By Xiaojin, China

In August 2023, I was responsible for text-based work in the church. Usually, whenever brothers and sisters faced difficulties in their profession or work, I would patiently guide and help them. After each fellowship, seeing the smiles on everyone’s faces made me very happy and satisfied. I felt that everyone approved of me. After a period of time, I noticed that Sister Wang Ying, the team leader, lacked a sense of burden in her duty and treated the work carelessly. When the work results were poor, she didn’t take the initiative to lead everyone in summarizing the issues. In her daily duty, she only gave orders and directed others to do the work. Also, she wasn’t diligent in selecting sermons and frequently made mistakes on simple issues. When the sister she worked with pointed out her issues, she accepted them verbally, but afterward, she continued being perfunctory. At first, seeing that she was young and had believed in God for only a short time, I helped and guided her. But after some time, I noticed that she hadn’t changed much. I knew I had to fellowship and expose her problems to make her realize the seriousness of her issues. But when it really came time to expose her, I had concerns. I thought, “If I speak too harshly, will she think I’m cold and unfeeling, not understanding her weaknesses? And if she talks about me this way to the other brothers and sisters, won’t they all think I lack love and have poor humanity? Then who will still support me in the future? Maybe I shouldn’t expose and prune her. I should just patiently help her instead.” So, I just briefly mentioned to Wang Ying where her work was lacking and pointed out some of her perfunctory behaviors in doing her duties. After hearing this, Wang Ying merely admitted that she had no sense of burden but showed no reflection or understanding of the damage caused by her perfunctory performance of the duty to the work. Then she immediately started talking about a topic she was interested in, and brightened up as if nothing had happened. When I saw her reaction, I knew that my fellowship hadn’t achieved effect. But then I thought, “I did remind her, and she said she would make a change, so I’ll just observe further.” Later, I found out that Wang Ying still had no sense of burden in her duties. I was quite anxious, thinking that I needed to expose her problems sternly, otherwise it would seriously affect the work. Once, when I guided her work, I sternly pruned her. Seeing her with her head down, frowning, and looking upset, I wondered if my remarks had been too harsh. I thought, “Will she think I’m completely unfeeling and my words are too hurtful? Will she still have a good impression of me in the future?” So, I quickly said some words of comfort and encouragement, telling her that being subjected to pruning is a good thing, and that she shouldn’t be negative, and should just make changes in the future. But afterward, she still had no sense of burden in her duties, which seriously delayed the work. In the end, I had no choice but to dismiss her.

After her dismissal, the upper leader asked me, “You had noticed Wang Ying’s problems before. Why didn’t you prune and expose her? That way, she might have turned around sooner, and if you had found that she didn’t repent, you could have dismissed her earlier. Her continuous perfunctory attitude has delayed so much work!” After hearing the leader’s words, I began to reflect, “I had long noticed Wang Ying’s problems and had reminded her multiple times, but I never dissected the nature of her issues, only touching on them superficially without addressing them properly. I had similar behavior before. Why am I unable to point out and expose others’ problems when I find them, always fearing that being too harsh will leave others a bad impression of me? What exactly is the problem here?” I prayed to God, asking Him to enlighten me so I could recognize my own problems.

