Editorial October 14, 1916 Issue

"Seek ye the kingdom"

Archibald McLellan

HUMAN existence is so largely made up of conscious and unconscious beliefs in the reality of matter and of evil, that he who would measurably demonstrate the allness of God, good, must keep himself well schooled and alert not only in the constant practice of his best sense of right doing, but also in an attempt to analyze every thought, motive, and expression in its right relationship to the first commandment, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." Through this mental analysis he will find that one of the most insidious beliefs which comes to him to be disposed of is that which in various ways insists that there necessarily must be times of lack of substance as well as times of plenty, times of depletion as well as times of accretion, dull seasons and busy seasons.

An analysis of this belief or suggestion would of course show at once that it is antagonistic to this primary commandment, inasmuch as it posits a further belief that God is unmindful of the needs of man or is incompetent continuously to supply them. Still further analysis will prove that this belief is not of itself even fundamental or basic, but rather the outcome of a far more serious belief, namely, that evil is as real and as powerful as good, which is simply another way of saying that God is the creator of both good and evil, or that there is some other creator equally powerful or immanent. Of course this is a mistaken concept of God and His creation, and most persons when they see that in effect it constitutes a breach of the first great commandment will gladly disown and repudiate it, for if God were the creator of evil He would be worse and more guilty than any criminal that ever faced trial.

When Jesus fed the multitude with the few loaves and fishes, he proved that the apparent lack in this case was an illusion, without foundation, and not according to God's law. If he had believed that matter was real, and the alleged lack of it could be supplied only by the material processes which we so glibly refer to as the laws of nature, he, and those who followed him to the "desert place" where he "healed their sick," would have been helpless and afraid in the face of such a problem as there presented itself. Fortunately for them, and fortunately for all succeeding generations who have "believed on him," he knew that "man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." He also, on another occasion, pointed out the way to annul the belief of depletion when he said, "Seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind ... but rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you."

Send a comment to the editors

NEXT IN THIS ISSUE

Editorial

Giving and Receiving