The Spiritual Meaning of the "Lamb slain from the foundation of the world" (Rev. 13:8)

It is true that Jesus came to save the world, that He is God incarnate in human form, who needed to come to this planet to open the way again between heaven and humanity.  The Lord came at the end of the Jewish dispensation, when the Jewish religion was nothing more than a superficial hypocritical religion, where the Jews regarded themselves as superior to others and only expected a Messiah that would allow them to rule over others. But from the beginning Jesus was misunderstood, and over the centuries Christianity has become so corrupt that there is very little of the original message, and it has been corrupted by falsehoods. And when Christianity became so corrupt that it was at its final state, in the 18th century a heavenly revelation was given to Emanuel Swedenborg to restore its state to its original intended form. And this is the fulfillment of the prophecy of the Second Coming

The two essential truths that have become corrupted and falsified in modern Christian churches, which the general public is unaware of, are as follows:

1. God is One personal Being of Love, revealed in Jesus Christ in human form. Jesus is one and the same as Jehovah of the Jews of the Old Testament.
2. A spiritual life is obtained by turning away from evil and doing good, acknowledging that the power of Jesus through the Holy Spirit conquers evil and sinful tendencies within us.

In place of this, modern Christian churches have supplanted Christianity with a form of tritheism in a belief of three persons, where they have no idea which person they should pray to when they pray. Although they claim to be monotheistic in the mouth, in their mind there is a tritheism of three personal beings. And instead of focusing on doing good in one's life, the focus is on "faith" which is again misinterpreted as belief alone (it in fact means, living by the truth). Instead of repentance the false theology of vicarious atonement is taken to mean that sins are merely removed by a confession in a belief statement. In its worst form, false Christianity is nothing more than an external appearance used to hide one's hidden evils. This is the false religion of the Antichrist, foretold in the book of Revelation as a false tritheistic idol that makes itself appear to be Christian (see The Prophecy of the Dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet).

The book of Revelation is a revelation of how the Christian churches would become utterly corrupt in its end. Anyone can see historically how the churches suffered not only from early heresies but what exactly was true about Jesus, beginning especially in the fourth century beginning with the Council of Nicea. But that this was foreseen in the Bible can be shown from the interpretation of Revelation 13:8, which has also not been understood:

And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. (Rev. 13:8)

It is known to many that the "Lamb" represents Jesus, for a lamb represents innocence, the highest form of good. But unknown to many is this: the Lamb represents how Jesus made His very human form Divine. And this Divine Human is the Son, not a separate personal being as is so often told in a lie that no one understands. In Jesus there is a Holy Trinity of soul, body and spirit. A Trinity of three persons is a fiction, an idol that has entered the most Holy of holies of the churches, misleading many and causing those who have any rational thought to leave the church as naturalistic atheists.

The other portion of this text that is misunderstood is that "slain from the foundation of the world" is taken to mean that this refers to the pre-existence of Christ before creation. Jesus did pre-exist as God before creation, as all of creation was created by the Divine truth or the Word, and Jesus is the "Word made flesh" (John 1:14). But this is not the meaning of the text: the "foundation of the world" is not the beginning of creation, it refers to the foundation of the Christian church, for throughout scripture the words "earth" and "world" do not refer the physical globe of the earth or creation but rather to the church itself.

What it means is that from the very beginning of the foundation of the Christian church, at the beginning of the world age of the Christian dispensation, Jesus has been misunderstood and rejected. The claim that the Christian church would become corrupt is not a new claim, it was foretold in Biblical prophecy in the first century. Swedenborg explains this in his works Apocalypse Revealed as well as Apocalypse Explained:

"Slain from the foundation of the world, signifies the Lord's Divine Human not acknowledged from the first establishment of the church. ...From the foundation of the world signifies the first establishment of the church, as well the Jewish as the Christian. It is known that the Jews did not acknowledge the Lord's Divine Human. That the Roman Catholics do not, is also known: and that neither do the Reformed, see above (n. 294). The creation of the world is not meant here by the foundation of the world, but the establishment of the church: for by the world, in the widest sense, the whole world is meant, and as well the good as the evil in it, and sometimes the evil only; but in a sense not the widest, the same is meant by the world as by the globe and by the earth, that is, the church. That the church is signified by the globe, may be seen n. 551; and by the earth n. 285. That by founding the globe and the earth is signified to establish the church, and that by the founding and the foundation of them is signified establishment may be evident from Isa. xxiv. 18; xl. 21; xlviii. 12, 13; li. 16, 17; lviii. 12; Jer. xxxi. 37; Mic. vi. 1, 2; Zech. xii. 1; Ps. xviii. 7, 15; xxiv. 1, 2; lxxxii. 5; lxxxix. 11. That the world also signifies the church (Matt. xiii. 37-39; Joel i. 9, 10). And that the Lord is called the Saviour of the world, from faith in Him (John iii. 16-19; iv. 42; vi. 33, 51; viii. 12; ix. 4, 5; xii. 46, 47). That the world also means the people of the church (John xii. 19; xviii. 20). It may be seen from this what is signified by the foundation of the world; also, Matt. xxv. 34; Luke xi. 50; John xvii. 24; Apoc. xvii. 8." (Apocalypse Revealed, n. 589).

And again:

"Slain from the foundation of the world, signifies whose Divine in His Human has not been acknowledged from the first establishment of this church. This is evident from the signification of "the Lamb slain or killed," as being not acknowledged (see above, n. 315a, 328a, 328b), here that His Divine in His Human has not been acknowledged (of which presently). Also from the signification of "the foundation of the world," as being the first establishment of the church. For "the world" signifies in the Word several things, namely, the world in general, also both those who are good and those who are evil in it, also the evil only who are in the world, and so also the hells. "The world" has also a similar signification as "the earth," namely, the church; and that is also here meant by "the foundation of the world," as also in Matthew:—

The King shall say to them on the right hand, Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world (xxv. 34).

The Lord is not acknowledged when His Divine in His Human is not acknowledged, for the reason that the Lord is not then regarded as God, but only as a man, who is not able to save. And although it is believed from the Athanasian Creed that the Lord is the Son of God born from eternity, and that His Divine is equal to the Divine of the Father, yet (since they separate His Human from His Divine) they divide the Lord as it were into two persons, which they call natures, making the Lord one thing as the Son of God from eternity, and another as the son of Mary. And because they so divide the Lord no one is able to approach Him unless he is willing to approach Him as one person when regarded as God and as another when regarded as man. Such has been the idea of the Lord from the first foundation of the church, as can be seen from the writings of the fathers, and afterwards from the writings of their sons. The Lord has been thus divided in the church from its beginning, because they did not understand the Word. For where the Lord mentions the Father it is believed that a Divine distinct from His Human is meant, although it is clearly evident in Matthew and in Luke that the Lord was conceived by the very Divine which is called the Father, consequently that this very Divine is in His Human as a soul is in its body; and the soul and the body are one Person. And what is wonderful, this is taught in express terms in the Athanasian Creed, which is the doctrine concerning God in the whole Christian world, and yet scarcely any one in that confession gives any heed to it." (Apocalypse Explained, n. 807).

I decided to write this because of this coronavirus pandemic: it is causing many of these old churches to shutter and close down, and many will not survive the financial losses they experience.  And that, my friends, can be a very good thing. For the old churches must die in order for the New Church to be reborn anew. This coronavirus pandemic is going to change many things in this world, and it is my prayer that this will be one of them.

Who is the Son of God?

Who is the Son of God? This would seem to be a simple question, but in the New Church a revelation has been given as to who is the Son of God, revealed in Jesus Christ. Among many Christians, the phrase "Son of God" automatically invokes in their mind the second person of the Trinity. However this concept of "second person" did not exist in early Christianity, but rather was invented by men in the fourth century A.D.

The original definition of the Son of God is found in scripture, in the Gospel of Luke. When Mary is told by Gabriel that she will give birth to a son, she then asks a question:

"And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin? And the angel answered her, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy— the Son of God" (Luke 1:35)

So, for the first three centuries of Christianity, the definition of the "Son of God" was that Jesus was born of a virgin. He had no human father, and was conceived by the Holy Spirit. This was the definition of Son of God, pure and simple. This changed in the fourth century A.D., when a council of men invented a Son of God "born from eternity." This is a falsehood. The Son of God is Jesus Christ who was born in time to the virgin Mary. This is declared as a prophecy in the Old Testament:

I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee (Ps. 2:7)

Where "this day" is the day when he was born in time to the virgin Mary. And for this reason Jesus calls God His Father, and this is also predicted in the Psalms:

He shall cry to me, ‘You are my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation.’ And I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth. (Ps. 89:26-27)

This doctrinal concept is the foundation of the New Church which distinguishes it from the older Christian churches that have become corrupted by the Nicene Creed. Once one understands this, the logical inconsistency in Christianity disappears completely. This is set forth by Swedenborg in his work True Christian Religion:

"The Human, by which God sent Himself into the world, is the Son of God. The Lord frequently said that the Father sent Him into the world, and that He was sent by the Father (as Matt. x. 40; xv. 24: John iii. 17, 34; v. 23, 24, 36, 37, 38; vi. 29, 39, 40, 44, 57; vii. 16, 18, 28, 29; viii. 16, 18, 29, 42; ix. 4; and in many other places); and this He says because by being sent into the world is meant to descend and come among men; and this was done through the Human, which He assumed by means of the virgin Mary; and also the Human is actually the Son of God, because it was conceived of Jehovah God as a Father (according to Luke i. 32, 35). He is called the Son of God, the Son of Man, and the Son of Mary; and by the Son of God is meant Jehovah God in His Human; by the Son of Man, the Lord as to the Word; and by the Son of Mary, properly the human which He assumed... As to the Lord, the Divine which He had was from Jehovah, the Father, and the human was from the mother; these two united are the Son of God." (True Christian Religion, n. 92).

So are there three persons? No, there is one person, the Lord, who is Jehovah in human form. And it is Him alone that we should acknowledge and worship. For Jesus is the Father in human form: He is the image of the invisible God (Col. 1:15).

Mystical Christianity, or the Spiritual Kingdom Within

As one grows spiritually, one advances where one becomes withdrawn from external cares or concerns, towards an internal way of living in love and truth. This internal communion with God, which governs the intentions in the way we live, becomes a constant source of hope and happiness, where external worries or concerns disappear.

This is a secret way of living, where one is no longer concerned with the opinions of others:

But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you (Matt. 6:6)

To go into one's room is to go into one's mind, and have communion with the Lord in prayer. And yet, all of our thoughts and deeds will become fully known and revealed:

Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known (Luke 12:2)

This is fulfilled when our spirit departs from the body, and we enter into the spiritual realm of heaven in our spiritual bodies. An spiritual aura emanates from our spiritual bodies, where all of our thoughts are revealed to others, and cannot be hidden. All of our deeds are recorded as in a book (Rev. 20:12). This is known in theosophy as the "Akashic record," and it is something that is tapped into by clairvoyants, who can see events of the past, present and sometimes the future. The first documented evidence of clairvoyance was done by Emanuel Swedenborg, which was investigated by the German philosopher Kant in the 18th century. A friend of mine was able to foresee the downing of flight MH17; something that came up as most of the casualties were Dutch, and I am half Dutch. These are things that occur for those who are open to gifts of the Spirit.

This realm, where all things are recorded, is the spiritual realm, where time and space lose meaning. Instead of time there is state, and instead of space there is love - the closer we are to a person, the more likely we will be with that person in heaven. It is a higher dimension that interacts with the lower natural material dimension. Our souls reside in this higher realm, while our bodies exist in the material dimension. Our internal communion with the Lord is within us, thus Jesus stated that the kingdom of God is within us:

The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you (Luke 17:20-21)

Our soul will reside in a different area of heaven and hell, depending on our state of being. For the spiritual realm governs our state of being, and we change it through free will - by recognizing the evil within ourselves, and turning against them in practice. All too often people look for external signs in the material world as evidence for the kingdom of God. But the revelation of the kingdom of God is a spiritual revelation from heaven, not a material appearance that occurs in the skies. This is described in detail in an earlier article: Is the Second Coming a Physical Event or Spiritual Event?

The true Second Coming is the revelation of the spiritual sense in God's Word, for now the Word is opened to us in all its glory. Although we have been cut of from heaven due to the fall in the Garden of Eden, it is reopened to us through scripture, by going to the Lord alone. All too often people are caught up in the literal sense of the Word, and fail to see its spiritual meaning. But it is now there for anyone who wishes to see it, all one has to do is look, and examine the revelations that have been given. For this is the New age of Christianity, one where the Lord is worshiped as one person, where a true spiritual life is one where one lives by His commandments:

If you love me, you will keep my commandments (John 14:15)

And this leads to a communion with the Lord in our heart:

Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me (Rev. 3:20)

Quit the Old Church, and Join the New

Here is an interesting article: a pastor is telling people to quit church: I'm a pastor and I want you to quit church. Now! He is recognizing a fact: church attendance is shrinking, apathy is growing, and there is a lot of doubt about core beliefs. And yet he is completely blind as to the root cause.

But here is the point he is missing: the core foundational beliefs of the church are simply false. True Christianity over the centuries has been falsified.  Instead of a belief in one God, there is a belief in three gods. And since it cannot be explained, ministers don't attempt to, but keep emphasizing a blind faith. And this goes against the modern age of enlightenment, where true spirituality is in agreement with reason, and not just blind belief based on tradition and authority.

What those within the traditional churches fail to see is that the religion from within is dying. The theology is inconsistent and not rational. Swedenborg pointed this out over 200 years ago:

"The rulers of the church insist that the understanding is to be kept under obedience to faith, nay, that faith, properly speaking, is a faith in what is unknown, which is blind, or a faith of the night. This is their first paradox; for faith is of truth, and truth is of faith; and truth before it can become an object of faith, must be seen in its light and understood; otherwise what is false may be believed as true. The paradoxes flowing from such a faith are many, as that God the Father begat a Son from eternity, and that the Holy Spirit proceeds from both, and that each of these three is a Person by Himself and a God: that the Lord, both as to His soul and body, was from the mother: that the above three Persons, consequently three Gods, created the universe; and that one of them descended, and assumed human nature, to reconcile the Father, and thus to save mankind; and that they who by grace obtain faith, and believe these paradoxes, are saved by the imputation, application, and translation, of His righteousness to themselves; and that man, at his first reception of that faith, is like a statue, a stock, or a stone, and that faith comes by the mere hearing of the Word; that faith alone without the works of the law, and not formed of charity, is saving; and that it produces the remission of sins without previous repentance; and that, merely by such remission of sins, the impenitent man is justified, regenerated, and sanctified; and that afterward charity, good works, and repentance, spontaneously follow: besides many other like paradoxes, all which, like offspring from an illegitimate bed, have issued from the doctrine founded on the idea of three Gods." (Summary Exposition, n. 54)

And since this theology cannot be explained in a rational manner, it is simply avoided by the ministers:

"the tenets of the present church cannot be learned and retained without great difficulty, nor can they be preached or taught without using great care and caution to conceal their nakedness, because sound reason neither discerns nor receives them." (Summary Exposition, n. 58)

This leads to a spiritual dilemma to those who can discern it: that there is something not quite right in what the church is teaching. They just want you to blindly believe and follow without understanding. Because they themselves do not see the truth. This is prophesied by Jesus as what will happen near the end of the age:

Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth? (Luke 18:8)

And so ministers, who are blinded by their own faith, cannot see the source of the problem. They wonder why people attend church and do not apply it to their lives. Because they themselves teach faith alone saves, which to them is but a belief in the memory and empty words in the mouth. The paradoxes that are taught are many:

"They teach that faith without good works, as being alive, justifies; and at the same time, that faith without good works, as being dead, does not justify. They teach that faith is neither preserved nor retained by good works; and at the same time, that good works proceed from faith, as fruit from a tree, light from the sun, and heat from fire. They teach that good works being adjoined to faith make it perfect; and at the same time that being conjoined as a marriage, or in one form, they deprive faith of its saving essence. They teach that a Christian is not under the Law; and at the same time that he must be in the daily practice of the Law. They teach that if good works are intermixed in the business of salvation by faith, as in the remission of sins, justification, regeneration, vivification, and salvation, they are hurtful; but that if not intermixed they are profitable. They teach that God crowns His gifts, which are good works, with rewards even of a spiritual nature, but not with salvation and eternal life, because He crowns faith with these, without works." (Summary Exposition, n. 59)

So the answer?  Quit the old traditional church, and join the New Church.  The New Church corrects the many errors that have entered Christianity through the traditions and teachings of men. And the New Church is founded on direct revelations from Jesus Christ. The tenets of the New Church are simple:

1. Worship one God in one person, who revealed Himself in incarnate form as Jesus Christ, and,
2. Shun evils as sins, and do what is good.

Which Swedenborg says in his own words:

"But do you, my friend, snatch yourself from such contradictions, and shun evils as sins, and do good, and believe in the Lord, and saving justification will be given you." (Summary Exposition, n. 59)

True faith is living by the truth, according to God's word, and worshiping Jesus Christ as the One God of the universe. It is not a blind belief where the rational understanding is suspended. Even the apostle Peter stated we should be ready to give a rational argument:

"but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect" (1 Pet. 3:15)

And if you can't make a rational defense to a devil's advocate, something is wrong. Of course you cannot share your faith if you can't justify it.  Before making a defense, examine the teachings yourself: is what your church teaching true or false?  There are two kinds of people: those who believe what they are told, and those who examine what they are told to determine if they are true or not, by reading scripture themselves.

And if you want to take a shortcut, and avoid the long arduous path of searching, examine the theology of the New Church in the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg. It will answer all your questions, but you must be ready for one thing: be ready to admit that the way you think, what you believe, may be wrong.

But, there is light at the end of the tunnel, and when you see it, you will quit the old church and join the new. And there is no turning back. So yes, quit the church, but for a completely different reason then what this pastor is saying: reject what is false and follow what is true. For this is the truth of the Second Coming, revealed from heaven.

And then you will have a new personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and acknowledge Him as the One Person you should pray to. For He is the One, and there is no such thing as a second or third person. For within Him the Divine itself is the Father, His human form is the Son, and the Divine proceeding from Him is the Holy Spirit. And in the teachings of the New Church, the true spiritual meaning of scripture will be opened, where one will see the light of heaven to apply it to one's daily life, to live a new life and to turn away from the old way of death, which the masses blindly follow.

Truth by Religious Tradition & Authority vs. Spiritual Truth

Who or what is the source of truth? Recently it has become apparent that some basic teachings are in order here. The revelations of the New Church are very comprehensive and wide ranging, and can be easily applied to one's spiritual life and allow one to reach a higher understanding.

THE THREE LEVELS OF TRUTH

In Christianity, it should be acknowledged that all source of truth is from the Lord, and that all truth and doctrine should be drawn from scripture.  There are three levels of truth:

1. Knowledges of the truth.
2. Rational truth, which are teachings confirmed by reason when one has come of age.
3. Spiritual or intellectual truth, an inward perception of what is truth.

Swedenborg describes these levels of truth as follows:

"Truth learned is one thing, rational truth is another thing, and intellectual truth is another; and these succeed one another. Truth learned belongs to knowledge; rational truth is truth learned, confirmed by reason; intellectual truth is conjoined with internal perception that a thing is so." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 1496)

Truth learned, or rational truth, only becomes a spiritual truth when one starts to live by them. This is so, because the source of all truth is the Divine good, and all truth leads to this:

"With those who are first learning [the truths of faith] they are only knowledges. Afterward if they are held in holy veneration, they reach further and become truths of the church. But when such are affected by them and live according to them, then they become spiritual truths; for good of love and of charity, which is solely from the spiritual world, then imbues them and causes them to be living, since to be affected by them and to live according to them is from that good." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 5951)

These three levels of truth correspond to the higher and lower parts of the mind. Although we are first introduced to a subject through knowledge, knowledge is the lowest level of truth. The highest level of truth is in the intellectual mind, and it is here where there is Divine influx into each soul:

"Intellectual truth is distinguished from rational truth, and this from truth of knowledge, as the internal, the intermediate, and the external. Intellectual truth is internal, rational truth is intermediate, truth of knowledge is external. These are most distinct from each other, because one is more internal than another. With any man whatever, intellectual truth, which is internal, or in his inmost, is not the man's, but is the Lord's in the man. From this the Lord flows into the rational, where truth first appears as man's; and through the rational into the faculty of knowing; from which it is evident that a man can by no means think from intellectual truth as of himself, but from rational truth and truth of knowledge, because these appear as his." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 1904.3)

NO RELIGIOUS AUTHORITY IS TRUTH IN ITSELF

Although one may be first introduced to Christian truths by religious authorities, or by ritual or tradition, or by one's parents, truth learned by authority is only an introduction. Any religious tradition, any religious authority, any person which serves to introduce knowledges of truth is an instrument or means, but is not a source of truth in itself:

"It is known that a man learns many things in infancy and childhood for the sole use that by them as means he may learn those that are more useful, and successively by these such as are still more useful, till at length he learns those of eternal life; and when he learns these, the former are nearly obliterated. In like manner when a man is being born anew by the Lord, he is led by various affections for good and truth, which are not affections for genuine good and truth, but only useful for apprehending them, and then for being imbued with them; and when he is imbued with these, the former are then given to oblivion and left behind, because they had served only as means." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 3982.2)

There is no such thing as a truth that become a truth because a religious authority says so. This is a fallacy known as argument of authority. It is only but a means of introduction. Most people will only go as far as learning from an authority, and go no further. But this is just the beginning. For whatever one has learned, one should question and determine if it is true or not:

"First the doctrinals of the church are to be learned, and then exploration to be made from the Word whether they are true; for they are not true because the heads of the church have said so and their followers confirm it, inasmuch as thus the doctrinals of all churches and religions would have to be called true, merely according to country and birth. Thus not only the doctrinals of the Papists and likewise of the Quakers would be true, but also those of the Jews and even of the Mohammedans, because their leaders have said so and their followers confirm it. From this it is plain that the Word is to be searched and it is to be seen there whether they are true. When this is done from affection for truth, then man is enlightened by the Lord so as to apperceive, without knowing whence, what is true, and he is confirmed in it according to the good in which he is. If these truths disagree with the doctrinals, let him take heed not to disturb the church.
"Afterward when he is confirmed and thus in an affirmative mind from the Word that they are truths of faith, it is then allowable for him to confirm them by all the knowledges that he possesses, of whatsoever name and nature; for then, because affirmation reigns universally, he accepts the knowledges which are in agreement, and rejects those which by reason of the fallacies that they contain are in disagreement. By means of knowledges faith is corroborated. Wherefore it is denied to no one to search the Scriptures from a desire for knowing whether the doctrinals of the church within which he was born, are true, for otherwise he can in no way be enlightened. Neither is it to be denied to him afterward to strengthen himself by means of knowledges, but he may not do it before. This is the way and the only way of conjoining the truths of faith with knowledges — not only with the knowledges of the church, but also with any knowledges whatever. Yet very few at this day proceed in this way; for most persons who read the Word do not read it from an affection for truth, but from an affection for confirming therefrom the doctrinals of the church within which they were born, whatsoever they be." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 6047.2-3)

I emphasize the last point, because most who read scripture do so to confirm the doctrine they already believe in. Very few are open to questioning what they believe is true or not, and to search the scripture for the truth. One should do so after achieving a certain sense of affirmation to become spiritual. Those who do not entertain doubts, but these doubts are admitted and mere excuses because doubts originate from the evils of life (Heavenly Arcana, n.2689.3-4).

VARIOUS RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS ARE ADAPTIVE TRUTHS

There are many things in religion which are known as "adaptive" truths, or "apparent" truths. They are not exactly true and yet serve a purpose in order to adapt the truth to one's understanding. There are even apparent truths in the sense of the letter of scripture:

"With those who remain in the sense of the letter of the Word, and think that it is the Lord who leads into temptation and who then troubles man's conscience, and who think that because He permits evil He is the cause of evil, and that He casts the evil down into hell, with other similar things — these are apparent truths, but are not truths; and because they are not truths in themselves, there is not a parallelism and correspondence. Still the Lord leaves them intact in man, and miraculously adapts them by charity so that they can serve celestial things for vessels. So, too, with the worship, the religious teachings and morals, and even with the idols, of the well-disposed Gentiles: these likewise the Lord leaves intact, and still adapts them by charity so that they also serve as vessels. The case was the same in regard to the very many rites in the Ancient Church, and afterwards in the Jewish Church; which in themselves were nothing but rituals in which there was not truth, but which were tolerated and permitted, and indeed commanded, because they were held as sacred by parents, and so were implanted in the minds of children, and impressed upon them from infancy as truths." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 1832.3)

When one understands truth is adapted to one's understanding, one can understand others more who follow different religious traditions or practices. It leads to more toleration and understanding. Adaptive or mediate truths are necessary, because the Divine truth itself is so high above us it cannot be comprehended:

"If Divine truths themselves were to be opened, they would not be received by those who are in the doctrinals of faith, because they exceed all their rational apprehension, thus all their belief, and consequently nothing of good from the Lord could flow in. For good from the Lord, or Divine good, cannot flow in except into truths, since truths are the vessels of good, as has been often shown.
"Truths or appearances of truth are given man to this intent, that Divine good may be able to form his intellect, and thus the man himself. For truths are to the end that good may flow in, inasmuch as good without vessels or receptacles does not find place, because it does not find a state corresponding to itself; wherefore where there are not truths, or where they are not received, there is not rational or human good, consequently the man has not any spiritual life. Therefore that man may still have truths, and thence have spiritual life, there are appearances of truth given, and this to every one according to his apprehension; which appearances are acknowledged as truths, because they are such that Divine things may be in them." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 3387.1-2)

Divine good flows from heaven into these lower level truths. Even Jehovah become incarnate in order to reach mankind who had become merely natural:

"The Divine good, which is here called celestial good, is united as by marriage to the Divine truth, which is here called spiritual truth (n. 2508); and although the Divine good is united in this manner to the Divine truth alone, it still flows into lower truths, and conjoins itself with them, but not as by marriage; for it flows into rational truths which are only appearances of truth, and conjoins itself with them; and indeed into truths of sense and of outward knowledge which are scarce other than fallacies, and conjoins itself with them. Unless this were so, no man could by any means have been saved (see Part First, n. 1831, 1832). That the Divine good might be conjoined with truths of reason and of outward knowledge, and that man might thus be saved, was the purpose of the Lord's coming into the world; for without the Lord's Human made Divine there can in no way be any conjunction, but through Him there is conjunction." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 2554.1)

This unknown Divine which is beyond all human comprehension, is known in scripture as the Father. The image of the Divine by which He made Himself known is the Son. Even Paul said that the Lord is the image of the invisible God (Col. 1:14). It is a falsehood to declare them as two distinct persons, they are different aspects of One Divine Being.

THE LORD AND SCRIPTURE IS THE SOURCE OF ALL TRUTH

The Lord is the Word made flesh, and in the spiritual sense, the Word or Logos is the Divine truth. The Lord said I am the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). All truth is from the Lord alone, and no man can claim what belongs only to the Lord. All good and truth belong to the Lord alone, and any good and truth that one has is not one's own but was given to them by the Lord. To acknowledge that good and truth is from the Lord is to glorify Him.

Swedenborg saw in the spiritual world how all truth proceeds from the Lord alone:

"The Lord was the Divine truth itself when He was in the world, and afterward when He was glorified became Divine good, and thenceforth all Divine truth proceeds from Him. This Divine truth is light to the angels, which light also is that which illuminates our internal sight, which is of the understanding.
"This sight, since it does not see natural, but spiritual things, has for objects in the spiritual understanding truths which are called truths of faith, but in the natural understanding it has for objects truths of civil order which relate to what is just, and also truths of moral order which relate to what is reputable, and lastly natural truths which are conclusions from the objects of the external senses, especially of the sight. From this it may be seen in what order truths follow, and that all and each have their origin from truths Divine, which are the internal beginnings of all things. Moreover the forms in which they are have taken their origin therefrom, for these were created to receive and contain. Hence it may be evident what is meant in John by all things being created by the Word (i. 1-3); for truth Divine is the veriest essential and is the only substantial, by which all things are." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 8861.1-2)

As the Lord is Divine truth, and the source of truth, the Word of scripture should be sought to determine what is truth, and one should ask the Lord for enlightenment when reading scripture. There are three principles (True Christian Religion, n. 225):

1. Without doctrine the Word is not understood.
2. Doctrine is to be drawn from the sense of the letter of the Word and to be confirmed by it.
3. But the Divine truth which is of doctrine appears to none but those who are in enlightenment from the Lord.

In the New Church doctrines have been given from heavenly revelations received by Swedenborg in the 18th century. With other churches, they will use the Bible to confirm doctrines which may or may not be true. The third point is important, as most use scripture to confirm their own bias. Jesus said, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; and to him who knocks, it shall be opened (Matt. vii. 7, 8; xxi. 21, 22).

Without acknowledgment of the Lord for enlightenment, the Bible is a closed book, even to theologians and scholars.

