"Repent ye; for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." Matthew 3:3

Additional readings: Isaiah 1:1-20

In the childhood of the human race, before men had departed from right ways of life, heaven was near to them. They could be led directly by the Lord, for their hearts and minds were open to him. Of this Golden Age of the human race it is written, "Man walked with God." But we have all read in the history of the human race as revealed in the Scripture the account of how many departed from the way of life and, following the devices of his own heart, closed his mind to the direct reception of goodness and truth from the Lord, until finally he reached a state in which all true knowledge of God and heaven was lost.

Then the Lord came to bring salvation to mankind, and preparation for His reception was made through John the Baptist, the messenger sent in fulfillment of a prophecy given centuries before. John’s message is our text: "Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." And when John was put to death, and the Lord began His active ministry in the world, the words of our text were also His first message. For He came to make clear the way of life, and wrong ideas held possession of the minds of men then, as they do of many minds today.

It is not by chance that this first message turns our thoughts to heaven. The purpose of our creation is that we may so live that we shall find our homes in heaven. Belief in heaven had been lost, along with the knowledge about it. And today belief in heaven is for the most part vague, and many think that eternal life does not mean personal existence in the spiritual world, but only the persistence of one’s influence in this world. Great men like Homer, Plato, Moses, Shakespeare, Gladstone, Lincoln, Pasteur, and many others perpetuate themselves in the influence they exert in the minds of living men. This, they say, is what is meant by immortality, by everlasting life. But we should realize that this type of everlasting life is open to the evil as well as to the good. A Diocletian may be remembered forever as well as the beloved Apostle. We need to know the truth that men and women, as individuals, live forever after death in the spiritual world.

But this is not the implication of the text which I have chosen for consideration this morning." The kingdom of heaven is at hand." We know that heaven is not in some remote part of the natural sky, that we cannot say, "Lo, here, or Lo, there" (Luke 17:21). But we are still apt to think of it as far away. We are also inclined to think of it as remote in time. We speak commonly of the "future" world. In the thought of some even, it lies at the indefinitely remote time, when they expect a general resurrection along with others; death is the gateway of heaven, but heaven still seems too distant to be of much practical and present interest.

But the truth is that heaven is far away neither in space nor in time. It is here, it is now, it is "at hand." We live in it now, or we may do so. It is a present reality, the most real and the most important element of the life we are now living. When we speak of heaven, and of living for heaven, we are not, as some charge, setting our hearts on something far away, and despising the real world in which we now are. If one lives for a far-off heaven — and no doubt some have lived so — he may be careless of this world’s joys and sorrows, of opportunities for usefulness, keeping his eyes fixed on some vision of the future. But we may live for heaven and still live thoroughly in the present. We ought to value heaven as the most real of present realities. The Gospel is true: "The kingdom of heaven is at hand."

We are taught in the New Church that heaven is essentially a state of human feeling, thought and life, a state in which love to the Lord and love to the neighbor are the ruling motives. We are taught that no outward paradise which could be made by human or by Divine skill would be a heaven if those affections were absent from the heart, that there is no real or lasting satisfaction except in the exercise of these affections. It follows that we can come into heaven in this world, and live in heaven while we live on earth, for we may learn here to love the Lord and one another, and to find our chief enjoyment in the exercise of these heavenly loves.

But this is an abstract way of speaking. Concretely, heaven is not merely a heavenly state in ourselves; it is the great world of human beings who are living in that state, those people in whose hearts are heavenly affections, whose minds are bright with spiritual light, and whose hands are busy with heavenly works. There are many such people in this world. There are countless more who have gone from the earth to the spiritual world, and are there living the same good life under freer and happier conditions. All these people are heaven.

When we have love to the Lord and the neighbor in ourselves, we are brought spiritually near to those in like affections, both of this world and of the spiritual world. It is not a figure of speech when we say that heaven is about us when we are in heavenly states. It is a literal and positive fact. Heaven is so really around us at such times that if it were granted to us, as it was to Elisha’s servant and to others in Bible days to have our spiritual eyes opened, we should see the angels who are our companions and the beautiful land in which they dwell. Among them we should see and recognize some who were dear to us on earth, who still love and help us, and there would be some whom we had not known before but who would from the first glance seem to us as old friends, because they have similar desires and thoughts. And we should recognize them as the source of our happiness.

The Lord created the world and all things in it. All things in the world were made for man to use and enjoy, from the very materials of the earth to all the myriad things of the vegetable and animal kingdoms, the beast of the field, the fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea. For man’s needs of food, clothing, shelter, for gratification of his senses, and the improvement of his mind these things were made. All these were created and given to man for blessings. But they are subject to one important condition: man must indeed labor to make these things of service to himself, but he must also use them in the service of others. Only so can he have any security or peace. The world of nature and of human beings is not for one man, or a few men, or a nation to control or exploit. Indeed we cannot rightly claim sovereignty over ourselves. We need the guidance of the Lord. And whatever under the Divine Providence we have been able to acquire, whether of material wealth, or of skill, or of learning, we did not acquire it by our unaided efforts. Our daily knowledge of the happenings in the world, our libraries, our schools are made possible by the labor of mind and body of other men and women, great or humble, living or dead. We depend on others and they on us, and life and security today, as always, depend upon the honesty and good will of the community in which we live.

Yet we should also realize that behind the labors and sufferings and the honesty and good will of men stands the Lord. Through His power alone man achieves progress. It is a law of the Divine Providence that man must act in freedom according to reason. This applies to the life of nations as well as to the life of individuals. But the Lord is present and operative always.

For infinitely wise and good reasons, the Lord does not draw the veil aside for us and allow us to see the heavenly world. Some argue that if only they could see heaven, they would believe in it. But to see that world as an outward, objective reality would destroy our freedom. We should be lured by its outward attractiveness, and it would be less possible for us to come into its true spirit.

When we are living in selfish and evil affections, we are in hell. Not only is hell within us at such times but it is also about us, not by a figure of speech, but actually. We are breathing its poisoned atmosphere and, if our eyes were opened, we should see the forms and faces of those who find their life in evil and who exult in influencing others to evil. Why, at least then, does the Lord not draw the veil aside and show us the terribleness of evil? The sight might for the moment frighten us, but we should be less able to shun evil freely because it is evil, and our power to escape permanently from it would be greatly lessened.

If we are tempted to question the Lord’s Providence in not revealing to us more openly the conditions of the good and evil in the spiritual world, we do well to remember His words, "They have Moses and the prophets, let them hear them….If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rose from the dead" (Luke 16:29-31).

The Lord said, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness" (Matthew 6:33). We should seek those good things which endure forever, and should not sacrifice them for the sake of money or health or life itself. To acquire love to the Lord and to the neighbor is the only thing worth living for. Our business dealings should have as their motive the love of use, of service to others. The most necessary thing in making a home is having in it the sunshine of heaven. The only absolute requirement for our happiness as we go to and fro in the ways of the world is that heaven shall go with us. This is to live for heaven, and yet to live must fully in the present. This is the practical meaning of living for heaven.

It may be stated still more simply. Heaven is not heaven from locality, neither is it heaven from anything which belongs to the angels as their own. It is heaven from what is received from the Lord into the lives and hearts of the angels. To be near the Lord, not in place merely, but in heart, to feel the protection and peace of His presence is heaven. Heaven is being near to the Lord and keeping near to Him. There is no other heaven for men or angels.

"The kingdom of heaven is at hand." When John first spoke this message, the kingdom of heaven was in a special sense at hand, because the Lord had come to live with men and to make Himself accessible to them. A power to heal and bless went forth from the Lord during His life on earth. Men obsessed felt his saving power and sat at His feet clothed and in their right mind.

At the Transfiguration Peter said, "Lord, it is good for us to be here" (Matthew 17:4, Mark 9:5, Luke 9:33). In following the Lord, in hearing His Word and in doing His work, they were tasting of heaven. But we need to note that the mere physical nearness of the Lord did not make heaven. Some cried out with fear at His approach. It was not heaven to them. It was not heaven to those who followed Him to accuse and to betray Him. His presence was a blessing only to those who in some measure drew near to Him in spirit.

Even in the Lord’s coming on earth the kingdom of heaven was not forced on me. It was made accessible to them; it was brought within their reach.

It is brought within our reach. Just as there is no royal road to knowledge, there is no royal road to heaven. We must cease to do evil before we can learn to do well. Repentance, the willingness to recognize and acknowledge our faults and weaknesses and to struggle to overcome them opens the door. Heavenly life comes into the soul when selfish desires are replaced by kindly thoughts and the desire to serve. The Lord tell us to seek these heavenly virtues now, not for the sake of honor for ourselves, but that we may be really kind and helpful to others, that our lives may have something of the Lord’s love in them. Then we shall find that life here makes one with heavenly life, and that our Heavenly Father is the Source of happiness in both alike.

815. (Verse 11) And I saw another beast coming up out of the earth. That this signifies confirmations from the sense of the letter of the Word in favour of faith separated from life, and thence falsifications of the truth of the church, is evident from the signification of the two beasts treated of in this chapter, as denoting what confirm those things that are signified by the dragon, for by the dragon is chiefly signified faith alone (as may be seen above, n. 714). And by the beast ascending out of the sea are signified reasonings from the natural man confirming the separation of faith from life (as may be seen also above, n. 774). By this beast therefore are signified confirmations from the sense of the letter of the Word in favour of faith separate from life, and thence falsifications of the truth of the church. That the dragon is further described by these two beasts is evident from verses 2, 4, 11, of this chapter.

There are also two means by which any heretical dogma may be confirmed - reasonings from the natural man, and confirmations from the sense of the letter of the Word; these two means therefore are signified by these two beasts. The reason why by the former beast are signified reasonings from the natural man is, that by the sea, out of which that beast ascended, is signified the Natural of man; but the reason why by this beast are signified confirmations from the sense of the letter of the Word is, that by the earth, out of which he ascended, is signified the church where the Word is. That the falsifications of the Word are also signified by this beast is, that the Word can never confirm any false dogma, unless it be itself falsified. For all things in the Word are truths; therefore all truths can be confirmed from the Word, but falsities not at all; as is very evident from what has been said above, and will be evident from what remains to be said in this chapter.

[2] Because above (n. 785), passages have been quoted from the Word where works, deeds, working, and doing, are mentioned, we will now bring forward passages where faith and believing are mentioned, but these from the Gospels only, and not from the Epistles of the Apostles, because in the Gospels are the Lord's own words, all of which contain a spiritual sense, by which there is immediate communication with heaven; but in the writings of the Apostles there is no such sense, although they are books that are useful to the church.

[3] The passages where faith and believing are mentioned in the Gospels are the following:

In Matthew:

There came a centurion to the Lord, saying, "Lord, I am not fit that thou shouldest come under my roof; but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. Jesus hearing, wondered, and said to them that followed him, Verily, I say unto you, I have not found so great faith in Israel. And he said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, be it done unto thee; and his servant was healed in that hour" (8:8, 10, 13).

The reason why the Lord healed this person and others according to their faith was, that the first and primary [thing] of the church then to be established was, that they should believe the Lord to be God Almighty, for without that belief no church could have been established. For the Lord was the God of heaven and the God of earth with whom no conjunction is possible except by the acknowledgment of His Divinity, which acknowledgment is faith. That the centurion acknowledged the Lord as God Almighty is evident; for he said, "I am not fit that thou shouldest come under my roof; but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed."

[4] In the same:

"A woman labouring with an issue of blood, touched the hem of" Jesus' "garment; for she said within herself, If I may only touch the hem of his garment, I shall be healed. Jesus turning about and seeing her, said, Daughter, be of good comfort, thy faith hath made thee whole; and she was healed in that hour" (9:20-22).

Again:

"They brought unto him a paralytic lying upon a bed. Jesus, seeing their faith, said unto the paralytic, Be of good comfort, thy sins are remitted; arise, take up thy bed, and go to thine house" (9:2-7; Luke 5:19-25).

In the same:

"Two blind men cried, saying, Have mercy upon us, thou Son of David; Jesus said unto them, Believe ye that I am able to do this? They say unto him, Yea, Lord: then he touched their eyes, saying, According to your faith, be it unto you; and their eyes were opened" (9:27-29).

By this faith, whereby the sick were healed, no other faith is meant than that which is called historical, this being also at that time miraculous. By that faith therefore many then performed miracles. The faith was, that the Lord was Almighty because He was able to perform miracles of Himself; therefore He also allowed Himself to be worshipped, which was not the case with the prophets of the Old Testament, who were not worshipped. But this historical faith in all cases precedes before it becomes saving faith. Historical faith becomes saving in a man, when he learns truths from the Word, and lives according to them.

