Jesus, Our Exemplar
Gavin W. Allan, C.S.B., of
Gavin W. Allan, C.S.B., of
The lecturer was introduced by
Miss Florence S. Middaugh, Second Reader in The Mother Church, who said:
Friends:
The
A lecture on Christian Science is
a joyous occasion, for many carry away with them an awakened desire to know
more about God, and they receive a mental stimulus which causes them to reach out
after more of the good that is ready and waiting for them.
Jesus was the great teacher of
spiritual truths who taught his followers to think scientifically, and
Christian Science likewise teaches that to find God, one must understand and
know Him.
Mankind is in great need today of
finding the truth about God and man. In our textbook "Science and Health
with Key to the Scriptures" by Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder
of Christian Science, we read, "Jesus was 'the way;' that is, he marked
the way for all men" (46:25).
What is more natural then, than turning
to him for guidance and instruction in spiritual truths! And it is right and
necessary that we should seek to know the facts concerning the Science of
Life.
Mrs. Eddy also says in Science and
Health, "Millions of unprejudiced minds - simple seekers for Truth, weary
wanderers, athirst in the desert - are waiting and watching for rest and
drink" (570:14-16). That this living water may be brought within their
reach, Mrs. Eddy founded The Christian Science Board of Lectureship of this
Church, of which the speaker this evening is a member. He will tell us more
about the great Way-shower. The subject of his lecture is, "Jesus, Our
Exemplar."
Mr. Allan spoke substantially as
follows:
If we would understand Christianity,
- its Principle and its practice, - we must
begin by understanding, its Founder, "the man Christ Jesus,"
because he and he alone has been its perfect exponent, its perfect demonstrator.
If we examine the life of Jesus as portrayed in the Gospels we cannot fail to
note some of his outstanding characteristics. Let us consider a few of his
traits which have not been sufficiently stressed.
Jesus Set Pattern of
Selfless Service
First, his selflessness. During
the years of his ministry he seemed to have no ambition for place or power, no
desire for superiority or preferment. It is true that just before he entered
upon his ministry he passed through a great struggle in overcoming the false
sense of self: the desire for fame and dominion strove to assert itself. But it
is also true that this desire was completely routed, and that never again did
it become apparent in his life.
Jesus' selflessness was manifested
in service. He gave himself to others. He said, "I am among you as he
that serveth." That was his life-work, serving God by serving his fellowmen.
Was it Jesus' desire that his followers should serve their fellows in the same
way that he did, that is, in the same spirit? Did he commend a life of service
as a practical ideal? Let us see. You will remember that on one occasion Jesus
called his disciples to him and said, "Ye know that the princes of the
Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise
authority upon them. But it shall not be so among you: but. . . whosoever will
be chief among you, let him be your servant." In Jesus' estimation, then,
the willingness and ability to serve ranked higher than the desire to be
served. Service ranked higher than dictatorship; selflessness than
selfishness.
Christ Jesus is our Exemplar, our
ideal model. We as Christian Scientists are his followers. The ideals he
presented, the qualities of mind he manifested, we must strive to emulate. Recognizing
this, the Founder of the Christian Science movement, Mary Baker Eddy, in her
"Advice to Students" wrote (Miscellaneous Writings, p. 303),
"Let us serve instead of rule, knock instead of push at the door of human
hearts, and allow to each and every one the same rights and privileges that we
claim for ourselves."
Real Man Made In God's
Likeness
But we were speaking of selflessness.
Let us hear Mrs. Eddy again, this time somewhat more emphatically. In the
Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures,"
she writes (p. 568), "Self-abnegation, by which we lay down all for Truth,
or Christ, in our warfare against error, is a rule in Christian Science."
