Silverman: This is one of the more difficult doctrines of the Church, but
Kaage handles it with ease, pointing out rather quickly that when we are
referring to “the hells” or saying that the Lord “conquered hell,” we are not
just talking about a war against evil spirits. More deeply, we are talking about
a war against every selfish love that would destroy humanity. The evil spirits
indeed wage the combat, but the real enemies of humanity are the malevolent
motives that these spirits incarnate – the very thoughts and emotions that
would destroy each of us if we were not protected by the Lord.
Thesis 68: As the Savior of the world, the Lord continually redeems all
people and bears the full burden of our sins.
Kaage: “It is said that the Lord ‘bears our iniquity.’ This does not mean
that the Lord absolves us of responsibility for the quality of our spirit, but
rather that He provides Divine assistance during our combats of temptation –
assistance which leads to eventual victory in our personal struggles. The Lord
‘bears iniquities’ when He fights within our soul against the hell to which we
are inured. No one can possibly fight against this without Divine assistance.
Because the Lord conquered hell, He alone is capable of victory . . . . He,
therefore, who alone fights for the human race against evils and falsities is said
‘to bear sins,’ for He alone supports this burden and continually removes us
from hell.” (p.137)
Silverman: Those who have come to embrace the doctrine of the New
Church as “genuine Christianity,” understand that “bearing sins” has nothing
to do with the idea that the Lord protects us from “God’s wrath” by taking the
punishment we deserve. The truth is, we cannot be absolved from our sins by
merely believing that someone “paid the price” for us (took the punishment
we deserved).
Mr. Kaage deals with this misconception beautifully by saying that the
Lord does not “absolve us of responsibility for the quality of our spirit.” Instead,
He “bears our iniquities” by fighting within our soul against hellish influences.
In other words, the Lord is continually bearing the full burden of our sins.
And we, on our part, experience the ongoing benefits of His redemptive
love through striving to fight against all that is ignoble within us, as if from
ourselves.
Thesis 70: By the Passion of the Cross the Lord did not take away sins,
but bore them.
Kaage: “There are many within the church who believe that by the passion
of the cross the Lord took away sins and made satisfaction to the Father,
supposing that He transferred to Himself the sins of those who have faith
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