Spiritual Ascension is from Truth towards Love

Our spiritual journey in life is like climbing a mountain: each step we take we gain a better understanding of the truth as we practice the truth in our lives.  Those who know the truth, but do not practice it in their life, are those who are at the bottom staring at the mountain. But those who practice the truth are those who ascend the mountain.

The steps or degrees of one's spiritual advancement occur in several stages:

1. Knowledge of the truth.
2. Willing or doing according to the truth.
3. Affection for the truth, doing from the love for the truth.
4. Love of the will, from which all truth is known.

These stages of spiritual development are universal, and are described in a variety of ways in a symbolic manner in scripture, one of them by successive births of a generation.  Swedenborg comments on this when describing the spiritual significance of Reuben, Simeon, Levi and Judah, the four sons of Leah by Jacob:

"Reuben signifies the truth which is the first thing of regeneration, or new birth; this is only as to knowledge, or as to knowing truth. Simeon signifies the truth which is the second thing of regeneration, or new birth; this truth is as to the will, or as to willing truth. Levi signifies the truth which is the third thing of regeneration, or new birth; this truth is as to affection, or being affected with truth, which is the same thing as charity. But Judah signifies good, which is the fourth thing of regeneration, or new birth, and this is the celestial of love. When the regenerate man, or he who is born anew, arrives at this stage, the Lord appears to him, for he has then ascended from the lowest step, as by a ladder, up to the step where the Lord is. 

This also is the ascent which was signified by the ladder seen by Jacob in the dream, which stood upon the earth, whose top reached to heaven, and on which the angels of God ascended and descended, and above which stood Jehovah or the Lord... by conceiving and bearing, four times mentioned, is signified advancement from external to internal, or from truth to good, that is, from earth to heaven... Descent follows afterward, for man cannot descend unless he has first ascended. Descent is nothing else than looking at truth from good, as a man from a mountain, upon which he has climbed, views the things which lie beneath. That then he can comprehend in one view innumerable things more than they who stand beneath or in the valley, is manifest to every one. The case is exactly similar with those who are in good, that is, in love to the Lord and in charity toward the neighbor, compared with those who are only in truth, that is, in faith alone." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 3882.1-2)

Note that I have not said which truth by one ascends toward the Divine.  That is because love in its nature is one, and many are the truths which lead to it. Religion by itself does not save a person, but only a life according to one's religion. Thus those who know nothing of a religion, and yet live a good life according to their conscience and the truth that they know, have a better capacity of reaching eternal life with the Divine than those who know and yet do not practice it:

"Good indeed in its essence is simply one, but it receives its quality from the truths implanted in it, and thereby becomes various. The truths which appear as truths to the Gentiles, are in general that they should worship some God, from whom they seek their good, and to whom they attribute it, and so long as they live in the world, they do not know that this God is the Lord; also that they should adore their God under images, which they account holy; besides many other things. Nevertheless, these things are no hindrance to their being saved equally with Christians, provided they live in love to their God, and in love toward the neighbor; for thus they have the faculty of receiving interior truths in the other life" (Heavenly Arcana, n. 3778)

For God, in his true essence, is Love itself, and those who practice love towards other are not only happy in this life, but will be happy for eternity.  When one understands and then does this, one then reaches the top of the mountain.

The Purpose in Life is to Love

So why are we here? It is very simple: our purpose in life is to love.

Looking at the above picture, it makes us realize that sometime we make things so important that really do not matter.  But it also makes us think we are small and insignificant. But each human being is not insignificant, for the Divine is present over the smallest of things, and constantly reaches out to all of life, for God is love itself. So why are we here? It is to love.

It is when we love, then God comes to live in our heart, for God is love itself. And this is not only our purpose in life, but our purpose in creation:

"The universal end, or the end of all things in creation, is, that there may be an eternal conjunction of the Creator with the created universe; and this conjunction is not possible unless there are subjects in which His Divine can be as in Itself, thus in which It can dwell and abide. And these subjects, that they may be the abodes and mansions of Him, must be recipients of His love and wisdom as of themselves; thus they must be such as will elevate themselves to the Creator as of themselves, and conjoin themselves with Him." (Divine Love and Wisdom, n. 170, Emanuel Swedenborg)

On our world, most of humanity has become separate from God, and are not aware of His presence within their heart. God's love is so great, that in order to make himself known He became incarnate in human form.  This human form, or body, is the "Son":

For God so loved the world,  that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)

There are two primary aspects of God: Divine Love (represented as "Father"), and Divine Truth (the "Son") which emanates from his central being of love. When he made a descent into our physical reality, He made a descent as to His aspect of thought, or Divine Truth (the "Word" was "made flesh"). Becoming incarnate, God's power was able to reach down into the lower realms of humanity, and was able to launch a direct attack against hell which had held humanity under its power.

God's love for all is infinite, and salvation is available to all who live a good life, one whose purpose is love, regardless if they know Him or not:

"The mercy of the Lord is infinite, and does not suffer itself to be limited to those few who are within the church, but extends itself to all in the whole world. Their being born out of the church and being thus in ignorance of faith, is not their fault; and no one is ever condemned for not having faith in the Lord when he is ignorant of Him." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 1032.2, Emanuel Swedenborg)

Thus, it is not necessary to be "religious" or belong to a certain religion in order to reach heaven. How one lives one's life, is what determines one's eternal destiny.  And this is not just for our world, but for many worlds beyond ours:

"The Lord has mercy toward the whole human race, and wishes to save and draw to Himself all who are in the universe." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 1032, Emanuel Swedenborg)

Below is an account of a Near Death Experience of Raymond Kinman, a woodcarver and Disney artist, He had a Near Death Experience at the age of 9, long before the phenomenon became more well known to the public. And on the other side, what answer did he get about our purpose in life?  It is very simple. Our purpose in life is to love. He has a website, Loving is Why.



Here is a more longer account of his experience: