Good day, everyone. Today, we will continue our discussion on how to conduct oneself and how to handle matters. Today's discourse is the seventh part of the 'Conducting Oneself' series – viewing issues from a philosophical high ground. Whether it is from a philosophical height or a theological height, let me tell you, theology is indeed a branch of philosophy. Philosophy encompasses many schools of thought, some of which are also referred to as theology, but they are all categorized under philosophy.

1. Everyone Is Their Own Philosopher

Each person is a philosopher. Why do I say that? This is the first point: everyone is a philosopher. Each person believes in a set of principles, and they adhere to these principles, which then govern their entire life. If you believe in a set of principles without knowing their origin, it is not a major issue. However, if these principles are not acquired through learning, their usefulness is quite limited.

Why is that? Because you are simply living in accordance with your inherent nature. Subconsciously, they adopt a default belief, a default philosophy. Whether this belief aligns with the laws of development of things is another matter. Many people claim to be atheists, yet they visit temples to worship idols. Isn't that strange? Very strange.

I tell you, many people worship in temples, they all worship in temples. Why do they go to temples to worship? Because they feel they have a need. So, humans are quite intriguing; they identify as atheists but turn to deities when in need. They are atheistic at times and theistic at others, creating quite a chaotic situation.

What I aim to convey today is essentially the set of philosophical or theological concepts that we propagate. When we view the world from a higher perspective, once we comprehend and grasp the laws of development of things, we can manage these things, correct? These things can no longer control you.

I have a logic: what one learns is useful, what is innate is of little use. What is philosophy? It is the high-level summary of the laws of things. Therefore, theology is philosophy, and philosophy is also a form of theology. So, what should we do? We cannot be philosophers, but we have our own set of principles within us. You need to study, examine, understand, and contemplate this set of principles. After practicing and experiencing it, you will realize its truth.

I have numerous examples. Many people assume that inheriting their father's wealth is like money falling from the sky, pure gold and silver. However, many have not carefully examined this matter. I have witnessed firsthand the operating laws of things: coveting wealth results in curses, coveting others' money or wives results in curses, coveting others' houses results in curses.

Can you see these curses? Yes, you can. Look at how miserable these people end up. Therefore, this matter requires examination. I encourage you to explore this set of principles diligently.

Avoid unknowingly being cursed. Do not mistakenly believe you are benefiting when you are actually being cursed, which will lead to a tragic end. Do you know that many people end up in dire straits? Observe carefully; if you live long enough, you should see enough. When we view issues from a philosophical high ground, our perspectives are completely different. As for the Chinese Mingding Doctrine that I mentioned, whether you believe it or not, I will not try to convince you.

Observe closely. For example, my mother is still alive, and some brothers and sisters are already discussing her house. It is not even worth much, a house in a third- or fourth-tier city. But they feel they want it, so they insist. What happens then? They operate on a set of principles, which is essentially the mindset of an average farmer. Farmers are very unique individuals. A plot of land, a couple of cows, a wife, and children around a warm bed – that is how they live their lives. Later, you will see that those who covet houses experience one illness after another and live a hard life.

If a person lacks a philosophical height, I tell you, they only see trivial matters. Why do people become dull? Today, a sister told me, Teacher, I realized I have a problem. My mind only focuses on trivial matters. Why do people become dull? If you constantly focus on trivial matters, your mind will be filled with them. There is no height, no perspective. Isn't that troublesome? They do not understand the laws of development of things.

Therefore, if you want to make people smarter among us, encourage them to understand the Chinese Mingding Doctrine. Once they understand it, they will realize, Oh, this is how things develop and operate. Indeed, the world operates with laws. If you find those laws, you are powerful.

Never live in triviality. Living in triviality is destructive; it completely ruins you. You must reach this philosophical height. It is somewhat difficult for me to explain this clearly today. Why have I lived without stress my entire life? Because I consider many things meaningless. Some who often serve with me laugh at me. When I say something is nothing, after a while, when they mention something, they say, It's nothing. The tone sounds off, as if it is sarcasm or something. But I have gradually become accustomed to it and even sense a bit of envy. What kind of mind is that?

You know I often say, What kind of mind is that? Right? A brain like a walnut kernel, a heart like a peanut, filled with trivial matters. People live a miserable life. Observe carefully what people value. For example, one of our sisters told me, My brother is coming, and I need to take him out. Should I go out or not? What should I say? All the things she cares about are trivial matters.

