“Agree With Thine Adversary Quickly”

From Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, 1910, by Mary Baker Eddy, page 162

The physician agrees with his “adversary quickly,” but upon different terms than does the metaphysician; for the matter-physician agrees with the disease, while the metaphysician agrees only with health and challenges disease.

From Collected Writings, by Bicknell Young, page 58

Get a patient out of the rut of depression, self-mesmerism; get them out of it. You can say to them, “Of course, you are not discouraged;” get the mortal mind right out of him. “I am not discouraged and it can’t find me.” You can’t fill others’ thoughts; it is animal magnetism. Meet adversary quickly; you haven’t got it; it is mortal mind.

From Sermons and Articles, by Doris White Evans, page 70

Reaction is the bridge over which animal magnetism reaches us. A disturbed, irritated thought is a catchall for error’s spurious suggestions.

What is the solution? The answer lies in the instant rejection of the aggressive suggestion. The Bible tells us to agree with our adversary quickly while we are in the way with him. Mrs. Eddy clarifies this in Science and Health by stating, “Suffer no claim of sin or of sickness to grow upon the thought. Dismiss it with an abiding conviction that it is illegitimate.” (p. 390)

A wise worker once said, ‚Be so instant in Truth that error is always too late.‛

From Christian Science, Its Clear, Correct Teaching, by Herbert Eustace, page 167 (top number), page 223 (bottom number)

Jesus’ command to “Agree with thine adversary quickly,” means to reverse the false sense quickly before you accept it. When you thus “agree,” you instantly see the one Mind as All-in-all, and that every word declares this allness.

From “Hints on Healing” by Rev. Frank E. Mason

Again Jesus said: “Agree (deal) with thine adversary quickly while thou art in the way with him; lest thou be cast into prison, where thou shalt remain till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.” “Thoughts are things,” and if we entertain thoughts of discord, they will become things to us and we shall be cast into prison (sickness), where we shall remain until the verdict of materia medica has been fulfilled through us. We can deal with these negative thoughts and master them by knowing that whatever their testimony, it is but a present lie.

From Mary Baker Eddy, Her Spiritual Precepts, by Gilbert Carpenter

We must realize every day that the adversary cannot prevent worthy, faithful students from receiving God’s blessings. Students who have given all their active years to the Cause of Christian Science must be protected so that they may receive their full reward, If for no other reason than that the world may learn that one cannnot labor for God without being richly rewarded by Him. The accumulated blessings for service should not be withheld from faithful workers, because of our lack of meeting the lie that would claim to rob them of such blessings.

There is an abundance of good waiting for every student who Is faithful in giving his time and labor to God. Think how Christian Science will rise In the estimation of the world, when it is proved that when age overtakes a faithful worker, it brings to him that peace of God that passeth all understanding, the absence of fear and lack, so that he or she can face the future and its problems with equanimity and confidence!

From Watches, Prayers, and Arguments, given by Mary Baker Eddy, page 124

The infinite light forever protects its idea in the substance of Soul. Evil minds have no power to reject, deny oppose or defy God; no power to stop the work of Christian Science.

There is a spiritual reversal for every argument of evil, and to declare it, agrees with your adversary “quickly.”

God will reverse every argument of evil, before it reaches us, through the Word, which is the two-edged sword, which liveth and abideth forever.

We must handle the claim of trickery, slander, meddlesomeness of the human mind.

From Mary Baker Eddy, Her Spiritual Footsteps, by Gilbert Carpenter, page 236

If animal magnetism darkened the thought of anyone concerning her experience, she knew that such a distorted vision was proof that this individual was governed by the adversary, and hence, could not possibly understand her revelation aright. Therefore, by attaching her name to her revelation, she made it impossible for anyone to approach Christian Science from a wrong basis of thought, without exposing this fact in his erroneous attitude toward her.

