The Church Christ is building

The first mention of Church in the Bible came from Jesus after Peter identified him as “the Christ, the Son of the living God.” This correct identification of Jesus’ eternal identity as the Christ explained his healing power, and Jesus said, “Upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (see Matthew 16:15–18 ).

Actually Jesus had been building his church on Christ-healing from the beginning of his ministry. And he expected his followers to grow his church through Christ-healing—through the regenerating, transforming, and saving power of God—which would eventually unite all humanity in one harmonious fellowship.

Jesus’ consciousness of the Christ—his identity as the Son of God—embraced the true identity of everyone. It enabled him to see each individual as a dearly loved son or daughter of God, rather than as a mere human organism and personality shackled with sinful tendencies and physical vulnerabilities. The Christ, the divine manifestation of “the living God”—working in Jesus’ thought and life—is what healed and saved others through him. And this same Christ is here to work in you and me and everyone to heal and save us individually and collectively, and to reflect the healing power of Christ in our lives.

Think of this: After Jesus humbly submitted to the baptism of John, the voice of God confirmed Jesus’ spiritual identity, saying, “Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mark 1:11 ). God as divine Truth was identifying His own spiritual idea, or manifestation; and God as divine Love was proclaiming His thorough pleasure in His precious idea. Jesus felt blessed, and humbly accepted his God-appointed ministry to humanity.

Christ’s building activity excludes no one of any religious affiliation, culture, or history, but includes every person, as God’s own dearly loved spiritual idea.

During Jesus’ entire ministry and life he defeated all claims of a supposed power opposed to God, good, by staying true to his and everyone else’s God-given identity. Accordingly, in Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, Mary Baker Eddy gives us this: “Christ is the true idea voicing good, the divine message from God to men speaking to the human consciousness” (p. 332 ). Thus, we have the basis for Christ’s ongoing church building.

I find it helpful to think of the sun and its rays as symbolic of God and His Christ. The sun is the source of all its rays, which collectively constitute the light emanating from the sun, bringing light and warmth to earth. In like manner, God is the source of all His ideas, which collectively constitute Christ, the manifestation of God bringing healing and salvation to humanity. And just as each individual ray of the sun fully reflects all the light-giving qualities of the sun, so each individual spiritual idea of God—and this is who we truly are—fully reflects the life-giving qualities of divine Truth and Love. Mrs. Eddy speaks of this in The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany (p. 344 ).

The message of Christ to each of God’s ideas is always “You are God’s own child, in whom He is thoroughly pleased.” This is the message Jesus brought to earth from the Father. This is the message Christ is communicating to us today. This is the Truth that heals. This is the Love that builds the fellowship of followers called Church.

Mrs. Eddy depicts Church in active terms. First as God’s healing activity: “Church. The structure of Truth and Love; whatever rests upon and proceeds from divine Principle.” And then as an active healing institution: “The Church is that institution, which affords proof of its utility and is found elevating the race, rousing the dormant understanding from material beliefs to the apprehension of spiritual ideas and the demonstration of divine Science, thereby casting out devils, or error, and healing the sick” (Science and Health, p. 583 ).

Dictionaries define the word structure as “manner of building” or “act of building.” So the “structure of Truth and Love” is the building activity of Truth and Love’s manifestation, Christ. What is Christ building? Christ is building character and integrity and health through its life-giving message of true identity and love to individual human consciousness. In this way, Christ is washing thought clean of false, material views of identity that result in sin, sickness, and death. And individuals who are being freed in this way by Christ are coming together in fellowship to practice Christ-healing, and are helping others to feel its healing embrace.

There are definite signs that this upbuilding activity of Christ is spreading throughout human consciousness and society, and that nothing can stop it from fulfilling its mission of freeing and unifying all mankind in God’s holy plan of healing and salvation. Indeed, “the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”

Christ’s building activity excludes no one of any religious affiliation, culture, or history, but includes every person, as God’s own dearly loved spiritual idea. No person, group, or institution has a corner on Christ’s healing and saving power —but all are free to embrace it, experience it, and humbly place themselves in its service for the benefit of everyone.

The Church that publishes this magazine has thus placed itself in Christ’s service as part of God’s universal plan. Its Founder, Mary Baker Eddy has described it this way: “The First Church of Christ, Scientist, in Boston, Mass., is designed to be built on the Rock, Christ; even the understanding and demonstration of divine Truth, Life, and Love, healing and saving the world from sin and death; thus to reflect in some degree the Church Universal and Triumphant” (Manual of The Mother Church, p. 19 ).

Christ’s love spreads throughout the universe, showing forth all the beautiful qualities of God, and bathing all people in the eternal spiritual attributes of God that make up their true being. Everything in Christ Jesus’ life and teachings leads us to discover how wonderful God is and how wonderfully He made everyone in His spiritual image and likeness. Such is the real activity, or “structure,” of Church. It embraces universal humanity in the Truth that makes free. It embraces you in the Truth that makes free. Will you place yourself in its service?