I try hard to pull her out of that mindset, to elevate her perspective. Look from a higher vantage point! Then, all those things are nothing. Have you heard me say that? I said, What doesn't kill you is not a big deal; what can't kill you is trivial.

People must have a set of philosophical guiding principles. Without philosophical guidance, what guides you? You are guided by your own random thoughts, right? A brain like a walnut kernel, a heart like a peanut. Therefore, philosophical guidance allows us to observe the laws of development of things. I ask you, how would it be if you had fewer curses in your life? It would definitely be better than having more. If you had more blessings in your life, it would definitely be better than having fewer. So, I tell you, philosophy is powerful.

When I mention philosophy, some people get confused. For a time, I lectured on Wang Yangming. After I lectured on Wang Yangming, they went to read Wang Yangming, and eventually forgot that Jesus is more powerful than Wang Yangming. Do you understand? They went to believe in Wang Yangming's philosophy of mind. I am not saying Wang Yangming's philosophy of mind is wrong. It is also a philosophy. It is also a philosophy. But in the end, they turned themselves into walnuts and peanuts. Why? Because the height of Wang Yangming's research is Wang Yangming's height. The height of Jesus Christ is unsurpassable. No one can surpass it. If you understand Jesus Christ today, how will you know?

Therefore, we need philosophy in life; we need theology in life. Each of us believes in a set of principles, but whether your set of principles works is another matter. I feel that many people develop their own set of principles and needlessly add many curses to themselves, so they live miserable lives. If they live in constant curses, how can they not be miserable? So, I think I can cite many examples in the world. Once, Yang Zhenning met Mao Zedong. I tell you, Mao Zedong was a philosopher. Do not think he was not powerful. He was very powerful. Mao Zedong, the philosopher, discussed quantum mechanics with Yang Zhenning, the scientist. Yang Zhenning explored atoms and atomic nuclei. Mao Zedong asked him a question, Can what has been discovered be further divided?

You see, matter is composed of molecules, molecules are composed of atoms, and atoms are composed of atomic nuclei and electrons. Atomic nuclei include neutrons and protons, and the specific composition may be complex. Mao Zedong asked, Can matter be further divided? Yang Zhenning, as a scientist, replied that they could only study up to that point. Mao Zedong said, Matter is infinitely divisible. Matter is infinitely divisible because he was a philosopher, not a scientist, and he viewed the issue from a philosophical perspective. Therefore, today, my brothers and sisters, this lesson is not for outsiders, but for us. You must stand at the height of Jesus Christ. If you do not stand at the height of Jesus Christ, it will be very dangerous.

2. Philosophy Includes Worldview, Outlook on Life, and Values

Philosophy includes worldview, outlook on life, and values, which are the foundation. For example, some say a person's three views (worldview, outlook on life, and values) are correct. But if I measure them against Jesus Christ's standards, I find they are skewed, like using a laser level. Therefore, a person's philosophy is to understand worldview, outlook on life, and values. Some people's outlook on life is like that of animals, which is not an outlook on life, but an outlook on dogs, cows, or horses. Some people live their whole lives as if they were living as a horse, cow, monkey, or dog.

But what exactly is this creature called a human? What is the meaning of human life? These questions must be clarified, otherwise, one cannot understand the meaning of their existence. What a person considers valuable is called values. What a person believes is meaningful is what makes them human. What is the meaning of human life? This is called outlook on life. These two viewpoints are based on worldview. If people have different understandings of the world, of the composition and existence of this world, it determines their views on things, their views on life, and their views on values. What exactly is the world? This is the question of theology.

Some study humanity from a human perspective, while we study humanity from God's perspective, just like that. Therefore, many things that people consider valuable, we consider worthless. You consider it pure gold and silver, we consider it dung. Why? Because we see human existence from God's perspective, we see the world from God's perspective, and we see the material world from the spiritual world. Therefore, some people forget the philosophical height in life and only care about trivial matters.

Today, we must step out of the worldly value system. If you step out of the worldly value system, you will discover a completely different perspective. Therefore, today we must discuss theological questions. Whether you brothers and sisters like it or not, I will continue to lecture and impart, lecture on what? Lecture on the true meaning of life.

Living is meaningless, right? If living is meaningless, then living… living, you must seek, right? Living is actually just this: living and then dying. What meaning can there be? Therefore, philosophy is actually exploring the worldview, outlook on life, and values, which are the foundation of human life.

