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From the work, Heaven and Hell 360

[2] Man can be formed for heaven only by means of the world. In the world are the outmost effects in which everyone’s affection must be terminated; for unless affection puts itself forth or flows out into acts, which is done in association with others, it is suffocated to such a degree finally that man has no longer any regard for the neighbor, but only for himself. All this makes clear that a life of charity towards the neighbor, which is doing what is just and right in every work and in every employment, is what leads to heaven, and not a life of piety apart from charity; and from this it follows that only to the extent that man is engaged in the employments of life can charity be exercised and the life of charity grow; and this is impossible to the extent that man separates himself from those employments.

From the work, Divine Love and Wisdom 253

For in heaven and in every society thereof, the light decreases from the middle to the boundaries, and those who are pre-eminent in Divine truths are in the middle, while those who are in few truths are in the boundaries. Those are in few truths who know nothing more from their religion than that there is a God, and that the Lord suffered for them, also that charity and faith are the essentials of the Church, and are not concerned to know what faith and charity are, when yet, faith in its essence is truth, and truth is manifold, and charity is all the work of employment which man does from the Lord. He does this from the Lord when he shuns evil as sins. It is exactly as was said above that the end is the all of the cause, and the effect the all of the end by means of the cause. The end is charity or good, the cause is faith or truth, while effects are good works or uses. From which it is clear that, from charity can no more be carried into works than the measure in which charity is conjoined with the truths of faith. Through these truths charity enters into works and qualifies them.

From the work, Arcana Coelestia 8005

This last and lowest support in spiritual things is factual knowledge; for all spiritual truths and forms of good flow down in accordance with order towards lower levels, coming to rest finally in factual knowledge, in which a person can then catch sight of them. As for the meaning of ‘you shall not break’ – that such knowledge must remain intact – this is self-evident. Factual knowledge is said to remain intact when it lets into itself nothing but truths that are in accord with its good; for factual knowledge is the general receptacle of them. Furthermore items of knowledge are like the bones in a person’s body. If they do not remain intact or properly arranged, as when they are dislocated or are bent out of shape, the form of the body is consequently altered, and that altered form conditions its movements. Factual knowledge of truth may be equated with matters of doctrine.

From the work, True Christian Religion 191

191. Nevertheless, all this does not convince the natural man that the Word is Divine truth itself, in which there is Divine wisdom and Divine life; for he estimates it by its style, in which these are not seen by him. Yet the style of the Word is the Divine style itself, with which no other style can be compared, however sublime and excellent it may seem. The style of the Word is such that there is a holiness in every sentence and in every word, and even in some places in the very letters, and thereby the Word conjoins man with the Lord and opens heaven. There are two things that go forth from the Lord, Divine love and Divine wisdom, or what is the same thing, Divine good and Divine truth. In its essence the Word is both of these; and because, as just said, it conjoins man with the Lord and opens heaven, it fills man with the goods of love and the truths of wisdom-his will with the goods of love and his understanding with the truths of wisdom; thus by means of the Word man has life. But it must be clearly understood that those only have life from the Word who read it for the purpose of drawing from it Divine truths as from their proper fountain, and at the same time for the purpose of applying to the life the truths drawn therefrom;