Later, I read a passage of God’s words: “When some church leaders see brothers or sisters doing their duties perfunctorily, they do not rebuke them, though they should. When they clearly see that the interests of God’s house are suffering, they do not concern themselves with this or make any inquiries, and they do not cause the least offense to others. In fact, they are not really showing consideration for people’s weaknesses; instead, their intention and goal is to win over people’s hearts. They are fully aware that: ‘As long as I do this and don’t cause offense to anyone, they’ll think I’m a good leader. They’ll have a good, high opinion of me. They’ll approve of me and like me.’ They don’t care how much damage is done to the interests of God’s house, or how great losses are caused to the life entry of God’s chosen people, or how greatly their church life is disturbed, they just persist in their satanic philosophy and cause no offense to anyone. There is never any self-reproach in their hearts. When they see someone causing disruptions and disturbances, at the very most they might have a few words with them about it, downplaying the issue, and then be done with it. They will not fellowship on the truth, or point out the essence of the problem to that person, less still will they dissect their state, and they will never fellowship what God’s intentions are. False leaders never expose or dissect the errors people frequently make, or the corrupt dispositions people often reveal. They don’t solve any real problems, but instead always indulge people’s erroneous practices and revelations of corruption, and no matter how negative or weak people are, they do not take this seriously. They merely preach some words and doctrines and speak a few words of exhortation to deal with the situation in a perfunctory manner, trying to maintain harmony. As a result, God’s chosen people do not know how to reflect on and know themselves, there is no resolution for whatever corrupt dispositions they reveal, and they live amid words and doctrines, notions and imaginings, without any life entry. They even believe in their hearts, ‘Our leader has even more understanding for our weaknesses than God does. Our stature is too small to live up to God’s requirements. We just need to fulfill the requirements of our leader; by submitting to our leader, we are submitting to God. If a day comes when the Above dismisses our leader, we will make ourselves heard; to keep our leader and stop them from being dismissed, we will negotiate with the Above and force them into agreeing to our demands. This is how we will do right by our leader.’ When people have such thoughts in their hearts, when they have established such a relationship with their leader, and this kind of dependence, envy, and worship has arisen in their hearts toward their leader, they come to have ever greater faith in this leader, and always want to listen to the leader’s words, rather than seeking the truth in God’s words. Such a leader has almost taken the place of God in people’s hearts. If a leader is willing to maintain such a relationship with God’s chosen people, if they derive a feeling of enjoyment from this in their heart, and believe that God’s chosen people ought to treat them like this, then there is no difference between this leader and Paul, they have already set foot on the path of an antichrist, and God’s chosen people have already been misled by this antichrist, and are completely lacking in discernment. In fact, that leader doesn’t have the truth reality, and they do not bear a burden at all regarding the life entry of God’s chosen people. They can only preach words and doctrines, and maintain their relations with others. They’re good at showing off using hypocritical methods, their speech and actions accord with people’s notions, and they thereby mislead people. They don’t know how to fellowship the truth or know themselves, and this makes it impossible for them to lead others into the truth reality. They work only for the sake of reputation and status, and they say only nice-sounding words that ensnare people. They’ve already achieved the effect of getting people to worship and look up to them, and they have seriously impacted and delayed the work of the church and the life entry of God’s chosen people. Isn’t a person like this an antichrist?” (The Word, Vol. 4. Exposing Antichrists. Item One: They Try to Win Over People’s Hearts). God exposes that false leaders who find issues in brothers’ and sisters’ duties but don’t expose or prune them don’t care about how much work is delayed or about how serious the nature of these issues is. They only speak superficially and don’t fellowship the truth to resolve problems. Moreover, they are continually indulgent and tolerant, causing others to feel that they are really loving, in an attempt to make others approve of and support them. This is done to win over people’s hearts and mislead them, and it is a practice of the antichrists. In truth, this was what I was like. When I saw Wang Ying being perfunctory in her duty and not doing actual work, I knew that her doing her duty this way would seriously delay the work and that if she didn’t repent, the only option would be to dismiss her. But when I wanted to point out her problems, I was afraid she’d say that I wasn’t empathizing with her weaknesses, that I was cold and unfeeling, and that I lacked love and humanity. To maintain a good image in her eyes, I just couldn’t bring myself to prune and expose her. Instead, I just gave her superficial reminders for her to put more heart into her duties, without exposing the nature and consequences of her actions. Later, when I saw that Wang Ying was still being perfunctory in her duties, I only said a few stern words, but when I saw her with her head down and looking distressed, I began to worry about what she would think of me, so I quickly said some words of comfort and encouragement. As a result, Wang Ying didn’t feel her issues were serious and didn’t repent or change at all, and in the end, she was dismissed. When facing the brothers’ and sisters’ issues, I didn’t consider how to fellowship the truth to resolve them at all. I only focused on maintaining a kind and loving image of myself in their eyes, and I was constantly disguising myself. Now I finally saw that this so-called love was false. I was just trying to preserve my reputation and status and seeking to gain others’ admiration. As a supervisor, my responsibilities were to fellowship the truth to resolve brothers’ and sisters’ problems, to assist them in doing their duties well, and to protect the church’s work. But all I tried to protect was my position in their hearts, and I didn’t fulfill my responsibilities in the slightest while I constantly disguised myself as a loving person. In this, I was misleading and ensnaring people, and I was walking the path of an antichrist. My way of working truly harmed the brothers and sisters. In doing this, I was hindering the church’s work and doing evil! Reflecting on this, I felt deeply distressed and guilty, and I was willing to repent.