THE TRUTHS OF FAITH ORIGINATE FROM LOVE

The truths of faith are those which treat of love, and it is only the truths that one chooses to live by which become a part of one's spiritual life:

"It shall be briefly told what are truths of faith from love. Truths of faith from love are truths which love dictates, and thus which derive their being from love; these truths are living, because the things which spring from love are living. Therefore truths of faith from love are those which deal with love to the Lord and charity toward the neighbor, for these are the truths which love dictates. The whole Word is the teaching of such truths; for the Word in its spiritual sense treats solely of things that regard the Lord and the neighbor, and thus of such as are of love to the Lord and toward the neighbor; whence also the Word is living. This is meant by the Law and the Prophets hanging on those two precepts (Matt. xxii. 34-40), the Law and the Prophets being the Word in its whole complex. But truths of faith from love are not bare knowledges of such things with man in the memory and thence in the understanding, but they are affections of life with him; for the things which a man loves and therefore does, become of his life." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 9841.4)

Good is in truth, which determines what man favors:

"That good is within truth, and makes it to be truth, may also be evident from the goods and truths in even worldly things. When man seizes upon and acknowledges anything in these as good, then whatever favors this good he calls truth; but whatever does not favor it, he rejects and calls falsity. He may indeed say that that is true which does not favor that good; but he then dissembles, and thinks otherwise. So likewise in spiritual things." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 2434)

One only has faith only inasmuch as one is in charity:

"A man has only so much of faith as he has of charity; and that when a man is being regenerated, charity presents itself to faith, or what is the same, good presents itself to truth, and insinuates itself into it and adapts itself to it in every particular, causing faith to be faith; and thus that charity is the very firstborn of the church, although to man it appears otherwise" (Heavenly Arcana, n. 2435.2)

HOW THE NEW CHURCH IS DIFFERENT FROM OTHER CHRISTIAN CHURCHES

Earlier I described the three levels of truth.  The lowest form of truth is truth from authority, religious tradition, and truth that remain as only mere knowledges of the memory.  But in most Christian churches, this is where people remain. They do not question, they do not ask.  They merely follow authority and tradition. This is partly because church authorities wish to keep people this way - in a form of blind faith, not faith opened up reason and understanding, where truths can be seen in their full light. To merely believe as one has been told to believe is not spiritual faith, it is blind obedience, where the spiritual understanding has been closed off.

Churches that do not go to the Lord or the Word of scripture for enlightenment are not a church, for it is the Lord alone who makes the church. Churches that use scripture to confirm a false doctrine are a falsified church. If the primary interest of a church is their own religious authority, they cease to become a church, for the desire to rule from religious authority is diametrically opposed to love of the Lord. Swedenborg has several visions where the heavenly view of the current state of the Christian church was shown, and it was not good.

The main aspect that makes the New Church unique, is that revelations have been made where the spiritual sense of the Word has been opened. This is the Second Coming, which is described in more detail in Is the Second Coming a Physical Event or Spiritual Event? The New Church is the rebirth of Christianity, for the truth has been falsified in the older Christian churches:

"Now as the dogmas of the present Christian churches were not composed from the Word, but from men's own intelligence and thus from falsities, and as they were also confirmed by some things from the Word, the Word by the Lord's Divine Providence was taken from the laity among the Roman Catholics, and was opened but still was closed among the Protestants by their common declaration that the understanding must be kept under obedience to faith. [a blind faith]
"But the contrary is the case in the New Church; in this church it is allowable to enter with the understanding and penetrate into all its secrets, and also to confirm them by the Word. This is because, its doctrines are continuous truths, laid open by the Lord through the Word; and confirmations of those truths by means of rationals cause the understanding to be opened above more and more, and thus to be raised into the light in which are the angels of heaven; and that light in its essence is truth, and in this light the acknowledgment of the Lord as the God of heaven and earth shines in its glory." (True Christian Religion, n. 508)

So for any who ask, for any who seek, heaven's door now stands open.

The Spiritual Meaning of Matthew 10

In the revelations of the New Church, it is revealed that the Second Coming of the Lord is not a Second Coming in person, but it is a heavenly revelation of the spiritual sense of the Word. In the first coming, the Word was made flesh. In the Second Coming, the Divine truth has revealed Himself in the literal sense of the Word, which is symbolically portrayed as "the clouds of heaven."  With this revelation, there is no need to look up to the sky, but rather, one should look for the kingdom of God within.

With this knowledge there are many passages of the Bible that open up and reveal higher level spiritual teachings. These areas of scripture are "closed off" to those of the older churches, so they simply pass over them. So I thought I would share here the spiritual sense of Matthew 10, where Jesus commissions his disciples to go out to declare the kingdom of God. Because as I read it I found some spiritual insight and direction as to how these teachings of the New Church should be handled with outsiders, or those who have no knowledge of the inner spiritual sense of the Word.

I will quote directly from scripture, then explain the spiritual sense, and here just reference some passages scattered throughout the writings of Swedenborg for those of you who want to dive deeper.

THE SPIRITUAL SENSE OF MATTHEW 10

First off, this passage is given to the 12 disciples. In the spiritual sense, a disciple is anyone who is good and truth from the Lord, or one who follow's the Lord's teaching.

Go not into the way of the Gentiles,
And into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not:
But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel (Matt. 10:5-6)

In the literal sense, one may think one must go hunting around searching for the 10 Lost Tribes of Israel. Gentiles would be non-Jews, and the Samaritans is an ancient sect which only follows the first 5 books of Moses whose population is less than 800. So what to do with this passage of the Bible? Most will skip over it.  In fact, most of modern Christianity is composed entirely of Gentiles, and in the literal sense its stating we should look for Jewish people who forgot their ancestors were Jewish.  But that is not what it is saying at all. Here is the spiritual sense:

ISRAEL is the CHRISTIAN CHURCH, wherever they may be.
SAMARITANS are those in FALSE/ALTERNATIVE RELIGIONS who do not acknowledge or know Jesus Christ is Divine.
GENTILES are those outside the Church, who follow an evil way of life, who do not acknowledge sin. Gentiles are those whose priority is food, money, clothing, and their own selfish ego. (Heavenly Arcana, 4169.2, Apocalype Explained, 223.20)

What this is saying here, is the priority for the New Church is to address Christians who have been misled by false teachings. They are lost sheep, and don't know it. For most, Christianity is but an external appearance or ritual. To renew Christianity, one must expose the falsehoods, but this requires a bit of tact, because no one wants to hear their religious belief is incorrect. Most everyone has the "I am right you are wrong" kind of mentality.

The spiritual direction is to teach those who have some level of foundation or knowledge or openness to Christianity. Those who follow an evil way of life despise and hate any sort of religion. Those who follow false religions are locked in a particular sort of mindset. Gentiles are those who are not open to truth due to an evil will, Samaritans are not open to truth due to a false way of thinking.

Samaritans represent those who are in a false religion, but are not necessarily evil, in fact it refers to those who may be good, thus we have the parable of the "Good Samaritan." At this point its worth quoting this other passage about Samaritans:

And he sent messengers before his face: and they went, and entered into a village of the Samaritans, to make ready for him.
And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem.
And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elijah did?
But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of.
For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. (Luke 9:52-56)

In the spiritual sense, to "command fire to come down from heaven" is to spiritually condemn someone to hell. Jesus here commands that no one should be condemned to hell on the basis of religion. Unfortunately many disobey this guidance. See here the previous post, What did Jesus say about Other Religions  This passage also confirms the spiritual interpretation of the Samaritans, referring to who those who have a particular religious mindset who are not open to receive the truth about Jesus Christ. So back to Matthew 10:

And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.
Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons:
Freely ye have received, freely give (Matt. 10:7-8)

In the literal sense, it states we must perform miracles. But external physical healing is representative of internal spiritual healing. The kingdom of heaven is the Lord's kingdom of heaven on earth which is the church (Apocalypse Revealed, 749.2), for it to be at hand is a renewal of the church in love and truth after the former church has been falsified and corrupted. To be sick, in the spiritual sense, signifies suffering due to sin (Heavenly Arcana 10360.9) and to heal is salvation through repentance. Thus after physical healing, Jesus often commanded the person "to sin no more," showing a connection between physical health and internal sin. Leprosy is representive of profanation of holy things (Heavenly Arcana,  716.3, 3301.8) and thus there are several Old Testament laws for the priest to cleanse leprosy. "Death" in the spiritual sense is spiritual death of a mere natural life, to raise the dead is to lead one into spiritual regeneration to live a spiritual moral life (Apocalype Explained 899.12). To cast out demons in the literal sense is to heal demoniacs, but in a spiritual sense it refers to obsessive thoughts that control our behavior. It also refers to removing falsities that infest the church from within (Apocalype Explained 586.6).