The foundation of human life – if you forget it while living, it is bad. For example, what is the meaning of money? Money is to confuse people. These are all theology. Theology walks the path of believing. Theology does not believe after examining, but examines after believing. This is called theology. Many philosophies are the same. Many philosophies are the same. There was a philosopher named Nietzsche, who wrote a book called God Is Dead. Actually, God is not dead; he died first. It is not that God died, but that you died first. So, do not believe his nonsense. It is pure nonsense because what he examined did not work for the whole person. He was possessed by a demon. So, this matter is about believing first and then examining. I tell you, how does science develop? Science first hypothesizes, first hypothesizes if that is the case, and then verifies it. Science is built on a foundation of many hypotheses. Do you understand? Science is built on a foundation of hypotheses.

Science is actually built on the basis of belief. The development of science is built on a foundation of many hypotheses, let alone theology?

3. First, Talk About Living

If you are following me in Bible study, praying, and listening to my sermons, what you hear most is that living is meaningless. Therefore, living is meaningless and living is very meaningful are two completely different philosophies. If you think living is very meaningful, you will definitely have great pressure in life, right? Definitely great pressure. If you think living is very meaningful, where is the meaning? What you are doing cannot be delayed. These lives cannot delayed. I have delayed so many things in my life, but I never cared about the delayed things. Why? Because I think living is meaningless. Living is meaningless, so you must seek a Mingding, seek eternal life, seek a meaningful life, and then seek God.

When you stand on this viewpoint, this viewpoint is called the outlook on life. When you stand on this viewpoint and look at things again, what will happen? All your pressure disappears. All your pressure disappears. Why? Because we often fall from that height. If you are not careful, you fall from the height and into trivial matters, right?

So, I want to make this clear first. Why do people live? Why do people live? Living is all about what? Many people do not want to die while living, but they die miserably. Have you seen that? They do not want to die while living. In the terminal stage of cancer, they change one hospital after another, and then they say, Oh my God, I cannot die. The meaning of living is to suffer. What is the meaning of living to suffer? Some people say, It hasn't happened to you yet. When it happens to me, I have already proven it. When it happens to me, I really do not care.

I ask you, do you often feel that you have delayed something? Is something delayed? That thing is not important. I am thinking, why would someone say they feel they have delayed something? Look, if it delays their studies, delays their work – if those are not important, if they are all vanity, will they be delayed? If a little vanity is delayed, so be it, right?

So recently, I've been trying something new. I suggested to the small groups I lead that they pray in the morning. Before going to work, take some time to pray. Either sleep a little less or delay work a bit. Why am I not afraid of delaying things? Actually, it's proven that prayer doesn't delay things because those matters aren't really a big deal. Not that big of a deal. So, it didn't cause any delay. After they put it into practice, the results were very good.

Why? Because people feel better after praying when they wake up in the morning. Their mood instantly rises to the height of God's throne. When you look at today's work from that perspective, it's just small stuff. Small matters, right? The pressure is gone, creativity comes, right? And the whole person's mood improves, and strength increases. Praying every morning is like recharging, right? Very good, very good. Otherwise, rushing to the construction site while still half-asleep and messing up the work would be terrible. Haven't we adjusted our perspective today? What's been delayed? Nothing's been delayed. Nothing at all. Previously, we might have said, Don't delay work, don't delay taking care of the children, don't waste time. But no time is wasted because we believe that living itself has no meaning, and many things in this world are meaningless. So, let's put this time first on God, right? Do you want to die or not? You don't want to die. Because you haven't seen through living, you have to continue. Pressure exists because you take these things too seriously. Actually, they're not a big deal.

This is a worldview. When we seek God and know God, I ask you, what will happen after knowing God? After knowing God, you will understand the laws that govern this world. The two most important laws are blessing and curse.

IV. Blessing and Curse

Blessing and curse. This is called a value system. What I talked about earlier is called a worldview. Today, our brothers and sisters have all risen from that very, very low level, extremely low level. How low do you ask? Below sea level. Wouldn't you be short of oxygen? Shouldn't you be short of oxygen below sea level? Today, we rise to the height of God's throne. After understanding this, we will grasp blessing and curse. Mastering how disease and disaster work.

We grasp the laws of blessing and curse, what do we value? Today, for example, coveting someone else's house, coveting someone else's fields and houses, coveting someone else's gold and silver treasures, coveting someone else's wife, coveting someone else's concubine—these are all curses, all curses. There are many curses on this earth today. Cursed once you discern good and evil.