Why should this be so? Because selflessness is an essential quality of spiritual
man. Because self-fulness, if we may use such a term, or the belief in a
selfhood apart from God, is not a quality of the real man and never did belong
to him. God made man in His, God's, image to express God. If man is the expression
of God he cannot manifest a selfhood apart from God. You understand, of course,
that when we speak of man as God's likeness we do not mean that mortals are
God's likeness. Far from it. You and the material body which you may sometimes
think of as yourself are two entirely different things. Physiologists tell us
that our physical bodies are completely changed or renewed every few years. You
may have had five or ten entirely different bodies, but no one of those bodies
which you have left behind was you. Your true selfhood, the man of God's
creating, is a mental, a spiritual being, the expression of God.
In order that we may the better
understand the relationship existing between man and God, let me use an
illustration. Take for example the sun and its rays. Each ray is supplied by
the sun with its - the sun's - own qualities. A single ray does not express the
sun completely, but it does express the qualities of the sun. The ray has not
a single quality of its own, that is, it has not a single quality that is not
derived from the sun. Having no quality of its own it has no selfhood apart
from the sun.
Wisdom and Strength Are
Spiritual Qualities
Now to make use of the illustration.
God expresses Himself through spiritual man. Man as God's expression is
supplied moment by moment by God with God's reflected qualities, wisdom,
intelligence, health, strength, etc. Individual man does not reflect God fully
or completely, but he does reflect all the qualities of God. Man, then, has not
a single quality of his own, has not a single quality underived from God;
therefore for him to have a selfhood apart from God would be metaphysically
impossible.
There is another way to look at
this subject. According to Christian Science (Science and Health, p. 471),
"man is, and forever has been, God's reflection." A reflection calls
attention to its original. Your image in a mirror expresses only your color,
your figure, your action. It possesses no corporeality of its own, no
thickness, no action. It cannot act of itself. It cannot be of itself. It has
no existence apart from you. Now since man is God's likeness, as we are told
in Genesis, you see how impossible it would be for man to have any action, any
existence, any selfhood apart from God.
Christian Science is showing us
that this is what is true about man. Such temptations, then, as self-pity,
self-justification, self-righteousness, self-condemnation, and selfishness are
based upon a false sense of self. Jesus, our Exemplar, who "was in all
points tempted like as we are, yet without sin," overcame this false
sense of self completely. As his followers we are striving to do the same. How
shall we succeed? First, by learning what man, God's likeness, is - by learning
the truth about man - then by putting it into practice in our every thought of
ourselves or our fellows,
In this warfare with the false
sense of self, Mrs. Eddy has given us this inspiring message (Miscellaneous
Writings, p. 118), "Be of good cheer; the warfare with one's self is
grand; it gives one plenty of employment, and the divine Principle worketh with
you, - and obedience crowns persistent effort with everlasting victory."
Meekness of Jesus Was Not
Weakness
Jesus was about his Father's
business. He claimed no mind apart from God. He said, "I can of mine own
self do nothing," and, "The Father . . . doeth the works." That
is true humility. True humility is shown in the deliberate recognition of God
as the source of all intelligence and power. Probably few qualities are so
generally misunderstood as humility and meekness. Many people think these
terms mean "being tamely submissive," "spiritless," or
"easily imposed upon." This is due, of course, to a misunderstanding
of what humility really is. Humility is not self-depreciation, rather is it
true self-evaluation. It is not a weak, but a strong quality. Moses had it, and
he was not weak. Jesus possessed it, and he was not weak. No, Jesus was a
strong man in every way; he was strong physically, mentally, morally, and
spiritually, and he possessed in abundant measure this strong quality,
humility.
Jesus did not depreciate himself,
rather did he rightly estimate his worth. He knew that his coming was the
central fact of history, and that his words would not pass away, that is, the
truths he stated would live forever, not because he presented them, but because
they were true, therefore undying and winged with power. Isaiah expressed a
similar confidence in the power and immortality of the Word, a power entirely independent
of the person who uttered it. Speaking of the Word he said, "It shall not
return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall
prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." Such confidence had he in the
power of the Word declared.
It might be well for those of us
who are Christian Scientists to ask ourselves, How much confidence have I in
the power of the Word of God? How much confidence have I in a Christian
Science treatment? Let us see. Let us suppose that before you knew anything
about Christian Science you had heard that your neighbor had mistakenly taken
a spoonful of poison. What would likely have been your first thought? Would it
have been, He must be ill? Would it have been, Poison acts quickly?
