep. Only when God comes to do this work will we understand the specific process. These words are to be spoken and this work done in the last days, so how could these words automatically be classified as ‘inside the Bible’? If we don’t seek the voice of the Holy Spirit, and instead delimit God’s words and work outside the Bible by saying ‘the words in the Bible cannot be added to or taken away from,’ doesn’t that mean we condemn God’s utterances in the last days? If we stubbornly keep to these mistaken, fallacious views, and if we don’t actively seek and investigate when others preach God’s work in the last days, listen for God’s voice, or even delimit God’s utterances in the last days, we could very easily lose God’s salvation in the last days.” Hearing his fellowship was like a sudden awakening for me. “That’s right,” I said, “the Lord Jesus prophesied that He would come again and speak new words. But, the Book of Revelation also only states that the Lord will return to do work in the last days, but not the new words that He will speak. When He returns, the new words He speaks will be entirely outside the Bible. How could we possibly say that ‘all of God’s words are contained in the Bible, and if you say any of God’s words exist outside the Bible you are adding them to the Bible’? That view doesn’t accord with the facts or the Lord’s words! For all these years, I’ve believed the words of the pastors, clung to this viewpoint, never listened to sermons outside the church, and delimited God’s words to what is in the Bible. This is resisting God, and by doing this, I’m nearly certain to lose God’s salvation in the last days!” After I finished, my brother happily said, “Thanks be to God! That we have this level of understanding is entirely thanks to God’s guidance! Let’s read a few passages of God’s words, and we’ll understand even more clearly. God says, ‘The things that are recorded in the Bible are limited; they cannot represent the work of God in its entirety. The Four Gospels have fewer than one hundred chapters altogether, in which are written a finite number of happenings, such as Jesus cursing the fig tree, Peter’s three denials of the Lord, Jesus appearing to the disciples following His crucifixion and resurrection, teaching about fasting, teaching about prayer, teaching about divorce, the birth and genealogy of Jesus, Jesus’ appointment of the disciples, and so forth. However, man values them as treasures, even verifying the work of today against them. They even believe that all the work Jesus did in His life amounted only to so much, as if God were only capable of doing this much and nothing further. Is this not absurd?’ (‘The Mystery of the Incarnation (1)’ in The Word Appears in the Flesh). ‘After all, which is greater: God or the Bible? Why must God’s work be according to the Bible? Could it be that God has no right to exceed the Bible? Can God not depart from the Bible and do other work? Why did Jesus and His disciples not keep the Sabbath? If He were to keep the Sabbath and practice according to the commandments of the Old Testament, why did Jesus not keep the Sabbath after He came, but instead washed feet, covered head, broke bread, and drank wine? Isn’t this all absent from the commandments of the Old Testament? If Jesus honored the Old Testament, why did He defy these doctrines? You should know which came first, God or the Bible! Being the Lord of the Sabbath, could He not also be the Lord of the Bible?’ (‘Concerning the Bible (1)’ in The Word Appears in the Flesh). ‘Those who only care about the words of the Bible, who are unconcerned about the truth or seeking My footsteps—they are against Me, for they limit Me according to the Bible, and constrain Me within the Bible, and so are blasphemous in the extreme toward Me. How could such people come before Me? They pay no heed to My deeds, or My will, or the truth, but instead obsess over words, words that kill. How could such people be compatible with Me?’ (‘You Should Seek the Way of Compatibility With Christ’ in The Word Appears in the Flesh).
We all know that the Bible was written down and compiled by people after God did His work. If God hadn’t worked and spoken, there would be no Bible. This is to say, the Bible is only testimony of God’s words and work in the past, and the scope of God’s work and words recorded in it are very limited. God is the Lord of creation, and He created and rules over all things. He can incarnate as a humble fleshly body, but He is also the Spirit that dwells everywhere. He is the real, living God Himself. All that He has and is, His omnipotence, and His wisdom are unfathomable to man, nor are they things man can delimit, and His words and work are not things the Bible alone can record or contain. In addition, if we use our own meager knowledge of the Bible to delimit God’s words and work, if we limit God to the Bible and disallow Him from working or speaking outside it, isn’t that arrogant, self-righteous, and unreasonable? This is something that offends God’s disposition, and something God loathes. So, we need to let go of our own notions and imaginings, go outside the Bible, and humbly seek and investigate God’s work and words in the last days if we hope to follow the footsteps of the Lamb!”
