fr-Chapter 31 - Salvation, Redemption and Eternal Salvation
Correcting Misconceptions About Redemption
1. Many people believed that all the tears in this world were caused by the sin of the first inhabitants of the earth. In their inability to interpret the parable, they eventually claimed that Christ came to wash away every stain with His blood. If this claim were true—why do people continue to sin and suffer, even though that sacrifice has already been made?
2. Jesus came to Earth to teach people the path to perfection—a path He taught through His life, His deeds, and His words. (150, 43-44)
3. You will all reach the goal by fulfilling your task. I have given you My teachings, which are inexhaustible, so that you may ascend the ladder of your development. It is not My blood that saves you, but My light within your soul that will redeem you. (8, 39)
4. A new cross will be bestowed upon Me in the Third Era. This will not be visible to mortal eyes, yet from its height I will send My message of love to humanity, and My blood, which is the spiritual essence of My Word, will be transformed into light for the soul.
5. Those who once judged Me now bring the light to the hearts of men with a spirit of repentance, to make amends for their errors.
6. For My teaching on the wickedness of men to triumph, it must first be scourged and mocked like Christ at the pillar of torture. My light must stream from every wound to illuminate the darkness of this world devoid of love. It is necessary for My invisible blood to fall upon humanity to show it once more the path to its redemption. (49, 17-19)
7. I tell you once again that in Me all of humanity will be saved. That blood shed on Golgotha is life for every soul. Yet it is not the blood itself, since it fell into the dust of the earth, but the divine love symbolized in it. Whenever I speak to you of My blood, you now know what it is and what significance it holds.
8. Many people have shed their blood in the service of their Lord and out of love for their fellow human beings, yet this did not embody divine love, but only spiritual, human love.
9. The blood of Jesus, however, embodies divine love, for there is no blemish in it whatsoever. There was never any sin in the Master, and He gave you His blood down to the last drop to make you understand that God is everything to His creatures, that He gives Himself to them completely, without reservation, because He loves them infinitely.
10. When the dust of the earth absorbed that fluid which was life in the Master's body, it was so that you might understand that my teaching had to make human life fruitful through divine irrigation with His love, wisdom, and justice.
11. The world—unbelieving and skeptical of the Master's words and examples—opposes my teaching and says that, although Jesus shed His blood to save humanity from sin, the world was not saved; that it sins more each day, even though it is more developed.
12. Where is the power of that blood of redemption, people ask themselves, while those who should be explaining the true fundamental principles of my teaching do not know how to satisfy the questions of those who hunger for light and thirst for knowledge of the truth.
13. I tell you that in this time, the questions of those who do not know have more depth and greater substance than the answers and explanations of those who claim to know the truth.
14. Yet I have come again to speak to you, and here is My word for those who believe that that blood actually brought about the salvation of sinners from divine justice—all those who were lost and condemned to severe torment.
15. I tell you: If the Father, who knows all things, had believed that people would not gradually make use of and understand the entire teaching that Jesus gave them in his words and deeds—truly, He would never have sent him; for the Creator has never done anything useless—nothing that is not destined to bear fruit. But when He sent Him to be born among men, to grow up, to suffer, and to die, it was because He knew that the Master's radiant and fruitful life, through his works, would mark out an indelible path, an indestructible trail, so that all his children might find the path that would lead them to true love and, in following his teaching, to the home where their Creator awaits them.
16. He also knew that that blood, which bears witness to purity and infinite love and was shed down to the last drop, would teach people to fulfill, with faith in their Creator, the task that would lift them up to the Promised Land, where they could offer Me the fulfillment of their task and then say, "Lord, it is finished."
17. Now I can tell you that it was not the hour when My blood was shed on the cross that marked the hour of humanity's redemption. My blood remained present here in the world, alive, fresh, and marked with the bloody trail of My Passion the path to your atonement, which will enable you to attain the homeland your Father has promised you.
18. I have told you: "I am the source of life; come and cleanse yourselves of your stains, so that you may go free and whole to your Father and Creator."
