What is your concept of divine grace?

No 1580 of Living Life Series 1 

Often when we are doing good and living by the Word God and heavenly saints stand for, problems still arise but they subside as fast as they arise. 

Is this the grace of God? It is and yet it is not. 

It is not as grace to many means grace given to us even if we do not deserve it. Many have erred and continue to err without regards to making good. They think divine grace will absolve them from the wrong and they happily continue doing wrong. 

If we know we were wrong in the past and have made amends, we reap the good results of our good actions. This is by grace of the good we do. We should do good for our own good and not because we want to please God or a heavenly saint. 

We can say that in a way this too is divine grace. Why? It is simply because God or a heavenly saint has shared with us what they stood for. 

God wants us simply to be good at heart and not good to show others as well as God that we are good but not from the heart. 

We have to be pure good and peaceful. We have to have inner peace as what Bo Tien 武天 says. 

We must see even the good in others and the not good in others is also good for us to learn from. 

The Inner Truth Bo Tien 武天 mentions as common to and behind all religions is the need to have inner peace and goodness. This is the Word God or a heavenly saint stands for. 

We can be saved by the grace of the Word. Of course, if we are sincere in wanting to be good, pure and have inner peace, we will attract not only God or heavenly saints but also good samaritans coming our way. They will bless us. 

This is a still saving by grace of the Word of God and we may say we are saved by grace of God.

Why even the not good is good?

No 1579 of Living Life Series 1

In life and in religion, we must not be self righteous and insist that we are right and others wrong. The reality is that anyone is both right and wrong. 

We can share with others what we think is better. But never say that they should give up what they believe or do. 

That would be giving up whatever right they are doing, and taking on not only the right we do but also the wrong. That would not make life any more better and the person more spiritual. 

We must be mindful and meditate on this. 

No one is perfect and no one should pass over to others the imperfection he has and make him give up the whatever little perfection he has. 

Religious conversion risks being like that. If we want to be correct and still use the word conversion, well, what we go for is to convert ourselves and others to be even more good and be mindful that there will be more of the not good in us which we have to learn to be aware and give up over time. 

Let us want to be more good and this simple logic is what Bo Tien 武天 wants us to keep in mind all the time. 

Belonging to a religion, sect or temple is good but there is more to good that we must have. 

We have to be better and help others to be better. We have to learn from life, our life and that of others. Life is religion. 

This is what Bo Tien 武天 wants all to know so that all can be better in what they are and be able to live better by the day - not just in worldly ways but in spirit. 

We must be better and pure at heart, never mind if what around us upsets us and can even break our heart. 

If we have inner peace at heart by being pure from the bottom of our heart, nothing around us will dishearten us. 

We will be calm and at peace even if there is no calm and peace around us. You can say we have the God in us and we see what goes on around us as lessons for us to learn to be better. 

You can say that God is out there too around us and to show us that we need to learn from life. Life is the Word and the Word is God. 

Common sense that the Word is in life and we can feel divine presence everywhere and have divinity in us. 

It is common sense that God is in us, around us and in all faiths. We must see goodness in us, in others and in all religions. 

Remember too that we can learn to be more good from the not good as well. This is the truth in life and the truth is in all religions, cultures and societies. Truth will make us free. 

Bo Tien 武天 refers to this as the Inner Truth. Let us be awakened to the Inner Truth of goodness in everything. Even the not so good is good as we can learn to be better. 

Good but still not good
Even not good is good
This common sense
many just put aside

The not so good in another can make us realise how to be more good. Thus even the not good is good. 

Isn't that ironic but it is in irony that we can learn to be better. 

Do not expect any Man to be God just because God speaks through him. He may be good but still not good. 

No one person or entity is good enough but still good. Even not good is good for us to learn to be good. This common sense many just put aside. Not even a temple is good enough. That is why we have many temples and not just one. 

