The Search for Intelligence and Wisdom
Finding a life of True Happiness and Peace - Part 5
By Rev. Paul Booth
Finding a life of True Happiness and Peace - Part 5
By Rev. Paul Booth
Now, as man is made into an image of God, there are three degrees inscribed on him, for man is in God. God-Man - the glorified Lord - is Love and Wisdom Itself and man is a recipient of that love and wisdom. The degree of love or the celestial degree, the degree of wisdom or the spiritual degree, and the natural degree or the degree of use are finite and created in man, while in the Lord they are infinite and uncreated, that is, the Lord is Love and Wisdom and Use Itself.
What we show by this is that the Lord, who is God-Man, is the Divine Human. This was seen in both the degrees of love and wisdom, the celestial and spiritual degrees of the spiritual world. There, in those two degrees His Human actually exists; He had and has a Divine Celestial Human and a Divine Spiritual Human; however the degree of use or the natural degree existed in Him, before His assumption of the Natural Human in the world, only in potency. This may be understood in this way: Angels were born as men in the world. Their natural body was put off before entering the spiritual world as ours will be. So potentially they exist there in Heaven with a natural body. So too, did the Lord's Natural Human potentially exist before His coming on earth and while He had both a Celestial and a Spiritual body or Human. Thus, God Who is the true Man, put on the human in the world and, thereby, the third degree - the natural degree - and He became like a man in the world. The only difference is that He is infinite and uncreate in His natural degree like He is in the two prior degrees. The Divine, which is apart from space, had filled all spaces and penetrated even to the ultimate of nature - to the sensuous and corporeal. The Divine is present and, so, man can become conjoined with Him, that is, is become saved.
Nonetheless, there was a Divine influx into the natural degree in man before the Lord had assumed the Natural Human, although it was through the angelic Heavens, since the Lord was not, yet, on earth. Before He established the true Christian Church at His coming again, the prior churches were all representatives of spiritual and celestial things of God and Heaven. Today, the true Church is spiritual-natural and celestial-natural, not representative. It is so, because the Lord has put on the Human of mankind and has glorified it, becoming the Divine Human.
One sees that for the Lord to enter the natural degree, He had to put on the natural human by means of conception from His Divine and by birth from a virgin. Thus, in this way, He could put off the natural, which in itself is dead by glorifying it. Still, as we have shown His Natural was the receptacle of the Divine Itself even as we can also receive the Lord's love and wisdom, though He received in its fullness or infinitely. By putting off the human of man the Lord was seen in two states while in the world - exinanition and glorification. So, in each and all things of love and wisdom and of use, are these three degrees of life.
We have shown that those three degrees are discrete degrees and are in man from birth. We have shown that they are connected one to the other by means of their nearness or contiguity to one another. The question, now, raised, is how can man enter into the higher degrees of life? First, unless man knows of these degrees, he only increasingly knows of love and wisdom by continuity and, thus, he does not elevate his thought above the natural level or degree of life.
Man is born into the natural degree of life and, so, life only increases by continuity through scientific knowledge and understanding to where he comes to reach a state in his natural life that is called his 'rationality'. Yet, even when he reaches where he can be called a rational man, he still remains in the natural degree of his life; the second or the spiritual degree is not opened to him by this means - the means of scientific knowledge. How, then, can a man come into the spiritual degree of life and have intelligence?
The understanding does play a part though in his coming into the higher discrete degrees, and so, in this way it is of 'use'. The knowledge of love or of charity may be learned and when one acts in accordance with that knowledge, he, then, develops and has a love of uses and, when in conformity with what he acquired by his understanding, the spiritual is opened to him, though he does not come into it until he leaves this natural world. When it is opened, then spiritual truths can flow in, in continuous degrees and as they do his knowledge and his understanding increases and truths of the celestial degree can be opened, but not by means of spiritual truth, but by the celestial love of uses, that is, by love to the Lord. All this happens - the spiritual and celestial degrees opened in him - by correspondences and by communication by correspondences. These are not felt through a man's senses or sensibly. It is only after a man dies or when his senses are quiescent that he comes into the spiritual degree of life, if it had been opened while on earth by his love of goods and truths.
Because the three degrees - love, wisdom, and use - are in a man's mind, it follows that the three degrees of will, understanding, and as these are of determination or conclusion towards use also is in the mind. Thus, is the will the receptacle of love, the understanding the receptacle of wisdom, and the conclusion that of that, a use from these. Therefore, we understand that in man these - the natural, spiritual, and celestial will and understanding - are in potency from birth, but only in act are they opened. The mind of man can be raised and even possess such spiritual and celestial wisdom while living here on earth, although a man does not come into it until after death and that only if they were opened through love while on earth.