19. My source is love, inexhaustible and boundless. This is what My blood, shed at that time, seeks to tell you. It sealed My Word; it confirmed My teaching. (158, 23–33)
20. Today, many centuries removed from that event, I tell you that—although I shed My blood for all humanity—only those who walked the path that Jesus taught you were able to attain the salvation of their souls; while all those who remained in ignorance, in their fanaticism, in their errors, or in sin, are not yet saved.
21. I tell you, even if I were to become human a thousand times and die on the cross a thousand times—as long as people do not rise up to follow Me, they will not attain the salvation of their souls. It is not My cross that is to redeem you, but your own. I bore mine upon my shoulders and died upon it as a human being, and from that moment on I was in the bosom of the Father. You are to follow Me in gentleness and love and, with true humility, bear your cross upon your shoulders until you have reached the final goal of your mission, so that you too may then be with your Father. (168, 16-17)
22. There is no one who does not wish to find happiness, and the more lasting it is, the better—for I teach you a path that leads to the highest and eternal bliss. Nevertheless—I show you only the path, and then I let you choose the one that appeals to you most.
23. I ask you: "If you long for happiness—why do you not sow it, so that you may reap it afterward?" How few are those who have felt compelled to be there for others! (169, 37-38)
24. The idea you have of what life on earth means, of what the soul is, and of what the spiritual world is, is false.
25. The majority of believers think that if they live with a certain degree of righteousness or if they repent of their transgressions at the last moment of their lives, heaven is assured for their souls.
26. Yet this false notion, which is very pleasing to man, is the reason why they do not consistently fulfill the law throughout their entire life, and thus cause their soul, when it leaves this world and enters the Spiritual World, to realize that it has come to a place where it does not behold the wonders it had imagined, nor feel the supreme bliss to which it believed it was entitled.
27. Do you know what befalls those beings who were certain they would go to heaven, and who instead found only confusion? Since they were no longer at home on earth, having lost the anchor of their physical body, and since they could not rise to those heights where the spheres of spiritual light are found, they created for themselves—without being aware of it—a world that is neither human nor deeply spiritual.
28. Then the souls begin to ask themselves: Is this heaven? Is this the home that God has destined for souls after they have wandered so long on earth?
29. No—say others—this cannot be the "bosom of the Lord," where only light, love, and purity can exist.
30. Gradually, through reflection and pain, the soul comes to understand. It comprehends divine justice, and, enlightened by the light of its spirit, it judges its past deeds and discovers that they were meager and imperfect, that they were not worthy of earning what it had believed.
31. Thereafter, as a result of this self-reflection, humility emerges and a desire arises to return to the paths it had left behind, to erase the blemishes, to make amends for the mistakes, and to do what is truly meritorious before its Father.
32. It is necessary to enlighten humanity about these mysteries so that it may understand that life in the material world is an opportunity for a person to earn merits for their soul — merits that will elevate them until they deserve to live in a sphere of higher spiritualization, where they must once again act meritoriously so as not to fall behind and to continue ascending from level to level; for "in the Father's house there are many mansions."
33. You will earn these merits through love, as the eternal law of the Father has taught you. And thus your soul will advance step by step on the ladder to perfection, thereby coming to know the narrow path that leads to the Kingdom of Heaven—to the true heaven, which is the perfection of the soul. (184, 40–45)
34. Truly, I tell you, if I had come as a human being in this age, your eyes would have had to see My wounds still fresh and bleeding, because the sin of mankind has not ceased, nor have they wished to redeem themselves in remembrance of that blood which was shed by Me on Golgotha and which was a proof of My love for humanity. But I have come in the Spirit to spare you the shame of beholding the deeds of those who judged and condemned Me on earth.
35. All is forgiven; yet in every soul there remains something of what I shed on the cross for all. Do not believe that that life force and that blood dissolved or were lost. They embodied the spiritual life that I poured out upon all people from that moment onward. Through that blood, which sealed My Word and confirmed all that I had spoken and done on earth, people will evolve upward in their longing for the renewal of their souls.