God’s Utterances in the Last Days Aren’t Addition to Prophecies, But Are the Fulfilment of Prophecies
I nodded and said, “Brother, your fellowship is entirely correct. God is an omnipotent and wise God. How could He have only done the work contained in the Bible? If we delimit God’s words and work, and say that the limit amount of God’s work and words in the Bible are all He does and says, it’s ridiculous!” He nodded and said, “Thanks be to God! The fact is, God’s work is always progressing, and God has always updated and improved His work based on the needs of mankind. Today, the Lord Jesus has returned as the incarnate Almighty God. He has spoken words that break the seven seals and open the scroll, which brings us the way of truth to attain complete salvation. If we read another passage of God’s word, you’ll understand more clearly.” Then he read, “When you have finished reading this book, when you have experienced each step of the work of God incarnate in the Age of Kingdom, you will feel that the hopes of many years have finally been realized. You will feel that only now have you truly seen God face-to-face; only now have you gazed upon the face of God, heard the personal utterance of God, appreciated the wisdom of God’s work, and truly sensed how real and almighty God is. You will sense that you have gained many things that people of times past have never seen or possessed. At this time, you will clearly know what it is to believe in God, and what it is to be after God’s heart. Of course, if you cling to views of the past, and reject or deny the fact of the second incarnation of God, then you shall remain empty-handed and acquire nothing, and ultimately be guilty of opposing God. Those who obey the truth and submit to the work of God shall come under the name of the second incarnate God—the Almighty. They will be able to accept the personal guidance of God, and shall acquire more and higher truth and receive the real human life. They shall behold the vision that people of the past have never seen: ‘And I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; And in the middle of the seven candlesticks one like to the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the breasts with a golden girdle. His head and His hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and His eyes were as a flame of fire; And His feet like to fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and His voice as the sound of many waters. And He had in His right hand seven stars: and out of His mouth went a sharp two edged sword: and His countenance was as the sun shines in its strength’ (Revelation 1:12–16). This vision is the expression of God’s entire disposition, and such an expression of His entire disposition is also the expression of the work of God when He becomes flesh this time. In the torrents of chastisements and judgments, the Son of man expresses His inherent disposition through the speaking of words, allowing all those who accept His chastisement and judgment to see the true face of the Son of man, a face that is a faithful depiction of the face of the Son of man seen by John” (Preface to The Word Appears in the Flesh).
He then fellowshiped, “Almighty God, Christ of the last days, has expressed more than a million words, thus unveiling all the truths and mysteries which mankind has never understood throughout all the ages of the world. These words are truly the utterances of the seven thunders, and they are what the Spirit says to the churches. For example, Almighty God’s words reveal the mystery of God’s six-thousand year management plan, the mystery of the three stages of His work, the mystery of God’s incarnation, the significance of His name, the inside stories and essence of the Bible, and all the other mysteries we still don’t understand. He also reveals how God saves people, how Satan corrupts people, the true fact of mankind’s corruption by Satan, the root of rebelliousness and resistance toward God. He tells us what kind of people God likes and perfects, as well as what kind of people God hates and eliminates, and also points out the paths for life entry, such as how to obey God, how to be honest people, what genuine faith in God is, what full salvation is, and more. Almighty God’s words also describe the beauty of kingdom, tell us how Christ’s kingdom will appear, mankind’s future destination, and much more. Almighty God’s words and work completely fulfill the Lord Jesus’ words and the prophecies in the Book of Revelation. From the work and words of Almighty God, we can be certain that Almighty God is the returned Lord Jesus, and that only by accepting the work of judging and purifying people with words done by Almighty God can we completely escape the bondage of sin, be purified, and be brought by God into the kingdom of heaven. However those who are false believers and who despise the truth, the people who hear God’s voice, clearly know it is the truth, and yet refuse to accept it, but instead stubbornly cling to their own notions and imaginings, or even judge and delimit God’s words and work out of their own arrogance. Such people are revealed and eliminated by God’s work.” After hearing Almighty God’s words and my brother’s fellowship, I finally understood that the Lord returning in the last days to express His words and to perform the work of judging and purifying man is not addition to the prophecies in the Book of Revelation, but is rather the fulfillment of those same prophecies. Furthermore, Almighty God’s words reveal many mysteries, and give us paths of practice to gain life entry. It appeared that Almighty God’s words truly are the words spoken to the churches by the Holy Spirit, and that Almighty God is indeed the returned Lord Jesus. The Lord has returned. When I realized this, I felt very excited, and I thanked God for His grace in allowing me to hear His voice. Then, I thought of how I had blindly believed the words of my pastors, refused to investigate or accept God’s new work, and nearly lost God’s salvation. I truly had been ignorant!
