The Insinuation of Sensuous Truths into the Child Jesus Christ
By Rev. Paul Booth
By Rev. Paul Booth
Genesis 12: 1-7 | Luke 1: 67- 80 | Arcana Cælestia 1432, 1434
"'And they went forth to go into the land of Canaan.' That this signified that He thus advanced ot the celestial things of love, is evident from the signification of the land of Canaan. That the land of Canaan represents the Lord's Kingdom in the heavens and on earth, is evident from many things in the Word." (AC 1437)
And further,
"'And into the land of Canaan they came.' That this signifies that He attained to the celestial things of love, is evident from what has just been said concerning the land of Canaan. There is here described the first things in the Lord's life (from birth to childhood) namely, that He attained in the celestial things of love." (AC 1438)
In our lessons we read about the life of the Lord as a child here on earth. We read about the Lord's primam animadvertentiam, His first advertence. This was the first mental awareness of turning in the Lord when He was an infant. We read about the second state, which was when the celestial things of love appeared or became apparent to Him. The third was when He received perception. He not only knew, but also acknowledged that the Divine was in everything. These are the three states that the Lord went through from birth up to His childhood. What is revealed here is how the Lord became aware of His purpose to unite His Kingdom with the Divine. He began this task early in His life after becoming cognizant of the celestial things of love that He was to attain.
The truth that had been adjoined to Him as a child is not seen in the sense of the letter of the Old Testament. Therefore when one reads the story of Abram taking his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all the substance or acquisition, and all the soul they had gained in Haran, one cannot see that the Lord as a child had truth adjoined to Him. The Third Testament reveals this to man and much more, if he will believe it.
We are told in Arcana Cælestia 1431 that sensuous truth was insinuated into the Lord through His senses when He was a child. The Lord could see that all earthly and worldly things were created by God. He understood their purpose and that in all things was an image of the Divine that resembles a marriage of the essence of God, which is Divine Love and Wisdom. Sensuous truth is the first truth that insinuates itself into man. Sensuous truths are truths that come through the senses. It is said in the Word that sensuous truths were insinuated only into the Lord because He alone was a celestial man. The Lord accepted influx of truth because His soul was the Divine. Man cannot receive this sensuous truth because his soul is from his father and is evil from his proprium.
Receiving sensuous truths from the Divine had prepared the Lord for reception of celestial things of love. From the senses, truth is acquired. All these truths were called 'acquisition' or 'substance' that Abram took with him into the land of Canaan. The acquisition was the knowledges gained or accepted by the Lord. Thus, ideas and thoughts were impressed upon the Lord's memory, although the Lord at this age was unaware of the influx from His Soul. Sensuous truth given to Him was insinuated; it was subtly instilled or infused. The result was that vessels were formed in Him, for receiving both the spiritual and celestial things; the essentials of love. These having become His began the uniting of His Human Existere with the Esse.
Thus the Lord had gained knowledge that formed vessels of scientifics for spiritual things. He also received affections from good, from which vessels were formed for celestial things.
From this state and from which He was unaware; from this childhood state the Lord gained every living essential possible by the 'soul' that was gained in Haran. The 'soul' here is the very life. We all know it is not the body that lives, but it is the soul within that activates or moves the body. Since life is from celestial love and 'soul' signifies the life, soul is called the living essential Itself. What should be understood here is that the Lord forms or creates in man, when he is still a child, the means to receive and believe the Lord's truth. The difference between the Lord as an infant and child, and as a man, is that the Lord could receive sensuous truths from the Divine within Him. Such truth was united with good and is the truth of good, for from the Divine comes good and truth united. Man receives truth separate from good because his will or desire is for his own good pleasures, which are love of self and worldly things. Also, the natural truth that man does receives and obey is only an apparent truth.