36. My Word, My works, and My blood were not and will not be in vain. If it sometimes seems to you that My name and My Word have almost been forgotten, you will soon witness how they reappear, full of vitality, life, and purity, like a seed that, though constantly fought against, never perishes. (321, 64–66)
37. The blood of Jesus, transformed into the light of salvation, penetrated all souls as salvation and continues to do so. Eternally does My Spirit bestow salvation and light; unceasingly do I let the rays of My light penetrate where it is dark; ceaselessly does My Divine Spirit pour out—not as human blood, but as the power of redemption, as spiritual life—upon all My children. (319, 36)
"Heaven" must be attained
38. Carried away by the force of their passions, people have sunk so deeply into their sins that they have given up all hope of salvation. Yet there is no one who cannot be healed. For the soul—once it has convinced itself that the storms of human life will not cease until it heeds the voice of the Spirit—will rise up and fulfill My Law until it reaches the goal of its destiny, which is not on earth but in eternity.
39. Those who believe that existence is meaningless, and who thereby think of the futility of struggle and pain, do not know that life is the Master who shapes, and pain is the chisel that perfects. Do not think that I created pain to hand it to you in a cup—do not think that I caused you to fall. Man became disobedient of his own accord, and therefore he must also raise himself up again through his own effort. Nor should you think that pain alone perfects you; no, through acts of love you will also come to Me, for I am Love. (31, 54-55)
40. Pray more with the spirit than with the body, for to attain salvation, a moment of prayer or a day of love is not enough; rather, a life full of perseverance, patience, generous deeds, and obedience to My commandments is required. For this, I have given you great abilities as well as empathy.
41. My work is like an ark of salvation that invites everyone to enter. Anyone who follows My commandments will not perish. If you let My Word guide you, you will be saved. (123, 30-31)
42. Remember that only that which is perfect reaches Me. Therefore, your soul will enter My Kingdom only when it has attained perfection. You came forth from Me without experience, yet you must return to Me, , adorned with the garment of your merits and virtues. (63, 22)
43. Truly, I tell you, the souls of the righteous who dwell near God earned the right to occupy that place through their own works—not because I gave it to them. I merely showed them the way and revealed to them a great reward at its end.
44. Blessed are those who say to Me: "Lord, You are the Way, the Light that illuminates it, and the Strength for the traveler. You are the voice that points the way and revives us on life's journey; and You are also the reward for those who reach the goal." — Yes, My children, I am the life and the resurrection from the dead. (63, 74–75)
45. Today the Father does not ask: Who is capable and willing to save the human race with his blood? Nor will Jesus answer: "Lord, I am the Lamb who is ready to pave the way for the atonement of humanity with my blood and my love."
46. Nor will I send My "Word" to become human in this time. That era is over for you, and it has left behind its teachings and spiritual elevation within your souls. Now I have ushered in a new epoch of spiritual progress, in which you are to be the ones who earn merit. (80, 8-9)
47. I wish to see you all happy, dwelling in peace and light, so that little by little you may possess everything—not only through My love, but also through your merits; for then your satisfaction and your happiness will be complete. (245, 34)
48. I came to show you the beauty of a life higher than the human one, to inspire you to great deeds, to teach you the Word that awakens love, to promise you the happiness never before known that awaits that soul who was able to climb the mountain of sacrifice, faith, and love.
49. You shall recognize all this in My teaching, so that you may finally understand that it is your good works that will bring your soul closer to true bliss. (287, 48-49)
50. If, in order to travel from one continent of the earth to another, you must cross many high and low mountains, seas, peoples, cities, and countries until you reach the destination of your journey, then consider that to reach that Promised Land, you must likewise travel a long way, so that on the long journey you may gain experience, knowledge, growth, and development of the soul. This will be the fruit of the Tree of Life that you will finally enjoy after having struggled and wept much to attain it. (287, 16)
51. You are children of the Father of Light; yet if, because of your weakness, you have fallen into the darkness of a life full of toil, errors, and tears , these sufferings will pass, for you will rise at My call when I call you and say to you: "Here I am, illuminating your world and inviting you to climb the mountain, on whose summit you will find all the peace, that happiness, and that wealth which you sought in vain to accumulate on earth." (308, 5)
52. Every world, every plane of existence, was created so that the soul might develop upon it and take a step toward its Creator, and thus, advancing ever further along the path of perfection, have the opportunity to reach the destination of its journey—the summit of spiritual perfection—spotless, pure, and well-formed, which is precisely what dwelling in the Kingdom of God is.
