Tokyo
Knowledge is power and one of the great sources of success and wealth. But it does not apply to salvation of human souls. This is one of underlying doctrines of Christ Jesus.
No matter how much you have learnt about culture, science and religion, your soul cannot be saved. You have to be first righteous. You have to love God and your neighbors. And then your soul can be saved.
Also, how much you are materially abundant does not mean you are blessed by God. Advanced products, goods, and riches are what people want. But the more you have riches, the less you have faith in God.
But the material civilization today is supported by a great amount of advanced knowledge in culture, science and technology, making people's living comfort and convenient. But the more the material civilization becomes advanced, the less people become righteous and pious. For example, the modern medical science saves millions of lives but the modern weapons kill also millions of people.
Therefore, along with development of civilization, people come to think about God less and less. People become indifferent about the teaching of Christ Jesus. And furthermore, people turn to be anti-Christ.
Knowledgeable and rich people surrounded by affluent riches and advanced products while living in a high-tech environment would find no need to pray to God for anything. They get everything by use of money they want. At least they think so. And those assets have been obtained without their relying on God. They have no reasons for praying to God.
But, no matter how rich a man is today, he cannot control his fate. It is God that decides his fate. No matter how rich one becomes, he cannot set his own fate about how and when he dies.
And, the whole mankind looks like a rich man depicted in the Bible. One night when he is reflecting how rich and lucky he is without minding any poor and unhappy people, God has decided to take his life soon. When mankind is reflecting how advanced his civilization is, God might decide to put an end to the history of mankind.
While the world is facing problems such as global warming and global terror, mankind do not become so arrogant. But when these problems are solved, mankind should become so self-contended, reflecting how great they are to solve those fatal problems by use of their intellect without relying on God. Mankind might come to think that they don't need faith in God. It can be a critical moment that God decides put an end to the history of mankind.
Therefore, we have to solve such problems as global warming and global terror without relying on our intellect but by relying on our faith in God.
Problems that have resulted from advancement of material civilization cannot be solved by intelligence that has promoted the material civilization. Only faith in God can, since the fate of every civilized person is in the hand of God.
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Luk 12:16 And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully:
Luk 12:17 And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits?
Luk 12:18 And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.
Luk 12:19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
Luk 12:20 But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?