TCR 701 - Holiness Proclaimed & Seen; Outward & Inward

TCR 701 [4]

The difference between holiness 
that is only proclaimed 
and holiness that is seen to be such 
may be illustrated by this example, 
which I saw and heard in the spiritual world. 
A letter was read out which was written by Paul 
at the time of his travels in the world, 
but not published 
so that any knew that it was Paul's. 
To begin with the audience thought poorly of it. 
But when it was disclosed 
that it was one of the Pauline Epistles, 
it was received with joy, 
and every detail in it was revered. 
This made it plain 
that merely proclaiming the holiness 
of the Word and the sacraments, 
so long as performed by leading churchmen, 
imprints the mark of holiness. 
But it is quite different when its holiness 
is disclosed and displayed to view 
before one's eyes;
and this is what the revelation 
of the spiritual sense does. 
This turns its outward holiness into inward holiness, 
and when it is proclaimed it is acknowledged. 
It is much the same with the holiness 
of the sacrament of the Lord's supper.

 

TCR 697 - The Form of the Soul

TCR 697 [9=10]

'The soul then is a form, 
but what sort of form I will tell you. 
It is the form of all the parts of love 
and all the parts of wisdom. 
All the parts of love are called affections, 
and all the parts of wisdom are called perceptions. 
The perceptions as a result of 
and so together with 
the affections 
make up a single form containing countless parts 
but arranged in such order and so cohering 
that they can be called a unity; 
and they can be called a unity, 
because nothing 
can be taken away from it or added to it, 
if it is to be a unity. 
What is the human soul but such a form? 
All the parts of love 
and all the parts of wisdom 
are the essentials of such a form, 
and in the case of a person 
these essentials are in his soul, 
and from his soul in his head and body.'

TCR 694 [2-3] - The Dangers of Complete Leisure TCR 694 [7] - Everlasting Rest and Peace Is Service

TCR 694 [2-3]

'What is the news from earth,' . . .
'about our world and about heaven?'

They replied that 
when recently they had arrived in this world 
they had heard 
that there and in heaven 
there are administrative duties, 
ministries, public offices, businesses, 
studies of all sciences and wonderful work. 
Yet they had believed 
that after their migration or transfer 
from the natural world to this spiritual one, 
they would come into everlasting rest from labors, 
and what were duties but labors?

To this the elder said: 
'Did you understand everlasting rest from labors 
to mean everlasting leisure, 
in which you would continually sit or lie,
plying your hearts with delights 
and filling your mouths with joys?' 
The three newcomers smiled gently at this, 
and said they had supposed something of the sort.

'What have joy, and delights and so happiness 
got in common with leisure? 
they were asked in reply. 
'The result of leisure 
is that the mind collapses instead of expanding, 
or one becomes as dead instead of lively. 
Imagine someone sitting completely at leisure, 
with his hands folded, 
his eyes cast down or withdrawn, 
and imagine him being at the same time 
surrounded with an aura of cheerfulness; 
would not his head and body 
be gripped by lassitude, 
the lively expression of his face would collapse, 
and eventually his every fiber 
would become so relaxed 
that he would sway to and fro 
until he fell to the ground? 
What is it that keeps the whole system of the body
stretched and under tension 
but the stretching of the mind?
And what is it that stretches the mind 
but administrative duties and tasks, 
so long as they are enjoyable? 
So I will tell you some news from heaven: 
there are there administrative duties, ministries, 
higher and lower law-courts, 
as well as crafts and work.'

TCR 694 [7]

When they had seen this, 
the elder talked with them again 
about the everlasting rest from labors 
the blessed and happy obtain after death. 
'Everlasting rest,' he said, 'is not leisure, 
since that reduces the mind 
and so the whole body 
to a state of feebleness, torpidity, 
stupidness and somnolence. 
These are not life, but death, 
much less the everlasting life 
of the angels in heaven. 
So everlasting rest is a rest that banishes 
all those ills and makes people alive. 
This can only be something that uplifts the mind. 
So it is some interest or task 
which excites, enlivens and delights the mind. 
This depends upon the purpose 
for which, in which and towards which it aims. 
This is why the whole of heaven 
is seen by the Lord as a coherent purpose, 
and it is the purpose he serves 
that makes every angel an angel. 
The pleasure of service carries him along, 
as a favorable current does a ship, 
and confers upon him everlasting peace 
and the rest peace gives. 
This is what is meant by everlasting rest from labors. 
The extent to which an angel is alive 
depends upon his mental commitment 
arising from service. . . ' 

 

TCR 693 - good affections

TCR 693

. . . good affections go along with wisdom . . .

 

TCR 692 - In the Octagonal Palace called Palladium

TCR 692 [3, 7]

We joined them and went up together, 
and found on the hill an octagonal palace, 
which they called the Palladium. 
When we went in 
we found eight hexagonal recesses, 
in each of which was a bookcase, 
as well as a table 
at which those who wore laurels sat down. 
In the Palladium itself 
we saw seats carved out of stone, 
on which the remainder seated themselves.