The Lord Jesus clearly told us that He has many things yet to say to us, and asked that we wait for the Spirit of truth to come and guide us into all truth. The Book of Revelation also prophesies that the Lord Jesus will return to speak new words, do the work of judgment, and sort each according to his kind, but there are no detailed records regarding how God will do the work of judgment or the work of separating the wheat from the chaff and the goats from the sheep. Only when God comes to do this work will we understand the specific process. These words are to be spoken and this work done in the last days, so how could these words automatically be classified as ‘inside the Bible’? If we don’t seek the voice of the Holy Spirit, and instead delimit God’s words and work outside the Bible by saying ‘the words in the Bible cannot be added to or taken away from,’ doesn’t that mean we condemn God’s utterances in the last days? If we stubbornly keep to these mistaken, fallacious views, and if we don’t actively seek and investigate when others preach God’s work in the last days, listen for God’s voice, or even delimit God’s utterances in the last days, we could very easily lose God’s salvation in the last days.” Hearing his fellowship was like a sudden awakening for me. “That’s right,” I said, “the Lord Jesus prophesied that He would come again and speak new words. But, the Book of Revelation also only states that the Lord will return to do work in the last days, but not the new words that He will speak. When He returns, the new words He speaks will be entirely outside the Bible. How could we possibly say that ‘all of God’s words are contained in the Bible, and if you say any of God’s words exist outside the Bible you are adding them to the Bible’? That view doesn’t accord with the facts or the Lord’s words! For all these years, I’ve believed the words of the pastors, clung to this viewpoint, never listened to sermons outside the church, and delimited God’s words to what is in the Bible. This is resisting God, and by doing this, I’m nearly certain to lose God’s salvation in the last days!” After I finished, my brother happily said, “Thanks be to God! That we have this level of understanding is entirely thanks to God’s guidance! Let’s read a few passages of God’s words, and we’ll understand even more clearly. God says, ‘The things that are recorded in the Bible are limited; they cannot represent the work of God in its entirety. The Four Gospels have fewer than one hundred chapters altogether, in which are written a finite number of happenings, such as Jesus cursing the fig tree, Peter’s three denials of the Lord, Jesus appearing to the disciples following His crucifixion and resurrection, teaching about fasting, teaching about prayer, teaching about divorce, the birth and genealogy of Jesus, Jesus’ appointment of the disciples, and so forth. However, man values them as treasures, even verifying the work of today against them. They even believe that all the work Jesus did in His life amounted only to so much, as if God were only capable of doing this much and nothing further. Is this not absurd?’ (‘The Mystery of the Incarnation (1)’ in The Word Appears in the Flesh). ‘After all, which is greater: God or the Bible? Why must God’s work be according to the Bible? Could it be that God has no right to exceed the Bible? Can God not depart from the Bible and do other work? Why did Jesus and His disciples not keep the Sabbath? If He were to keep the Sabbath and practice according to the commandments of the Old Testament, why did Jesus not keep the Sabbath after He came, but instead washed feet, covered head, broke bread, and drank wine? Isn’t this all absent from the commandments of the Old Testament? If Jesus honored the Old Testament, why did He defy these doctrines? You should know which came first, God or the Bible! Being the Lord of the Sabbath, could He not also be the Lord of the Bible?’ (‘Concerning the Bible (1)’ in The Word Appears in the Flesh). ‘Those who only care about the words of the Bible, who are unconcerned about the truth or seeking My footsteps—they are against Me, for they limit Me according to the Bible, and constrain Me within the Bible, and so are blasphemous in the extreme toward Me. How could such people come before Me? They pay no heed to My deeds, or My will, or the truth, but instead obsess over words, words that kill. How could such people be compatible with Me?’ (‘You Should Seek the Way of Compatibility With Christ’ in The Word Appears in the Flesh).
