Source: https://www.bertha-dudde.org/en/proclamation/7779

7779 "Living christians"....

December 22, 1960: Book 81

It is not enough that you outwardly identify yourselves as christians, that you belong to an ecclesiastical organisation, that you do what it demands of you in terms of outward appearances and customs, but only one thing is necessary: that you live out the teaching which every ecclesiastical organisation represents and also presents to its members.... that you fulfil the divine commandments of love which the 'founder of the church' Himself gave you on earth. He, Who Himself led a life of love on earth, He also made love the fundamental principle of those who want to belong to His church, for His church is not a dead structure, His church is spirit and life, His church is built on a living faith which can only be gained through a life of love.... Love and faith.... these are the characteristics of the church which Jesus Christ Himself founded on earth, for love and faith allow for the 'working of the spirit' which is the rightful emblem of His church.... And as long as you humans cannot exhibit this emblem you are only blind followers of the organisation you have joined, but you are not 'living' christians, you are not followers of the church of Christ.... And then you are in great danger of losing your soul, which has to pass a test of will on earth and cannot pass it if it does not draw strength from above, but which requires a living faith. Only living faith.... the result of unselfish neighbourly love.... establishes the intimate connection with the source of strength from eternity, from Whom every human being requires a supply of strength if he wants to reach his aim on earth: to become perfect as the father in heaven is perfect.... You humans take it very easy with your earthly task; you believe you are doing enough if you dutifully fulfil what is prescribed to you by people who claim to be 'God's representatives'.... You do not even think about whether they are really God's representatives or have only made themselves into such.... You do not even think about whether you are being instructed in the truth. You unhesitatingly believe everything that is presented to you as truth but you don't examine the origin of it, and you don't turn to Him, Who is the eternal truth Himself, in order to ask Him to guide you into truth.... You do not ask for the truth, otherwise you would truly also be introduced.... You don't take your earthly task seriously enough and believe that you are doing God's will by fulfilling prescribed actions and commandments which, however, were never given to you humans by God Himself.... But you pay no attention to God's commandments or you would make an effort to live a life of love and then you would automatically take the right path which leads upwards.... It is love alone which God requires of you; it is love alone which gives you the right to feel that you belong to His church, for love alone produces a living faith.... the rock on which Jesus Christ built His church. Therefore, only call yourselves christians when you have fulfilled Christ's commandments and thereby become true followers of His church.... And you can achieve this in every ecclesiastical organisation, for each one teaches you love.... But don't give priority to humanly issued commandments which are not fruitful and are unable to give your soul eternal life. For everything is worthless which is not based on love.... And you would discover the truth of this by yourselves if only you were serious about your duty towards God.... But as long as you only formally fulfil ecclesiastical demands your soul will always remain on the same level, it will not achieve any progress on earth, for this is only achieved through unselfish neighbourly love which, however, also irrevocably entails recognition: Enlightenment of spirit.... so that the human being will then no longer be satisfied with a formal christianity but will seriously strive for perfection, which he will then also certainly achieve...._>Amen

Translated by Doris Boekers