[5] In the same:

A woman of Canaan, whose daughter was troubled by a demon, "came and worshipped" Jesus, "saying, Lord help me: Jesus said unto her, Great is thy faith; be it unto thee as thou wilt: and her daughter was healed" (15:22-28).

In John:

"A ruler, whose son was sick," entreated Jesus to heal his son before he died. "Jesus said unto him, Go thy way, thy son liveth: and the man believed in the word which Jesus said unto him, and his servants met him, saying, Thy son liveth; therefore he believed, and his whole house" (4:46-53).

In the same:

"Jesus finding the man born blind, whom he healed, said unto him, Believest thou then in the Son of God? He answered him and said, Who is he, Lord, that I may believe in him? He said unto him, Thou also hast seen him, and he who speaketh with thee, is he; he said, Lord, I believe; and he worshipped him" (9:35-38).

In Luke:

Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, whose daughter was dead, "Fear not, only believe, and she shall be made whole," and she rose up (8:50, 55).

In the same:

One of the ten lepers that were healed by the Lord returned, he was a Samaritan, and fell upon his face at the feet of Jesus; and Jesus "said unto him, Arise, go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole" (17:19).

In the same:

Jesus said to the blind man, "Thy faith hath made thee whole; and immediately his sight was restored" (18:42, 43).

In Mark:

Jesus said to the disciples when they were unable to heal a certain man's son who had a dumb spirit; to whom Jesus said, "If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth; the father of the child crying out with tears, said, Lord, I believe, help thou mine unbelief"; and he was healed (9:17, 23, 24).

There were three reasons why faith in the Lord healed them. The first was that they acknowledged His Divine Omnipotence, and that He was God. The second was, that faith is acknowledgment, and from acknowledgment comes intuition; and all intuition from acknowledgment causes another to be present, which is a common thing in the spiritual world. In this case, therefore, the intuition was from the acknowledgment of the Lord's Omnipotence. And it was from this acknowledgment that they were first of all to have an intuition of the Lord, when a new church was to be established by Him. Hence it is evident, what is meant there by faith. The third reason was, that all the diseases which the Lord healed, represented and thence signified spiritual diseases, to which natural diseases correspond; and spiritual diseases cannot be healed except by the Lord, and indeed by looking to His Divine Omnipotence, and by repentance of life. Therefore also He sometimes said,

"Thy sins are forgiven thee; go and sin no more."

This faith was also represented and signified by their miraculous faith. But the faith whereby spiritual diseases are healed by the Lord, is only possible by truths from the Word, and by a life according to them, the truths themselves and the life according to them constituting the quality of the faith. Upon this subject, however, more will be said in what follows.

[6] In John:

The sister of Lazarus, who was now dead, said to Jesus, Lord, by this time he stinketh: Jesus saith unto her, "Said I not unto thee, if thou wouldst believe thou shouldst see the glory of God" (11:39, 40).

In Luke:

"Jesus said to the woman who was a sinner, and who made his feet wet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head, and kissed his feet, which she also anointed with oil, Thy sins are remitted thee; thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace" (7:38, 48, 50).

From these words also it is evident, that faith in the Lord's Omnipotence healed them, and also that the same faith remitted, that is, removed, their sins. The reason was that the woman not only had faith in the Lord's Divine Omnipotence, but also loved Him; for she kissed His feet, and therefore the Lord said, Thy sins are remitted thee; thy faith hath made thee whole. For faith causes the Divine of the Lord to be present, and love conjoins. For it is possible for the Lord to be present and not conjoined; it is evident therefore that faith from love saves.

[7] Again:

Jesus said to the disciples in the ship, "Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith; then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the sea, and there was a great calm" (Matthew 8:26; Mark 4:39, 41; Luke 8:24, 25).

Peter, at the bidding of Jesus, descended out of the ship, and walked upon the waters; but when the wind became boisterous, "he feared greatly, and, beginning to sink, cried out, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and said, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?" (Matthew 14:28-31).

When the disciples could not heal the lunatic, Jesus said unto them, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you?" And Jesus healed him. And he told the disciples, that they could not heal him by reason of their unbelief (Matthew 27:14, and following verses).

Jesus came into his own country, and they were there "offended in him, he said, A prophet is not without honour save in his own country, and in his own house. And he did not many mighty works there, because of their unbelief" (Matthew 13:57, 58).

The reason why the Lord called the disciples men of little faith when they could not perform miracles in His name, and why He could not perform miracles in His own country on account of their unbelief was, that the disciples did indeed believe the Lord to be the Messiah or Christ, the Son of God, and the prophet of whom it was written in the Word. They did not yet, however, believe in Him as God Omnipotent, and that Jehovah the Father was in Him; and so far as they believed Him to be a man, and not at the same time God, His Divine, to which Omnipotence belonged, could not be present with the disciples by faith. For faith causes the Lord to be present, as said above; but faith in Him, as a man only, does not cause His Divine Omnipotence to be present. This also is the reason why those cannot be saved, who, at this day in the world, look to His Human only and not at the same time to His Divine; as is the case with Socinians and Arians.

[8] It was for a similar reason that the Lord could not perform miracles in His own country, for they there saw Him from infancy, as any other man; and therefore they could not attach to this the idea of His Divinity; and if this idea is not present, the Lord is indeed present in a man, but not with Divine Omnipotence; for it is faith that causes the presence of the Lord in man according to the nature of the perception concerning Him. Other things a man does not acknowledge, and so he rejects them. For, in order that the Lord may accomplish any thing in man by faith, His Divine must be present in man, and not out of Him.

In John:

"Many of the people believed on" Jesus; "and said, When Christ cometh, will he do more miracles than these which this man hath done?" (7:31).

In Mark:

"These signs shall follow them that believe; In my name they shall cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover. They went forth, and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following" (16:17-20).

[9] That it is a miraculous and not a saving faith which is there meant is evident also from this fact, that the Jewish nation believed in Jehovah only on account of His miracles. For they were external men; and these are moved to Divine worship only by external things, such as miracles, and these strike their minds. A miraculous faith was also the primary faith with those among whom a new church was to be established; and it is also the primary faith with all in the Christian world at this day, therefore the miracles performed by the Lord were described, and are also preached. For the primary faith with all is a historical faith, which afterwards becomes saving when a man by his life becomes spiritual. For it is first of all to be believed, that the Lord is the God of heaven and earth, and that He is omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, infinite, and one with the Father. It is necessary that these things should be known; and so far as they are mere knowledge, they are historical; and historical faith causes the Lord to be present, because it is an intuition of the Lord from the nature of His Divinity. But still that faith does not save, until a man lives the life of faith, which is charity; for he then wills and does what he believes. And to will and to do pertains to the love; and Him whom faith causes to be present love conjoins. What those miracles which the disciples were to do signified, and those which were done by them in the beginning of the church, as the casting out of demons, speaking with new tongues, and others, may be seen above (n. 706).

[10] In Matthew:

"Jesus said, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say to this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you" (17:14-20).

In Mark:

"Have the faith of God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, All things whatsoever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them" (11:22, 23, 24).

In Matthew:

Jesus said unto the disciples, "If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig-tree; but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. Indeed all things whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing" in me "ye shall receive" (21:21, 22).

In Luke:

"If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, and shall say unto this sycamine tree, Be thou plucked up by the root, and be thou planted in the sea; and it shall obey you" (17:6).

That these things are not to be understood according to the words, is evident from this, that it was said to the disciples, that if they had faith as a grain of mustard seed, they would be able to pluck up mountains and sycamine trees, and cast them into the sea; also that all things whatsoever they asked they should receive; when, nevertheless, it is not of Divine Order that every one should receive whatever he asks, if he only has faith; also that they should pluck up a mountain and a tree from their place, and cast them into the sea. But by faith here is meant faith from the Lord; therefore it is called the faith of God. And those who are in faith from the Lord ask for nothing but what conduces to the Lord's kingdom and their own salvation. Other things they do not desire; for they say in their hearts, "Why should we ask for anything that is not of such use?" Wherefore it is not possible to have the faith of God, or faith from the Lord, in asking any thing but what it is granted them from the Lord to ask. Indeed it is impossible for the angels of heaven to desire, and consequently to ask, any thing else; and if they did, they could not possibly believe that they would receive it.