Now, suppose you hear tomorrow
that your neighbor has had a Christian Science treatment. What will likely be
your first thought as a Christian Scientist? Will it be, He must be better, he
must be well? Will it be, "The word of God is quick, and powerful"?
If not, why not? It was Jesus' faith in Truth which prompted him to say,
"My words shall not pass away," and Mrs. Eddy commenting on this
passage has added (Miscellaneous Writings, p. 111), "And Jesus' faith in
Truth must not exceed that of Christian Scientists who prove its power to be
immortal."
Humility Put First In
Christian Science
This attitude of Jesus was quite
in keeping with humility - the recognition of God as the only source of
intelligence and power. Here is another statement of his, "The Son can do
nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he
doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise." Jesus attributed all power to
God. Since humility was an outstanding quality of our Master, should it be, can
it be disregarded by any of his followers?
But let us apply this to ourselves
and to the present moment. Mrs. Eddy, who knew better than anyone else the
qualifications of the Christian Scientist, has written (Miscellaneous
Writings, p. 354), "Humility is the first step in Christian Science."
If humility is the first step, might it not be well for each of us to
inquire, Have I taken this step? Let us not judge our neighbor in this. Let us
answer the question for ourselves. Do I take credit to myself, or do I
naturally and whole-heartedly ascribe to God the honor for any good I have been
instrumental in accomplishing? Am I alert to think regarding any good I may
have accomplished, I have of myself done nothing, the Father has done it all?
If so, we are manifesting a natural phase of true humanhood.
Another characteristic of Jesus
was his habit of seeing and appreciating the good in his fellowmen. He saw
more good in men than they suspected themselves. As he passed through
Jesus Saw Beyond
Appearance of Sin
The self-righteous scribes and
Pharisees dragged a woman soiled with degrading sin and set her before Jesus
for judgment. Their intention was to lead Jesus into a trap in order that they
might have a charge against him. Jesus saw what they saw, but he saw more and
said to the woman, "Go, and sin no more." And she looked up to see in
him a faith in her possible purity, and forthwith began to be the woman he saw.
Luke tells us that as Jesus reclined
at dinner in a Pharisee's house a woman who was a sinner came behind him and
anointed his feet. In the chapter of her stormy and shameful life probably
Jesus had been the only one who had given her a desire for a better life. In
him she had seen what life really could be, and the wholesome longing may have
come to her that she might be like him. His host saw that she was a sinner.
Jesus saw further. He saw a woman not yet spoiled beyond hope, as the world
might have looked upon her, and when he saw this she began to see it too, and
forthwith began to be that good woman.
There are in a very real sense
beautiful qualities latent in the life of every man. Only a vision like that of
Jesus can perceive them. Only a love like that of Jesus can awaken them, and we
too as his followers are here "not to condemn" but "to seek and
to save."
It is largely true that we see
what we are equipped by education and experience to see. For example, you send
three men, an artist, a botanist, and a lumberman to examine a certain oak
tree and bring you a report. The artist comes back with a report on the beauty
of the tree; the botanist with its botanical name, Quercus alba, White Oak;
the lumberman, 300 feet. He saw lumber. All went to view the same thing. In a
way all saw the same thing. Yet it must be said all saw differently, each seeing
most clearly what he was equipped by education and experience to see.
Impressions Depend On Our
Viewpoint
The photograph one takes depends
upon where he places his camera. So one's impression of men will depend upon
the standpoint from which he views them, or what he really knows about man. Jesus saw men from the
viewpoint of a complete understanding of what man is. He saw more clearly than
anyone else has ever seen the good in man. He knew that the real man is ever
the perfect expression of his perfect Father, God. He proved this times without number. Had Jesus
not known that God alone governs man, could he have instantaneously healed a
person who had been for years unable to walk? Had Jesus not known that sight is
a quality of Mind which the real man ever possesses, could he have
instantaneously healed the man who was "born blind"? Had he not known
that health is a quality of Mind which man cannot lose, could he have proved on
many occasions and to multitudes of sick folk that they were well? Had Jesus
not known that man's life is deathless because God is man's Life, could he have
proved instantaneously to Lazarus that though he had lain in the grave four
days he was in reality alive and well?
