Here we are in the 21st century. We know that the universe is an enormous place. We're just bursting with scientific knowledge. But how are we doing with the even-bigger ideas? Our human societies seem to be erasing them, or ignoring them - maybe we think we're too busy for them.

Here on the New Christian Bible Study site, we'll buck the trend. We want to explore the big ideas that give us a framework for living better lives. Here's a start on a list of big ideas from a New Christian perspective. For each idea, there is a footnote that lists some references in Swedenborg's theological works:

1. God exists. Just one God, who created and sustains the entire universe in all its dimensions, spiritual and physical. ¹

2. God's essence is love itself. It's the force that drives everything. ²

3. God's essence comes into being, that is, it exists, in and through creation. ³

4. There are levels, or degrees, of creation - ranging from spiritual ones that we can't detect with our physical senses or sensors, to the level of the physical universe where most of our awareness is when we're alive here. ⁴

5. The created universe emanates from God, and it's sustained by God, but in an important way it is separate from God. He wants it to be separate, so that freedom can exist. ⁵

6. God operates from love through wisdom - willing good things, and understanding how to bring them about. ⁶

7. The physical level of creation exists to provide human beings with an opportunity to choose in freedom, with rationality, whether or not to acknowledge and cooperate with God. ⁷

8. God provides all people everywhere, regardless of their religion, the freedom to choose to live a life of love to God and to the neighbor. ⁸

9. God loves everyone. He knows that true happiness only comes when we're unselfish; when we're truly motivated by a love of the Lord which is grounded out in a love of the neighbor. He seeks to lead everyone, but will not force us to follow against our will. ⁹

10. God doesn't judge us. He tells us what's good, and what's evil, and flows into our minds to lead us towards good. However, we're free to reject his leading, and instead opt to love ourselves most. Day by day, we create habits of generosity or of selfishness, and live out a life in accordance with those habits. Those habits become the real "us", our ruling love. ¹⁰

11. Our physical bodies die eventually, but the spiritual part of our minds keeps going. It's been operating on a spiritual plane already, but our awareness shifts - so that we become fully aware of spiritual reality. ¹¹

Footnotes:

169. Throughout the created universe, in its largest and smallest instances alike, we find these three--purpose, means, and result. The reason we find them in the largest and smallest instances of the created universe is that these three are in God the Creator, who is the Lord from eternity. Since he is infinite, though, and since in one who is infinite there are infinite things in a distinguishable oneness (as explained in 17-22 above), these three are a distinguishable oneness in him and in the infinite things that belong to him. This is why the universe, being created from his reality and (if we look at its functions) being an image of him, retains these three in each of its constituent details.

1286. That 'lip' means doctrine is clear from the following places in the Word: In Isaiah,

The seraphim kept calling out, Holy, Holy, Holy is Jehovah Zebaoth. The prophet said, Woe is me! I am cut off; for ¹ I am a man with unclean lips, and am dwelling in the midst of a people with unclean lips, for my eyes have seen the King, Jehovah Zebaoth. Then flew one of the seraphim to me He touched my mouth and said, Behold, this has touched upon your lips, and your iniquity goes away, and your sin is atoned for. Isaiah 6:3, 5-7.

'Lips' stands for man's interior things, and so for internal worship from which adoration springs. This is what the prophet's experience represented. Anyone may see that his lips being touched in this way, his iniquity going away, and his sin being atoned for, was a representation of interior things meant by 'the lips', which are those of charity and its doctrine.

[2] In the same prophet,

Jehovah will smite the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath ² of His lips will He slay the wicked. Isaiah 11:4.

The internal sense of this does not mean that Jehovah smites with the rod of His mouth and slays the wicked with the breath ² of His lips, but that the wicked does so to himself. 'The breath of His lips' is doctrine, which with a wicked person is false. In the same prophet,

I create the fruit of the lips - peace, peace to the far and to the near, and I will heal him. Isaiah 57:19.

'Fruit of the lips' stands for doctrine.

[3] In Ezekiel,

Son of man, go, get you to the house of Israel and speak My words to them. You have not been sent to people of foreign speech and a hard language ³ but to the house of Israel, not to many peoples of foreign speech and a hard language ³ whose words you do not hear. Surely if I sent you to such they would listen to you? And the house of Israel are not willing to listen to you because they are not willing to listen to Me; for the whole house of Israel are hardened in the forehead and hard in heart. Ezekiel 3:4-7.

'Foreign speech' ⁴ refers to gentiles who, though subject to falsity taught by doctrine, nevertheless possess charity. These people are spoken of therefore as 'listening', whereas those who do not possess charity are called 'hardened in the forehead and hard in heart'.

[4] In Zephaniah,

I will turn to the people with a clear lip that all of them may call on the name of Jehovah to serve Him with one shoulder. Zephaniah 3:9.

'Clear lip' plainly stands for doctrine. In Malachi,

The law of truth was in His mouth, and perversity was not found on His lips. For the lips of the priest will keep knowledge, and they will seek the law from his mouth, for he is the angel ⁵ of Jehovah Zebaoth. Malachi 2:6-7.

This refers to Levi who represents the Lord. 'Lips' stands for doctrine deriving from charity.

In David, Those who say With our tongue we will prevail, our lips are with us. Psalms 12:4.

'Lips' stands for falsities. In the same author,

My soul will be satisfied with fat and fatness, and my mouth will praise You with joyful lips. ⁶ Psalms 63:5.

In Isaiah,

On that day there will be five cities in the land of Egypt which speak with the lip of Canaan, and swear to Jehovah Zebaoth. Isaiah 19:18.

'Lip' stands for doctrine.

Footnotes: