I was born into a Christian family. Because my family was poor, my father went to work away from home and seldom came back. My mother worked in the local area, yet every day she was busy working from morning to evening, so she had little time to look after my siblings and I. Thus, when I was young, I not only needed to do some housework, but also had to take care of my younger brothers and sisters. Usually when I saw those of my own age were under their parents’ care, I felt a sense of loss. At that time, though I knew little about the Bible, I liked attending the Sunday school classes very much, from which I knew that there is a heavenly Father who loves mankind very much. So, whether I felt happy or not, I could pray to Him. Gradually, the heavenly Father became the One I could confide in.

When I was 12, I was baptized a Christian. At that time, my pastor told me, “Our belief in the Lord must be based on the Bible, because the Bible is the basis of the belief of Christianity. Moreover, all of God’s work and words are recorded in the Bible. As long as we hold on to the Bible, we’ll never be deceived. Anything that strays too far from what is in the Bible is heresy.” Also, while preaching, he always said, “We base our belief on the Bible. It can be said that belief in God is belief in the Bible, belief in the Bible is belief in God.” At that time, though I had little knowledge about the Bible, I was enthusiastic and actively attended the meetings and never missed a single one, as I felt enjoyment gathering with the brothers and sisters and that I had more faith in the Lord from the meetings. Especially, after hearing the pastor’s words, I knew that the Bible was quite precious and different from other books, so I always took the Bible with me everywhere and after I studied it, I would put it away in a cloth bag. Later, the situation of the church became worse and worse. Most of the brothers and sisters lost their faith, and some of them even went back to the world to work. The co-workers in the church always quarreled with each other when they had different ideas, which caused some brothers and sisters to leave the church. Seeing the condition of the church, I felt weak and passive in my spirit. Although I still went to the church to attend meetings, I actually went through the motions every time. However, I still treasured the Bible, and protected it well as usual. After having a child, I didn’t even let him touch it.

On the Mid-Autumn Festival of 2017, I got acquainted with Brother Liang on the Internet and learned that he was a preacher through chatting with him. I thought: He also believes in the Lord and moreover, he is a preacher, so he must understand the Bible very well. Later, I always studied the Bible with him in a meeting group. After a period of exploring the Bible in the group, I felt very happy. Their fellowships were so enlightening that I understood many truths that I didn’t understand before. My thirsty spirit obtained watering and nourishment. Gradually, I began to love gathering with them, and I was always punctual and happy to attend gathering.

One day, the brothers and sisters played a video for me, in which I saw a book different from the Bible. At that moment, my heart immediately flew into my mouth. I asked a sister, “Are you believers of Eastern Lightning? You really no longer read the Bible? Why is the book in the video different from the Bible? What is it?” After hearing my questions, she gently said to me, “Revelation 5:1-5 says, ‘And I saw in the right hand of Him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof? And no man in heaven, nor in earth, neither under the earth, was able to open the book, neither to look thereon. And I wept much, because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon. And one of the elders said to me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.’ From these verses we can learn that in the last days, there will be a new book, that is the scroll prophesied in the Bible, which can only be opened by God. …” That day she fellowshiped a lot, yet the more I listened to her fellowship, the more resistant I was. I thought: “All of God’s words and work have been recorded in the Bible. How can there be a new book? Belief in the Lord is belief in the Bible. Now that they don’t read the Bible, can that even be called faith in the Lord?” Therefore, no matter what they fellowshiped, my attitude was one of disregard. Actually, I was not willing to fellowship with them anymore, yet it was not polite to refuse them, so at last I preferred to keep silent.