Where others saw a human being
whose normal movements were hampered by distorted limbs, Jesus saw man expressing
God's harmonious government. He must
have known that, as Mrs. Eddy has expressed it (Science and Health,
p. 283), "Mind is the source of all movement, and there is no inertia to
retard or check its perpetual and harmonious action." Where others saw
their fellowmen ill "with divers diseases and torments" Jesus saw - what?
Let me answer this question with a sentence from the Christian Science
textbook. No other statement I know of presents, so concisely and so completely
Jesus' view of man and its direct and inevitable result. This is it:
"Jesus beheld in Science the perfect man, who appeared to him where sinning
mortal man appears to mortals. In this perfect man the Saviour saw God's own
likeness; and this correct view of man healed the sick" (Science and
Health, pp. 476, 477).
Do you ask how it came about that
Mrs. Eddy understood so well the background and method of Jesus' marvelous
works? Because she had devoted years to the study and practice of them. First
she was remarkably healed of an injury caused by an accident, and pronounced
fatal by the physicians. This healing came about while she was pondering
Matthew's account of a healing by Jesus. But to be healed herself was not
enough. She must know the Science of this healing in order that others might
be healed. For three years, Mrs. Eddy tells us (Science and Health, p. 109),
she "sought the solution of this problem of Mind-healing, searched the
Scriptures and read little else, kept aloof from society, and devoted time and
energies to discovering a positive rule." She discovered the long-lost
Science of healing, and submitted it to the broadest practical tests in the
healing of disease of every kind for nine years before writing the Christian Science
textbook. Indeed so completely did Mrs. Eddy understand the truth upon which
Jesus' healings were based, and so clearly has she presented those truths
about God and man in the Christian Science textbook, that men and women are now
being healed daily simply through the study of this book.
Law of Retaliation
Annulled by Jesus
Another outstanding characteristic
of Jesus was his readiness to forgive. The old law had said, "An eye for
an eye, and a tooth for a tooth." This was the law of retaliation, but
Jesus presented what was looked upon as a moral innovation. He said, "Love
your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and
pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you." Even his
disciples were amazed at such a doctrine. Some time later Peter came to Jesus
with a question. He wanted to know whether there was to be any limit to this
new rule. So he asked Jesus, "How oft shall my brother sin against me, and
I forgive him? till seven times?" Peter had come to the place where he
thought it might be possible to do it a few times. But Jesus' reply was,
"I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times
seven." There was to be no limit.
Many today congratulate themselves
that they are living in a very practical age, an age of efficiency, an age when
lost motion is reduced to a minimum. Suppose we ask them a question: How
efficient has been the method of retaliation in overcoming wrong? It has been
employed for thousands of years by individuals, tribes and nations in their
attempt to adjust wrongs, and is still in use. Do you know of a single instance
in which an offense has been overcome by that method? Not one. There is but one
method by which the trouble can be wiped out. There is only one successful way
to deal with it. The way Jesus pointed out: forgiveness. Aleyn the poet puts it
this way:
The fine and noble way to kill a
foe
Is not to kill him; you with kindness
may
So change him, that he shall cease
to be;
Then he is slain.
The reason forgiveness is so successful
in overcoming wrong is that it wins the wrongdoer. It appeals to the good in
him and awakens it and thus gets at the very root of the difficulty.
Unfortunately one's forgiveness of
another is still regarded by many as a giving in to wrong; as a manifestation
of weakness. If any of you are of that opinion I should advise you to put it to
the test. The next time an offense is committed against you, try forgiveness.
See if you are strong enough to do it. You may find that it may take all the
strength of character, yes, and all the godliness you can summon to really
forgive. Of this I can assure you, you will never again think of forgiveness
as a phase of weakness.
