(1) It is necessary to elect and cultivate people of good caliber, who love the truth and have a sense of justice, as leaders and workers. Doing so is of benefit to the church’s work;

(2) People who, having previously been replaced, genuinely repent and are afterward capable of doing practical work, may be reelected, again promoted, and put to use;

(3) New believers of a year or two, so long as they are of good humanity and caliber, love the truth, and have taken on burdens, may summarily be cultivated and utilized;

(4) Those who, despite their arrogant, self-righteous dispositions, are not evil, should be cultivated and utilized, so long as they are of good caliber and can accept the truth.

Relevant Words of God:

Since the beginning of His work throughout the universe, God has predestined many people to serve Him, including those from every walk of life. His purpose is to satisfy His will and bring His work on earth to smooth completion; this is God’s aim in choosing people to serve Him. Every person who serves God must understand His will. This work of His makes God’s wisdom and omnipotence, and the principles of His work on earth, more evident to people. God has actually come to earth to do His work, to engage with people, so that they may know His deeds more clearly. Today you, this group of people, are fortunate to serve the practical God. This is an incalculable blessing for you—truly, you are raised up by God. In selecting a person to serve Him, God always has His own principles. Serving God is by no means, as people imagine, that it is simply a matter of enthusiasm. Today, you see that all who serve before God do so because they have the guidance of God and the work of the Holy Spirit, and because they are people who pursue the truth. These are the minimum conditions for all those who serve God.

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. Religious Service Must Be Purged

As church leaders, you should learn how to discover and cultivate talent, and not be jealous of talented people. In this way, your duty will be performed satisfactorily, and you will have fulfilled your responsibility; you will also have done your utmost to be loyal. Some people are always afraid that others will steal their limelight and surpass them, obtaining recognition while they themselves are neglected. This leads them to attack and exclude others. Is this not a case of being jealous of people more capable than themselves? Is such behavior not selfish and contemptible? What kind of disposition is this? It is malicious! Thinking only of oneself, satisfying only one’s own desires, showing no consideration for the duties of others, and thinking only about one’s own interests and not the interests of God’s house—people like this have a bad disposition, and God has no love for them. If you are truly capable of being considerate of God’s will, then you will be able to treat other people fairly. If you give someone your recommendation, and that person is cultivated into someone of talent, thereby bringing one more talented person into God’s house, will you not then have done your work well? Will you not then have been loyal in performing your duty? This is a good deed before God, and it is the sort of conscience and reason people should possess. Those who are capable of putting the truth into practice can accept God’s scrutiny when doing things. When you accept God’s scrutiny, your heart is set straight. If you only ever do things for others to see, and do not accept God’s scrutiny, then is God still in your heart? People like this have no reverence for God. Do not always do things for your own sake and do not constantly consider your own interests; give no thought to your own status, prestige, or reputation. Also do not consider the interests of man. You must first give thought to the interests of God’s house, and make them your first priority. You should be considerate of God’s will and begin by contemplating whether or not you have been impure in the fulfillment of your duty, whether you have done your utmost to be loyal, done your best to fulfill your responsibilities, and given your all, as well as whether or not you have wholeheartedly given thought to your duty and the work of God’s house. You must give consideration to these things. Think about them frequently, and it will be easier for you to perform your duty well. If you are of poor caliber, your experience is shallow, or you are not proficient in your professional work, then there may be some mistakes or deficiencies in your work, and the results may not be very good—but you will have put forth your best effort. When you are not thinking of your own selfish desires or considering your own interests in the things you do, and are instead giving constant consideration to the work of God’s house, bearing its interests in mind, and performing your duty well, then you will be accumulating good deeds before God. People who perform these good deeds are the ones who possess truth reality; as such, they have borne testimony. If you are always living by the flesh, constantly satisfying your own selfish desires, then such people do not possess truth reality; this is the mark of bringing dishonor to God.

—“Give Your True Heart to God, and You Can Obtain the Truth” in Records of Talks of Christ of the Last Days

God’s chosen ones are aware that when the house of God promotes and cultivates various types of people, this is not meant to create some sort of high-tech manufacturing miracle or to conduct research into the history of human development, much less because the house of God is making any sort of plans for the future of mankind. Why, then, does the house of God promote and cultivate various types of talent? (It is done to spread the gospel of the kingdom.) (It is done to create a training opportunity for all who pursue the truth.) Both are correct. Partly, this relates to the work of God, and partly, it involves individual pursuits and entry into life. Both of these are vast subjects. To be specific, when the house of God promotes and cultivates people, this has the outward appearance of promoting and cultivating someone to head a group or act as supervisor, to be the leader of a church or district, or a member of a decision-making committee, and so on. Is this the same as promotion to an official role? (No.) Those who are promoted and cultivated are responsible for specific projects or jobs that have to do with various types of work. This could be the work of spreading the gospel, for example, or text-based work, or work related to church life, or general work, and so on. So, how do they carry out specific work? They do so in accordance with God’s requirements, as well as the truth principles contained in His words; so, too, do those people undertake various tasks of the house of God in accordance with its work arrangements so as to meet the standards and principles it requires. It can be seen from the work undertaken by those who have been promoted and cultivated that they do not have job titles or official positions; rather, they have taken on responsibilities and have undertaken particular jobs or specialized tasks. It can even be said that they take on particular commissions, or that they take on duties or obligations that bear a degree of responsibility. This is the specific meaning and significance of promoting and cultivating various types of talent. Promoting and cultivating such people involves training them to perform particular jobs, teaching them to be able to systematically execute various tasks according to the requirements and work arrangements of God’s house, and educating them to learn how to execute the work of the house of God in accordance with God’s words and the truth principles. Of course, there is a further level of meaning in their promotion and cultivation: On the one hand, they lead everyone in carrying out the work arrangements of God’s house together; and on the other, they use their own experience, knowledge, and commitment and responsibility to lead all those for whom they are responsible to enter together into the principles God requires them to enter. This is the specific work that the promotion and cultivation of various kinds of talent involves.

—The Word, Vol. 5. Identifying False Leaders (5)

The definitions of these different sorts of talent are very broad, are they not? The first is the kind of person who can be put in charge of various jobs. What are the standards required of such people? Above all, they must be able to understand the truth; they must possess the caliber to understand the truth. These are the most important things. More specifically, they must understand spiritual things, be able to eat and drink of God’s words unaided, be able to find principles for practice in His words, and be able to perceive, through reading God’s words, the various states in which people find themselves. They must be able to experience on their own; they must be apt to reflect on themselves when they encounter an issue, and to draw upon the words of God in experiencing the environments He sets forth and learn the lessons that they ought to. Possessing the ability and caliber to understand the truth is the first thing required of them. Of course, such people must also have a conscience and sense, and their humanity must be up to par. Second, they must carry a burden. If they are merely of good caliber and are capable of understanding the truth, but are lazy and covet the comforts of the flesh, if they only work when it is required or indicated by the Above, and when they do work, they only go through the motions, and rarely engage at the grassroots level, and if they are unwilling to suffer or pay a price and do not carry a burden, can they be considered to be talents that are adequate to be cultivated? (No.) This, then, is the second requirement: Such people must carry a burden. The third point is that they must be competent in their work. That is to say, in addition to executing the work in accordance with the work arrangements of God’s house, they must be able to identify and promptly solve problems when doing a particular job; they must perform their work effectively and deeply, and not do it sloppily; also, they must be able to determine what work they ought to do in the work arrangements of God’s house, as well as apply and accurately accomplish those work arrangements. If they discover a problem while performing a particular task, they must be able to handle it with reference to the regulations of the work arrangements of God’s house. They must also be able to discern particular things or situations for what they really are and, on that basis, be able to make the accurate judgment and then provide the correct solution. This is what it means to be competent in one’s work. Being competent in one’s work chiefly refers to being able to grasp the key points of the work, promptly identify problems, and solve these problems in accordance with principle—that is, being able to stand on their own two feet. Once the Above has handed over a task and has also communicated some principles, these people must be able to grasp the principles and execute the work in accordance with them; they must basically be able to follow the right course, without too many deviations or too much oversight. This is what it means to be competent. Here is an example: When the house of God calls for people to be purged and expelled and for the antichrists and the wicked to be identified in accordance with principle, the type of people who are competent basically do not deviate while doing this task. It does not take long for an antichrist to be exposed and expelled once they have appeared; those who are competent are able to quickly identify an antichrist, as well as help their brothers and sisters to identify them and not be duped. Together, everyone is able to expose and forsake the antichrist, and ultimately succeed in expelling the antichrist. When competent people encounter the antichrists or the wicked in the scope of their work, at least ninety-five percent of their brothers and sisters do not succumb to being duped or influenced; sometimes not even one is duped or led astray. This is how it is for people who are of good caliber and competent in their work; such people are up to the standard to be leaders and workers who are possessed of the truth reality.