After the meeting, I received many messages from Brother Liang, but I didn’t reply to him. At night, I tossed and turned in bed and couldn’t fall asleep. That night my mind was in a tangle. When I got up the next morning, I wanted to listen to some hymns, hoping to quiet my heart. Unexpectedly, after I opened Facebook, I saw the words, “The Church of Almighty God is also called Eastern Lightning. Avoid making contact with them.” Reading this, I was scared and couldn’t calm down. I thought: “It seems that their faith is wrong, because they don’t read the Bible.” So I sent a message to Brother Liang, “I don’t want to fellowship anymore and investigate.” He called me directly and fellowshiped, “The view that ‘God’s work and words are all in the Bible, outside the Bible there is no work or words of God, any belief departing from the Bible is heresy doesn’t have the factual basis. It isn’t in keeping with the fact of God’s work. The Bible says, ‘And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written’ (John 21:25). From this verse we can see that not all of the Lord Jesus’ words and work were recorded in the New Testament. In fact, people who understand the Bible all know that the Bible was written and put together by men. During the compilation of the Bible, because of the compilers’ disagreement and omission, some of God’s words conveyed through the prophets were not included in the Bible. So, how can we say that outside the Bible there are no words or work of God? Aren’t those omitted prophecies of the prophets God’s words? Therefore, the words of the pastors and elders in the religious community that ‘God’s work and words are all in the Bible, and outside the Bible there are no words or work of God doesn’t accord with reality. It is completely false knowledge and a conception they have because they don’t know God’s work. Besides, when the Lord Jesus came to work, He did not work according to the Old Testament but carried out the redemptive work in the Age of Grace outside the Old Testament. The work He did, such as bringing the way of repentance and doing the work of crucifixion, all exceeded the Old Testament. If we hold on to our notion that ‘any belief departing from the Bible is heresy,’ then, aren’t we condemning the work of the Lord Jesus?”

I thought Brother Liang’s fellowship made sense. I had never thought about this question before. Then, I promised him to attend the meetings and investigate. However, after that, I still couldn’t accept the fact that belief in God can go beyond the Bible and I thought: “No matter what, I shouldn’t depart from the Bible, for the Bible is the basis of Christian belief. Isn’t believing in the Lord believing in the Bible?” Therefore, I changed my mind, yet I was ashamed to tell him. So, the next day, I intentionally turned off my cell phone and put it in a place where I couldn’t see it, fearing that if Brother Liang called me again and asked me to attend their meetings, I wouldn’t know how to refuse him. However, that day I felt terrible and my heart kept beating quickly, which made it difficult for me to breathe, have meals, and work attentively. The next day I still didn’t recover. Then Brother Liang called me and asked me to investigate but I refused him. I thought that if I didn’t investigate, my heart would calm down. Yet it turned out the opposite. Later, in order to quiet my heart, I tried to pray more, listen to my favorite hymns, do physical exercise, and play the piano, but it failed. I thought: “I have refused to investigate, but why can’t I calm down?” I thought about it over and over, but couldn’t figure it out. Gradually, I began to feel a little afraid: “Will something bad happen to me if my heart continues beating so quickly? Could it be that Almighty God is really the returned Lord Jesus? Is it the Lord’s discipline of me because I resisted Almighty God and thus I opposed the Lord? If not, why can’t I quiet down my heart by these means?” Fearing to oppose the Lord, I determined to investigate The Church of Almighty God. Then, I called Brother Liang, “I want to have meetings with you.” Amazingly, when I was willing to seek and investigate, my heart calmed down.

In the meeting, brothers and sisters read for me Almighty God’s words: “From the time when there was the Bible, people’s belief in the Lord has been the belief in the Bible. Instead of saying people believe in the Lord, it is better to say they believe in the Bible; rather than saying they have begun reading the Bible, it is better to say they have begun believing in the Bible; and rather than saying they have returned before the Lord, it would be better to say they have returned before the Bible. In this way, people worship the Bible as if it were God, as if it were their lifeblood, and losing it would be the same as losing their life.”

