From Swedenborg's Works

 

Istinska Kršćanska Religija #2

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2. Vjera Novog Neba i Nove Crkve, u njezinoj generalnoj formi, je ova: Gospod od vječnosti, Koji je Jehova, je došao na svijet da bi mogao pokoriti paklove i proslaviti Svoje Ljudsko; bez toga se ni jedan čovjek ne bi mogao spasiti; a spašeni su oni koji vjeruju u Njega.

[2] Za ovo se kaže kako je generalna forma vjere, a vjera u njezinoj generalnoj formi ulazi u sve njezine pojedinačne dijelove. Generalni je princip vjere da je Bog jedan u Bìti i u Osobi, u Kojem je Božansko Trojstvo, i da je On Gospod Bog Spasitelj Isus Krist. Generalni je princip vjere da se ni jedan čovjek ne bi mogao spasiti ukoliko Gospod nije došao na svijet. Generalni je princip vjere da je On došao na svijet kako bi od čovjeka otklonio paklove, što je i ostvario pobjedom u borbama protiv njih. On ih je na taj način svladao, povratio u stanje reda i pokornosti Sebi. Generalni je princip vjere kako je On došao na svijet da bi proslavio Svoje Ljudsko, koje je prisvojio u svijetu, to jest, da bi ga sjedinio sa izvornim Božanskim. Ovim sredstvima On drži paklove unutar reda te zauvijek pokornima Sebi. Kako ovo ne bi moglo biti učinjeno ukoliko nije dozvolio kušnjama da nasrću na Njegovo ljudsko, čak i onoj najekstremnijoj – muci Križa, On je stoga također i to izdržao. Ovo su generalni principi vjere u vezi s Gospodom.

[3] Generalna forma vjere s obzirom na čovjeka je da on treba vjerovati u Gospoda; jer vjerom u Njega omogućava sjedinjenje sa Njime, i posljedično tome spasenje. Vjerovati u Njega je imati pouzdanje kako On spašava; a kako nitko ne može imati to pouzdanje osim čovjeka koji živi dobar život, stoga se to također podrazumjeva pod vjerom u Njega. Ovo Gospod govori u Ivanu:

‘Ovo je volja Očeva, da svaki onaj koji vjeruje u Sina može imati život vječni.’ Ivan 6:40.

I na drugom mjestu:

‘Onaj koji vjeruje u Sina taj ima život vječni; ali onaj koji ne vjeruje u Sina taj neće vidjeti života vječnoga, već srdžba Božja prebiva u njemu.’ Ivan 3:36.

  
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Many thanks to the Lord's New Church (www.lordsnewchurch.org) for the permission to use this translation on this site.

From Swedenborg's Works

 

A Brief Exposition of New Church Doctrine #116

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116. APPENDIX (serving as a fitting conclusion) The Faith of the New Heaven and the New Church in its universal form is this: The Lord from eternity, Who is JEHOVAH, came into the world that He might subjugate the hells and glorify His Human; without this Coming no mortal could have been saved, and those are saved who believe on Him.

[2] It is said, "in its universal form," because this is the universal form of faith; and the universal form of faith will be in each and every particular part thereof. It is a universal point of faith that God is one in essence and Person, in Whom is the Trinity, and that the Lord God, the Saviour Jesus Christ, is this God. It is a universal point of faith that no mortal could have been saved unless the Lord had come into the world. It is a universal point of faith that He came into the world to remove hell from man, and that He removed it by combats against it, and victories over it; whereby He subjugated it and reduced it to order under obedience to Himself. It is a universal point of faith that He came into the world to glorify the Human which He assumed in the world; that is, to unite it with the Divine of which it was begotten; and that, having thus subjugated hell by His own power, He keeps it eternally in order and under obedience to Himself. Inasmuch as both these tasks could be effected only by means of temptations admitted into His Human, even to the last, which was the passion of the cross, therefore He endured this also. These are the universal points of faith concerning the Lord.

[3] The universal point of the Christian faith on man's part is that he should believe on the Lord, for by believing on Him he has conjunction with Him, and thus salvation. To believe on Him is to have confidence that He saves; and because no one can have this confidence unless he lives well, therefore living a good life is also meant by believing on Him.

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.