Archives for 4 月 2020
Bible Verse–1 Corinthians 1:24
1 Corinthians 1:24
But to them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.
Bible Verse–Romans 8:25
Romans 8:25
But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.
Bible Verse–Acts 2:38
Acts 2:38
Then Peter said to them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
How to Treat a Friend Who Is Better Than You
By Hongmei
Xiaoxiao was an extroverted girl, and worked in a well-known advertising company. She made a lot of good friends there, and Xia Qing was one of them. Xia Qing was a very kind person who had compassion and patience for people. So Xiaoxiao would tell Xia Qing all her worries and difficulties, and Xia Qing would also comfort and help her. During their leisure time, they would see films and eat together, and chat with each other about their own worries. Gradually, they became the best friends. Xiaoxiao often thanked God for arranging such a good sister for her.
One day, the manager found Xiaoxiao and Xia Qing, and asked each of them to create a special design for advertisement. At that point, neither of them was very clear on this composition. After they got their dormitory from work, they went online to search the materials on this subject together, striving to finish the assignment that the manager gave them ahead of time.
After several days of efforts, Xiaoxiao finally worked out her composition. Looking at it, she was very satisfied, thinking that this time, the manager and colleagues would surely praise her. At this moment, Xia Qing said that she also finished hers and explained the thinking of her design to Xiaoxiao. Xiaoxiao saw that the composition which Xia Qing designed was better than hers; the smile fell from her face immediately. She thought: Xia Qing’s composition is really better than mine. If hers is chosen by the manager, then how will the manager see me? Usually, I work harder than her, but my accomplishment is not as good as hers. How will everyone see me? How will I be able to face them then?
Afterward, Xiaoxiao unwillingly showed Xia Qing her composition. After seeing it, Xia Qing pointed out some improper design in Xiaoxiao’s composition. Xiaoxiao felt extremely awful inside. The more Xia Qing gave direction to her, the more she thought that she was much inferior to Xia Qing, and her face became hotter and hotter. Not only did Xiaoxiao not listen to the advice of Xia Qing, but she even wanted to find some problems from the composition of Xia Qing, so that her heart would be settled. But she saw that Xia Qing designed so well that she could not find out any problems. In order to save her face, Xiaoxiao began to explain the inspiration when she designed her composition. But Xia Qing still thought that the composition of Xiaoxiao had some deficiencies. After their two compositions were both taken to the manager, the manager finally adopted Xia Qing’s and praised her. Seeing that Xia Qing stole her glory, Xiaoxiao standing aside felt very frustrated inside, the smile on her face got stiff and she did not want to look at Xia Qing in the eye.
Seeing that Xiaoxiao was moody and in no mood for having lunch, Xia Qing asked Xiaoxiao with concern: “What’s wrong? Is something on your mind?” Xiaoxiao did not directly answer her, but said simply: “Nothing, I just feel a bit tired.”
From that time on, while at work every day, Xiaoxiao did not want to take the initiative to communicate with Xia Qing, but only wanted to shun Xia Qing. Every time she came back to the dormitory from work, she did not want to greet Xia Qing actively. She felt a little troubled inside and was not happy with Xia Qing’s words and actions. Gradually, their communication had reduced, and the past situation where they talked and laughed as if they were true sisters also disappeared.
From then on, Xiaoxiao stayed up to work overtime every day, competing with Xia Qing inwardly: I have to work hard. I have to surpass Xia Qing! However, for an unknown reason, the more she wanted to do well, the more mistakes she made when at work, and she was even criticized by the manager several times, so she felt even more that she had lost her face. Xiaoxiao felt extreme sadness in her heart and thought: I work so hard, but why is the result still like this? She felt very depressed in her heart.
In despair, she had no choice but to come before God and pray: “Oh God! Now I feel so painful. My work doesn’t go well, and I also have a problem with my interpersonal relationship. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. God, I don’t know what I should do. I wish for You to guide me.” After praying, she saw these words of God: “As soon as it involves position, face, or reputation, everyone’s heart leaps in anticipation, and you always want to stand out, to be famous, to be glorified. You are unwilling to yield, always wanting to contend, although contending is embarrassing. However, you are not content not to contend. When you see someone stand out, you are jealous, feel hatred, complain, and feel it is unfair. ‘Why can’t I stand out? Why is it never me? Why is it always he who gets to stand out and it’s never my turn?’ There is some resentment. You try to repress the resentment, but you can’t, so you pray. After praying, you feel better for a little while, but later when you encounter the matter again you cannot overcome it. Is this not a case of immature stature? Is not a person’s falling into these conditions a trap? This is the bondage of a satanically corrupted nature. … If you are always focusing on these things, always struggling for these things, if your heart is fully occupied and filled by these things, if you never want to put them aside and you always harbor them without putting them aside, then you are being controlled by and bound by these things. You have become a slave, and you cannot give them up.”
