Article November 27, 1937 Issue

Undivided Allegiance to God

W. STUART BOOTH

In that unsurpassed compilation of practical spiritual teachings called the Sermon on the Mount, Christ Jesus definitely declared that our allegiance to God must be undivided. He said: "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon." Continuing, the great Master then instructed his followers to turn their thoughts away from consideration and contemplation of material things and conditions, promising that whatever is humanly necessary to men would be theirs if they would seek first the kingdom of God, that is, seek to have their thinking and living governed by divine Principle, Love.

Because of the revelation of spiritual reality and law which came to Mary Baker Eddy, whereby she was enabled to discern, declare, and demonstrate the Science of Christianity, the simple and practical import of Christ Jesus' teachings can now be understood and proved. Whereas it was formerly believed that men could worship and serve God, and at the same time depend upon material means for healing sickness, Christian Science, pointing to Jesus' statement, "It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing," insists consistently that there is no intelligence, law, power, nor influence in matter, and that to serve God we must accord all reality, law, and creative, controlling power to infinite divine Mind alone.

Christian Science shows, as did Christ Jesus, that there is no inherent ability in matter to help or to harm men. The understanding of this demonstrable fact destroys both fear of matter and faith in material means and methods of healing; and this enables men to place full reliance upon spiritual power and spiritual law. It is plain, therefore, that applied spiritual understanding protects us from a false world belief which would lead us away from the straight and right mental path trodden by Christ Jesus into the morass and mire of trust in and dependence upon materiality for healing. Lacking the spiritual understanding which Christian Science confers, men believe that matter creates its own discordant conditions, and that other forms of matter are required to change or correct these conditions. Thus men are educated to depend for healing upon either the pills and potions prescribed by doctors of medicine, upon surgical theories and practices, or some of the many other forms and phases of material hypotheses.

Send a comment to the editors

NEXT IN THIS ISSUE

Article

"Our gratitude is riches"