Everyone Can Go to Heaven! Just be Good!
Of course that's what most of us secretly think - that we are good enough to go heaven. I mean we're certainly not as bad as that guy over there... but that's not really where I'm going with this.
The other day we were enjoying a picnic in the park and discovered this lovely cupboard full of books! Oh how I love books :) It was one of those book-bins where you drop off books you don't want and pick up a book you do want. Well, there are almost always books I want in a book bin (as my groaning bookshelves will attest) but there was one there that I found to be a must-have.
I know a bit about Buddhism, I investigated it a bit years ago when I was wandering across the spiritual landscape. I recently read a very interesting non-fiction book on a woman's search for the teachings of a certain monk: "Ten Thousand Miles without a Cloud", which led her through the history and geography of Chinese Buddhism; but I hadn't quite seen something so erudite as the title of this little book. The reason it interested me so much is because that title right there is the exact and total opposite - couldn't be more opposed - to what is in the Bible. I know a lot of people think being a Christian is about being good, but that is probably the biggest misconception about God there is. So I had to see what this was all about.
In a nutshell, this attractive little volume outlines how to be good enough to achieve a better rebirth and eventually Nirvana; although one is never quite sure if one is succeeding or not.
In a nutshell, the Bible tells us that we can never be good enough to achieve anything eternal, that is why we need a mediator and a saviour, the Lord Jesus, and we *can* be sure that He has done the work for us. We are good *because* we have eternal life and are thankful! Not to earn it.
The little book tells us that a higher rebirth is a Human Life.
I beg to differ. If I were a Buddhist I would stop trying to be good; I would reign it in just enough to be reborn as a house cat. It has always been my opinion that a well-loved house cat is the highest form of existence.
Never as a human being have I been this relaxed!
The other day we were enjoying a picnic in the park and discovered this lovely cupboard full of books! Oh how I love books :) It was one of those book-bins where you drop off books you don't want and pick up a book you do want. Well, there are almost always books I want in a book bin (as my groaning bookshelves will attest) but there was one there that I found to be a must-have.
I know a bit about Buddhism, I investigated it a bit years ago when I was wandering across the spiritual landscape. I recently read a very interesting non-fiction book on a woman's search for the teachings of a certain monk: "Ten Thousand Miles without a Cloud", which led her through the history and geography of Chinese Buddhism; but I hadn't quite seen something so erudite as the title of this little book. The reason it interested me so much is because that title right there is the exact and total opposite - couldn't be more opposed - to what is in the Bible. I know a lot of people think being a Christian is about being good, but that is probably the biggest misconception about God there is. So I had to see what this was all about.
In a nutshell, this attractive little volume outlines how to be good enough to achieve a better rebirth and eventually Nirvana; although one is never quite sure if one is succeeding or not.
In a nutshell, the Bible tells us that we can never be good enough to achieve anything eternal, that is why we need a mediator and a saviour, the Lord Jesus, and we *can* be sure that He has done the work for us. We are good *because* we have eternal life and are thankful! Not to earn it.
The little book tells us that a higher rebirth is a Human Life.
I beg to differ. If I were a Buddhist I would stop trying to be good; I would reign it in just enough to be reborn as a house cat. It has always been my opinion that a well-loved house cat is the highest form of existence.
Never as a human being have I been this relaxed!
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