The Bible stands for the Lord.
Belief in one means believing in the other.
What could possibly be wrong with practicing faith in this manner.
We see the Bible is only a testimony, a record of God's work in the past.
God can save man. But can the Bible do the same? (No. Definitely not.)
God can express the truth. Can the Bible do that? (No.)
God can enlighten and guide mankind at any time. Can the Bible do that?
No way. Not at all. Of course not.
Everyone, did we not enter faith through the Bible? (Yes!)
Do we not practice faith according to the Bible? (Right.)
We've not seen the Lord, so what do we base our faith on?
Do we not base our faith on the Bible?
The Bible's the foundation of our faith in the Lord. (Amen!)
These two thousand years, all the believers have based their faith on the Bible.
So I believe the Bible stands for the Lord.
Belief in one means believing in the other. (Amen!)
No matter what, we can't stray from the Bible.
How we suppose to practice faith without the Bible?
Is that even faith?
Tell me what could possibly be wrong with practicing faith in this manner.
Everybody,
many believe that the Bible represents the Lord and God,
and that belief in one means believing in the other.
People place the same status to the Bible as they do to God.
There's even those who acknowledge the Bible but not God.
They regard the Bible as supreme and even use it to replace God.
There are even religious leaders who acknowledge the Bible and not Christ,
and claim that those who preach the second coming of the Lord are heretics.
What's the issue here?
The religious world has sunk to the point where they only acknowledge the Bible
and not the Lord's return, and so they're doomed. (Indeed.)
It's clear that the religious world has become a group of antichrists
who take God as their enemy.
It is undeniable, many religious leaders are just like hypocritical Pharisees.
Especially those claiming
that "those who preach the Lord's return are heretics,"
they are all antichrists and unbelievers. (Right. Indeed.)
It seems many people do not know what exactly faith in the Lord truly is.
They all call their belief in this vague God "orthodox faith,"
yet they replace God with the Bible.
They even condemn Christ incarnate of the last days
as they ignore and neglect any truth which Christ expresses.
What's the problem here?
It's quite a deep question.
It's worth reflecting.
Way back in the days when Lord Jesus did His work,
did the Jews not act in just the same way?
Before Christ appeared to perform His work,
man all based their faith in God completely on the Bible.
None could tell whose faith was real and whose was false,
and surely none could tell who was truly obeying God
and who was opposing Him. (Right! That's right.)
Why was it that when the Lord Jesus Christ became flesh and performed His work,
each kind of man was revealed?
This is where God's wisdom lies.
When Almighty God, Christ of the last days, appears and performs His work,
the wise virgins hear God's voice and see His footprints;
thus, quite naturally, they become those brought before God's throne. (Amen!)
As for those foolish virgins,
because they fail to see Almighty God, Christ of the last days, is indeed God,
they're revealed and cast off. (Yes!)
Although for now they continue to hold firm and cling to their so-called faith,
yet when the disasters do come,
they will end up with wailing and gnashing of teeth.
From this it's clear those that cling to the Bible and fail to accept the truth;
those that believe in God in heaven but don't accept Christ incarnate
are all unbelievers and will be eliminated by God. (Amen!)
This is the truth! (Yes.)
God's disposition is unoffendable!
Let's see what Almighty God says.
Alright!
I'd like to read. (Mm.)
Turn to page 944.
Elder Liu, let's read together!
Amen! Thanks be to God.
Brothers and sisters, having read Almighty God's words,
let us ponder together: What is belief in the Lord?
What does it mean to believe in the Bible?
How does the Lord relate to the Bible?
Which came first, the Bible or the Lord? (Of course the Lord came first.)
Then who is it that does the work of salvation?
God does the work of salvation.
Can the Bible do the work of the Lord? (No!)
Can the Bible represent the Lord? (It can't.)
If people place blind faith in the Bible,
does this mean they worship God?
It can't.
Is holding to the Bible tantamount to practicing the word of God?
Does holding to the Bible necessarily mean
that one is following the Lord's way? (It can't.)
So if people deem the Bible supreme,
does this mean they magnify the Lord
that they are reverent of and obedient to the Lord?
No one sees the truth of these issues.
For thousands of years now, people have been worshiping the Bible
as if it were the Lord.
Some even substitute it for the Lord and His work, (Yes.)
but none truly knows the Lord and is obedient to Him. (Yes.)
The Pharisees held onto the Bible,
yet nailed the Lord Jesus to the cross. (That's right.)
What was the issue?
Does understanding the Bible mean knowing God?
Does holding onto the Bible mean following the Lord's way?
The Pharisees were experts of biblical exegesis, but didn't know God.
They nailed Lord Jesus, who did redemptive work and expressed truth,
to the cross. (That's right.)
Have people actually forgotten this?
Exactly what does it mean to really know God?
Does just being able to interpret the Bible
and understanding the Bible knowledge qualify as knowing God?
If that's the case,
then why would the Pharisees condemn and oppose the Lord Jesus
even as they interpreted the Bible?
The key of whether one is able to truly know and obey God
is whether or not he knows and obeys the incarnate Christ. (Amen!)
God incarnate reveals all of mankind, this is what most people fail to realize.
The Lord Jesus' curse on the Pharisees
is testament to the fact that God treats everyone with righteousness.
Amen!
Thanks be to God!
God's disposition does not tolerate offense.
As is clear, if one does not obey and worship the Lord
but only blindly believes in and worships the Bible,
he will not receive God's approval. (Right.)
If man's faith consists solely in abiding by the Bible
and their heart has no place for the Lord;
if they cannot worship the Lord as great and practice His words;
if they are incapable of accepting and obeying God's work and guidance,
then everyone,
wouldn't you say that such a man is a hypocritical Pharisee? (Yes! Yes, he is.)
Is such a man not an antichrist,
a man who has made God his enemy? (Yes. Absolutely.)
Thus, if man only clings to the Bible,
this certainly does not mean that he has gained truth and life.
It is wrong to worship and blindly follow the Bible,
by doing so one certainly will not receive the Lord's approval. (Yes. Right!)
God has become flesh and expressed the truth to purify and save man
and to rescue him from Satan's influence, (Thanks be to God!)
so that man may worship, obey, and be gained by God. (Amen.)
This is the purpose and meaning of God incarnate doing His work. (Amen.)
The key to man's faith is seeking and practicing the truth and the Lord's word.
This way we'll gain the Holy Spirit's work and know God.
Amen! Thanks be to God.
Then we'll be able to revere and magnify God.
We will have true obedience and faith.
That's the true meaning of faith. (Amen!)
In this way, we'll receive the Lord's approval. (Amen.)
Thanks be to God! I've never understood before. (I know!)
So from this, we know belief in the Bible
is not the same as belief in the Lord. (Mm, yes. Of course.)
Brother, we now see that belief in the Bible isn't belief in God.
Hmm, so what is their relationship then?
Yes, please fellowship about the truth to us!
In this regard, the Lord Jesus spoke very clearly.
Take a look at the Gospel of John Chapter five verses 39-40.
Amen!
Right! That's exactly it.
The words of the Lord Jesus are very clear.
We see the Bible is only a testimony, a record of God's work in the past. (Yes.)
It does not represent God,
because it only contains a limited amount of God's word and work.
How can this limited amount of record represent God? (Right. Exactly.)
God is the Creator. He is the Master of all things. (Amen.)
God's life is unlimited and inexhaustible. (Amen.)
We can never fathom God's greatness and abundance. (Amen. Mm. Yes.)
And this limited record of God's words and work in the Bible
is just a drop in the vast sea of God's life.
How could the Bible represent God?
How could the Bible even be on par with God?
That's right!
God can save man. But can the Bible do the same?
No. Definitely not.
God can express the truth. Can the Bible do that? (No.)
God can enlighten and guide mankind at any time.