“They believe in My existence only within the scope of the Bible, and they equate Me with the Bible; without the Bible there is no Me, and without Me there is no Bible. They pay no heed to My existence or actions, but instead devote extreme and special attention to each and every word of Scripture. Many more even believe that I should not do anything I wish to do unless it is foretold by Scripture. They attach too much importance to Scripture. It can be said that they see words and expressions as too important, to the extent that they use verses from the Bible to measure every word I say and to condemn Me. What they seek is not the way of compatibility with Me or the way of compatibility with the truth, but the way of compatibility with the words of the Bible, and they believe that anything that does not conform to the Bible is, without exception, not My work. Are such people not the dutiful descendants of the Pharisees? The Jewish Pharisees used the law of Moses to condemn Jesus. They did not seek compatibility with the Jesus of that time, but diligently followed the law to the letter, to the extent that—after having charged Him with not following the law of the Old Testament and not being the Messiah—they ultimately nailed the innocent Jesus to the cross. What was their essence? Was it not that they didn’t seek the way of compatibility with the truth? They obsessed over each and every word of Scripture while paying heed neither to My will nor to the steps and methods of My work. They were not people who sought the truth, but people who rigidly clung to words; they were not people who believed in God, but people who believed in the Bible. Essentially, they were watchdogs of the Bible.”

A sister fellowshiped, “For years, we’ve compared the Bible to God and only base our belief on the Bible. In our hearts we believe the Bible represents the Lord, represents God. It’s better to say we believe in the Bible instead of saying we believe in God. The whole religious community even thinks that belief in God is belief in the Bible, and departing from the Bible means not believing in God. All of us blindly believe in and worship the Bible and give the same status to the Bible as we do to God. Some even use the Bible to substitute for the Lord and God’s work. However, no one truly knows God and obeys God. The reason why we blindly worship the Bible is mainly because we don’t know the essence of the Bible and the relationship between the Bible and God. Recall the Jewish Pharisees of that age. They held on to the Bible and worshiped it, but they fanatically condemned and resisted the Lord Jesus and nailed Him to the cross. In the end, they were punished by the Lord Jesus. The facts are enough to prove that just being able to interpret the Bible and understand Bible knowledge doesn’t mean knowing God; holding on to the Bible doesn’t mean obeying the Lord’s way; believing in the Bible doesn’t equate to believing in God. The Lord Jesus once said: ‘Search the scriptures; for in them you think you have eternal life: and they are they which testify of Me. And you will not come to Me, that you might have life’ (John 5:39-40). From the Lord Jesus’ words we can know that there is no life in the Bible. The Bible is only a testimony to God, it is merely a record of God’s past work. Therefore, the Bible does not represent God, and we can’t compare the Bible with God. Only God can save mankind through His work, while the Bible can’t do the work of salvation; only God can express the truth, while the Bible can’t; God can inspire man, enlighten man, and guide man at any time, while the Bible can’t; God is the source of living water, while the Bible is only a testimony to God. So the Bible does not represent God at all. If we place the Bible on a par with God, thinking that the Bible can represent God, aren’t we belittling and blaspheming God? God is God, and the Bible is the Bible. The Bible cannot represent God, nor can it stand in the place of God’s work. It is just a record of God’s work.”

After hearing her fellowship, I understood the difference between God and the Bible: Belief in the Bible doesn’t equate to belief in God. Holding on to the Bible doesn’t mean keeping the Lord’s way. I thought, “If I continue to hold on to the Bible, I not only can’t gain the Lord’s approval, but will also be condemned by Him. I cannot follow in the Pharisees’ footsteps and resist God. However, according to her fellowship, could it be that it was wrong for us to read the Bible in the past?” So I sought fellowship with her on this question.

