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picture of the Church of Almighty God | God’s Sheep Hear the Voice of GodChapter 3 You Must Know the Truths About the Three Stages of God’s WorkChapter | The Church of Almighty God |
2. You Must Know the Aim of the Three Stages of God’s Work.
Relevant Words of God:
The aim of the three stages of work is the salvation of all mankind—which means the complete salvation of man from the domain of Satan. Though each of the three stages of work has a different objective and significance, each is part of the work of saving mankind, and is different work of salvation carried out according to the requirements of mankind. …
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… When the entire management of God is nearing its end, God will class all things according to kind. Man was made by the hands of the Creator, and in the end He must completely return man under His dominion; this is the conclusion of the three stages of work. …
… When the three stages of work come to an end, there will be made a group of those who bear testimony to God, a group of those who know God. These people will all know God and will be able to put the truth into practice. They will possess humanity and sense, and will all know the three stages of God’s work of salvation. This is the work that will be accomplished at the end, and these people are the crystallization of the work of 6,000 years of management, and are the most powerful testimony to the ultimate defeat of Satan.
from “Knowing the Three Stages of God’s Work Is the Path to Knowing God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
My entire management plan, which spans six thousand years, consists of three phases, or three ages: first, the Age of Law; second, the Age of Grace (which is also the Age of Redemption); and finally, the Age of Kingdom. My work in these three ages differs according to the nature of each age, but at each stage it accords with man’s needs—or rather, it varies according to the tricks that Satan employs in My war against it. The purpose of My work is to defeat Satan, to make manifest My wisdom and omnipotence, to expose all Satan’s tricks and thereby to save all of humanity, which lives under its domain. It is to show My wisdom and omnipotence while at the same time revealing the hideousness of Satan. Moreover, it is to teach My creations to discriminate between good and evil, to recognize that I am the Ruler of all things, to see clearly that Satan is humanity’s foe, the lowest of the low, the evil one, and to make the difference between good and evil, truth and falsehood, holiness and filth, greatness and baseness, as clear as day. This way, ignorant humanity may bear witness to Me that it is not I who corrupt humanity, and only I—the Creator—can save humanity, can bestow upon them things for enjoyment; and they may come to know that I am the Ruler of all things and Satan is merely one of My creations, which later turned against Me.
from “The Truth Concerning the Work in the Age of Redemption” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
The core of the work of God’s management is for the sake of mankind’s salvation. Earliest mankind was in the hands of God, but because of Satan’s temptation and corruption, man was bound up by Satan and fell in the hands of the evil one. Thus, Satan became the object to be defeated in the work of God’s management. Because Satan took possession of man, and because man is the stock of all God’s management, if man is to be saved, then he must be snatched back from the hands of Satan, which is to say that man must be taken back after having been held captive by Satan. Satan is defeated through changes in man’s old disposition that restore his original sense, and in this way, man, who has been taken captive, can be snatched back from the hands of Satan. If man is freed from the influence and bondage of Satan, Satan will be shamed, man will ultimately be taken back, and Satan will be defeated. And because man has been freed from the dark influence of Satan, man will become the spoils of all of this battle, and Satan will become the object that will be punished once this battle has finished, after which the entire work of mankind’s salvation will have been completed.
