The Church of Almighty God | Chapter 17
Almighty God says: My voice rings out like thunder, illuminating all four quadrants and the whole earth, and in the midst of thunder and lightning, humanity is struck down. No man has ever stayed firm in the midst of thunder and lightning: Most men are terrified out of their wits at the coming of My light and know not what to do. When a faint glimmer of light begins to show in the East, many people, moved by this tenuous luminescence, are instantaneously roused from their illusions. Yet no one has ever realized that the day has come when My light descends upon the earth. The great majority of men are dumbstruck by the sudden advent of the light; some of them, with a gaze of curious fascination, observe the light’s movements and from what direction it is approaching; or some stand at the ready as they face the light, that they might more clearly understand the source whence the light comes. Be this as it may, has anyone ever discovered how precious is the light of today? Has anyone ever awakened to the uniqueness of the light? The great majority of men are merely bewildered; they are wounded in the eyes and cast down into the mud by the light. One could say that, under this nebulous light, the earth lies blanketed under chaos, making an unbearably sorry sight that, examined closely, assails one with an overwhelming melancholy. From this one gathers that, when the light is at its strongest, the state of the earth will be such that it cannot allow mankind to stand before Me. Humanity lies in the radiance of the light; again, humanity lies in the salvation of the light but at the same time also under the wounds inflicted by the light: Is there anyone who does not lie under the light’s killing blows? Is there anyone who can escape the burning of the light? I have walked all over the universe, strewing with My hands the seeds of My Spirit, and fantastic phenomena of the creatures on earth. The surface of the ocean seems to be suffering the shock of an earthquake: Seabirds fly this way and that, looking for fish to swallow up. Meanwhile, this is completely unknown at the bottom of the sea, which the surface conditions are utterly unable to rouse into consciousness, because the ocean’s bottom is as serene as the third heaven: Here living things great and small coexist in harmony, never once engaging in “conflicts of mouth and tongue.” Among the myriad bizarre and whimsical phenomena, humanity is the one that finds it most difficult to please Me. This is because the position I have given man is too high, and so his ambition is too great, and in his eyes there is always a measure of rebelliousness. Within My discipline of man, within My judgment of him, there has been much that is painstaking, much that is compassionate, but of these things mankind has not the least inkling. I have never treated any human being harshly: I have only, when mankind has been disobedient, administered suitable corrections, and only, when mankind has been weak, proffered suitable help. But, when humanity keeps aloof from Me and moreover makes use of Satan’s deceitful stratagems to rebel against Me, I will forthwith exterminate mankind, leaving men no chance to make a grand display of their skills in front of Me, so that they will no longer be able to swagger about with pomp and circumstance, bullying others, upon the face of the earth.
I wield My authority upon the earth, unfolding My work in its entirety. All that is in My work is reflected upon the face of the earth; mankind has never, on earth, been able to grasp My movements in heaven, nor to ponder exhaustively the orbits and trajectories of My Spirit. The vast majority of human beings only grasp the minutiae that lie outside the spirit, without being able to comprehend the actual state of the spirit. The demands that I make of humanity do not issue from the vague I that am in heaven, or from the imponderable I that am on the earth: I make suitable demands according to the stature of man on earth. I have never put anyone in difficulties, nor have I ever asked anyone to “squeeze out his blood” for My pleasure: Could it be that My demands are limited only to these conditions? Of the myriad creatures on earth, which one does not submit to the dispositions of the words in My mouth? Which of these creatures, coming before Me, is not completely incinerated through My words and My burning fire? Which of these creatures dares to strut about in proud exultation in front of Me? Which of these creatures does not bow down before Me? Am I the God that merely imposes silence on creation? Of the myriad things in creation, I choose those that satisfy My intention; of the myriad human beings in mankind, I choose those who care for My heart. I choose the best of all the stars, thereby adding a faint gleam of light to My kingdom. I go walking upon the earth, dispersing My fragrance everywhere, and in every place I leave behind My form. Each and every place reverberates with the sound of My voice. People everywhere linger nostalgically over the beauteous scenes of yesterday, for all humanity is remembering the past …