After seeing God’s words, Xiaoxiao had an awakening: The reason she felt so painful and depressed was because she had fallen into the net of competing for fame. She recalled: Since the manager asked each of them to design the composition, Xia Qing did better than her and pointed out some deficiencies in her composition to her, so she thought that she lost her face; especially the manager adopted the composition of Xia Qing, which even made her feel frustrated. Therefore, she began to compete with Xia Qing inwardly and thought that she must surpass Xia Qing. As a result, she always wanted to show herself off before her colleagues and manager, could not bear to see that Xia Qing was higher and better than her, much less could she accept her advice; instead, she thought that Xia Qing was to show off and to embarrass her by pointing out her deficiencies…. It turned out that all this because she was placing far too much importance on status that she struggled for fame and gain and sought to prevail over others. It was because of jealousy that she strayed from and disliked Xia Qing. However, the more she wanted to show off and pursued face and status, the more she was disgraced and failed, so she felt even more pained in her heart, living in the deception of Satan.
Only then did Xiaoxiao deeply feel that the fame and status which she pursued was a heavy burden. It not only brought her the pain but made her be completely lacking in humanity. She thought that there were so many employees in this company, but no one helped her and pointed out her deficiencies like Xia Qing. In fact, she really did not possess some professional knowledge that Xia Qing did, the problems that Xia Qing pointed out indeed existed, and Xia Qing’s advice could just complement her deficiencies. Besides, Xia Qing also told her own conception of design to Xiaoxiao, in order to make Xiaoxiao’s professional work improve. However, for the sake of fame and face, Xiaoxiao not only did not modestly learn from Xia Qing but envied and shunned her. The status and fame had really gone to Xiaoxiao’s head.
Xiaoxiao saw more of God’s words: “How are these things cast off? Do you have a solution? First, you must see through them, and then you must learn to give up these things and set them aside. If you are always focusing on these things, always struggling for these things, if your heart is fully occupied and filled by these things, if you never want to put them aside and you always harbor them without putting them aside, then you are being controlled by and bound by these things. You have become a slave, and you cannot give them up. You must learn to give up and set aside these things, to yield, to recommend others, to allow them to stand out. Do not struggle furiously and rush to take advantage as soon as you encounter an opportunity to stand out or obtain honor. … The more you give up and set aside, the more peaceful your heart will be and the more space will open up within it, and the more your condition will improve. The more you struggle and compete, the darker will be your condition.” God’s words, like a bright light, lighted up Xiaoxiao’s heart. She understood that only by forsaking her flesh to put her own desires aside, not struggling for fame and gain with others anymore, but trying her best to do the work well and learning the strengths of others in professional work, could her conscience be clear on the work. Besides, she would not live in the condition of seeking to prevail over others all day long and make herself feel a lot of pressure and live very tired because she always compared with others. In this way, her spirit would become more and more released, and her relationships with other people would become better and better. Xiaoxiao thought that if she continued to live relying on this corrupt disposition, did not put her vanity and desire for status aside and did not accept Xia Qiang’s advice, then not only would her professional work not improve more, but she would lose the best friend and the dignity of being a person, and moreover, she would make herself fall into endless darkness.
At this moment, Xiaoxiao understood God’s will. She wanted to act according to the demands of God’s word: learning to let go of the fame and status. She prayed to God: “Oh God, I thank and praise You. It was Your enlightenment that allowed me to understand Your will and know what I should pursue and what kind of person I should be. God, I’m willing to act according to Your words. I wish for You to lead me so that I can forsake myself, practice the truth and not be fooled and harmed by face and status anymore.” After she prayed, the darkness in her heart unknowingly dissipated a lot and the smile of earlier times appeared on her face again.
The next day, when entering into the office, Xiaoxiao saw that Xia Qing was already immersed in her work. She came near to Xia Qing and saw that she was designing a composition. Seeing that this composition was very novel, Xiaoxiao unknowingly compared it with hers again, thinking that Xia Qing’s was still better than hers. While admiring Xia Qing, she unknowingly felt a little disappointed, thinking: We do the same kind of work, but why cannot I do as well as her? How will others see me? Her work capabilities are so good, and when can I surpass her? She realized that her desire for fame and status stalked again. Thinking about God’s words that she had read before, she clearly realized that she could not let the fame and status have the advantage anymore, that struggling for fame and gain with others was Satan’s corrupt disposition and not the things essential for normal humanity, and that when seeing Xia Qing’s advantages and strengths, she should modestly learn from her, seeing how she designed and revised the composition. When Xiaoxiao consciously humbled herself, she was not jealous of Xia Qing anymore and did not feel so awful. She took the initiative to ask Xia Qing the questions about design and Xia Qing told the conception and inspiration of her design to Xiaoxiao. Xiaoxiao carefully contemplated the conception of Xia Qing, and found it could complement her design, so she accepted it. At this moment, she felt that it was wonderful that there was a person at hand who was better than her, because the person could make up for some deficiencies of her professional work. This truly was God’s love for her. This time, Xiaoxiao tasted the happiness of practicing the truth, feeling at great ease and peace in her heart, as if she had thrown off a heavy burden.
After these experiences, Xiaoxiao has known the secret to getting along with others happily: We need to learn to humble ourselves, to put fame and status aside and to learn from the strengths of others. In this way, our professional work can be complemented; in addition, we can establish good relationships and live easily and freely.
Bible Verse–Isaiah 49:10
Isaiah 49:10
They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: for he that has mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them.
The Origin of Animals’ Names
When I was a child, I was very curious when hearing grown-ups call various animals, such as lion, tiger, elephant, peacock, cat, dog, rabbit, eagle and so on. How come they are called these names? Who gave names to them? So, I went to ask my grandfather and grandmother. They answered me with a smile, “It is handed down from ancient times, so we call them this way. Maybe the names are given by ancestors of mankind.” The elders around me also said so. After hearing their words, I thought the ancestors of mankind were so clever that they could give such unique and vivid names to those animals.
Later, I accepted Almighty God’s work in the last days, and read two passages of God’s words, “and whatever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. Who was the one that gave names to every living creature? It was Adam rather than God. This word tells man a fact: When God created man, He gave him wisdom. That is to say, man’s wisdom was from God. This is beyond doubt. Why? Since God created Adam, had Adam ever been to school? Could he read? After God created all the living creatures, did Adam know them when seeing them? Had God told him what their names were? God certainly had not taught him how to give names to every living creature either. This was a fact! Then how did he know how to give names to these living creatures and what names he should give to them? This had to do with such an issue as what God added to Adam when he was created. The fact proves that when God created man, He added His wisdom to man. This is a key point. You all shall hear it clearly! There is another key point that you should be clear about: After Adam gave names to these living creatures, to God the names of these living creatures were decided.” “God created man, and He gave man His breath and also gave man some of His wisdom, of His power, and of what He has and is. After God gave man these, man could do something independently and think something independently.” (from Continuation of The Word Appears in the Flesh) After reading these words, I understood the origin of animals’ names. It was God who gave Adam, the ancestor of mankind, wisdom, so Adam could give names to every living creature. God is so wise! This also made me understand that man’s intelligence is from God’s bestowing, so man has so much conception and so many inventions. A saying in society goes, “Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.” The one percent inspiration is from God. If not for the one percent inspiration, man won’t succeed even if they pay out the ninety-nine percent perspiration. We should thank God for bestowing intellect and wisdom upon man. There are many other things happening between God and man, and He never stops supplying man. From this, I have felt God’s true love for man.
Bible Verse–Matthew 5:37
Matthew 5:37
But let your communication be, Yes, yes; No, no: for whatever is more than these comes of evil.
Bible Verses–Deuteronomy 6:6-7
Deuteronomy 6:6-7
And these words, which I command you this day, shall be in your heart: And you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up.
Why Doesn’t the Lord Answer Our Prayers?