But then someone 
standing in the middle of the Palladium 
and holding a palm-frond in his hand said: 
'Please unravel this mystery. 
How could a person 
having been created a form of God 
be changed into the form of a devil? 
I am well aware that the angels of heaven 
are forms of God, 
and the angels of hell are forms of the devil, 
and that these two are completely opposite forms, 
one of madness, 
the other of wisdom. 
Tell me, then, how could a person
created as a form of God 
pass from daylight into such a night 
as to be able to deny 
the existence of God and everlasting life?'

'. . . in the earliest ages people 
acknowledged with heart and soul 
that all the good of love, 
and so all the truth of wisdom, 
came to them from God, 
and also that this good and truth were God's in them, 
so that they were purely receivers of life from God; 
which is why they were called images of God, 
sons of God and born of God. 
But in the following ages 
people no longer acknowledged this 
with their heart and soul, 
but by some incorrect belief, 
later by historical faith 
and finally merely professing it with the lips. 
Acknowledging anything of this kind 
merely by professing it with the lips 
is not acknowledging it, 
and is in fact denying it at heart.

 

TCR 691 - Why We Can't See the Lord, a History

TCR 691

Moses said to Jehovah:

Show me your glory. 
Jehovah said to him, 
You cannot see My face, 
because no one can see Me and live. 
And He said, 
Here is a place, where you can stand on the rock, 
and I will put you in a crevice of the rock 
and put My hand as a covering upon you, 
until I have passed by; 
and when I take My hand away, 
you will see My back parts,
but my face will not be seen.
(Exodus 33:18-23}

The reason why a person cannot see God and live 
is that God is love itself, 
and love itself 
or the Divine love in the spiritual world 
appears to the sight of angels like the sun, 
as far distant from them 
as the sun of our world is from people. 
If therefore God, 
who is in the midst of that sun, 
were to come close to angels, 
they would perish just as people would 
if the sun of the world came close to them, 
for it is equally burning.

For this reason there are constant controls 
which modify and moderate 
the burning heat of that love, 
so that its radiation 
should not reach heaven undiluted, 
since this would consume the angels. 
When therefore the Lord makes His presence 
more immediately felt in heaven, 
the irreligious beneath heaven begin to complain, 
suffering torture and fainting, 
so that they take refuge in caves and fissures 
in the mountains, crying:

Fall upon us and hide us from the face of Him 
that sits upon the throne.
(Revelation 6:16; Isaiah 2:19. 21)

It is not the Lord Himself who comes down, 
but an angel with the sphere of love 
from the Lord around him. 
I have on several occasions seen 
irreligious people terrified by this coming down, 
as if they had seen death itself before their eyes;
some of them hurled themselves 
deeper and deeper into hell, 
and some were driven frenzied.

This was the reason why the Children of Israel 
prepared themselves for three days before 
Jehovah the Lord came down on Mount Sinai; 
and why the mountain was fenced about 
to prevent anyone approaching and being killed 
(Exodus chapter 19). 
It was much the same 
with the holiness of Jehovah the Lord 
in the Ten Commandments 
which were then made public, 
and written by the finger of God on two tables, 
and then laid up in the Ark. 
On top of this in the Tabernacle 
was placed the Mercy-seat,
and cherubs on top of this, 
to prevent anyone directly coming 
into contact with it by hand or eye, 
Not even Aaron was able to approach 
except once a year, 
after making expiation for himself 
by sacrifices and censing.

It was for this reason 
that the men of Ekron and Bethshemesh 
were killed to the number of several thousand, 
solely because they had seen the Ark 
with their own eyes (1 Samuel 5:11-12; 6:19); 
and the same happened to Uzzah, 
because he touched it (2 Samuel 6:6-7). 
These few examples illustrate 
what a curse and slaughter 
would have struck down the Jews,
if they had not been prepared by John's baptism 
for the reception of the Messiah, 
who was Jehovah God in human form; 
and if He had not assumed the Human 
and revealed Himself in that form. 
They were prepared by being enrolled in heaven 
and counted among those 
who at heart waited and longed for the Messiah, 
as the result of which 
angels were sent to become their protectors.

 

TCR 690 - Baptisms Performed by John and The Lord

TCR 690

The baptism performed by John 
represented the cleansing of the external person; 
but baptism as practiced 
among Christians at the present time 
represents the cleansing of the internal person, 
which is his regeneration. 
That is why we read that John baptized with water, 
but the Lord baptists with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 
So too John's baptism is called 
a baptism of repentance.
The Jews who were baptized 
were nothing but external people, 
and the external person cannot become internal 
without faith in Christ. 
. . . those who received John's baptism 
became internal men, 
when they accepted faith in Christ 
and were then baptized in the name of Jesus.