53. To whom does it seem impossible to dwell ultimately "in the bosom of God"? Alas, you poor people of the intellect, who do not truly know how to think! Have you already forgotten that you came into existence from My bosom, which means that you already existed within it beforehand? There is nothing strange about the fact that everything that sprang from the Source of Life returns to Him in due time.
54. Every soul was virginally pure when it came into life from Me; yet afterward, many became defiled along their path. Nevertheless—since everything was foreseen by Me in a wise, loving, and just manner—I immediately set about providing all the necessary means for their salvation and renewal along the path my children had to traverse.
55. Even though that spiritual virginity has been defiled by many beings, the day will come when they will purify themselves of all their transgressions and thereby regain their original purity. This purification will be highly meritorious in My eyes, for the soul will have attained it through great and continuous trials of its faith, love, loyalty, and patience.
56. You will all return to the Kingdom of Light through the path of labor, struggle, and pain, where you will no longer need to incarnate in a human body nor live in a material world, for by then your spiritual capacity will already enable you to send your influence and your light from one plane of existence to another and make them perceptible. (313, 21-24)
The Most Powerful Force for Salvation
57. Behold, here is the way; walk in it, and you will save yourselves. Truly, I tell you, it is not necessary to have heard Me in this time to attain salvation. Everyone who practices My Divine Law of Love in life and transforms that love inspired by the Creator into love for one's neighbor is saved. He bears witness to Me in his life and in his works. (63, 49)
58. If the sun radiates the light of life upon all of nature and upon all beings, and if the stars also radiate light upon the earth—why then should not the Divine Spirit radiate light upon the soul of man?
59. Now I say to you: People, look within yourselves; let the light of justice, which has its origin in love, spread throughout the world. Let My truth convince you that without true love, you will not attain the salvation of your souls. (89, 34-35)
60. My light is for all My children; not only for you who inhabit this world, but for all the souls living on different planes of existence. They will all be set free and raised to eternal life when, through their works of love toward their brothers and sisters, they fulfill My divine commandment, which requires you to love one another. (65, 22)
61. Beloved people, this is the "Third Day," on which I bring My Word back to life among the "dead." This is the "Third Time" in which I appear before the world in a spiritual manner to tell it: "Here is the same Christ whom you saw die on the cross, and He is speaking to you now, for He lives and will live and will always be."
62. Yet I see that people have a heart within their bodies that is dead in terms of faith, love, and light, even though they claim to proclaim the truth within their religious communities. They believe they have secured their salvation by praying in their churches and participating in their rites. But I tell you, the world must learn that the salvation of the soul is attained only through the performance of works of love and mercy.
63. Places of worship are merely a school. Churches should not limit themselves merely to explaining the law, but they should ensure that the world understands that life is a path on which one must apply what one has learned from the Divine Law by practicing My teaching of love. (152, 50–52)
64. Christ became human to reveal Divine Love to the world. But people have hard hearts and a self-righteous mind; they soon forget a teaching they have received and misinterpret it. I knew that people would gradually confuse justice and love with vengeance and punishment. That is why I foretold a time when I would return spiritually to the world to explain to people the teachings they had not understood.
65. That promised time is the one in which you live, and I have given you My instruction so that My justice and divine wisdom may be revealed as a perfect teaching of the sublime love of your God. Do you think that I have come because I fear that people will eventually destroy the works of their Lord or even life itself? No, I come only out of love for my children, whom I wish to see filled with light and peace.
66. Is it not right and just that you, too, should come only out of love for Me? But not out of love for yourselves, rather in love for the Father and for your fellow human beings. Do you think that the one who avoids sin only out of fear of the torments of hell is inspired by divine love, or the one who performs good deeds only with the thought of the reward he can thereby attain, namely, to win a place in eternity? Whoever thinks this way does not know Me, nor does he come out of love for Me. He acts only out of love for himself. (164, 35–37)
67. My entire law is summed up in two commandments: love of God and love of neighbor. This is the way. (243, 4)
Salvation and Redemption for Every Soul
68. Now I do not come to raise the physically dead, as I did with Lazarus in the "Second Era." Today My light comes to awaken the soul that belongs to Me. And this soul will rise to eternal life through the truth of My Word; for your soul is the Lazarus whom you currently carry within your being and whom I will raise from the dead and heal. (17, 52)
69. Spiritual life, too, is governed by laws, and if you stray from them, you will very soon feel the painful consequences of that disobedience.
70. Recognize how great is My desire to save you. Today, as then, I will take up the cross to raise you to True Life.
71. Just as My blood shed on Golgotha shook the hearts of men and converted them to My teaching, so in this time it will be My Divine Light that causes the soul and the body to tremble, to bring you back to the true path.
72. I want those who are dead to the life of grace to live eternally. I do not want your soul to dwell in darkness. (69, 9-10)
73. Recognize how many of your fellow human beings, in the midst of their idolatrous pursuits, await the coming of the Messiah. Consider how many, in their ignorance, believe that I will come only to pass judgment on the wicked, to save the righteous, and to destroy the world, without knowing that I am among humanity as a Father, as a Master, as a Brother, or as a Friend, full of love and humility, and that I extend My helping hand to save, bless, and forgive all. (170, 23)
74. No one is born by chance, and no matter how insignificant, incapable, or wretched a person may consider himself to be, he has nevertheless been created by the grace of the Supreme Being, who loves him just as much as the beings whom he considers superior, and he has a destiny that will lead him, like everyone else, into the bosom of God.
75. Do you see those people who wander the streets as outcasts, dragging vice and misery along with them, without knowing who they are or where they are going? Do you know of the people who still live in the forests, stalked by predators? No one is forgotten by My Fatherly love; all have a task to fulfill, all possess the seed of development, and are on the path where merit, effort, and struggle will bring the soul step by step to Me.
76. Where is there anyone who—even if only for a single moment—has not longed for My peace and wished to be freed from earthly life? Every soul longs for the world it once inhabited, for the home in which it was born. That world awaits all My children and invites them to rejoice in eternal life, which some long for, while others merely await death so they may cease to be, for they have a confused soul and live without hope and without faith. What could move these beings to fight for their renewal? What could awaken in them the longing for eternity? They await only ceasing to be, silence, and the end.
77. Yet the "Light of the World" has returned, "the Way and the Truth," to raise you to life through His forgiveness, to caress your weary face, to comfort your heart, and to cause the one who did not consider himself worthy of existence to hear My voice saying to him: I love you, come to Me! (80, 54–57)
78. Man may fall and plunge into darkness and thus feel far from Me; he may believe that when he dies, everything is over for him. For Me, however, no one dies; no one is lost.
79. How many are there who were considered depraved beings in the world and who are now full of light! How many who left behind the stains of their sins, their vices, and their crimes have already attained their purification! (287, 9-10)
80. It is true that many defile their souls; yet do not condemn them, for they do not know what they are doing. I will save them too, despite the fact that they have currently forgotten Me, or have replaced Me with the false gods they created in the world. I will bring them into My Kingdom as well, even if they have now—because they follow the false prophets—forgotten the benevolent Christ, who gave His life for them to teach them His doctrine of love.
81. For the Father, no one is "evil"; no one can be, since their origin is in Me. The wayward, the blind, the violent, the rebellious—this is what many of My children have become because of the free will with which they were endowed. Yet in all of them there will be light, and My mercy will lead them on the path to their salvation. (54, 45-46)
82. You are all My seed, and the Master reaps it. If a weed seed finds its way among the good seeds, I also take it lovingly into My hands to transform it into golden wheat.
83. I see in your hearts the seed of the weed, of the mire, of crime, of hatred, and yet I harvest and love you. I cherish and purify this seed until it shines like wheat in the sun.
