Afraid of Being Deceived by False Christs

I migrated to the United States in 2010. Because my job was keeping me busy and the place where I stayed had no Chinese churches, I didn’t attend any meetings. I only read the Bible at home or listened to some sermons downloaded online.

There was one time when I was reading the Bible, I saw the Lord Jesus said, “Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many” (Matthew 24:4-5). The Lord reminded us that when He returns, there will be false Christs and prophets deceiving men. At this moment, I thought about how I myself had been drifting through the world, had not been to any meetings or gone to church to listen to any sermons. I was very worried that I would be deceived by false Christs because I didn’t know how false Christs deceive people and I lacked discernment. When I saw the video End Time Events talking about how disasters were getting greater and greater and that the Lord Jesus would return at any time, I was especially more worried. I could only often pray to the Lord asking Him to protect me so I wouldn’t be deceived by false Christs.

A Chance Encounter With an Evangelist

On Thanksgiving Day 2017, I met Sister Yang on Facebook, and I got to know Sister Li from her. The three of us would have meetings together whenever we were free. Sister Li’s fellowshiping was fresh and had new light, which I had never heard before, such as fellowships on the origins of the Bible, the mystery of God’s incarnation, the difference between being saved and attaining salvation, the difference between God’s work and man’s work, and so on. Sister Li also often sent us words from spiritual books that were very beneficial. Seeing that Sister Li knew so many truths, I told her my concern.

I said, “Sister Li, I have a question. The Lord Jesus said that there will be false Christs in the last days. I have small stature, I’m very worried that I will be deceived by them because I have no discernment. Could you please fellowship with me on how to distinguish between the true Christ and the false ones?”

Sister Yang also said, “It is very important to understand this aspect of truth. If we do not have discernment and condemn the work of Christ as the work of a false Christ deceiving people, won’t we be the ones that blaspheme the Holy Spirit and resist Christ? The consequence would be very serious!”

How to Distinguish the True Christ From False Ones

Sister Li agreed happily and fellowshiped with us, “In actuality, the vital point to discern false Christs is to have a knowledge of the substance of Christ. Once we have it, it is not difficult for us to discern the deception of false Christs. We all know that Christ is the embodiment of God’s Spirit and possesses a divine essence, so Christ can do the work of God Himself, and He is able to express truth to save man, to bestow life upon man and show man the way to practice. Just as the Lord Jesus said, ‘I am the way, the truth, and the life’ (John 14:6). I’ll send a passage of words to the group so that you can understand this aspect of truth better.”

I read it carefully, “It is not difficult to inquire into such a thing, but it requires each of us to know this one truth: He who is God incarnate shall possess the essence of God, and He who is God incarnate shall possess the expression of God. Since God becomes flesh, He shall bring forth the work He intends to do, and since God becomes flesh, He shall express what He is, and shall be able to bring the truth to man, bestow life upon him, and point the way for him. Flesh that does not have the essence of God is decidedly not the incarnate God; of this there is no doubt. If man intends to inquire into whether it is God’s incarnate flesh, then he must corroborate this from the disposition He expresses and the words He speaks. Which is to say, to corroborate whether or not it is God’s incarnate flesh, and whether or not it is the true way, one must discriminate on the basis of His essence. And so, in determining whether it is the flesh of God incarnate, the key lies in His essence (His work, His utterances, His disposition, and many other aspects), rather than external appearance. If man scrutinizes only His external appearance, and as a result overlooks His essence, this shows that man is benighted and ignorant.”

Sister Li fellowshiped with us, “To determine whether He is the incarnate God, we cannot look at His external appearance, but should look at whether or not He can express the truth and do the work of God Himself. Christ can express the truth to supply man and save man, and the work Christ does cannot be done by anyone. Just like the Lord Jesus Christ, who brought the work of the Age of Grace based on that of the Age of Law. He healed the sick and cast out demons, made the lame walk and resurrected the dead. Besides, according to the needs of people at that time, He gave many preachings to make man confess and repent their sins, and taught man to love their enemies, forgive others seventy times seven, love one another and so on, which brought people the way to practice. From the work of the Lord Jesus, we can see that He possesses the authority and power of God, and that the work He does and the truth He expresses cannot be achieved by man. While most false Christs are possessed by evil spirits. They are extremely arrogant and absurd, and in substance they are demons and evil spirits. They cannot do God’s work or express truth, nor can they bring forth new paths for us. Even if they talk of profound knowledge and theory or speak false prophecies, these false Christs do nothing but deceive us, harm us. Nothing they do is edifying our life. So we should differentiate between the true Christ and false Christs from their words and work.

After listening to Sister Li’s fellowship, Sister Yang and I kept nodding our heads. Especially the paragraph of words she sent to us seemed extraordinary, and I kept thinking: Who said these words? Sister Yang also felt these words were so good.

Sister Li continued fellowshiping, “Regarding how to distinguish false Christs, the Lord Jesus has clearly told us the manifestation of them. The Lord Jesus said, ‘Then if any man shall say to you, See, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; so that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect’ (Matthew 24:23–24). From the words of the Lord Jesus we can know that the main manifestation of false Christs is performing signs and wonders. Because they don’t possess truth, they are unable to conquer man, nor do they possess the authority and power of God. All they can do is imitate some simple work the Lord Jesus did. They can only carry out signs and wonders, heal the sick and cast out demons to deceive those muddle-headed people without discernment. But they are incapable of copying what Jesus did of raising the dead and feeding five thousand people with five loaves of bread and two fish, or rebuking the wind and sea, which is totally beyond them. There are two passages of words clearly clarifying the truth about how to distinguish false Christs, and I’ll send them to you.”

Then Sister Li sent these two passages which say, “If, during the last days, a ‘God’ the same as Jesus appeared, one who healed the sick, cast out demons, and was crucified for man, that ‘God,’ though identical to the description of God in the Bible and easy for man to accept, would not, in its essence, be the flesh worn by the Spirit of God, but by an evil spirit. For it is the principle of God’s work never to repeat what He has already completed. And so, the work of God’s second incarnation is different from the work of the first.” “In the notions of man, God must always display signs and wonders, must always heal the sick and cast out demons, and must always be just like Jesus. Yet this time, God is not like that at all. If, during the last days, God still displayed signs and wonders, and still cast out demons and healed the sick—if He did exactly the same as Jesus—then God would be repeating the same work, and the work of Jesus would have no significance or value. Thus, God carries out one stage of work in every age. Once each stage of His work has been completed, it is soon imitated by evil spirits, and after Satan begins to follow on the heels of God, God changes to a different method. Once God has completed a stage of His work, it is imitated by evil spirits. You must be clear about this.” After I was done reading these words, I confirmed from within my heart that these words are extraordinary and that they come from the Holy Spirit.

Sister Li continued her fellowship, “These words clearly told us that God doesn’t repeat His work and He performs new work in every age. Just like Jehovah God decreed laws to lead the lives of man in the Age of Law, the Lord Jesus didn’t do the work of issuing laws. Instead, He carried out a stage of the work of redemption based on the work of the Age of Law. If the Lord Jesus also issued the laws, then the work God did in the Age of Law would be of no significance or value. Similarly, when the Lord Jesus returns in the last days, He will surely end the Age of Grace, bring new work and express new words. He will absolutely not repeat the work of healing the sick, casting out demons or being crucified on the cross. According to the principle that God never repeats His work, we can be certain that anyone who is unable to do new work and express truth but can only imitate the work God did in the past, even if he can perform many miracles and calls himself God or Christ, is the counterfeit of an evil spirit, a false Christ.”

Where Do These Words Come From

After listening to the words sent by Sister Li and her fellowship, I understood that the key to distinguishing between the true Christ and false Christs is to see whether he can express truth and do God’s own work. I also came to know that the substance of false Christs is evil spirits, and that they are not possessed of the truth, but can only imitate the work God did in the past. Having understood this, I was not so worried about being deceived by false Christs. But I was still eager to know where these words came from, so I asked anxiously, “Sister Li, where do these words you sent to us come from? Who said them? I’ve never heard them before. They are so good!”

Sister Yang agreed, “That’s right. I felt these words came from the Holy Spirit. After I read them, I felt a special kind of brightness in my heart. They are not something that can be said by any ordinary person.”

Sister Li said with excitement, “Thanks be to God! God’s sheep hear His voice. These words indeed cannot be said by any ordinary person. They are the words expressed by God in His work of the last days, the words of the Spirit to the churches.”

I said in astonishment, “God’s words? Has God come? Are these words you’ve been reading to us these days God’s words?”

Sister Li answered with certainty, “Yes, what I’ve been fellowshiping with you these days and what I’ve sent to you are all God’s words. The Lord Jesus has returned, and He uses the name of Almighty God to perform a stage of His work of judging and cleansing man on the foundation of the Lord Jesus’ redemption work, ending the Age of Grace, beginning the Age of Kingdom and bestowing upon us all truths for our purification and salvation. This fulfills the Lord Jesus’ prophecy: ‘I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. However, when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will show you things to come’ (John 16:12–13). And now, Almighty God’s words have already been published on the Internet and translated into dozens of languages, so God’s new work can be sought and investigated by people around the world who seek the truth and love the truth. Almighty God’s work of the last days has been spreading on a grand scale throughout the world, and it will soon conclude with glory. We should be wise virgins, listen to the bridegroom’s voice and follow Him closely so that we won’t be cast aside.

Recognizing God’s Voice and Welcoming His Return

When I heard Sister Li saying that the name of God is Almighty God, I thought of the negative propaganda on the Internet and my heart pounded for a moment. But through Sister Li’s fellowship, I was convinced and believed that she is a true believer of God and has no relation to rumors being spread online. Thinking of these words sent by Sister Li, I felt there is truth in these words. If they are not God’s words, who can clearly speak the truth about the mysteries of the Bible, the mystery of God’s incarnation and how to distinguish between the true Christ and false ones? I should be a wise virgin and investigate the work of Almighty God.

Later, Sister Yang and I downloaded the app of The Church of Almighty God and watched movies on it. After a period of studying the work of Almighty God, I was fully determined that Almighty God is the returned Lord Jesus. Sister Yang and I happily accepted Almighty God’s work of the last days. Looking back on the days I believed in the Lord Jesus, I was always too busy with work to attend meetings regularly. So I deeply felt that I was unworthy of God’s salvation. But God shows His grace and tolerance to me, and gives me the chance of salvation. My heart is full of gratitude to Him. I give thanks for God’s wonderful arrangement that leads me to return to the home of God. All the glory be to Almighty God!

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