Later, I pondered, “I thought that having good humanity meant being understanding, empathetic, and tolerant, while pruning and exposing others’ problems is cold, unfeeling, and lacking in love and humanity. Is this view of mine correct? What exactly is truly good humanity?” I read a passage of God’s words, and my heart felt brighter. Almighty God says: “There must be a standard for having good humanity. It does not involve taking the path of moderation, not sticking to principles, endeavoring not to offend anyone, currying favor everywhere you go, being smooth and slick with everyone you meet, and making everyone speak well of you. This is not the standard. So, what is the standard? It is being able to submit to God and the truth. It is approaching one’s duty and all manner of people, events, and things with principles and a sense of responsibility. This is plain for all to see; everyone is clear about this in their heart. Moreover, God scrutinizes people’s hearts and knows their situation, each and every one; no matter who they are, no one can fool God. Some people always boast that they possess good humanity, that they never speak ill of others, never harm anyone else’s interests, and they claim never to have coveted other people’s property. When there is a dispute over interests, they even prefer to suffer loss than take advantage of others, and everyone else thinks they are good people. However, when performing their duties in God’s house, they are wily and slippery, always scheming for themselves. Never do they think of the interests of God’s house, never do they treat as urgent the things God treats as urgent or think as God thinks, and never can they set aside their own interests so as to perform their duties. They never forsake their own interests. Even when they see evil people committing evil, they do not expose them; they have no principles whatsoever. What kind of humanity is this? It is not good humanity. Pay no attention to what such people say; you must see what they live out, what they reveal, and what their attitude is when they perform their duties, as well as what their internal state is and what they love. If their love of their own fame and gain exceeds their loyalty to God, if their love of their own fame and gain exceeds the interests of God’s house, or if their love of their own fame and gain exceeds the consideration they show for God, then are such people possessed of humanity? They are not people with humanity” (The Word, Vol. 3. The Discourses of Christ of the Last Days. In Giving One’s Heart to God, One Can Obtain the Truth). From God’s words, I saw that good humanity is not determined by whether a person speaks kindly and gently or harshly and directly. Instead, it is based on whether a person submits to God and the truth, and whether they do their duties responsibly. Just as some leaders and workers are able to prune brothers and sisters for being irresponsible in their duties, and they can expose the nature and consequences of these brothers’ and sisters’ actions in light of God’s words. Though they might feel upset when hearing these things, those of them who pursue the truth can use this opportunity to reflect on and know themselves, which benefits both their life entry and their fulfillment of their duties. Some people may seem kind, but when they see brothers and sisters acting against principles and harming the work and in need of fellowship and exposure for this, they protect themselves, only saying pleasant words to deal with others in a perfunctory way. They don’t consider how to genuinely help others or how to safeguard the church’s interests. They are truly selfish and cunning, and these are not people of good humanity. I acted the same way, only thinking about protecting my own reputation and status, and when I saw others going down the wrong path, I didn’t even extend a helping hand. I’d thought I had good humanity, but through the exposure of God’s words and the revelation of facts, I saw that I was far from being a person with good humanity. Realizing this, I felt deeply distressed and ashamed, and tears streamed down my face. I loathed myself from the bottom of my heart and didn’t want to keep acting like this.

Later, I read a passage of God’s words and found a path of practice. Almighty God says: “When you interact with others, you must first have them perceive your true heart and sincerity. If, in speaking and working together and making contact with others, someone’s words are perfunctory, grandiloquent, pleasantries, flattery, irresponsible, and imaginary, or if they simply speak to seek the other’s favor, then their words lack all credibility, and they are not sincere in the least. This is their mode of interaction with others, no matter who those others are. Such a person does not have an honest heart. This is not an honest person. Say someone is in a negative state, and they say to you sincerely: ‘Tell me why, exactly, I’m so negative. I just can’t figure it out!’ And suppose you do, in fact, understand their problem in your heart, but you do not tell them, instead saying: ‘It’s nothing. You’re not being negative; I get that way, too.’ These words are a great consolation to that person, but your attitude is not sincere. You are being perfunctory with them; so as to make them feel more comfortable and consoled, you have refrained from speaking honestly with them. You are not helping them in earnest and putting their problem plainly, so that they can leave their negativity behind. You have not done what an honest person should. All for the sake of trying to console them and make sure there is no estrangement or conflict between you, you have been perfunctory with them—and this is not what it is to be an honest person. So, to be an honest person, what should you do when encountering this kind of situation? You need to tell them what you have seen and identified: ‘I will tell you what I have seen and what I have experienced. You decide whether what I say is right or wrong. If it’s wrong, you don’t have to accept it. If it’s right, I hope you will. If I say something that is hard for you to hear and hurts you, I hope you can accept it from God. My intention and purpose is to help you. I see the issue clearly: Because you feel that you have been humiliated, and no one feeds your ego, and you think everyone else looks down on you, that you are being attacked, and that you have never been so wronged, you can’t accept it and become negative. What do you think—is this what’s really going on?’ And, hearing this, they feel it is indeed the case. This is what is actually in your heart, but if you are not an honest person, you will not say it. You will say, ‘I often get negative, too,’ and when the other person hears that everyone gets negative, they think it is normal for them to be negative, and, in the end, they do not leave their negativity behind. If you are an honest person and you help them with an honest attitude and an honest heart, you can help them understand the truth and leave their negativity behind” (The Word, Vol. 3. The Discourses of Christ of the Last Days. Only an Honest Person Can Live Out True Human Likeness). God’s words tell us that we should treat our brothers and sisters with an honest heart, and that when we discover issues with them, we should help and support them with sincerity. This help is not bound by form or rules. If things such as fellowship and reminders can be effective, then we should use them, but if the nature of their issues is serious, then pruning, exposure, and dissection are necessary. Whatever means of fellowship can resolve the problems or attain results, we should use them. If we only consider our own pride and image, and avoid exposing the essence of problems, and merely say some mild, superficial words to treat people perfunctorily, we aren’t helping people but harming them. Just like when I discovered that Wang Ying was being perfunctory in her duties. Even though I reminded and tried to help her, she didn’t take what I said seriously. In this instance, it was necessary to prune her and to dissect the nature and consequences of her perfunctory behavior in light of God’s words so that she could realize the seriousness of her problems. This would be beneficial for her entry. After understanding these things, I gained a path of practice by which to help others and I began practicing accordingly.

In October 2023, I noticed that Sister Zhou Xin was being irresponsible in her duties. She had been doing text-based work for several years, while other brothers and sisters were just starting out, yet she only focused on her own tasks and showed no sense of burden for the overall work. I’d fellowshipped about this issue with her before, but she didn’t gain any entry. I considered dissecting the nature of her actions so that she could turn around. But when I thought about pointing out her issues, I had some concerns, “Zhou Xin was in a poor state a while ago, so if I were to point out and expose her problems, would she think of me as inconsiderate and lacking in humanity? If that were to happen, she’d definitely form a poor impression of me.” When these thoughts occurred to me, I hesitated, wondering if I should refrain from exposing and pruning her. As I was thinking this, I suddenly remembered how I’d failed with Wang Ying before, and I recalled a passage of God’s words that I’d read before: “If you are an honest person and you help them with an honest attitude and an honest heart, you can help them understand the truth and leave their negativity behind” (The Word, Vol. 3. The Discourses of Christ of the Last Days. Only an Honest Person Can Live Out True Human Likeness). I couldn’t help but ask myself, “Am I refraining from exposing Zhou Xin’s problems for her sake?” In truth, I wasn’t. I was afraid that Zhou Xin might think of me as too harsh and unsympathetic to her weaknesses, so my hesitance was rooted in my desire to maintain a good impression in her eyes. I also thought about how the sister was living in a selfish and despicable corrupt disposition, that she’d been irresponsible in her duties, and that she’d already delayed the work. Only by exposing this problem to her and making her realize the seriousness of her issues would she have had a chance to turn around. Even if she might feel as though her heart were being pierced and for the moment she struggled to accept it, I would still be genuinely trying to help her and I would have a clear conscience. Later, during the gathering, I drew on God’s words to expose the nature and consequences of her being focused solely on her own work and neglecting the overall work. I saw that she was quite distressed, but after the fellowship, she said she’d been somewhat aware of her problems but hadn’t taken them seriously, and that through this dissection, she’d finally seen just how severe her issues were. She realized that she hadn’t been concerned about the work having halted, nor had she paid attention to resolving these problems, even though she knew they existed. She also realized that she’d been indifferent and unconcerned, which had delayed the work, and that she’d been truly selfish and despicable and needed to seriously reflect and make changes. I was quite pleased to see this sister come to such an understanding, and I felt that I’d finally helped others for once.

Through this experience, I came to understand some principles for measuring the goodness of humanity, and I also saw clearly that my failure to sincerely help others, my hesitance to point out problems, and my only protecting myself and not upholding the church’s work were a manifestation of poor humanity. At the same time, I learned what it truly means to help others with love. Thank God!