You may have heard that God is angry and that He condemns some people to hell. The New Church presents a different view - one of a loving God who constantly seeks to do us good.
One person does something wrong but regrets it. The other person does not listen. Is that loving your neighbor? “As we forgive those who trespass against us”?
Now imagine the conversation was between you and the Lord. Suppose you hadn't believed in God a few years ago and said something negative about Him. Now you know better. Would God forgive you, or would He hate you for the rest of your life?
God forgives the moment we sincerely ask His forgiveness, even if we had done something far worse than that. He comes to us the moment we ask for help. All He wants is for us to break our bad habits. He knows our weaknesses and does not blame us for them.
Good parents would do whatever they could to lead their children to happy, useful lives. No matter what the challenges, they would be long-suffering and stand by all the way through. The Lord is like these parents, but He is even more perfect in His love and care for us.
Jesus said, “Come to Me and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:28-29).
Just like a child must obey a good parent, so we have to follow the Lord's commandments. This is the yoke of which Jesus speaks. When we follow Him, there is no limit to where He can take us.