I was reading some propaganda on Christian Science yesterday, actually I got side tracked while I was looking up other stuff. Should anything surprise me? When asking God for direction when it comes to spiritual growth I am rest assured I have found something worth pursuing with the utmost passion.
As with everything material one can find an argument for or against if looking for it and then depending on how convincing the case is, agree with it or not. I like to have an open mind yet not be ignorant of a bias position. It is a good thing with that in mind so no-one takes ‘up his cross’ blindly for ‘having eyes see ye not’. I always like to consider the argument to see if it is worth anything. “We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose.” From a mortal perspective I guess it boils down to if one wants to see the light or live in darkness!
Is not the carnal flesh, mortality, darkness warring with the light, the spiritual reality of being on a individual and global scale even as I type? The dragon, if you like dragons, the accuser, the anti-Christ warring with Christ, Truth, Love. On a human scale, David warring with Goliath and individually the purification of thought? Not just declaring but demonstrating Man made in the image and likeness of God. God uncovers anything unlike himself and ‘divides the light from the darkness’ and sees darkness for what it is – ‘without form and void’, nothing – a lie, a belief in something that is not – materialism.
That being said I still find these articles interesting and useful – Truth draws out all so-called error so as to destroy it with the word of God. These articles show how the carnal mind, darkness seemingly at work wars with Spirit, light and truth. From a material view these experiences turn me back to the bible with a fervent desire to understand and know the spiritual truths of the scriptures better, and to be re-assured through God’s on-going guidance and leadership. They help me to balance good and bad materialistic viewpoints and to search beyond, to spiritual understanding. They are constant reminders that to understand the Truth, one must always start with the Truth, from the premise of Truth, not the premise of matter, thus grounding me further in God’s sure foundation.
Anyway, I was reading this article and I was thinking about how some people get this concept and some don’t – the spiritual awakening that gives a glimpse of Truth – in my experience it does not matter if one is a Christian Scientists or not. In God’s kingdom all are members through Christ. A glimpse, a realization – understanding that life is spiritual and that God truly does govern everything – is Life, Truth and Love; is Mind, Soul and Spirit – is Principle of all, can be gained by all. God can’t exclude any genuine heart and all can experience Christ here and now, this is true to my experience and perhaps explains to a small degree why anyone can be healed through the application of Christian Science, Christ Science.
Reading this article with my analytical cap on, quite a few thoughts passed by – why this, what that, how, who, when, etc and I “marveled at their unbelief’ and wondered “shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? God forbid”. With my compassion cap on I appreciated how this guy had a genuine desire to ‘save the world’ from something he did not understand. I then thought how if he was really seeking the truth he may have at least tried to some degree, with an honest heart, applied the precepts Christ taught on himself – to understand – not seeking answers from a material sense but with a sincere desire to know the truth. I thought ‘perhaps if he were genuine, he would have experienced something more than biased material stats, facts and findings that seemingly supported his argument’. Something so profound that man would either flee in fear of ‘being saved’ and the sacrifice required lest he ‘be converted’ and healed by Christ. Is it not simpler to instead of proceeding to climb the mountain find any rock to sit on whilst it provides us comfort and self-satisfaction?
Any argument, be it for Christ the light of Truth or against Christ – error, sin and mortality, the anti-Christ is from a materialistic standpoint. God doesn’t argue with nothing, his word is enough. Then I wondered if I could pray for this guy to help him see the truth and of course immediately succeeding that thought came the thought that you cannot pray for someone who doesn’t ask or want to be prayed for. (I so love angel messages) “and as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.” That then lead me to another thought that I can pray for myself and affirm my understanding of the world as God created it. Then I thought ‘God, How would I do that?’ and having the bible on the shelve next to my computer I picked it up and opened it.
“And he said unto them, When ye pray, say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed by thy name, Thy kingdom come.”
Can God give me a more direct answer than that or a better answer – I don’t think so. How should I pray for the world? Of course with the most well known prayer that meets all human needs known in the history of mankind. What are the odds – odds of course being based on chance or the analysis of probability – I figure roughly my chance of opening the bible on at verse that starts the Lords prayer is about 1 in 100,000 (based on an average of 18 verses per page and the Lords prayer appearing twice – though a mathematician could give a better estimate of odds! Considering I don’t believe in ‘chance’ or ‘luck’ am I satisfied. ‘Because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and believed’.
Work it out ‘with fear and trembling’ because Truth and Love will ask you to ‘give up all for Christ’, that is all false sense, all carnal knowledge, and to walk therein, to have ‘the mind of Christ’ – of Truth and Love – ‘this is Life eternal, to know him’. I’m still not a ‘Christian Scientist’ as per say – I’m not even sure if I need to label myself as one yet but I know that, when I do it will be because I have nothing left to lose but everything to gain.