The reason why the Lord compared such faith to the ability and power of casting a mountain or a sycamine tree into the sea was, that the Lord in this, as well as in other parts of the Word, spoke by correspondences; therefore those words are also to be understood spiritually. For by a mountain is signified the love of self and of the world, thus the love of evil; and by a sycamine tree the faith of that love, which is a faith of falsity from evil. And by the sea is signified hell. Therefore by plucking up a mountain, and casting it into the sea by the faith of God, is signified to cast those loves - in themselves diabolical - into hell; and similarly the faith of falsity from evil; this is effected by faith from the Lord. A further reason of this comparison of the ability and power of faith from the Lord with plucking up and casting a mountain and a sycamine tree into the sea is, that in the spiritual world such things actually take place; for there those loves of evil sometimes appear as mountains, and the faith of falsity from evil as a sycamine tree. An angel can, by faith from the Lord, root up both and cast them into hell. That by a mountain is signified love to the Lord, and, in the opposite sense, the love of self, may be seen above (n. 405, 510); and that the fig-tree, or sycamine, signifies the natural man as to the goods and truths therein; and, in the opposite sense, the same as to evils and falsities, may be seen above (n. 403).

[11] So far concerning miraculous faith. It remains now to adduce some passages from the evangelists concerning saving faith, which is the faith of truth from love to the Lord.

In John:

"As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so also must the Son of man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. He who believeth in him, is not judged, but he who believeth not, is already judged, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God" (3:14-19).

In the same:

"The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into his hand; he who believeth in the Son hath eternal life, but he who believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him" (3:35, 36).

In the same:

"Unless ye believe that I am he, ye shall die in your sins (8:24).

In the same:

"They said unto" Jesus, "What shall we do that we may work the works of God? Jesus answering said, This is the work of God, that ye believe in him whom the" Father "hath sent. I am the bread of life; he who cometh to me shall not hunger, and he who believeth in me shall never thirst. This is the will of him who sent me, that every one who seeth the Son, and believeth in him, may have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. No one hath seen the Father, save he who is with the Father, He hath seen the Father: verily I say unto you, he who believeth in me, hath eternal life; I am the bread of life " (6:28, 29, 33, 35, 36, 40, 46-48).

In the same:

Jesus said, "He who heareth my word and believeth him who sent me, hath eternal life, and shall not come into judgment, but is passed from death into life; verily I say unto you, that the hour cometh, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hear shall live; even as the Father hath life in himself, so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself" (5:24-26).

In the same:

"Jesus cried saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink; whosoever believeth in me, as the Scripture saith, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water; these things said he of the spirit, which they who believe in him should receive" (John 7:37-39).

In the same:

"Jesus said, I am the resurrection and the life; he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live; but whosoever liveth and believeth in me, shall never die" (11:25-27).

In the same:

"Jesus cried and said, He who believeth in me, believeth not in me but in him that sent me; I am come a light into the world, that every one who believeth in me may not abide in darkness: and if any one hear my words, and yet believe not, I do not judge him; he who despiseth me; and doth not receive my words, hath one that judgeth him, the word which I have spoken, shall judge him at the last day" (12:44-48).

In the same:

"As long as ye have the light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light" (12:36).

In the same:

"Let not your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in me" (14:1).

In the same:

"As many as received Jesus, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe in his name" (1:12).

In the same:

"Many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did" (2:23).

In the same:

"These things are written that ye may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye may have life in his name" (20:31).

In Mark:

Jesus said unto his disciples, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized, shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be condemned" (16:15, 16).

In these and other passages saving faith is described, which is to believe in the Lord; and to believe in Him is also to believe in the Father; because He and the Father are one. By believing in the Lord is signified not only to adore and worship Him, but also to live from Him. And a man lives from Him when he lives according to the Word which is from Him. Therefore, to believe in Him is to believe that He regenerates man, and gives eternal life to those who are regenerated by Him.

[12] What is signified by believing in Him is also signified by believing in His name. For the name of the Lord signifies all the quality of faith and love by which He is to be worshipped, and by which man is saved by Him. The reason why this is signified by His name is, that no other names are given to persons in the spiritual world than those that are expressive of the quality of their affection and life; whence the quality of every one is known from his name alone. Hence when the name of any one is pronounced by another, and the quality which is understood by the name is loved, he then becomes present, and they are conjoined as companions and brethren. But the quality of the Lord is everything of faith and love, by which He saves man; for this quality is the essence which proceeds from Him. Consequently, when this quality is thought of by man, the Lord is then present with him, and when it is loved, the Lord is then conjoined to him. This is why those who believe in His name have eternal life. It is evident therefore how necessary it is that a man should know the quality of faith and love, which is the Lord's name; and should love that quality; this is effected by the doing of those things which the Lord commanded.

