A Happy Marriage Starts With Accepting God’s Salvation

By Zhui Qiu, Malaysia

I’m a beautician and my husband is a farmer; we met in Malaysia at an orange throwing event, a traditional activity for women trying to find love. Our wedding, witnessed by a pastor, was held in a church a year later. I was very deeply moved by the pastor’s prayer for our marriage and though I wasn’t religious, I silently implored God: “May this man unswervingly cherish and care for me, and be my companion throughout the rest of my life.”

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?

There Are Actually Principles for Making Offerings to God

Li Hui

Because of some trouble at home, in 1997 I began to believe in the Lord Jesus. Afterward, through practicing the Lord’s words, there was no longer any arguing at home. The Lord saved my family, saved me from my pain and gave me hope in life.

Modern Day Pharisees’ Disruption Showed Me Their True Face

By Li Xianghe, South Korea

In the eleven years my husband and I have been believers, we always attended gatherings at Pastor Jin’s church. He’s really well versed in the Bible and is quite well known in our area. In Bible studies he always explained things very systematically and I would go to him every time there was an issue I didn’t understand, and he’d resolve it using passages from the Bible. Every holiday I would take some fruit to pay a visit to him and he was always really warm with our entire family. He would always pray for us when something cropped up in our family and he was always very loving with the other believers, as well. I felt that Pastor Jin was genuinely serving the Lord so I looked up to him; I adored him. I felt that he was our spiritual father.

I Witness God’s Love in the Midst of My Spiritual Battle

By Zhiyuan

Preface

Satan is the evil one, the enemy of God, that has ever wished to corrupt and devour mankind whom God created. When God performs His work to save mankind, Satan dogs His steps and causes constant interruptions and disturbances to God’s work, and that is why each and every brother and sister who has accepted God’s new work encounters the disturbances and temptations of Satan to varying degrees. As Christians, how are we to approach the temptations of Satan? Should we flee and recoil, or should we rely on God to overcome Satan? Let’s now read the experiences of Sister Zhiyuan, and within them, we will find the path we should practice.

Triumphing Over Satan’s Temptation: I Know the Way

By Fang Rui

“Blessed is the man that endures temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to them that love Him” (James 1:12).

Epigraph

Contents

·My Husband Is on the Brink of Death and I Develop Doubts About God

·God’s Words Guide Me to See Through Satan’s Tricks

·My Daughter Is Scammed and I Reflect on My Motivations for Blessings

·In the Face of My Daughter’s Untreatable Cold, I Practice the Truth and See God’s Deeds

·My Awakening After These Experiences

Why Does God Let Us Experience Trials and Refinement?

By Li Tong

Many Christians feel confused: God is love and He is almighty, so why does He allow us to suffer? Could it be that He has abandoned us? This question always used to puzzle me, but lately, through prayer and seeking, I’ve gained a bit of enlightenment and light. This has resolved my misunderstandings of God, and I’ve come to understand that suffering is not God casting us aside, but instead is very carefully arranged by God in order to purify and save us. These trials and refinement are God’s greatest grace for us!

Today’s Devotional Reading: Insights Gained From the Story of the Antelope Herd That Jumped From a Cliff

By Qianbei

One day, I read an article describing how a herd of antelope had met with a sudden death after jumping from a cliff. The story told how, due to an eye disease, the leader of the herd failed to see the cliff looming behind a thicket of bushes and, clearing the bushes with a single leap, plunged over the precipice. The rest of the herd was following close behind their leader and they too jumped and fell. Of course, there was nothing wrong with the vision of the rest of the herd—they would have been able to see the cliff, so, why did they still jump? Well, it is actually because it is the natural behavior of antelopes to follow the leader of the herd. Wherever the leader goes, the herd follows. They don’t have the ability to make decisions on their own, and so when the leader jumped over the cliff, the herd followed suit, leading to their sudden, collective death. Clearly, the act of blindly following can very easily take one down the wrong path, and in severe cases may even lead to calamity.

Christian Reflection: Do God’s Words and Work Exist Outside the Bible?

By Saverio, Italy

The Book of Revelation predicts, “Behold, I come quickly” (Revelation 22:7). In recent years, all the prophecies predicting the Lord’s return have basically been fulfilled, and many people feel that the Lord may quite possibly have already come. In addition, Eastern Lightning long ago began witnessing that in the last days, God has come again to speak new words that are outside the Bible and to conduct a new stage of work, and also that Almighty God is the returned Lord Jesus. Brothers and sisters from every denomination who sincerely believe in the Lord and yearn for the truth have recognized God’s voice through reading Almighty God’s words and turned to Almighty God. But some brothers and sisters think that “all of God’s words and work are recorded in the Bible, and God’s work and words do not exist outside the Bible,” and so they refuse to seek out or investigate God’s utterances and words in the last days. Is the entirety of God’s words and work all contained within the Bible? Do God’s words and work exist outside of the Bible? Understanding these questions is critical to whether or not we can receive the returned Lord and gain God’s salvation in the last days! Today, we will discuss the issues surrounding these questions.