In conclusion, we understand the spiritual light or higher intelligence sought by many today flows in with man through these three degrees, but not spiritual heat, that is, love or good, except as man shuns evil as sins and looks to the Lord. Spiritual light is the receptacle of wisdom, and spiritual heat is the receptacle of love. When a man comes into that wisdom, he comes into Divine Light. It is the same with coming into love; he comes into Divine Love. Yes, a man can come into that intelligence and, even, wisdom that is searched for, but if it is not acted upon with love, he will remain without happiness or peace and will never come onto it. Have you reached a new consciousness, a new intelligence where God is present with you? A person may gain this great knowledge and intelligence, but will never enter a life of happiness and peace unless he shuns the love of self and the world.
However, to more clearly understand man's elevation into spiritual light or intelligence and even into celestial light or wisdom, we must examine closely these discrete degrees, for it cannot be thought about in the same way as do angels, yet it can be comprehended by our understanding. The natural mind does not ascend through these discrete degrees, but it increases by continuous degrees and as it increases it is enlightened from within by the light of the two higher discrete degrees that are within.
Think of the natural degree, the lowest or the external degree, and the other two degrees, the higher ones, which are the middle and the inmost degrees. Now, isn't the natural degree seen as a covering for the other two? Remember, the example of the muscle or that of the brain in which are to become the abode or home for goods and truths of the mind of man from the Lord. So, when the natural is 'as it were' raised towards a higher or spiritual from within - the higher or the inner degrees - act into the outer, which is the natural of a man's life and illuminates it. The illumination is effected from within or from the higher to the outer or lower, which envelops and surrounds them. The enlightenment is from within discretely or separately, but in itself is enlightened continuously.
So, while man lives in this world in the natural degree, he is not elevated into the very intelligence and wisdom of the angels, but only into a higher light and so become enlightened from the angles' light, which inflows from within and illuminates the man's mind. The results are: The natural mind can be raised into the light of Heaven, but perceives naturally and not spiritually. Man, then, can speak with angels. However, the thought and speech of angels flow into the natural thoughts and speech of the man and not the converse, that is, angels speak with the man in the natural language of the man. This is by spiritual influx into the natural, and not the reverse. Thus, man's wisdom, while he is in the natural degree of life, can be only come into it after death.
From this we see that the natural mind consists of spiritual substances and upon death natural substances recede, but not spiritual substances. We retain our mind, for it consists of spiritual substances.
Certainly, we have the capacity to understand spiritual truth, even celestial truth. Thus, we can become rational according to our elevation of our understanding while in this world. However, a man does not become rational when he has a lack of love or will, for love or the will, as we have shown, cannot be raised in the same manner as a man's understanding can. Still, the man's will can be raised by shunning sins as evils, and by good works of charity, which are the uses that the man performs from the Lord 'as if' of himself. From this we learn why, so often, the one who knows much about spiritual things, yet by his life we can see his true state, and it is often evil.
End.
What we show by this is that the Lord, who is God-Man, is the Divine Human. This was seen in both the degrees of love and wisdom, the celestial and spiritual degrees of the spiritual world. There, in those two degrees His Human actually exists; He had and has a Divine Celestial Human and a Divine Spiritual Human; however the degree of use or the natural degree existed in Him, before His assumption of the Natural Human in the world, only in potency. This may be understood in this way: Angels were born as men in the world. Their natural body was put off before entering the spiritual world as ours will be. So potentially they exist there in Heaven with a natural body. So too, did the Lord's Natural Human potentially exist before His coming on earth and while He had both a Celestial and a Spiritual body or Human. Thus, God Who is the true Man, put on the human in the world and, thereby, the third degree - the natural degree - and He became like a man in the world. The only difference is that He is infinite and uncreate in His natural degree like He is in the two prior degrees. The Divine, which is apart from space, had filled all spaces and penetrated even to the ultimate of nature - to the sensuous and corporeal. The Divine is present and, so, man can become conjoined with Him, that is, is become saved.
Nonetheless, there was a Divine influx into the natural degree in man before the Lord had assumed the Natural Human, although it was through the angelic Heavens, since the Lord was not, yet, on earth. Before He established the true Christian Church at His coming again, the prior churches were all representatives of spiritual and celestial things of God and Heaven. Today, the true Church is spiritual-natural and celestial-natural, not representative. It is so, because the Lord has put on the Human of mankind and has glorified it, becoming the Divine Human.
One sees that for the Lord to enter the natural degree, He had to put on the natural human by means of conception from His Divine and by birth from a virgin. Thus, in this way, He could put off the natural, which in itself is dead by glorifying it. Still, as we have shown His Natural was the receptacle of the Divine Itself even as we can also receive the Lord's love and wisdom, though He received in its fullness or infinitely. By putting off the human of man the Lord was seen in two states while in the world - exinanition and glorification. So, in each and all things of love and wisdom and of use, are these three degrees of life.
