How to Pursue the Truth (9)

During this period, the topic of our fellowship has involved a relatively broad scope, hasn’t it? (Yes.) It has involved some more specific issues of humanity, and it has also involved some issues of people’s lives. At the last gathering, we fellowshipped about topics involving caliber, and then we fellowshipped about how to discern innate conditions, humanity, and corrupt dispositions. Our fellowship on the topic of caliber has basically been completed; from now on, you can judge exactly how a person’s caliber is based on this content. When fellowshipping about these three aspects—innate conditions, humanity, and corrupt dispositions—we fellowshipped about some manifestations and revelations of people in daily life to judge whether these fall under their innate conditions, humanity, or corrupt dispositions. Through our fellowship about the three aspects of innate conditions, humanity, and corrupt dispositions, do you now have a concrete understanding of the basic structure of humans as created beings? (We can understand it a bit more than before.) The reason we fellowship about the three aspects of manifestations revealed in people’s lives is that created humankind is composed of innate conditions, humanity, and corrupt dispositions. No matter whether you are a man or a woman, whether you are young or old, no matter among which race of people or in which country you live, in which period you live, or in what kind of social environment and background you live—in short, no matter what your outward appearance is—as long as you are a created human being, you are composed of these three aspects: innate conditions, humanity, and corrupt dispositions. In other words, every person, who belongs to corrupt humankind, is composed of innate conditions, humanity, and the life of corrupt dispositions. That is to say, any created human being possesses innate conditions, humanity, and corrupt dispositions. Of course, a person’s innate conditions are ordained by God. Humanity is partly influenced by innate conditions, and partly conditioned and influenced by family upbringing, the social environment, and Satan’s education. Corrupt dispositions, meanwhile, are a person’s satanic dispositions and satanic nature produced by the misleading and corruption of Satan. This corrupt nature partly comes from one’s family, partly from society, and partly from the influences and conditioning that a person experiences in various environments. From this perspective, any created person is actually not any kind of mystery, because they are composed of these three aspects: innate conditions, humanity, and corrupt dispositions. Therefore, discerning what kind of person someone is should actually be easy. Setting aside the innate conditions ordained and bestowed by God, what remains is to discern what a person’s humanity is like and what corrupt dispositions they have—these determine what the essence of this person is like. Discerning in this way makes things very clear. Discerning what a person’s essence is based on these things is not a difficult matter. Discerning in this way has a basis and also has a standard of measurement.

Previously, we listed some specific manifestations of innate conditions, which do not involve corrupt dispositions. Innate conditions are the foundation on which people rely for survival and are conditions that created humankind should possess. Whether it is conditions related to a person’s birth, such as the time, environment, and place of birth, or aspects such as a person’s appearance, caliber, strengths, instincts, interests and hobbies, and personality—these are all part of a person’s innate conditions. These innate conditions do not corrupt people, and of course, these innate conditions also do not contain any corrupt dispositions. Generally speaking, innate conditions are some basic conditions that a created human being must possess in order to survive and live. Humanity refers to that which is lived out involving the conscience and reason of normal humanity which is revealed from a body possessing innate conditions. As for corrupt dispositions, this is straightforward—corrupt dispositions are the result of Satan’s corruption of the life of this body that possesses innate conditions and humanity. Is this a bit abstract? Overall, created humans are created beings dominated by corrupt dispositions and possessing the basic conscience and reason of humanity. These created beings have various innate conditions ordained by God. This is the basic structure of the humankind created by God. In this, innate conditions and corrupt dispositions are easier to understand, but humanity may be relatively abstract. Simply put, humanity is a unique attribute of created humankind that differentiates them from other living beings. Created beings, who have this unique attribute, possess conscience and reason, character, and also the ability to distinguish right from wrong. These unique attributes, which differentiate humankind from other living beings, constitute humanity. This humanity of course includes the ability to express using language, the ability to distinguish right from wrong, the ability to understand, the ability to accept new things, the ability to accept the words of the Creator, and the ability to accept God’s commission and handle any matter. This is humanity. The simplest understanding of humanity is that it is an inherent attribute of created humankind that differentiates them from other living beings. The most basic characteristics of this attribute are conscience and reason. This is the simplest way to understand it. There are some details within this, such as the integrity and character that humanity should possess, the distinguishing between positive things and negative things, and the selection and carrying out of positive things. Basically, these things are what people should understand and know about the three aspects of innate conditions, humanity, and corrupt dispositions. Have you thought about these issues before? (We haven’t thought about them before.) Encountering these issues for the first time, can you understand them? Can you grasp them? (We can understand them somewhat.) Does anyone feel that this topic we are talking about is too profound and somewhat abstract, and like discussing philosophy, it is a bit incomprehensible? Based on the specific manifestations of these three aspects of innate conditions, humanity, and corrupt dispositions that we have fellowshipped about over these days, what was just spoken about should not be abstract to you. The specific manifestations of these three aspects should be understandable to you. Additionally, shouldn’t the relationships among these three aspects also be clear? Humanity is the integrity, character, conscience, and reason that a person reveals based on the foundation of having basic innate conditions. Corrupt dispositions are what is lived out within humanity through innate conditions, and they are the various dispositions lived out by people which are dominated by the life that Satan instills in them. In this way, regardless of what innate conditions a person possesses, they are merely the most basic external shell, whereas the life that can truly dominate the essence of a person is the corrupt dispositions instilled in them by Satan. That is to say, to discern what the essence of a person is, look at the dispositions they reveal. If the dispositions they reveal are the corrupt dispositions of arrogance, intransigence, deceitfulness, wickedness, or viciousness, then regardless of whether their character is kind or evil, this person is essentially of Satan, because their life is Satan’s corrupt disposition. Therefore, what a person’s attribute is depends on the life they possess within, not on what their innate conditions are. If their life is Satan’s corrupt disposition, then regardless of how noble or great their innate conditions may appear outwardly, they are essentially of Satan, and they are a member of corrupt humankind. If a person’s life is one where the truth is their life, then regardless of how ordinary, normal, or looked down upon their innate conditions may appear outwardly—and even if they exhibit some weaknesses, inadequacies, and defects of their humanity outwardly—they are still part of the humankind that has been saved. They essentially belong to God, and are not of Satan. Their essence changes. Once their essence changes, their belonging also changes—they belong to the truth and to God. Therefore, the determining factor in a person’s belonging, essence, and final outcome is not their innate conditions, and of course, it is not entirely their humanity either, but rather, what their life is. If from beginning to end, a person’s life is one where corrupt dispositions are their life, and they are of Satan, then their belonging will be with Satan; if they have the truth as their life, they belong to God, and thus their belonging will be with God, in the beautiful destination God has prepared for humankind. Based on the various manifestations and the essence of people in all aspects, what is people’s current belonging? Do people have a life where the truth is their life? (No.) Then what exactly does a person’s essence depend on? (On what they have as their life.) Exactly; whatever your life is within, that is what your essence is. If the life within you changes, and it is no longer corrupt dispositions that are your life, but the truth, then in terms of your essence, you belong to God and belong to the truth. Of course, people’s attribute of humanhood does not change—people are still humans, and in terms of their attribute, they are still created humans. However, because your life has changed, your belonging has also changed. In summary, innate conditions are basic conditions that constitute created humankind. That is to say, as long as you are called a created human, these innate conditions must exist in you—they are the basic conditions. Humanity is what is revealed from and lived out of a person’s normal humanity while they live under their innate conditions. Corrupt dispositions are the life inherent to corrupt humankind, hidden beneath innate conditions and the shell of humanity. The relationships and distinctions between these three aspects, as well as the roles they each play or the functions they each serve in created humankind, are just as described. Previously, we fellowshipped about some manifestations related to these three aspects of innate conditions, humanity, and corrupt dispositions that people reveal. However, the content involving these three aspects goes far beyond what we have fellowshipped about, so we have to continue fellowshipping on this topic today.

Discerning the Manifestations of Innate Conditions, Humanity, and Corrupt Dispositions

Stuttering and Stammering

Where did we leave off last time regarding the various revelations of innate conditions, humanity, and corrupt dispositions? Timidity and boldness, right? (Yes.) That fellowship was completed. Let’s now look at stuttering and stammering when speaking—what kind of problem is this? (An innate condition.) This is an innate condition and also a type of physical defect. Of course, the forms of stuttering differ. Some stutterers stretch out a single syllable, while others keep repeating a single syllable, taking all day without being able to utter a complete sentence. In short, this is an innate condition and of course, it is also a type of physical defect. Does this involve a corrupt disposition? (No.) It does not involve a corrupt disposition. If someone says, “You stammer when you speak; you sure are cunning!” or, “You even stutter when you talk; how can you be so arrogant?”—are such statements accurate? (No.) Stuttering, as a defect or flaw, does not relate to any aspect of a person’s corrupt dispositions. Therefore, stuttering is an innate condition and a type of physical defect. Clearly, it does not involve a person’s corrupt dispositions and has no connection to them whatsoever. There is another situation involving stuttering: Some people usually do not stammer when speaking, but when you ask them a question, they hesitate and falter; they take all day to say a single sentence, and you still cannot tell what they’re trying to say. Their speech is never specific enough, always making you guess their meaning—whatever you guess, that becomes their meaning. Otherwise, they use a smile in lieu of meaning. In short, they simply do not answer your question directly. For example, you ask them, “Where did you come from?” They say, “I … I … well, just wandered around and …” After hearing this, you still don’t know where they came from. Or you ask them, “How do you evaluate that person’s caliber?” They say, “Their … caliber, well … everyone, you know … we all … um … aren’t really … clear.” Why do they speak in such a halting and fragmented way? Is this stuttering or stammering? It doesn’t seem to be. Then why do they speak like this? If it’s not because of stuttering or stammering, what is the reason? (They are dominated by a corrupt disposition.) This is clearly a revelation of a disposition. It means that when they express something or do something, they are dominated by a disposition, which is part of their life, driving them to speak and act to achieve a certain aim. What is this aim? It is to conceal the true facts, to avoid telling you the true facts; they don’t want to explain things so clearly. Why do they act this way? It is because they believe that if they explain what’s actually going on, they will have to bear the consequences—either offending someone or causing detriment to themselves. They do not want to bear these consequences; they do not want you to know the true facts. This is a manner and style of speaking and acting under the dominance of a corrupt disposition. The life that dominates them to act this way represents their nature, and their acting this way proves that they have no truth whatsoever. They do not speak according to the truth principles. So how should one speak so as to speak according to the truth principles? To do this, one should be an honest person, just as God says: “Let your communication be, Yes, yes; No, no.” Do they do this? (No.) What do they do? They neither say yes when it is yes nor no when it is no. What method do they use? They speak ambiguously, using deceitful and wicked ways to express their meaning so as to achieve their goal of protecting themselves. They use the methods instructed to and instilled in them by Satan to handle a matter or express something. This is clearly the corrupt disposition of Satan. This is not a shallow revelation of humanity but a revelation of a way of acting under the dominance of Satan’s corrupt disposition.