Evil and Transgressor
Separated by Science
Forgiveness as understood in Christian
Science is based upon the scientific fact that evil is not of God, is not a
quality of His likeness, man, is not real. It is therefore possible for us to
love the person while we condemn the evil he may have committed, and our love
for him appealing to and awakening the good in him may bring about repentance
and reform, the obliteration of the evil. Punishment might not do it. Promises
of reward might not do it. Evil sometimes claims to have more power over men
than either fear of punishment or hope of reward. But it cannot withstand
forgiving love. That is the one weapon with which we can make sure headway
against even intentional offenses. That was Jesus' way. His life-history from
the day of his first talk with his disciples until the day of his crucifixion
was one forgiveness after another. He tested its efficacy. It never failed.
In our own day our Leader, Mrs.
Eddy, used the same method. Thirty-eight years after her discovery of
Christian Science, years during which she had been compelled to meet over and
over again deliberate attempts to harm her, she wrote (Message to The Mother
Church for 1902, p. 19), "Brethren, even as Jesus forgave, forgive thou. I
say it with joy, - no person can commit an offense against me that I cannot
forgive."
Only one who had experienced victory
after victory over evil; only one who had tested and proved the strength of the
weapon of forgiveness; only one who was strong in "the strength which God
supplies," and had proved it, could make a statement of that kind.
Love Brings Victory Over
All Resentments
According to Webster's New
International Dictionary the principal definitions of the word "forgive"
are: 1. "To give up resentment or claim to requital on account of an
offense or wrong." 2. "To cease to feel resentment against, on
account of wrong committed." According to these definitions your
forgiveness of another would mean a giving up of resentment on your part;
obtaining a victory over resentment through love. Both definitions seem to imply
a struggle within one's own mentality between love and resentment, love being
the victor.
Such victories will come more
readily as one grows in his understanding of the truth of being; as he
understands more fully the omnipresence of good and the consequent unreality
of evil. This understanding will enable him to prove that no attempt to harm
him can stir him to resentment. But were his understanding of God's
omnipresence and evil's unreality still more complete, do not you think that
it might help also the one who attempted to harm him? Might it not heal him of
the desire to harm his brother man?
This brings us to the consideration
of a phase of forgiveness into which the overcoming of resentment does not
seem to enter. You will remember an account in the New Testament of the healing
of a "man which was taken with a palsy." Luke tells us when Jesus
"saw their faith, he said unto him, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee."
Is it not as though Jesus had said or clearly realized, The phase of evil which
has claimed to control you is utterly powerless. It has no dominion over you
whatever, for God, good, alone governs man? In other words, Jesus' understanding
that neither sin nor disease could be any part of the real selfhood of the one
who appeared before him set the man free.
Forgiveness as understood in
Christian Science is based upon "the destruction of sin and the spiritual
understanding that casts out evil as unreal" (Science and Health, p. 497).
Forgiveness in this higher sense does not mean overlooking error, or simply annulling
its effect, but means correcting error, destroying it, wiping it out.
Let us use a very simple illustration.
In mathematics there is a principle which governs computation. This principle
is present, is available, and is unchangeable regardless of locality. Were you
to make an error in computation you would not think of trying to get out of the
difficulty by beseeching this principle to overlook or pardon your mistake.
You would know that the only way in which you could be really freed from it
would be through your gaining the necessary understanding of what is true
about that particular phase of mathematics. When through that understanding the
error had been corrected, had been destroyed, there would remain nothing of it
to be pardoned.
Universe Is Governed By
Divine Principle
Now to make use of the illustration.
Through Christian Science you may learn that God is the divine Principle of the
universe, including man; that God, divine Principle, is everywhere present,
everywhere available, unalterable divine Love; that man in God's likeness is a
perfect spiritual being and is governed by God alone; that evil has neither
place in nor power over God or His creation, man. Now let us suppose that you
believe you are subject to some form of evil; guilty of some wrong. Would you
try to get out of the difficulty by beseeching God, divine Principle, to
overlook the error? Is not your need that it be corrected, that it be
destroyed? Is not the error wholly mental? Is it not rooted in some false belief?