There must be many types of temples in all cardinal directions - north, south, east and west. This Bo Tien 武天 refers to as the Four Pillar Message of many temples, religions, denominations and what have we to reach out like the ocean to many a shore and living being. 

Even the images or pictures of a heavenly saint like Bo Tien 武天 must be many. Which is the true one? This does not matter at all. It is not question of who God or a heavenly saint is but what he stands for that matters.

Common sense that grace is good but never free

No 1578 of Living Life Series 1

What it really means
to live in grace

We ask God and heavenly saints for blessings of various kinds. But we must realise that they may grant but we still have to deserve them. We need to pay for them.

It is just like in the country we stay in. We ask for housing, transport and health benefits. But money for this must come from somewhere and ultimately those who want such benefits will have to pay for the benefits as well though the benefits would likely be heavily subsidised from other sources.

We still have to pay to some degree though not fully for our blessings - be these from God or from the government of the land. 

This is the truth we have to face. This truth is simple and yet many simply don't get it. They hold on to grace of the givers - be this God or the government of the land.

Only the devil or foolish nature in some men make them expect everything will be free and they deserve all for free. 

Such men will make mockery of God and heavenly saints. They deceive themselves and others in the name of God and heavenly saints. They are at worst deluded or perhaps just misled and swayed by the sweet talk of others who have questionable motives. 

No free lunch even from God and saints. Our meals on the table must be paid for in money. They cannot drop down from above.

The best gift or blessing by God or the government of the land to men, more so those in need is not to give them fish but teach them how to fish. This is age old Confucian thinking that applies for all times.

Yes this is the simple truth of life. Truth is simple. All we need is common sense. Grace is good but never free. We have to work and pay for grace. 

Bo Tien 武天 descended in 1969 to tell us the obvious that is inherent in and behind life, religion and cultures. It is true and plain common sense that grace is never free. 

What is due to grace must be paid for and financed or facilitated. The receiver must in part work for this and in time contribute for what others need. They have to enable the grace of God. This Bo Tien 武天 refers to as the Inner Truth. 

Common sense that chances many not one

No 1577 of Living Life Series 1 

chances for better or for worse

It is strange that there are those who wait for life to be over.

There are also those who live as though life is forever. 

Some switch from one to the other. 

Doesn't this tell us that life is far from perfect? 

Yes imperfection is the only perfection in life. 

Perhaps there is no perfect heaven nor a perfect hell. 

This gives us opportunities to make good and allow us to be better than what we are. 

We have many chances to be better or some say to back slide. 

This is the truth of life. Truth is as simple as that. 

Bo Tien 武天 says that many do not see this truth in life. 

It is common sense that all have many chances for better or for worse.

Common sense that we need inner peace

No 1576 of Living Life Series 1

Bo Tien 武天 says that there is sunrise and there is sunset. Without sunrise, there will not be sunset. 

It is in the nature of life for us to have sunrise and sunset. There is time to work and there is time to rest. 

Work on its own do not give rise to peace in life. Rest on its own won't. 

We need both hunger and fullness in life. Without one, we will not know the other. Either one would be not pleasing. 

We need to have both to know why we have problems in life. Then we can have the balance to even out and have the best of both. 

Then we will want to be not at the receiving ends of the dual nature of life - the yin and yang. 

We cannot avoid one or the other. But we can cultivate the inner peace in us so that we will not be tossed around come what may in life. 

The truth of inner peace is in life, in religion and in any life we may have in afterlife - even in heaven. All must seek inner peace while they are plugged into the yin and yang of life. 

Even those in hell more than those elsewhere do need inner peace. If they can have more of inner peace, they will no longer be in hell even if still in hell. Inner peace is what all beings need. 

Inner peace is the way, the truth and the light. Have more of inner peace. 

We can have this in any type of life we lead. We can have this in any religion we are in. We can have this in any culture we are in. 

Inner peace does not mean we run away from life and its problems. We stay with life and are not affected in spirit by problems and issues. 