Enjoying Thrills

Let’s continue with another manifestation: enjoying thrills and disliking blandness; doing all things and making every lifestyle choice for the sake of thrills. What kind of problem is this? First of all, does this fall under interests and hobbies within innate conditions? (Yes.) Does it? Think carefully—does it truly belong there? Is enjoying thrills normal in a person’s rationality? (It is not normal.) Then, is categorizing it under innate conditions appropriate? (No.) Looking at it this way, it is not appropriate. What kind of problem does this manifestation fall under? If we say that enjoying thrills is a corrupt disposition, then what kind of corrupt disposition is it? Is it arrogance, deceitfulness, or viciousness? (It is none of these.) It is unrelated to any type of corrupt disposition. Then what kind of problem is it? (It is a problem of humanity.) What kind of problem of humanity is it? Is it being somewhat out of line? (Yes.) It is conducting oneself improperly and in a way that is out of line, enjoying thrills, and being restless. Restlessness indicates a lack of normal humanity. This does not involve conscience but primarily reflects a lack of rationality in normal humanity. Such people cannot stick to one task or do their duties in a way that is rule-abiding and dutiful. They are unable to do things like adults; they lack mature thinking, a mature style of personal conduct, and a mature way of doing things. At the very least, this is a defect of their humanity. Of course, this does not rise to the level of being a problem of their character but relates to an attitude with which they conduct themselves and act. Enjoying novelty and thrills, being inconsistent in whatever they do, being unable to persevere, being restless and improper, and always wanting to seek thrills and try out fancy new things—issues of this type fall under defects of humanity. People who enjoy thrills lack the rationality of normal humanity; it is not easy for them to bear the responsibilities and work that adults should bear. Whatever job they do, as long as they do it for a long time and it loses its novelty, they find it boring, lose interest in doing it, and want to seek a sense of novelty and thrill. Without thrills, they feel things are bland and may even experience a sense of spiritual emptiness. When they feel this way, their hearts become restless, and they want to seek thrills or things that interest them. They constantly want to do something unconventional. Whenever they find the work they are doing or the affairs they are handling boring or uninteresting, they lose the desire to continue. Even if it is work they should be doing or work that is meaningful and valuable, they cannot persevere. Look at how, among nonbelievers, there are many who frequently use drugs. Regardless of the reasons behind this, they enjoy using drugs to seek a sense of thrill and to seek irrational sensations beyond what normal people possess. People who enjoy thrills are similar to those who rely on drugs for stimulation. They lack the rationality of normal people in the way they conduct themselves and always like to pursue unrealistic and transcendent sensations when choosing their lifestyle. This is very dangerous. People of this type often appear outwardly to have no major problems. If you do not discern such people or see through to their essence or the essence of this kind of problem, you might think, “These people just have unstable dispositions; they are in their thirties or forties but are still immature like children.” In actuality, deep within, people of this type continually seek thrills. No matter what they do, they lack the thoughts and awareness of adults, as well as the approach and attitude with which adults handle matters. Therefore, such people are very problematic. Maybe their humanity is not bad and their character is not particularly vile, but due to this defect of their humanity, it is very difficult for them to be competent for significant work, especially certain important items of work. When you fellowship the truth with them, they say, “I understand everything; I just can’t do it.” They cannot live or work properly and dutifully with the thoughts and attitudes of normal people. Their hearts are always restless. People with such manifestations are also very problematic. This concludes our discussion on the manifestation of enjoying thrills.

Sensitivity

Next, let’s talk about sensitivity. Let’s use the simplest way to categorize it, starting with the method of elimination. Is sensitivity an innate condition? (No.) Then, is it a corrupt disposition? (No.) If someone has a manifestation of sensitivity, is this a revelation of a corrupt disposition? (No.) Sensitivity does not refer to experiencing itchiness after eating a certain type of food, or sneezing and tearing up after smelling a certain scent; it does not refer to a pollen allergy, a peanut allergy, or any allergy to preservatives or chemical compounds—it does not refer to physical sensitivity. Physical sensitivity refers to having a sensitive constitution, which is prone to allergic reactions triggered by certain external harmful odors or substances—this is physical sensitivity. Physical sensitivity is just an instinct among one’s innate conditions—it is part of one’s innate constitution. However, the sensitivity being discussed here does not refer to this. After ruling out innate conditions, and considering that this type of sensitivity generally does not escalate to the level of a corrupt disposition—meaning there is no specific revelation of a corrupt disposition—then what kind of problem is this sensitivity? (It is a problem of humanity.) Is this a merit of humanity or a weakness? (It is a weakness of humanity.) This is clearly a weakness of humanity—if you cannot even see this, then you are too ignorant. Is being sensitive good or not? Since it is a weakness of humanity, it is certainly not good. What does sensitivity mean? Say it in your own words. (Having an oversensitive mind.) Is having an oversensitive mind a mental illness? Tell Me, do people’s nerves generally become oversensitive? Nerves are within human muscle tissue and do not come into contact with external air, dust, or other substances—so how could they become oversensitive? If a person is always sensitive, isn’t this a problem in their thoughts? If there is a problem in their thoughts, does this mean there is a problem with their mind? (Yes.) A problem with the mind is guided by their thoughts, and if it is guided by their thoughts, then it is a problem related to their humanity. When it comes to a look, a word, or a choice of phrasing from someone, or when they encounter an environment or a type of situation, they will overinterpret it, connect it to themselves, and then fall into emotions of anxiety, repression, sadness, and despondency, sometimes even falling into negativity, or—even worse—showing negative manifestations of seeking revenge, hostility, and so on. These manifestations fully prove that sensitivity is a kind of defect of humanity. A defect means that if you have this kind of problem, the humanity you reveal is abnormal. Regardless of whether this problem is caused by your thoughts, mental state, reason, or specific notions and viewpoints in some regard, in any case, this is a defect within your humanity. It causes the humanity you reveal to be abnormal, to not conform to the rationality and conscience of normal humanity, nor to the thoughts and viewpoints produced by the thinking patterns of normal humanity, or to the attitude one ought to have when interacting with others and handling matters. In summary, what is revealed in this aspect of humanity is essentially an abnormal mental state. For example, some people become oversensitive because someone unintentionally glances at them—they assume the person looks down on them, and they become unhappy and even cry from the distress of it. Tell Me, isn’t this an abnormal mental state? Isn’t this a mental illness? Is what I’m saying accurate? (Yes.) This manifestation of humanity, to be precise, is a mental illness. Others don’t do anything to them, yet they cry uncontrollably for several days and can’t get over it. This is a defect of humanity. When you have people of this type around you, you feel especially stifled and restricted, you don’t know when you might invite trouble from them or cause problems for yourself, and you have to be extremely cautious when speaking in front of them, repeatedly considering your words: “If I say this word, will they think I’m looking down on them? If I don’t talk to them, will they think I have a certain opinion about them? If I say a few words to them, will they think I have some ulterior motive? What exactly is the appropriate way to act?” In the end, you come to a conclusion: People of this type are just mentally ill—truly troublesome! No matter how you approach them, it’s never right; no matter what you say, or what you do, they never take it correctly. Their humanity is especially abnormal. After spending a long time with such people, you just want to distance yourself from them and avoid them, not desiring any further contact. People of this sort do not have the thinking of normal humanity—they are mentally ill. Sensitivity refers to these manifestations; it is a defect of humanity. Although it is a defect of humanity, it is not simpler than a corrupt disposition. If someone has a defect or problem of humanity, many troubles will arise when they associate with others; it will be difficult to get along with them, and it will also be difficult to correct them. This is a manifestation of humanity.

Obstinacy

Let’s talk about another manifestation—obstinacy. What kind of problem is this? (It is a defect of humanity.) First, let’s rule out innate conditions—obstinacy is definitely not an innate condition, it is not given by God. Moreover, obstinacy does not rise to the level of a corrupt disposition. Therefore, it is a defect of humanity. What are the specific manifestations of obstinacy? Is there a certain correlation between obstinacy and absurdity? (There is some.) To a certain extent, there is a correlation. So, what are the manifestations of obstinacy? Give an example. What kind of people are prone to being obstinate? What words and actions are manifestations of obstinacy? (Obstinate people tend to fixate when encountering certain people, events, and things.) Being fixated on things is one aspect. Give an example—what kind of matters do they get fixated on? (When someone points out their problems, they love to give excuses and use fallacious reasoning. They always cling to a phrase or a choice of words to defend themselves, refusing to accept the truth or to accept pruning. They keep insisting on their reasoning to justify themselves, explaining the reasons behind their actions.) When others prune them or fellowship with them about the truth principles, they do not accept it. Instead, they constantly emphasize their own excuses and justifications, claiming that their intentions are correct, without recognizing their own mistakes at all. This is one manifestation of being fixated. Some people commit reckless misdeeds and are dismissed, but they do not reflect on themselves. Instead, they say, “Anyway, God doesn’t like me, and I’m not someone who loves the truth, so that’s that—there’s no point in striving upward.” Someone advises them, “You shouldn’t be so negative. Your caliber allows you to understand the truth—you should strive upward!” They reply, “If God has ordained that you won’t get a good destination, then even if you strive upward, it’s useless. No matter how much effort you put in or how well you do, it’s useless.” In their hearts, they constantly misunderstand God and contend with Him. No matter what others say, they refuse to accept it. No matter how closely what you say aligns with their state or how much it could help them make a turnaround and achieve some growth, they still don’t accept it. They are convinced that their own thoughts are correct. Is this a manifestation of obstinacy? (Yes.) They single-mindedly and firmly believe: “God doesn’t like me. No matter what I do, God will not show me grace—I’ve been set aside by God. I know I’m not someone who loves the truth, so there’s no point in striving upward. If I can do any duty, I’ll just do a bit. If I’m called a laborer, then so be it. Anyway, I’ll just follow along. As long as there’s a glimmer of hope, I won’t leave.” In fact, based on their caliber and various other conditions, they shouldn’t be this negative—they are still capable of doing some valuable things, and can achieve some results in doing their duties. However, because of their obstinacy, they refuse to strive upward, do not reverse course, and do not repent; in their hearts, they believe that God will not show them grace. Others receive various degrees of light and enlightenment and are frequently shown some grace by God, but they cannot feel it, so they harbor some resentment toward God in their hearts. Is this obstinacy? (Yes.) Some people think, “Those who are promoted and cultivated in God’s house are all the ones who are adept at speaking, have gifts and strengths, and are good at presenting themselves. People like us, who don’t know how to present ourselves and lack eloquence, are overlooked by God’s house. God doesn’t give us any opportunities. Even if we have talents, it’s useless. Even if we have caliber and comprehension ability, it doesn’t matter—we still have to stand aside. Especially since we come from poor backgrounds, have average looks, and don’t know how to dress up, we’ll never stand out anywhere. Our whole lives will just be like this—no status in the world and no status in God’s house.” Is this a manifestation of obstinacy? (Yes.) From these two examples, can you clearly explain what obstinacy is? (Stubbornly holding onto one’s own ideas and refusing to listen to anyone.) (Sticking to one’s rigid view.) In colloquial terms, it’s called sticking to one’s rigid view, but not all forms of this are obstinacy—it depends on whether the rigid view they are sticking to is correct or not. If the rigid view a person sticks to is correct, then it’s still acceptable. For example, if someone sticks to their rigid view, saying, “No matter when, a person must act with conscience,” then this view is relatively positive. But if the rigid view they stick to is incorrect and does not align with the facts, yet they still refuse to let go and no one can make them change their thoughts and viewpoints no matter what they say, then this is obstinacy. Obstinacy is a distorted way of understanding—it is when people stubbornly hold onto distorted thoughts and viewpoints. It does not conform to humanity or common sense, much less does it conform to God’s requirements; of course, it also has absolutely nothing to do with the truth. Obstinacy refers to persisting in distorted thoughts and viewpoints under the dominance of the impetuousness and emotions of one’s humanity. People who exhibit these kinds of manifestations are obstinate people. For example, some people, after accepting being pruned and coming to know themselves, feel that they were wrong in this matter and should repent. They see it as a transgression and they believe that being pruned was right, that the pruning fortunately came in time, and that a great mistake would have been made without it. However, obstinate people do not think this way. They say, “Pruning me is looking down on me—it’s picking on me because they find me displeasing. Maybe I landed in the eye of the storm and ran into bad luck. They just happened to be angry with nowhere to vent, so they took it out on me by pruning me.” Others say, “It’s not how you think it is. Why don’t you examine what you did wrong? Did you handle that matter according to the principles? Did you violate the truth principles?” They do not examine these things. Instead, they analyze, understand, and approach matters with emotions and impetuousness. In summary, obstinate people, in the vast majority of cases, do not accept positive things or the truth—they don’t even accept positive thoughts and viewpoints. Regardless of what happens to them or what environment they encounter, they approach it in an obstinate way and hold on with absolute certainty. Even when you fellowship the truth with them, they don’t accept it and believe that what they hold to is completely in line with the facts. What do they often say? “What you hear is unreliable; only what you see is real. What I see are the facts. Even if what you say is the truth, if you haven’t seen it, you have no right to speak on it.” They believe that what they see are the facts, and that essentially how these facts appear on the surface is exactly how they are. When you talk about the truth, it’s useless—in their eyes, the truth is just a facade, just a front, merely pleasant-sounding words. Thus, they do not accept it. They blindly believe, “What I say is true—it’s not a lie—because I saw the truth of the facts. I saw the process of the facts unfold.” For example, when an obstinate person sees a couple arguing, with both the husband and wife shouting about getting a divorce, they conclude that they will definitely divorce. Others say, “Just because you saw them arguing about divorce doesn’t necessarily mean they truly want to divorce. People say harsh words when they’re angry. In fact, this couple is usually very loving—there is a strong foundation to their relationship. Even though they’ve argued all their lives, they can’t live without each other. The wife told someone who knows about the situation that it’s impossible for them to divorce. So, based on these facts and their usual way of life, they won’t possibly get divorced.” The obstinate person doesn’t believe it. Later, they go check and see that the couple really hasn’t gotten divorced, but they still stubbornly believe, “They’re only not divorced on the surface; in private, they’ve already secretly divorced. They only haven’t made it public for the sake of the children.” You see, they still cling stubbornly to this matter. They only believe in what their eyes see and in their own judgment, pigheadedly insisting that their judgment and their thoughts and viewpoints are correct. Even if the facts are not like that or the essence and root of the problem are not like that, they still believe it to be so. Their understanding of all matters relies solely on their own prejudices, impetuousness, and emotions—they do not judge based on the nature of the facts or the root of the problem. Even if the situation changes, their way of understanding and their thoughts and viewpoints remain unchanged. These are the manifestations of obstinate people.