We all know that the Bible was written down and compiled by people after God did His work. If God hadn’t worked and spoken, there would be no Bible. This is to say, the Bible is only testimony of God’s words and work in the past, and the scope of God’s work and words recorded in it are very limited. God is the Lord of creation, and He created and rules over all things. He can incarnate as a humble fleshly body, but He is also the Spirit that dwells everywhere. He is the real, living God Himself. All that He has and is, His omnipotence, and His wisdom are unfathomable to man, nor are they things man can delimit, and His words and work are not things the Bible alone can record or contain. In addition, if we use our own meager knowledge of the Bible to delimit God’s words and work, if we limit God to the Bible and disallow Him from working or speaking outside it, isn’t that arrogant, self-righteous, and unreasonable? This is something that offends God’s disposition, and something God loathes. So, we need to let go of our own notions and imaginings, go outside the Bible, and humbly seek and investigate God’s work and words in the last days if we hope to follow the footsteps of the Lamb!”
God’s Utterances in the Last Days Aren’t Addition to Prophecies, But Are the Fulfilment of Prophecies
I nodded and said, “Brother, your fellowship is entirely correct. God is an omnipotent and wise God. How could He have only done the work contained in the Bible? If we delimit God’s words and work, and say that the limit amount of God’s work and words in the Bible are all He does and says, it’s ridiculous!” He nodded and said, “Thanks be to God! The fact is, God’s work is always progressing, and God has always updated and improved His work based on the needs of mankind. Today, the Lord Jesus has returned as the incarnate Almighty God. He has spoken words that break the seven seals and open the scroll, which brings us the way of truth to attain complete salvation. If we read another passage of God’s word, you’ll understand more clearly.” Then he read, “When you have finished reading this book, when you have experienced each step of the work of God incarnate in the Age of Kingdom, you will feel that the hopes of many years have finally been realized. You will feel that only now have you truly seen God face-to-face; only now have you gazed upon the face of God, heard the personal utterance of God, appreciated the wisdom of God’s work, and truly sensed how real and almighty God is. You will sense that you have gained many things that people of times past have never seen or possessed. At this time, you will clearly know what it is to believe in God, and what it is to be after God’s heart. Of course, if you cling to views of the past, and reject or deny the fact of the second incarnation of God, then you shall remain empty-handed and acquire nothing, and ultimately be guilty of opposing God. Those who obey the truth and submit to the work of God shall come under the name of the second incarnate God—the Almighty. They will be able to accept the personal guidance of God, and shall acquire more and higher truth and receive the real human life. They shall behold the vision that people of the past have never seen: ‘And I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And being turned, I saw seven golden candlesticks; And in the middle of the seven candlesticks one like to the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the breasts with a golden girdle. His head and His hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and His eyes were as a flame of fire; And His feet like to fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and His voice as the sound of many waters. And He had in His right hand seven stars: and out of His mouth went a sharp two edged sword: and His countenance was as the sun shines in its strength’ (Revelation 1:12–16). This vision is the expression of God’s entire disposition, and such an expression of His entire disposition is also the expression of the work of God when He becomes flesh this time. In the torrents of chastisements and judgments, the Son of man expresses His inherent disposition through the speaking of words, allowing all those who accept His chastisement and judgment to see the true face of the Son of man, a face that is a faithful depiction of the face of the Son of man seen by John” (Preface to The Word Appears in the Flesh).