To freely receive, and freely give, it to not hide spiritual teaching but to provide and give it to those in need. Jesus commands to not hide the truth that one knows (Matt. 5:15, Mark 4:21, Luke 8:16, 11:33, etc).

Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses,
Nor scrip for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves:
For the workman is worthy of his meat. (Matt. 10:9-10)

In the spiritual sense, this follows from the previous statement. In the spiritual sense, money represents spiritual knowledge. What this commands is the following: do not mix in self-derived knowledge with knowledge as revealed from the Lord through scripture. There are a lot of traditions that are "self derived," that is, someone just made it up and other people follow because someone said so. I have seen this sort of accusation leveled at Swedenborg, but it is false, all the statements he gives are supported from scripture, and the writing is so different from his earlier ones before his vision was opened up it is certainly not self derived.

Each particular word here has a hidden spiritual sense, which is hard to prove here so I will just summarize. A "coat" refers to interior truth from the Lord, "shoes" exterior truths, and "staff" the power of Divine truth (Heavenly Arcana 4169.2). To not have two of these is again not to mix this with anything that is derived from the self. One has to let go of the selfish ego, and acknowledge all good and truth within is from the Lord.

And into whatsoever city or town ye shall enter, enquire who in it is worthy; and there abide till ye go thence.
And when ye come into an house, salute it. And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it: but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you.
And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. (Matt. 10:11-14)

A city, in the spiritual sense, signifies a particular sort of doctrine, which is explained extensively throughout Heavenly Arcana (aka Arcana Coelestia). Here it is stating some sorts of doctrines will be willing to receive the truth more than others as they will have some sort of similarity. For example, in terms of how Jesus saved humanity, the doctrines of the New Church is similar to those of "Christus Victor" and that of the Orthodox Church.

To "shake the dust off the feet," in the spiritual sense, means, those who are able to recognize the truth, and yet reject it because of a falsehood they hold true, will be condemned. They may try to vilify or will be threatened by any idea that opposes their falsehood. "Dust" in the spiritual sense refers to the condemnation of hell, to shake it off means despite the discomfort or argument caused by true teaching one will not be condemned from it (Apocalype Explained 365.8). "Dust" can also refer to false external appearances derived from the senses.

Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that city. (Matt. 10:15)

Sodom and Gomorrah represent those who are condemned to hell due to an evil way of life, the original story in Genesis portrays how the Lord wished to save any remnant of humanity from the condemnation of hell. Those who are in knowledge of the truth and yet live an evil life will be condemned much more than those who just live an evil life and yet have no knowledge of truth (Heavenly Arcana 7418.2). Sodom spiritually represents the lusts of evil, and Gomorrah are the falsities derived from thence (Heavenly Arcana 2220.4). Judgment refers to one's judgment after death.

Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues; and ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles (Matt. 10:16-18)

In scripture, each and every animal is representative of a different aspect of one's spiritual state. Sheep those in the good of faith, wolves are those who are against innocence (Heavenly Arcana 3994.3). "Wolves in sheep's clothing" are those who are externally religious but internally evil. To be "wise as serpents" means one must apply external wisdom and judgment in order to present the truth so that it can be received, to be "harmless as doves" is to not do so out of any sort of hatred but rather in the good from innocence of love towards the Lord (Heavenly Arcana 197, 6398.3; Apocalype Explained 581.9, Heavenly Arcana 10132.9)

To scourge is to pervert the Word (Apocalype Explained 655.9). Synagogues here signify false doctrine, as it was also a place of instruction (Apocalype Explained 120.3).

But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you. (Matt. 10:19-20)

The "spirit of the Father" is none other than the Holy Spirit. It is false to think of this as another person - the Holy Spirit is the Divine operation in us, which flows into those who reject any good and truth that is derived from the ego. To such, inspiration will be given.

And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. (Matt. 10:21-22)

This means there will be internal dissension, but not literally among family members. This presents internal spiritual warfare from within. To deliver someone to death is to hate them, to the point of extinguishing their spiritual life (by condemning one to hell). In the spiritual sense a "brother" is one who in a similar good of faith, and this is the origin of calling one another "brethren." In the opposite sense a "brother" is one who is in evil from a false faith. A "father" is someone who is in evil, a "child" is one who is in truth from innocence, or in the opposite sense a "father" is one who is in good who is attacked by falsehoods. Every family relation here has a particular spiritual significance (Heavenly Arcana 10490.6, Apocalype Explained 724.6).  In the spiritual sense, the "Lord's name" is all doctrine concerning love and charity (Heavenly Arcana 2009.11).

But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come (Matt. 10:23)

To flee from a city is to withdraw from doctrines of falsehood (Apocalype Explained 223.21). If you find a falsehood in a religion, withdraw from it. Don't stay in something where the truth will be suppressed. To "flee from one city into the next" is also to go through a period of searching. If one is willing to question one's belief, that opens you up to receiving the truth. And eventually, one will find the Divine truth, which is signified by the coming of the Son of Man, which is the revelation of the Divine truth hidden within scripture itself (if you are reading this blog, you have found it). In the spiritual sense the "Son of Man" is a title that refers to the Lord as to the Divine truth, whereas "Son of God" refers to the Divinity in His human form.

In presenting the truth, be prepared to be rejected by the majority. But always remember:

In the end, expect to encounter a lot of hatred in presenting the truth, for falsehoods reign supreme in most people's understanding. But do it out of love, for out of the many who reject the truth, there will be a few who will hear and receive.

For He knows our form, 

He remembers that we are dust.

A man, his days are as grass, 

As a flower of the field, so he blossoms.

For the wind passes over it and it becomes nothing, 

And the place thereof shall recognize it no more.

But the mercy of Jehovah is from everlasting to everlasting, 

Upon those who fear Him,

And His righteousness to sons' sons,

To those who keep His covenant, 

And to those who remember His precepts to do them. (Ps. 103:14-18)

Why Muslims and Jews falsely reject Christianity, and the Divine Human

I was told by a Jewish person that he enjoyed the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, but he could not accept Jesus as Divine and had a problem with that.  This is also a problem for many Muslims who regard Jesus as just a prophet; moreover it is a problem for Christians in Muslim countries as it is viewed to worship something created as blasphemous against the Creator. So what is the answer?  It is quite a logical argument, something for which few Christians give a proper answer. So here is the summary of the problem I gave to the Jewish person:

SUMMARY PROBLEM AND ANSWER

Most Jews and Muslims have 2 problems with declaring Jesus as Divine:

1. Worshiping something created as Creator, and,
2. Multiple personal beings in the Godhood.

If you look deeply into what was revealed to Swedenborg, he was told this:

1. The human personality is composed of multiple levels, to simplify, the internal soul and the external body. Jesus' external human form was indeed something created. But his internal form is Jehovah Himself. What happened is that Jesus successfully put off this external human form from the mother, until it was transformed into a Divine Human. This is why, in the Gospels, Jesus kept his identity secret until He rose from the dead.
2. In New Church theology, Jehovah was born into a lower human state and had to progress back to a state of union with the Divine, as all humans must progress towards God by resisting sin and doing His will. What happened is that by becoming incarnate, Jehovah could do battle against all of hell by resisting sin and temptation through the human form that was inherited from Mary. This could not be done unless as a human He was born into a finite limited state of being. Jesus's prayers indicate the Divine can lower itself into a lower state of being, but it is a false appearance to regard Him as someone as distinct from the Divine.