Then, she read another two passages of God’s words to me: “Thus, what I am teaching you is simply the substance and inside story of the Bible. I am not asking that you do not read the Bible, or that you go around proclaiming that it is devoid of value, only that you have the correct knowledge and view of the Bible. Do not be too one-sided! Although the Bible is a history book that was written by men, it also documents many of the principles by which the ancient saints and prophets served God, as well as the recent apostles’ experiences in serving God—all of which were really seen and known by these people, and can serve as reference for the people of this age in pursuing the true way. Thus, in reading the Bible people can also gain many ways of life that cannot be found in other books. These ways are the ways of life of the work of the Holy Spirit experienced by prophets and apostles in ages past, and many of the words are precious, and can provide what people need. Thus, people all like to read the Bible. Because there is so much hidden in the Bible, people’s views toward it are unlike those toward the writings of great spiritual figures. The Bible is a record and collection of the experiences and knowledge of people who served Jehovah and Jesus in the old and new age, and so later generations have been able to gain much enlightenment, illumination, and paths to practice from it. The reason why the Bible is higher than the writings of any great spiritual figure is because all of their writings are drawn from the Bible, their experiences all come from the Bible, and they all explain the Bible. And so, although people can gain provision from the books of any great spiritual figure, they still worship the Bible, for it seems so high and profound to them! Although the Bible brings together some of the books of the words of life, such as the Pauline epistles and Petrine epistles, and although people can be provided for and assisted by these books, these books are still out of date, they still belong to the old age, and no matter how good they are, they are only suitable for one period, and are not everlasting. For God’s work is always developing, and it cannot simply stop at the time of Paul and Peter, or always remain in the Age of Grace in which Jesus was crucified. And so, these books are only suitable for the Age of Grace, not for the Age of Kingdom of the last days. They can only provide for the believers of the Age of Grace, not for the saints of the Age of Kingdom, and no matter how good they are, they are still obsolete.” “Since there is a higher way, why study that low, outdated way? Since there are newer utterances, and newer work, why live amid old historical records? The new utterances can provide for you, which proves that this is the new work; the old records cannot sate you, or satisfy your current needs, which proves that they are history, and not the work of the here and now. The highest way is the newest work, and with the new work, no matter how high the way of the past, it is still the history of people’s reflections, and no matter its value as reference, it is still the old way. Even though it is recorded in the ‘holy book,’ the old way is history; even though there is no record of it in the ‘holy book,’ the new way is of the here and now. This way can save you, and this way can change you, for this is the work of the Holy Spirit.”

She fellowshiped, “Today God comes to earth and carries out His work. He never asks us not to read the Bible, nor to deny it. Instead, He wants us to treat the Bible correctly, because the Bible is actually just a record of previous two stages of God’s work, and it only records a very limited selection of God’s work and words. It does not represent all of God’s works and words. Moreover, the words of God in the Bible are like a drop in the sea of God’s life. They cannot represent God’s entirety. God’s work is always progressing forward. If we only hold on to the work God does in a particular age, we’re conservative and are holding on to history. In this way, we can’t obtain the work of the Holy Spirit or solve our real problems. We should stop holding on to the Bible, but seek God’s current will and the work of the Holy Spirit. Only in this way can we be after God’s heart. Nowadays, Almighty God has begun the work of cleansing and perfecting man with judgment and chastisement. Only if we keep up with the steps of God’s work, and accept Almighty God’s work of judgment and chastisement in the last days, can we obtain the work of the Holy Spirit and be saved and purified.”

After her fellowship, I suddenly understood the reason why I felt more and more thirsty, and why my faith became less and less in the religious community. It was because I didn’t keep up with God’s newest work and fell into darkness. The more I listened to her fellowship, the more I understood and the more I was enlightened.

Through God’s words and the sister’s fellowship, the confusion in my heart was resolved. I was sure that Almighty God is the appearance of the Lord Jesus, and that based upon the work of the Lord Jesus, God is doing a new stage of work. If it were not for God’s mercy, guidance, and enlightenment, I would have missed the chance of welcoming the Lord’s return and still lived in the darkness hungrily and thirstily and in the rules and words of the Bible, believing in God yet resisting Him. Now I have finally walked out of the bonds of the Bible, have come before God and obtained the provision from the wellspring of the living water. Thank God! All the glory be to God!

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