1563. The symbolism of and Lot too, who went with Abram, as the outer self that the Lord had can be seen from the representation of Lot as the sensory self or, what is the same, the outer self.
We each have an inward part and an outward part or, to put it another way, an inner self and an outer self, as everyone in the church knows; 1 for more, see above at §§978, 994, 995, 1015.
The outer self receives its life chiefly from the inner self, that is, from its spirit, or soul. This is the origin of its actual life force as a general whole. That force cannot be received by the outer self in a detailed or distinct way unless there is an opening of its organic vessels, which are necessary for reception of the specific influences from the inner self, down to the most minute. These organic 2 vessels necessary for reception are not opened up except by means of the senses — mainly hearing and sight. When they do open, the inner self can enter in with its specific and minute details. Those vessels are opened by means of the senses through facts and religious knowledge (properties of the intellect), and also through appetites and pleasures (properties of the will).
[2] The plain and inevitable consequence is that the outer self will then be infiltrated by secular and religious concepts incompatible with spiritual truth and by appetites and pleasures incompatible with heavenly goodness. All the ones that focus on personal, worldly, and earthly rewards as their goals fall into this category. When we focus on them as our goals, they drag our outer self out toward the surface and downward. In this way they distance the outer self from the inner. If these distractions are not first dispelled, the inner self cannot possibly come into harmony with the outer self, so before the inner self can come into harmony with the outer self, such things must first be put aside.
The fact that they were put aside or separated in the Lord is represented and symbolized by Lot's separation from Abram.
Footnotes:
1. The assertion that "everyone in the church knows" about how we have an inner and an outer self may be a reference to various passages on that subject in the Epistles; see, for example, Romans 7:22; 2 Corinthians 4:16; Ephesians 3:16. See also note 2 in §3. Compare note 1 in §1659. [SS, JSR]
2. The word "organic" here refers simply to bodily organs; see also note 1 in §1378. [RS, SS]
