Article April 27, 1946 Issue

"Let your light so shine before men"

ISRAEL PICKENS

In the first chapter of John's Gospel we have that wonderful declaration that "all things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that that was made"(John 1:3). This teaching accords with that of the first chapter of Genesis, wherein we read that God created the universe and man, that this creation is finished and complete, and that it is "very good." In both these chapters light is included in the account of creation. Indeed the first command of God was. "Let there be light" (Gen. 1:3). John's rendition brings out most clearly that this light is the Christ. The office of the Christ is not only to reveal the nature and character of God but also to bring about the destruction of sin and its sequence. This light shines forth, dispelling mental darkness and enabling those receiving it to become conscious of their sonship with God.

"And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not" (John 1:5). History records an ebb and flow in the tide of humanity's progress out of darkness and into some measure of the light. It has seemed as though there have been cycles of darkness and light—centuries of wars and overwhelming evils and then another dawn, of a greater sense of light. Now that Christian Science, the final revelation of Truth, has come, why should humanity, emerging again from another black night of destruction, hate, and desolation, find only a temporary surcease, only another armistice, as it were? Christian Science challenges and refutes this belief of recurring periods of war and peace, on the basis of God's allness and the fact that there can be no reversal of His unchanging good. Mrs. Eddy on page 270 of "The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany" states this truth in the following words: "The cycle of good obliterates the epicycle of evil."

Christian Scientists in this important hour of the world's history can be witnesses to the light of the Christ that has already dawned, and hopefully await that perfect day wherein there shall be no shadows of evening nor ever again a night of darkness and gloom. This light, or Christ, is destined to penetrate every dark corner of the earth. Because it knows no opposite to its complete effulgence, this light, if accepted, will ensure permanent peace among men. We gain in Christian Science an understanding of the Christ, or true idea of God and man, which brings light to the world, and it is our duty to let this light shine forth in our thoughts and lives.

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"Let your light so shine before men"

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