The text states, "'And they went forth to go into the land of Canaan.' That this signifies that He (the Lord) thus advanced to the celestial things of love" (AC 1437). The Lord advanced out of obscurity to celestial things or essentials from the Divine. What is learned here is that celestial things of love are the Lord's Kingdom in the heavens and upon the earth. But what is the Lord's Kingdom? A simple answer might be that it constitutes those who have faith in the Lord and who receive His Word or Truth into their will and understanding. But there is a deeper or more internal understanding that may be seen. It is: all the good and truth that proceed from the Lord and is reciprocated. Now, the Lord while in the world, received or accumulated all the good and truth into His Human assumed from the mother, from which He expelled all the evil and falsity, and thus made His Human Divine.
We are all familiar with the Trinity: the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We see this Trinity in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Divine Human. We believe that from the Father or Divine through the Son, the Human, proceed Love and Wisdom or Good and Truth. This Proceeding is the Holy Spirit. It is the attribute of Love to give its own to another so that its joys and delights are another's that that other becomes one with that Love and is thus in a likeness or an image of the Divine. Thus when the Divine Love is received, it also must be reciprocated in order to be love. If it is not, there is not unition with its self. Unition and reciprocation of Divine Love can be only from vessels or containants formed to receive Itself and thus became a likeness or an image of the Divine where there is conjunction and thus a marriage of good and truth.
Now this is what was not happening; that is, the Lord's good and truth became evil and false in man. The will and understanding were destroyed by man's proprium. It became necessary for the Lord to redeem mankind. We learn that the Lord Himself had to be born as a man with an evil proprium. Then, like us, He could receive truth from the Proceeding, which was the Spirit of Jehovah. In this way, the Proceeding Good and Truth could become His Kingdom again. The Lord had to 'put on,' that is, He had to receive the hereditary evil from the mother, so that evil could assault Him and He could expel it and bring the hells under His subjugation and order. The Lord advanced to the celestial things of love, and He attained His Kingdom.
Again, the text states, "'And into the land of Canaan they came.' That this signifies that He attained to the celestial things of love" (AC 1439). By assuming the natural human, the Lord became a man like us. In so doing, His Good and Truth became Divine Use in the natural. Vessels were formed to receive the Good and Truth, the Proceeding, and therefore the Lord regained or won His Kingdom from the influence of the hells. In the text for today, we can see this as represented by Abram 'going into the land of Canaan' and 'Coming into the land'. Thus, He, the Lord, became prepared for the evil in His Kingdom, which was signified by the Canaanite.
Before the Lord could fight the evils, He had to attain the celestial things or essentials of love. From these come all the remains of the goods and truths which He united with the Divine in His natural Human and thus when He had succeeded on the cross He became the Divine Human. These celestial things of love were as a seed in the Lord. And, indeed, He was born of Jehovah and thus the Seed in Him was His Soul; it was the Divine.
Now, at first, it became apparent to the Lord that the celestial essentials of love were the Divine influx into His will and understanding. In the text, this is described as a station within the land of Canaan, which was called Shechem. This is taught as the second state of being conjoined or united with the Divine. There, in that state, He understood that in all earthly and worldly things was the Divine Proceeding. He thus received the celestial essentials of love because within them is the very light of His Soul, the Divine Itself. He knew that He was to conjoin Himself with the Divine Essence.
Next, because of the celestial things of love that He gained or received from the Divine, He not only knew, but He acknowledged and acted to attain the things of His Kingdom. Thus, He became not only united with the Father, that is, the Divine, but He became the Divine Use, that is the Proceeding Good and Truth and one with His Kingdom, which He assumed in the Natural. In so doing, He became aware of the human He appropriated from the mother.
We have learned that the Lord was a celestial man and therefore He alone could receive perception. Thus, He could continually receive influx from the Divine and so scientifics and affections could form vessels. These vessels could receive all the celestial things of love, the Divine Love and Wisdom, the Good and Truth. His Human in the world therefore became a Kingdom of the Lord.