Xiaomei
Brothers and sisters, peace to you in the Lord. Today let’s fellowship about the truth regarding prayer. As is known to all believers in the Lord, prayer is indispensable to us followers. If a Christian does not pray, he does not deserve to be called a Christian. Through prayer we have faith to practice the Lord’s teachings; through prayer we are enlightened and guided by Him; through prayer our work and dedication can be after His heart; through prayer we can come out of the weakness time and again; through prayer we can have enough strength to take up the cross and drink from the bitter cup…. Obviously, the entire life of Christian cannot be separated from prayer. However, many believers say, “Why can’t my prayers obtain the Lord’s answer? Why does He not hear my prayers? Why can’t I feel His presence in my prayers?” If you have the same confusion, then it is likely that something is wrong with your prayers.
Why Can’t a Prayer of the Pharisee Be Approved by the Lord?
As for this question, we can find the answer in the Bible, which records the prayers of two persons. One was heard by the Lord while the other was not heard. I believe most brothers and sisters who are familiar with the scriptures have known which two I speak about. So let’s first read the following verses. It is said in Luke 18:9-14, “And he spoke this parable to certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank you, that I am not as other men are, extortionists, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes to heaven, but smote on his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalts himself shall be abased; and he that humbles himself shall be exalted.” From these verses we can see God did not accept the prayer of the Pharisee but accept that of the publican.
Brothers and sisters, do you know why the prayer of the Pharisee was not approved by the Lord but instead loathed by Him? Actually, the Lord Jesus told us the reason long ago. He said, “And when you pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men” (Matthew 6:5). This shows that the prayers of the Pharisees were hypocritical. When the Pharisees stood in the streets corners, the passers-by would envy them on hearing their eloquent prayers flowing from their mouths. They did so for the purpose of showing off themselves, exhibiting themselves, gaining others’ praise for their prayers, and building up their good images in people’s hearts intentionally. They prayed not for establishing a proper relationship with God but for showing off to others. Besides, they never considered themselves sinful before God and even put others down to raise themselves up. Just as they prayed, “I am not as other men are, extortionists, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.” Thus the Lord hated and condemned their prayers like this.
Let’s have another look at how the publican prayed to God. He said, “God be merciful to me a sinner.” From his prayers, it can be seen that although his prayer was short, he was truly honest and spoke his heart to God. He said what was on his mind rather than something to flaunt himself. Moreover, he was able to know his abject lowliness before the Lord, and to pray to Him in the position of a sinner. The publican worshiped God in spirit and in truth, and his mouth and heart were as one. He did not pray in a place where there were many people, nor did he pay attention to how others looked at him. Rather, he paid attention to how God looked upon him. His purpose of praying to God was to establish a proper relationship with Him instead of for others to see. Therefore, God accepted his prayer.
How Should We Pray to Obtain the Approval of the Lord?
The Lord Jesus said to us, “But you, when you pray, enter into your closet, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father which is in secret; and your Father which sees in secret shall reward you openly. But when you pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking” (Matthew 6:6-7). “But the hour comes, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeks such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:23-24).
The words of the Lord Jesus and the comparison of the Pharisee’s prayer with that of the publican allow us to find a way to have a proper prayer and to understand the reason why our own prayers are not approved by God. If we want to be heard and guided by Him, we must remove vain prayers, the prayers of putting others down to raise ourselves up, the prayers of flaunting ourselves deliberately, the prayers of not knowing ourselves, the repetitious prayers like theories, half-hearted prayers, the prayers for show, the prayers that fills up with lies and exaggerated and empty words, etc. For example, we often say nice words of how much we have given and spent when praying in the meetings, so as to be regarded as good believers by people around us. This is a prayer of hypocrites. Many times we repeat the same words while praying to the Lord. In spite that we spend a long time on prayers, we might even forget what we have spoken to the Lord after prayers. This half-hearted prayer is called going through the motions. Many times we develop prejudices toward others, we kneel before the Lord not to seek His will or how to practice His teachings but to spill out our troubles, to complain about others’ injustice, and to say how we are tolerant and forbearing toward others. This type of prayer is putting others down to raise ourselves up. Many times we see the Lord’s grace toward us, we make a promise at will to satisfy Him; however, we still speak and act by our old self and our flesh when facing with issues. This is a prayer of deceiving God with lies and exaggerated and empty words. In our daily life, we often have such prayers that aren’t after God’s heart. As a result, He does not listen to our prayers. If we wish to be led by Him in our prayers, we must remove these prayers He detests. Only in this way will our relationship with Him become ever more normal.
