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East is derived from the Greek root ἀνατολή which means “arisen”. And both knowledge and truth have arisen from the East. For many of God’s child...
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East is derived from the Greek root ἀνατολή which means “arisen”. And both knowledge and truth have arisen from the East. For many of God’s children have spread to the East. For as God promised to the forefathers, “I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie, I will give it to you and to your descendants. Your descendants will also be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and in you and in your descendants shall all the families of the earth be blessed.” (Genesis 28:13-14)
And many truths have been enlightened by the philosophies of the East. For philosophy is derived from the Latin roots phil which means “love” and sophia which means “wisdom and understanding”. Thus philosophy is the love of wisdom and understanding. For the philosophers of the East have sought for wisdom and understanding. But the antithesis of wisdom and understanding is ignorance. And many Western philosophers have ignored the philosophies of the East. But “what you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you. ‘The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and exist , as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we also are His children.’” (Acts 17:23-28)
And in ignorance, the philosophers of the East have denied that Christ is the Son of God. For by the Son descending and dwelling amongst men, we too can be called sons of the living God. “Being then the children of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and thought of man. Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead.” (Acts 17:29-31)
And in truth, Eastern philosophies speak of the cycle of rebirth. For as they profess, “to be born here and to die here, to die here and to be born elsewhere, to be born there and to die there, to die there and to be born elsewhere that is the round of existence.” (Buddhist text) And the Son in truth spoke of the cycle of rebirth. For as the Son testified, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, 'You must be born again.'” (John 3:5-7) Yet the East fails to recognize that Christ has risen from the dead. “But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead.” (1 Corinthians 15:20-21) And now His firstfruits have risen from the dead. For as the prophecy says, “behold, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves, My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves and caused you to come up out of your graves, My people. I will put My Spirit within you and you will come to life, and I will place you on your own land. Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken and done it,’ declares the Lord.” (Ezekiel 37:12-14)
But the cycle of rebirth shall soon end, for
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