—The Word, Vol. 5. Identifying False Leaders (5)

There is a certain type of person that is perhaps not particularly talented at anything—they can write a bit, and they can hold a tune when they sing or record a song, but they are not the best at these things. What are they best at? They have a measure of caliber, they have some sense of justice, and they have a bit of an eye for how to judge and make use of people. Beyond that, their main strength is their organizational ability. If you give such a person a task or a job, they can organize people to do it. At the same time, they are capable of their work. If you give them a job, they have the ability to finish it and make sure it is done properly. They always have a plan in mind, with steps and an orderly progression. They know how to make use of people, how to allocate time, and whom to use for which tasks. If a problem appears, they know how to discuss the solution with everyone. They know how to handle and resolve all these things. Someone like this not only is capable of their work but also speaks relatively well. Their words are clear and orderly, and they do not confuse people. When they delegate work, everyone understands clearly what each person should be doing; there are no blind oversights, and no one is idle. Their explanation of the details of the work is also clear and orderly, and for especially complicated issues, they offer analyses, fellowship, and examples of details that make everyone understand the issue, know how to do the work, and know how to proceed. Beyond that, they can fellowship on what ways of doing may be defective, how different methods of working influence efficiency, what people should be aware of in the course of their work, and so on. They think more than others before they begin to work—they think in more detail than others, and they think more realistically than others. They have a brain and they are eloquent in this area. That they have a brain means they do things in an organized fashion, with orderly steps and according to a plan, and with great clarity. That they are eloquent means that they can use language to express, clearly and understandably, the thoughts, plans, and calculations in their mind. They know how to speak simply and concisely, so that their listeners are not confused. They express themselves in terms that are clear, accurate, truthful, and appropriate. This is what it means to be eloquent. Someone like this is eloquent, has the ability to work, the ability to organize, and on top of that, a sense of responsibility, a sense of justice. They are not a yes-man or a peacekeeper at all costs. When they see wicked people causing disruptions and disturbances, or freeloaders and the lazy getting by on cunning and deceit, or that mindless and shoddy sort of person who neglects their jobs, they get angry. It bothers them, and they will resolve the problem promptly and protect the work and interests of God’s house. These behaviors are outstanding features of this sort of person’s humanity, are they not? (Yes.) People like this may not be sociable, or may not be skilled in any particular task or technique, but if they possess the qualities I just described, they can be cultivated as leaders and workers.

—The Word, Vol. 5. Identifying False Leaders (6)

Another type of person who can be promoted and cultivated are those who possess special talents or gifts and have mastered some expertise or skills. What is the standard that the house of God requires of such people? Firstly, in regard to their humanity, this type of person must be relatively passionate about positive things; they must not be wicked people. Some people might ask, “Why not say they are ones who love the truth?” Loving the truth is a bit too much to ask of such people. For these people, who have expertise in some skills or tasks and have some strong points, when they carry out work that requires some familiarity with skill and relates to their profession in the house of God, they need only be relatively upstanding, not wicked, not wrong or absurd in their understanding, able to endure hardship, and willing to pay a price. Thus, the first requirement for such people is that they must be relatively enthusiastic about positive things. Some people might ask, “So can their ability to understand the truth be considered high? After hearing the truth, can they awaken to the truth reality? Are they able to enter the truth reality?” Doing so is not required; such people must not be wrong or absurd in their understanding of the truth and that is all. One of the benefits when such people do their work is that they are not likely to cause disruptions or do anything ridiculous. Take the color of actors’ costumes, for example: Over and over, the house of God has issued requirements for this and fellowshiped on the relevant principles, yet there are still those who simply cannot make sense of what they are told, who do not comprehend what they hear, who are incapable of understanding, and who are unable to find the principles within these requirements of God’s house—and who end up selecting costumes that are all gray. This is what it means to have a false and absurd understanding. So, what does it mean to be relatively passionate about positive things? It means being receptive to words and things that are right, to a pure understanding, and to statements and principles that are of benefit. Regardless of whether they can act upon these things, at the very least, they deep down must not be defiant or resistant. Such people are decent people. How are decent people characterized? They feel aversion, revulsion, and loathing toward the evil committed by unbelievers, as well as toward the wicked trends that people pursue. For example, when those who are enthralled by wicked trends advocate that a woman should find someone rich to marry or be a mistress to, those who love positive things feel revolting, saying, “Even if I couldn’t find someone to marry, even if I was dying of poverty, I would never act like one of those people.” They are disdainful and contemptuous of such people. One characteristic of those who like positive things is that they find evil trends hateful and revolting, and despise those who have been ensnared by such trends. These people are relatively decent; at the mention of believing in God and being a good person, walking the right path, fearing God, shunning evil, shunning evil trends, and shunning all the wicked behavior of the world, deep down, they feel that this is something good. Whether or not they are able to set foot upon this path, and irrespective of how great their aspiration is to believe in God and walk the right path, when all is said and done, deep down, they yearn to live in the light and yearn to be in a place where righteousness holds power. Such people are decent, and decent people are the type who are relatively passionate about positive things. Those who are to be promoted and cultivated by God’s house must at least possess this human quality.

The second requirement uses the standard that such people must be able to suffer hardship and pay a price. That is, when it comes to causes or work about which they are passionate, they are able to put aside their own desires, put aside the pleasures of the flesh or a comfortable lifestyle, and even forsake their own future prospects. Moreover, a little hardship or feeling somewhat tired is not a big deal to them; as long as they are doing something meaningful and which they believe to be right, then they gladly forsake physical pleasures and benefits—or, at the very least, have the willingness or aspiration to do so. Some people say, “Sometimes that person still covets the comforts of the flesh: They want to sleep in, or to eat good food, sometimes they want to go out for a wander or to goof around—but most of the time they are able to suffer hardship and pay a price; it’s just that sometimes their mood leads them to such thoughts. Would this be considered a problem?” It would not. It would be asking too much to demand that they completely put aside the pleasures of the flesh, apart from special circumstances. In general, when you give such people a job to do, whether it is a big job or not, and whether or not it is something they want to do, as long as you entrust it to them, then no matter how great the hardship they have to bear, what price they have to pay, and no matter how difficult the job is, you do not need to keep an eye on them, for they are guaranteed to do it properly. Such people can also be considered decent; the ability to suffer hardship and pay a price is another manifestation of decent people. What does it mean to be able to suffer hardship and pay a price? It means not being those lazy bums in society who are gluttonous and idle and who love leisure and loathe labor—such people are not decent. Being able to suffer hardship and pay a price: This is a manifestation, as well as a trait, of the sort of person who is promoted and cultivated by the house of God.

The third point is being accurate in one’s understanding. Which is to say, having heard God’s words, people are at the very least aware of what those words refer to, are able to comprehend what is being said, and understand it without distortion. For example, they would not understand as black what you say is blue, or as lilac what you say is gray. This is the bare minimum.

Fourthly, such people must not be evil. Is this easy to understand? Not being evil means at least one thing: On failing to achieve what was asked of them by the house of God, or having done it incorrectly, such people are still capable of submitting and obeying when they are pruned and dealt with; they do not spread negativity and notions, and are not resistant. In addition, no matter what group they are in, they get along with the majority of people and can work together with them in harmony; even when someone says something unpleasant, they are patient and easygoing. If someone tries to bully them, as soon as they see this person is mean, they are able to keep their distance and not try to punish them. Although such people cannot be called guileless, at the very least they do not try to punish or undermine others. Moreover, such people do not try to set up their own kingdom, act in opposition to the house of God, spread notions about God, or try to pass judgment on Him, or do anything disruptive or cause disturbances.