We have shown that those three degrees are discrete degrees and are in man from birth. We have shown that they are connected one to the other by means of their nearness or contiguity to one another. The question, now, raised, is how can man enter into the higher degrees of life? First, unless man knows of these degrees, he only increasingly knows of love and wisdom by continuity and, thus, he does not elevate his thought above the natural level or degree of life.
Man is born into the natural degree of life and, so, life only increases by continuity through scientific knowledge and understanding to where he comes to reach a state in his natural life that is called his 'rationality'. Yet, even when he reaches where he can be called a rational man, he still remains in the natural degree of his life; the second or the spiritual degree is not opened to him by this means - the means of scientific knowledge. How, then, can a man come into the spiritual degree of life and have intelligence?
The understanding does play a part though in his coming into the higher discrete degrees, and so, in this way it is of 'use'. The knowledge of love or of charity may be learned and when one acts in accordance with that knowledge, he, then, develops and has a love of uses and, when in conformity with what he acquired by his understanding, the spiritual is opened to him, though he does not come into it until he leaves this natural world. When it is opened, then spiritual truths can flow in, in continuous degrees and as they do his knowledge and his understanding increases and truths of the celestial degree can be opened, but not by means of spiritual truth, but by the celestial love of uses, that is, by love to the Lord. All this happens - the spiritual and celestial degrees opened in him - by correspondences and by communication by correspondences. These are not felt through a man's senses or sensibly. It is only after a man dies or when his senses are quiescent that he comes into the spiritual degree of life, if it had been opened while on earth by his love of goods and truths.
Because the three degrees - love, wisdom, and use - are in a man's mind, it follows that the three degrees of will, understanding, and as these are of determination or conclusion towards use also is in the mind. Thus, is the will the receptacle of love, the understanding the receptacle of wisdom, and the conclusion that of that, a use from these. Therefore, we understand that in man these - the natural, spiritual, and celestial will and understanding - are in potency from birth, but only in act are they opened. The mind of man can be raised and even possess such spiritual and celestial wisdom while living here on earth, although a man does not come into it until after death and that only if they were opened through love while on earth.
In conclusion, we understand the spiritual light or higher intelligence sought by many today flows in with man through these three degrees, but not spiritual heat, that is, love or good, except as man shuns evil as sins and looks to the Lord. Spiritual light is the receptacle of wisdom, and spiritual heat is the receptacle of love. When a man comes into that wisdom, he comes into Divine Light. It is the same with coming into love; he comes into Divine Love. Yes, a man can come into that intelligence and, even, wisdom that is searched for, but if it is not acted upon with love, he will remain without happiness or peace and will never come onto it. Have you reached a new consciousness, a new intelligence where God is present with you? A person may gain this great knowledge and intelligence, but will never enter a life of happiness and peace unless he shuns the love of self and the world.
However, to more clearly understand man's elevation into spiritual light or intelligence and even into celestial light or wisdom, we must examine closely these discrete degrees, for it cannot be thought about in the same way as do angels, yet it can be comprehended by our understanding. The natural mind does not ascend through these discrete degrees, but it increases by continuous degrees and as it increases it is enlightened from within by the light of the two higher discrete degrees that are within.
Think of the natural degree, the lowest or the external degree, and the other two degrees, the higher ones, which are the middle and the inmost degrees. Now, isn't the natural degree seen as a covering for the other two? Remember, the example of the muscle or that of the brain in which are to become the abode or home for goods and truths of the mind of man from the Lord. So, when the natural is 'as it were' raised towards a higher or spiritual from within - the higher or the inner degrees - act into the outer, which is the natural of a man's life and illuminates it. The illumination is effected from within or from the higher to the outer or lower, which envelops and surrounds them. The enlightenment is from within discretely or separately, but in itself is enlightened continuously.
So, while man lives in this world in the natural degree, he is not elevated into the very intelligence and wisdom of the angels, but only into a higher light and so become enlightened from the angles' light, which inflows from within and illuminates the man's mind. The results are: The natural mind can be raised into the light of Heaven, but perceives naturally and not spiritually. Man, then, can speak with angels. However, the thought and speech of angels flow into the natural thoughts and speech of the man and not the converse, that is, angels speak with the man in the natural language of the man. This is by spiritual influx into the natural, and not the reverse. Thus, man's wisdom, while he is in the natural degree of life, can be only come into it after death.
From this we see that the natural mind consists of spiritual substances and upon death natural substances recede, but not spiritual substances. We retain our mind, for it consists of spiritual substances.
Certainly, we have the capacity to understand spiritual truth, even celestial truth. Thus, we can become rational according to our elevation of our understanding while in this world. However, a man does not become rational when he has a lack of love or will, for love or the will, as we have shown, cannot be raised in the same manner as a man's understanding can. Still, the man's will can be raised by shunning sins as evils, and by good works of charity, which are the uses that the man performs from the Lord 'as if' of himself. From this we learn why, so often, the one who knows much about spiritual things, yet by his life we can see his true state, and it is often evil.
End.