The Denial of Self

EDITH M. ALPE

Jesus said, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." Through the long dark ages of materialism, self has meant all that we are conscious of as material life, and the words of the Master have come to signify to mankind in general something almost impossible—the giving up of all that seemed desirable and pleasant. Such a conception has often led to asceticism and self-righteousness. This was of course the result of endeavoring to interpret spiritual verity through the medium of the material senses, for the material point of view is always the exact opposite of divine reality. That which to material sense may seem painful and distressing oft-times becomes from the spiritual standpoint a wellspring of delight, joy, and satisfaction.

Nowhere did Jesus teach that we should give up anything that is real, for that would be impossible. He did say that we should deny the seeming material selfhood of ourselves and others; in other words, that we should not conform in any way to the belief of an existence apart from God. The prophet Isaiah voiced this when he said, "Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils," and the unreality of this seeming mortal man has been clearly pointed out by our Leader in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," where she says (p. 478), "From beginning to end, whatever is mortal is composed of material human beliefs and of nothing else."

In no word or action of his did Jesus ever acknowledge any opposite to God, or recognize a material mind and its so-called material creation; he was conscious always and only of the one God, one Mind, and His reflection. As we commence to shape our lives more nearly in accordance with that of the Master, truth in consciousness gradually replaces the seeming reality of evil, and we find that all we ever have to deny is that age-long and self-evident illusion, the testimony of the material senses.

This, however, demands watchfulness, steadfastness, and faithful endeavor. At times there comes a mighty struggle with the material sense of life, for the carnal mind as it is uncovered by the light of Truth fights for its supposititious existence before it finally disappears. When once this false foundation, this cause of all human woe, is exposed and seen for the deception it is, not only are the attacks of pain and sickness more easily overcome, but selfishness and all the ugly passions attendant upon it—anger, jealousy, envy, impatience, and the like—begin to lose their power over us and to disappear from our lives, so that we sing with the psalmist, "In thy presence is fulness of joy." The denial of self then is simply the logical result of applying the truth found on page 492 of Science and Health, "All is Mind and Mind's idea,"—the truth, of which Christ Jesus spoke when he declared, as he stood before Pilate in the judgment hall, "For this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth."

The natural outcome of this denial of the material self is seen in taking up the cross; and this, too, has been misinterpreted through the medium of the senses as something we would avoid if possible, and that we take up only from a sense of duty, not of love. The teachings of our Master, however, show us the cross as the emblem of triumph and victory: for is not the taking up of the cross simply the making of every experience and every act an occasion for realizing the goodness and all-power of God?

Christ Jesus took up the cross daily, in all his acts exposing and denying the demands of material sense and refusing to identify himself or others with anything but the Christ, Truth, the image of God. In all his so-called miracles, whether the feeding of the multitude, the healing of the sick, the raising of the dead, or walking on the waves, he ever demonstrated this one great truth; and as we press on, following in the steps of the meek and mighty Nazarene, we shall find that willing obedience to his commands delivers us from the bondage of evil, and brings us into the very presence of God who is able "to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think."

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