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.”

Only God Can Fill the Void Within Our Heart

Dear Zheng Hao,

How have you been? My heart is in a great deal of pain, and I’d like to talk to you about it. I’ve always been eager for success, and when I was little I made the resolution that, when I grew up, I would stand out from the crowd and live life at the top. I worked hard and strived for years and I became rich. The people around me see me as somebody to be reckoned with and—all my dreams have come true. I should be really happy, but instead I feel so empty and my heart just feels hollow. I’ve traveled everywhere and have held dinner parties and sung songs with my coworkers, and at the time I always felt really happy. But afterward, that feeling of emptiness would still be there and I can never shake it. What do you think is wrong with me? What am I supposed to do to rid myself of this spiritual emptiness? How are we to live a meaningful life?

Yours sincerely,

Yubin

September 4, 2018

Spiritual Reflections: Why Did the Jews Join With the Pharisees in Resisting the Lord Jesus?

By Cheng Tu

My brothers and sisters:

May you have peace in the Lord! We all know that two-thousand years ago, the Jews joined the Pharisees in nailing the Lord Jesus to the cross. I trust many brothers and sisters are confused about the following: During the time when the Lord Jesus appeared to carry out His work, He showed people the way of repentance, taught them to love others as they loved themselves and to be forgiving and patient. He gifted abundant grace unto man and performed many miracles, such as bringing the dead back to life with a single word and feeding five thousand people with only five loaves of bread and two fish. At the time, many Jews also followed the Lord Jesus. So what reason could possibly account for the fact that the Jews joined the Pharisees in abandoning the Lord Jesus and nailing Him to the cross even after receiving such abundant grace from Him? Understanding the answer to this question is of great importance to us as we strive to improve in our following of God. Today, let us commune on the question of why the Jews joined the Pharisees in resisting the Lord Jesus and how we may avoid treading the same road of failure as the Jews trod. I pray that God may guide us in the following communion.

Bible Study Discussion: What Is True Repentance?

By Liu Shuo

At a meeting of co-workers, Wang Wei, Ma Tao and Hu Zhi sat engaged in Bible study.

Wang Wei smiled and spoke to the group, saying, “Co-workers, let’s begin by reading a couple of verses of scripture. The Lord Jesus says, ‘Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand’ (Matthew 4:17). ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent you, and believe the gospel’ (Mark 1:15). We can see from the Lord’s words that, if we want to enter God’s kingdom, then we must confess our sins to God and repent. We’ve believed in the Lord for years, however, and although we often confess our sins to Him, we are still capable of committing sin and we live within a vicious cycle of confessing and sinning. It seems as though we still don’t understand what true repentance is, and so we are not yet free of sin. Therefore, being clear on what true repentance is is extremely important to our ability to enter into the heavenly kingdom. Today, let’s delve into this issue together.”

Why Does God Allow Christians to Suffer Sickness?

By Du Shuai

The phrase “scramble around to find a doctor when you’re sick” directly reflects people’s feelings of anxiety, helplessness and panic when they get sick. As Christians, although we know that everything is created by God, that God gave us our very breath and that God rules and arranges the life and death of man, we can still feel at a loss as to what to do when confronted by sickness. I was therefore confused about this matter: When sickness befalls us, how should we experience it in order to be able to face it calmly and to have true faith in God? I often prayed and sought with God about this, and I sought and fellowshiped with my brothers and sisters until, after some time, I understood: When we get sick, only by understanding what God’s intention is behind our getting sick and by mastering four principles of practice can we resolve our feelings of unease, panic and helplessness, and generate true faith in God. I shall here share my small, simple bit of understanding with my brothers and sisters in the hope that it will be of some help to you all.

Why Do Christians Still Sin After Being Saved?

By Xiaomo, China

The mention of “Jesus’ Redemption” always fills us with gratitude to the Lord. Two thousand years ago, to redeem us from the hands of Satan, the Lord Jesus was crucified and sacrificed for the sins of humanity, thereby forgiving all our sins. When we sin, as long as we repent and confess our sins to the Lord, our sins are forgiven, and we enjoy peace and joy. But recently, some brothers and sisters have been confused: Although our sins are forgiven by the Lord, we have never been able to escape the bondage of sin, we often lie and deceive, we are stuck in the cycle of sinning and confessing, and we cannot keep the Lord’s teachings. The Bible clearly tells us, “For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more sacrifice for sins” (Hebrews 10:26). We know clearly that we can sin involuntarily despite knowing our actions go against God’s will, and that if we merely repent without changing, the sacrifice for our sins is useless. Like this, can we truly be directly raptured into the kingdom of heaven when the Lord comes? But there are also some brothers and sisters who believe that although we often sin, the Lord has forgiven our sins and does not see us as sinners, and when the Lord returns, we will be raptured into the kingdom of heaven! So, will we be raptured into the kingdom of heaven? Let’s explore the issue together.