Page:A Compendium of the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg.djvu/480

384 was necessary that one should be introduced into the spiritual world, and receive from the mouth of the Lord genuine truths out of the Word.

In addition to the most evident proofs that the spiritual sense of the Word has been laid open by the Lord through me, who ever before [has had such experiences] since the Word was revealed in the Israelitish writings? And this sense is the very Sanctuary of the Word. The Lord Himself is in this sense with His Divine; and in the natural sense with His Human. Not even one jot of this could be opened but by the Lord Himself. This excels (præstat) all the revelations that have been made hitherto since the creation of the world.

The manifestation of the Lord and immission into the spiritual world excels all miracles. This has not been granted to any one in the same manner as to me since the creation of the world. The men of the golden age talked indeed with angels; but it was not granted them to be in any other than natural light; while to me it has been granted to be both in natural and in spiritual light at the same time. Thereby it has been granted me to see the wonders of heaven; to be among the angels, as one of them; and at the same time to receive Divine Truths in the light, and so to perceive and teach them,—and therefore to be led of the Lord. (Invitation to the New Church, n. 29, 38, 44, 52.)

The Lord's presence is perpetual with every man, the evil as well as the good; for without His presence no man lives. But His advent is to those only who receive Him,—who are those that believe in Him, and do His Commandments. The effect of the Lord's perpetual presence is, that man is made rational, and that he can become spiritual. This is effected by the light proceeding from the Lord as a sun in the spiritual world, which man receives in his understanding; and that light is the truth by which he has rationality. But the Lord's advent is to him who conjoins heat with that light, that is, love with the truth; for the heat proceeding from that same sun is love to God and towards the neighbor. The mere presence of the Lord, and enlightenment of the understanding thereby, may be compared to the presence of the light of the sun in the world; unless it is conjoined with heat all things on earth become desolate. But the advent of the Lord may be compared to the advent of heat, which takes place in the springtime; and because heat then conjoins itself with the light, the earth is softened, seeds shoot forth and bear fruit. Such a parallelism exists between the spiritual things in which a man's spirit dwells, and the natural things in which his body lives. (T. C. R. n. 774.)