The Progression of Celestial Things
of Love into the Natural Man
By Rev. Paul Booth
Genesis 12: 8-14 | Luke 2:40-52 | Arcana Cælestia 1450
of Love into the Natural Man
By Rev. Paul Booth
Genesis 12: 8-14 | Luke 2:40-52 | Arcana Cælestia 1450
The celestial things of love are love to the Lord and love to the neighbor, and the innocence itself which is in these. These celestial things are insinuated into man chiefly in his state of infancy up to childhood, and in fact, apart from cognitions. These things in man are the remains . . . and which are insinuated by the Lord and stored up for use in the after life.
(Arcana Caelestia 1450)
The words of our text relate to when the Lord was a child. It was a state when essential things of love progressed into the Lord's Human assumed in the world. It is upon these, love to Jehovah and love to the neighbor that the Lord's glorification could begin and thus advance toward its completion. For, from these two essentials, the love of the Divine and the love of mankind derive all Divine good and truth. This is the foundation upon which can be built the life of faith and charity in man.
It is a most wonderful thing to learn and believe that when a man is in the state of infancy and early childhood the Lord has implanted within him all the good necessary to build in him new will and understanding so that the Lord can be within him and he within the Lord. In such a state he is, as it were, in the position or state in his life where he can be led into becoming a Church in man. It is the development of the Lord's New Church here on earth.
Now, the Lord as a child progressed toward the celestial love and grew in wisdom (Cf. Luke 2: 40)). However, man must progress from the natural through the spiritual to the celestial. The Lord's Father was the Divine; man's father is natural. The Lord could progress to the celestial because he was a celestial man. Of course man is in the natural; the celestial and spiritual had been destroyed with him and these having been closed, the conjunction with Heaven and the Lord was closed. Man needs a new natural from the Lord, a new will and understanding so that conjunction with Heaven and the Lord will again be open with man.
In this state, the Lord, having assumed His Human in the world, received all the celestial things of love and spread them, as it were, into His Divine Human. These celestial things of love were stored in Him. These, in the Word are called 'remains' in man. These 'remains' are stored in man for use in his after life. We very often think the life is our own, but we are only the recipient of life from the Lord. The remains are the basis for the Lord's life to be received in man. When man desires to know the truth for the sake of truth, because it is from the Lord, the Lord gives His goodness to man, which is conjoined with genuine truths and the man progresses toward regeneration. This is the heavenly marriage, the uniting of good and truth in man; thereby a man has life from the Lord. The Lord is not only present with man, but He is within man. In this, we see a man's regeneration. The Lord, when He was in the world, we see His glorification; He made His Human Divine.
Today's text also states that all love to Jehovah and love to the neighbor are given to man in infancy and childhood without any cognition. It therefore needs to be understood what cognitions are because they flow into a man during his childhood and even on all throughout his life as an adult. Though, these are not the truths in themselves. They are not the scientifics or even knowledges, but they contain within something divine. Such cognitions enable a man to advance into the next state toward regeneration. In this next state a man may recognition the celestial things of love. A man will not remain in obscurity if he will learn the essentials of love to the Lord and to the neighbor.
Cognitions are Only the beginning, the state of learning truth, of knowing and of being led to acknowledging the Lord and His salvation. We learn from our lesion that the Lord had to receive cognitions if He was to progress in His knowledge concerning spiritual and celestial things of love and wisdom. You can see this in the development of a child's mind. Man is not born with knowledge; he must be taught through the influx of cognitions concerning all things. Celestial and spiritual things were necessary for the Lord's progression to glorification even as they are necessary for man's regeneration.
Because we have the Third Testament and believe that the Word has an internal sense, we see that the histories recorded about the peoples who lived then and the places and countries spoken of, are representative of the Lord and of His Kingdom. What is signified by Abram moving to a mountain east of Bethel and west of Ai and there spreading his tent (Genesis 12:8-10) is meant the Lord's state when He was still a child. Let us examine the meaning represented here. This state is the Lord's celestial progressing into the Natural and thus the preparation for the uniting of the Divine with the Human. It is one of celestial things of love being put onto the natural. Yet, these loves - the love of Jehovah and of the neighbor or mankind - were, to the Lord, in obscurity in this beginning state. It is the state where the essentials of love were spread or diffused into His natural man to be of use for His uniting with His Divine. In man it is the conjunction of good and truth from the Lord. The essentials of love are uses from which man begins the building of a new understanding and will. This state is the foundation upon which a new will and understanding in man can be built.
