105. Verse 5. Be mindful therefore of whence thou hast fallen, and repent, and do the first works, signifies the remembrance of former things, and the remembrance of having deviated from the truth; and this, in order that the good of life of the church at its beginning may come into mind. This is evident from the signification of "be mindful," as being here the remembrance of former things; from the signification of "whence thou hast fallen," as being deviation therefrom, thus deviation from the truth; from the signification of "repent," as being that it may come into mind; and from the signification of "doing the first works," as being the good of life of the church at its beginning. (That "works" mean all those things of life that proceed from love and faith, see n. 98; and that "first works," which are of charity, are those of the church at its beginning, see just above, n. 104.) That a life in accordance with knowledges is the essential of the church, and not knowledges apart from such a life, can be seen by everyone who thinks about it; for knowledges, so long as there is no life according to them, reside in the memory only; and so long as they reside there only they do not affect man's interiors; for memory is given to man to be a receptacle, from which may be taken what will be serviceable to the life; and things are serviceable to the life when a man wills them and does them.

[2] The whole spirit of man is nothing but his will; when, therefore, man becomes a spirit, he is unable to resist anything that is favored by his will, for the whole man strives after it. That this is so is well known in the spiritual world; and I have occasionally seen the trial made, whether a spirit could do anything contrary to his will, from which he exists, and it was found that he could not. From this it was clear that man's will is what gives form to his spirit, and that man's spirit after it has left the body is his will. Whether you say will or love it is the same, for what a man loves he wills; so whether you say that the spirit of man cannot resist his will, or that it cannot resist his love, it is the same. The knowledges of good and truth, before they enter a man's will or love, contribute nothing whatever to his salvation, because they are not within the man: but out of him. But still knowledges are necessary, for without them man can know nothing of spiritual life, and he who knows nothing of spiritual life cannot become spiritual; for that which a man knows he can think, can will, and can do, but not that which he does not know. But yet if knowledges enter no deeper than into the memory and into thought therefrom, they do not affect him, and consequently do not save him.

[3] It is believed by many in the world at this day, especially by those who make faith alone the essential of the church, that to know doctrinals and from mere knowing to believe that they are true, saves man, however he may live; but I can affirm that no one is saved by these alone. I have seen many, even the most learned, cast into hell; but on the other hand, those who have lived according to the knowledges of truth and good from the Word I have seen raised up into heaven. From this it is clear that knowledges are of no avail, but a life according to them; and that knowledges merely teach how man ought to live. To live according to the knowledges of truth and good is to think that one must do thus and not otherwise because it is commanded by the Lord in the Word. When man thus thinks and thus wills and does, he becomes spiritual. Yet it is necessary for those within the church to believe in the Lord, and when they think of Him to think of His Divine in the Human, since from His Divine Human everything of charity and faith proceed.

3310. 'A man of the field' means the good of life that has its origin in matters of doctrine. This is clear from the meaning of 'the field'. In the Word reference is made in many places to the earth (or the land), the ground, and the field. When used in a good sense 'the earth' means the Lord's kingdom in heaven and on earth, and so the Church, which is the Lord's kingdom on earth. 'The ground' is used in a similar though more limited sense, 566, 662, 1066-1068, 1262, 1413, 1733, 1850, 2117, 2118 (end), 2928; and the same things are also meant by 'the field', though in a more limited sense still, 368, 2971. And since the Church is not the Church by virtue of matters of doctrine except insofar as these have the good of life as the end in view, or what amounts to the same, unless matters of doctrine are joined to the good of life, 'the field' therefore means primarily the good of life. But in order that such good may be that of the Church, matters of doctrine from the Word which have been implanted within that good must be present. In the absence of matters of doctrine the good of life does indeed exist, but it is not as yet that of the Church, and so not as yet truly spiritual, except in the sense that it has the potentiality to become so, like the good of life as this exists with gentiles who do not possess the Word and therefore do not know the Lord.

[2] That 'the field' is the good of life in which the things of faith, that is, spiritual truths existing with the Church, are implanted, becomes quite clear from the Lord's parable about the sower in Matthew,

A sower went out to sow, And as he sowed some fell on the pathway, and the birds came and devoured them. Some fell on rocky ground where they did not have much soil, ¹ and immediately they sprang up, since they had no depth of soil ² , but when the sun rose they were scorched; and since they had no root they withered away. Some fell among thorns, and the thorns came up and choked them. But some fell on good soil ² and yielded fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. He who has an ear to hear let him hear. Matthew 13:4-9; Mark 4:3-9; Luke 8:5-8.

This describes four types of land or ground within the field, that is, within the Church. The fact that here 'the seed' is the Lord's Word, and so the truth which is called the truth of faith, and that 'the good soil' is the good which is called the good of charity is evident to anyone, for it is the good in man that receives the Word. 'The pathway' is falsity, 'rocky ground' is truth which is not rooted in good, 'thorns' are evils.