He then fellowshiped, “Almighty God, Christ of the last days, has expressed more than a million words, thus unveiling all the truths and mysteries which mankind has never understood throughout all the ages of the world. These words are truly the utterances of the seven thunders, and they are what the Spirit says to the churches. For example, Almighty God’s words reveal the mystery of God’s six-thousand year management plan, the mystery of the three stages of His work, the mystery of God’s incarnation, the significance of His name, the inside stories and essence of the Bible, and all the other mysteries we still don’t understand. He also reveals how God saves people, how Satan corrupts people, the true fact of mankind’s corruption by Satan, the root of rebelliousness and resistance toward God. He tells us what kind of people God likes and perfects, as well as what kind of people God hates and eliminates, and also points out the paths for life entry, such as how to obey God, how to be honest people, what genuine faith in God is, what full salvation is, and more. Almighty God’s words also describe the beauty of kingdom, tell us how Christ’s kingdom will appear, mankind’s future destination, and much more. Almighty God’s words and work completely fulfill the Lord Jesus’ words and the prophecies in the Book of Revelation. From the work and words of Almighty God, we can be certain that Almighty God is the returned Lord Jesus, and that only by accepting the work of judging and purifying people with words done by Almighty God can we completely escape the bondage of sin, be purified, and be brought by God into the kingdom of heaven. However those who are false believers and who despise the truth, the people who hear God’s voice, clearly know it is the truth, and yet refuse to accept it, but instead stubbornly cling to their own notions and imaginings, or even judge and delimit God’s words and work out of their own arrogance. Such people are revealed and eliminated by God’s work.” After hearing Almighty God’s words and my brother’s fellowship, I finally understood that the Lord returning in the last days to express His words and to perform the work of judging and purifying man is not addition to the prophecies in the Book of Revelation, but is rather the fulfillment of those same prophecies. Furthermore, Almighty God’s words reveal many mysteries, and give us paths of practice to gain life entry. It appeared that Almighty God’s words truly are the words spoken to the churches by the Holy Spirit, and that Almighty God is indeed the returned Lord Jesus. The Lord has returned. When I realized this, I felt very excited, and I thanked God for His grace in allowing me to hear His voice. Then, I thought of how I had blindly believed the words of my pastors, refused to investigate or accept God’s new work, and nearly lost God’s salvation. I truly had been ignorant!
After that, I watched a gospel film called Disclose the Mystery About the Bible, and I was very moved, because the protagonist’s notions were the same notions I held in the past—the notions that all of God’s words are in the Bible, that we can’t depart from the Bible in our belief in God, etc. As I read God’s word and fellowshiped further with my brothers and sisters on every aspect of truth about the Bible, I developed a more comprehensive and detailed understanding of it. I learned that the Bible is only a historical record of God’s work, merely a history book, and that it is not the complete compendium of God’s work. I learned that we can’t use the Bible to evaluate and judge God’s words and work in the last days, nor can we use it to delimit or resist God. Instead, we should be wise virgins, listen for God’s voice, and humbly seek and investigate God’s work in the last days. The protagonist in the film clung to her own notions and refused to accept God’s work, until finally she was conquered by God’s words, and then in tears of agony, she repented to God. This showed me that God’s sheep hear His voice, that the authority of God’s word is above all, and that no human notion can stand before God’s word. This made me even more certain that Almighty God’s word is the truth, the way, and the life, and also that Almighty God is the returned Lord Jesus. I am grateful for Almighty God’s guidance in allowing me to hear God’s voice and follow God’s footsteps. In the future, I plan to pursue the truth and knowledge of God and fulfill the duties of a created being to repay God’s love.
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