Independent Christian Science articles

Covenant with God

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The Bible is full of references to the covenant between God and many of the people in the Bible, like Abraham and others. That covenant goes something like this: if you will be faithful in your work for Me, that is God, I will take care of you. I’m grateful to learn in Christian Science that the covenant, that promise of God, is in fact a law. Throughout the entire universe that law is true for everyone in every time.

I was reminded recently of an experience I had a couple of years ago. I had to schedule a business trip in early February, in the middle of the winter, and this was a trip where it was appropriate for my wife to accompany me. In scheduling the trip and the meetings, I took into consideration the fact that my wife is also a Christian Science practitioner and needs the mornings to be able to take her calls. We also did not want to miss any church services on Wednesday or Sunday. So, when I took all of this into consideration for flight schedules, there was only one flight in each direction that would enable us to meet all of our obligations for the church. I scheduled those flights, and I scheduled meetings around them.

As we were approaching the time of the trip, there were forecasts of severe storms threatening our ability to take the trip. However, our flight out of New Jersey took place, and it was perfect. It left just before a big snowstorm arrived in New Jersey. All of the other flights were canceled that day.

On our return flight the same kind of thing happened. As we prepared to board our flight home to New Jersey, there was a forecast of a severe snowstorm in New Jersey. There was a question whether our flight would be able to leave, but it did leave, and landed in New Jersey minutes before another big snowstorm hit. All the other flights back to New Jersey that day were canceled.

This was a wonderful proof of God’s covenant, and an example that when we put God’s work first in our lives, He does take care of everything. I’m very grateful to God for taking care of this whole situation, and making sure we were where we needed to be to take care of His business. I’m grateful to Mary Baker Eddy for giving us God’s Science of Christianity, where the promises of God are shown to be divine law that we can count on when we fulfill our part of that covenant.

Confronting Error

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I’m very grateful for all the life lessons that I have learned here in this church through Christian Science, and many of them with the help of our practitioner and teacher, Mrs. Doris Evans. One of the things that was perhaps more difficult for me to learn, but definitely important to learn, was that there is a battle going on between good and evil — or so it seems to be going on — and we are part of it. We need to make sure we’re fighting on the right side if we want to have a successful and fulfilling life, and see the allness of good, the Allness of God. Well, this idea that we have to fight for what’s right was something I really didn’t appreciate before I came to this church. In fact, when our teacher first told me the importance of being on the right side of this battle, I didn’t like the idea that there had to be a battle in the first place. I thought it was appropriate to go through life being diplomatic about things and working things out peacefully. I couldn’t have been more wrong. As a result of that attitude, I had some serious problems in my life, being incapable of confrontation.

So, I had relationships with people in my career, and other places, that were just not healthy. It was all because I was far too willing to be soft on things that were wrong, and not fight for what was right. I was more concerned about not hurting people’s feelings than whether or not right was being done. Now, this battle is the Lord’s, it’s not personal. This was something that I had to learn. I had to learn to be one hundred percent obedient to God, to what is right, and not fear the consequences. I began to realize that this attitude of mine was an extremely selfish attitude. I was more concerned about my own well-being, or what people would think of me than anything else.

Then, I remember very well waking up one morning a changed person. I realized, yes of course, there is a battle going on, and I have a responsibility to stand for what is right if I am going to have a clear conscience. As I did that, a lot of problems that I had with facing confrontations were healed quickly. I have become more confident that God is in control of my life, and I have certainly found a peace that I didn’t know before this. I’m not so concerned about people’s feelings anymore. If there’s something going wrong, I am not afraid to speak up, out of love for them. I have learned, and am learning, that evil really is nothing, but it needs to be destroyed as a belief, and it gets destroyed in our own consciousness first. So, I am thankful for this lesson. It has changed my relationships with a lot of people, and changed my attitude toward a lot of things for the better. I am grateful to Mrs. Evans for helping me see what I needed to do, and I’m grateful to Mary Baker Eddy for standing in the heat of the battle before us, and winning it, and making this Truth available to the world.

A Good Deed to be Good Has to be Directed by God

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There’s a statement in our textbook that makes me very grateful for a lesson that I am learning in this church. That statement from Science and Health by Mary Baker Eddy, page 435 is, “…good deeds are immortal, bringing joy instead of grief, pleasure instead of pain, and life instead of death.” It was a fine teacher in this church who taught me that looking out for our brother, doing good deeds for others, is really the only way to ensure happiness. It’s really true that you can’t be unhappy when you’re helping somebody else out. It’s a wonderful remedy for depression, and this teacher taught me that the opposite of “depression” is “expression.” I have found that many times when I’m feeling down I’ve looked for something to do for someone else and done it, and sure enough, it cures the depression. I can’t feel down anymore.

I’m also grateful for the corollary lesson that comes with it. That lesson is to distinguish between a good deed that is indeed good, from deeds that are what we shall call human do-goody, which aren’t necessarily good. In order for a good deed to be good it has to be principled, it has to be directed by God, it cannot be human sympathy for somebody. Too many times, something like that can enable someone to continue to do things that aren’t in their best interest, and this is a tougher lesson to learn, I think.

I’m grateful for the help of Christian Science, and the practitioners in this church, for helping me to differentiate between what is really good, God-directed, and what is human do-goody, and not so good. So, I’m grateful to be learning this simple yet profound lesson, and I can honestly say that I am a much happier person most of the time as a result of learning this lesson. It does heal grief, it heals pain, it gives us a reason to live, and I’m grateful for the many opportunities we have in this church to help others.