From Mary Baker Eddy, Her Spiritual Footsteps, by Gilbert Carpenter, page 139

No one could criticise Mrs. Eddy’s methods, since they bore such glorious fruitage. She perceived the necessity of the student overcoming the human tendency to laziness, which otherwise might stupefy him into yielding to animal magnetism and its lies. She adopted a standard in her home so high, that there were those who called it unnecessary fussiness. Nevertheless, she set the goal high intentionally, so that it could be fulfilled only through demonstration. Such a move was spiritually wise, because it brought forth from the students their best efforts, and kept them on their toes. Its fruitage was made manifest in their demonstrations.

Paul used this same method of endeavoring to bring out a present, instead of a delayed effort, when he wrote, “Now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation,” meaning thereby, that now was the only time in which to find God, so man must act quickly. This bugle-call to activity is necessary to rouse students from a lethargic putting off of the right effort into some future time.

From 500 Watching Points, by Gilbert Carpenter, page 211

245 — WATCH lest you fail to heed the admonition: … ‘that thou doest, do quickly,‛ as the Master said to Judas. If you pick up a live coal and drop it quickly enough, it will not burn your fingers. Thus recognize animal magnetism both for what it is and for what it is not; but do it so quickly that you do not dwell on it long enough to yield to the suggestion that you are fighting something; realize that there is no reality in any claim of evil opposing God and His children; know that no devilish power exists which persistently prevents man from being interested in that which would free him from delusion and restore him to perfect freedom and harmony — which scientifically experienced is the kingdom of heaven. In meeting the claim of animal magnetism, touch it only lightly and as quickly as possible, lest the contemplation of the apparent universality of this falsity cause you to build it up in your thought, instead of tear it down. When skating over thin ice, skate as fast as possible, so that you will not break through.

From Science and Health, first edition, by Mary Baker Glover, pages 394-398

“Agree with thine adversary quickly, while thou art in the way with him, lest at any time the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison; verily I say unto you, thou shalt not come out thence till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing.”

This was one of our Master’s rules for casting out error and healing the sick. It referred, however, not to legal proceedings, or processes material, but to a mental tribunal and judgment. The adversary was not man, but error; and the directions, how to proceed with sin or sickness that would impose through belief a penalty for transgressing law that is not law, insomuch as justice is the moral signification of law, and injustice implies its absence. Shall a teacher pay the penalty of sickness for performing well and faithfully her tasks? or a great mind, because of the good it has done, fall soonest a prey to disease? must man suffer at the hands of God, for steadfastly doing right? Shall the mother droop, or suffer, because of maternity, if such is the design of her being? Because of fatigue, exposure to cold, or some supposed infringement of the so-called laws of health, we ignorantly admit there is danger of being sick, and this mental position decides the physical one; therefore, “agree with thine adversary quickly;” say to this belief, “Get behind me, satan, for thou savorest not the things that are of God, but those that are of man;” it is not a broken moral law to which your penalty is attached, but a condition of matter, a demand from something wholly unintelligent and incapable of justice. God has no law of injustice, wrong proceeds from belief, and not Truth.

To conclude quickly on the treatment of error, was the rule our Master left for casting it out. He never recommended laws of health to our knowledge. On a law that is not God’s, we have a moral right to pass judgment, and to commute its sentence; every instance of matter, or the body, governing man, is justly condemned, and morally impossible insomuch as it manifests a want of Wisdom that renders it null and void. The only hope in sickness or sin, is to agree quickly with thine adversary; that is, if tempted, or if disease appears, to banish the temptation, or the disease, at once from the mind, and suffer it not to plead in its own behalf lest you fall a prey to your belief in the case. On this mental basis, when the first symptoms of disease appear, knowing they gain their ground in mind before they can in body, “agree quickly with thine adversary,” i. e., dismiss the first mental admission that you are sick; dispute sense with science, and, if you can annul the false process of law, alias your belief in the case, you will not be cast into prison or confinement. The sick must never plead guilty; in other words, admit they are sick, for then are they subject to sentence and imprisonment, according to the law of belief. Take the ground of science in the first instance, never admit sensation in matter, or that the body can be pained, or has any claims of its own, or power to make man suffer; adhere to this scientific position and battle the old belief with it until you destroy it, and you will get well. To agree quickly with thine adversary in the first instance of sickness, is to take antagonistic grounds to it, and prove your superiority over it. Not to admit disease, is to conquer it ; and if you understood the science of being, you would admit no reality to aught but God and his idea. When you say, “I am sick,” you plead guilty, that is, you admit matter has sensation and will be delivered to the judge, in other words, into the hands of this belief that will deliver thee to the officer (disease), the ruler of mortal man that casts him into prison and fetters his entire being. But disease has no Intelligence of its own, or law, whereby to do this. You sentence yourself unwittingly, therefore, “agree with thine adversary quickly;” meet every circumstance as its master, and watch your belief, instead of your body; think less of laws material, that you may appreciate better the spiritual law of being, yea, the dominion of man over matter. Meet every adverse circumstance with science, instead of the beliefs of sense, and you will master it.

