Christmas Reflection: Are You Truly Worshiping the Lord Jesus?

By Siyuan

The Origins of Christmas

Every year, as Christmas approaches, shops on the street arrange a dazzling display of Christmas presents, with Santa Claus and Christmas trees, and so on. Festooned in trees and on buildings there are many-colored lights, and whole cities are decorated with lanterns and colored hangings, and everywhere there is joy and excitement. To Christianity, Christmas is a very special holiday, and several months before Christmas, many churches will begin to busy themselves preparing everything necessary for the Christmas holiday. On Christmas Day, the churches are filled, and brothers and sisters get involved in the celebrations, eating Christmas dinner, putting on performances and worshiping the Lord Jesus, and so on. Everyone’s face is flushed with happiness. However, when we get together in joyous gatherings to celebrate the Lord Jesus’ birth, do we understand the meaning of Christmas? Perhaps brothers and sisters will say, “The Lord Jesus was nailed upon the cross to redeem all mankind, and so as to remember and celebrate the Lord Jesus’ birth, Christians established Christmas. Though the specific day on which the Lord Jesus was born is not recorded in the Bible, Christmas gradually became a universal holiday in the wake of the expansion of Jesus Christ’s gospel.” We may have known this, but do we know God’s love and His will for us that was actually hidden behind the birth of the Lord Jesus? And how should we approach Christmas in a way that is after the Lord’s heart?

What Is God’s Will Behind the Parable of the Master and Servant?

By Wang Yan, China

Ever since we were baptized and we returned to the Lord, we have often heard our pastors and elders say, “The apostle Paul said, ‘I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: From now on there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but to all them also that love his appearing’ (2 Timothy 4:7–8). As long as we forsake everything, work, suffer and expend ourselves for the Lord, and endure to the end, then when He returns, we will be crowned with glory, be raised up, and enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Praise Song "The Heart's Voice of a Created Being"

Praise Hymn "The Heart's Voice of a Created Being"

I

I wanted to cry but no place felt right. I wanted to sing but no song was found. I wanted to express the love of a created being. Searching high and low, but no words could say, could say just how I feel. Practical and true God, the love inside my heart. I lift my hands in praise, I rejoice that You came into this world.

Christian Praise Song | Love God Forever "I’ve Finally Beheld God" | Walk With God

Christian Praise and Worship Song | Love God Forever "I’ve Finally Beheld God" | Walk With God

I

I came to Your presence that day, my heart filled with yearnings so deep. While my eyes blurred with tears, Your hand caressed. Grief and sorrow poured out my heart. The past flashed before my eyes; grief and bitterness clashed in sighs. God, I give to You my love. If never I beheld You, what would tomorrow bring? How You saved and nurtured me, through long suffering. You're the One that I run to, You're the place that I can hide. With You I'm never alone, You're here by my side. With You I'm never alone, You're here by my side.

2019 English Christian Song | "Time"

2019 English  Christian Worship Song | "Time"

I

A lonely soul has traveled from afar,

probing the future, seeking the past,

toiling arduously, and pursuing a dream.

It knows not whence it comes or it goes,

born in tears and fading in despair.

Though trampled underfoot, it is still holding on.

Your coming puts an end to afflicted life adrift.

I catch a sight of hope, and welcome the light of dawn.

I gaze into the misty distance, I catch a glimpse of Your shape.

That is the radiance, the radiance of Your face.

Christian Movie | God Set Me Free From Sin | "It's Wonderful to Cast off the Shackles of Status"

After Liang Zhi believed in God, he consistently sought with enthusiasm, and threw himself into fulfilling his duties. After a number of years, he was elected as a church leader. During the time that he performed his duties as a church leader, he realized that some of the brothers and sisters were more competent than he, which made him unhappy to the extent that he was jealous of them. In order to save face and protect his status, he secretly competed with them to see who was better, and he scrambled for fame and status. Fame and status seemed like invisible shackles binding him tightly, tying him down, leading him to do things in violation of the truth and rebelling against God. Because the carrying out of his duties was only for the sake of fame and status, and not in pursuit of the truth, the result was that he lost the work of the Holy Spirit. 