We are not celestial men or women. Our spiritual was destroyed because of our evil proprium. How, then, can we become like our Lord? How can we be of His Kingdom here in the Church on earth and afterward in the heavens?
First, we can receive faith through believing the Word. Then, we can receive charity by acting or obeying His Word. These we can receive only because the Lord first became a Man in the world and fought against the hells in Himself, thereby glorifying His Human and becoming the Divine Human. Then He redeemed man. We cannot have perception, but we can receive faith through knowledge, though scientifics formed into vessels from the Word. Then, from this, we can receive spiritual truths in which we may receive charity. This charity is something analogous to perception. It is what the Word calls the 'dictate of conscience'.
It was said in our lessons, that the 'Canaanite' was then in the land, or that all kinds of evils were in man. We can see that they were in the Man Jesus Christ, and so He could be tempted and attacked by the hells. And, He could fight against them and defeat them; therefore, His Human could become united with the Divine in Him. He became the Divine Human not only in the celestial and spiritual, but in the natural as well. These evils had infected His kingdom, that is, His Proceeding, His Good and Truth with man causing mankind to become subjugated to the hells and its influence.
When the Lord was but a child, He learned sensuous truths. They were implanted in His Human He assumed from the mother from the Divine within Him. These celestial truths appeared to Him and He perceived them to being the Divine. Thus, He perceived that these celestial things were His Kingdom and that those in His Kingdom are those who have faith in Him.
Faith in the Lord is the seed in man which increases to eternity. Those who have faith become those who gain a new will and understanding from the Lord. When truths ae acquired or appropriated from the Word and are formed into vessels, then truths received from Lord - and thus faith from the Lord - is increased in man.
From this faith in the Lord, which is received from the Lord, celestial things can be acquired or appropriated. These are the essentials needed for man to receive charity from the Lord. They are also multiplied to eternity. It is known that there is formed in man a new will and understanding from the Lord, and thus man attains both good and truth even as did the Lord. He had attained the celestial things of truth in His Human. Thus, when He came into the land or into His Kingdom, He could go through the states of glorification. So, we now can go through the states of regeneration if we will to.
Amen.
And further,
"'And into the land of Canaan they came.' That this signifies that He attained to the celestial things of love, is evident from what has just been said concerning the land of Canaan. There is here described the first things in the Lord's life (from birth to childhood) namely, that He attained in the celestial things of love." (AC 1438)
In our lessons we read about the life of the Lord as a child here on earth. We read about the Lord's primam animadvertentiam, His first advertence. This was the first mental awareness of turning in the Lord when He was an infant. We read about the second state, which was when the celestial things of love appeared or became apparent to Him. The third was when He received perception. He not only knew, but also acknowledged that the Divine was in everything. These are the three states that the Lord went through from birth up to His childhood. What is revealed here is how the Lord became aware of His purpose to unite His Kingdom with the Divine. He began this task early in His life after becoming cognizant of the celestial things of love that He was to attain.
The truth that had been adjoined to Him as a child is not seen in the sense of the letter of the Old Testament. Therefore when one reads the story of Abram taking his wife, and Lot his brother's son, and all the substance or acquisition, and all the soul they had gained in Haran, one cannot see that the Lord as a child had truth adjoined to Him. The Third Testament reveals this to man and much more, if he will believe it.
We are told in Arcana Cælestia 1431 that sensuous truth was insinuated into the Lord through His senses when He was a child. The Lord could see that all earthly and worldly things were created by God. He understood their purpose and that in all things was an image of the Divine that resembles a marriage of the essence of God, which is Divine Love and Wisdom. Sensuous truth is the first truth that insinuates itself into man. Sensuous truths are truths that come through the senses. It is said in the Word that sensuous truths were insinuated only into the Lord because He alone was a celestial man. The Lord accepted influx of truth because His soul was the Divine. Man cannot receive this sensuous truth because his soul is from his father and is evil from his proprium.