from “Restoring the Normal Life of Man and Taking Him to a Wonderful Destination” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Such is the management of God: to hand mankind over to Satan—a mankind that doesn’t know what God is, what the Creator is, how to worship God, and why it is necessary to submit to God—and give free rein to the corruption of Satan. Step by step, God then recovers man from the hands of Satan, until man fully worships God and rejects Satan. This is the management of God. All this sounds like a mythical story; and it seems perplexing. People feel that it is like a mythical story, and that is because they have no inkling of how much has happened to man over the last several thousand years, much less do they know how many stories have occurred in the expanse of this universe. And furthermore, that is because they cannot appreciate the more astonishing, more fear-inducing world that exists beyond the material world, but which their mortal eyes prevent them from seeing. It feels incomprehensible to man, and that is because man has no understanding of the significance of God’s salvation of mankind and the significance of the work of God’s management, and does not comprehend how God ultimately wishes mankind to be. Is it a mankind akin to Adam and Eve, uncorrupted by Satan? No! The management of God is in order to gain a group of people who worship God and submit to Him. This mankind has been corrupted by Satan, but no longer sees Satan as his father; he recognizes the ugly face of Satan, and rejects it, and comes before God to accept His judgment and chastisement. He knows what is ugly, and how it contrasts with that which is holy, and he recognizes the greatness of God and the evil of Satan. A mankind such as this will no longer work for Satan, or worship Satan, or enshrine Satan. That’s because they are a group of people that have truly been gained by God. This is the significance of God’s managing mankind. …
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The love and compassion of God permeates each and every detail of His management work, and regardless of whether people are able to understand God’s good intentions, He is still tirelessly doing the work that He intends to accomplish. Irrespective of how much people understand of the management of God, the benefits and assistance of the work done by God can be appreciated by everyone. Perhaps, today, you have not felt any of the love or life provided by God, but as long as you do not abandon God, and do not give up on your determination to seek the truth, then there will always be a day when God’s smile will be revealed to you. For the aim of the work of God’s management is to recover the mankind who is under the domain of Satan, not to abandon the mankind who has been corrupted by Satan and opposes God.
from “Man Can Only Be Saved Amidst the Management of God” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
God created humanity and placed them upon earth, whom He has led to the present day. He then saved humanity and served as a sin offering for humanity. At the end He still must conquer humanity, save humanity entirely and restore them to their original likeness. This is the work that He has been engaged in from the beginning to the end—restoring man to his original image and to his original likeness. He will establish His kingdom and restore man’s original likeness, meaning that He will restore His authority upon earth and restore His authority among all creation. Man lost his God-fearing heart after being corrupted by Satan and lost the function that one of God’s creatures should have, becoming an enemy disobedient to God. Man lived under Satan’s domain and followed Satan’s orders; thus, God had no way to work among His creatures, and was all the more unable to win fear from His creatures. Man was created by God, and ought to worship God, but man actually turned his back to God and worshiped Satan. Satan became the idol in man’s heart. Thus God lost His standing in man’s heart, which is to say that He lost the meaning of His creation of man, and so to restore the meaning of His creation of man He must restore man’s original likeness and rid man of his corrupt disposition. To reclaim man from Satan, He must save man from sin. Only in this way can He gradually restore man’s original likeness and restore man’s original function, and in the end restore His kingdom. The ultimate destruction of those sons of disobedience will also be carried out in order to allow man to better worship God and better live upon the earth. Since God created man, He shall make man worship Him; since He wishes to restore man’s original function, He shall restore it completely, and without any adulteration. Restoring His authority means making man worship Him and making man obey Him; it means that He shall make man live because of Him and make His enemies perish because of His authority; it means that He will make every last part of Him persist among humanity and without any resistance by man. The kingdom He wishes to establish is His own kingdom. The humanity He wishes for is one that worships Him, one that completely obeys Him and has His glory. If He does not save corrupt humanity, the meaning of His creation of man will come to nothing; He will have no more authority among man, and His kingdom will no longer be able to exist upon the earth. If He does not destroy those enemies who are disobedient to Him, He will be unable to obtain His complete glory, nor will He be able to establish His kingdom upon the earth. These are the symbols of the completion of His work and the symbols of the completion of His great accomplishment: to utterly destroy those among humanity who are disobedient to Him, and to bring those who have been made complete into rest. When humanity has been restored to their original likeness, when humanity can fulfill their respective duties, keep their own place and obey all of God’s arrangements, God will have obtained a group of people upon the earth who worship Him, and He will also have established a kingdom upon the earth that worships Him. He will have eternal victory upon the earth, and those who are opposed to Him will perish for all eternity. This will restore His original intention in creating man; it will restore His intention in creating all things, and it will also restore His authority upon earth, His authority among all things and His authority among His enemies. These are the symbols of His total victory. Henceforth humanity will enter into rest and enter into a life that follows the right track. God will also enter into eternal rest with man and enter into an eternal life shared by God and man. The filth and disobedience upon the earth shall disappear, as shall the wailing upon the earth. All upon the earth that opposes God will not exist. Only God and those people that He has saved shall remain; only His creation shall remain.