All humanity longs to see My face, but when I descend in person upon the earth, they are all averse to My coming, they all chase away the light from coming, as if I were man’s enemy in heaven. Man greets Me with a defensive light in his eyes, and remains constantly on the alert, deeply afraid that I might have other plans for him. Because human beings regard Me as an unfamiliar friend, they feel as if I bear the intent of killing them indiscriminately. In man’s eyes, I am a deadly antagonist. Having tasted My warmth in the midst of calamity, man is nevertheless still unaware of My love, and is still bent on fending Me off and defying Me. Far from taking advantage of his being in this condition to take action against him, I enfold man in the warmth of embrace, fill his mouth with sweetness, and put needful food into his stomach. But, when My wrathful ire shakes the mountains and rivers, I will no longer, on account of man’s cowardice, bestow on him these different forms of succor. At this moment, I will wax furious, refusing all living things a chance to repent and, abandoning all hope of man, I will mete out the punishment that he so richly deserves. At this time, thunder and lightning flash and roar, like the ocean’s waves raging in anger, like ten thousand mountains crashing down. For his rebelliousness, mankind is felled by the thunder and lightning, other creatures are wiped out in the blasts of thunder and lightning, the whole universe descends abruptly into chaos, and creation is unable to recover the primal breath of life. The myriad hosts of humanity cannot escape from the thunder’s roar; in the midst of flashes of lightning, human beings, horde upon horde, topple over into the swiftly flowing stream, to be swept away by torrents cascading down from the mountains. All of a sudden, in mankind’s place of refuge there converges a world of men. Corpses drift about on the ocean’s surface. All of humanity goes far away from Me on account of My wrath, for man has offended against the essence of My Spirit, his rebellion has displeased Me. But, in the places empty of water, other men are still enjoying, amid laughter and song, the promises that I have vouchsafed unto them.
When the whole of humanity quiets down, I emit a gleam of light before its gaze. Thereupon, men become clear of mind and bright of eye, and cease to be willing to keep silent; thus, spiritual feeling is summoned up in their hearts immediately. At this time, all humanity is resurrected. Casting aside their unspoken grievances, all men come before Me, having won another chance at survival through the words that I proclaim. This is because human beings all wish to live on the face of the earth. Yet who among them has ever had the intention of living for My sake? Who among them has ever uncovered splendid things in him to give Me pleasure? Who among them has ever detected a seductive scent on Me? Human beings are all coarse and unrefined stuff: On the outside, they seem to dazzle the eyes, but in their essential selves they do not love Me sincerely, because in the deep recesses of the human heart there has never been even the smallest measure of Me. Man is too lacking: Comparing him with Myself, it would appear that we are as far apart as earth from heaven. But, even so, I do not attack man in his weak and vulnerable spots, nor do I laugh him to scorn on account of his deficiencies. My hands have been working[a] on earth for thousands of years, and all the while My eyes have kept watch over all of humanity. But I have never casually taken up a single human life to play with as if it were a toy. I observe the heart’s blood of man, and I understand the price that he has paid. As he stands before Me, I do not wish to take advantage of man’s defenselessness to chastise him, nor to bestow upon him undesirable things. Instead, I have only provided for man, and given unto man, all this time. And so, what man enjoys is entirely My grace, entirely the bounty that comes from My hand. Because I am on earth, man has never had to suffer the torments of hunger. Rather, I allow man to receive from My hands the things that he may enjoy, and allow mankind to live within My blessings. Does not all of mankind live under My chastisement? Just as the mountains hold in their depths things of plenty and abundance, and the waters in their capaciousness things to be enjoyed, do not the people living within My words today have, all the more, the food that they appreciate and taste? I am on earth, and mankind enjoys My blessings on earth. When I leave the earth behind, which is also when My work reaches its completion, at that time, humankind will no longer receive any indulgence from Me on account of their weakness.
March 16, 1992
Footnotes:
a. The original text omits “working.”
Recommendation; Eastern Lightning