The Word of God | "God's Utterances to the Entire Universe: The Twenty-sixth Utterance" (Excerpt 1)

The Word of God | "God's Utterances to the Entire Universe: The Twenty-sixth Utterance" (Excerpt 1)

Almighty God says," In the kingdom, the myriad things of creation begin to revive and regain their life force. Due to changes in the state of the earth, the boundaries between one land and another also begin to shift. Formerly, I have prophesied: When land is divided from land, and land unites with land, this will be the time that I will smash up the nations into smithereens. At this time, I will renew all of creation and repartition the entire universe, thereby putting the universe in order, transforming its old state into a new one. This is My plan. These are My works. When the nations and the peoples of the world all return before My throne, I will thereupon take all the bounty of heaven and confer it upon the human world, so that, thanks to Me, it will brim with matchless bounty. But so long as the old world continues to exist, I will hurl forth My rage upon its nations, openly promulgating My administrative decrees throughout the universe, and visit chastisement on whomever violates them:

2019 Christian Dance | "Praise God With an Undivided Heart" | Worship Song

2019 Praise Dance | "Praise God With an Undivided Heart" | Worship Song

Pre-verse 1

We gather to eat, drink, enjoy God’s words,

and we receive the Holy Spirit’s work.

Verse 1

We think of God, pray-read, have fellowship,

and we meditate, ponder, and seek God.

Living in God’s words, we see He is lovely.

The truth frees us; we taste God’s real love.

Church life is great; praise takes many forms.

We can’t help but sing and dance in God’s praise.

There are no rules or restraints in our praise.

Sincere praise makes us joyful always.

Chorus

Life in God’s presence brings true happiness,

we will love and obey God forever.

Seeing the greatness of God’s salvation,

we praise God with an undivided heart.

The Word of God | "The Mystery of the Incarnation (4)" (Excerpt 2)

The Word of God | "The Mystery of the Incarnation (4)" (Excerpt 2)

Almighty God says, "God's saving of man is not done directly using the method of the Spirit and the identity of the Spirit, for His Spirit can neither be touched nor seen by man, neither can man draw near. If He tried to save man directly using the perspective of the Spirit, man would be unable to receive His salvation. If God did not put on the outward form of a created man, there would be no way for man to receive this salvation. For man has no way of approaching Him, much as no one was able to go near the cloud of Jehovah. Only by becoming a created human being, that is, only by putting His word into the body of flesh that He is about to become, can He personally work the word into all who follow Him. Only then can man personally see and hear His word, and moreover enter into possession of His word, and by this means come to be fully saved" (The Word Appears in the Flesh).

Recommended for You:How Do We Worship God in Spirit and in Truth?

2019 Christian Music Video "Song of Sweet Love" | Praise and Thank God for His Love

2019 Gospel Music Video "Song of Sweet Love" | Praise and Thank God for His Love

In my heart, Your love’s hidden away. It leads me closer to You in the sweetest way.

Working in service of Your heart has made mine better yet. I serve You with heart and mind, nothing else I want to get.

Your words guide my heart, and I follow Your steps.

I will bring Your will to life, satisfying You feels best.

You have taken me to a better place, a realm with only You and I. No worries can get by.

Your words cleanse my corruption, they have filled my heart.

I love You, oh, I love You, Your words are my life’s greatest part.

What fortune to be saved by You. I’ll forever love You and sing Your praise.

Hallelu-Hallelujah! Hallelu-Hallelujah!

Hallelu-Hallelujah! Praise be to God.

Our love makes us inseparable and happy.

I understand Your will and obey it absolutely.

I’ll never rebel, or part from You,

I’ll live before You more.

I contemplate on Your words, I treasure what You are, dear God.

Your words cleanse my corruption, they have filled my heart.

