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Whoever says that a man does not know God if he misconceives God as having an image is both right and wrong. Nobody knows how God looks like or for that matter how a heavenly saint looks like. But God or heavenly saint has no issue if man chooses to conceive him in one way or other.
What is important is how a man conducts himself as a result of his belief in God or saint? What is important is the Word or Doctrine. The Word is God.
There must be that special motivation as a result of his belief in God. The Word is the motivation. But there is need to rationalize this motivation and the way to do so is to conceptualize God as a form or image though God and saints are really beyond form.
But not having a physical concept or just a simple visualization of God is a limitation to one's attempt to know God and saints, for that image even if not correct acts as the nucleus to grow the faith and the Word in God.
However if one just goes by the image and that becomes the end and not the means, one will end up idolising the image. He will end up not knowing and worshiping God. He will never know the Word for he is an idol worshipper. He idolizes the image as God and not God. That is one extreme.
The other extreme is to think that there is no need for portrayal of God or saint in any form for then many will end up not focus on God less his Word and see God as Man and Man as Word. Thus this will be fertile ground for cult to arise. Follies against the law of the land may fester as such.
There must be balance between the two approaches or extremes. This is one wholesome example of yin yang balance. The image is not God but man uses it to depict God. It is merely a nucleus for faith in God and the nucleus to focus and grow the Doctrine that God and his saints represent. The Word is God.
The image is the Doctrine and the Doctrine is the image. Lord Bo Tien has said this before. He who sees the image sees the Word and he who sees the Word knows and sees God and saints. He who knows not the Word worships the image as God or saint but knows not and worships not God or saint.
What is important is how a man conducts himself as a result of his belief in God or saint? What is important is the Word or Doctrine. The Word is God.
There must be that special motivation as a result of his belief in God. The Word is the motivation. But there is need to rationalize this motivation and the way to do so is to conceptualize God as a form or image though God and saints are really beyond form.
But not having a physical concept or just a simple visualization of God is a limitation to one's attempt to know God and saints, for that image even if not correct acts as the nucleus to grow the faith and the Word in God.
However if one just goes by the image and that becomes the end and not the means, one will end up idolising the image. He will end up not knowing and worshiping God. He will never know the Word for he is an idol worshipper. He idolizes the image as God and not God. That is one extreme.
The other extreme is to think that there is no need for portrayal of God or saint in any form for then many will end up not focus on God less his Word and see God as Man and Man as Word. Thus this will be fertile ground for cult to arise. Follies against the law of the land may fester as such.
There must be balance between the two approaches or extremes. This is one wholesome example of yin yang balance. The image is not God but man uses it to depict God. It is merely a nucleus for faith in God and the nucleus to focus and grow the Doctrine that God and his saints represent. The Word is God.
The image is the Doctrine and the Doctrine is the image. Lord Bo Tien has said this before. He who sees the image sees the Word and he who sees the Word knows and sees God and saints. He who knows not the Word worships the image as God or saint but knows not and worships not God or saint.
