Page:Heaven Revealed.djvu/109

and my brethren are these which hear the Word of God and do it." (Luke viii. 21.)

He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me; and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him." (John xiv. 21.)

"And the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works." (Rev. xx. 12.)

And so throughout the inspired Volume. Again and again are we told that it is only by obeying the voice of the Lord, following after Him, keeping his commandments, learning and doing the truth, that we can arrive at the heavenly state; and that, in the great Hereafter, every one will be judged according to his works.

"That a man is saved," says Swedenborg, "according to his works, the Lord also teaches in his parables, several of which imply that they who do good are accepted, and that they who do evil are rejected. (See Matt. xxi. 33-44; xxv. 1-12, 14-34. Luke xiii. 6; xix. 13-25; x. 30–37; xvi. 19-31.) . . . Nevertheless, there are many in Christian churches, who teach that faith alone is saving, and not any good of life or good works. They add, also, that evil of life or evil works do not condemn those who are justified by faith alone, because they are in God and in grace."—Doc. of Life, n. 2, 4.

But it is important to remember that the nature or quality of the works by which we are to be judged, depends on the kind of motive which entered into them as their prompting cause, or which moved us to do them. If the motive was evil or purely selfish, the works them-