Subtitles section Play video Print subtitles We work hard for the Lord and keep His name. If we watch for His arrival like this, we'll be taken into His kingdom. The Lord Jesus clearly said, only those who do the will of the heavenly Father can enter the kingdom of heaven, and not that hard work and keeping His name awards man entry into the kingdom of heaven. Then what does it mean to do God's will? Doing God's will means to obey the work of God, to view practicing God's word and obeying God as being above all else. Only then do they do God's will. What you say accords with the Bible. But I have a question for you. Okay. Thank God. For years we've believed in the Lord, and have followed the example of Paul. We've been faithful to the name and way of the Lord, (Ah, yes.) and the crown of righteousness surely awaits us. (Amen.) We should focus on working hard for the Lord and watching for His return. Thus, we can enter the kingdom of heaven. For the Bible says, We believe the Lord's promise: He'll take us into the kingdom of heaven at His return. Could there really be anything wrong with this? Please fellowship with us. (Okay.) I approve of Pastor Yang's views. Brother Paul said, So we work hard for the Lord and keep His name. If we watch for His arrival like this, we'll be taken into His kingdom. (Amen.) Nothing is wrong with this! (Indeed!) Sister Zhu, what you speak are the words of Paul. (Indeed.) Paul's words don't represent the Lord's words. (Right.) Paul's words don't ensure entry into God's kingdom. The Lord Jesus clearly said, only those who do the will of the heavenly Father can enter the kingdom of heaven, and not that hard work and keeping His name awards man entry into the kingdom of heaven. We know Jesus is Lord of the kingdom of heaven. Only Lord Jesus decides who will enter His kingdom and gain a crown. (Indeed.) The path we take in our belief in God should be according to the words of the Lord Jesus. (Yes.) If it is according to Paul, we'll be going against the Lord's will and way. Ultimately, we will only bring ruin upon ourselves. (Yes.) And so, we'd best seek and listen to the understanding of others. (Yes.) Then won't it be perfectly clear? (Yes. We'd best seek.) Brothers and sisters, in watching for the arrival of the Lord, most people believe that they need only work hard for the Lord, and follow the example of Paul in order to be directly taken into the kingdom of heaven when He arrives. To them, it seems right to practice like this and no one disagrees. Yet we who believe in God should always seek the truth. It may match people's conceptions, but does it match God's wishes? (Is it?) We should know that God's words are the principles of man's actions and the standard by which all things are measured. If people follow God's words, they'll surely receive God's approval. If they go against them and practice by their own conceptions, they will be rejected by God. As to if people can enter the kingdom of heaven by watching, waiting, and working hard for the Lord, let's look at what the Lord Jesus said in Matthew 7:21-23, In the words of the Lord Jesus, we see that Jesus said, He did not say all those who work hard and keep His name can enter the kingdom of heaven. Indeed. Is this not fact? Right. He didn't say hard work brings entrance to the kingdom of heaven. To me, these are our conceptions and imaginings. If it's as some think that all who work for the Lord will enter the kingdom of heaven, why did Jesus say some of those who prophesied in His name committed evil? Indeed. This shows that working hard for the Lord is not necessarily the same as doing the will of God. And why is that? Because many people work hard for the Lord so that they may be blessed, and not for truly obeying God. Their satanic disposition remains. They still have notions of God and oppose God. There are even some who hate the truth, the same as the Pharisees. No matter how hard they work for the Lord, how could such people do the will of God? (Indeed.) In nature, such people oppose God. To enter God's kingdom simply by hard work is intolerable to Heaven. Don't you all agree? (Indeed. Yes. I agree.) Then what does it mean to do God's will? Doing God's will means to obey the work of God, to view practicing God's word and obeying God as being above all else. (Indeed.) Thus, they can abide by God's commandments, perform their duty as required by God, and truly dedicate themselves to God without thought of what they might gain in return. All they do is practice truth, obey God. Only then do they do God's will. Oh, so that's how it is. Though they work and make great sacrifices, many of those who believe in the Lord do so in order to enter the kingdom of heaven and be rewarded. (Yes.) It isn't to love God and obey Him. Such devotion to God is nothing more than making a deal with Him. Despite working hard for God, many people have never put the truth into practice, nor do they exalt or testify to God. Instead, they often make an idol of themselves, and make others worship and follow them. Everything they do is to maintain their own position and income. Are such people those who put God's word into practice and obey God? Are they those who do the will of God? (No, they're not.) Such people serve God but they also oppose Him. (Yes.) They're the hypocritical Pharisees. It can be said that they are evildoers. How could such people enter the kingdom of heaven? No, they will not. From this, we see that those who appear to be working hard for the Lord yet have never put the truth into practice are not testifying to God because they wish to carry out His will. Such people are not performing the will of God. They work hard to receive His blessings and enter the kingdom of heaven, yet they still oppose God. There's no change in disposition. Like the Pharisees, they pretend to be good, but will ultimately be cursed by God. (Yes.) Let's look at a passage of the words of Almighty God. (Okay.) Almighty God's words make it clear. Entering the kingdom of heaven is not based on how much they work or suffer. Indeed. It's based on if they practice God's words, if they follow God's commandments, and whether or not they do God's will. That's the criteria to enter God's kingdom. Their fellowship is so clear. And yet, there are those who blindly hold to Paul's words, They take Paul's fallacious views as the theoretical basis for entry into the kingdom of heaven. So regardless of how much they sacrifice, they can't receive God's approval, nor enter the kingdom of heaven. (Right.) It's lucky we heard their fellowship today. Or else we couldn't enter in our lifetime. For years I've preached, yet not known how to do the heavenly Father's will. All I knew was to work and sacrifice for the Lord. I paid no attention to seeking the Lord's will. (True.) Today I have discovered that nothing is more crucial than doing God's will. Indeed. I overlooked this. I'm so ashamed! Yes. We used to all believe that if we worked hard for the Lord, and to Him dedicated ourselves, then we could enter His kingdom at His return. After hearing you, I realize that our views of pursuit were wrong. Indeed. Thanks be to God. Though we spent for the Lord and worked hard, we did not practice the Lord's words nor obey Him. (Indeed.) Everything we did was in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. All was so that we might be blessed. In this, weren't we deceiving God? We were! God looks within the depths of people's hearts. God is righteous and holy. Amen. Yes. How could we possibly receive God's approval in that way, (Yes.) or enter the kingdom of heaven? (Right.) How lucky we are to have heard their fellowship today! We have just fellowshiped that people can only enter God's kingdom by doing the heavenly Father's will. What then are God's requirements for watching and waiting for the Lord's arrival? (Yes.) Many people believe that they need only work hard, suffer as they bear the cross, keep Lord's name. By doing so, they believe they're watching, and will not be forsaken by the Lord. In fact, Jesus spoke very clearly about watching and waiting. Oh? Very clearly? In Matthew 25:6, Amen. There's also Revelation 16:15,