So given that, the definition of a trinity of three persons is a definite falsehood. Many Muslims who see this teaching thus become attracted to the New Church, as the New Church also accepts that some sort of revelation was given to Muhammed.

As for Judaism, many of the rituals will not be understood until one understands the hidden spiritual sense, but much of it will remain hidden until one understands the doctrine of the Divine Human.

Before the incarnation, Jehovah could not reveal Himself except through an angelic being. What Swedenborg described was that angels would be invested with an influx from the Divine and speak as if they were Jehovah Himself. But as mankind become more sinful, this connection with the angelic realm became cut off. The only way to restore it was for Jehovah to become incarnate in human form.

Another point: the Divine, as an abstract concept, cannot be held in the thought without an external form. In New Church theology, the Divine itself is unreachable by human understanding, but is reachable in its external form, which is the Divine Human. The invisible Divine and the visible Divine is known as the Father and the Son. It is a mistake to assign separate distinct personal identities to different titles of the Divine.

SOME FURTHER THOUGHTS

Here is where the Christian revelations of the New Church can give answers to those who have real rational and intelligent doubts about Jesus Christ, whereas older Christian churches cannot give a rational answer. And since they have no answer, they avoid the topic altogether. This is because in most older Christian churches, people are just taught to believe on the basis of authority. The other issue is there are hidden falsehoods in the theology of the older Christian churches. So Muslims and Jews actually have point.  These falsehoods in doctrine prevent Christians in general from providing a rational argument for their faith, to wit:

1. There is no such thing as a trinity of three persons. In the New Church, this a complete non issue. There is one Divine being, One Personal Being who is Being itself. The True Trinity is that of the Divine itself, the Divine Human, and the Divine operation or Divine proceeding of God's spirit.
2. The theology of vicarious atonement was adopted in the Catholic Church in the 11th century, and from there the Protestants inherited it. This is not the true method of salvation. Jesus saved humanity by fighting against the power of hell in His Human, and when he overcame hell He made His human Divine. From this, His spirit can now flow into us to resist sin and temptation, and live a spiritual life. A spiritual moral life, not a religious sort of apathy of belief only. Protestant churches in this regard fail in this regard as they have made religion of belief only, which is in fact not taught by the Bible.
3. The Catholic Church further corrupts Christianity by encouraging prayer towards Mary, and an undue focus on the holiness of saints. In true Christianity, the focus is on Jesus, on the one God who alone is Holy. The more one worships the self or one's ego, the more one withdraws from God.

HOW JESUS GRADUALLY MADE HIS HUMAN DIVINE

So, there are several falsehoods that have grown within the Christian church that originated from the thoughts of man and not from Divine revelation, which have corrupted the Christian church. When these falsehoods are removed, a lot of the disagreements that Muslims and Jews have with Christianity in general sort of go away. The true reality of the situation is that as it is now, no traditional religion is completely true, nor is it completely false. But it is hard for those who grew up in a religion to see their own bias and the hidden falsehood of their religion.

I have not, however, been able to find a falsehood in the Divine teachings as received in the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg. Religious authorities have issues with Swedenborg because they are unable to let go of the falsehoods that they have received from their own tradition. And the problem here is ministers of a particular denomination do not exactly have freedom of thought or freedom of speech to publicly disagree.

So, for example, Catholics are taught that Mary was born perfect, and therefore Jesus was born perfect. Neither of these statements are actually true. Mary was a woman born in sin like us all, and Jehovah had to become incarnate from a human woman so that He could directly fight against the evil tendencies of that human form.  This is a concept most Christians are unfamiliar with, and thus they cannot give a rational explanation for Christianity. It is here that the Orthodox have a closer view of the truth, although they may not explicitly teach it well. 

As this is hidden from most Christians, I will here quote what was revealed to Swedenborg on the matter.

STATEMENTS ON THE HUMANITY OF JESUS AND HIS MOTHER MARY

"[the Lord] was born as another man and instructed as another man, but the interiors with Him were celestial, which adapted the vessels for the reception of knowledges, and so that the knowledges would afterwards become vessels to receive the Divine. The interiors with Him were Divine, from Jehovah His Father; the exteriors were human, from Mary His mother." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 1460)

In the following passage, the "first rational" is one's rational mind which is in love of the self, the "second rational" is one that one receives from the Lord which desires love and truth:

"...it is to be known that though a man be regenerated, still each and every thing of the first rational remains with him, and is only separated from the second rational, and this in a most wonderful manner by the Lord. But the Lord wholly exterminated His first rational, so that nothing of it remained; for what is merely human cannot be together with the Divine. Hence He was no longer the son of Mary, but Jehovah as to each Essence." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 2657.7)

"That He was born of the virgin Mary is known, yet as another man; but when He was born again, or became Divine, it was from Jehovah who was in Him, and Who was Himself as to the very Being of life. The unition of the Divine and the Human Essence was effected mutually and reciprocally, so that He united the Divine Essence to the Human and the Human to the Divine" (Heavenly Arcana, n. 2798.2)

This is from a passage where it is explained that the Lord had to expel hereditary evil he inherited from Mary:

"...this was hereditary evil from the mother, against which the Lord combated... and from His expelling it, so that at length He was not the son of Mary" (Heavenly Arcana, n. 4563.1)

"The Lord was indeed born as another man, and had an infirm human from the mother; but this human the Lord entirely cast out, so that He was no longer the son of Mary, and made the Human in Himself Divine, which is meant by His being glorified; and He also showed to Peter, James, and John, when He was transfigured, that He was a Divine Man." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 4692.5)

The following passage explains the difference between the regeneration of ordinary men and the glorification of the Lord's human:

"From this it may be evident that man is made altogether new when he is regenerated, for then all things and everything with him are so ordered as to receive heavenly loves. Nevertheless with man the prior forms are not destroyed, but only removed; but with the Lord the prior forms, which were from the maternal, were altogether destroyed and extirpated, and Divine forms received in their place. For the Divine love does not agree with any but a Divine form; all other forms it absolutely casts out; hence it is that the Lord when glorified was no longer the son of Mary." (Heavenly Arcana, n. 6872.4)

"It is to be known that with man who is being regenerated, purification from evils and their falsities goes on continually, for so far as man is purified from evils and falsities, so far are implanted the truths which are of faith, and these are conjoined to the good which is of charity, and so far man then acts from the good of charity. Purification from evils and falsities with man is not liberation from them, but is their removal (see n. 868, 887, 894, 929, 1581, 2269, 2406, 4564, 8206, 8393, 8988, 9014, 9333, 9446-9451, 9938). With the Lord however there was not removal, but casting out of those which He derived from the mother, thus full liberation from them, even so that He was no longer the son of Mary" (Heavenly Arcana, n. 10057.6)

WHY A NEW REVELATION FOR CHRISTIANITY

This is why a new revelation for Christianity and Jesus Christ had to be made, for as it is now, there are so much falsehoods in the older traditional churches that many cannot make a rational argument to explain the truth of Christianity. So question what you have been taught, and as one removed the falsehoods from within, so many that are without will be willing to come closer to Jesus Christ, to live a spiritual life according to His commandments, where He dwells within each one of us through His spirit.