Can the Bible do that? (No way. Not at all. Of course not.)
Of course not.
So the Bible cannot represent God. (Amen!)
Amen!
Man places the Bible on par with God, thinking it can represent God.
Is this not belittlement and blasphemy?
Using the Bible in place of God's work is denial and betrayal of God.
Yes. That's dire. That's pretty serious.
God is God, and the Bible is the Bible. (Amen!)
The Bible can't represent God, nor can it replace His work. (Yes. Amen. Agree.)
The Bible is merely a record of His work.
God's words in the Bible are truth.
They are a manifestation of His life and show His will.
And each stage of work can only represent His will during that age for mankind.
But they do not represent the words and work of God in other ages.
Is this now a little clearer for everybody?
Yes, of course. Yeah. So clear now.
Thanks be to God!
What a practical fellowship!
The more I hear, the more it makes sense! (Yes!)
Me too. I'm glad I finally understand.
Turns out belief in the Bible isn't belief in God. (Yes.)
To believe in the Lord is to experience and practice His word
and understand His word, (Right!)
then we can keep the Lord's way and receive His approval!
True. Yeah. Thanks be to God!
I always thought that faith in the Lord required biblical knowledge alone.
Maybe the more biblical knowledge I had,
the more spiritual I would become. (Yes.)
But I ignored the most important thing,
actually following the way of the Lord. (Right.)
But that was the path of the Pharisees, wasn't it?
Yes, it was. Don't you think so?
Brothers, I've learned so much from your fellowship today. (Yes.)
I've gained more today than in all my ten years since entering the faith.
Yes, me too. Thanks be to God.
It's God's enlightenment and guidance. (Yes.)
When it comes to knowing the inside story of the Bible,
we should read the words of Almighty God. (All right!)
Yes.
Turn to page 951.
Elder Liu, why don't you read this.
Sure. (Thanks be to God!)
Amen!
Amen.
Yes! Praise God!
Everyone, seeking the truth when it comes to this,
whether the Bible can represent God and the relationship between them
is of the utmost importance. (Right. Yes.)
And first, we must come to know God is really what kind of God.
God is the Creator of all things!
God is omnipotent and wise!
God is wondrous!
The one and only!
Omnipotent and wise!
God is all encompassing!
Ruler of all!
The Almighty, who is and was and is to come. (Amen!)
God alone can save and guide mankind.
Only God can determine the fate of mankind. (Amen!)
This is widely acknowledged.
Now let's ask ourselves: How was the Bible written?
We just communed on this.
After God finished His work,
the men used by Him wrote their testimonies and experiences,
then these were compiled to make the Bible.
Yes. So then we know for certain
the Bible is merely a record of God's work in the past,
and is just a testimony to God's work. (Yes.)
The Bible can't represent God
or stand in the place of God to work and save man.
Amen.
If man's faith is focused only on reading the Bible instead of on God's work,
he won't gain Holy Spirit's work and be saved.
So how do we know this?
Because God's work of salvation is an ongoing process. (Absolutely!)
So, we can't just fixate on one or two stages of God's work. (Yes, of course.)
Because man should follow the footsteps of God's work
until God completes His work of saving man.
In this way, man can truly receive God's full salvation.
Amen! Praise be to God! We are truly blessed.
God's management plan of salvation has three stages of work:
the work of the Age of Law, the Age of Grace, and the Age of Kingdom.
Everyone knows the Age of Law was the time when God used laws to guide mankind.
In the Age of Grace, God did His work of redemption.
The Lord Jesus was nailed to the cross to redeem man from Satan's domain,
to pardon all their sins,
and to qualify them to come before God and to pray to Him. (Yes.)
As for the judgment in the Age of Kingdom,
this is the work that will cleanse, perfect, and save mankind.
If mankind only passes through the Age of Law and through the Age of Grace,
but fails to accept God's judgment of the last days,
they will not be thoroughly saved and gained by God.
Why is this the case?
Let's think for a moment.