Receiving sensuous truths from the Divine had prepared the Lord for reception of celestial things of love. From the senses, truth is acquired. All these truths were called 'acquisition' or 'substance' that Abram took with him into the land of Canaan. The acquisition was the knowledges gained or accepted by the Lord. Thus, ideas and thoughts were impressed upon the Lord's memory, although the Lord at this age was unaware of the influx from His Soul. Sensuous truth given to Him was insinuated; it was subtly instilled or infused. The result was that vessels were formed in Him, for receiving both the spiritual and celestial things; the essentials of love. These having become His began the uniting of His Human Existere with the Esse.
Thus the Lord had gained knowledge that formed vessels of scientifics for spiritual things. He also received affections from good, from which vessels were formed for celestial things.
From this state and from which He was unaware; from this childhood state the Lord gained every living essential possible by the 'soul' that was gained in Haran. The 'soul' here is the very life. We all know it is not the body that lives, but it is the soul within that activates or moves the body. Since life is from celestial love and 'soul' signifies the life, soul is called the living essential Itself. What should be understood here is that the Lord forms or creates in man, when he is still a child, the means to receive and believe the Lord's truth. The difference between the Lord as an infant and child, and as a man, is that the Lord could receive sensuous truths from the Divine within Him. Such truth was united with good and is the truth of good, for from the Divine comes good and truth united. Man receives truth separate from good because his will or desire is for his own good pleasures, which are love of self and worldly things. Also, the natural truth that man does receives and obey is only an apparent truth.
The text states, "'And they went forth to go into the land of Canaan.' That this signifies that He (the Lord) thus advanced to the celestial things of love" (AC 1437). The Lord advanced out of obscurity to celestial things or essentials from the Divine. What is learned here is that celestial things of love are the Lord's Kingdom in the heavens and upon the earth. But what is the Lord's Kingdom? A simple answer might be that it constitutes those who have faith in the Lord and who receive His Word or Truth into their will and understanding. But there is a deeper or more internal understanding that may be seen. It is: all the good and truth that proceed from the Lord and is reciprocated. Now, the Lord while in the world, received or accumulated all the good and truth into His Human assumed from the mother, from which He expelled all the evil and falsity, and thus made His Human Divine.
We are all familiar with the Trinity: the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We see this Trinity in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Divine Human. We believe that from the Father or Divine through the Son, the Human, proceed Love and Wisdom or Good and Truth. This Proceeding is the Holy Spirit. It is the attribute of Love to give its own to another so that its joys and delights are another's that that other becomes one with that Love and is thus in a likeness or an image of the Divine. Thus when the Divine Love is received, it also must be reciprocated in order to be love. If it is not, there is not unition with its self. Unition and reciprocation of Divine Love can be only from vessels or containants formed to receive Itself and thus became a likeness or an image of the Divine where there is conjunction and thus a marriage of good and truth.
Now this is what was not happening; that is, the Lord's good and truth became evil and false in man. The will and understanding were destroyed by man's proprium. It became necessary for the Lord to redeem mankind. We learn that the Lord Himself had to be born as a man with an evil proprium. Then, like us, He could receive truth from the Proceeding, which was the Spirit of Jehovah. In this way, the Proceeding Good and Truth could become His Kingdom again. The Lord had to 'put on,' that is, He had to receive the hereditary evil from the mother, so that evil could assault Him and He could expel it and bring the hells under His subjugation and order. The Lord advanced to the celestial things of love, and He attained His Kingdom.
Again, the text states, "'And into the land of Canaan they came.' That this signifies that He attained to the celestial things of love" (AC 1439). By assuming the natural human, the Lord became a man like us. In so doing, His Good and Truth became Divine Use in the natural. Vessels were formed to receive the Good and Truth, the Proceeding, and therefore the Lord regained or won His Kingdom from the influence of the hells. In the text for today, we can see this as represented by Abram 'going into the land of Canaan' and 'Coming into the land'. Thus, He, the Lord, became prepared for the evil in His Kingdom, which was signified by the Canaanite.