Is not, then, your real need knowledge? Is not your need to know more of the
truth about God and man as it has been revealed by our Master, and through the
Science of Christianity? Will not a knowledge of Truth dispel a belief in
error? Then when the error has been corrected, has been destroyed, there will
remain nothing of it to be pardoned.
When the sick or the sinning came
to Jesus for healing, his understanding of the truth healed them. He healed
sin as he healed sickness. The word forgiveness, then, in connection with the
healing of sin, can have but one meaning: sin's destruction.
As followers of Christ Jesus
should it not be our endeavor to forgive as he forgave; to destroy evil as he
destroyed it? In order to do this we must learn to separate completely the
belief of evil from our thought of man. How can we equip ourselves to do this?
Through the study and practice of the teachings of two divinely inspired
works, the Bible and the Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health
with Key to the Scriptures" by Mary Baker Eddy.
Fearlessness Shown In
Jesus' Ministry
Another characteristic of Jesus
was his fearlessness. In this he exceeded all other men of his time. The
Gospels inform us that Herod feared John the Baptist, the priests feared the
people, the scribes and Pharisees feared the multitude, Pilate feared Caesar,
Jesus' friends were fearful on more than one occasion, and lastly, the
disciples were so fearful that they deserted in the crucial hour the one they
most dearly loved. Among them all Jesus alone was unafraid.
Quite early in his ministry he
became aware that the truths he was teaching were so obnoxious to those in
authority that sometime they would cease to tolerate him. Yet he continued to
teach. He knew that his attitude toward man ran counter to the traditions and
prejudices of nationality, race, caste, and creed, yet he continued to deal
with men as individuals and upon the basis of their needs. He foresaw that his
practice of the truth about God and man would result in his betrayal and
crucifixion, yet he did not cease his healing works. He knew that he was
surrounded by enemies, that he was, to use his own expression, as a "sheep
in the midst of wolves." Yet he was unafraid.
He detected fear in the minds of
others. He recognized what they were fearing. But he saw further and perceived
the unreality and powerlessness of fear in the same situation. He encouraged
his disciples to "Be not afraid," to "Fear not," and on
one occasion he rebuked them with, "Why are ye fearful?" If Jesus
could be unafraid in a situation which everyone else feared, there is but one
satisfactory explanation, and that is that he knew more, that he understood the
situation more completely, that he saw what they did not see; and his rebuking
others for being afraid indicates that he believed it possible for them to see
what he saw and to understand what he understood.
Mrs. Eddy Exemplified
Reliance on Principle
Why was Jesus unafraid? Because
of the completeness of his understanding of God, his understanding of man, and
his understanding of the relation which ever exists between God and man. Fear
and understanding cannot dwell together. Jesus knew God as the divine Principle
of the universe. He had proved his understanding of Principle. He had proved
over and over again God's ability and willingness to meet the needs of His
children whether the need be the supply of food, the restoration of health, the
protection from disaster or even resurrection from the grave. Jesus did not
merely believe in God. He knew God to be man's perfect Principle, and was able
to prove this. He was a scientific Christian.
Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer
and Founder of Christian Science, in her endeavor to follow the teachings and
practice of Christ Jesus encountered much the same kind of opposition. Is it
not strange that the reformer, one who selflessly devotes his life to finding
the way and leading his people out of bondage, should be misrepresented and
abused? Was it because Mrs. Eddy failed on any occasion to heal the sick or the
sinning that she was denounced? No, not in a single instance. Did her
instantaneous healings of admittedly incurable disease seem to be the occasion
for jealousy and hatred to strike at her? It would seem so, strangely enough.
Did her proclamation of a new and truer view of God arouse the enmity of her
fellow men? Not especially. It is conceivable that if Mrs. Eddy had confined
her activities to speaking, she might have announced her discovery of the truth
about God without its stirring the people to enmity against her. But when she
put into practice what she had learned about God; when that true view of God
was translated into an altogether new attitude toward man, an attitude which
differed fundamentally from the universally accepted views of man; when that
true view of man was not only proclaimed but proved to be efficacious in the
healing of the sick, in the comforting of the sorrowful, and in the
reformation of the sinner; when the carnal mind detected that its powerlessness,
its nothingness, had been disclosed, it rose in all its pretense to might to
destroy its destroyer and aimed its weapon at the Discoverer of Christian
Science. Yet she daily continued to teach and practice the truth she
discovered.
Understanding of God
Uncovers Counterfeits
Writing of her longing to help
humanity, the inescapable conflict, and the sure reward, Mrs. Eddy has said
(Science and Health, p. 226), "The lame, the deaf, the dumb, the blind, the
sick, the sensual, the sinner, I wished to save from the slavery of their own
beliefs and from the educational systems of the Pharaohs, who to-day, as of
yore, hold the children of Israel in bondage. I saw before me the awful
conflict, the
Through revelation, reason, and
demonstration she acquired an
understanding of the truth about God and man. This understanding of
the divine Mind, of God and His laws, enabled her to detect the counterfeit
operations of the human mentality and its accepted beliefs of cause and effect.
She saw that sickness of every kind is based on fear. Not only was she able to
discern that fear is the cause of sickness, but she was able to point out
definitely the basis of its destruction, as in this passage from our textbook
(Science and Health, p. 412), "The great fact that God lovingly governs
all, never punishing aught but sin, is your standpoint, from which to advance
and destroy the human fear of sickness."
Many are able to testify today
that through Christian Science they have been able to understand more fully
than before God's ability and willingness to meet their needs whatever these
may be, and therefore are able to recognize and reject the arguments of fear in
their inception, and thus avail themselves of the divine protection which is
naturally and justly theirs.
Sickness and Sin Are Both
Temptations
Speaking of the Christian
Scientist, Mrs. Eddy has said (Science and Health, p. 450), "Sickness to
him is no less a temptation than is sin." Have you ever looked upon
sickness in its inception as a temptation?
Have you ever thought of it as an argument, a demand, a whispered
suggestion? If you think of it in that way perhaps you will feel better able
to cope with it. Let me illustrate. Let us compare the temptation to be sick
with the temptation to steal. Suppose that you were shown into a room alone in
someone else's house and there was some money lying on the table. I shall not
say it is probable, but it may be possible under some circumstances, that a
suggestion might come to you saying, Take it. What would you do? If you were
striving to follow the teachings of Jesus, our Exemplar, would you not answer it
with a definite, No, I will not? and perhaps support that answer with some such
statement as this if you are a Christian Scientist, I am governed by Principle,
dishonesty has no attraction for me. I am honest. I will have nothing to do
with it. Suppose the argument returns, saying, There's nobody looking. Will
you not stand your ground and just as definitely and decidedly say, No? Suppose
it comes again saying, No one would know anything about it. Would you not be
even more emphatic, if possible, in its rejection? If you did so do you not
think that you would be strengthened and the temptation be weakened each time
you met it with a decisive denial?
Affirmation of Truth Bars
Evil Suggestions
Now let us suppose that you wake
some morning and something seems to whisper, You are ill. How are you going to
deal with this suggestion? Are you going to meet it with a vigorous, No, and if
necessary support that denial with an affirmation of your immunity from any
such thing because you know that you are under God's loving care and
protection? Or are you going to examine your body, that is, think about it all
over to find out how it feels? Suppose the argument returns, saying, You
remember you got wet yesterday. Are you not going to deny emphatically the
suggestion that a little water can disturb the harmony of man? Will you not
mentally insist that man is under God's government and that His government is
harmonious? Thus doing you will reject and refute the arguments, the
suggestions, the demands, the temptations to accept as yours something that
never did, does not now, and never will belong to you.
The suggestion to steal does not
come from the money, neither does the temptation to be sick come from the body.
In either case the temptation is mental, and must be met mentally and from this
Christianly scientific basis, that God, good, alone governs man.