I love You, oh, I love You, Your words are my life’s greatest part.

What fortune to be saved by You. I’ll forever love You and sing Your praise.

Hallelu-Hallelujah! Hallelu-Hallelujah!

Hallelu-Hallelujah! Praise be to God.

Hallelu-Hallelujah! Hallelu-Hallelujah!

Hallelu-Hallelujah! Praise be to God.

from Follow the Lamb and Sing New Songs

Recommended for You:How Do We Worship God in Spirit and in Truth?

2019 English Christian Song With Lyrics "Is the World Your Place of Rest?"

2019 English Christian Song With Lyrics "Is the World Your Place of Rest?"

I

People who live outside God’s word

and flee the suffering of trial,

they’re all just drifting through the world,

like autumn leaves, blown in the wind.

They flutter here, they flutter there.

They never have a place to rest,

much less God’s words of consolation.

They’re only beggars in the streets,

outside the kingdom of heaven.

They’re wandering from place to place,

though God’s chastisement and refinement

don’t ever follow them.

Can you be sure the world’s your place of rest?

Can you smile with ease in this world

if you’ve avoided God’s chastisement?

And can you use your fleeting joy

to cover up the empty feeling in your heart

that cannot be concealed?

You can fool anyone in your family,

yet you can never fool God.

II

Because your faith is all too weak,

you’ve not seen joys that life can offer.

God urges you to be sincere

and spend half your life for His sake.

It’s better than living your whole life

in mediocrity, in labor for the flesh,

enduring all the suffering and pain

that man can hardly bear.

Can you be sure the world’s your place of rest?

Can you smile with ease in this world

if you’ve avoided God’s chastisement?

And can you use your fleeting joy

to cover up the empty feeling in your heart

that cannot be concealed?

You can fool anyone in your family,

yet you can never fool God.

What purpose does it serve to love yourself so much

and flee from God’s chastisement?

What purpose does it serve to shun His brief chastening

and reap shame, punishment forever?

Can you be sure the world’s your place of rest?

Can you smile with ease in this world

if you’ve avoided God’s chastisement?

And can you use your fleeting joy

to cover up the empty feeling in your heart

that cannot be concealed?

You can fool anyone in your family,

yet you can never fool God.

from Follow the Lamb and Sing New Songs

Recommended for You:How Do We Worship God in Spirit and in Truth?

Best Christian Song "The One Who Holds Sovereignty Over Everything" | Christian Documentary

Best Christian Song "The One Who Holds Sovereignty Over Everything" | Christian Documentary

Throughout the vast universe, all celestial bodies move precisely within their own orbits. Under the heavens, mountains, rivers, and lakes all have their boundaries, and all creatures live and reproduce throughout the four seasons in accordance with the laws of life…. This is all so exquisitely designed—is there a Mighty One ruling and arranging all this? Since coming into this world crying we have begun playing different roles in life. We move from birth to old age to illness to death, we go between joy and sorrow…. Where does mankind really come from, and where will we really go? Who is ruling our fates? From ancient times to modern days, great nations have risen up, dynasties have come and gone, and countries and peoples have flourished and perished in the tides of history…. Just like the laws of nature, the laws of humanity's development contain infinite mysteries. Would you like to know the answers to them? The Christian musical documentary The One Who Holds Sovereignty Over Everything will guide you to get to the root of this, to unveil all of these mysteries!

Recommended:How Do We Worship God in Spirit and in Truth?

English Christian Devotional Song | "All Things Are a Manifestation of the Creator’s Authority"

English Christian Devotional Song | "All Things Are a Manifestation of the Creator’s Authority"

1

In this new world, before mankind,

the Creator prepared the morning and prepared the night.

He prepared the firmament, the land, and the seas,

the grass, the herbs, He prepared all the trees.

He prepared the lights, the seasons, the years, and the days

for the new life He would soon create.

The authority and power of the Creator were expressed

with each new thing that He created.