With inner peace ever the more, we are more calm and more attuned to God and small issues will be no issues and big issues will be small issues. 

Even if fated to face problems that have no solution, we are not worse off if we have inner peace. Then we will see the light. Then we will realise that we do still have many other blessings we take for granted or ignored. 

One or two problems do not eat us up. With inner peace, we become more aware that life is still a blessing in myriad of ways. There are many other things and issues to rejoice in life. 

The greatest blessing of course is inner peace itself. Inner peace is what we need and the rest will just come our way. Isn't this common sense? 

Even if blessings come our way, without inner peace, we will not be aware of them. It is common sense that we need inner peace to make life tick. 

There is more to life than any problem that has no solution. We can make up in other ways but we must have inner peace. It is sheer common sense that we need inner peace. Common sense must prevail. We can have better days even for the here and now, just by having inner peace. 

There will always be reason to be happy about, like Christmas and the new year as well as the many festivals that follow one after another.

Christmas Lunar New Year Tree of life blossoming and bearing fruits

Religion must be based on common sense

No 1575 of Living Life Series 1 

In the globalised world we are in, there is need to encourage more to be better in the religion and culture they are in and to be good human beings who respect their own religions and the religions of others. 

They must be able to understand the aspirations and practices of other religions and cultures and be at home and ever be one with those in other religions and cultures. 

They must accept that others are different and yet share the innate wish for peace and goodness among men and nations. 

They must respect others for what they are and not impose their values and cultural bias on others. 

This is common sense and the logical approach. 

Common sense must prevail. This truth is simple but many blinded by self righteousness think they know better and others should do and think what they do. 

They forget that others may be right in what they do in the context of their culture and society. 

There is the underlying basic need to be good in all nations, cultures and religions. 

Bo Tien 武天 refers to this as the Inner Truth which is not new and always there from time immemorial. Common sense is what we need in life and in religion. 

But there are those who because of religion forget even about common sense. They say that God has decided. What is there to think about? Just believe and not question why. 

But is this what God wants?  Perhaps this is just what some unkind men says in the name of God?  

Thus Bo Tien 武天 says that all must go to the bottom line - the belief in basic goodness which he refers to as Inner Truth. 

Do not forgo common sense in the name of God. That which is not logical and consistent with common sense has nothing to do with the Word of God.

Without common sense, many will lose touch with reality. In fact many are so involved and plugged into the narrow world they create out of religion that they are not in touch with reality of the wider world. 

Religion is about reality of life and the world. Religion is about reality and logical thinking. Common sense is needed. We do not even need to dwell in philosophy. 

Let there be the humanistic approach to religion. Religion must be based on common sense.

This approach has gained more emphasis and will continue to do so in Asian and Chinese society like Taiwan. 

Long time ago, among Chinese, it was the thinking that educated and literate people should not take up religion and should look up to Confucius. 

Only the illiterate and more so the ladies who did not learn to read and write should look up to the traditional religious practices and the gods. 

When  I was but a young child, I used to be told this by my granny. In a Chinese primary school, I remembered clearly my first day at school was to bow down in respect to Confucius and every year, my late mother would bring me to a temple to altar of Confucius to be like him

With passing of centuries and time, all are educated and literate. But when they take up religion, many somehow tend to not to think and not be logical in what they do and believe in religion. 

How this is still the case and will still be so is due to ignorance even in the educated. Wouldn't they be better at thinking if they are educated? 

Is common sense absent even if people are not literate and educated?  

The age old saga between science and religion has nothing to do with science or religion but is about why people cannot even have common sense thinking in religion. 

It is not that science is against religion or religion against science. 

It is all about why there is lack of common sense when it comes to religion. 

Some may refer to this as instinctive and when this takes precedence, common sense is absent. 

We are not even talking about philosophy or scientific thinking or analysis. We are talking about simple logic or common sense. 

