Ironclad Proofs of Being Conquered by God’s Word

In 1995, I was called in the Lord. Later, I was appointed as a deacon in the True Jesus Church and was responsible for preaching and teaching hymns.

In 1998, I heard some rumors about “Eastern Lightning,” and when we had meetings, the leader specifically spoke to us about those rumors. And he said, “They have political and economic purposes. They are against the country, and they grab money by illegal means. What’s more, the way they preach has departed from the Bible. It’s obviously a heresy….” To prevent the believers from accepting “Eastern Lightning,” the leader added one rule to the church rules: “No one should receive the people who preach ‘Eastern Lightning.’ The offender will be punished for a breach of the church rules.” I seemed to have received the Emperor’s order and began to wantonly spread the leader’s words in the church after I went back. I called on the believers to “strengthen the faith, stick to the true way, and defend together until the Lord comes.” And I repeatedly emphasized that “everyone must strictly obey the rule from above, and the leading sheep and deacons in particular should do it first and guard the Lord’s sheep properly so as to give a good account to the Lord when he comes.” But even so, I still felt insecure. So, I went to the churches constantly to investigate and get information lest the believers accept Almighty God.

Once, I heard several brothers and sisters in our church had accepted Almighty God, so I immediately went to the house of one of the brothers and exhorted him patiently and earnestly. Under my “sincere” exhortation, the brother finally turned back. Then I dragged back other believers in the same way. I was extremely happy at that time, thinking that I was guarding the sheep of the Lord and safeguarding the interests of the church, and this was a manifestation of being responsible for the church work.

One day in the winter of 1999, it was very cold. Two sisters came to me to preach the gospel of Almighty God. As I was just full of hatred for the people of “Eastern Lightning” “stealing sheep” everywhere and had nowhere to vent my anger, they voluntarily came to me; so, with arms akimbo, I shouted abuse at them angrily, “You shameless things, wolves in sheep’s clothing, if you dare to steal the sheep from my jurisdiction once again, I will break your legs! Get out now! If you are brazen-faced, do not blame me for being rude!” At that moment, I really wanted to give them a good beating. But when seeing that they had no intention of fighting back, I was embarrassed to do so.

One day in the summer of 2000, it was raining. Two other sisters came to my home to preach the gospel of Almighty God. Without allowing them to say much, I flared up and cursed, “You bitches, robbers, lackeys of the false christ…, I tell you, if you want to save your skin, leave at once!” I gave them a good scolding. Seeing them leave my home in tears, I was delighted to myself and thought that I had won.

I thought that since I treated them like that, surely they wouldn’t come anymore. But to my surprise, more and more people came to preach the gospel to me. At a rough calculation, over these years, nearly a hundred people had come to preach God’s end-time gospel to me, and among them a brother alone came more than twenty times. Whether it was in cold winter or in scorching summer, whether it was windy or rainy, they came persistently and never gave up. I found there was an invincible power in them, and this power breached our successive lines of defense. The believers in our church accepted Almighty God’s work continually, and after they had accepted it, no matter how we tried to “melt their hearts with love,” they refused to turn back. Finally, I was also attracted by this power.

One day in August 2002, the two sisters (formerly of our church) who had accepted Almighty God came again and brought a brother with them. This gave me quite a shock, for only a few days ago, they left in tears after being mocked, dug at, and disgraced by me, and before they left, I had warned them sternly and fiercely, “If you dare to come again, I will be too lazy if I don’t beat you!” But unexpectedly, only after a few days, they came again and greeted me smilingly, having neither hatred nor fear for me. I couldn’t help marveling at them and felt inferior. “They are so persevering! They do have more faith and love than me!” But even so, I still felt I would lose too much face if I listened to the fellowship of the people like them, for the two sisters were formerly ordinary believers and the brother was a well-known “compulsive gambler” in the villages around here, who was nicknamed “Lao Song” (which means always losing). So, I took the initiative and pointed at the brother and sneered, “Everyone knows you. Except for gambling, in what way are you better than me? The police have arrested, beaten, and fined you yet have not changed you. Today you even shamelessly come to preach the gospel to me. You have really overestimated your ability!” I thought if I disgraced him like this, he would leave embarrassedly. Yet to my surprise, instead of leaving, he said to me sincerely, “Brother, you’re right, but I’m not that person anymore. Now I have changed.” I sneered at him contemptuously, “Could a person like you change? It will really be a ‘miracle.’ It’s terrific of you not to flush when telling lies in broad daylight!” The two sisters aside confirmed his words, saying, “He has really changed after accepting Almighty God.” I said scornfully, “When he is free, he will resume it.” … Later, they left. But this time I had no feeling of victory. I thought, “This ‘Lao Song’ goes to the gambling house all the year round, and it is difficult for him to refrain from gambling for one day. If such a person has changed, it shows the way he believes in is really worth seeking and investigating.” To find out whether “Lao Song” had really changed, I took time to find his gambling friends and ask them about him, “How is Lao Song playing now?” They all talked at once: “He has believed in God and has long since not played it, not even during the Spring Festival. He has also given up smoking and drinking. He seems to have changed into another person. It is really strange. Could belief in God be so powerful?” At this, I was astonished at heart. “So he has really changed. This is really a miracle!” That night, I lost my sleep. I thought of the chaotic situation in our church: The love of the brothers and sisters had faded away; it became so common for the believers to give up their belief, return to the world to make money, smoke, drink, or play mahjong; and even the co-workers played mahjong with the unbelievers. Then I thought, “‘Lao Song’ has been released from his over-ten-year addiction to gambling once he believed in ‘Eastern Lightning.’ Who could have such ability if it were not for the working of the Holy Spirit? Has God’s work really progressed forward as the sister said? Is ‘Eastern Lightning’ the true God? But if it’s the work of the true God, it shouldn’t have political or economic purposes. And if it’s the work of the true God, why does it depart from the Bible?” I could not figure these out. I thought to myself, “If ‘Lao Song’ comes again, I’ll ask him what these are all about.”