What is the role of the Holy Spirit in Swedenborg's soteriology?
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A common function of the Holy Spirit in the salvation of sinners, according to Catholicism, mainstream Protestantism, and the Reformed Church, among others, is derived from passages like the following:
> (John 6:44 NASB) "No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.
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> (2 Timothy 2:24-26 NASB) "The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will."
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> (Matthew 16:15-17 NASB) He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven."
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> (2 Corinthians 2:12-14) Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words. But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.
From these passages and others like them, the Christian groups above have commonly established certain functions of the Holy Spirit in the salvation of the individual:
- It is by the Holy Spirit that the individual becomes aware of their sin.
- It is by the Holy Spirit that the individual gains knowledge of the identity of the Son of God- Jesus Christ.
- It is by the Holy Spirit that the individual acquires the desire to follow Jesus Christ in word and deed.
- It is by the Holy Spirit that the individual is enabled to act toward this knowledge and desire.
- The Holy Spirit dwells within the convert as a guarantee of their salvation, empowering them to act according to Jesus' commandments regarding Christian living.
However, Swedenborg does not acknowledge that a person needs to know that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, nor desire to follow Jesus Christ in word, nor to adopt Christian living1, in order to be saved.
With these things in mind, my question is,
"What is the role of the Holy Spirit in Swedenborg's soteriology?"
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1. For the purpose of this question, let us regard the aspects of Christian living to be the worship of Jesus Christ in word and deed, Christian education, ministry to the Body of Christ, and evangelism of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Asked by Andrew
(8195 rep)
May 11, 2016, 01:03 PM
Last activity: Sep 15, 2021, 12:08 PM
Last activity: Sep 15, 2021, 12:08 PM