The four points above are the basic criteria for promoting and cultivating people who have some strong points and who understand skills or a profession. As long as they fulfill these four criteria, they are basically qualified to undertake certain duties and perform certain jobs in the proper manner.

—The Word, Vol. 5. Identifying False Leaders (5)

There is also another type of person, one who possesses no particular talents, or specialist or technical skills, and whose work does not involve any advanced technology. These people perform certain routine work in the church, and deal with certain matters extraneous to the work of the church. They are the class of people who carry out routine work. What is the house of God’s chief requirement of such people? Most critical of all is that they are able to defend the interests of the house of God, do not help outsiders at the expense of the house of God, and do not work by the principle of selling out the interests of the house of God in order to ingratiate themselves with outsiders. That is all. Regardless of what their humanity is like—they could be a hostess or the cream of society, or some extraordinary talent—they should be able to defend the interests of the house of God when performing for the house of God certain specialist tasks or affairs related to the outside world. What do the interests of the house of God include? Money, materials, the reputation of the house of God and the Church, and the safety of the brothers and sisters. Each of these is very important. Anyone who is capable of attaining this is possessed of humanity, and sufficiently upstanding, and someone who is willing to practice the truth. Some people have a wicked humanity: Are they able to defend the work of the house of God? (No.) Are there those who do much to defend the work of the house of God, yet have a wicked humanity? (No.) Thus, if someone is genuinely able to defend the interests of the house of God, they are guaranteed to be of good character and humanity; this cannot be wrong. If someone helps outsiders at the expense of the house of God when acting on behalf of it, and betrays its interests, and not merely causes great economic and material losses to the house of God, but also wreaks huge damage to the reputation of the house of God and the Church, are they someone good? Such people are always bad news. They do not care how much material and financial damage the house of God suffers; what matters most to them is doing things to their own satisfaction and ingratiating themselves with the unbelievers, to whom they send gifts, and to whom they even constantly make concessions during negotiations, it not having occurred to them to fight for the interests of the house of God. Yet they lie to the house of God, saying how they accomplished the work, and prevented the house of God from suffering losses—when in fact, the house of God suffered great losses, and was greatly taken advantage of by the unbelievers. If, in every regard, a person is able to defend the interests of the house of God when handling external matters, is this person a good person? And so if this kind of person is incapable of doing any other work in the house of God, and is only suitable for this type of routine work, are they promoted by the house of God? (They are.) If, in addition to being competent, and able to carry out their work in accordance with the principles required by the house of God, they are also able to defend the interests of the house of God, then they are of an acceptable standard, and such people should be promoted. On the flip side, those who harm the interests of the house of God, who imperil the safety of the brothers and sisters, and cause adverse effects and consequences for the reputation of the house of God and the Church—such people are not to be promoted or cultivated; if they are used, they must be quickly replaced. Those who are able to do routine work are a type of special talent.

—The Word, Vol. 5. Identifying False Leaders (5)

There is another type of person: those who have been dismissed. Some people have been dismissed because of outrageous behavior, because they are antichrists. Others have been dismissed because they lack experience and cannot do the work. Still others have been dismissed because their caliber is too poor to be leaders, and they are not up to the task. People who have been dismissed are to be reasonably reassigned, not condemned or delimited. They are to do what they can and be handled as they should be. Can people dismissed for their excessively poor caliber be selected again as leaders and workers or as supervisors? (No.) Why not? Because it has already been tried. They have been exposed and seen through. Such people’s caliber and work abilities are not suited to the task of being leaders. If they are not suitable as leaders, does that mean they are not suitable for anything else? Not necessarily. If their caliber is too poor to be a leader but they can do other things, then, as long as no other problems such as evil humanity disqualify them from being promoted, they should do whatever they are suited to do. They should not be stripped of the right to perform their duties. They can still be put to use. Some are dismissed because they lack the ability to work, or they have not done church work before, or they are unaccustomed to it and, having done the work for a while, they still cannot find their way and do not know what to do. Or, they are too young and lack experience, so they cannot take on the job and are ultimately dismissed. There is room for people like this. If their caliber is sufficient, they can simply be demoted or put to work on something suitable for them. Once their understanding of the truth is clear, and once they have a bit of exposure to and experience with the church’s work, such people can be promoted and cultivated again based on their caliber.

