No one on this planet has ever exercised greater control over evil, sin, disease, and death than did Jesus. It was perfectly natural to him to be master of every situation, because he identified himself with the Christ, the spiritual idea, to which all flesh is subordinate. Mary Baker Eddy writes in "The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany" (p. 193), "The spiritual dominates the temporal." In every Christian Science treatment the supreme authority of the Christ is present. This being so, no adverse influence can take charge of the case or sway the thought of those who have taken their stand for Truth.

The Christ is always in control. Its authority is the supreme and only authority. The Christian Science practitioner often needs to remind himself of this fact. For instance, in some countries the law demands that a medical practitioner must be called in the case of a sick child who appears to have a serious ailment. Christian Scientists conform to the law of the land in this respect, but their submission to legal requirements does not mean that the authority of the Christ is withdrawn from the case. If the law of the land demands the attendance of a physician, the student of Christian Science whose trust is in God is likely to find that the physician will take no action which is not in conformity with the wish of the parents, who have explained to him their desire to rely upon prayer according to the teachings of their religion.

Turning to the Scriptures, we are reminded again and again of the supreme control of the Christ, especially in the life and work of Jesus, as recorded in the New Testament. He not only destroyed sin, disease, and death, but through the Christ he exercised complete control even over the elements. He gained this supremacy by his understanding of God and His Christ, God's divine manifestation.

In every case and under all circumstances the issue is in the hands of God and is not under the control of mortal mind or the will of mortals. Do so-called material laws claim to have authority? When it is realized that there is one Lawgiver, God, and that His laws are not material but spiritual, all belief in the power of mortal mind to make laws and to enforce them through matter is destroyed, and divine law is seen to control the situation with supreme authority.

That is the way Jesus worked and prayed. The authority he expressed, even in his speech, astounded the Pharisees. He did not teach in the traditional way, but made statements concerning God and man which were true and new and powerful. The Gospel says (Matt. 7: 29), "He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes." We can well understand that to do so Jesus must have had a very positive approach to every problem. His thought could not have been centered so much on a problem as on the solution. The solution and not the problem was his chief concern.

This may account for the fact that he so seldom asked questions concerning the nature or symptoms of a disease. He knew instinctively the patient's state of mind. He discerned the fears and sinful tendencies of mortal mind and cast them out. But his work did not end there. The empty vessel must be filled with the truth of being; man must be seen in Science, the perfect man, established in the health and harmony of his true being.

But even at this point there was still a further step to be taken. The one healed must walk in the way, must follow the Christ in daily life, and so avoid a repetition of the outgrown and erroneous conditions. Each one must work out his salvation in the way God directs. He cannot choose for himself, but must follow the way of God's directing. In proportion as we acknowledge the authority of the Christ as the directive of our destiny, we shall be led to use our abilities in the best interests of God and man, and help to establish the kingdom of heaven on earth.

A healing experienced upon one's entry into Christian Science is a first step into a vast field of usefulness, in which God will direct and use each of us in His service. No student of Christian Science should minimize the importance of his individual mission. One should remember that he is clothed with the authority of the Christ. As one learns to put on the seamless robe, the purity and perfection of man's spiritual nature, he will heal and regenerate in a way that has deep and far-reaching significance.

Mrs. Eddy writes in "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 171), "Mind's control over the universe, including man, is no longer an open question, but is demonstrable Science." It gives great strength to feeble resolve to realize that all control is divine, and that which is not divine is without control because it is without authority.

In traveling by air we watch with wonder the birdlike ease with which a great airplane descends quietly from the skies, circles the airport, and skims over the runway. A reversal of the propeller blades checks its speed; it taxies gently to its berth and comes to a standstill.

Here we see an instance of control exercised by the pilot, who understands the science of aeronautics. Should we not have supreme confidence in the Christ as we realize its complete control when brought to bear on any problem? Is not the Christ able to destroy the storms of mortal mind and bring us safely to our required haven? As a passenger on an airplane, we would not dash into the pilot's cabin and meddle with the controls; we leave the navigation of the plane to one in charge of it. In a similar way we must have full faith in God and His Christ and realize that the Science of Christ is always in control and will exercise its divine authority.

Robert Ellis Key