Every one of His thoughts, every one of His utterances,

every revelation of His power is a masterpiece

among all things, it is a great undertaking

most worthy of mankind’s deep knowledge and understanding.

2

His words and accomplishments occurred simultaneously,

without the slightest interval or discrepancy.

The appearance and birth of all the new things

were proof of the Creator’s authority.

He is as good as His word, His word shall be accomplished.

What’s accomplished shall last for all eternity.

This fact has never changed, in the past or the present.

And so, it will be for all eternity.

Every one of His thoughts, every one of His utterances,

every revelation of His power is a masterpiece

among all things, it is a great undertaking

most worthy of mankind’s deep knowledge and understanding.

3

The Creator’s power, the Creator’s authority

produce miracle after miracle, unceasingly.

He attracts man’s attention, they are transfixed at His deeds,

which are astounding and born from the exertion of His authority.

His phenomenal power brings delight after delight.

Man is dazzled, overjoyed, man gasps in delight.

Man is moved, man is awestruck, man cheers.

Inside of man, respect and reverence appear.

Every one of His thoughts, every one of His utterances,

every revelation of His power is a masterpiece

among all things, it is a great undertaking

most worthy of mankind’s deep knowledge and understanding.

The authority and deeds of the Creator stir the spirit of man.

The authority and deeds of the Creator cleanse the spirit of man.

The authority and deeds of the Creator sate the spirit of man.

from Follow the Lamb and Sing New Songs

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Through Prayer God Helped Relieve My Pre-exam Anxiety

My senior high school entrance exams in 2012 were the first turning point in my life. My whole family expected me to do well, and I was so confident that I would pass my exams and get into senior high school. Never in a million years did I think that I would fail my exams. But I did, and I felt very low, and I could neither eat nor sleep. I just shut myself in my room and I didn’t want to see anyone. For the longest time, I languished in the shadow of my failed exams. Seeing me in such pain every day, my mom read to me a passage of God’s words: “I am well acquainted with the thoughts of man’s mind and the wishes of man’s heart: Who has never looked for a way out for themselves? Who has never thought of their own prospects? Yet even though man is possessed of a rich and prismatic intellect, who was able to predict that, following the ages, the present would turn out as it has? Is this really the fruit of your own subjective efforts? Is this the payment for your tireless industry? Is this the beautiful tableau envisaged by your mind? If I did not guide all mankind, who would be able to separate themselves from My arrangements and find another way out? Is it the thoughts and wishes of man that have brought him to today? Many people go their whole lives without having their wishes fulfilled. Is this really because of a fault in their thinking? Many people’s lives are filled with unexpected happiness and satisfaction. Is this really because they expect too little? Who of the whole of mankind is not cared for in the eyes of the Almighty? Who does not live in the midst of the Almighty’s predestination? Whose birth and death come from their own choices? Does man control his own fate?” (“Chapter 11” of God’s Words to the Entire Universe). From God’s words, I came to realize that our fate is ruled and arranged in the hands of God. The frustrations, the failures and the setbacks we experience throughout our lives cannot be predicted—it is all in God’s hands. Take my exams, for example. I’d believed I would pass with flying colors and get into my ideal senior high school, but I had unexpectedly failed. From the outside, it looked like an unfortunate event, but God is the Sovereign of all things, and therefore God’s good will must have been behind it. Under the guidance of God’s words, I gradually came to submit, and I left my pain behind. To my surprise, just when I became willing to submit to God’s sovereignty and arrangements and entrust my future and my fate over to God, I was unexpectedly accepted into health school. When this news arrived, my whole family was overjoyed, and I came to appreciate that God was by my side, that He was a help at need, and I thanked God from the bottom of my heart.

2019 Christian Worship Song With Lyrics | "Job's Attitude Toward God's Blessings"

2019 Christian Worship Song With Lyrics | "Job's Attitude Toward God's Blessings"

I

Job believed in his heart that all he possessed

was bestowed by God and not by his own hand.

