38.
That the churches after the times of the Apostles fell away into so many heresies, and that at the present day there are none other than false churches, is because they have not approached the Lord,
when yet the Lord is the Word, and the very Light which enlighteneth the whole world. And yet for them it is as impossible to see one single genuine truth from the Word, except what is encompassed with
and steeped in falsities, and coheres with falsities, as it is to sail to the Pleiades, or to dig out the gold which is in the center of the earth. Wherefore, in order that true Christian religion might
be manifested, it was absolutely necessary that someone should be introduced into the spiritual world, and derive from the mouth of the Lord genuine truths out of the Word. The Lord cannot enlighten
anyone with His light, unless He is approached immediately, and acknowledged as the God of heaven.