Selected Preachings of the Leaders from Different Levels in the Church

Every corrupt man has much corrupt nature resulting from his satanic innate nature. Why is man’s innate nature that of rebelling against God? Because man’s innate nature has completely become satan’s innate nature since man was corrupted by satan. Just as satan is corrupt and evil, so also is mankind. Just as satan resists and rebels against God, so also does mankind. The believers in God, in particular, still resist and rebel against God though they have enjoyed much grace of God. They clearly know that the work is done by God and the word is spoken by God, but they still judge and condemn God’s work and even blaspheme God’s word. They clearly know that Christ is the incarnated God, but they still form many notions about her and even deny that she is the embodiment of God. They clearly know that the incarnated God has a normal humanity outwardly, but they still have notions and misunderstandings about her and even cannot tolerate her normal humanity. From the fact that man has so many notions about God, it can be fully seen that man’s innate nature is that of resisting God, and that the corrupt mankind is the embodiment of satan and the offspring of satan. From the various notions man has about God, his satanic innate nature can be well seen. Just as God said before: “When you actually live with Christ, your self-rightness and self-importance will naturally be expressed little by little through your words and deeds. And then your extravagant desires and your unsubmissive and disgruntled feelings will naturally be expressed. Finally, when you become more and more arrogant to the extent that you become incompatible with Christ, your innate nature will be completely exposed. At that time, your notions can no longer be concealed, your complaints will naturally be ‘expressed,’ and your contemptible humanity will be completely exposed….

You always want to see Christ. I advise you not to think too highly of yourselves. Everyone can see Christ, but I say that no one deserves to see Christ. Because you are full of evil, full of arrogance, and full of disobedience by nature, when you see Christ, you will be ruined by your innate nature and will be put to death by your innate nature. When you come into contact with a brother (or a sister), it may not show what you are like. But when you come into contact with Christ, it will not be so simple. Your notions will take root at any time, your arrogance will germinate at any time, and your disobedience will bear figs at any time….”

From experience we can find various notions about God resulting from man’s corrupt innate nature:

1. When one sees that Christ is very normal in her humanity, he will have a notion, saying, “No flavor of God at all; completely an ordinary person.” This is a notion that everyone has. It shows that man does not know Christ’s substance in the least.

2. When one sees only Christ’s normal humanity but not Christ’s substance in his contact with Christ, he will have a notion, saying, “Just an ordinary person; she’s in no way like God!”

3. When Christ prunes and deals with a person, he will have a notion, saying, “How can God treat me in this way? Is God really like this?”

4. When Christ is kind and pleasant to a person, he will have a notion inside, saying, “This should be the way God treats me. God should be like this.”

5. When Christ judges a person and exposes his corruptions, he, feeling deeply hurt, will have a notion that God is unkind and inapproachable, thus becoming passive.

6. When one sees that what Christ enjoys is a little better than ordinary people, he will have a notion, saying, “Christ has suffered nothing but lives in ease and comfort all the time.”

7. When one sees that Christ suffers from a disease, he will have a notion, saying, “Since she is God, how could she be sick?” He is not aware in the least that Christ is tasting the sufferings of the world.

8. When one sees that Christ gives some things to other people, he will have a notion, saying, “Why does Christ show favoritism, giving only to others but not to me?”

9. When one sees that Christ is nicer to someone else, he will have a notion, saying, “What merit does he have? Why is Christ not nice to me?”

10. When one sees that Christ, being hunted by satan the devil, wanders here and there, he will have a notion, saying, “Since she is God, why can’t she even protect herself?”

11. When one sees that Christ have some rest instead of working, he will have a notion, saying, “What an easy and comfortable life Christ has! She has nothing to do all day long!”

12. When one sees that Christ treats him indifferently, he will have a notion, saying, “How come Christ has no love for man?”

13. When one finds that Christ does not know certain worldly things, he will have a notion, saying, “Christ is not omniscient. Doesn’t she have the substance of God?”

There are many more such notions, yet it is not necessary to list them one by one. In a word, man can have notions about Christ’s actions and deeds and all her behaviors. No matter what Christ does, there is bound to be some people who have notions about it. Regardless of whether you admit that you have many notions about Christ, it can be said with certainty that everyone has the innate nature of resisting and rebelling against God inside. No one can deny this. If you have not found any notion in you, it only shows that you have not contacted or stayed with Christ yet. If you really contact and stay with Christ for a period of time, all your notions will become manifest, which will be as many as others’. However, the difference is: Those who love the truth, in such a case, will not become so passive as to give up performing their duty or run away though they have notions, for they have understood some truths concerning the incarnation. Those who do not love the truth will be in unimaginable danger; they may deny Christ and the true way, thus forsaking God. Many people long to see God; this is understandable. But you must understand and gain some truths before you are qualified to see Christ. Do not assert that you will not have notions when seeing Christ, because you have not known your corrupt innate nature deep enough. At most you have a little knowledge of your past transgressions of resisting God, but as to every bit of expression of your innate nature, you are not able to dissect it with the truth. So those who seldom experience dealing and pruning are certainly not yet the ones who know themselves. Everyone has done many things resisting God or things against the truth. As for some of these things, he cannot realize them without going through pruning and dealing. The exposing, judging, pruning, and dealing of God’s word are what man needs the most. If man reads God’s word only by himself without the Holy Spirit’s working on him, he cannot realize his corruptions only by relying on his brain. Peter was made perfect just through the working of the Holy Spirit and his pursuit and cooperation.