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 The Lord Jesus told us, “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). “And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom comes; go you out to meet him” (Matthew 25:6). “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7). We can see that when we investigate the true way, it is the Lord’s will that we seek with an open heart. When we hear someone testifying that the Lord has returned, we must take the initiative to seek and investigate to see whether or not it is the appearance and work of God. If we sincerely seek and yearn for the Lord’s appearance, then He will surely lead us to find His footsteps and to welcome Him. Why does the Lord say that we must seek with an open heart when investigating the true way to welcome the Lord?

We all know that God’s wisdom reaches beyond the heavens and that He performs a new work each time He comes—these things are unfathomable to us humans. When the Lord Jesus came to perform the work of redemption, for example, He did His work outside of the temple and did not preach the laws and commandments, but instead He ate with sinners and did not keep the Sabbath, and so on. Much of His work differed greatly from that which had been done by Jehovah God, and this was something the people of that time found hard to accept. Only those with a humble heart and an open-hearted attitude, who could let go of their own notions and imaginings, and who could take the initiative to seek and investigate were able to receive the Lord’s salvation. 

Take Nathaniel, for example. Although he had his own notions about the Lord Jesus, he was able to let them go and seek with an open heart, until finally, he recognized that Jesus was the Messiah, and followed Him, and received His salvation. Then there was Peter who, before he had even seen the Lord Jesus, had heard the Jewish leaders judging and condemning Jesus, but instead of blindly believing what the Jewish leaders said, he listened to the Lord Jesus’ sermons with an open heart. Afterward, enlightened by the Holy Spirit, He recognized Jesus to be the Christ, the Son of the ever-living God, and he earned God’s praise. We can see then that when we investigate the true way, we must seek with an open heart and take the initiative to seek and investigate God’s work. Only by doing that can we gain God’s enlightenment and guidance and greet the Lord.

Conversely, if, when we are investigating the true way, we do not seek with an open heart, we will be prone to deny and condemn the Lord and to become people who resist the Lord. We will be just like the Pharisees: They knew perfectly well that the Lord Jesus’ words were possessed of the truth, yet they were unable to seek and investigate with open hearts. Instead, they used the Old Testament as much as they could to find fault with the Lord Jesus and to deny and condemn Him. In the end, they crucified the Lord Jesus, thereby offending God’s disposition and incurring His punishment. This was the terrible consequence of the Pharisees not seeking with open hearts when faced with the true way. 

We can see from this that it is imperative to seek with an open heart when investigating the true way, as it has a direct bearing on the important matter of whether or not we will be able to enter God’s kingdom. We are to be seekers of the Kingdom of God. In John’s Gospel Jesus reveals to us that He must die so that mankind may believe in Him and thus find the way to eternal life. Jesus Himself becomes the way. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life” (John 3:14-16). 

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