The names Jesus and Christ also involve that quality. For Jesus signifies salvation, and Christ or Messiah signifies Divine truth; which comprehends everything of faith and love as to knowledges, doctrine, and life. When therefore those names are mentioned, their quality should be thought of, and the life framed according thereto. This is meant by the words of the Lord in Matthew:

Jesus said, "If two of you shall agree in my name upon earth concerning any thing whatsoever ye shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father who is in the heavens; for where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (18:19, 20).

The presence of the Lord is indeed with all, and also His love is towards all; but still a man cannot be led and saved by the Lord, except according to his reception of the Lord, by love and faith towards Him.

[13] From these things also it is further evident, how necessary it is for a man to know the quality of that faith and love which is the name of the Lord, and also to love that quality; for the Lord cannot be loved except through His quality. That the Lord and not the Father, is to be approached, and is to be worshipped, according to the quality of the faith and love which is laid down in the Word, the Lord Himself teaches, saying,

That no one hath ever seen the Father, but that the Son brings him forth to view (John 1:18).

Then that no one cometh to the Father but by him (John 14:6).

As also because the Father and he are one (John 10:30).

Wherefore to approach the Father and not the Lord, is to make two out of one, and so to worship the Divine outside the Lord, which notwithstanding is in Him. In this way, also, the idea of the Lord's Divinity perishes with man. From these things the truth is again evident,

"That he who believeth in the Son hath eternal life" (John 3:36).

[14] That to believe in the Lord is to believe in the Father, the Lord Himself also teaches in John:

"He who believeth in me, believeth not in me but in him that sent me; and he that seeth me, seeth him that sent me" (12:44, 45).

By these words is meant, that he who believes in the Lord, does not believe in Him separate from the Father, but also in the Father; therefore it is added, "He who seeth me, seeth him that sent me."

Also in another passage in John:

"Believe in God, believe in me" (John 14:1).

In the same:

Believest thou not, Philip, "that I am in the Father and the Father in me? believe me, that I am in the Father, and the Father in me: verily I say unto you, he that believeth in me, the works which I do, he shall do also, because I go to my Father" (14:10-12).

In the same:

"In that day ye shall ask in my name; and I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you. For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and have believed that I came forth from God. I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: and again, I leave the world and go to the Father. His disciples said unto him, By this we believe that thou camest forth from God" (16:26-28, 30).

To come forth from the Father signifies to be conceived of Him; and to go to the Father signifies to be fully united to Him. That to come forth from the Father denotes being conceived of Him, is quite clear from what is said in Matthew concerning the Lord's conception (1:18-25); and in Luke (1:34, 35). And that to go to the Father denotes being fully united to Him, is clear from the glorification of His Human by the passion of the cross, of which we have spoken above. Therefore it is said,

"In that day ye shall ask in my name," and no more in the name of the Father.

[15] In the same:

Jesus said unto Thomas, "Because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed; blessed are they that do not see, and believe." And Thomas said, "My Lord and my God" (John 20:28, 29).

Because the Lord was now fully united to the very Divine which is called the Father, therefore Thomas calls him his Lord and his God.

Similarly elsewhere in the same:

"Say ye of him whom the Father hath sanctified and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest, because I said, I am the Son of God? If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not; although ye believe not me, believe the works, that ye may know and believe that the Father is in me, and I in the Father" (10:36-38).

That the Jews did not believe, is clear in John 5:14-47; 10:24-26; 12:37-49; Matthew 21:31, 32. The reason of their incredulity was, that they wanted a Messiah who should exalt them to glory above all the nations of the earth, and because they were altogether natural and not spiritual; also because they had falsified the Word, especially where it treats of the Lord and themselves. That these were the causes of their unbelief is also evident from the faith of the Jews at this day, who are altogether natural, and scarcely know, or wish to know, anything about the Lord's kingdom in the heavens. That neither would they in the Christian world at this day believe that the Lord is one with the Father, and thence the God of heaven and earth, is meant by the Lord's words in Luke:

"When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?" (18:8).

But on this subject, the Lord willing, we shall treat elsewhere.