AE 730d - natural, rational, spiritual, a church; AE 732 - the growth of the New Church

AE 730d [31]
Every person is born natural,
and lives naturally until he becomes rational;
and when he has become rational
he can be led by the Lord and become spiritual;
and this is effected by the implanting of the knowledges of truth from the Word,
and at the same time by the opening of the spiritual mind
which receives the things of heaven,
and by calling forth these knowledges
and elevating them out of the natural person
and conjoining them with the spiritual affection of truth.
This opening and conjunction is possible only through temptations,
because in temptations a person fights interiorly
against the falsities and evils that are in the natural person.
In a word, a person is introduced into the church
and becomes a church through temptations.

This was represented by the wandering
and leading about of the sons of Israel in the wilderness.
The state of the natural person before he is regenerated
was represented by their sojourning in the land of Egypt,
for "the land of Egypt" signified the natural person . . ..
But the spiritual state, which is the state of the church with a person,
was represented by the introduction of the sons of Israel
into the land of Canaan,
for "the land of Canaan" signified the church with its truths and goods,
together with its affections, and delights,
which reside in such a person;
while the reformation and regeneration of a person
before from being natural he becomes spiritual and thus a church,
was represented by their wanderings and journeyings
in the wilderness forty years.

AE 732 [2-3]
There are several reasons why this New Church
that is called the Holy Jerusalem
will first begin with a few,
afterwards to be with more,
and finally to reach fullness.

First, its doctrine,
which is the doctrine of love to the Lord and charity towards the neighbor,
cannot be acknowledged and thus received
except by those who are interiorly affected by truths,
and those only can be interiorly affected by truths
who have the ability to see them,
and those only see truths
who have cultivated their intellectual faculty,
and have not destroyed it in themselves by the loves of self and of the world.

A second reason is
that the doctrine of that church cannot be acknowledged
and consequently received
but by those who have not confirmed themselves by doctrine
and at the same time by life
in faith alone;
confirmation by doctrine alone does not prevent reception,
but confirmation by life also does prevent,
for such do not know what love to the Lord is,
nor what charity towards the neighbor is,
nor are they willing to know.

A third reason is
that the New Church on the earth grows
according to its increase in the world of spirits,
for spirits from that world are with people,
and they are from such as while they lived on earth
were in the faith of their church,
and none of these receive the doctrine
but those who have been in the spiritual affection of truth;
these only are conjoined to heaven where that doctrine is,
and they conjoin heaven to a person.