84. Do you think that the power of My love is not capable of redeeming you? After I have cleansed you, I will sow you in My garden, where you will bear new blossoms and new fruit. It is part of My divine task to make you worthy of Me. (256, 19-21)
85. How could a soul be irretrievably lost to Me, when it carries within itself a spark of My light that never goes out, and I am with it on every path? No matter how long its rebellion may persist or its confusion may continue—these dark forces will never withstand My eternity. (255, 60)
86. For Me, it is just as meritorious when a being stained by the mark of the gravest transgressions purifies itself, inspired by a lofty ideal, as when a being that has remained steadfastly pure struggles to the very end not to defile itself, because it loved the light from the very beginning.
87. How far from the truth walk those who believe that the confused spirits have a different nature than the spirits of light!
88. The Father would be unjust if this were true, just as He would no longer be the Almighty if He lacked the wisdom and love to save the defiled, the impure, and the imperfect, and could not unite them with all the righteous in one and the same home. (295, 15–17)
89. Truly, I tell you, even those beings whom you call tempters or demons are merely confused or imperfect beings whom the Father wisely employs to carry out His high counsels and plans.
90. But these beings, whose souls are today enveloped in darkness and many of whom have made poor use of the abilities I have granted them, will—when the time comes for them—be saved by Me.
91. For the moment will come, O Israel, when all the Lord's creatures will praise Me eternally. I would no longer be God if, with My power, My wisdom, and My love, I could not save a soul. (302, 31)
92. When have parents on earth ever loved only the good children and detested the wicked ones? How often have I seen them show the greatest love and care precisely toward those who hurt and cause them the most suffering! How could it be possible for you to perform greater works of love and forgiveness than are Mine? When has it ever been seen that the Master must learn from His disciples?
93. Know, then, that I consider none of you unworthy, and that the path to salvation therefore eternally invites you to walk it, just as the gates of My Kingdom—which are light, peace, and goodness—stand open forever in anticipation of the arrival of those who have strayed from the Law and the Truth. (356, 18-19)
The Glorious Future of the Children of God
94. I will not allow a single one of My children to stray or even be lost. I transform the parasitic plants into fruitful ones, for all creatures were called into existence to attain a goal of perfection.
95. I want you to rejoice with Me in My work. Even before, I have let you share in My attributes, because you are a part of Me. Since everything belongs to Me, I also make you owners of My work. (9, 17-18)
96. Do not doubt My word. In the "First Era," I fulfilled My promise to you to free Israel from the bondage of Egypt—which signified idolatry and darkness—in order to lead you to Canaan, the land of freedom and the worship of the living God. There My coming as a human being was foretold to you, and the prophecy was fulfilled word for word in Christ.
97. I, that Master who dwelt in Jesus and loved you in Him, promised the world that I would speak to it in another time and reveal Myself in the Spirit. And here is the fulfillment of My promise.
98. Today I announce to you that I have reserved for your soul wondrous regions, abodes, and spiritual homes where you may find true freedom to love, to do good, and to spread My light. Can you doubt this, after I have fulfilled My earlier promises to you? (138, 10–11)
99. My divine desire is to save you and lead you into a world of light, beauty, and love, where you will joyfully soar on the wings of the soul's elevation, the nobility of your feelings, and the ideal of perfection. Yet do you not recognize My fatherly love in this divine desire? Undoubtedly, whoever does not understand this must be blind. (181, 13)
100. Consider this: All the beauties of this world are destined to vanish, to make way for something else someday. Yet your soul will continue to live eternally and behold the Father in all His glory—the E e Father from whose bosom you originate. All creation must return to the place from which it came. (147, 9)
101. I am the eternal Light, the eternal Peace, and the eternal Bliss, and since you are My children, it is My will and My duty to make you partakers of My glory; and for this purpose I teach you the Law as the path that leads the soul to the heights of that Kingdom. (263, 36)
102. Always be aware that the soul which attains the highest degrees of goodness, wisdom, purity, and love stands above time, pain, and distance. It is not confined to dwelling in one place; it is capable of being everywhere and can find supreme delight everywhere in existing, feeling, knowing, loving, and knowing itself to be loved. This is the heaven of the soul. (146, 70–71)