When obstinate people encounter specific problems, their way of handling the problems and the disposition they reveal involve a corrupt disposition. Obstinacy is a major defect of humanity. Of course, this does not rise to the level of character or integrity—it is merely related to the attitude, thought, and viewpoint with which they interact with others and handle matters. If a person is obstinate, that is enough to show that their humanity has a defect. When this defect is revealed in a specific matter, what they reveal is no longer just a defect of humanity. If, in a given situation, they stubbornly insist on their distorted understanding and viewpoints, believing that these align with the truth, and no matter who fellowships the truth with them they can’t take it in—and even develop some obstinate actions and statements—then this is no longer merely a problem of their humanity. This has already risen to the level of being a problem with their disposition—it has risen to the level of a corrupt disposition. For example, when it comes to accepting being pruned, if they violate the principles in doing things and commit reckless misdeeds, they ought to accept pruning. Even if they do not accept pruning, they should still accept the corresponding punishment and chastening. However, instead of comprehending this correctly, they complain about their bad luck, saying, “I just happened to walk into the line of fire. The person pruning me was just angry and had nowhere to vent their anger—it just happened that they came across this matter of mine, so they pruned me.” Their thought, viewpoint, and attitude toward being pruned are a revelation of a corrupt disposition. What kind of corrupt disposition? (Intransigence and being averse to the truth.) Being averse to the truth and intransigence. Their thoughts and viewpoints regarding people and things fall under the obstinacy of their humanity, but the corrupt dispositions that give rise to these obstinate thoughts and viewpoints are intransigence and being averse to the truth. This makes the essence of the problem serious—such people are disbelievers. Obstinacy is a defect of humanity. What are the main characteristics of the corrupt dispositions it involves? Intransigence and being averse to the truth—this brings it to the level of corrupt dispositions. What do you notice from this? Some defects in humanity, which involve the thoughts, viewpoints, and attitudes that people conduct themselves and act with, can escalate to corrupt dispositions. For example, stuttering is a defect of humanity. A person who stutters will stutter no matter what they say. Stuttering itself is not a corrupt disposition and does not rise to the level of a corrupt disposition. However, if the words spoken in a stuttering manner carry certain thoughts, and these thoughts are produced under the dominance of a corrupt disposition, then regardless of whether the person is a natural stutterer or not, the thoughts behind their words involve a corrupt disposition. Stuttering is a speech problem—it has no relation to a corrupt disposition. However, the thoughts and viewpoints behind using a stuttering manner of speaking are triggered or caused by a corrupt disposition. So you see, when a defect of humanity involves innate conditions, it has no relation to a corrupt disposition. But when a defect of humanity involves the vile, distorted, or negative elements of one’s character, it does involve a corrupt disposition. Do you understand? (Yes.)

Numbness

Let’s discuss another manifestation, numbness. What problem is this? (A defect of humanity.) Numbness is a defect of humanity. What are the typical manifestations of numbness in people? Reacting sluggishly, moving at a slow pace, and lacking flexibility while doing things, and, when thinking about problems, having few ideas or only being able to contemplate relatively few aspects of problems. All of this is called being numb. Which aspect of humanity does numbness involve? It involves the depth of one’s view of people and things, the depth of one’s self-conduct and actions, as well as one’s intelligence or caliber when it comes to viewing people and things and conducting oneself and acting. Generally, what kind of person is described with the term “numb”? (A person with relatively poor caliber.) Numbness means that a person has poor caliber, low intelligence, and sluggish reactions—having these manifestations is numbness. Numbness is a major defect of humanity. This numbness does not refer to your arm or leg being numb and losing sensation—it is not this sort of physical insensitivity. Nor does it refer to a personality trait of being dull, stiff, or rigid. Instead, it is a mental reaction or a manifestation of one’s intelligence in handling problems. Typically, this kind of person is often in a state of being numb, dull-witted, and having no reaction when it comes to the people, events, and things around them. That is, they see things but cannot see through to the essence of those things and cannot notice the problems within. When you remind them that there is a problem here, they do not even have a reaction and do not know it is a problem. Even if someone points out the problem to them, they still cannot see through to the seriousness of the problem or the essence of the problem. Consequently, they handle many matters very slowly. This is numbness. Numbness in and of itself is a defect of humanity. As for numb people, regardless of their age or whether any part of their physical body is numb, in terms of the manifestations of their humanity in this aspect, they cannot do specific, essential work, nor can they shoulder work that involves technical content or that is highly specialized in nature. Of course, such people also are not capable of being leaders and workers. If a leader or worker is numb, then trouble will arise in the work that they do, it will come to a standstill and be paralyzed. They aren’t able to notice problems, and they aren’t able to promptly resolve them, so when various problems arise, they cannot notice them, and the problems cannot get resolved. They cannot see problems with their eyes, so they cannot set their hand to resolving them, and they do not know what work is most important to do. Every day, they can only do a bit of superficial work in a routine manner. Whatever work arrangements are issued by the Above, they pass them along, but after passing them on, they have no idea whether they can be implemented properly, what results can be achieved, or what the subsequent effects will be. They cannot see through anything. No matter how many people around them are doing evil, or causing disturbances or disruptions, they cannot perceive it. They also do not know how much work needs to be followed up on or which specific work needs to be implemented. Someone asks them: “Have you assigned and arranged the work?” They say: “It has all been arranged. I fellowshipped with them and read the work arrangement aloud once—everyone knows it.” Is this implementing the work arrangement? (No.) Implementing the work arrangement first requires assigning the responsibilities of the leaders and workers properly, specifying which leader should handle which work, and ensuring that each item of work is assigned to specific people. Additionally, the leaders and workers must be told specifically how to do it and according to which principles. All these matters must be explained clearly so that everyone knows how to do the work. Only this is what it means to allocate work. When performing work, some people merely read the work arrangement aloud to others and have everyone share their understanding and feelings regarding it, and that’s it. As long as they see everyone busy doing their duties, they assume the work arrangement has been implemented properly. At this point, if you ask them: “Do the brothers and sisters have any difficulties in doing their duties? Are there still any problems present? Did you fellowship to resolve them?” they respond: “I haven’t heard of any problems—I’ll go look into it.” Actually, the person in charge of the work didn’t bring up any problems or difficulties, but those difficulties do exist. It is because they are too numb that they cannot notice them. For example, they cannot even perceive it when two people aren’t able to cooperate with each other and vie for status between themselves while doing their duties, and this affects the work. They even say, “Their relationship is pretty good—they have conversations and communicate with each other. If they couldn’t cooperate, they wouldn’t be talking.” People ask them, “Are they vying for status with each other? Can they cooperate harmoniously?” They respond, “I don’t know about that.” Only after an inquiry is it discovered that the two of them aren’t able to cooperate and are competing with each other—competing over who preaches loftier sermons, whose voice is louder, and who speaks for longer. These things have long since been noticed by God’s chosen people. If you ask that person, “Have these problems been resolved promptly?” they will say, “No, they haven’t been resolved. I didn’t know this was work I should do.” They don’t even know to resolve such a major problem—aren’t they feeble-minded? (Yes.) They read the work arrangements aloud once and then require that everyone make declarations and vows to do their duty well, and after that, they consider their job done. They say to themselves, “I remember who the church leader is, who is specifically responsible for which item of work, and who is in charge of film production work,” but they just cannot see how those specific items of work should be carried out. This is what being numb and dull-witted looks like—they are foolish individuals. They cannot notice any problems and do not know how to fellowship about any aspect of the truth principles. When it comes to problems involving the truth principles, they do not know how to fellowship the truth to resolve them. When it comes to problems involving personnel or administrative work, they also cannot perceive any of them. Even if they do see that someone cannot do the work, they do not know how to resolve this. They cannot see through anything. This is what it means to be numb. They only know how to speak some doctrines but they are not competent in the work—they have a numb and dull-witted appearance. Tell Me, is a person like this a leader who is up to standard? (No.) If leaders and workers are numb, this is troublesome—they will not be able to do any work at all. If they do not do the work that they ought to, and when someone reports a problem, they also do not handle it, then this is no longer simply an issue of numbness, instead it is lacking normal humanity, and losing the normal function of conscience and reason.

