The second thing we will discuss is temperature. Everybody knows what temperature is. Temperature is something that is essential to an environment suitable for human survival. If the temperature is too high—for example, supposing the temperature were higher than forty degrees Celsius—would this not be very draining for humans? Would it not be exhausting for humans to live in such conditions? And what if the temperature were too low? Supposing the temperature were to reach negative forty degrees Celsius—humans could not withstand these conditions, either. Therefore, God was very particular in setting the range of temperatures, that being the temperature range to which the human body can adapt, which falls, more or less, between negative thirty degrees Celsius and forty degrees Celsius. Temperatures in lands from north to south essentially fall within this range. In frigid regions, temperatures can drop to perhaps negative fifty or sixty degrees Celsius. God would not have men live in such regions. So, why do these freezing regions exist? God has His own wisdom, and He has His own intentions for this. He would not have you go near those places. Places that are too hot and too cold are protected by God, meaning He did not plan for man to live there. These places are not for mankind. But why would God have such places exist on earth? If these are places where God would not have man dwell or even survive, then why would God create them? Therein lies God’s wisdom. That is, God has reasonably calibrated the temperature range of the environment in which humans survive. There is also a natural law at work here. God created certain things to maintain and control the temperature. What are they? First, the sun can bring people warmth, but are people able to endure this warmth when it is too great? Is there anyone who dares approach the sun? Is there any scientific instrument on earth that can approach the sun? (No.) Why not? The sun is too hot. Anything that comes too close will melt. Therefore, God worked specifically to set the sun’s height above mankind and its distance from him in accordance with His meticulous calculations and with His standards. Then, there are the earth’s two poles, south and north. These regions are entirely frozen and glacial. Can mankind live in glacial regions? Are such places suited to human survival? No, so people do not go to these places. Since people do not go to the South and North Poles, their glaciers are preserved and are able to serve their purpose, which is to control temperature. You understand, yes? If there were no South Pole and no North Pole, then the sun’s constant heat would cause the people on the earth to perish. But does God keep the temperature within a range suited to human survival through these two things alone? No. There are also all sorts of living things, such as the grass in the fields, the various types of trees, and all kinds of plants in the forests that absorb the sun’s heat and, in doing so, neutralize the sun’s thermal energy in a way that regulates the temperature of the environment in which mankind lives. There are also sources of water, such as rivers and lakes. No one can decide the area that rivers and lakes cover. No one can control how much water there is on earth, nor where that water flows, the direction of its flow, its volume, or its speed. Only God knows. These various sources of water, from groundwater to the visible rivers and lakes above ground, can also regulate the temperature of the environment in which man lives. Aside from water sources, there are also all kinds of geographical formations, such as mountains, plains, canyons, and wetlands, that all regulate temperatures to an extent proportionate to their geographical scope and area. For instance, if a mountain has a circumference of one hundred kilometers, then those hundred kilometers will contribute a hundred kilometers’ worth of usefulness. As for just how many such mountain ranges and canyons God has created on earth, this is a number God has considered. In other words, behind the existence of every single thing created by God, there is a story, and each thing contains God’s wisdom and plans. Consider, for example, forests and all the various kinds of vegetation—the range and extent of the area in which they exist and grow is beyond the control of any human, and no one has a say over these things. Likewise, no human can control how much water they absorb, nor how much thermal energy they absorb from the sun. All of these things fall within the scope of the plan God made when He created all things.

It is only due to God’s careful planning, consideration, and arrangement in all regards that man can live in an environment with such a suitable temperature. Therefore, every single thing man sees with his eyes, such as the sun, the South and North Poles that people so often hear about, as well as the various living things on and below the ground and in the water, and the amount of space covered by forests and other sorts of vegetation, and water sources, various bodies of water, quantities of seawater and freshwater, and different geographical environments—these are all things God uses to maintain normal temperatures for man’s survival. This is absolute. It is only because God has thought deeply about all of this that man is able to live in an environment with such suitable temperatures. It must be neither too cold nor too hot: Places that are too hot, where temperatures exceed what the human body can adapt to are certainly not put aside for you by God. Places that are too cold, where temperatures are too low, where, after arriving there, humans would thoroughly freeze in just a few minutes, such that they cannot speak, their brains freeze, they are unable to think, and soon they suffer asphyxiation—such places are also not set aside by God for mankind. No matter what kind of research humans want to carry out, nor whether they want to innovate or break through such limitations—whatever thoughts people have, they will never be able to exceed the limits of what the human body can adapt to. They will never be able to cast off these limitations God created for man. This is because God created human beings, and God knows best what temperatures the human body can adapt to. But humans themselves do not know. Why do I say humans do not know? What foolish things have humans done? Have many people not constantly attempted to challenge the North and South Poles? Such people have always wanted to go to those places to occupy the land, so they can put down roots there. It would be an act of absurdity. Even if you have thoroughly researched the poles, then what? Even if you can adapt to the temperatures and are able to live there, would it benefit mankind in any way if you were to “improve” the current environment for life of the South and North Poles? Mankind has an environment in which it can survive, yet men do not remain there quietly and amenably, but instead insist on venturing to places where they cannot survive. What is the meaning of this? They have grown bored and impatient with life in this suitable temperature, and have enjoyed too many blessings. Besides, this regular environment for life has been almost completely destroyed by mankind, so now they think they might as well go to the South Pole and the North Pole to do more damage or pursue some sort of “cause,” that they can find some way of “blazing a new trail.” Is this not foolish? That is to say, under the leadership of their forebear Satan, this mankind continues to do one absurd thing after another, recklessly and wantonly destroying the beautiful home God created for them. This is the doing of Satan. Further, seeing that mankind’s survival on earth is somewhat imperiled, many people seek ways to visit the moon, wanting to establish a way to survive there. But ultimately, the moon lacks oxygen. Can human beings survive without oxygen? Since the moon lacks oxygen, it is not a place where man can stay, yet man persists in his desire to go there. What should this behavior be called? It is also self-destruction. The moon is a place without air, and its temperature is not suitable for human survival—therefore, it is not a place put aside by God for man.

Our topic just now, temperature, is something people encounter in their daily lives. Temperature is something all human bodies can sense, but no one thinks about how temperature came about, or who is in charge of it and controls it such that it is suitable for human survival. This is what we are learning now. Is God’s wisdom within this? Is God’s action within this? (Yes.) Considering that God created an environment with a temperature suitable for human survival, is this one of the ways in which God provides for all things? It is.

—The Word, Vol. 2. On Knowing God. God Himself, the Unique VIII