The old will and understanding, the old mind and man's proprium had to be 'put off' from the Lord that He had upon coming a man into the world.. This process began as He went into the next state, the state of appropriating cognitions of these celestial things. This was signified by Abram journeying to the south. With the Lord all cognitions that He received led Him to see the celestial love and thus led to His 'putting on' or making His human Divine. The case is different with man. For, in such a case, the child because of his or her proprium has a strong desire for worldly things seen and the celestial things remain obscure. From this state the Church is to be built within a man. How man progresses will determine whether the church will develop with him or not, and whether it will be an ignoble or a noble church.
In Genesis, chapter twelve, verse eight we read:
"And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Beth-el, and pitched his tent, having Ai on the east: and there he built an altar unto the Lord, and called upon the name of the Lord."
Now picture yourself as Abram standing on the mountain. You can look to the east and there see the city Ai. You can see it clearly, where you can obtain the desires of your heart; there you can appropriate wealth, honor and become someone important. Now off to the west you can hardly see, but there is another city called Beth-el. In Beth-el one will have celestial things of love, though they are only seen in obscurity. Now, although man is in such obscurity, in this childhood state he is in innocence and as a child has not yet received cognitions. Later, this obscurity will not be in innocence but from idolatry, if he has looked to the things of the world instead of to the celestial things of love and as it were to Beth-el.
Now this place Beth-el represents the state into which the Lord had come and to which every man must come. Celestial love, the love to Jehovah and the love to the neighbor is implanted into all men. It is implanted into all men because this is the essence of Divine love, the love of the Lord for His Kingdom. It is the love of the Lord for all mankind. It is where the Lord resides in man and is the 'remains' given to him from the Lord through His love. Man must, as if, of him self obtain or appropriate truth and thus receive charity so that he may become conjoined with true or genuine good. Man will then become made into an image and maybe even in a likeness of the Lord and will be called the son of God.
All men are brought into this state by the Lord - the state represented by Beth-e - man of himself cannot. It is here that a man can begin to become as a church, that is, that a church can be in him. It is from here that he begins his process of regeneration. The man will not and indeed cannot remain in this beginning state as it would be against Divine Order. He continues to grow either as a man who loves himself and the things of the world or as a man who loves the Lord and the neighbor. He can either advance toward learning cognitions concerning the celestial things of love from the Lord or remain in love to world things that lead to evil. The Lord wants us to become like Him and enjoy His love. It is in the natural order that we must grow. A child's love is in innocence, but it will grow into a love for the self and in a love for worldly things if he is not willing to learn truths from the Lord from a love for the love of truth's sake. Such a love becomes a use and man becomes a church as the Lord becomes his life.
Our lesson ends with Abram building an altar and calling upon the name of Jehovah . An altar, while it is in the external sense is only a physical and natural place where Abram could offer sacrifice as thanks to Jehovah for bringing him into the land of Canaan and where he could see and gain prosperity. However, it should be understood in another way; the altar signifies the Lord and worship of the Lord. Here in this state by building the altar and calling upon the name of Jehovah are both external and internal forms of worship. In the state of infancy and childhood, without cognitions, knowledges, and scientifics worship is out of innocence in the things given, that is, in the love of the Lord and the neighbor. In fact, in the Word it is said that man is unaware of the things given because he has not received these cognitions. For, we read that Abram journeyed to the south for lack of or scarcity of food. "And Abram journeyed, going and journeying toward the south" (Genesis 12: 9). This signifies the Lord going to another state, a state where he could appropriate cognitions and thus see or understand the celestial love.
"Calling upon the Name of Jehovah" reveals that there is an awareness of the presence of the Lord with man. This is something that is not the result or product of reason. Indeed, it is the nature of the Divine to give man these remains so that the Lord can use them in regenerating man. In this state man's proprium has not been used except in innocence. We see in a child the love of affection for the mother. In a spiritual sense this signifies affection for the truth. In this state where there is innocence the desire for things that bring satisfaction and pleasure are joys though not yet understood or recognized for what they really are. In this case the difference between worldly and celestial things is not understood.
The worship that comes from a child or person because he is in celestial things is a worship that does not consciously recognize the celestial things of love. So, the worship here is not from an understanding of these goods with man, but is only a natural desire to continue to receive these delights and joys. It is a thankfulness and worship in innocence and in obscurity of these celestial things. It is not worship from acknowledgement of celestial things, but of the things given.