He did not see blessings as things to take advantage of,

but held onto the way that he should keep

as his guide to living.

Job never reveled or wildly delighted

because of the blessings God bestowed,

nor ignored God’s way or forgot the grace of God

because of blessings he often enjoyed.

II

Job cherished God’s blessings, giving thanks for them.

But he did not indulge in them, nor search for more.

He never did anything for the sake of blessings,

not worried about losing or lack of them from God, oh.

Job never reveled or wildly delighted

because of the blessings God bestowed,

nor ignored God’s way or forgot the grace of God

because of blessings he often enjoyed.

Woo, whoa, whoa.

Job never reveled or wildly delighted

because of the blessings God bestowed,

nor ignored God’s way or forgot the grace of God

because of blessings he often enjoyed. Oh, oh.

from Follow the Lamb and Sing New Songs

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Almighty God's Word "The Creator’s Sincere Feelings Toward Mankind" (Selected Passage)

Introduction

Almighty God says, "People often say that it is not an easy thing to know God. I, however, say that knowing God is not a difficult matter at all, for God frequently allows man to witness His deeds. God has never ceased His dialogue with mankind; He has never concealed Himself from man, nor has He hidden Himself. His thoughts, His ideas, His words and His deeds are all revealed to mankind. Therefore, so long as man wishes to know God, he can come to understand and know Him through all sorts of means and methods. The reason why man blindly thinks that God has intentionally avoided him, that God has intentionally hidden Himself from humanity, that God has no intention of allowing man to understand and know Him, is that he does not know who God is, nor does he wish to understand God; even more so, he is not concerned with the Creator’s thoughts, words or deeds…. Truthfully speaking, if one only uses their idle time to focus upon and understand the Creator’s words or deeds, and pay a little attention to the Creator’s thoughts and the voice of His heart, it will not be difficult for them to realize that the Creator’s thoughts, words and deeds are visible and transparent. Likewise, it will take little effort to realize that the Creator is among man at all times, that He is always in conversation with man and the entirety of creation, and that He is performing new deeds every day. His substance and disposition are expressed in His dialogue with man; His thoughts and ideas are revealed completely in His deeds; He accompanies and observes mankind at all times. He speaks quietly to mankind and all of creation with His silent words: I am above the universe, and I am amongst My creation. I am keeping watch; I am waiting; I am at your side…. His hands are warm and strong; His footsteps are light; His voice is soft and graceful; His form passes and turns, embracing all of mankind; His countenance is beautiful and gentle. He has never left, nor has He vanished. From dawn to dusk, He is mankind’s constant companion. His devoted care and special affection for humanity, as well as His true concern and love for man, were displayed bit by bit when He saved the city of Nineveh. In particular, the exchange between Jehovah God and Jonah laid barer the Creator’s pity for the mankind He Himself created. Through these words, you can obtain a deep understanding of God’s sincere feelings for humanity…."

from "The Word Appears in the Flesh"
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The Secret Tip to Resolving Hatred (Audio Essay)

I was self-employed. Mainly I sold all kinds of textiles, and I also made clothes for my customers part-time. After a few years, my business became more and more popular, and people around me were all very envious. Later, a neighboring household opened the same kind of shop as mine and became my competitor. Naturally, the business in my shop was affected. The popular proverb says two of a trade never agree, but my peer was not just anyone, but my most trusted pupil, Xiaochen.

Not only did Xiaochen open the same store next to my house, she even waited outside of her shop to intentionally steal my business. Whenever she saw somebody pass by the shop, she approached them and greeted them enthusiastically, guiding them into the shop, and she even purposefully said awful things about me. Seeing Xiaochen do everything she could to steal my business, I regretted taking her as my pupil and started hating her from my heart. When I saw her, I was unwilling to approach or talk to her, and sometimes I would even say some bad things about her in front of customers, or I would intentionally give customers a discount to bring back repeat customers, so that I could reduce her clients. But because we were neighbors, we could not avoid running into each other. As time passed, I became more and more pained and repressed in my heart, and my hate for her became deeper and deeper. It reached the point that whenever I looked at her, my heart became awfully choked, and my whole mind was occupied with thoughts of how to deal with her. Even when I dreamed, I dreamed I was fighting her. I was living so painfully at that time!

After Losing My Status

By Huimin, Henan Province

Every time I saw someone who had been replaced as a leader and them feeling down, weak or sulky, then I looked down on them. I thought: “It was nothing more than different people doing different work within the church, that there was no distinction between high or low, that we were all God’s creations and there was nothing to feel down about.” So whether I was watering new believers or serving as a leader, I never thought I focused much on my status, that I was that sort of person. I never would have thought in a million years that I would display such shameful behavior when I myself was replaced as a leader.

Some time ago, because I had not been performing any real work and was always preaching doctrine, my leader replaced me. At that time, I thought to myself: “Even if my caliber wasn’t made out to be a mid-level leader, I was still competent to fellowship about the truth and do the work of watering and supporting the church.” I never expected for my leader to task me with taking care of the general affairs of the church. I was surprised then, and I thought, “Such a mid-level leader as myself, am I now to be made to run errands? Anyone in the church who could run or who had a little intelligence could do this job. Wasn’t getting me to do this job an obvious waste of my talents?” But I was afraid that my leader would say I was disobedient and that I cared about my status, so I forced a smile and agreed. But as soon as I got home, I fell flat on the bed and felt awful. “Since I have no status, what will my brothers and sisters think of me? Now I am only running some errands, how will I ever be able to have my day again?” These thoughts filled my head. The more I thought about it, the more awful I felt.

The Orchestration of God’s Hands: A Different Experience of Job Seeking (Audio Essay)

Liang Xin

In today’s society, there are all different kinds of major enterprises and there seems to be a myriad of employment opportunities, but year after year, college graduates are a dime a dozen. The market of qualified employment candidates is so overcrowded you can’t gain a foothold, so the difficulty of finding employment after graduation has become a very practical problem. For every young person on the cusp of entering society after school, the most headache-inducing issue that they have to face is finding work, particularly at a good company. Everyone puts on their best face and racks their brains trying to squeeze their way in—the competition and pressure are intense. I, approaching graduation, had no choice but to face the plight of finding a job just like everybody else. The only thing different about me is that I’m a Christian and I believe that everything is prepared by God. However …

Christian Life: How to Educate One’s Child and Be a Happy Parent

By Huiyuan, Malaysia

“Over these past few weeks, your son has listened very carefully in class and is a very sensible boy. He’s like a totally different person to how he used to be. How come he’s suddenly changed so much? How are you educating him at home?” Hearing the teacher say this, I smiled slightly, and my heart was filled with gratitude to God. That my son could change as much as he has is the result of God’s work, and I give thanks to God! I always failed before when trying to educate my son, but then I had the fortune to accept God’s work of the last days and, under the guidance of God’s words, I finally understood how to educate my son, and I became a happy parent.

My Naughty Son Drove Me to My Wits’ End

Over the previous few years, I saw many parents spoil their children, which led to their children becoming more and more unrestrained and reckless. Therefore, after I got married and had children, I said to myself: “There is no way I’m going to spoil my children. I will definitely be strict with them, keep their behavior to acceptable norms, and get them to develop good habits right from the start!” But my eldest son was very naughty, and he had many bad habits. For example, he would often ride on the escalator handrail and slide from the top to the bottom, he would willfully break things in the home, throw rubbish down wherever he wanted, and he was a fussy eater, and so on. To combat these problems, I drew up a plan to educate him: Whenever he was being fussy with his food, I would reprimand him, and then he wouldn’t dare be fussy anymore; if I saw anything in life that I thought would be beneficial to his upbringing, then he had to do what I said. If he didn’t, I had my own way to control him and would let him know what the consequences would be if he was disobedient … I made every effort to educate my son, but there was little change in him. This was all a big headache for me.