Dr. K. Sri Dhammananda, author of the book What Buddhists Believe, wonders on Page 343,
"...Without resorting to divinity, can we advance towards righteousness?"
He gives a resounding,
"YES...by Buddhism."
He further states,
"...These ends can be attained by knowledge and by purification of the mind. Knowledge is the key to the higher path. Purification is that which brings calmness and peace to life and renders a person indifferent to and detached from the vagaries of the phenomenal world."
That thought knocks the wind out of my sails for a bit. I sit back, rock in my rocker and think. I gather my thoughts and then...
Speaking of righteousness, God's Word imparts that God imputes His righteousness to those who accept His gift of salvation through Jesus Christ (Romans 4:6-8; 22-25).
I thank God a person does not have to "advance towards righteousness". Righteousness is already given as part and parcel of the salvation gift.
God in His mercy came in to save and give the "rebirth" once and for all. Praise God for that!! There need not be a continuum of rebirths for endless ages in hopes of accumulating enough righteousness to attain Nirvana.
"None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God..." (Romans 3:10; Psalm 14:1-3; Psalm 53:1-3 ESV)
No one righteous, except Jesus Christ the Righteous One (Jehovah Tsidkenu). Through Him God imputes His righteousness to those who accept.
Left alone, on our own, it is impossible to achieve ultimate righteousness.
A person may try as they might to attain righteousness via "knowledge and purification of mind" and may even gain some "calmness and peace" that aids them through the turmoil of life which in turn, "advances them towards righteousness". However, a follower of Jesus Christ believes one will never be able to say, "BINGO! I'm righteous, all by my own self effort."
God's righteousness imputed to His children at the start of their relationship with Him, through the gift of salvation through Jesus Christ, is a huge giant step beyond science and religion of any kind.
Although we don't need to throw science or religion totally out with the bath water; science having done much good for societies' health and well-being; and religion at least keeping many mortals moral to some degree; God's Word stands sure and resolute. Salvation is through Jesus Christ, God's One and Only Son, and God imputes His righteousness to each of His children at the moment of their acceptance of His salvation.
Yet Sri Dhammananda asserts,
"The findings of modern psychologists indicate that the human mind, like the physical body, works according to natural, causal laws with the presence of an unchanging soul as taught by some religions" (Page 344; emphasis mine).
I ask, "Who created those laws?"
Another statement Sri Dhammananda tosses out there is that...
"All enlightened thinkers have accepted Darwin's theory..." (Page 345).
And because Pope John Paul II in 1998 pronounced that,
"...human beings may be the result of gradual evolution and not the immediate creation of God as previously proclaimed" (Page 345),
Dr. Sri D pushes his assertion further,
"Increasingly the same is becoming true about rebirth" [rebirth by Buddhist definition], "which no intelligent person disputes today. It is a matter of time before some holy books will be re-written on that subject as well" (Page 345).
The signs of the times...I say, "Yup," and re-written by men and women who fear NOT God.
Being unenlightened and unintelligent, my comments are: just because someone has the man-given authority and title of "Pope", doesn't mean his or her word is gospel truth. As expressed in Burning Quest - Part 42, "investigate"; search out the answers. Seek God.
I believe that nothing can supersede God and His Word. God will have the last word, I beg you to listen before it's forever too late.
If a person does not have God's protective righteousness imputed to him or her, God has revealed to us in Romans 14:11, 12 (NIV)...
"It is written: As surely as I live' says the Lord, 'every knee will bow before Me', every tongue will confess to God. So then, each of us will give account of himself to God."
The accounting is to God, not to self. There's warning given through Isaiah in chapter 45 and verses 23-24 (NIV, ESV),
"By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee will bow; by Me every tongue will swear."
They will say of me,
"In the LORD alone are righteousness and strength, tell who have raged against Him will come to Him and be put to shame."
And again we read from Revelation 5:13 NIV...
"Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power forever and ever!"
Praise the Lord, I'll be one of those worshipers made righteous already by God through Jesus Christ. I confess His Name already and look forward to doing so forever and ever.
I plead with those who don't even want to acknowledge God exists. Think again. Grass is green. If a person wants to deny that and say, "No it's red," it still does not change the true color of grass. A rose of any other name is also still a rose. God is. No matter how much a person wishes to deny that; God is and still is. Come to Him today. Receive His salvation; His righteousness. This is an urgent issue that can never be achieved by DIY (doing it yourself).
Discover and test God's Word. Critically investigate it. You will be able to personally verify its truth. You will have that longed for peace of mind and inner being. It will make you safe, sure and happy, and at peace with God throughout your life, and, looking ahead, for all eternity to come. Don't wait. Come to Jesus today knowing that He will impute God's righteousness to you when you do. This is the Divine intervention we each need.
Father God, give those who do not yet know You, a hunger for You, the Living and True God--the ever Righteous One. May they seek You with all their heart, soul and mind.
Let Buddhists everywhere, and everyone else for that matter, question their beliefs and consider Your ways. Bring them to have sincere Christian friends who can explain the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to them in ways in which they can relate. May all be blessed with Your salvation and the imputation of the divine righteousness that comes from You through Your Son Jesus Christ. In Jesus' Name I ask, Amen.
Here's a Hillsong I'd like to share with you called Cornerstone.
~ERC October 2018~
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