We all see that in the Age of Grace,
the purpose was for Lord Jesus to redeem mankind.
In that age, belief in the Lord allowed man to be forgiven of sins,
and to be qualified to pray and receive grace. (Mm.)
But man wasn't cleansed in this age.
Why is that?
Because man's nature is sinful,
and we often rebel against God and oppose Him.
Yes.
The Lord Jesus promised He would come again
and express all the truth that would save mankind in the last days
to purify those who hear God's voice and are brought before God's throne.
Amen.
Just as the Lord Jesus foretold,
Amen. Thanks be to God.
Almighty God's words and work are a fulfillment of this verse from John:
Amen!
So Almighty God is the returned Lord Jesus. (Amen!)
Almighty God is performing judgment, purifying,
and perfecting all those who have come before His throne,
all of those wise virgins who have returned to Him after hearing His voice
into overcomers, to bring them to the kingdom of God.
Amen!
Isn't it great?
The Lord has finally come.
Yes. Thanks be to God!
God doing His work in three stages allows us to see
that God has always been working to lead and save man.
Amen!
Each stage of God's work is more profound than the last. (Amen!)
Thanks be to God!
As for the Bible, it's no more than an important book for God's followers.
But the Bible cannot do the work of God like save mankind or guide them.
Right. Amen!
Yes.
Really, the Bible is just a record.
When God completed work,
it was documented in the Bible by His followers. (Right.)
Though of course the Bible's indispensable,
man needs the work of the Holy Spirit to understand it, to understand truth.
That's just a fact. (Yeah. Yes.)
So, we should follow the footsteps of the Lamb
and accept and obey God's judgment work.
This way, we can receive the work of the Holy Spirit
and God's salvation and perfection.
Amen!
Thanks be to God!
If man only reads the Bible
but fails to accept the words and work of God in the last days,
he cannot be purified and saved.
Right.
Actually, even if every word God said was in the Bible,
without the Holy Spirit's work,
mankind would never be able to understand it. (Amen!)
To understand the truth, man must practice the word of God,
receive enlightenment of the Holy Spirit.
And only thus can he understand God's word,
enter reality of truth, and be perfected. (Amen!)
Thanks be to God!
Knowing this, we need to understand something.
What is the key to our salvation as believers?
Holy Spirit's work …
Right. The key is the Holy Spirit's work and His perfection. (Amen!)
Who is the Holy Spirit? (He's God Himself!)
Right! Is the Holy Spirit not just God Himself? (Amen!)
The Bible is just a record of God's work in the past.
So how could it possibly stand in for Him? (It can't. No.)
So I've said God alone can save man.
The Bible cannot save man. (Amen!)
If man only follows the Bible in his faith,
and he doesn't accept the work of God in the last days
or follow the steps of God's work,
then he will be abandoned. (Right. That's right.)
Many in the Age of Law failed to accept the work of Lord Jesus
and thus were eliminated.
Those who believe in Lord Jesus but fail to accept the work of Almighty God
will also be abandoned and eliminated.
We can see these people are blind and don't know God.
They'll bear the brunt of the disasters, left to suffer. (Mm.)
The judgment done by Almighty God through expressing the truth,
that is the core of God's management plan to save mankind.
It's also the last stage of God's work to purify, to save and perfect mankind.
That's right.
So if believers only keep to the first two stages in the Bible,
but fail to accept the work of purification done by Christ in the last days,
then they can never enter the kingdom of God.
Doesn't matter how long they've believed in the Lord,
all that will be for naught.
Because all those who reject the end-time salvation of Almighty God
are opponents of God.
They are all hypocritical Pharisees.
No question about it.
Even though the Pharisees on the basis of the Bible rejected the Lord Jesus,
and the pastors and elders in the last days
reject the work of Almighty God using the Bible,
this just doesn't make any sense.
They have based their arguments on biblical letters instead of on God's word.
Mm, yes.
