June
14, 2026 The
canonical writings, together with the word
of our textbook, corroborating and
explaining the Bible texts in their
spiritual import and application to all
ages, past, present, and future,
constitute a sermon undivorced from truth,
uncontaminated and unfettered by human
hypotheses, and divinely
authorized. Subject:
GOD THE PRESERVER OF MAN Responsive
Reading: — Psalms 9:1, 4, 9, 10;
21:1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7. The
following Citations comprise our Sermon.
From
the Christian Science Quarterly, June 17,
1917
Originally published in the early
years of the Christian Science movement,
these lessons are comprised of citations
from the Bible (King James Version) and
the Christian Science textbook, Science
and Health with Key to the Scriptures
by Mary Baker Eddy.
EXPLANATORY NOTE:
Friends:
The Bible and the Christian Science
textbook are our only preachers. We shall
now read Scriptural texts, and their
correlative passages from our
denominational textbook; these comprise
our sermon.
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Golden
Text: Isaiah 4:5. The Lord will
create upon every dwelling place of mount
Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and
smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming
fire by night: for upon all the glory
shall be a defence.
1 I will praise thee, O Lord, with
my whole heart; I will shew forth all thy
marvellous works.
4 For thou hast maintained my right
and my cause; thou satest in the throne
judging right.
9 The Lord also will be a refuge
for the oppressed, a refuge in times of
trouble.
10 And they that know thy name will
put their trust in thee: for thou, Lord,
hast not forsaken them that seek thee.
1 The king shall joy in thy
strength, O Lord; and in thy salvation how
greatly shall he rejoice!
2 Thou hast given him his heart's
desire, and hast not withholden the
request of his lips.
3 For thou preventest him with the
blessings of goodness: thou settest a
crown of pure gold on his head.
4 He asked life of thee, and thou
gavest it him, even length of days for
ever and ever.
6 For thou hast made him most
blessed for ever: thou hast made him
exceeding glad with thy countenance.
7 For the king trusteth in the
Lord, and through the mercy of the most
High he shall not be moved.
Section
One
Section
Two
Section
Three
Section
Four
Section
Five
Section
Six
This lesson
was prepared by early students of Christian Science to
reinforce the class teaching given by Mary Baker Eddy in the
Massachusetts Metaphysical College in the 1880s and 1890s.
Consistent with the outline used in her teaching, the six
sections of the early lessons usually followed a general
outline: Section
One: The relation of the subject to
God.
Section
Two: The relation of the subject to man or Christ Jesus.
Section Three: The presentation of Christian Science
through a relative law, as related to the
subject.
Section
Four: The application of the relative law presented in
section three. Section Five: The demonstration of the
relative law from section three. Section Six: The
triumph or victory of the relative law, leaving the student
in the kingdom of God. For more information, visit our
Bible
Lessons
information page.
Study Guide
(2) Ps
100:1, 3-5 (3) Rom
8:31, 38, 39 (2)
470:32 (3)
471:17-19 (4)
567:7-10
The Holy Bible
King
James Version
(1)
Deut 33:26, 27
There is none like unto the God of
Jeshurun, who rideth upon the heaven in
thy help, and in his excellency on the
sky. The eternal God is thy refuge, and
underneath are the everlasting arms: and
he shall thrust out the enemy from before
thee; and shall say, Destroy
them.
Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye
lands. Know ye that the Lord he is God: it
is he that hath made us, and not we
ourselves; we are his people, and the
sheep of his pasture. Enter into his gates
with thanksgiving, and into his courts
with praise: be thankful unto him, and
bless his name. For the Lord is good; his
mercy is everlasting; and his truth
endureth to all generations.
What shall we then say to these things? If
God be for us, who can be against us? For
I am persuaded, that neither death, nor
life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor
powers, nor things present, nor things to
come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other
creature, shall be able to separate us
from the love of God, which is in Christ
Jesus our Lord.
Science
and Health
with Key to the Scriptures
by
Mary Baker Eddy
(1)
275:20-30
Divine metaphysics, as revealed to
spiritual understanding, shows clearly
that all is Mind, and that Mind is God,
omnipotence, omnipresence, omniscience,
— that is, all power, all presence,
all Science. Hence all is in reality the
manifestation of Mind. Our material human
theories are destitute of Science. The
true understanding of God is spiritual. It
robs the grave of victory. It destroys the
false evidence that misleads thought and
points to other gods, or other so-called
powers, such as matter, disease, sin, and
death, superior or contrary to the one
Spirit.
The relations of God and man, divine
Principle and idea, are indestructible in
Science; and Science knows no lapse from
nor return to harmony, but holds the
divine order or spiritual law, in which
God and all that He creates are perfect
and eternal, to have remained unchanged in
its eternal history.
Man is, and forever has been, God's
reflection. God is infinite, therefore
ever present, and there is no other power
nor presence.
To infinite, ever-present Love, all is
Love, and there is no error, no sin,
sickness, nor death. Against Love, the
dragon warreth not long, for he is killed
by the divine Principle.