Numbness is a defect of humanity. Although this defect does not rise to the level of a corrupt disposition, just in and of itself, this problem is fatal. A living person stands there, with functioning senses and limbs, but they just do not have the ability of a normal person to view people and things, or to conduct themselves and act. When they do work, they are like a useless person with no thoughts—they cannot notice any problem, they are even less capable of resolving problems when others bring them up, and they cannot see what work should be done. In their mind, it is as if nothing concerns them. As a result, they cannot do any work—they are a good-for-nothing, a useless person. Is this problem not serious enough? You see, obstinate people and sensitive people at least have active thoughts—they possess the thinking of a normal person; that is, their minds are constantly operating. But numb people’s minds are simple; it’s like their minds are paralyzed, it’s like they’re dead. Although they have eyes, no matter what they see, there is no reaction in their minds, and they will not contemplate it in their minds; they have no thoughts and are entirely wooden figures. What are wooden figures? They are people carved from wood; they outwardly resemble people, but when you speak to them, they do not react. You ask them to watch the house, but when the house is robbed, they do nothing. You ask them, “Why didn’t you watch the house?” and they still do not react. If a person has no reaction to anything, this is very troublesome. In other words, the functions that the instincts of humanity should perform—such as the functions of thought and awareness, and the functions that the eyes, ears, brain, and heart should perform—cannot be carried out. They do not have or fall short of the thoughts that people with normal humanity should possess. This is what is called being numb. Numb people are not that different from useless people. Some people say, “You say that people of this sort are numb, that their eyes, ears, and brains cannot perform their functions. But if you insult them, they react. If they suffer a loss, they react. So can they still be considered to be foolish people?” Even some animals can understand human speech—they can understand both the good and bad things that you say about them. If someone, as a human being, cannot understand human speech, then they fall short of the standard of being human. Therefore, to measure whether someone is human, the standard for humans must be used. Why do I mention animals? It is to let you know that you are a living creature that is within the category of created humans, not an animal. If you, as a human, lack the thoughts that even animals possess, then you fall far too short. Even animals know to be good toward and to get close to those who treat them well and provide their daily meals. If you, as a human, lack such humanity, do you still deserve to be called human? Why do I make this comparison? It is to let you know that you are not an animal or a higher-level animal; you are a person, you are the highest-level being among all things created by God—a human. You have language ability, thinking ability, and the ability to understand the truth. God created you to be the master among all things, to manage all things and other living beings. You are the manager of all living beings among all things. To manage them, you must be above them. You must be better than them in order to have the ability to manage them. Therefore, mentioning animals is not to belittle you but to remind you and make you understand that you should be better than them. You should use the abilities that your humanity should possess, as well as the various kinds of common sense and abilities that you have acquired since you were born, to manage them and lead them, doing what a human should do, what God has commissioned you to do. If you regard yourself as a created human, you should use the standard for created humankind to measure your humanity and your essence. This standard should not be lower than the standard that God has established for humankind. Therefore, to measure a person’s caliber and the problems in various aspects of their humanity, the standard for humans must be used. Many people are mentally numb and sluggish to react in terms of humanity, which leads them to perform many of their duties poorly in the course of doing their duties—they are incompetent in church work, and they are unable to practice according to the truth principles. Therefore, you must know yourself and know your own measure. If you do not possess this kind of caliber or humanity, or if you have the defect of numbness in your humanity, then you should not vie to be a leader or supervisor. If you become a leader or supervisor, then whichever church’s work you are responsible for, that church will become paralyzed. Whatever item of work you are responsible for, that work will be a complete mess. If you cannot be competent for it, you should stand off to the side and let those who are capable of performing it do it. Do you understand? (Yes.) Having self-awareness, and then learning to make way for those who are more capable and to recommend others—this is the principle of practice. Some people say, “I’m so numb that I can’t tell who is good—how can I recommend anyone?” If you cannot tell who has good caliber and cannot make recommendations, you need to learn some lessons. When you see someone who understands the truth and can discern others, you should learn from them. By fellowshipping with them more, you will be able to learn some things. Since you have the defect of numbness in your humanity, don’t be picky or selective about what duties you do. You yourself have this defect, so there are not many kinds of work and duties that you can do. If, with much difficulty, a suitable position is found for you, and you are still being picky and selective, then this is not a problem of numbness or a defect of humanity but a corrupt disposition. What corrupt disposition? It’s that of arrogance, of not submitting, and of not knowing your own measure. You are nothing, just a good-for-nothing, an idiot, yet you still want to do duties that are dignified, that are not tiring, and that are highly regarded by others—this indicates an arrogant disposition. If you are very numb, having work that you should do and matters that you should take care of but neither doing nor noticing them, if you do not even bother to lift a finger when things go wrong, and even when you see something harming the interests of God’s house, you ignore it, thinking, “This isn’t a problem in my own house, so I won’t bother with it,” this is not merely numbness but a lack of conscience and reason. If you have even a bit of conscience and reason and treat the matters of God’s house as your own, then you should fulfill your responsibility and not allow the interests of God’s house to be harmed. But if you lack this good intention and do not do a single good thing, aren’t you a dull-witted and numb person? That concludes our discussion on the manifestation of numbness.

Being Unashamedly Thick-Skinned

Let’s now talk about being unashamedly thick-skinned. What kind of problem is being unashamedly thick-skinned? (A defect of humanity.) Is it a defect? (It is a problem of poor character.) Poor character means bad humanity. What aspect of humanity does being unashamedly thick-skinned involve? It involves conscience and reason, as well as integrity and dignity. This involves the aspect of one’s character. What are the specific manifestations of being unashamedly thick-skinned? What things indicate that a person is unashamedly thick-skinned? Whatever shameless things they do are certainly manifestations of being unashamedly thick-skinned. Flattering and fawning without feeling that it’s cringeworthy—isn’t this being unashamedly thick-skinned? (Yes.) Why do we say this is being unashamedly thick-skinned? Because doing this indicates that a person has no sense of shame. They can say some words that violate the conscience of normal humanity or that do not conform to the facts, no matter how cringeworthy or unpleasant those words are, without blushing or their hearts palpitating, and they do not care how others perceive them after hearing them; even if others laugh at them, they do not care. They lack a sense of shame, don’t they? (Yes.) Isn’t having no sense of shame exactly what being unashamedly thick-skinned is? Also, when someone is clearly nothing, yet still publicly vies for status and to be a leader—isn’t this being unashamedly thick-skinned? (Yes.) Not only do they vie publicly, but during elections, they also fabricate ballots. While others cast one vote per person, they cast two votes for themselves—isn’t this being unashamedly thick-skinned? (Yes.) When others don’t vote for them, they vote for themselves. Such people vie to become leaders unabashedly and without any sense of shame—how unashamedly thick-skinned they must be! Generally, those who love status and have ambition all wish to present themselves well so that others might choose them as a leader. Once they are chosen as a leader, they feel quite proud, but if they are not chosen, they feel unhappy and displeased—this is a normal manifestation. However, unashamedly thick-skinned people are not like this. They will use any means necessary to become a leader. They say, “Everyone dislikes me and won’t vote for me, but I will find a way to become a leader. Even if I have to cheat and use underhanded means, I will make everyone vote for me as leader!” Others say, “Even if you become a leader, everyone will still dislike you. We do not have a good opinion of you, and your reputation is bad. If you arrange any work, no one will listen to you.” They respond, “Even if you don’t listen to me, I will still try to be a leader!” How unashamedly thick-skinned such people must be! Judging from this, don’t such people lack self-awareness? (Yes.) They lack self-awareness and have a somewhat violent quality to them. Judging from the thoughts and viewpoints of unashamedly thick-skinned people regarding their self-conduct, they have no sense of shame in their humanity, they do not care about integrity or character, conscience or a sense of embarrassment, nor do they care about morality and the baseline for their self-conduct—they disregard all of these. Judging from their thoughts and awareness, they are amply stupid, ignorant, and base. It is thus said they have poor, bad character. So, the shameless things they do are certainly driven by their erroneous thoughts and viewpoints. During church elections, they insist on choosing themselves, voting for themselves, and becoming a leader—not becoming one is unacceptable to them, and if they don’t become one, they will hate the brothers and sisters for not voting for them. Once they find out that you didn’t vote for them, they find you displeasing. No matter what you say, they retort with something. They are extremely harsh when talking to you, as if they’re breathing fire. They also think about how to take revenge on and torment you, and may even refuse to speak to you for their entire life. What is revealed in these specific actions of such people is a corrupt disposition. What kind of corrupt disposition is it? (Viciousness.) To put it mildly, it is arrogance and overestimating their own abilities—they simply want to be a leader. However, judging from their means of doing things and various manifestations, they are people who have a vicious disposition. The corrupt disposition of these unashamedly thick-skinned people who have vile humanity is very evident. All their actions can rise to the level of corrupt dispositions. Being unashamedly thick-skinned is one manifestation of their character; in their speech and actions, then, they are governed by this aspect of their character, and consequently they commit many shameless deeds, and reveal various corrupt dispositions, such as arrogance and viciousness. Therefore, to a certain extent, the vile manifestations that are revealed from a person’s character fall within corrupt dispositions; these manifestations are all connected and entangled with their nature essence, and their specific revelations of any corrupt disposition originate from their vile character. Thus, vile character and corrupt dispositions are interconnected. People’s corrupt dispositions are produced after people are corrupted by Satan. For example, aspects of vile character within people’s humanity, such as being obstinate, narrow-minded, and unashamedly thick-skinned, all result from people being corrupted and worked on by Satan. Before accepting the truth, people all first accept the corruption and misleading of many fallacious, evil, and negative thoughts and viewpoints—they accept these fallacious things into their hearts as their life, and this means that corrupt dispositions become their life.