In the eyes of God, no matter what your reasons are,
anyone who rejects the work of Almighty God in the last days is a betrayer.
Amen!
In God's eyes, they are all evil doers. God will never acknowledge them.
These nonbelievers and antichrists that are exposed in the last days,
they'll have to bear the punishment and suffer through the disasters.
God will have them all cast off and eliminated,
and they will never again have the opportunity to see God.
Amen!
We do know this much is true:
The Bible cannot represent God, (Amen. Right.)
and it cannot stand in for God's work. (Amen.)
God is God. The Bible is the Bible. (Amen!)
Thanks be to God!
So since we believe, we must experience God's work,
must follow the pace of God's work;
we must eat and drink God's word in the last days;
and we must follow and accept God's truth. (Amen!)
This is the real meaning of faith. (Amen!)
Thanks be to God.
Every time God becomes flesh to work,
He must cast off those who only follow the Bible and fail to obey God.
So we can say with confidence
that "Faith in God must be in line with the Bible,
abiding by the Bible is true faith in God, the Bible represents God,"
these ideas are fallacy.
Anyone who speaks like this so blindly does not know God.
When one puts the Bible above all else, even in place of God,
is he not walking the path of the Pharisees? (Yes.)
It is what the Pharisees did.
The Pharisees adhered to the Bible, opposed God, and so they were cursed.
Is this not a fact? (Yes. That's right.)
Brothers, thanks for your clear fellowship.
Have some water. (Thanks be to God! God be praised.)
Yes. When we practiced our faith before,
we always listened to pastors and elders interpret the Bible in these meetings.
But what did we ever learn all those years?
We never learned the slightest truth.
We had no knowledge of the Lord.
We didn't even have reverence for the Lord, or magnify Him in our hearts.
Yes.
We equated the Lord with the Bible
and even obeyed pastors and elders in all things.
As believers in the Lord, we had no obedience to Him.
We worshiped, followed, and obeyed men.
Right.
What kind of faith were we practicing?
And still, we expected the Lord to rapture us to His kingdom.
We were living a fantasy. (Yes.)
Yes. When it comes to the judgment of the returned Lord Jesus in the last days,
I failed to seek and accept it.
I even followed the religious Pharisees and antichrists in opposing God.
I had been on the path of the Pharisees opposing God
and become hypocritical without knowing it just like them.
Yet I thought I was guarding the true way and being faithful to God.
How ignorant I was!
But now I understand:
Faith in the Lord requires hearing His voice,
following the Lamb's footsteps and obeying the work of Christ of the last days.
That is the true meaning of faith.
Only by practicing faith in this way can one enter into the kingdom of heaven!
Amen!
Otherwise,
if we're deceived and controlled by pastors and elders as we were before,
even with a life of belief,
we would only understand biblical knowledge and theological doctrine.
Yes. That's right.
We would never gain truth and life. (Right.)
We would just become like the hypocritical Pharisees,
condemned and eliminated by God.
That's right. In the past, we gave equal status to the Bible and God,
thinking the Bible represented Him.
That's just blasphemous of God. (True. Indeed.)
God is the Creator, the source of life for all things. (Amen!)
The Bible is just a record of God's first two stages of work.
How could the Bible represent God?
How could it stand in for God in man's salvation? (Indeed.)
How could we have been so foolish?
How could we even place them on the same pedestal?
Lord Jesus said very clearly
there is no eternal life to be found in the Bible.
Only Christ can give man truth and life. (Amen!)
How on earth did we not understand His words before?
Yes, that's right.
Without the truth, man perceives nothing.
But luckily we heard the words of Almighty God.
Thanks be to God. Praise God.
Otherwise, we'd never have realized
we were opposing and blaspheming God. (Yes! That's right.)
What a dangerous situation that was.
Almighty God's every word is truth.
Amen!
It corrects our past deviations, the errors in our faith. (Right.)
Almighty God has saved us. (Amen!)
Great thanks be to Almighty God! (Thanks be to Almighty God!)