from “God and Man Will Enter Into Rest Together” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
When man enters the eternal destination, man will worship the Creator, and because man has gained salvation and entered eternity, man will not pursue any objectives, nor, moreover, will he need to worry that he is besieged by Satan. At this time, man will know his place, and will perform his duty, and even if they are not chastised or judged, each person will perform their duty. At that time, man will be a creature in both identity and status. There will no longer be the distinction of high and low; each person will simply perform a different function. Yet man will still live in an orderly, suitable destination of mankind, man will perform his duty for the sake of worshiping the Creator, and a mankind such as this will be the mankind of eternity. At that time, man will have gained a life illuminated by God, a life under the care and protection of God, and a life together with God. Mankind will lead a normal life on earth, and the whole of mankind will enter onto the right track. The 6,000-year management plan will have utterly defeated Satan, which means that God will have recovered the original image of man following his creation, and as such, the original intention of God will have been fulfilled.
from “Restoring the Normal Life of Man and Taking Him to a Wonderful Destination” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Managing man is My job, and having him be conquered by Me was even more predestined when I created the world. People do not know that I will completely conquer them in the last days, and they are also unaware that the evidence of My defeating Satan is to conquer the disobedient members of mankind. But I had already told My enemy when it struggled with Me that I would become the conqueror of those who had been taken away by Satan and had long become its children, and its loyal servants watching over its home. … Mankind, trampled under Satan’s feet long ago, has been acting in Satan’s image—even being its embodiment. They are the evidence of being Satan’s witness, loud and clear. Such mankind, such scum, or such offspring of this corrupt human family, how could they bear witness to God? From whence comes forth My glory? Where is My witness? The enemy that stands against Me and corrupts mankind has already soiled mankind, My creation, brimming with My glory and My living out. It has stolen away My glory, and what it has imbued man with is nothing but poison heavily laced with the ugliness of Satan, and juice from fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. … I will repossess My glory, repossess My testimony among man and all that once belonged to Me, which I had given to mankind long ago—completely conquer mankind. However you should know, the humans I created were holy men with My image and My glory. They were not originally of Satan, nor subjected to its trampling, but purely My manifestation, free of the slightest trace of its poison. Thus, I let everyone know that I only want that which was created by My hand, My beloved pure ones that never belonged to any other entity. Furthermore, I will take pleasure in them and see them as My glory. However, what I want is not the mankind corrupted by Satan, belonging to Satan today, which is no longer My original creation. Because I want to repossess My glory in the human world, I will gain complete conquest over the remaining survivors of mankind, as the proof of My glory in My victory over Satan. I only take My testimony as My crystallization, as the object of My enjoyment. Such is My intention.
from “What a Real Man Means” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
After carrying out His 6,000 years of work through the present day, God has already revealed many of His acts, primarily to defeat Satan and save all of humanity. He uses this opportunity to allow everything in heaven, everything upon the earth, everything within the seas as well as every last object of God’s creation on earth to see God’s almightiness and to see all of God’s acts. He seizes the opportunity of defeating Satan to reveal all of His acts to humanity and allow people to be able to praise Him and exalt His wisdom of defeating Satan. Everything on earth, in heaven and within the seas brings Him glory, praises His almightiness, praises all His acts and shouts His holy name. This is proof of His defeat of Satan; it is proof of His conquering of Satan; more importantly, it is proof of His salvation of humanity. The whole of God’s creation brings Him glory, praises Him for defeating His enemy and returning victoriously and praises Him as the great victorious King. His purpose is not merely to defeat Satan, and so His work has continued for 6,000 years. He uses Satan’s defeat to save humanity; He uses Satan’s defeat to reveal all His acts and reveal all of His glory. He will obtain glory, and all the multitude of angels will also see all His glory. The messengers in heaven, the humans upon earth and all of creation upon earth will see the glory of the Creator. This is the work that He does. His creation in heaven and on earth will all see His glory, and He will return triumphantly after utterly defeating Satan and let humanity praise Him. He will thus successfully achieve both of these aspects. In the end all of humanity will be conquered by Him, and He will wipe out anyone who resists or rebels, that is to say, wipe out all those who belong to Satan.
