No 1118 of Living Life Series 1
Whilst it is true that salvation is by the Word and not by the grace of God and saints, some or rather many still hold on to saving by the grace.
The closest if any to saving by divine grace is the promise of saints like Goddess Kuanyin that if many call out to them, they will come to do what they can. Lord Bo Tien 武天菩萨 says that those who have faith and call upon the saints, the saints will come to them.
Issues will be no issues. But big issues can at times only end up as small issues. But there is the element of fate.
Fate may have to play out in current life as result of what we did in past and we have to face consequences and learn from it. Ultimately we can be better off from the learning.
Many often leave to the guiding saint and when the fate of death comes, they believe they will be ferried to next life in a heaven created by the saint to learn or to rest.
But eventually they have to come down and continue rebirths in one form or other till such times they have perfected the Word in life and be saints. Well, ultimately they have to live in the Word and be perfect in good, have no evil whatsoever and be pure.
Ultimately reality bites and all are saved by the Word and not by grace. Divine grace cushions us and help us to learn and be on the path to true salvation.
Western paradise or the Pure land is what many want through just believing. But it is just the interim - a resting place for respite. The heavens popular religions refer to are just for respite.
Ultimate salvation is by the Word and not by grace. Just believing and leaving the saints to make life work without efforts by ourselves will never work in the long run.
Many spiritual people are here after respite in heaven where they learnt the Word. Now they are here to live in the Word. Are you one of them? Heaven is simply not enough. Heaven is only a means to the end. The end is sainthood - enlightenment and no less.
Many still hang on to divine grace and not the Word. Popular religion has to go along in this direction - or men will turn a blind eye to religion and be dead lost to spirituality.
There is really no choice but to dangle the carrot of saving by grace to bring in the crowd. Better that men come to religion than be lost to religion - never mind if untruths are told in the name of religion.
Untruths work better than truths. That is why there are fairy-tale like write ups on creation, rapture and doomsday.
But the dire consequence due to sheer fanaticism is unthinkable when men are encouraged to die for God as a result of slanting of truths - the untruths. Do God need us or his saints to die for him if he is God?
Untruths thus have flipsides. Men are deluded to think in the wrong direction. They live not in the Word and instead of loving all, they cause harm to many. Eventually, this will boomerang to cause harm to themselves.
History bears evidence to this. The crusade of Europe is justified even when may are killed.
But ironically, saints like Jesus would rather suffer than others suffer. Jesus suffered indignity, anguish and pain on the cross. This is rather than to be crossed with his detractors holding the reins of worldly powers and influence of mighty Roman Empire. He won the hearts of men across religions and across time. In a way he became a martyr. We hold him close to our hearts.
Prince Siddharta rather be ascetic to be a Buddha later than to be King and get entangled in battles with loss of lives. He would rather be a beggar and nobody in order to be somebody - the Buddha.
There is really no choice but to dangle the carrot of saving by grace to bring in the crowd. Better that men come to religion than be lost to religion - never mind if untruths are told in the name of religion.
Untruths work better than truths. That is why there are fairy-tale like write ups on creation, rapture and doomsday.
But the dire consequence due to sheer fanaticism is unthinkable when men are encouraged to die for God as a result of slanting of truths - the untruths. Do God need us or his saints to die for him if he is God?
Untruths thus have flipsides. Men are deluded to think in the wrong direction. They live not in the Word and instead of loving all, they cause harm to many. Eventually, this will boomerang to cause harm to themselves.
History bears evidence to this. The crusade of Europe is justified even when may are killed.
But ironically, saints like Jesus would rather suffer than others suffer. Jesus suffered indignity, anguish and pain on the cross. This is rather than to be crossed with his detractors holding the reins of worldly powers and influence of mighty Roman Empire. He won the hearts of men across religions and across time. In a way he became a martyr. We hold him close to our hearts.
Prince Siddharta rather be ascetic to be a Buddha later than to be King and get entangled in battles with loss of lives. He would rather be a beggar and nobody in order to be somebody - the Buddha.