If a person discerns good and evil, he cannot escape being cursed. Our entire value system is readjusted. Because the meaning of our lives lies in becoming a blessing to many people, our original selfish system of logic, that devilish logic hidden below sea level, is transformed into God's system of logic. We will value blessing and curse. Our blessing comes from God, right? Yes, from God. One day, I will tell you why many people's wallets leak money. Because God has made a big hole in their wallets. Drilling, drilling, drilling, money constantly leaking from their wallets. Why? Because they live under a curse. Right? Among us, are there any whose wallets are leaking money? Many people's wallets leak severely. Some leak hundreds of millions, some leak ten million at a time, and others leak millions. There are also hundreds of thousands, tens of thousands. It depends on how much you have, right?

For example, in Exodus, those who gathered much had no surplus, and those who gathered little had no lack. So why are you still toiling? Right? You toil for a long time, but those who gathered much had no surplus, and those who gathered little had no lack. I tell you, God makes holes in wallets very quickly. People must have experienced this. You don't need to think to know. People must have experienced these things. If you haven't experienced them, then don't believe. God making holes is a divinely ordained law. Whether you recognize it or not, it is so. If you don't recognize it, it's still there. Today, among us, those who are in debt or have suffered investment failures and almost gone bankrupt are closely related to blessing and curse.

I ask you, what will be the result of loving money? People who love money will be miserable. Why? Because they think they have mastered the laws of money, having read too much of Das Kapital. After reading Das Kapital, they think they understand the laws of capital operation. However, in the spiritual world, it is not this law at all. Our values change. For example, honoring parents is the baseline in the Ten Commandments. People should honor their parents. If they can't even manage their relationship with their parents, who can they manage it well with? Right? If they discern good and evil even with their own parents, won't they discern good and evil with others? Do you understand? So, I usually say…

I am especially cautious with those who discern good and evil with their parents. Don't think that I serve them and bless them. I bless them without reservation, but I still have to be careful in my heart. Right? If they can't get along with their mother and leave with their bags, won't they also leave with their bags from here? Right? Same principle, same principle. So, although I am cautious, I still want to bless them.

So, can the concept of blessing and curse be engraved on our hearts? Everyone should read it carefully. If a person becomes rich but is unwilling to serve Jehovah his God, God will make him serve those enemies whom Jehovah God sends to attack him. Isn't Israel an example of this? For thousands of years, two and a half millennia, two and a half millennia. The Israelites living under a curse were very miserable.

So, observe the laws that govern this world carefully. Observe carefully. For example, we have summarized many things today. If you don't believe it, it doesn't matter. You still have to investigate. Summarize many things. Is the church supported by people or by God? People are supported by God, let alone God's own church? Is the church built by God or by me? It is built by God. I am just working with God, right? Once, I really said to the brothers and sisters, If it really doesn't work out, I will sell my property.

They said, Teacher, how are you supporting God? I myself felt confused by what I said. How could there be a shortage of money in God's kingdom? So, we need to readjust our values. I ask you, is there time now? There is definitely time. Never let meaningless things take up time that belongs to God.

It is a kind of mindset, a kind of faith. There is always time. Since there is time to lose, don't we have time to earn some blessings?

V. Spiritual Laws

Today, the height you stand at, if you stand higher, is the spiritual law. At a glance, this is how the world operates; this is the worldview. This is how the world is composed. It turns out that the spiritual world controls the secular world. Everything in this world is an image in the spiritual realm.

A child cried. A dreamer saw a beautiful car and exclaimed, Wow, this car is so good! The person driving the car is also doing well. But the bridge ahead collapsed for some reason. What’s really happening? In the spiritual realm, those people were urged to rush to that time. Ultimately, an accident occurred. For example, in the 911 event, some people had diarrhea in the morning and therefore missed the disaster and escaped. The things of the spiritual realm are truly amazing.

Understanding spiritual laws and spiritual things requires standing at a higher perspective. Our exploration of spiritual laws is far from enough today. Why do you send your children to school, holding all kinds of wishes, and get exhausted? In fact, you are still in the value system of the world. If you understand the laws of the spiritual world, you will know that many things are not very meaningful. Many of the laws we think we know are not spiritual laws and are not very meaningful.

For example, money, devils, what are devils, what is money, the spiritual world, what is God, what is disease, what is wealth? We gradually understand these things in the world. Right? For example, you work in a place, you work in a place, you’re constantly fighting your boss, what are you going to do? Are you going to be Satan? Right? Are you going to be Satan?

