Rejoicing in God's tender mercy

How long does a student get punished for writing 3+3=8 on tests? What if the student knows it’s wrong, but still does it? Whether the error is ignorant or intentional, the “punishment,” a bad grade, will continue until the thought is corrected. When the laws of mathematics are consistently applied, limitless opportunities of progress open up as student and teacher rejoice together!

This week’s Christian Science Bible Lesson, titled “Everlasting Punishment,” shows how this same idea operates on a deeper level. A math error is a misapplication of the laws of mathematics. Sin is a turning away from the laws of God. In the Responsive Reading, after the Psalmist’s prayer of gratitude for God’s mercy, Isaiah presents a compelling reason to stop sinning. At a time when the kingdom of Judah was controlled by Assyria, Judah’s leaders were seeking an alliance with Egypt rather than relying on God for their security. Isaiah brought them God’s message: “In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength” (30:15 ). Returning from sinful thoughts and actions to a quiet trust in God brings strength, freedom, and salvation—to individuals as well as to nations.

Throughout the Lesson shines the assurance of God’s tender mercy and love. So—why is punishment mentioned at all? Mary Baker Eddy writes in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures: “Do you ask wisdom to be merciful and not to punish sin? Then ‘ye ask amiss.’ Without punishment, sin would multiply” (p. 10 , citation 2). 

Understanding that sin contradicts man’s true nature, many believe that God corrects man by sending suffering. Section 2 reverses that! Rather than sending suffering, the book of Job assures that God rescues us again and again (see Job 5:19 , cit. 5). And when Jesus’ disciples voiced the commonly held belief that God was punishing a blind man for his or his parents’ sins, Jesus enlightened them: “Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him” (John 9:3 , cit. 7). And Jesus healed the man! 

Truly, God does not send suffering, but as the math student discovers, ignoring law brings sad consequences. In Section 3, we see Christ Jesus using strong language regarding sin. In his time, most scribes and Pharisees were more focused on innumerable regulations and ostentatious presentations of piety than in living the simple laws God gave to Moses in the Ten Commandments. As long as they continued expressing such hypocrisy, their wrongdoing would receive Jesus’ condemnation: “Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?” (Matthew 23:33 , cit. 10). 

A powerful antidote to sin is revealed in Section 4: “Whatever holds human thought in line with unselfed love, receives directly the divine power” (Science and Health, p. 192 , cit. 24). In Jesus’ parable about the kingdom of heaven, those who selfishly turn away from the needy will feel themselves totally separated from God, punished by their own sins. But those who do simple acts of selfless kindness are lovingly blessed by the King and given the kingdom (see Matthew 25:34–43, 46 , cit. 14).

In the final section, we rejoice that sin and its punishment can cease at any time! Zacchaeus’ dishonesty is turned around as he awakens to his true integrity and responds to the Christ with a restitution way beyond the law’s requirement. What a blessing for each of us to feel Jesus’ assurance of the Christ’s ever-redeeming activity in our lives: “The Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10 , cit. 18).