Being unashamedly thick-skinned has some other manifestations. Some leaders and workers carry out obvious actions of causing disruptions and disturbances, deceiving those above them while keeping things from those below them, or going against work arrangements, and their actions even cause great harm to the church work. Yet not only do they not reflect and come to know their own problems or admit the fact of their evildoing of disturbing the church work, but on the contrary, they even believe they have done well, and want to seek credit and rewards, boasting and testifying everywhere about how much work they have done, how much suffering they have endured, how many contributions they have made during their work, how many people they have gained through preaching the gospel while working, and so on. They do not acknowledge at all how much evil they have done or what great harm they have brought to the church work. Of course, they also do not repent, much less reverse course. Tell Me, are such people not unashamedly thick-skinned? (They are.) If you ask them, “Did you carry out the church work according to the truth principles? Did your work conform to the work arrangements of God’s house?” they avoid the topic. If other people then expose that they caused serious losses to God’s offerings during their work—some losses amounting to several hundred yuan, some to several thousand, and some even to tens of thousands—what is their reaction when they are asked to compensate? Normal people with conscience, reason, and a sense of shame would collapse upon hearing this, feeling humiliated and ashamed from the depths of their hearts. They would believe that they had not done their work well and that they were so indebted to God, and so they would not try to justify themselves; even if they did some concrete work and endured a lot of suffering, they would not think it worth mentioning. If their work had truly been done well, could it have caused so much harm to the work of God’s house? It could not have. Simply judging by the harm they caused, it can be proved that their work was done poorly, and so they should admit fault and repent. Regardless of whether the losses they caused require compensation, at least, they must acknowledge the fact that their work caused disturbances and disruptions to the church work. Only utterly shameless people would refuse to acknowledge this fact. They would say, “Even if I compensate for the losses, I will not acknowledge that I made any mistakes or did anything wrong in my work. Even if I repay the debts, I am still a meritorious person, better than the average person in God’s house. I have had a glorious history!” What kind of humanity is this? Tell Me, do people of this sort have any sense of shame? Can they even spell the words “sense of shame”? If they truly have no sense of shame, that is problematic. If they know clearly in their hearts that they have done evil but stubbornly refuse to verbally acknowledge it, aren’t such people very intransigent? If they recognize in their hearts that they have done evil and can also acknowledge it verbally, then they still count as possessing conscience—they still have a sense of shame within them. If they not only refuse to acknowledge it verbally but are also defiant in their hearts, constantly resisting and even spreading claims everywhere that God’s house is treating them unfairly and that they are victims of bad luck, then their problem is serious. How serious? They have no conscience or reason at all. Conscience must include both a sense of justice and kindness. One aspect of a sense of justice is that people must have a sense of shame. Only when people know shame can they be upright, have a sense of justice, and love positive things and hold to them. However, if you lack a sense of shame in your conscience and in your sense of justice, and you don’t know shame—and if, even after doing something wrong, you do not feel embarrassed about it, and do not know to reflect on or hate yourself, and feel no regret, and do not care how others expose you, and are unblushing and feel no shame—then your conscience as a person is problematic, and it can also be said that you have no conscience. In that case, it’s hard to say whether your heart is bad or evil—it is possible that your heart is evil, that it is the heart of a wolf; not positive but negative. People without conscience and without humanity are demons. If you do something wrong and feel no shame at all, and do not feel remorse or a sense of guilt, and you not only do not reflect on yourself but also argue, oppose, and attempt to defend and justify yourself, dressing yourself up in a nice-looking facade, then, if measured against standard humanity, your humanity is problematic. Regardless of how your reason is, if you fall short of the standard of conscience, then it is hard to say whether you actually have humanity or not. Let’s not discuss what your inner spirit is, where you came from, or what evil you have done in the past; let’s not talk about your previous life. Just speaking in terms of the conscience you should have in this life, if you lack a sense of shame, then you are not up to standard as a person. Some people say, “I am unashamedly thick-skinned so I just take whatever I want.” But it depends on where you do that—doing that in God’s house will not work. God’s house is not a place that you can live off. If you insist on living off it, you are bound to bring calamity upon yourself. Some people think, “I’m as thick-skinned as a crocodile. No matter where I go, I act this way, parading around like I own the place! I don’t care what others say about me—who can do anything about me?” People may not be able to do anything about you, but since you believe in God, you should pay attention to how God measures and evaluates everything you do, how God defines you and what verdicts He passes on you. If you do not pay attention to this, are you still someone who believes in God? If you don’t even care about this, then you are a disbeliever. You may disregard what people say about you, but shouldn’t you care about God’s evaluation of you, His view on you, and the verdicts He passes on you? If God’s evaluation of you is that you are unashamedly thick-skinned, dead to embarrassment, and devoid of a sense of shame, that your humanity lacks many things, and that you are missing some very important things, then you should start conducting yourself anew—you must repent and stop coming up with your own reasoning. Even if you have thousands upon thousands of excuses, the single fact that you are unashamedly thick-skinned is enough to determine that there is a tremendous problem with your humanity and conscience. Measured by this alone, your problem is very serious. If you can understand what I am saying, you should repent and stop coming up with your own reasoning in your heart. Your reasoning stems from impetuousness, from emotions, from Satan—even if you believe your reasoning is not wrong, it is not the truth. God’s assessment of you is not entirely based on your corrupt dispositions. Before considering your corrupt dispositions, God first looks at your humanity. What your humanity is like and what your attitude toward each matter is like are determined by your character. What God observes is certainly accurate, and the standard by which He measures you also conforms to the truth. No matter whom He measures, it is never based on their outward appearance but on what they actually do, their revelations and manifestations in their daily lives, their thoughts, viewpoints, and attitudes when handling each matter, as well as their attitude toward positive things, toward the truth, and toward God. No matter how God ultimately defines or evaluates you, you won’t be wronged. It is not based on your temporary manifestation or occasional transgression; it is an evaluation that’s based on your overall manifestations. Therefore, God’s evaluation of each person is accurate and objective. Isn’t that so? (Yes.) The manifestation of being unashamedly thick-skinned involves a person’s character. Of course, to a certain extent, it also rises to the level of a corrupt disposition. Because such people have this aspect of humanity, it leads them to do certain things, and when they do these things, they reveal their corrupt disposition. Regardless of which kind of corrupt disposition is revealed, the corrupt dispositions revealed and the actions performed by unashamedly thick-skinned people are inseparable from their humanity. Thus, whether a person’s corrupt dispositions can change and be cast off depends on what their character is like. If their character is evil, if they resist the truth, are repulsed by and averse to the truth, and refuse to accept the truth, then their corrupt dispositions will be difficult to cast off, and they will not be able to attain salvation. However, if, in terms of their character, they are not an evil person, and they can comprehend and accept the truth, are not obstinate, and do not have problems of vile character, then their corrupt dispositions can be cast off. Everyone has corrupt dispositions, but what determines whether one can cast off corruption and attain salvation? (It depends on what one’s character is like.) Exactly—it depends on whether one’s humanity is good or bad.

Being Prone to Suspicion

Next, let’s discuss being prone to suspicion. Which manifestation that we just discussed is somewhat similar to being prone to suspicion? (Sensitivity.) What kind of problem is sensitivity? (A defect of humanity.) Being prone to suspicion is one level higher than sensitivity; the problem is more serious. Sensitivity is merely a sign of somewhat immature humanity, like that of a child, whereas being prone to suspicion involves some specific thoughts and viewpoints—it’s what is commonly known as overthinking, which indicates poor character. For example, someone asks a person who’s prone to suspicion to help purchase an item that costs ten yuan and especially emphasizes, “You absolutely can’t go over ten yuan. If it’s too expensive, don’t buy it.” After hearing this, they ponder, “Are you just being polite? You actually want an item that costs one hundred yuan but you’re too embarrassed to say it. I’ll buy it for you then, to make you happy and leave you with positive feelings toward me.” It then turns out, after they bring it back, that the other person says, “It’s too expensive. I only have ten yuan; I don’t have that much money.” So, by buying an item that costs one hundred yuan for that person, didn’t they end up making them suffer a loss? Yet, they cannot understand the other person and instead harbor doubts that this person doesn’t want to spend more money and is trying to take advantage of them. Tell Me, aren’t such people who are prone to doubts very troublesome? (Yes.) In what way are they troublesome? (Their thoughts are too complicated.) People with overly complicated thoughts are difficult to associate with. Tell Me, are people with straightforward personalities willing to associate with such people? (No.) You don’t know what they are thinking inside or in which direction their thoughts are going, and you cannot see through to their intentions or how they are doubting you. So when you entrust something to them to handle, even though it’s clearly a very simple small matter, they make it very complicated and cumbersome. As they, in the process, overcomplicate matters, even you feel exhausted and think it would have been better to do it yourself. You don’t want to associate with such people and just want to avoid them. For example, say that you have something you no longer need, and just leaving it there would be wasteful, and it would be a pity to throw it away, so you give it to a person of this sort. Not only do they not appreciate it, but they also doubt in their heart: “Why are you giving this to me? There must be something behind this. Are you trying to make me think that you’re a good person, to get me to owe you a favor, or are you trying to ask me to do something for you?” You never expected that they would think so much about such a small matter, that giving them a little something could lead to so much doubt. You have to say a lot of things to dispel their doubts. Isn’t this very troublesome? You begin to feel repelled by this person and after that, if you have something spare, you’d rather throw it away than give it to them. Why not give it to them? It’s not because you’re ruthless, but because you don’t want to incite trouble. In the past, someone had just rented a place, and there were no cleaning supplies in it. So, I brought over some cleaning items from home; some cleaning agents were full bottles, while others were half-full. The person who was renting the place looked at them and said: “Even though You’ve given these things to me for free, I’m not going to thank You—these are used. If they had been new, would You have given them to me?” Aren’t these words hurtful? (Yes.) Why are they hurtful? (A piece of good will was distorted by them in this way.) They took My good will for ill will. I didn’t ask you to thank Me, nor did I ask you to pay for the items. It’s simply that you’re renting a place, and there aren’t any cleaning supplies in it, and it’s inconvenient for you to go out and buy them. I just brought you some of what I have to make things more convenient for you. I wasn’t trying to suck up to you by letting you use these things—I don’t owe you anything, and I didn’t ask you to owe Me any favors either. They became suspicious over such a simple matter: “Hmph! What’s so great about this? You brought me a few things and now You think I owe You a favor! The stuff You brought isn’t anything good anyway—how could it be good if You’re just giving it away?” This person is really difficult to deal with. I didn’t claim that these were some kind of rare elixirs—they’re just some ordinary cleaning products. If you don’t want to use them, you don’t have to. Why make things so complicated? I realized that this person is hard to get along with and difficult to deal with. Wouldn’t it have been less trouble if I hadn’t brought anything at all? Not necessarily. Bringing nothing at all would likely also have caused trouble. They might still have thought, “I’m renting this place, and You didn’t even bring me any cleaning supplies. We’re supposed to be brothers and sisters, yet You haven’t shown me any love at all!” They would still have had something to say. The character of such people is very poor. They always use their own preferences and standards to measure whether others are good or bad. They constantly scrutinize and measure others with a harsh eye, thinking that they are morally superior while others all have a dark side to them, and that other people always have their own motives regardless of how they act, whereas they alone are not corrupt and are perfect.

People who are prone to suspicion have poor character. Since they have poor character, they will inevitably act under the dominance of this character. What they reveal will be corrupt dispositions, it will certainly not be normal humanity. If it is not normal humanity, then what exactly is it? This is related to corrupt dispositions. When it comes to being prone to suspicion, the representative corrupt dispositions revealed by such people in their actions and interactions with others are certainly wickedness and deceitfulness. Their thoughts are just that complicated, just that wicked and insidious. Since they themselves won’t lift a finger unless there’s something in it for them, they assume that everyone else is the same. Even if you are not that kind of person, they won’t believe it, and even if you try to explain, it won’t help—that’s just how they view you. They use a wicked method and a wicked disposition to view all things and matters and all people. Even if what you do is proper, accords with the needs of humanity, accords with the rationality of humanity, or accords with the truth principles, they will place a series of question marks behind it and ask you, “Why are you doing this? What is your motive?” You say, “I have no motive,” but they simply won’t believe it—they insist on pinning a motive on you and making you admit to it. Aren’t such people troublesome? (Yes.) It is difficult for people who are prone to suspicion to get along with others. Such people are certainly not simple and open, and, of course, they are not honest people. In their character, the elements of honesty, kindness, and rationality are basically all absent. So, what are the main components of their character? Paranoia, deceitfulness, wickedness, a lack of simplicity, and dishonesty. They view all people and all issues as being very complicated. Even if you speak honestly to them, they will analyze and ponder why you said it. Even if they have interacted with you for a long time and know what your character is like, they will still often adopt an attitude of suspicion toward you when conversing, handling matters, or associating with you. So, such people are very troublesome. Interacting with them adds a lot of burdens and formalities, and you also have to do a lot of homework and get to know them—getting to know what things they don’t like, and what they don’t like to do or don’t like to talk about. Otherwise, if you are not careful you may offend them or, in their view, hurt them. They treat people this way, so how do they treat God? (They treat God the same way.) Would they treat God with sincerity? (No.) For example, when the church arranges for them to do a duty, they start pondering, “Does God know that I’m doing this duty? Will He remember it? How much effort should I put in to get by and for it to be remembered before God?” After doing their duty for a period of time, they also probe into how the leaders and workers view them and whether they have any negative evaluations of them. Just what sort of humanity is this? Judging from the humanity manifested through the attitude with which they handle matters, such people are very troublesome, and it is not easy for them to accept the truth. Why is that? Because it is difficult for them to be honest people; their conscience lacks a sense of justice, their reason is not sound, and their way of judging things is irrational. Why do I say it’s irrational? Because they are relatively extreme, prone to getting fixated on things, and vile—they don’t view things using the manner of thinking of normal humanity. They aren’t open and candid but instead live in an especially dark way. Yet, they never feel that they live in a dark way and even think that they are smarter than others, and that they live with more refinement and attention to detail than others. They particularly admire their own cleverness. This is called thinking oneself to be clever. People who think themselves to be clever are very lacking in terms of the reason of their humanity, and in terms of the sense of justice within their conscience. Therefore, the humanity of such people is poor, and others are unwilling to be in contact with them. No matter who says something, such people will make an issue out of it. What they interpret are all extreme things that are distorted, of impetuousness, of Satan, and of emotions—they are all things that are dark and negative, things that are contrary to the truth and resist the truth. These things cannot guide people onto the right path at all. So, people of this sort are very repulsive and disgusting. They live in dark corners and in their own little world. They are especially narcissistic and self-admiring, thinking that they live more exquisite, noble, honorable, and dignified lives than others—no one may touch them. In fact, the character of such people is very lowly, and they have no real dignity. What is meant by a lack of real dignity is that their character is especially poor, because what arises from their humanity are all dark things that cannot be brought into the open, not upright and straightforward things. Therefore, such people have no dignity to speak of. What consequences are likely to be brought about by people being prone to suspicion? In plain terms, such people are full of cunning trickery. Being prone to suspicion means that these people harbor lots of cunning schemes. Look at how the demon kings oppress and arrest God’s chosen people—they harbor so many cunning schemes, ultimately harming people to the extent that their families break up, with some of the members dying, and become separated from each other. That is the doing of demons and demon kings. Therefore, none of those who are prone to suspicion are anything good. Believers in God should view people and things based on the truth principles, they must not engage in random suspicion, and there must be evidence behind what they say. The thoughts you develop when viewing a person or a matter should at least be positive and agreeable to others. Better yet, they should conform to the truth principles, be helpful to others, and have a positive influence on them. However, none of the thoughts and viewpoints generated by people who are prone to suspicion conform to the truth; at the very least, they are not positive things—that is, the perspective such people consider problems from or the thoughts and ideas they produce simply do not conform to the truth. Therefore, people of this sort live in dark corners and have no integrity or dignity to speak of. The things that arise from their thoughts are all dark and wicked—these things do not conform to the truth principles and will not have a positive influence on people or their lives. If you accept the various thoughts and viewpoints that arise from such people’s suspicion, you become poisoned and are dragged down by them—this is tantamount to being corrupted by Satan. However, if you have discernment of such people and treat them as a negative example, you can make some progress and gain some discernment in understanding negative things. This concludes our discussion on being prone to suspicion.