[3] With regard to the good of life which has its origin in matters of doctrine being meant by 'a man of the field', the position is that those who are being regenerated first of all do good as matters of doctrine direct them, for they do not of themselves know what good is. They learn to do good from matters of doctrine concerning love and charity; from these they know who the Lord is, who the neighbour is, what love is, and what charity is, and so what good is. Those who have come into this stage are stirred by the affection for truth and are called 'men (vir) of the field'. But after that, once they have been regenerated they do good not from matters of doctrine but from love and charity, for the good itself which they have learned about through matters of doctrine exists with them, and they are in that case called 'men (homo) of the field'. It is like someone who is by nature inclined to commit adultery, steal, and murder but who learns from the Ten Commandments that such practices belong to hell and so refrains from them. In this state he is influenced by the Commandments, for he fears hell and learns from those Commandments and similarly from much else in the Word how he ought to conduct his life. In his case when he does what is good he does it from the Commandments. But when good exists with him he starts to loathe adultery, theft, and murder to which he was previously inclined. In this state he no longer does what is good from the Commandments but from the good which by now resides with him. In the first state the truth he learns directs him to good, but in the second state good is the source of truth taught by him.

[4] The same also applies to spiritual truths which are called doctrinal and are more interior Commandments still. For matters of doctrine are interior truths which the natural man possesses, the first truths there being sensory ones, the second truths being factual, and interior truths matters of doctrine. The latter are based on factual truths inasmuch as a person can have and retain no idea, notion, or concept of them except from factual truths. But the foundations on which factual truths are based are sensory truths, for without sensory truths nobody is able to possess factual ones. Such truths, that is to say, factual and sensory, are meant by 'a man skilled in hunting', but matters of doctrine are meant by 'a man of the field'. Such is the order in which those kinds of truths stand in relation to one another in man. Until a person has become adult therefore, and through sensory and factual truths possesses matters of doctrine, he is incapable of being regenerated, for he cannot be confirmed in the truths contained in matters of doctrine except through ideas based on factual and sensory truths - for nothing is ever present in a person's thought, not even the deepest arcanum of faith there, which does not involve some natural or sensory idea, though generally a person is not aware of the essential nature of such ideas. But in the next life the nature of them is revealed before his understanding, if he so desires, and also a visual representation before his sight, if he wants it; for in the next life such things can be presented before one's eyes in a visual form. This seems unbelievable but it is nevertheless what happens there.

Fotnoter:

916. 'Every wild animal and every creeping thing means his goods, 'wild animal' goods belonging to the internal man, 'creeping things' goods belonging to the external, while 'every bird, and everything creeping over the earth' means truths, 'bird' truths belonging to the internal man, creeping thing over the earth' truths belonging to the external. This becomes clear from what has been stated and shown in the previous verse about 'wild animals', 'birds', and 'creeping things that creep'. That verse mentions 'creeping thing that creeps', for the two phrases -'creeping thing' and 'that which creeps' - meant both the good and the truth belonging to the external man. Since this verse forms a conclusion to what goes before it, these attributes of the Church, namely its truths and goods, are added. These also indicate the character of the Church, namely that it was a spiritual one, and that having become spiritual it was a Church where charity or good was the chief thing. This is why 'wild animal and creeping thing' are here mentioned first, and 'bird' and 'that which creeps' after that.

[2] It is called a spiritual Church when its actions spring from charity, that is, from the good of charity, but never when it claims to have faith independently of charity. In that case it is not even a Church. For what does faith teach but that which charity teaches? And what other purpose does the teaching of faith have but that what it teaches may be practised? Merely knowing and thinking what it teaches is ineffectual. It is only the practice of what it teaches that is effectual. Consequently the spiritual Church starts to be a Church, or what amounts to the same, the member of the Church starts to be a Church, when its actions spring from charity, the substance of what faith teaches. What is the purpose of a commandment? Not merely that a person may know but that he may live according to what is commanded. And when he does so he has the Lord's kingdom within him, for the Lord's kingdom consists solely in mutual love and resulting happiness.

[3] People who separate faith from charity and place salvation in faith apart from the good works of charity are 'Cainites' who slay brother Abel, that is, charity. They are like birds hovering around a corpse, for that kind of faith is like a bird, and a person devoid of charity like a corpse. And as is very well known in the Christian world they also acquire a false (spuria) conscience to the effect that they may live as the devil does, may hate and harass the neighbour, may go on committing adultery all through life, and nevertheless be saved. What can sound sweeter to a person's ears and more persuasive than the suggestion that he is able to be saved even though he lives like an utter brute? Even gentiles perceive that this is a falsehood, many of whom on seeing the way Christians live find their teaching abhorrent. This is clear also from the fact that nowhere else is the way people live more despicable than in the Christian world.