According to the words of the Lord Jesus, we know that His requirement of our prayers is to speak our hearts to Him in spirit and in truth. He requires our honest heart instead of many words or nice words. Only such prayers can be approved by God.
This article does help with my big problem. Though praying to God every day, I speak empty and nice words or pray to God with the intention to receive blessings. So I often feel God doesn’t listen to my prayers. Now, I realize that only those who open his heart, speak his heart to God and worship Him in spirit and truth can receive the praise of Him. It’s really practical. I have no clue whether you’re also in this state. If you have any other practice and experience about praying, you’re welcome to leave messages to us or chat with us via the online window at the bottom of the website. We look forward to sharing God’s enlightenment with more and more brothers and sisters, growing together in Christ.
Bible Verses–Deuteronomy 28:1-6
Deuteronomy 28:1-6
And it shall come to pass, if you shall listen diligently to the voice of the LORD your God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command you this day, that the LORD your God will set you on high above all nations of the earth: And all these blessings shall come on you, and overtake you, if you shall listen to the voice of the LORD your God. Blessed shall you be in the city, and blessed shall you be in the field. Blessed shall be the fruit of your body, and the fruit of your ground, and the fruit of your cattle, the increase of your cows, and the flocks of your sheep. Blessed shall be your basket and your store. Blessed shall you be when you come in, and blessed shall you be when you go out.
Bible Verses–Advice for Young People
Do you know some advice to young man? The one who learns to rely on God with a focused heart is the most intelligent people.
Trust in the Lord
My son, forget not my law; but let your heart keep my commandments: For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to you. Let not mercy and truth forsake you: bind them about your neck; write them on the table of your heart: So shall you find favor and good understanding in the sight of God and man. Trust in the LORD with all your heart; and lean not to your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. It shall be health to your navel, and marrow to your bones. Honor the LORD with your substance, and with the first fruits of all your increase: So shall your barns be filled with plenty, and your presses shall burst out with new wine. My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction: For whom the LORD loves he corrects; even as a father the son in whom he delights.
Blessed is He who Finds Wisdom
Happy is the man that finds wisdom, and the man that gets understanding. For the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold. She is more precious than rubies: and all the things you can desire are not to be compared to her. Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honor. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to them that lay hold on her: and happy is every one that retains her. The LORD by wisdom has founded the earth; by understanding has he established the heavens. By his knowledge the depths are broken up, and the clouds drop down the dew.
God’s Sorrow Behind the Rainbow
A rainbow has beautiful colors and displays a perfect picture. People praise the rainbow with the word “Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet, who is dancing in the air with the rainbow?” And there are another two words about it that give hope to those in darkness: “After rain there is always a rainbow.” “When a rainbow appears in the sky, it is a sign that the rain is over and the sun is out.” There are also many songs praising the rainbow, which make us admire the rainbow very much. But today I understand that the rainbow is the covenant God established with man, which contains God’s grief and God’s mercy and expectation for man….
Let’s read the words of Jehovah God recorded in the Bible, “And I will establish my covenant with you, neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.” (Gen 9：11-13)
We all know that in the Bible there is the record of the rainbow, and that it relates to the stories “God destroys the world with a flood” and “Noah makes an ark.” From the Bible, we can only know that because people at that time were corrupt, evil, depraved, and committed all sins, which incurred God’s loathing, God destroyed the world with a flood and then established a covenant with man with a rainbow as its token. But, do we know the true meaning of God putting the rainbow in the sky?
Today God’s words reveal this mystery, “The God-created mankind, a mankind who had originally been very good in God’s eyes and very close to God, was cut off by a flood after they disobeyed God. Such a mankind disappeared in a twinkling; was God grieved over that? Of course, He was grieved! What was the expression of His grief? What is the account of it in the Bible? It is as recorded in this verse: And I will establish my covenant with you, neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. In this simple word God’s mind was revealed: He was deeply grieved over this destruction of the world; in human terms, He was very sad. We may picture it: After the world was destroyed by the flood, what did the earth originally full of life look like then? What did the earth originally full of human beings look like then? It was desolate, no living things existed, and water was everywhere, on which things were floating about messily. Was such a scene God’s original intention in creating the world? Certainly not! God’s original intention was to see that the whole earth would be full of life and see that the mankind created by Him would worship Him, and at least it was not that only one man, Noah, would worship Him, and only one man, Noah, could be called by Him to accomplish His commission. At the moment when mankind disappeared, what God saw was not what He had originally intended to see but just the opposite. How could God’s heart not be grieved? So, when He was manifesting His disposition and expressing His feelings, He made a decision. What was the decision? He would establish a covenant with men with a bow in the cloud (Note: it was the rainbow we see), promising that He would not destroy mankind any more with a flood, and at the same time telling men that God had destroyed the world with a flood and letting men forever remember why God had done such a thing.
Was that destruction of the world what God desired? It was certainly not what God desired! As for the miserable condition on the earth after the destruction of the world, we can imagine a little about it, but what the scene God saw at that time was like is far beyond our imagination. It can be said that of the people today or the people then, none can imagine or understand how God felt in His heart when He saw that scene, when He saw the world after the destruction of it by the flood. Mankind’s disobedience had forced God to do so, but God’s heart was hurt because of that destruction of the world by a flood. This fact no one understood, and no one could feel it. So God established a covenant with men, that is, by an oath, He told men to remember that God had done such a thing and told men that God would never again destroy the world in such a way in the future. In this ‘covenant,’ we see God’s heart and see that when God destroyed that mankind, God’s heart was in agony. To put it in human language, when God destroyed mankind and when God saw mankind disappear, God’s heart was weeping tears and dripping blood. Isn’t this all that can be said? Although these words are words mankind uses to describe man’s feeling, yet because human language is too short, I think it is not wrong or exaggerated to describe God’s heart and God’s feeling with such words, and at least they can make you understand vividly and properly how God’s heart felt at that time. When you see a rainbow again, what will you think about? At least you will think that God once sorrowed over destroying the world by a flood, and think that although God hated that world and hated that mankind, yet when He destroyed the mankind He had made with His own hands, He felt pain in His heart, felt it hard to give them up, felt He had no other choice, and felt it hard to do that. The only comfort to Him was the eight members of Noah’s family. It was because of Noah’s cooperation that the painstaking effort and price He had expended in creating all things had not been wasted after all. It was the only thing that could appease His wound while He was grieved. From then on, God placed His expectations for mankind all on the whole family of Noah, and He hoped that they would live under His blessing rather than in His curse, hoped that they would never again see God’s destruction of the world with a flood, and hoped that they would not be destroyed.” (from A Continuation of The Word Appears in the Flesh)
After reading Almighty God’s words, we know that we didn’t try to know the Creator from all things, nor did we understand that the rainbow is a symbol of God’s sorrow. Instead, we thought that God destroyed mankind just because at that time they were evil and licentious, committed all sins, so much so that God couldn’t bear them anymore. We never thought of how God felt at that time. Now I understand that it was not God’s desire to destroy the world with a flood, that He did it against His will and with sorrow. This is like the way parents treat their children. No matter how many mistakes the children make, parents always hold concern for and worry about their children and always hope that their children will immediately rein in and turn back. Only when the children persist in walking on the wrong way and never turn back will parents give them up reluctantly. After the world was destroyed by a flood, God used the rainbow as a token to remind man not to resist God anymore and to tell Himself that He had destroyed the world with a flood and would never do it with a flood again in future. Hidden behind the rainbow is God’s grief, sorrow, and reluctance. In all things created by God, there is God’s will, and behind the rainbow we always compliment, there are so many stories. But if it were not for the expression of Almighty God, how could we know it? After understanding this, whenever I see a rainbow, I will think of God’s love and concern for man. The rainbow also makes me know that God not only has lovingkindness and mercy but also is grieved for the fall of man. This is what I couldn’t realize when I believed in Jesus before.
Now, Almighty God has returned to flesh and expressed millions of words and revealed the mysteries of God’s six-thousand-year management of saving man. Thus, man has the opportunity to understand God’s will for him and know God’s substance. God’s work is always progressing forward. God’s concern behind the rainbow has lasted till today. God hopes that man can wake up, repent and confess sins to God, and leave the evil way. Only in this way can man have the opportunity to be saved and brought into the next age by God.
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