Common sense must prevail in life and in religion. Religion must be based on common sense.

Mission not to follow others but to be exemplary

No 1574 of Living Life Series 1 

Mission to create
centres of excellence
in goodness for all to follow

When will men learn to be good and pure at heart? When can people be sincere in what they do? 

What they do may just be a front to show that they are doing God's work when they are doing their own work to meet their ego needs. God become the excuse for their ungodly ego drives. 

Thus in a temple for the mission to bring out the goodness of religions, the mission is to open the eyes of all to see that the mission is not to have good works alone to showcase the temple's capability. 

The mission of God through Bo Tien 武天 is beyond this that other temples have done and could do better. That would not be setting an example for other temples to follow but doing what other temples could do much better. That would mean temple is just following what other temples have done. 

The mission has to  do with the salvation of the spirit. The mission has to do with doctrine of Inner Truth (present in all religions) of how to be sincere and good and pure at heart - to have inner peace come what may the ying and the yang, the ups and the downs. 

When can a temple for the mission be doctrine orientated and be example for other temples to follow? When can this happen?  How to make this happen? 

Many do not even know. They just let their ego go and go. They blow up their ego. They only know  their egos. Some do know and you can say they are in the Know. But they never let go of their egos. Why be in a religion or temple to play up the ego and create conflicts of egos with others? How far can this go? 

When can men be good and pure at heart? This can be through any religion or temple. 

All religions are one in goodness though different in culture and presentations. 

When we are pure at heart and peaceful, we will be able to see this simple truth. When we are ego driven, we are blinded by ego and see not this simple truth.

Mission by Bo Tien 武天 is for men of all religions and cultures to be good and pure at heart - to have inner peace come what may. There is need to see the oneness and promote oneness with all and set example for others to follow.

On the Go but not in the Know can still be good

No 1573 of Living Life Series 1

On the Go but not in the know

Can we be on the go without being in the know? Why not? 

Many are attracted to religion or a temple because they can get what they find difficult to have in the world. 

Bo Tien 武天 says that there are many like that and they are like ants and insects attracted to a flower for nectar. The nectar is the worldly wealth, status and gains they can have which they find difficult to have in the world out there. 

They just join in the fun, make merry and have the good company of others whom they would otherwise not meet in the world out there. 

God or any heavenly saint would rather they be in a religion or a temple than out there and be lost. They may seem lost in a temple but at least they are in a temple - far but near. 

Bo Tien 武天 says the far may be near and the near far. 

They will surely one day ask what they want in life. They flow downstream with the mud and all but when time catches up with them and they come of age in sunset years, or even earlier, they will wonder what have they achieved. 

Why they don't seem to be happy? What is lacking in them? Why they are deserted by others who are not with them? Why they are not at peace? Why are they in the mud? 

The simple answer is that they are on the go but not in the know. 

They know not the true nature of life. Life is about having the calm and goodness in us come what may. This Bo Tien 武天 refers to as the Inner Truth behind life - the need to be pure, good and at peace at heart come what may - the yin and the yang. 

On the Go but not in the Know can still be good.

On the Go but not in the Know can still be good.

In the Know. On the Go

No 1572  of Living Life Series 1

In the Know. On the Go

Who are we? Why are we here? Why we face problems? Why we often find it onerous to go on in life? What do we need to know before we can be on the go? 

Bo Tien 武天 says that the problems of men are many and plentiful. The moment we arrive to this world, we face problems. We must know why before we can be on the go. 

What do we need to know? Why are we of flesh and blood? What are the consequences of being of flesh and blood? Do we need to grow and have place in this world? We do. 

Then the obstacles we face should not cheese us of. The obstacle is the way. To move on in life, we must overcome obstacles. We must be stoic about this. The obstacle shall be our path in life. We open up many paths in life, one after another. We create what we want at each phase of life. Always remember to know why there is obstacle. Do we need to overcome the obstacle we face?