Ineptitude

Next, let’s talk about ineptitude. Everyone understands what ineptitude means—it refers to being unable to handle anything well, appearing impotent, just like when people often say: “Why are you so inept? You really have no prospects!” Is ineptitude good? (No.) Then let’s categorize it—what is it? (It is a defect of humanity.) Ineptitude is clearly a defect of humanity. Ineptitude means that a person has very low intelligence in handling matters and poor survival abilities—this is referred to as ineptitude. Some people speak in a clumsy manner, unable to express themselves; some even have bashful, introverted personalities—when they have to speak in front of a lot of people or be in the limelight, they get stage fright, feel timid, and do not dare to speak, and they are often bullied by others. Some evil people believe that bullying such people is justified, and that it is very fun and enjoyable—they make fun of and tease people of this sort every day. Inept people have a poor ability to handle matters. It may be that some of them also have poor survival abilities, are unable to earn money, and are always very timorous and overly cautious around others. When they see formidable people they avoid them and do not dare to speak. Even when they are bullied, they do not dare to resist, fearing they might offend others. Judging from the manifestations of ineptitude in the humanity of people of this sort, this is merely a kind of defect of humanity. Nobody’s ineptitude ever caused them to develop erroneous thoughts and viewpoints or to bring any adverse impacts upon themselves or others; therefore, ineptitude is just a defect of humanity. Does anyone want to be an inept person? (No.) No one wants to be an inept person—why is that? Inept people are bullied, and everyone looks down on them, right? (Right.) If you were asked to choose between being evil and being inept, you would certainly choose being evil rather than being inept. You would think to yourself: “I will never be an inept person! In this society, inept people are mistreated and bullied, they’re unpopular; no matter where they go, they are looked down on and trampled underfoot by others. Not only do they have no sense of presence, but even their right to survival might be taken away. But being an evil person is different—wherever evil people go, others fear them and treat them with great respect. No one dares to provoke them. Wherever they go, they enjoy privileges and can even ride roughshod over others. Evil people thrive wherever they are in this world.” If you were asked to choose now, none of you would choose to be inept people—you would all choose to be evil people. Is this viewpoint correct? (No.) Why is it not correct? Which truth principle does this contradict? Ineptitude is a defect of humanity. The most common manifestations are being unable to handle anything well, being discriminated against and excluded. Because inept people are bullied, and trampled underfoot in society, no one is willing to be inept. People all envy those who are capable and skilled, and they even all wish to stand out from others, to gain power and influence, and to ride roughshod over others, to have privileges and prestige within any group, not only avoiding being bullied by others but also being able to bully others at will. Is this kind of thought and viewpoint correct? Does it conform to the truth? (No.) You have listened to so many truths, yet even now you still approve of evil people—this means that your disposition is also quite wicked. Whoever you see that is evil, you envy and admire them. You know full well in your heart that evil people are bad, yet you can’t help but follow them, feeling that doing so gives you a means of support and prevents you from being bullied. When you see inept people, you feel repelled by them and look down on them, even wanting to trample on them. But have you ever considered how much evil you would commit and how much retribution you would receive if you followed evil people? What would the chances of you receiving salvation be if you followed evil people? Would you be able to avoid committing evil if you followed evil people? Let’s say you follow evil people, serving them faithfully and acting as their subordinate. They may share a piece of the pie with you, and you may be able to follow them to ride roughshod over others and have the best food and drink, experiencing great enjoyment, avoiding being bullied, and gaining status among others in this life. But you must commit a great deal of evil to enjoy these things! Do you know how much retribution and how severe a punishment you will receive? Is this the right path? (No.) So, are you still willing to make the sacrifice of choosing to commit evil and receive punishment all for the sake of not being an inept person and avoiding being bullied—sacrificing your destination and fate in exchange for pleasure in this life? Is this your thought and viewpoint? Some people actually hold this kind of viewpoint—they would rather choose to be evil people than be inept and bullied. Isn’t this wishing to walk the path of evil people? Ineptitude is merely a defect of humanity—what’s so bad about that? Is bullying others and committing evil really the better choice? If God does not let you starve and provides you with food to eat, could you really starve to death? If God allows you to live with joy, freedom, happiness, delight, and peace, you will lack none of these things. So what if others bully you? No one can take these things away from you—what God grants you, no one can take away. If you follow evil people and walk the path of evil people, the pleasures you enjoy will all be sinful pleasures. Additionally, any money or material enjoyment you gain by means of committing evil will be obtained by forceful seizure, the enjoyment you experience in this life will exceed what God has given you, and so you will have to repay it with multiple lifetimes in the future. Obtaining the pleasures of the flesh in this life at the expense of receiving punishment—isn’t this not walking the right path? You would rather choose to be evil people than be bullied—this reflects your perception and treasuring of evil in the depths of your soul. So, what’s so bad about being inept? Looking at it from the perspective of humanity, it is a type of defect, but it is also an innate condition, which is something that people cannot change. Inept people did not become inept by their own choice. Although it is a defect, it is not a corrupt disposition, it is not a problem of one’s character. So what’s so bad about it? If, because of your ineptitude and low status, you are often bullied and can deeply understand the injustice and evil of this world and the darkness of this society, and as a result sincerely come before God to accept God’s sovereignty, and willingly submit to God’s dominion and orchestrations, letting God take charge of your fate—then isn’t this ineptitude a form of protection for you? Ineptitude is not a negative thing; it is merely a type of defect of humanity. What does defect refer to? It means an inadequacy, a minor issue, a blemish—it is merely something that is imperfect, somewhat lacking, not entirely to one’s liking, or not ideal, but it does not indicate poor or vile character. So why can’t you tolerate this minor defect? What’s more, this minor defect can bring great benefits to your life entry. Or it could be said that some people, because they have this defect of humanity, this innate condition, are more capable of wholeheartedly following God to the end. Ultimately, because they can accept the truth, submit to God, and possess a God-fearing heart, they are able to cast off their corrupt dispositions and receive salvation. From this perspective, it is a blessing—people should not refuse to be inept. What’s so bad about being inept? A person’s corrupt disposition will not worsen because of ineptitude. God will not look down on someone or refuse to save them because they are inept, nor will ineptitude impact them accepting the truth or being saved. So, your thought and viewpoint has to change—it is still quite far off. Some people say, “I would rather be an evil person than an inept person. Inept people have no prospects, they are looked down on by everyone, and even they look down on themselves. Being an inept person is pointless; being an evil person is awesome—you can do whatever you want, bully whoever seems easy to bully, and no one dares to resist. How glamorous it is to live that way!” What benefit is there in glamor? If you prosper and live glamorously in the world, your prospects and destination will be ruined. You will no longer be able to come before God, and you will no longer feel attached to God; God will no longer appeal to you, and the living environment and work environment of God’s house will no longer appeal to you. You will leave God and search for a living environment where you can bring your strong suits into play and realize your value. God’s house restricts people’s evildoing, and no evil person can get anywhere or stand firm in God’s house. If you like evil people and want to become one, can you still remain in God’s house? Sooner or later, you will be cleansed away. Not only will you fail to obtain a good destination, but after death, you will also receive punishment for the evil you committed. Therefore, although ineptitude is a defect of humanity, it’s not a corrupt disposition, nor does it mean that one’s humanity is evil. Who doesn’t have some flaws? Ineptitude is just like how some people are born with stutters or how some people are born a bit ugly—these are all innate defects. Humans have different skin colors—some people are born white, some are born with yellow skin, and some are born with black skin. This is an innate condition. People with yellow skin may appear to be not so healthy, with a not-so-great complexion—this is a minor defect. People with black skin appear more robust, yet no one wants to have black skin. People with white skin are generally envied, but even among them, some feel that being too pale isn’t good, and so they like to tan their skin to a bronze color, believing it makes them look healthy and gives their skin a glow. You see, ineptitude is the same as people’s various innate conditions—it is just that it is a kind of defect. So, is it a major problem? (No.) Therefore, even though this problem is a defect of humanity, it does not impact your acceptance of the truth or your understanding of the truth. So, do you still resist being an inept person? (Not anymore.) Will you still bully inept people when you see them? (No.) You used to bully them quite a bit, didn’t you? Now, when you see inept people, will you still look down on and belittle them? (No.) If you yourself are an inept person, you even more so should not look down on yourself. If you’re inept, then so be it—practice being an honest person according to God’s words. Though you may be inept, you should be honest and not deceitful, and God likes this kind of person. What does God like? It’s not your ineptitude. It’s that because of your ineptitude, you are willing to be an honest person; it’s that because you are looked down on and cannot find favor with people, you think of ways to be an honest person to make God happy and to satisfy God, and you do whatever God says. In this way, your ineptitude becomes a benefit, doesn’t it? (Yes.) Has your viewpoint changed now? (Yes.) Of course, not all inept people are necessarily able to accept the truth. Some people, in addition to having the defect of ineptitude in their humanity, also have problems with their character. This cannot be generalized. In itself, ineptitude is not a major problem, but you must also look at what someone’s character is like. If someone is deceitful or has a vile character—if they’re unashamedly thick-skinned, prone to suspicion, sensitive, obstinate, or even have a vicious disposition—then that person is not anything good. So, an inept person is not necessarily someone with good character. Alright, that’s all for our discussion on ineptitude.

Kindheartedness

The next manifestation is kindheartedness. This manifestation is a merit of humanity. After we’ve discussed so much, we have finally arrived at a merit of humanity; there truly are not many merits of humanity. Kindheartedness is a type of merit of humanity. Since it is a merit, we must speak about it in detail because most people do not possess the manifestations of the few merits of humanity that can be found in people. So, let’s take a look; where do the merits of kindheartedness lie? (Kindheartedness means that someone is relatively genuine. When they handle things, others feel relatively reassured. They carry a burden to handle well the tasks that are entrusted to them.) (Kindhearted people have relatively good moral conduct, will consider others, and think on behalf of others.) Thinking on behalf of others—this is a noble style! Such people are noble, but is kindheartedness so noble? (No.) Kindheartedness simply means that a person’s thoughts are not so complex; they are relatively simple, not treacherous; they are generous and not harsh toward others, and they do not calculate personal gains and losses when associating with others. Someone insults them, and they feel upset for a while, but then they think, “Forget it,” and let the matter go. Someone owes them money for a long time without repaying, and they think this over: “It would be embarrassing to urge them to pay. Besides, they have it tough, and at that time, I was better off than they were. I lent it, and that’s that. I’ll just consider it as helping the poor.” You see, their thoughts are relatively magnanimous and tolerant. For example, when others misunderstand them, they do not mind and do not defend themselves. When others judge them and call them foolish, they do not care. When doing their duty, they do not feel it is tiring, and do things others are unwilling to do. Someone mocks them, saying, “Everyone else is resting, so why are you still working?” They respond, “What’s the harm in doing a bit more? It doesn’t exhaust me. Can working really wear someone out? If others don’t do it, then let them be. Since I can do it, I’ll just do a bit more.” They do not fuss over such matters and take action to do the work. They do not fuss much over gains and losses, nor do they fuss much over face or status. Even when they suffer losses themselves, they do not mention it. When others encounter difficulties, they take the initiative to help. Their assistance is without their own intention and purpose, and if others want to repay them a favor, they feel that helping a little is no big deal and is something they should do. Even if others do not appreciate their help after they have given it, they do not fuss over such things. When it is time to help others, they will still help. Are there many such people? (Not many.) There are not many such people. Even though they are kindhearted, they have certain boundaries in how they conduct themselves. For example, some people always want to take advantage of such a person, taking them for a fool. After taking advantage, they say some pleasant words to sweet-talk them, and after a while, they take advantage of them again. When the kindhearted person sees that there will be no end to this, they do not fuss over, argue, or reason with them. In their heart, they know that such people are not good and are not suitable for associating with, so they ignore them from then on. However, they do not judge them behind their backs. At most, when someone asks about a person of this sort, they say, “That person just likes to take small advantages.” They do not exaggerate, nor do they judge people with impetuousness; they simply speak to the matter at hand. The humanity of kindhearted people is really quite good. Their merit is that they do not fuss too much over things. Whatever they do, they do not act based on impetuousness, emotions, or feelings; they only do what people should do and fulfill the responsibilities people should fulfill. Within the scope of normal interpersonal relationships, they do what they ought to do; whatever they can do, they try their best to do it, striving to help others, and they do so sincerely and earnestly. Some of them do not even seek any reward, thinking, “I’m just lending a hand. You don’t need to feel like you owe me much, nor do you need to feel like you can never repay me just because you owe me this bit, always acting servile and overly respectful in front of me. That’s unnecessary.” Such individuals have the best humanity among people. They are not treacherous, nor are they harsh toward others. They are warmhearted, and there is a kind side to their humanity. They do whatever they are capable of, do not fuss much over personal gains and losses, and do not care much about rewards. This is a merit of humanity. Look around you and see who possesses such merits. If a person possesses such character, then they can be considered a good person, a decent person, among corrupt humankind. They do not fuss over things, are not treacherous, are not harsh toward others, and help others without seeking profit. They are especially tolerant of others and very magnanimous in their self-conduct. What does it mean to be very magnanimous? It means not fussing endlessly over trivial matters, and not harboring resentment when others take advantage of them. This is called being magnanimous, and it is a major merit of humanity. Kindheartedness is also a merit, and magnanimity is likewise a merit. This is unlike those who are petty, prone to suspicion, sensitive, and obstinate—these people fuss over trivial matters endlessly, get angry at the drop of a hat, swell with anger, wear a frighteningly cold expression, ignore anyone who speaks to them, and think of nothing other than how to take revenge on others. None of these are things that normal people should have. Kindhearted people do not have those complicated matters in their thoughts, nor do they have suspicious thoughts about others. Everything in their hearts is what normal people should have; it particularly conforms to the conscience and reason of humanity, as well as to the standard of a sense of justice and kindness in humanity. When you associate with them, you feel very relaxed and you feel that things are very simple—there aren’t so many troublesome matters, and you don’t need to guard against anything. You don’t have to speculate about their thoughts or play guessing games. Even if you accidentally hurt them, you don’t have to worry about any consequences—of course, you also don’t need to bear any consequences. It’s possible that when you’re angry, you become impetuous and yell a few harsh words at them, and at the time, they quarrel and argue with you too, but after the argument, they do not hold a grudge, nor will they scheme against or take revenge on you. You don’t need to worry that if they gain status, they will make things difficult for you or nitpick at you, nor do you need to worry that they will target you for no reason. They do not have such things inside them—they are just this simple. They absolutely wouldn’t keep holding things against you from that point on. Once the matter is over, it’s over. Afterward, when they speak to you, they still treat you normally. Even if they were angry at the time and quarreled with you, they do not hold a grudge against you afterward. They know that you only said a few angry words, and they can understand it: “Who doesn’t say some harsh words when they’re angry? It wasn’t intentional. Besides, everyone has corrupt dispositions, everyone has times when they’re in a bad mood, and everyone has impetuousness. Afterward, as long as everyone calms down, admits their mistakes, and reflects on the fact that they revealed corrupt dispositions and failed to act according to principles, that’s okay.” They will forgive you, unlike evil people, who hound you relentlessly and will not stop until they ruin you. Kindhearted people generally do not have a heart for revenge. If you do something that offends them, they may sometimes hate you, but they would absolutely not violate the morality of humanity and use despicable means to torment you. Even though they have corrupt dispositions and may say or do some things based on those corrupt dispositions—such as mentioning mistakes you’ve made in the past or pruning you—they would not fabricate things out of thin air or use the power they wield to attack or take revenge on you. Even if they want to attack or take revenge on you and they have this kind of corrupt disposition, because their humanity possesses the merit of kindheartedness, when they want to take revenge, they will be restrained, and they will be able to keep things within proper bounds. If a corrupt human with power can still achieve this level, it is already quite commendable. Most people, if they do not possess this merit, are unable to attain even this degree of restraint and cannot refrain from attacking and taking revenge on others.

The manifestation or revelation of kindheartedness is a merit of humanity. This merit of humanity, to a large extent, will restrain or prompt people, enabling them to gain a certain degree of control and restraint when their corrupt disposition is revealed. If such a kindhearted person is someone who has spiritual understanding, who can comprehend the truth and accept the truth, then this merit of their humanity can enable them to adhere more strictly to the truth principles when viewing people and things, and conducting themselves and acting, isn’t that so? (Yes.) A cunning person, on the other hand, is much craftier and is different from a kindhearted person. After doing something bad, not only do they not reflect on themselves, but they even intensify their wrongdoing and carry it through to the end. This turns them into a devil, completely contrary to the principles by which a kindhearted person acts. For example, if someone is a kindhearted person and possesses this merit of humanity, then when arguing with you, they will speak based on facts. They will not exaggerate, fabricate some negative things about you out of thin air, or defame you and insult your integrity because they are angry with you. They absolutely would not do such things. When arguing with you, they may reveal an arrogant or vicious disposition, but the words they say are absolutely restrained by their conscience, reason, and kindhearted humanity. In this way, at a certain level, the degree of harm inflicted on you is reduced. Evil people, however, lack the kindhearted aspect of humanity. How do evil people quarrel? “You are a slut, a prostitute! I insult eight generations of your ancestors and curse eight generations of your ancestors!” They will say all kinds of harsh and malicious things. This is what evil people are like—their character is vile. Some people with vile character do not base their insults on facts. Why do they not base them on facts? Because they lack conscience and do not meet the standards of conscience. When they insult others, they are not restricted by their conscience. They hurl abuse recklessly, saying whatever insults come to mind. Whatever words can vent their hatred, deeply wound your heart, and drive you mad with anger—those are the words they will say. Their insults can practically infuriate you to death. Such people have no kindness in their hearts and are full of malice. What evil people reveal are primarily arrogance and viciousness, these two kinds of dispositions. In essence, the words they hurl carry curses, are filled with Satan’s malice, and have sufficient destructive power; they can even hurl the most malicious words of cursing. If you have humanity or if your humanity is kindhearted, then you cannot say such insults; moreover, you cannot fabricate things out of thin air. This is because you have a sense of conscience and you have rationality, and the aspect of being good-natured and kindhearted within your conscience greatly restrains and controls you, making it impossible for you to say such insults. When someone insults you, you feel angry and want to insult eight generations of their ancestors and curse them, saying that they should go to hell, but you think it over: “What gives me the right to curse them? I am not God, and I do not have the final say.” You also want to insult them back with vulgar words, but you think it over: “If I use vulgar words, even I will feel disgusted—what will the people around me think of me? Wouldn’t that mean I have no integrity or dignity? Wouldn’t I be acting like a shrew? I won’t be that kind of person.” You cannot bring yourself to insult them. So to a large extent, your speech is restrained, and what you are able to bring yourself to say is very limited. At most, you might say, “You are Satan, your corrupt disposition is severe, you cannot attain salvation, and God does not like you.” You might at most say a few of such things, but then you think it over: “Whether God dislikes someone is not for me to decide,” and so you lack confidence when you say that. When someone insults you and curses you, telling you to go to the eighteenth level of hell, you think to yourself: “Cursing someone, telling them to go to the eighteenth level of hell—those words are far too harsh! I couldn’t say something like that. I must be softer with my words!” Why are you able to have these thoughts? Because what exists within your humanity is different from that of evil people. If you are kindhearted and good-natured, and you have conscience and reason, the words you say will be very rational. You might, within the bounds of your conscience, say some angry words or let some foul words slip, but after saying them, you feel very upset yourself and haven’t really hurt the other person—your words lack destructive power. Evil people become more delighted the more they insult others, whereas you become more upset the more you insult others—you think to yourself: “Forget it, stooping to the same level as such a despicable character and evil person is worthless and meaningless. I won’t quarrel with them anymore.” Arguing with an evil person is as utterly ineffective as trying to speak about the truth with Satan. There is no need to argue or fuss over things with them. Just stay away from such people in the future. Would you think about harming them? Would you think about taking revenge on them and find an opportunity to teach them a lesson? You don’t have that kind of cruel heart. You just keep telling yourself, “Forget it. A few insults from them haven’t caused me any loss; I won’t fuss over it with them.” Some people even comfort themselves by saying, “Anyway, God hasn’t cursed me. Their curses don’t have any effect.” In fact, because you have conscience and reason, and you are kindhearted and good-natured within your humanity, you simply cannot say those insults. You find them dirty and demeaning. If those words were to come out of your mouth, you would feel they go against your conscience. Especially when it comes to fabrications or baseless matters, you even more so cannot say them. Being unable to say them is, for you, a safeguard. Their words have significant destructive power and have caused you harm—this is their evil deed. How did this evil deed come about? It is because their humanity contains vile qualities. When they have conflicts or disputes with you, their corrupt disposition inflates without limit, and they can curse you wantonly. They have this kind of vile character, so naturally they reveal a corrupt disposition. If you, on the other hand, are a kindhearted and good-natured person with conscience, reason, and humanity, in this kind of situation, not only would you not vent your corrupt disposition, but your humanity would, to a large extent, restrain the revelation of your corrupt disposition. This is extremely beneficial for you. On the surface, it seems you have suffered a loss, are at a disadvantage, and cannot beat them in a quarrel, becoming a laughingstock for others. In fact, your humanity has protected you, preventing you from committing evil, doing things that God does not find pleasing, or saying words that God does not find pleasing. In this way, hasn’t it, to some extent, protected you? (Yes.) This merit of humanity has, to a large extent, protected you, preventing you from further doing things that God does not find pleasing or detests, or saying words that God detests and condemns, when revealing a corrupt disposition. Although this does not count as a good deed, at the very least, you have not committed evil. What you did in this situation will not be condemned, and you will not be punished for it. In contrast, evil people will not only be condemned but also punished for the things they do under the dominance of their vile character. They will have to bear the consequences and bear responsibility. Therefore, people who possess various merits in their humanity may appear to lose face, status, and dignity in some matters, and especially lose the opportunity to take the initiative to argue their reason, but this is not suffering a loss. Some people say, “If it’s not suffering a loss, does that mean it’s taking advantage?” It cannot be measured in terms of suffering losses or taking advantage. So how should it be measured? It should be measured like this: Suffering a loss in some situation doesn’t matter; the key is that you can gain benefit from it. In this situation, it is the merits of your humanity that have safeguarded your behavior, preventing you from committing evil and ensuring that you are not condemned by God. Isn’t this gaining benefit? Now you cannot possibly suffer punishment as a result of committing evil. Isn’t this a good thing for you? (Yes.) Even though it is not a good deed you actively performed, nor an action of actively adhering to the truth principles, within the framework of having merits in your humanity, you have done something that does not violate the truth principles. In this way, you are protected. Although it will not be remembered, at the very least, it is not condemned. And so you do not need to bear any responsibility or suffer punishment. Isn’t this a good thing? (Yes.) In the process of following God, regardless of whether what you do conforms to the truth and regardless of how God views it, at the very least, you have a clear conscience. Even if God does not remember it, you should at least avoid being condemned by God or making God hate you. This is the most basic principle you should follow. Aren’t merits of humanity very important to people? (Yes.) So don’t feel constantly unwilling just because you think that having some merits of humanity makes you unpopular among people, you will always miss out on taking advantage or gaining benefits, and all the advantages will be taken by others while you will always be the one suffering a loss. What’s so bad about suffering a loss? At the very least, what you are enjoying is what God originally gave to you, and you have not taken what belongs to others. If you take advantage, that is not right—it means you have taken from others’ share. If you take what does not belong to you, you will be condemned by God. People should not do things that are condemned by God. Some people say, “I don’t know what kind of actions I should do that will be remembered by God.” But do you know which actions are condemned by God? If you do, then at the very least, you should adhere to this boundary: Don’t do things that are condemned by God. Do you understand? (Yes.) Now that we’ve discussed these matters more, you should understand.

