ALL THINGS MADE NEW

JOSEPH KAMENJU

THIS WEEK'S Christian Science Bible Lesson poses a question: Are sin, disease, and death real? The Lesson's Golden Text from Habakkuk establishes God's complete purity and perfection—elements of what Christian Science terms the allness of God. In fact, the word all appears seven times in the Responsive Reading. Habakkuk asserts that God is everlasting and thus deathless; all holy and thus sinless. The logical conclusion, then, is that God has no consciousness of sin, disease, or death.

The prophet Isaiah throughout his teachings presents God as standing alone in His allness and complete control. In chapter 45, cited in part in the Responsive Reading, Isaiah repeats at least five times in just slightly different wording, "I am God, and there is none else."

In Section I, the Psalmist expresses this exalted view of God and ponders where anyone could hide from Him who is all and everywhere. Psalm 139 concludes that God's right hand holds us at all times (citation 2). Isaiah seems to recall Psalm 23 when he writes, "When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shall not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee" (43:2, cit. 4).