Article August 24, 1940 Issue

"This is my beloved Son"

[Written Especially for Young People]

ANNE R. KINMAN

SURELY everyone is inclined to do the best he can when he knows he has the wholehearted approval of one whose commendation he values. Knowing that much is expected of him, he is spurred on to do better than he might have done without a definite manifestation of trust in his ability. If the whole world had faith in one's goodness and approved of one's work, what an incentive that would be to improve every opportunity afforded us! Yet each one can have that which is far greater than the whole world's commendation, namely, God's approval. This is not to say that God knows and approves of what we do as human beings, but, rather, that man—our real self—is made in the divine likeness, and conforms to it.

When Jesus of Nazareth was a young man in Galilee, he was baptized in Jordan; and as he came out of the water, he heard "a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Baptism, as understood in Christian Science, is spiritualization and purification of thought. Jesus' thinking was so pure that he was able to perceive his real selfhood, free from the impurities of physicality. He was conscious that his heavenly Father saw in him His own perfect child. Shortly after this experience, when severe temptations came to him, he was able to resist them quickly and firmly, because he was aware of the presence of God and conscious of His approbation.

We are told in the Bible that we are "heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ." Therefore, we can all claim the same relationship to God that Christ Jesus claimed; and this understanding is sufficient to protect and direct us as it did him, in the face of any temptation. Because man is made in the image and likeness of God, he reflects intelligence, power, wisdom, love, and all the other qualities of God, and these enable him to do those things that are pleasing to God. Not only does the real man reflect these qualities, but he cannot do otherwise.

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