In such a state we are not in the image or in any likeness that the Lord wants us to be. We are to not remain in this state. Just as all parents wants their child to grow and become a useful adult, so too, the Lord want us to develop and become that of His New Church and in His Kingdom in Heaven.
Amen.
(Arcana Caelestia 1450)
The words of our text relate to when the Lord was a child. It was a state when essential things of love progressed into the Lord's Human assumed in the world. It is upon these, love to Jehovah and love to the neighbor that the Lord's glorification could begin and thus advance toward its completion. For, from these two essentials, the love of the Divine and the love of mankind derive all Divine good and truth. This is the foundation upon which can be built the life of faith and charity in man.
It is a most wonderful thing to learn and believe that when a man is in the state of infancy and early childhood the Lord has implanted within him all the good necessary to build in him new will and understanding so that the Lord can be within him and he within the Lord. In such a state he is, as it were, in the position or state in his life where he can be led into becoming a Church in man. It is the development of the Lord's New Church here on earth.
Now, the Lord as a child progressed toward the celestial love and grew in wisdom (Cf. Luke 2: 40)). However, man must progress from the natural through the spiritual to the celestial. The Lord's Father was the Divine; man's father is natural. The Lord could progress to the celestial because he was a celestial man. Of course man is in the natural; the celestial and spiritual had been destroyed with him and these having been closed, the conjunction with Heaven and the Lord was closed. Man needs a new natural from the Lord, a new will and understanding so that conjunction with Heaven and the Lord will again be open with man.
In this state, the Lord, having assumed His Human in the world, received all the celestial things of love and spread them, as it were, into His Divine Human. These celestial things of love were stored in Him. These, in the Word are called 'remains' in man. These 'remains' are stored in man for use in his after life. We very often think the life is our own, but we are only the recipient of life from the Lord. The remains are the basis for the Lord's life to be received in man. When man desires to know the truth for the sake of truth, because it is from the Lord, the Lord gives His goodness to man, which is conjoined with genuine truths and the man progresses toward regeneration. This is the heavenly marriage, the uniting of good and truth in man; thereby a man has life from the Lord. The Lord is not only present with man, but He is within man. In this, we see a man's regeneration. The Lord, when He was in the world, we see His glorification; He made His Human Divine.
Today's text also states that all love to Jehovah and love to the neighbor are given to man in infancy and childhood without any cognition. It therefore needs to be understood what cognitions are because they flow into a man during his childhood and even on all throughout his life as an adult. Though, these are not the truths in themselves. They are not the scientifics or even knowledges, but they contain within something divine. Such cognitions enable a man to advance into the next state toward regeneration. In this next state a man may recognition the celestial things of love. A man will not remain in obscurity if he will learn the essentials of love to the Lord and to the neighbor.
Cognitions are Only the beginning, the state of learning truth, of knowing and of being led to acknowledging the Lord and His salvation. We learn from our lesion that the Lord had to receive cognitions if He was to progress in His knowledge concerning spiritual and celestial things of love and wisdom. You can see this in the development of a child's mind. Man is not born with knowledge; he must be taught through the influx of cognitions concerning all things. Celestial and spiritual things were necessary for the Lord's progression to glorification even as they are necessary for man's regeneration.
Because we have the Third Testament and believe that the Word has an internal sense, we see that the histories recorded about the peoples who lived then and the places and countries spoken of, are representative of the Lord and of His Kingdom. What is signified by Abram moving to a mountain east of Bethel and west of Ai and there spreading his tent (Genesis 12:8-10) is meant the Lord's state when He was still a child. Let us examine the meaning represented here. This state is the Lord's celestial progressing into the Natural and thus the preparation for the uniting of the Divine with the Human. It is one of celestial things of love being put onto the natural. Yet, these loves - the love of Jehovah and of the neighbor or mankind - were, to the Lord, in obscurity in this beginning state. It is the state where the essentials of love were spread or diffused into His natural man to be of use for His uniting with His Divine. In man it is the conjunction of good and truth from the Lord. The essentials of love are uses from which man begins the building of a new understanding and will. This state is the foundation upon which a new will and understanding in man can be built.