Divine Love Meets the Human Need

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The Bible is full of examples of God meeting the need of those who honestly strive to follow His commandments. Joshua needed more daylight to defeat the kings of the Amorites, so God caused the earth to stop spinning for about a day to enable Joshua to complete the battle.

God also uses his most faithful servants to meet the general needs of mankind. Elizabeth was barren. It was humanly impossible for her to have a child. Yet she gave birth to John, who prepared the way for the arrival of Jesus. Mary was a virgin. Again, humanly impossible for her to have a child. Yet she gave birth to “the greatest man who ever trod the globe.” (S&H) Elizabeth and her husband were serving God the best they knew how. Divine Love (God) gave them a child who would do great good. Mary was the first woman to perceive “that God is the only author of man.” (S&H) This perception was the greatest need of all mankind, so she gave birth to the man who would prove this great truth for all of us.

There is a law in operation in each case. Divine principle is imperative. Whoever obeys God’s law will find that law operating in their life to meet whatever the human need is. That need may be for one person, or, as in Mary’s case, for all of mankind. Could there be any doubt that this God created and cares for everything? Is there any reason to doubt that He will meet your need? Mrs. Eddy states: “Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need.” We can certainly trust Him to do so. “For with God nothing shall be impossible.”

Deliverance from Hell

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Mrs. Eddy states in Science and Health: “To cause suffering as the result of sin, is the means of destroying sin.” Many religions misunderstand this concept and teach that God causes suffering to bring about His purpose on earth. Mrs. Eddy clears up this misconception. God doesn’t know sin or suffering! He did not create them; therefore He does not know them, or cause them. We create our own suffering by believing in a power other than God. And we stop suffering when we stop giving power to a false god.

We all worship something — either the true God or some false god (a movie star, a politician, a parent, a child, a pill — the list could be very long). In the story of the rich man and Lazarus, the two ended up with a “great gulf” between them, with Lazarus in heaven and the rich man in hell. The great gulf between the rich man and Lazarus is the same great gulf that exists between those who worship God and those who serve mammon — material wealth or possessions. There is no connection, no middle ground. It is impossible to serve both.

Mrs. Eddy states in Science and Health: “Are thoughts divine or human? That is the important question.” Herein lies the clue to salvation. Hell is not a location or a state from which there is no escape. God did not create it. Hell is a self-imposed state of agony which results from deliberately disobeying divine demands. Think of Jonah. He ended up in the “belly” of hell because he ran from God’s command.

The only way out is to change thought — by changing what we give power to. The rich man still believed in the power of his material possessions. He still believed in a material power that was finite — not enough to go around, so he had to hold on to it rather than share it, for fear of losing it. But it was that belief that created the gulf and put him in hell. “He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.” All he had to do was to repent (change his thinking), acknowledge an infinite, all-loving God whose good needs to be shared in order to be enjoyed, and he could remove himself from the hell he had created for himself. “If a man keep my saying, he shall never taste of death.” There is no other way out of hell — but there is a way out!

An Important Choice

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In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul wrote, “As in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” This is a great lesson when understood in Christian Science.

There are two distinct and opposite states of thought, and they represent a choice we all make every day. To be “in Adam” means to believe that there is life in matter, that our physical senses can tell us what is true. It leads to all the confusion and contradiction of that belief, and tries to make evil and sickness seem real, and death appear to be inevitable.

To be “in Christ” means to acknowledge, as the Bible declares, that God made all that is real, and that life is spiritual, not material. It means to “have that mind which was also in Christ.” Jesus’ teachings and example were clear. “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.” Our physical senses can never witness the truth; and, since all that God made is good, this proves evil is not real, and death is the ultimate lie.

One belief leads to a miserable life of fear, while the other leads to the truth, a fulfilling and peaceable life of unselfish service to God and mankind.

This is not a conflict between two different realities. Man didn’t fall from one reality to another opposite reality. It is a choice we make every day as to what we accept as true about God and ourselves. One choice is true — Jesus proved it to be true, as have countless others who have chosen to follow him. The other choice is a lie, and we can turn from it in a heartbeat. It is never too late to start believing the truth about God and His creation — you! Mary Baker Eddy implores us to “come out from the material world and be separate.” We have everything to gain and nothing (good) to lose.

Deborah

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Deborah was one of many women mentioned in the Bible whose life was worthy of great lessons. She served Israel as both a prophetess and a judge. The only thing we know about her personal life is the name of her husband, Lapidot. “She dwelt under the palm tree … and the Israelites came up to her for judgment.” Deborah did not inherit her position, but rather, earned it by her unswerving obedience to God.

During Deborah’s time, the valley in which she and her tribe lived was controlled by King Jabin of Hazor. Deborah, governed by God, summoned the warrior Barak to take ten thousand troops and confront Jabin’s general, Sisera, and his army’s nine hundred iron chariots, on Mount Tabor. Barak’s response to Deborah shows the high esteem in which she was held: “If you will go with me, I will go; if not I will not go.” She agreed to go with Barak, chiding him that it will be written that the enemy was defeated by a woman.

The battle took place during the rainy season. Sisera’s chariots quickly bogged down in the mud, and he and his army were eventually defeated by the Israeli army. Perhaps even more remarkable because she was a woman, Deborah held important positions in Israel, and carried them out with courage and confidence, undoubtedly the result of her trust in God and her obedience to Him. She accepted the mission God had given her and fulfilled it faithfully.

Love is the liberator.