Error is a coward before Truth, and death is but another phase of the dream of Life in matter, wherein we meet at every point the consciousness of continued existence, with the same beliefs to conquer, and the same errors of sense to master through science. We must understand our way out of difficulties, or we never in reality are out, and the harmony and immortality of man are never understood until every error of sense is destroyed. To apprehend the economy and capacity of man’s being, metaphysics must take the place of physics, and mind, instead of matter, be consulted in sickness. Fear, and its effects on the body are involuntary. Fear of disease and love of sin are the foundations of man’s enslavement; but for these he could triumph over his body. Mind acts on the subject before disease becomes apparent on the body; but the individual has no recognition of his belief producing disease until it is developed physically. We look to personal sense for the evidence of disease, but there is no personal sense, unless matter is intelligent and holds the issues of Life. Because mind acts unconsciously to sense, the sick say how can mind have caused disease, “I never thought of the disease until it appeared on my body.” But mind is first, and causation; nothing commences in matter; the plant springs from the eternal Intelligence — before we call it matter; but our mortal blindness and its sharp consequences, prove our need to understand the action of mind and its effects; we should study mind more and matter less, if we would avail ourselves of Soul in its control over sense. We can destroy sickness, the same as sin, by learning its origin and nature in mind, instead of body, and finding the belief that occasions it.

From Addresses, by Martha Wilcox, page 328

When assailed by the belief that there are no results from your work, agree with your adversary. There are no results in Mind. The only result in Mind is action or evidence, and that has been from all eternity, perfect, untouched by any belief or interruption; all existence, being reflection, is noumenal, not phenomenal.

When you understand that Mind is One and All, then you must admit that everything in your world comes to you as consciousness. If you do not turn from Mind, cause, to consider effect, you will experience as effect only that which is true, beautiful and satisfying. If “all is Mind,” what is there to turn to and where can you turn? If “all is Mind,” that Mind cannot be conscious of anything but itself as evidence.  

From Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, 1910, by Mary Baker Eddy, page 463

To decide quickly as to the proper treatment of error —whether error is manifested in forms of sickness, sin, or death — is the first step towards destroying error. Our Master treated error through Mind. He never enjoined obedience to the laws of nature, if by these are meant laws of matter, nor did he use drugs. There is a law of God applicable to healing, and it is a spiritual law instead of material.

From Unity of Good, by Mary Baker Eddy, page 57

When Jesus turned and said, “Who hath touched me?” he must have felt the influence of the woman’s thought; for it is written that he felt that “virtue had gone out of him.” His pure consciousness was discriminating, and rendered this infallible verdict; but he neither held her error by affinity nor by infirmity, for it was detected and dismissed.

From Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, 1910, by Mary Baker Eddy, page 430

The patient feels ill, ruminates, and the trial commences.

The Jury of Spiritual Senses agreed at once upon a verdict, and there resounded throughout the vast audience-chamber of Spirit the cry, Not guilty. Then the prisoner rose up regenerated, strong, free.

From Divinity Course and General Collectanea, (the “Blue Book”), by Mary Baker Eddy, page 199

Animal magnetism, I acknowledge your claims, but I denounce your power. When error speaks, nothing is said. Stop justifying yourself in error.