Mrs. Eddy Perceived
Unreality of Fear
Looking at sickness in this way,
and this is a proper way to look upon it, helps to dispel the fear of it, and
helps us to see that it is entirely within our God-given power to refuse it
admittance to our mental house.
Through Christian Science we may
gain an increasing understanding of God, of His nearness, of His ability and
willingness to meet our needs, and thus in ever increasing measure dispel fear
from our lives. Our Master led and showed us the way. By parable after parable,
illustration after illustration, proof after proof, he endeavored to show us
that God is Love alone; that His love completely surrounds, completely enfolds
us, and therefore there is no occasion for fear.
Our Leader, Mrs. Eddy, followed
closely in the footsteps of the great Exemplar. So clearly did she perceive the
unreality of fear that she was able to write in "Retrospection and
Introspection" (p. 61), "Science saith to fear, 'You are the cause
of all sickness; but you are a self-constituted falsity, - you are darkness,
nothingness. . . . You do not exist, and have no right to exist, for "perfect
Love casteth out fear." ' "
According to Christian Science,
then, these are the facts: that the man of God's creating is unafraid, and that
you yourself are no other than this man.
Happiness of Jesus Proved
in Victories
Another characteristic of Jesus
was happiness. It is possible that this statement may surprise some of you. Can
it be possible, you say, that Jesus was a happy man? Did he not encounter
opposition, rejection, and persecution such as no one else has ever
experienced? Yes, that is true, and because of these he has been called the
"Man of Sorrows." But do you really believe that title fittingly
described his character, or habit of mind? True, he endured ingratitude and
persecution unspeakable. But did he not win a spiritual victory over them in
every instance? He was always victorious. He lived habitually in the sunshine
of his sureness of God. He said that he abode in his Father's love, that he
desired that his joy might remain in his followers, and that their "joy
might be full." In the light of what Jesus knew, of what he had proved
over and over of God's love and nearness, can we think of him as other than
joyous and happy?
There may be those who are so sure
that Jesus was habitually sad and sorrowful that they feel that his followers
should always be grave and long-faced, indeed they may even go so far as to
doubt the Christianity of anyone who is habitually joyous. But would not this
be due to a misunderstanding of Jesus' character? In this connection permit me
to quote a sentence or two from a very well-known clergyman and writer. He
says, "Goodness which is not radiant has something the matter with it.
Goodness which, however impeccable, makes life seem cramped, pinched,
restrained, and unhappy, is not real goodness. Such good people are often exasperating
nuisances. One who has to deal
with them understands the little girl's prayer: 'O God, make all the bad people
good - and make all the good people nice!' " I suppose she meant, make
them pleasant, cheerful and happy.
Health and Holiness
Linked to Happiness
But let us look at this subject
from the viewpoint of Christian Science. Mrs. Eddy has said (Science and
Health, p. 337), "For true happiness, man must harmonize with his
Principle, divine Love." Did not Jesus' life abundantly demonstrate his
at-one-ment with the Father? Did he not then possess true happiness? Mrs. Eddy
has said further, "Happiness is spiritual, born of Truth and Love" (ibid., p. 57). Surely then, Jesus,
who manifested all the spiritual qualities without measure, must have been the
happiest of men.
An examination of Mrs. Eddy's use
of the word "happiness" and the many times she uses it in combination
with "health" or "holiness" will show that she regarded
happiness as a natural, inherent, and essential quality of man.
A well-known hymn (Christian
Science Hymnal, No. 109) tells us that the man "whose life of care and
labor flows, where God points out the way" is happy. Should not this be
our daily endeavor, to seek and to follow God's guidance in the ordinary affairs
of everyday life, yes, "in every act, in every thought"?
Thus doing we shall be led aright,
not only in the many decisions incident to our daily occupation, but in the
realm of thought we shall be empowered to detect and reject those
thought-parasites, such as selfishness, expectation of evil, resentment, revenge,
and fear, which could not develop in us save only as they fed upon us, and we
shall be inspired to implant those thought-seeds which as they grow will make
us resemble more and more in character our great Exemplar.
The Christian Science Monitor