We do but there will come time when what we do may get us nowhere in the long run. That day may come sooner or later when we have arrived at a job, started a family and children grow up to set families of their own. Do we handle every obstacle by making that obstacle the path in life? There is a limit.

Bo Tien 武天 says that with blessings from God and saints, small issues become no issues. Big issues become small issues. But there is the element of fate so long we are of flesh and blood. We will face illness, ageing and death. 

There will be times when the obstacle cannot be overcome and cannot be the path in life. We have to face reality and be in the know and still be on the go in life. 

There are many ways to find blessings. We need to know that life is what it is. There will be storms. God and heavenly saints help us to weather storms. Bo Tien 武天 says storms will not last forever. We too of flesh and blood will not last forever. 

This we must know before we can be on the go. We can have finite control over our body of flesh and blood. But there is need to know often we cannot have peace from the world we are in. 

But we can have peace in our hearts. With inner peace, we are calm and can handle life better, come what may - the ups and downs, the yin and yang. 

But mind you, this does not mean we do not belong to the world. We still have to be part of the world. Where we run to, the world is there? We must know this. 

We must make do. We must meet our material needs. We do face obstacles in trying to do so. We need to know this. We still need to be on the go. 

But ultimately, we must know what are means and what are ends. We must know what is behind all religions and cultures. We must know the common basic goodness that is behind all religions and cultures. 

This Bo Tien 武天 says is the Inner Truth. To know this is the starting point to balance what we can have in life. 

We must have worldly needs. But these are not ends but means only to the end. The end is to have inner peace. 

We must be in the know of the nature of life. Then we can be on the go. In the Know and on the Go is what we must have at each moment of life. 

We must go the way of the heavenly saints. We must know how to bless others if we want to be blessed. Blessed are those who know how to bless others. 

The body of flesh and blood is only the means to the end. We must know this. We must know that our spirit filled with inner peace will last forever - not our body. We must abide by this - to be in the know and on the go not just in the present life but also in the afterlife.

In the Know. On the Go

We can have miracles

No 1571 of Living Life Series 1.

A miracle to know the truth

behind religions and cultures

- The Inner Truth

What is the greatest miracle? 

Can money pay for it? 

Can we cheat death? 

If money can buy life, that is a miracle. 

We can come back from otherwise sure death. Money cannot buy life. 

Committing time to spread the Inner Truth that there is oneness of goodness behind religions and cultures can help bring about miracles. 

But time alone is not enough. There must be sincerity and sincerity comes from the heart. 

Those who have sincerity, purity and peace of purpose in wanting to help others as well as themselves to have inner peace through inner truth will experience miracles. They will have blessed life with many miracles.

The greatest miracle is of course to have insight of the need to have inner peace come what may.

It is a miracle to know the common truth behind religions and cultures - The Inner Truth.

It is a miracle that the mission of Inner Truth is able to reach many shores like the ocean to many a land even though many who admire Bo Tien 武天 have no understanding of Inner Truth, let alone spread the truth to many shores. The world wide web is a miracle.

Inner Truth is in all religions and cultures. This simple message is the Mission of Divinity entrusted to Bo Tien 武天 .

It is a miracle that many who do not realise The Inner Truth are in religions and cultures of one kind or another. They are near yet far as described by Bo Tien 武天 .

The truth is that all are one and yet individuals

No 1570 of Living Life Series 1

One or of one kind?

People are miles apart in what they want and expect in a temple though outwardly they say they go for worship. 

They are one in this aspect but yet diverse in their needs. 

After all, they are individuals. All individuals cannot be identical. 

That is why though the goal of goodness is one and same, there are many religions. 

Even members of family are one in family but they are still individuals. 

Bo Tien 武天 reminds us that despite the diversity and individuality of religions, sects and temples, all are one in basic goodness. 

It is good for us to know that. He refers to this as the Inner Truth. 

