The Apostle Paul writes (Eph. 5:14), "Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light." Do we yearn to have mankind awaken and accept the spiritual light which comes through Christ, Truth? Do we long to see the dream of pain and pleasure in matter cease? Where then shall we begin? With ourselves!

Everyone can prove through the study and practice of Christian Science that the understanding of man as the perfect child of God can awaken one now to his God-given heritage of joy, sinlessness, harmony, peace—to the recognition of all good. Man is not a mortal dreamer. He is the idea of Spirit, the manifestation of divine Mind, the expression of Soul. Reasoning from the basis of the perfection of man, made in God's likeness, we gain spiritual strength to resist the temptations of sickness, sin, and apathy.

Through the study and practice of Christian Science one learns to detect and reject mesmeric beliefs of apathy, indifference, and sensual pleasures and pains, which appear to hold him in bondage to so-called laws of matter. We help the world to awake by letting our light shine. Christ Jesus said (Matt. 5:16), "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

When one is truly awake, he is alert in his acceptance and acknowledgment of the truth. This indicates not only the absence of apathy and mental laziness, but the presence of spiritual positiveness. This disciplining evidences the activity of Soul, God.

In the world of materiality, we become aware of our surroundings through the corporeal senses. In the realm of the real, the universe of Mind, recognition is governed by Soul, God; sight, hearing, feeling, tasting, smelling—all the senses —are spiritual, not material. Spiritual faculties are inseparable from Soul; hence they are permanent. The eternality of spiritual consciousness ensures the permanent recognition of good through the senses of Soul.

The mission of Christ Jesus was one of awakening mankind to the glory, radiance, bliss, and freedom of Soul. He overcame inharmony of all kinds through his recognition and demonstration of the all-inclusiveness of Soul, spiritual consciousness, in opposition to the false testimony of the corporeal senses. Mary Baker Eddy writes (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 210), "Knowing that Soul and its attributes were forever manifested through man, the Master healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, feet to the lame, thus bringing to light the scientific action of the divine Mind on human minds and bodies and giving a better understanding of Soul and salvation."

Christ Jesus knew that joy, harmony, health, immortality, understanding, and symmetry "were forever manifested through man," the expression of Soul. The Master's understanding of this great fact healed the sick in his day. This understanding as demonstrated in Christian Science heals the sick today. Actually nothing can dull the spiritual discernment of man nor make him unaware of his heritage of freedom, health, beauty, and immortality.

Through the activity of the Christ in consciousness mighty works of healing and regeneration are done today. Mrs. Eddy writes (ibid., p. 316), "Christ illustrates that blending with God, his divine Principle, which gives man dominion over all the earth." Let us blend qualities of thought with divine Principle and feel the presence of Christ, Truth, which gives dominion over fearful, sinning, limiting beliefs.

The acknowledgment of good as ever available and the expression of gratitude for the good already discerned are evidence of our awakening to the nature of God and the real man. The Master pointed out the need for acknowledgment of the truth. After he had healed the ten lepers he asked (Luke 17:17), "Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?" Referring to this Scriptural incident, Mrs. Eddy says (Science and Health, p. 94), "Of the ten lepers whom Jesus healed, but one returned to give God thanks,—that is, to acknowledge the divine Principle which had healed him."

A student of Christian Science received help in overcoming a distressing physical condition through awakening to the importance of acknowledging the harmony of God, Soul, and of man, His image, even before the testimony of the senses gave signs of the student's progress in rising above suffering and weakness. While she was praying for spiritual light, the thought came clearly: "Waken to your heritage of strength. Accept the freedom and harmony of Soul now. Acknowledge spiritual consciousness now."

So vital was the inspiration that the student was instantly roused from discouragement and mental dullness. She began vigorously to claim the harmony of Soul and man and to claim good as the heritage of man in the image of God. Within a few hours, she found her strength renewed, the pain gone: and she was able to continue the important work which engaged her time.

We can help to awaken mankind by joyously manifesting to the world Truth's ideas, which penetrate the darkness of the testimony of the senses. We must never doubt that these spiritual ideas when discerned and demonstrated have power to pierce the mist of materiality and bring the light of spiritual understanding right to the point where it is needed. When we are spiritually awake, we learn to dispel apathy and mental dullness and all types of sin, disease, and limitation as surely as light dispels darkness. Truth is eternally victorious.