The old will and understanding, the old mind and man's proprium had to be 'put off' from the Lord that He had upon coming a man into the world.. This process began as He went into the next state, the state of appropriating cognitions of these celestial things. This was signified by Abram journeying to the south. With the Lord all cognitions that He received led Him to see the celestial love and thus led to His 'putting on' or making His human Divine. The case is different with man. For, in such a case, the child because of his or her proprium has a strong desire for worldly things seen and the celestial things remain obscure. From this state the Church is to be built within a man. How man progresses will determine whether the church will develop with him or not, and whether it will be an ignoble or a noble church.
In Genesis, chapter twelve, verse eight we read:
"And he removed from thence unto a mountain on the east of Beth-el, and pitched his tent, having Ai on the east: and there he built an altar unto the Lord, and called upon the name of the Lord."
Now picture yourself as Abram standing on the mountain. You can look to the east and there see the city Ai. You can see it clearly, where you can obtain the desires of your heart; there you can appropriate wealth, honor and become someone important. Now off to the west you can hardly see, but there is another city called Beth-el. In Beth-el one will have celestial things of love, though they are only seen in obscurity. Now, although man is in such obscurity, in this childhood state he is in innocence and as a child has not yet received cognitions. Later, this obscurity will not be in innocence but from idolatry, if he has looked to the things of the world instead of to the celestial things of love and as it were to Beth-el.
Now this place Beth-el represents the state into which the Lord had come and to which every man must come. Celestial love, the love to Jehovah and the love to the neighbor is implanted into all men. It is implanted into all men because this is the essence of Divine love, the love of the Lord for His Kingdom. It is the love of the Lord for all mankind. It is where the Lord resides in man and is the 'remains' given to him from the Lord through His love. Man must, as if, of him self obtain or appropriate truth and thus receive charity so that he may become conjoined with true or genuine good. Man will then become made into an image and maybe even in a likeness of the Lord and will be called the son of God.
All men are brought into this state by the Lord - the state represented by Beth-e - man of himself cannot. It is here that a man can begin to become as a church, that is, that a church can be in him. It is from here that he begins his process of regeneration. The man will not and indeed cannot remain in this beginning state as it would be against Divine Order. He continues to grow either as a man who loves himself and the things of the world or as a man who loves the Lord and the neighbor. He can either advance toward learning cognitions concerning the celestial things of love from the Lord or remain in love to world things that lead to evil. The Lord wants us to become like Him and enjoy His love. It is in the natural order that we must grow. A child's love is in innocence, but it will grow into a love for the self and in a love for worldly things if he is not willing to learn truths from the Lord from a love for the love of truth's sake. Such a love becomes a use and man becomes a church as the Lord becomes his life.
Our lesson ends with Abram building an altar and calling upon the name of Jehovah . An altar, while it is in the external sense is only a physical and natural place where Abram could offer sacrifice as thanks to Jehovah for bringing him into the land of Canaan and where he could see and gain prosperity. However, it should be understood in another way; the altar signifies the Lord and worship of the Lord. Here in this state by building the altar and calling upon the name of Jehovah are both external and internal forms of worship. In the state of infancy and childhood, without cognitions, knowledges, and scientifics worship is out of innocence in the things given, that is, in the love of the Lord and the neighbor. In fact, in the Word it is said that man is unaware of the things given because he has not received these cognitions. For, we read that Abram journeyed to the south for lack of or scarcity of food. "And Abram journeyed, going and journeying toward the south" (Genesis 12: 9). This signifies the Lord going to another state, a state where he could appropriate cognitions and thus see or understand the celestial love.
"Calling upon the Name of Jehovah" reveals that there is an awareness of the presence of the Lord with man. This is something that is not the result or product of reason. Indeed, it is the nature of the Divine to give man these remains so that the Lord can use them in regenerating man. In this state man's proprium has not been used except in innocence. We see in a child the love of affection for the mother. In a spiritual sense this signifies affection for the truth. In this state where there is innocence the desire for things that bring satisfaction and pleasure are joys though not yet understood or recognized for what they really are. In this case the difference between worldly and celestial things is not understood.
The worship that comes from a child or person because he is in celestial things is a worship that does not consciously recognize the celestial things of love. So, the worship here is not from an understanding of these goods with man, but is only a natural desire to continue to receive these delights and joys. It is a thankfulness and worship in innocence and in obscurity of these celestial things. It is not worship from acknowledgement of celestial things, but of the things given.
In such a state we are not in the image or in any likeness that the Lord wants us to be. We are to not remain in this state. Just as all parents wants their child to grow and become a useful adult, so too, the Lord want us to develop and become that of His New Church and in His Kingdom in Heaven.
Amen.
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