Truth is that all are one and yet individuals. They live differently and will go separate ways but yet can be together. 

Bo Tien 武天 adds that they should be assets and not liabilities to one another, with each complementary to the rest for what he has that the rest have not.

Truth is that all are one and yet individuals. This truth must sink in.

If they come together and add value to one another, that will be ideal. 

If they cannot and are critical of one another, then that will be not good and there will be problems. 

Bo Tien 武天 says that the problems of men are many and plentiful. 

Truth is simple. All are one and yet individuals. 

But all may not feel that they are one and think they are right and others wrong. 

Men tend to be one kind and think their kind is alright but all other kinds not. 

They do not realise they are of same kind and think unkindly of all others. If everyone thinks that way, then they will be unkind to all others and kind only to himself. What will happen to the world? 

The truth is that all are one and yet individuals. As individuals, people must differ in thinking. But they must know the truth that all are one in goodness. 

But everyone have their own perspectives and approaches. Is there the need to say others are wrong and we are right? 

We are never perfectly right and we can learn from others who are not so right so that we can be more right. 

It would be the day for heaven to shed tears if those in the mission (to let the world know this inner truth of life that all are one and yet individuals) fail repeatedly to work with all as one. 

When it does rain on mission day at the temple for the mission, it would be like heaven shedding tears because even men in mission fail to be one

Men are lost in their individualities and fail to be one, let alone spread the mission like the ocean to many a shore. 

Heaven cannot wait for this day for men in mission to do so. Heaven cannot wait for men. Heaven will forge ahead with the mission of the inner truth . Heaven cannot wait. Men can wait.

Meditate, no ugly fun and oddities in God's name

No 1569 of Living Life Series 1

Have fun in life. Fun is way to make life lively. But this can border on frivolity when we talk just for talking sake. This some say is casual talk. If fun is carried too far, nothing is barred. Casual sex and wife swapping can result.

Have fun in life. Why not have fun in a temple? Throw caution to the wind. God is there and can be the excuse to justify all in good fun and in the name of God. 

If something goes wrong, regret sets in. But soon regret can be wiped out by seeking God. God forgives is often the excuse. Is this the case? 

God just teaches us to be good. If we commit wrong, do we wrong God or wrong ourselves and others who we do wrong to? Isn't this common sense? Why involve the good name of God? 

Well, this is life and people can even kill and slaughter cows and animals to sacrifice for God. Why sacrifice the animal when the intention is to sacrifice ourselves?  But is there the need to sacrifice and be mutilated? Is God for sacrifice if he is indeed God? 

There are many issues in life which we think are logical. But what we do is mere often rationalisation and far from logical if we can just sit down and have quiet time to think and reflect. 

This they say is the in-thing in religions - meditation. Has meditation has caught on in religions? Why do sages go into the wilderness to fast and to be alone? They need to stay calm, to be pure and to meditate? How then can we say mediation is catching on? It has been there all along. 

But the excesses men do in the name of God and heavenly saints can be appalling. Men wake up, become shell shocked at what they do and are confused. They find the need to meditate. Men have to learn from life. This Bo Tien 武天 says that people must learn from life, regardless of culture, race or society they are in. 

Bo Tien 武天 also says men must not blindly flow downstream with the mud and pollutants in the river of life. This men often do even in religion and not just in life outside religion. 

But day of reckoning will come when men are shocked by what they do in the name of God and heavenly saints. Then they realise that they must go upstream against the current to the upper source for clear calm water. 

We can have fun in life and even in name of God but be principled and meditate on life. Why do odd things in the name of God, not just having ridiculous fun nor oddities such as killing and sacrifice as well? 

Meditate to weed out ugly fun and oddities in the name of God. God is not against humans for what they are but would like them to be better than what they are. 

Do not do oddities and have ugly fun out of God or in his name. This is due to poor thinking and insight. Meditation is the way to make us better than what we are. We must ever be better than what we are.