What kinds of people cannot be promoted again after being dismissed? One is antichrists; another is those whose caliber is too low; and a third is people who are not antichrists, but whose humanity is poor, who are selfish or deceitful, who may be lazy or crave fleshly comfort and are unable to bear hard work. Even if such people are of good caliber, they may not be promoted again. Whatever they have the caliber to do, that is what they should do. Suitable arrangements can be made—but they cannot be leaders or workers again. Beyond having the ability to work and caliber, leaders and workers need to be able to take on responsibility, to work hard and bear suffering. They must be diligent, not lazy, and they must also be relatively honest and upright, and not too cunning. Those who are too deceitful or cunning end up always scheming against their brothers and sisters, their higher-ups, and the house of God. They spend their days thinking only devious thoughts. When dealing with someone like this, you must always guess at what they are truly thinking, you must know what they are doing at all times, and you must always keep an eye on them. Putting them to use is too exhausting. If this kind of person is promoted to perform duties, even if they understand a little doctrine, they will not practice it, and they will expect benefits and rewards for every bit of work they do. Using such people is too exhausting and too much trouble, so such people cannot be promoted. So, antichrists, those of excessively poor caliber, those of bad humanity, the lazy, those who seek fleshly comfort, those who cannot endure hard work, and the cunning and deceitful—the moment these kinds of people are exposed and dismissed, they are ineligible for a second promotion. Once they have been seen through, do not put them to incorrect use again.

—The Word, Vol. 5. Identifying False Leaders (6)

Why does the house of God promote and cultivate those who are able to understand the truth, have a burden, and are competent in their work? Is it not enough to let them pursue the truth normally with those below, to allow them to be like the ordinary brothers and sisters, eating and drinking the words of God, listening to sermons, living the life of the church, and experiencing the words of God and entering the truth reality together with the brothers and sisters? Why must they be promoted and cultivated to be leaders and workers? When someone has the ability to understand the truth, is competent in work, and has a burden, if they are left to be an ordinary believer, and not given any burden, then their progress is slow, they have trouble discerning different people, matters, and things, and it is difficult for them to gain the truth. If such people are promoted, put in charge of a certain area of work or made a leader or worker, and given a burden, then in one regard, they will have the chance to make the most of their strengths, help more people, and guide more people in being like them, entering the truth reality as quickly as possible; in another regard, for them personally, the greater the burden they are given, the more work they will do, and the wider the scope of their work will be—in which case their experiences will also increase significantly. It’s like someone who is a mother, and someone who is a child: A child is innocent of life’s trivialities, of its everyday necessities—and no matter how old they are, will never know the hardship of being a mother, nor ever be able to appreciate those things that are experienced by a mother. And yet, as soon as the child becomes a mother, and is not sheltered from life, she becomes more mature in her experiences and insights. When someone is promoted and cultivated to be a leader, they are given more burden, and learn to be painstaking. Painstaking about what? They learn how to identify different types of people, how to support and provide for different types of people, how to discern the states of different people, how to help different people enter the truth reality, and they train in solving different people’s difficulties, and the various challenges encountered during work. In this way, slowly but surely, they eat and drink more and more of the corresponding words of God, are able to enter more and more of the truth realities, and—to a greater extent than others—encounter more of the situations laid forth by God. Is this an opportunity to train in these skills, or not? The more such opportunities people have, the quicker they grow, the more insights they have, and the broader their experience. But if they don’t do this work, they are only exposed to their own personal experiences, and their own individual existence, states, and corruption—it is all only personal. Once they become a leader, they encounter more people, more incidents, more situations—which encourages them to come before God to search for the truth principles; for them, these people, matters, and things become a burden, and also create highly favorable conditions for their entry into the truth reality, which is good. And so, where both an ordinary person and a leader are possessed of caliber, a sense of burden, and competence in their work, the entry of the ordinary person is slow, while that of the leader is quicker. For an individual, is it good to enter the truth reality quickly, or slowly? (Quickly.) And so, the house of God makes an exception for such people by promoting them—unless they are personally unwilling. Under normal circumstances, as long as there is a foundation to a person’s belief in God, and they meet the criteria for a leader or worker, then there is no question that they will be promoted and cultivated, and given a leadership role, during which time they will be instructed in how to properly carry out and achieve different work. During the instruction period, the person who is being cultivated will get to grips with the principles for handling different types of people, solving different problems, and dealing with the various situations that they encounter. Such gains are not experienced by ordinary believers. So from this point of view, is it a good thing or a bad thing when the house of God promotes and cultivates someone? Is it of benefit to them, or is it a hardship that is forced upon them? It is of benefit to them. Of course, some people are a little disconcerted when they’ve just been promoted; they don’t know just what it is the house of God wishes them to do, and say to themselves, “I can’t do this—I can’t do anything!” This is normal; who was ever born able to do everything? It would be a problem if you were. And why is that? Because if you could do anything, you would be arrogant and presumptuous, you wouldn’t listen to anyone, and so would likely walk the path of the antichrists—in which case, would you still be used by the house of God? And if you are incapable of doing anything, then you should learn how to listen and obey; this will allow you to perform your duty to an acceptable standard. Given that most people can’t do something so simple, is it any wonder the house of God does not promote and cultivate you? If you are incapable of listening—if even that is beyond you—then would the house of God dare to promote and cultivate you? (No.) And why not? Using you would be too risky, too much trouble, too much of a worry! What do I mean by “risky”? Because when the house of God uses you, you take control over people, and lead them on the path of evil—that’s why it is so risky. When you are used, you run riot, you throw the work into utter disarray, and have to be replaced. How troublesome! And when you are used, you can do nothing, you are totally ineffective; all the work you do has to be supervised, monitored, and tracked by the Above, who have to intervene in all matters—so what is the point of using you? You’re too worrisome! Can people like this be used? Absolutely not.

—The Word, Vol. 5. Identifying False Leaders (5)

Since you have been promoted by the house of God, there are things that are asked of you. And what are these things? You are required to act according to the principles and requirements of the house of God; you must do what is requested of you, and in the manner that is requested, thus training you to obey God and submit to the truth. During the time that you are cultivated, at times the house of God will deal with and prune you; at times it will severely reprimand you; at times it will enquire as to the progress of your work; at times it will ask you exactly how the work is going, and will check up on your work; and at times, it will test what your point of view toward certain things are. The aim of these tests is not to put you on the spot, but to make you understand the truths that you ought to, and what attitude you should have, and what the will of God is in such matters. This is what it means to train and instruct people. And what is the aim and objective of instructing people? To make them understand the truth. What is the aim of understanding the truth? To make people able to obey the truth, act according to principle, lead the brothers and sisters in understanding God’s will, and lead them in being able to perform their duty properly, keeping to their place, and being faithful unto their duty; so, too, is it to allow them to lead the brothers and sisters in entering different truths, and achieving changes in their disposition, whilst performing their duty. This is the responsibility of leaders and workers, and what they should accomplish. When a leader or worker understands the truth, those they lead also understand the truth; when a leader or worker is able to understand many truths, so, too, are those they lead able to understand many truths; when a leader or worker grasps the truth principles in certain work, those they lead also enter the principle of this work, and enter the truth reality. This is the aim of instructing leaders and workers. Because the leaders and workers who undergo instruction are more competent in work than other people, because their caliber is a little better, it is right that they should be instructed. They are first made to understand the truth principles and enter the truth realities—and then, through their leading others in entering the truth realities, more people are caused to understand the truth principles. What do you think of such an approach? (It is good.) Such people are not well-educated or highly articulate, nor do they understand much about technology or current affairs and politics. They might not even be overly proficient in specific tasks. But they are able to understand the truth, and after hearing God’s words, they are able to execute them—they know how to execute them—and are able to identify the truth principles, and lead more people in entering the reality of God’s words and abiding by the truth principles.

—The Word, Vol. 5. Identifying False Leaders (5)

When someone is chosen to be a leader by the brothers and sisters, or is promoted by the house of God to do a certain piece of work or perform a certain duty, this does not mean that they have a special status or identity, or that the truths they understand are deeper and more numerous than those of other people—much less that this person is able to submit to God, and will not betray Him. It does not mean, either, that they know God, and are someone who fears God. They have attained none of this, in fact; the promotion and cultivation is merely promotion and cultivation in the most straightforward sense. Their promotion and cultivation simply means they have been promoted, and await cultivation. And the ultimate outcome of this cultivation depends on which path the person walks, and what they pursue. Thus, when someone in the church is promoted and cultivated to be a leader, they are merely promoted and cultivated in the straightforward sense; it does not mean that they are already a qualified leader, or a competent one, that they are already capable of undertaking the work of a leader, and can do real work—that is not the case. When someone is promoted and cultivated to be a leader, do they possess the truth reality? Do they understand the truth principles? Is this person able to bring to fruition the work arrangements of the house of God? Are they possessed of commitment, and a sense of responsibility? When they encounter an issue, are they able to search for the truth and submit to God? All of this is unknown. Does the person have a heart that fears God? And just how great is their fear of God? Are they liable to follow their own will when they do things? During the time that they perform the work of leaders, do they regularly and frequently come before God to search for the will of God? Are they able to guide people in entry into the truth reality? This, and much more, all awaits cultivation and discovery; it all remains unknown. Promoting and cultivating someone doesn’t mean they already understand the truth, nor is it saying that they are already capable of performing their duty satisfactorily. So what is the aim and significance of promoting and cultivating someone? It is that such a person, as an individual, is promoted in order to be trained, to be specially watered and instructed, making them able to understand the truth principles, and the principles of doing different things, and the principles, means, and methods for solving various problems, as well as, when they encounter various types of environment and people, how to handle and settle with them in accordance with God’s will, and in a way that protects the interests of the house of God. Does this indicate that the talent promoted and cultivated by the house of God is adequately capable of undertaking their work and performing their duty during the promotion and cultivation period or prior to promotion and cultivation? Of course not. Thus, it is unavoidable that, during the cultivation period, these people will experience being dealt with, pruning, judgment and chastisement, exposure and even replacement; this is normal, they are being trained and cultivated. People must not have high expectations or unrealistic demands of those who are promoted and cultivated; that would be unreasonable, and unfair on them. You can monitor them, and report the things they do that you believe to be problematic, but they are also in the cultivation period, and should not be viewed as people who have been made perfect, much less as someone blameless, or as people who are possessed of the truth reality. They are like you: This is the time when they are being trained. The difference is that they undertake more work and responsibilities than ordinary people. They have a responsibility and an obligation to do more work; they pay a greater price, suffer more hardship, take more pains, solve more problems, tolerate the censure of more people, and of course make a greater effort, have less sleep, eat less fine food, and engage in less chit-chat, than normal people. This is what’s special about them; apart from this, they are the same as anyone else. What is the point of Me saying this? In order to tell everyone that they must not misinterpret the house of God’s promotion and cultivation of various types of talents, and must not be harsh in their demands of these people. Naturally, people must not be unrealistic in their opinion of them either. It is foolish to be overly appreciative or reverential of them, nor is it humane or realistic to be overly harsh in your demands toward them. So what is the most rational way to act toward them? To think of them as ordinary people and, when there is a problem that needs to be searched, to fellowship with them and learn from each other’s strengths and complement each other. In addition, it is the responsibility of everyone to monitor whether leaders and workers are doing real work, and whether they are competent in carrying out their duties. If they are not, and you have seen through them, then waste no time in reporting or removing them; choose someone else, and do not delay the work of the house of God. Delaying the work of the house of God is hurting yourself and others, it is good for no one.

—The Word, Vol. 5. Identifying False Leaders (5)