Before the Lord could fight the evils, He had to attain the celestial things or essentials of love. From these come all the remains of the goods and truths which He united with the Divine in His natural Human and thus when He had succeeded on the cross He became the Divine Human. These celestial things of love were as a seed in the Lord. And, indeed, He was born of Jehovah and thus the Seed in Him was His Soul; it was the Divine.
Now, at first, it became apparent to the Lord that the celestial essentials of love were the Divine influx into His will and understanding. In the text, this is described as a station within the land of Canaan, which was called Shechem. This is taught as the second state of being conjoined or united with the Divine. There, in that state, He understood that in all earthly and worldly things was the Divine Proceeding. He thus received the celestial essentials of love because within them is the very light of His Soul, the Divine Itself. He knew that He was to conjoin Himself with the Divine Essence.
Next, because of the celestial things of love that He gained or received from the Divine, He not only knew, but He acknowledged and acted to attain the things of His Kingdom. Thus, He became not only united with the Father, that is, the Divine, but He became the Divine Use, that is the Proceeding Good and Truth and one with His Kingdom, which He assumed in the Natural. In so doing, He became aware of the human He appropriated from the mother.
We have learned that the Lord was a celestial man and therefore He alone could receive perception. Thus, He could continually receive influx from the Divine and so scientifics and affections could form vessels. These vessels could receive all the celestial things of love, the Divine Love and Wisdom, the Good and Truth. His Human in the world therefore became a Kingdom of the Lord.
We are not celestial men or women. Our spiritual was destroyed because of our evil proprium. How, then, can we become like our Lord? How can we be of His Kingdom here in the Church on earth and afterward in the heavens?
First, we can receive faith through believing the Word. Then, we can receive charity by acting or obeying His Word. These we can receive only because the Lord first became a Man in the world and fought against the hells in Himself, thereby glorifying His Human and becoming the Divine Human. Then He redeemed man. We cannot have perception, but we can receive faith through knowledge, though scientifics formed into vessels from the Word. Then, from this, we can receive spiritual truths in which we may receive charity. This charity is something analogous to perception. It is what the Word calls the 'dictate of conscience'.
It was said in our lessons, that the 'Canaanite' was then in the land, or that all kinds of evils were in man. We can see that they were in the Man Jesus Christ, and so He could be tempted and attacked by the hells. And, He could fight against them and defeat them; therefore, His Human could become united with the Divine in Him. He became the Divine Human not only in the celestial and spiritual, but in the natural as well. These evils had infected His kingdom, that is, His Proceeding, His Good and Truth with man causing mankind to become subjugated to the hells and its influence.
When the Lord was but a child, He learned sensuous truths. They were implanted in His Human He assumed from the mother from the Divine within Him. These celestial truths appeared to Him and He perceived them to being the Divine. Thus, He perceived that these celestial things were His Kingdom and that those in His Kingdom are those who have faith in Him.
Faith in the Lord is the seed in man which increases to eternity. Those who have faith become those who gain a new will and understanding from the Lord. When truths ae acquired or appropriated from the Word and are formed into vessels, then truths received from Lord - and thus faith from the Lord - is increased in man.
From this faith in the Lord, which is received from the Lord, celestial things can be acquired or appropriated. These are the essentials needed for man to receive charity from the Lord. They are also multiplied to eternity. It is known that there is formed in man a new will and understanding from the Lord, and thus man attains both good and truth even as did the Lord. He had attained the celestial things of truth in His Human. Thus, when He came into the land or into His Kingdom, He could go through the states of glorification. So, we now can go through the states of regeneration if we will to.
Amen.
| About |
| Doctrine
Site Content Copyright 2001 by The Lord's New Chapel All Rights Reserved
Site Concept and Creation Copyright 2001 by Stealth Media Solutions All Rights Reserved