from “You Should Know How the Whole of Humanity Has Developed to the Present Day” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
Man is the master of all things, but those who have been gained will become the fruits of all battles with Satan. Satan is the corrupter of all things, it is the loser at the end of all battles, and is also the one which will be punished following these battles. Among God, man and Satan, only Satan is the one which will be detested and rejected. Those who were gained by Satan but are not taken back by God, meanwhile, become the ones who will receive punishment in behalf of Satan. Of these three, only God should be worshiped by all things. Those who were corrupted by Satan but are taken back by God and who follow the way of God, meanwhile, become the ones who will receive God’s promise and judge the evil ones for God. God will surely be victorious and Satan will surely be defeated, but among man there are those who will win and those who will lose. Those who win will belong to the Victor, and those who lose will belong to the loser; this is the classification of each according to kind, it is the final outcome of all God’s work, it is also the aim of all God’s work, and it will never change. The core of the main work of God’s management plan is focused on the salvation of man, and God becomes flesh primarily for the sake of this core, for the sake of this work, and in order to defeat Satan.
from “Restoring the Normal Life of Man and Taking Him to a Wonderful Destination” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
All people need to understand the purpose of My work on earth, that is, the final objective of My work and what level I must achieve in this work before it can be complete. If people, walking with Me to this day, do not understand what My work is all about, then have they not been walking with Me in vain? People who follow Me should know My will. I have been working on earth for thousands of years, and I am still doing so now. Although there are especially numerous items included in My work, its purpose remains unchanged. For example, although I am filled with judgment and chastisement toward man, it is still in order to save him, to better spread My gospel and further expand My work among the Gentile nations once man has been made complete. So now, at a time when many people have already greatly lost hope, I am continuing with My work, continuing the work I must do to judge and chastise man. Despite the fact that man is fed up with what I say and regardless of the fact that he has no desire to care about My work, I am still carrying out My duty because the purpose of My work remains unchanged and My original plan will not be broken. The function of My judgment is to get man to better obey Me, and the function of My chastisement is to allow man a better transformation. Although what I do is for the sake of My management, I have never done anything that was unprofitable for man. That is because I want to make all the nations outside of Israel just as obedient as the Israelites and make them into real men, so that I will have a foothold in the lands outside of Israel. This is My management; it is the work I am accomplishing in the lands of the Gentiles. Even now, many people still do not understand My management because they are not concerned with it, instead just thinking about their futures and destinations. No matter what I say, people are indifferent to My work, just focusing on the destinations of their tomorrow. So if that continues, how can My work be expanded? How can My gospel be spread throughout the world? You must know that when My work is expanding, I will scatter you, and I will strike you just as Jehovah struck the tribes of Israel. All this will be done so that My gospel may be enlarged over all the earth, so that My work may spread to the Gentile nations. Thus, My name will be magnified by adults and children alike and My holy name will be exalted by the mouths of people from all tribes and nations. In the final era, I will have My name magnified among the Gentile nations, make My deeds seen by the Gentiles so they will call Me the Almighty, and cause My words to soon come to pass. I will make all people know that I am not only the God of the Israelites, but the God of all Gentile nations, even of the nations I have cursed. I will let all people see that I am the God of all creation. This is My greatest work, the purpose of My work plan for the last days, and the only work to be fulfilled in the last days.
from “The Work of Spreading the Gospel Is Also the Work of Saving Man” in The Word Appears in the Flesh
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