What Order Is — Summaries, But Not Its Particulars

Selection from True Christian Religion ~ Emanuel Swedenborg

(1) God is order itself.

(2) He created man from order, in order, and into order.

(3) He created man's rational mind in accordance with the order of the whole spiritual world, and his body in accordance with the order of the whole natural world; and this is why man was called by the ancients a little heaven and a little cosmos.

(4) Therefore it is a law of order that man from his little heaven or his little spiritual world should govern his little cosmos or little natural world, just as God from His great heaven or spiritual world governs the great cosmos or natural world in each thing and all things of it.

(5) It is a resulting law of order that it is needful for man to lead himself into faith by means of truths from the Word, and into charity by means of good works, and so reform and regenerate himself.

(6) It is a law of order that man by his own exertion and power should purify himself from sins, and not stand still, believing in his own impotency, and expecting God to wash his sins away in a moment.

(7) It is also a law of order that man should love God with his whole soul and with his whole heart, and his neighbor as himself, and should not wait and expect that God will in an instant put these loves into his mind and heart, as bread from a baker may be put into his mouth." These with other like things.

(from True Christian Religion 71)

Goods of Charity Enriched

Selection from Arcana Coelestia ~ Emanuel Swedenborg

In order that good may become good, there must be truths to qualify it. The reason is that when anyone lives according to truths, the truths themselves then become goods; and therefore such as is the quality of the truth, such becomes the good. This good afterward associates and adjoins to itself no other truths than such as are in accord with its own quality, consequently no other than such as are helpful, thus which are in the neighborhood and in the house.

(from Arcana Coelestia 6916)

Those Who are in Falsity Set Themselves in Opposition to Those who are in Truths

Selection from Arcana Coelestia ~ Emanuel Swedenborg

In the world, they who are in falsity do not openly oppose themselves to those who are in truth, for external bonds restrain them, which are fears lest they should appear to be against the laws of the realm and of the church, so that they could not seem to be good citizens. In this world, everyone wishes to seem just and true in outward form, and the wicked more so than the well-disposed, in order that they may captivate the minds of others, and deceive for the sake of gain and honors. Nevertheless inwardly they set themselves in opposition, for whenever they hear anyone professing the truths of the church, not from his office but from zeal, they ridicule inwardly, and they would openly deride if external bonds did not then restrain them. When such come into the other life, external bonds no longer restrain them, for these are then taken away from them in order that everyone may appear in his true character — then they openly set themselves in opposition to those who are in truths, and infest them in every possible way. This is then the very delight of their life; and when they are warned not to do such things, because if they do not desist, they will at last be removed altogether and thrust down into hell, still they pay no attention to this, but constantly persist in the infestation as before, so greatly are they in the delight of life from falsity, and this taking such possession of them that they do not admit anything which is of intelligence.

These are the things signified by the words "the king of Egypt will not allow you to go," and which are represented by Pharaoh, in that he so often set himself in opposition.

The removal of such spirits, and the thrusting of them down into hell, is represented by the destruction of Pharaoh and the Egyptians in the sea Suph.

They who are in evil of life, and from this in falsity, are in the light of the world, for this is the light by which intellectual objects are seen; this light, with those who are in falsity from evil, has a ruddy glow, and the more so in proportion as they are more in falsity from evil. The glory of the world, which is from the love of self, kindles this light, and causes its glow; and because this is so, truths appear therein wholly as falsities, and falsities wholly as truths. The reason is:  heavenly light cannot flow into a beam of that light, but becomes thick darkness when with it. Hence it is that such are in a strong persuasion in favor of falsities against truths; because in that light they see them in this way.

But with those who are in truths from good, the light of the world does not glow, but is obscure; while the light of heaven with them is clear and bright, and because this light is so clear, truths appear in it as truths, and falsities as falsities. For when this light falls upon falsities, which in the light of the world separate from the light of heaven appear as truths, it not only obscures but altogether extinguishes them. This light, namely, the light of heaven, becomes successively brighter and brighter with them, and at last so much so that the light of the world cannot be compared to it. From all this appears the reason why they who are in falsities from evil, from so strong a persuasion oppose themselves to those who are in truths.

(from Arcana Coelestia 6907)