Ah, I tell you, there are many components in this world, and many components in this world are closely related to the spiritual world. So, I think, standing at this height, we look down from this height, what does it mean? Standing at the height of God's throne. Don't change angles. Ah, I see it from your perspective, you see it from my perspective, it's useless. Height solves problems. I stand at the height of God's throne, right? If you stand on the emperor's throne, the view is completely different. If you stand at the height of a worker and look down again from the height of God's throne, it's completely different. Right? Don't ask your boss to see it from your perspective? Don't ask yourself to see it from your boss’s perspective? You stand from God's perspective? Looking down from God's height, everything is meaningless? Many things become meaningless? Today, a sister gave me a message. I was working, and I didn't hear the phone ring. So, she called one of our colleagues. What happened? One of her customers, her customer, threw a temper tantrum at her, and she was stunned at the time.

So why? The altitude has fallen. Push her height to the height of God's throne again, nothing matters. Not even a trivial matter. Do you understand? We need this too much today. Why? There’s always time. Because this is not a big deal. If it's delayed, it's delayed. What? In my words, desperately rushing on the road to the underworld, what for? Don't be like a mosquito, fluttering its wings, getting tired. Blind, it's quite blind, right? What for? Meaningless, meaningless. If these things are not important, we can let go of them at any time, because these things are not important. Didn't the Bible say this a long time ago, that those who have wives should be as though they had none, those who marry as though they were not married, those who deal with the world's affairs as though they were not engrossed in them, because this world in its present form is passing away. Only the word of God endures forever.

So today, when we look at problems from this theological height, people's lives become instantly simple. You say, Teacher, I still owe several million in debt? Several million in debt doesn't matter, it doesn't matter if I owe it into eternity. Right? What does it matter? Oh, people live so tired, considering those things, right? Children and grandchildren have their own blessings, you can't control their fate. Right? Do as much as you can, and if you can't, forget it. Let go of everything.

We have an old sister who speaks in a local dialect. I can sometimes catch 50%. I can't understand it very well, but when she starts speaking, she tells me about the things she encountered in the village. Oh, when I heard it, oh my god, her mother-in-law asked her for money, her father-in-law asked her for money, her younger uncle, etc., everyone in the family... Am I running a bank? Everyone is asking you for money, why do they all come to ask you for money? Do you understand? Oh my god, the village is full of these things, full of these things.

It's upsetting to hear, right? It's upsetting to hear. If you see through it, you tell them: In the future, I will open a bank, you can come here at will, come to me and take it at will. I will wait for me to install that ATM at your door, press it and it will give out money, press it and it will give out money.” I hope the one that comes out is not Mingbi. So, this thing, these things in this world, are these things.

Why? Because we don't understand the world. Why do I say you have to be careful when interacting with people? Because sometimes they are human, sometimes they are ghosts. When he borrows money from you, he is like a person, and when you ask him for money, he immediately becomes a ghost. Have you seen them? Ah, that's definitely the case. Oh my god, so tired, so tired. So today, listen, you've all seen through it. From the height, you can see a small earth, right? You have to look at the earth from the moon, and then you see the whole earth is curled up. It’s so pathetic! People on earth are like a speck of dust, like a speck of dust. We see everything clearly, we see through everything in this world. When we see through these things, and then we look at the core interests of people, and then we look at the core values of people, what things do they think are valuable, and then we look at the logical system inside people, you can figure out what kind of person he is.

Right? So today, brothers and sisters, lend money or not? Ugh, I'm embarrassed, they always come to me. They always come to you, you won't tell them, you don't run a bank. Many of us, oh my god, they look tired.

There is a sister who is now beginning to be blessed. I have spent seven or eight years changing her small-farmer thinking, which is the world's way of thinking. Now she is beginning to be blessed. Strangely, she is really blessed in her job, and she recently did a good deal, doing it beautifully. In the past, every time she got her salary, her first job, she came out to work at sixteen or seventeen years old. The first job, when she was sixteen or seventeen years old. As soon as she got her salary, she was immediately hospitalized for illness. That's weird. Many years later. Later, she actually wanted to break the curses on her body, so she came to us, and that came to the Mingding Doctrine. Now, after so many years, it is finally changed the set of things inside her. Raising her from no altitude to the height of God's throne. So this thing about blessing and curse is really powerful. Okay? Today, I encourage everyone to learn to be human from now on. You must be a philosopher.

You don't necessarily have to be a person who explains everything clearly, but you must know these things in your bones and mind. The core value of Chinese Mingding Doctrine. We want to build God's glorious church. We want to stand at this height. In the future, we will be perfectly united with God in the body of Jesus Christ. So those trivial matters, this and that, have become meaningless. We will talk about it here today. May God bless everyone, I hope everyone's height will rise to the next level, see through many things, may God bless everyone.