"Happy are ye if ye do them"

DELLA M. WHITNEY

The whole world is seeking for happiness; and each individual has his own concept of what that happiness includes, and of what he feels it necessary to do in order to obtain it. In the book of John it is recorded that after Jesus had admonished his disciples, shortly before his crucifixion, he said to them, "If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them." Here is given an unfailing rule for finding true happiness. We may gain it by studying the teachings and works of our Master, and by eagerly and faithfully striving to emulate them.

Throughout Jesus' ministry his every thought and act was certainly motivated by an unselfed desire to heal and save others by showing them the way of salvation, and from his words, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you," we may assume that he was ever conscious of peace and joy.

Jesus never wasted any time in contemplation of evil or disease, but he cast them out quickly, as deceiving and powerless intruders. If we would spend the time in claiming our spiritual birthright of harmony and perfection here and now, instead of trying to destroy evil as something real, spiritual truth would soon become the reality to us, and we should heal more quickly. We need to keep our eye single to the allness and perfection of God if we would gain a state of true happiness. Man is the likeness of God, and we must cease believing anything else about him. When we learn to handle error as nothing rather than as something, it soon fades away. One of the most important lessons we need to learn in our growth in Christian Science is to destroy false suggestions quickly. Mary Baker Eddy says in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 419), "Meet every adverse circumstance as its master." In this reference the word "meet" is very significant. It implies that directly we meet or come in contact with a falsity, we should realize our mastery over it. As we are obedient and prompt in so doing, harmony is usually quickly restored. We know this is the correct thing to do; so, to delay doing it may at times mean a greater struggle for us afterwards.

Christ Jesus not only healed the sick himself, but expected his followers also to be engaged in this righteous activity. He taught them how to spiritualize their thinking, and exemplified his preaching and teaching by healing all manner of ills. There would seem to be no justification for inactive Christians. Apparently he expected them all to emulate his works. This is evident from his positive words, given to all mankind: "Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give." It should be the desire of every Christian Scientist to consecrate his life to healing and uplifting the race. All cannot be public, advertised practitioners, but all are associated in some way with others, whether in the home, the office, the factory, or the field. So there are always opportunities to heal and help, and it is our Christian duty so to live that we may be spiritually equipped to destroy any false belief that may present itself to us at any time. Jesus' works showed that the dominating motive in his life was to prove the allness of God. When mingling with the multitudes, and even at the wedding feast, he proved the power of Spirit over matter. Our beloved Leader's life, likewise, was one of devout spiritual consecration; and that she hoped the same righteousness would be practiced by her followers is evidenced in the following words from the Manual of The Mother Church (Art. VIII, Sect. 15): "God requires ourwhole heart, and He supplies within the wide channels of The Mother Church dutiful and sufficient occupation for all its members."

It is not a statement of Truth learned theoretically that causes us to forge ahead spiritually, but it is the application and demonstration of Truth in daily life. We must ever keep before us the Master's teaching that happiness is really won by applying the truth we know. We may have worked on some problem for a long time. In fact, we may have been tempted to say, "Well, I have done everything that I can do." If we will examine our thinking closely, however, we may find that we have not yet done the most important thing of all, that is, to maintain unwaveringly the understanding of the spiritual nature of man as the full and complete expression of God.

One who had struggled a long time over a domestic problem without seeing its solution, sought help in Christian Science. It was soon revealed that although he had been devoting his time to the study of Christian Science, he was still holding a wrong concept of the seeming offender. As soon as this was uncovered in his thinking, and he actually began applying the truth he had been learning to the situation by seeing man as the likeness of God, a great change was wrought in the home, and truer happiness was experienced by all.

As we study and comprehend the truth which Christian Science reveals, let us also not forget the Master's words, "If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them."

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