What did Jesus say about other Religions?

Lately, there has been a lot of intolerance expressed in the name of religion.  There are many, who grow up in a particular religion, and assume a prideful intolerance of others who are different.  Others will use people's ignorance to create a false fear of others. There are many, who assume that their religion is the one true religion, and if one does not believe the way they believe, you will be condemned to hell.  And unfortunately this turns a lot of people off to the truths contained in Divine revelations. The general public ends up avoiding religion altogether.

This is what happens when people focus on belief, and not on how one lives their life.

So what did Jesus say about other religions? Actually quite a bit, It so upset the religious leaders, it was the religious leaders who had Jesus killed.  Because if salvation is from how one lives their life, and not on head knowledge or belief, this lessens the strict exclusiveness of a religion. So lets take a look at what Jesus had to say on this matter.

RELIGION VERSUS HOW ONE LIVES ONE'S LIFE

Jesus, as it turns out, cares more about how you live your life over what you believe in terms of religion. This will come as a surprise to many, but it is true. It is more important how one lives one's life according to the Lord's will:

So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. (Matt. 5:23-24)

Jesus also makes it clear that he does not care for people who use religion to get attention from others:

And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. (Matt. 6:5-6)

And Jesus is quite against religious people who do not life a life of charity and love towards others:

Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’ (Matt. 7:21-23)

He then follows the above quote that He does not care for those who just believe, but rather those who hear what He says and actually does it (Matt. 7:24-27)

WHAT OF OTHER RELIGIONS?

Religious differences are not new, and there were different religions in the day of Jesus. Here is one episode that is only recorded in the gospel of Mark:

John said to him, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name,  and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.”But Jesus said, “Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. For the one who is not against us is for us. (Mark 9:38-40)

Which means, one should tolerate other religions that have similar beliefs.  Do not be focused on "who follows what" or if others do not recognize your belief as an authority. If the religion has a positive view of Jesus, all the better. For Jesus said He is the Truth, and if there is any truth in other religions, He is there present, but hidden.

Now, in Jesus' day there were multiple groups, but the Jews had a general dislike of another religious group known as the Samaritans. Not only did the Samaritans had different religious practices, but they only believed in the first five books of Moses.  All the other books they rejected. Sound familiar? Since they tended to hate each other, this is why Jesus selects a Samaritan in the parable of the good Samaritan:

"A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him.And the next day he took out two denarii  and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?”He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.” (Luke 10:30-37)

Again, this shows that Jesus cares more about how you live your life, not your religious beliefs.

WHAT OF THOSE WHO NEVER KNEW JESUS CHRIST

There are many Christians who do believe that if one is not a Christian, who do not know Jesus Christ, will be condemned. But this is really short sighted, and actually goes against what the Bible teaches. God is love, and all are judged according to their works (Matt. 16:27), not according to one's belief system. The New Testament makes clear that even those who did not know Jesus Christ had made it to heaven:

1. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are listed as among those in the kingdom of heaven (Matt. 8:11, Luke 13:28).
2. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are listed as currently alive in heaven (Matt. 22:32).
3. Abraham is shown to be in heaven (Luke 16:22-30)

The reason why Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are mentioned, is that in a higher sense these patriarchs refer to the three levels of heaven. Paul mentions the third heaven in one of his personal experiences (see 2 Cor. 12:2). So these patriarchs refer to those who were righteous.

So what about those who did not necessarily live such a good life, because they were unaware? This is actually mentioned in a parable in the gospel of Luke, where a master of a household entrusts his possessions to his servants, who then abuse the responsibility they have been given, beating other servants, and living a slothful life. Note the end, where punishment is different between those who know and those who do not know:

 And that servant who knew his master's will but did not get ready or act according to his will, will receive a severe beating. But the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, will receive a light beating. Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more. (Luke 12:47-48)

In other words, religious knowledge and religious belief do not help if you choose to live an evil life. In fact, those who know and live an evil life will be judged more severely than those who lived an evil life and did not know.

Moreover, one other point here, after the crucifixion Jesus made a descent into the netherworld, and released souls from spiritual captivity:

For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah (2 Pet. 3:18-20)

This goes a bit beyond the scope of this blog post, but this refers to an intermediate spiritual world between heaven and hell, where periodic judgments are made to separate the good from the evil. These are typically those who lived a good life but in external appearance only, or those who were good but followed some false ideas. The point is here, that even if one does not know the truth, they will have a chance to learn more in the other life. Lack of knowledge does not mean condemnation. However if one does evil intentionally, and enjoys it, that does mean condemnation.

SWEDENBORG'S VISIONS OF GENTILES IN HEAVEN

Swedenborg spent a full 27 years having waking visions of heaven and hell, and recording the spiritual sense of scripture. He confirmed that just because one was not born into Christianity and had no knowledge of Jesus Christ, it does not mean one is condemned. One is judged according to how one lived their life.  Here is the passage in particular, which may come as a surprise to many Christians, who would falsely reject it if they were not aware of scripture:

"It is a common opinion that those born out of the Church, who are called heathen or gentiles, cannot be saved, because they have not the Word and thus do not know the Lord, and without the Lord there is no salvation. But still it may be known that they also are saved, from this alone, that the mercy of the Lord is universal, that is, toward every one; that they are born men as well as those within the Church, who are respectively few; and that it is not their fault that they do not know the Lord. Every one who thinks from any enlightened reason, may see that no man is born for hell, for the Lord is love itself, and His love is to will to save all. Therefore He has provided that all may have religion, and by it acknowledgment of the Divine, and interior life; for to live according to one's religious belief is to live interiorly, as he then looks to the Divine; and as far as he looks to This, so far he does not look to the world, but removes himself from the world, thus from the life of the world, which is exterior life.
"That gentiles are saved as well as Christians, may be known by those who know what it is that makes heaven with man; for heaven is in man, and those who have heaven in themselves come into heaven. Heaven in man is to acknowledge the Divine and to be led by the Divine. The first and primary thing of every religion is to acknowledge the Divine. A religion which does not acknowledge the Divine, is not religion; and the precepts of every religion look to worship; thus they teach how the Divine is to be worshipped, so that the worship may be acceptable to Him; and when this is fixed in one's mind, thus as far as he wills it, or as far as he loves it, he is led by the Lord. It is known that gentiles live a moral life as well as Christians, and many of them a better life than Christians. Moral life is lived either for the sake of the Divine, or for the sake of men in the world; the moral life which is lived for the sake of the Divine is spiritual life. Moral life and spiritual life appear alike in outward form, but in inward form they are altogether different; the one saves man, the other does not save him. For he who lives a moral life for the sake of the Divine, is led by the Divine, but he who lives a moral life for the sake of men in the world, is led by himself." (Heaven and Hell, n. 318-319)

I emphasize the latter part, because one's actions are judged by one's purpose or intent.  Doing good for the sake of self, for selfish gain, is not good, that is just being done for self gain.  All is judged according to how one loved others, for in loving others one is loving God, for God is love.  Love is the answer to all things. Just as "all roads lead to Rome," so all truths lead to One God, who is love itself.

To make it clear, I am not saying that religion is completely irrelevant, but rather, truth becomes one's guide as to how one lives one's life. I would say the advantage that Christianity has is that it reveals God is a personal being, who became incarnate in human form, to show that He loves us. More accurately, God is Being, God is Man, we are His image. There is a closer and deeper connection, more so than thinking of God as something abstract. And when one understands He became incarnate to fight directly against the hells, so He can fight for you to overcome sin and temptation, and to live a better spiritual life.