The merit of kindheartedness in humanity is absent in most people. However, if someone truly possesses this merit, then they are truly a good person among corrupt humankind—such people are very rare. If you truly possess this merit, God will bless you, God will show grace to you at every turn. In human terms, it means that God will care for you at every turn. How does He care for you? God’s care for you is that even though you always think of others and give up your own interests, and others take advantage of you, they cannot receive God’s blessings. They can only live by taking advantage of others and will have to repay this in the next life. However, you live by God’s blessings. Although others may take advantage of you, in actuality, you lose nothing. Tell Me, is this good? (Yes.) You see, kindhearted people outwardly seem to always suffer losses. People see them as simple and honest, so when speaking and acting they always take advantage of them, treating them like fools, bullying them, extracting both money and benefits from them, and seizing many of their possessions. But do you see kindhearted people lacking anything? They lack nothing. They are abundantly provided for in everything. When doing things, they have intelligence and wisdom and do not worry. Whatever duty God’s house assigns to them, they do not fuss over gains and losses, nor do they fight or compete. They simply do whatever they are asked to do. Regardless of the task, they rarely make mistakes. Even if occasional minor problems or small errors occur, they are not intentional. They put their hearts into what they do, they pass the minimum baseline in terms of their conscience and reason, and they can accept God’s scrutiny. Therefore, such people can receive God’s blessings. Since you know kindheartedness is a merit of humanity, should you strive toward this in your self-conduct? (Yes.) Don’t fuss over minor issues, and don’t be like someone so prickly that no one dares to approach or provoke them—don’t be that kind of person. If others take a little advantage of you, don’t always feel like they are bullying you. What’s so bad about being a bit simpler and more honest? Some people are overly shrewd and always want to prove they’re not foolish, saying, “Don’t take me for a fool. I’ve got brains! I can see who doesn’t like me or treats me poorly. I can tell who looks down on me and whose words are full of sarcasm or hidden jabs.” Being able to see and hear such things is useless. This is just petty cleverness and shrewdness. Having this bit of shrewdness does not mean you have wisdom or that you are truly smart. On the contrary, people will look down on you, because even animals possess this kind of shrewdness and these petty thoughts. Why do I say this? Those who have close contact with animals all know this: Even small animals can understand when you say pleasant or unpleasant things about them. For example, if a dog hears you say unpleasant words, it will immediately become unhappy, while it can also tell if you say some obviously pleasant words. If people always use things that even small animals possess to measure themselves, doesn’t that degrade their own attribute of being human? By lowering the standard for measuring created humankind, you are devaluing yourself. Don’t always say things like, “Don’t think I’m foolish and treat me like a three-year-old. If you give me cornbread, I definitely won’t eat it; bring me dumplings instead. Who doesn’t know that dumplings are delicious?” Don’t use such foolish words to try to prove that you’re not foolish. If you are truly not foolish, then strive to meet the standards of humanity. What should be present in people’s conscience and reason, what the manifestations of the merits of humanity are, what the manifestations of the shortcomings of humanity and poor character are—fellowship on and understand these aspects. Fellowship a bit about what people should possess in their humanity and what created humankind should possess, then strive toward them and work hard to possess these things. Won’t this elevate your personal value? Will you ever get anywhere by constantly comparing your intelligence with that of a three-year-old? Can you ever grow up that way? A three-year-old child says, “I can drink milk from a plastic feeding bottle,” and you say, “I can drink from a glass bottle, and I’m not afraid of burning my hands.” The three-year-old says, “I can tell left from right when wearing shoes,” and you say, “I can tell the front from the back when putting on a sweater. Can you do that?” Will you ever get anywhere like this? If your intelligence, character, and the various abilities that your humanity should possess remain stuck at the stage of a three-year-old child or a minor, then it will be very difficult for you to become a mature person or have others treat you as an adult. How can you get others to treat you as an adult? You need to do the things that adults should do and the things that created humans should do. You must possess the humanity that created humans ought to have. What should this humanity, at the very least, possess? Conscience, reason, and various aspects of good character. In this way, you will gradually improve and make progress in regard to the defects and problems of your humanity. Then, it will become much easier to enter into the truth, and there will be fewer obstacles.

The merit of kindheartedness in humanity is quite rare and is not possessed by most people. So how can one achieve this merit? When you do not understand any truths, it is very difficult to possess this merit of humanity and to be such a person. However, once you comprehend some truths, you will have a path to becoming such a person, and you will have hope of achieving this. As for whether you can achieve it and ultimately obtain results, it depends on whether you can gain the truth and have life entry. How should one practice to achieve this merit? No matter what someone does or says to you, do not treat it based on impetuousness or emotions. Do not analyze what their intentions toward you are, how much harm they have caused you personally, or how much damage they have done to your reputation. Do not treat any of these matters based on your mind, human will, or philosophies for worldly dealings. So how should you treat them? Treat all things based on God’s words and the truth principles. Strive to ensure that in every environment and when facing every person, whether speaking with them, associating with them, or handling a specific matter, you seek the truth principles and act according to them. This approach will, to a great extent, have an optimizing effect on your humanity. That is, it will provide a certain measure of support to the conscience and reason of your humanity, helping you develop a sense of justice and enabling you to view people and things from the correct position and perspective. This is what is called optimization. Optimization is making your originally poor humanity good, making it normal. So how did your original poor humanity come about? It resulted from the influence and dominance of corrupt dispositions. Now, if you conduct yourself and act based on God’s words and the truth principles, then when you act, your humanity will be influenced by God’s words and the truth to a great extent. This influence is what is called optimization. Of course, this optimization doesn’t mean that your humanity will change and your character will become noble through a single event. Instead, it comes from practicing and experiencing taking God’s words and the truth as your criteria, style, and direction for acting over a long period of time, during which you will increasingly understand the truth and handle matters with increasing adherence to principles. In this way, your humanity will gradually change and develop in a positive direction. You will increasingly develop a sense of conscience, become increasingly kind, and increasingly have a sense of justice. Your reason will become increasingly normal, and you will no longer act based on impetuousness or be impulsive. Thus, to a large extent, the restraint that your humanity has over your corrupt disposition will grow increasingly strong. On the foundation of such a condition of humanity, the restraint over your revelations of corrupt dispositions will increasingly strengthen and become increasingly powerful. Thus, your revelations of corrupt dispositions will increasingly diminish, and the degree will become increasingly shallow. The actions you take or the viewpoints you reveal will increasingly conform to positive things and the truth principles. This kind of phenomenon, this kind of revelation, indicates that a person’s life is undergoing transformation. Specifically, if you view people and things, and conduct yourself and act, according to God’s words, with the truth as your criterion, then your humanity will become increasingly normal, and your revelations of corrupt dispositions will increasingly diminish. Gradually, you will cast off your corrupt disposition. This is a positive cycle. However, if you view people and things, and conduct yourself and act, according to Satan’s logic, then to a large extent, this will defile and corrode your humanity. Your corrupt disposition will increasingly inflate and become increasingly severe. This is a vicious cycle. Viewing people and things, and conducting yourself and acting, according to God’s words is a positive cycle. Viewing people and things, and conducting yourself and acting, according to Satan’s logic can only lead you to endlessly circle within the life and setting of a vicious cycle, never able to break free. If you want to enter into a positive cycle, the simplest and most straightforward approach is to begin reflecting on and understanding yourself starting from the defects of your humanity and your revelations of corruption, resolving your corrupt dispositions using God’s words and the truth principles as a basis, thus achieving the result of being able to practice the truth and submit to God. In this way, your life will enter into a positive cycle, your humanity will become increasingly normal, and your corrupt dispositions will gradually be transformed and cast off. This is the process of life entry and also the necessary process for people to cast off their corrupt dispositions and attain salvation. Of course, this is also a path to entry. The defects and flaws of humanity, as well as the problems of vile character and lacking integrity, that we have discussed—if you identify these problems in yourself, you should seek the truth to resolve them. Then, replace them by practicing God’s words and the truth. In this way, you will enter into a positive cycle. Ultimately, what you gain is not only a transformation of humanity but also the casting off of your corrupt dispositions. The foundation of your corrupt dispositions that you rely on for survival will be transformed. Practicing in this way gives you hope of attaining salvation. However, if you do not seek the truth or practice the truth in this way, and you think in your heart, “You say I am petty, that I have defects and flaws in my humanity like being obstinate, unashamedly thick-skinned and prone to suspicion. Well, that’s just how I am, and that’s how I’ll live. I won’t change. Say whatever you like! Anyway, I just don’t want to suffer losses. As long as I can take advantage, I’m fine!”—if these are your thoughts and viewpoints, then, unfortunately, you will fall into the terrible spiral of a vicious cycle, forever unable to get out. What will the final consequence be? It will be one you probably don’t want to see: Your corrupt dispositions will forever be your life. They will bind you tightly for your entire life, becoming deeply rooted in your thoughts and the depths of your soul, and it will be impossible for you to cast them off. What does it mean for it to be impossible to cast them off? It means you have no hope of attaining salvation, and you have no share in the destination God has prepared for humankind. This is the consequence. If you do not want to see this consequence, then start entering and practicing along the path I have described, and achieve a positive cycle; and ultimately you will certainly reap results. Do you understand? (Yes.)

Although we didn’t cover many different topics in today’s fellowship, we discussed a lot of content. Let’s conclude today’s fellowship here. We’ll continue fellowshipping other topics and content later. Goodbye!

December 2, 2023