As yet I have found not any propaganda to outweigh my personal experiences supporting that when honestly applied in daily life and thought that Christian Science reveals Christ and heals. Giving up false sense isn’t about just about denial of illusion, I can deny but what good is that if I cannot demonstrate? It’s about understanding why and uncovering carnal evils – errors, false beliefs and correcting them. I know I am on the right path by the spiritual realizations in my experience and until that is done to my satisfaction I remain at the hem of the garment so to speak grasping at crumbs. I remember in high school doing a speech, my first speech in front of class. I choose the topic ‘domiciliary care’ and it started as such: Labels – not labels on jars but labels on people. Why do we put labels on people? I thought it was a good speech even if I can only remember the introduction – my point is this – human labeling is materialism – sometimes good, sometimes bad but ‘always erroneous’.
What is the Christ Science, this Truth that heals illness, sickness and disease and ‘wipes it out in the most effectual manner?’ I suppose one has to start with prayer – a prayer that starts with an awakening to Our Father which art in heaven. Fundamentally, to lose the false sense material naturally, to loosen the shackling cloth and put on the garment of Christ to find there is no false sense and thus no longer a desire for a false sense.
‘To overcome evil with good” and to give unto me a clean heart, to purify my heart from all carnal sense – pleasure and pain? “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” My experiences verify my understanding of God. A quote I love from the bible is the fact that we are not fighting brother or sister, brethren but are warring with principalities. “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” and that this warfare is not mine but be longs to Christ, who is always the victor – either in this world or hereafter – the material so-called existence or whatever so-called world – existence comes after death depending of course on what you believe it will be – Que Sera Sera! Nothing is real until we wake in the image and likeness of our maker, ‘for as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.”
“For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal (mortal beliefs), but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations (and boy don’t I hate imaginations), and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ “that all might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”
I found it interesting that Christian Science uses St Matthew 6:9-13 Lord’s prayer whereas I opened my bible to Mark 11:2-4. There are some slight variances.
“Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come is the same. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” in Matthew and “as in heaven, so on earth” in Luke. Mary Baker Eddy in Science and Health gives us the interpretation of “Enable us to know, – as in heaven, so on earth, God is omnipotent, supreme”. My italics for my understanding is that God is now – everywhere.
“Give us this day our daily bread.” “Give us day by day our daily bread”. It makes me think of the Lily – “how they toil not” and take “no thought for the morrow”! Mary Bakers interpretation: “Give us grace for to-day; feed the famished affections;” Let me feel the Love of God embracing me, now – where ever I am.
And forgive us our debts (our sins), as we forgive our debtors (for we also forgive everyone that is indebted to us). Interpretation: “And Love is reflected in love;” Here I pause for a moment to imagine everyone forgiving everyone for every sense of wrong, for every sense of sin, for every mistake – totally wiped out in an instant and everyone loving the Lord God with their entire hearts and loving their neighbors with their entire hearts as themselves.
“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:” Luke ends here… Mary Baker Eddy’s interpretation: “And God leadeth us not into temptation, but delivereth us from sin, disease, and death.” God doesn’t lead us into temptation (mortal sense) because he never made it, but through Christ, Truth and Love he restores our sense of what is true and the true nature of all things.
“For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.” “For God is infinite, all-power, all Life, Truth, Love, over all, and All.” Matthew 6/Luke 11/S&H 17
The glossary in Science and Health goes further in spiritual insights to consider. “Earth: A sphere; a type of eternity and immortality, which are likewise without beginning and end. To material sense, earth is matter (materialism); to spiritual sense, it is a compound idea.” “Heaven: Harmony, the reign of Spirit, government from divine Principle (God), spirituality (not spiritualism), bliss, the atmosphere of Soul. “Firmament: Spiritual understanding; the scientific line of demarcation between Truth and error, between Spirit and so-called matter.”
Our Father – that is the Fatherhood of all – nations, the Father of Christ, his Son and through Christ also our sonship as children of God – Our heavenly Father-Mother is the all-inclusive God. “God is our Father and our Mother, our Minister and the great Physician: He is man’s only real relative on earth and in heaven. David sang, “Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee.” Brother, sister, beloved in the Lord, knowest thou thyself, and art thou acquainted with God? If not, I pray thee as a Christian Scientist, (a follower of Christ and his teachings) delay not to make Him thy first acquaintance.”
“The Master said, “No man cometh unto the Father [the divine Principle of being] but by me,” Christ, Life, Truth, Love; for Christ says, “I am the way.”””Likewise we can speak of the truth of Truth and of the life of Life, for Christ plainly declared, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”
So how should I pray for the world, for peace harmony health – I gotta do what God tells me and start with “the Lords prayer”.
1 Corinthians 2:16, 15:22, 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, Ephesians 6:12, Genesis 1:2-3, 26-27, John 17:2-4, 20:29, Psalm 139:23-24, Leviticus 18:4, Luke 6:31, 11:2, Mark 8:18, 34, Matthew 6:28, 34, 10:34-35, 13:15, Romans 8:28, Romans 12:21, 1 Samuel 17, S&H 12:18, 227:29, 286:9, 320:1, 420:10 Mis. 151:13
thummim 