Why Does God Take the Name of Almighty God in the Age of Kingdom?

　　A lot of people don’t understand why, since Almighty God is the return of the Lord Jesus in the last days, the Lord Jesus is called Almighty God when He comes to do the work of judgment in the last days. Why doesn’t He carry on being called the Lord Jesus? In fact, God has a new name each time He does a stage of His work. This new name is taken by God Himself as befits the work—it is not something that people call Him as they please. The name God takes in each stage of work has its basis in the Bible. The name of the returned Lord Jesus of the last days was long ago prophesied in the Bible. Isaiah said, “And the Gentiles shall see your righteousness, and all kings your glory: and you shall be called by a new name, which the mouth of Jehovah shall name” (Isa 62:2). In the Book of Revelation, it was also said that “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write…. Him that overcomes will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from my God: and I will write on him my new name” (Rev 3:7, 12). “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, said the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty” (Rev 1:8). “And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunder, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigns” (Rev 19:6). The name of Almighty God of the Age of Kingdom is the complete fulfillment of the prophecies of the Book of Revelation. The name that God takes in each era has profound significance and is intimately connected to God’s work during that age. Almighty God revealed the mysteries relating to this when He said, “In each age, God does new work and is called by a new name; how could He do the same work in different ages? How could He cling to the old? The name of Jesus was taken for the work of redemption, so would He still be called by the same name when He returns in the last days? Would He still do the work of redemption? Why is it that Jehovah and Jesus are one, yet They are called by different names in different ages? Is it not because the ages of Their work are different? Could a single name represent God in His entirety? In this way, God must be called by a different name in a different age, must use the name to change the age and represent the age, for no one name can fully represent God Himself. And each name can only represent God’s disposition during a certain age and needs only to represent His work. Therefore, God can choose whatever name befits His disposition to represent the entire age. Regardless of whether it is the age of Jehovah, or the age of Jesus, each age is represented by a name” (“The Vision of God’s Work (3)” in The Word Appears in the Flesh).

How Did The Church of Almighty God Come Into Existence?

　　Like the churches of Christianity, The Church of Almighty God came into existence because of the work of God become flesh. The churches of Christianity came to be because of the appearance and work of the Lord Jesus become flesh, and The Church of Almighty God came to be because of the appearance and work of the incarnate Almighty God of the last days. Thus, churches throughout the ages have been produced because of the appearance and work of God become flesh. The work of each step of God’s incarnation expresses many truths, and many people come to accept and follow God because of these truths expressed by God, thus giving rise to the churches. From this it can be seen that the churches are formed from those who accept the work of God and follow God. These gatherings of God’s chosen ones are called churches. The churches of Christianity were produced by the appearance and work of the incarnate Lord Jesus two thousand years ago. The Lord Jesus preached, “Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Mat 4:17), and He did the work of redemption, and expressed the truths that the people of the Age of Grace should put into practice and enter into, many people then began to believe in and follow the Lord, and thus the churches of that time came into being. Afterward, the gospel of the Lord Jesus spread to every country and territory, until the last days when it had spread to the ends of the earth, and Christian churches thus emerged in every country. These were the churches of the Age of Grace. During the final stages of the last days, the incarnate Almighty God appears and works in mainland China. Upon the foundation of the work of redemption of the Lord Jesus during the Age of Grace, Almighty God carries out the work of “judgment to begin at the house of God” (1Pe 4:17) prophesied in the Bible. To all mankind, Almighty God reveals all the mysteries of God’s six-thousand-year management plan, and expresses all truths for the purification and salvation of mankind. Because of the appearance and work of Almighty God of the last days, many people from various denominations of the religious world, people who have believed in the Lord for many years, have finally heard the voice of God and seen that the Lord Jesus has come and has carried out the work of judgment of the last days. They have verified that Almighty God is the return of the Lord Jesus, and because of this they have accepted Almighty God’s work of the last days. In mainland China, at least several million people (tens of millions according to statistics from the Chinese Communist Government) have accepted and now follow Almighty God. Thus, The Church of Almighty God is entirely the result of the appearance and work of Almighty God. It was personally established by Almighty God, and not by any person. Every Christian in The Church of Almighty God fully recognizes that Almighty God is the return of the Lord Jesus, Christ of the last days, and the appearance of God. The Christians of The Church of Almighty God pray to the name of Almighty God. What they read, listen to, and fellowship are the words of Almighty God, and what they hold to are all the truths expressed by Almighty God. These truths are the way of everlasting life brought by God during the last days. In His work, the incarnate God of the last days also personally appointed and testified to the man used by God, that he might cooperate in the work of God—just as when the Lord Jesus worked, He personally chose and appointed the twelve apostles. These people who are used by God, however, merely cooperate in God’s work, and they are incapable of working in God’s stead. The churches were not established by them, and the one whom God’s chosen ones believe in and follow is not those who are used by God. The churches of the Age of Grace were not set up by Paul and the other apostles, but produced by the work of the Lord Jesus; they were personally established by the Lord Jesus. Likewise, The Church of Almighty God of the last days was also not set up by the man used by God, but was born from the work of Almighty God. It was personally established by Almighty God, and is shepherded by Himself; the man used by God merely waters, provides for, and guides the churches, performing his duty. Although God’s chosen ones are led, watered, and provided for by the man used by God, the One whom God’s chosen ones believe in and follow is Almighty God—which is a fact that no one can deny. Most in The Church of Almighty God are people from different denominations who have believed in the Lord for many years. They all understand the Bible, and in these various denominations they testify that the Lord Jesus has come, that He is Almighty God, and has done the work of judgment of the last days. As a result of seeing that the words of Almighty God are the truth, and the voice of God, many people come to accept Almighty God. They are the first group of people who are caught up before God. The Church of Almighty God was born of people from Christianity, Catholicism, and other religious denominations who accepted the name of Almighty God. Today, most people from various denominations have begun to investigate Almighty God’s work of the last days, thus fulfilling the prophecy in the Bible that “all nations shall flow to it” (Isa 2:2). Ultimately, all those who truly believe in God shall return to Almighty God; this is inevitable, for it was long since planned by God, it is God’s decree, and no one can change it!

From The Gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven