97. It is very different with the tenets or teachings of the new church, though. All of them are essential elements. Heaven and the church are present in each one of them. The goal toward which they aim is for us to be in the Lord and for the Lord to be in us, according to his own words in John 14:20; 15:4, 5, 6. Simply put, the [true] Christian church is this type of partnership with the Lord.

From the mere handful of points just made, we can clearly see the meaning of the Lord’s words:

The one who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new”; and said to me, “Write, because these words are true and faithful.” (Revelation 21:5)

28. Now, it might appear as though the two camps have opposite beliefs regarding whether we have free choice or not in our conversion or in the process by which we are made just. In fact, though, the two actually do agree with each other, as we can see if we consider in the right way the statements written in the Council of Trent; see §6 a, b; and compare these with the things written in the Formula of Concord; see §15 m. All the people in the Christian world have been baptized. Christians therefore have free choice, which allows them not only to hear the Word of God but also to agree with it and embrace it with faith. Therefore no one in Christianity is like a log of wood.