True evidence is the manifestation of God, or Truth. In true evidence Soul proclaims its beauty and harmony, divine Life manifests its ceaseless action, divine Love expresses its tender presence. True evidence is therefore eternally good, pure, and holy. Since it includes no taint of evil, it does not need to be, indeed cannot be, changed or improved in any respect. That which is faulty, imperfect, or discordant must be deemed false testimony, no matter how real it may seem to be. It is the expression of false mentality, and because of its spurious nature it should not even momentarily be entertained either as factual or powerful.

Christian Science is dynamic in its teaching that all material sense testimony is delusive. Through spiritual sense alone is reality discerned and determined. The importance of rightly discriminating between truth and error can thus be seen. As mankind is surrounded by a great variety of phenomena of one sort or another, the Christian Scientist strives to keep his thinking at such a spiritual level that he is instant in his rejection of false testimony whenever and wherever presented and alert to replace it with true concepts stemming form the divine Mind.

Any material evidence of inharmony is but a perversion of the already reigning spiritual fact. The task of the Scientist should not be arduous but joyous because it is an awakening to the presence and reality of good and the consequent acknowledgment of the unreality, the utter nothingness, of good's seeming unlikeness termed evil. This spiritual discernment is a vital and precious quality, essential for effecting the reversal in human consciousness of erroneous sense testimony. We all need to exercise this prophetic capacity in the light of the Glossary definition of "prophet" found in the textbook, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. Here Mary Baker Eddy, the Discoverer and Founder of Christian Science, writes: "A spiritual seer; disappearance of material sense before the conscious facts of spiritual Truth." ^{Science and Health, p. 593}

An outstanding example of such prophetic vision is Elisha's experience at Dothan (see II Kings, Chapter 6). He was surrounded by his enemies, and so inevitable appeared the prophet's capture by the Syrian army that his servant cried out despairingly, "Alas, my master! how shall we do?" ^{II Kings 6:15} Elisha, however, relying on spiritual sense for true testimony, calmly prayed, not for a change of the human scene, but rather that his servant's eyes might lie opened. The record relates, "And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha." ^{v. 17} In this instance danger was proved to be lying testimony, and the safety (as depicted by horses and chariots of fire) was acknowledged as true evidence. The prophet's illumined consciousness saw "the conscious facts of spiritual Truth"— in this case the ever-presence of God's loving care. And this became apparent to his servant also through the spiritual awakening that came to him in response to his master's prayer.

This incident illustrates the type of prayer used by Christian Scientists, who pray that their thoughts may be exalted to behold the spiritual fact that is always present but at times seems clouded by materialistic thinking. All that is required to effect a change in the outward appearance of things is a change of consciousness, or mental viewpoint. God, Spirit, sees neither harmonious nor discordant matter, but only His own perfect spiritual creation; and this is all that is truly visible. Because man is the reflection of Spirit, he possesses spiritual discernment. Hence as we demonstrate our true being we are undeceived by physical sense testimony

Differentiating between the spiritually-minded Jesus and the selfish materialist, Mrs. Eddy writes, "His senses drank in the spiritual evidence of health, holiness, and life; their senses testified oppositely, and absorbed the material evidence of sin, sickness, and death." ^{Science and Health, p. 52}

Christ Jesus was the most perfect prophet, or spiritual seer. He was constantly confronted with pictures of disease, deformity, deficiency and imperfection of various kinds, and had he accepted the evidence presented by the senses as true, he could not have been instrumental in effecting its reversal and dismissal. He must have known with absolute certainty that only that which expresses the divine nature is real and enduring. He did not absorb into his consciousness the false mortal pictures but instantly dismissed them, maintaining the forever harmony of God's creation. Spiritual evidence was to him so vivid that he was able to see symmetry instead of deformity, abundance in place of penury, activity where paralysis appeared to be, calm instead of storm, and holiness where impurity appeared evident. Material sense testimony disappeared before the spiritual penetration of his pure thought.

May we thus so grow in our understanding of divine Science that we too shall remain unswayed by the seeming evidence of sorrow, lack, and infirmity, knowing that because these do not bear witness to Truth they are but illusory presentations of the so-called carnal mind, which can be destroyed by Truth. What must become increasingly evident to us is God's allness, goodness, and sovereignty, the reign of Truth and Love.

Be perfect, be of good comfort,
be of one mind,
live in peace;
and the God of love and peace shall be with you.

II Corinthians 13:11