(5) I
John 1:9 (6)
John 3:16 (6)
2:8-11, 26-2 (7)
516:9-15 Life (8)
578:5-18
(4)
Eph 1:3, 9, 10, 12-14
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord
Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all
spiritual blessings in heavenly places in
Christ: Having made known unto us the
mystery of his will, according to his good
pleasure which he hath purposed in
himself: That in the dispensation of the
fulness of times he might gather together
in one all things in Christ, both which
are in heaven, and which are on earth;
even in him: That we should be to the
praise of his glory, who first trusted in
Christ. In whom ye also trusted, after
that ye heard the word of truth, the
gospel of your salvation: in whom also
after that ye believed, ye were sealed
with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is
the earnest of our inheritance until the
redemption of the purchased possession,
unto the praise of his glory.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and
just to forgive us our sins, and to
cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.
For God so loved the world, that he gave
his only begotten Son, that whosoever
believeth in him should not perish, but
have everlasting life.
(5)
518:19
Love giveth to the least spiritual idea
might, immortality, and goodness, which
shine through all as the blossom shines
through the bud. All the varied
expressions of God reflect health,
holiness, immortality — infinite
Life, Truth, and Love.
God is not moved by the breath of praise
to do more than He has already done, nor
can the infinite do less than bestow all
good, since He is unchanging wisdom and
Love. Do we expect to change perfection?
Shall we plead for more at the open fount,
which is pouring forth more than we
accept? The unspoken desire does bring us
nearer the source of all existence and
blessedness. Asking God to be God
is a vain repetition. God is "the same
yesterday, and to-day, and forever;" and
He who is immutably right will do right
without being reminded of His
province.
Life is reflected in existence, Truth in
truthfulness, God in goodness, which
impart their own peace and permanence.
Love, redolent with unselfishness, bathes
all in beauty and light. The grass beneath
our feet silently exclaims, "The meek
shall inherit the earth."
[DIVINE
LOVE]
is my shepherd; I shall not want.
[LOVE]
maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
[LOVE]
leadeth me beside the still waters.
[LOVE]
restoreth my soul [spiritual
sense]:
[LOVE]
leadeth me in the paths of righteousness
for His name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of
the shadow of death, I will fear no evil:
for [LOVE]
is with me;
[LOVE'S]
rod and [LOVE'S]
staff they comfort me.
[LOVE]
prepareth a table before me in the
presence of mine enemies:
[LOVE]
anointeth my head with oil; my cup runneth
over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life; and I will dwell
in the house [the consciousness]
of [LOVE]
for ever.
(8) Eph
1:15-18 (9) Rom
1:16, 17 (10)
298:2, 20 (11)
1:1-4 (12)
496:15
(7)
Ps 28:7
The Lord is my strength and my shield; my
heart trusted in him, and I am helped:
therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and
with my song will I praise him.
Wherefore I also, after I heard of your
faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all
the saints, Cease not to give thanks for
you, making mention of you in my prayers;
That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
Father of glory, may give unto you the
spirit of wisdom and revelation in the
knowledge of him: The eyes of your
understanding being enlightened; that ye
may know what is the hope of his calling,
and what the riches of the glory of his
inheritance in the saints,
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of
Christ: for it is the power of God unto
salvation to every one that believeth; to
the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For
therein is the righteousness of God
revealed from faith to faith: as it is
written, The just shall live by
faith.
(9)
387:27
The history of Christianity furnishes
sublime proofs of the supporting influence
and protecting power bestowed on man by
his heavenly Father, omnipotent Mind, who
gives man faith and understanding whereby
to defend himself, not only from
temptation, but from bodily
suffering.
Life, Truth, and Love are the realities of
divine Science. They dawn in faith and
glow full-orbed in spiritual
understanding. As a cloud hides the sun it
cannot extinguish, so false belief
silences for a while the voice of
immutable harmony, but false belief cannot
destroy Science armed with faith, hope,
and fruition. Spiritual ideas, like
numbers and notes, start from Principle,
and admit no materialistic beliefs.
Spiritual ideas lead up to their divine
origin, God, and to the spiritual sense of
being.
The prayer that reforms the sinner and
heals the sick is an absolute faith that
all things are possible to God, — a
spiritual understanding of Him, an
unselfed love.
Hold perpetually this thought, — that
it is the spiritual idea, the Holy Ghost
and Christ, which enables you to
demonstrate, with scientific certainty,
the rule of healing, based upon its divine
Principle, Love, underlying, overlying,
and encompassing all true
being.
(11)
Isa 26:1-4 (12)
John 15:7 (14)
377:26 (15)
242:9 (14)
Phil 4:4-7 (17)
61:9-11 (18)
15:25-26 (19)
121:7 (20)
140:8-12 (16)
Acts 12:1, 3-5, 7, 11 (22)
290:3-13 (23)
494:15 (24)
285:23
(10)
Judg 6:11-14, 16
And there came an angel of the Lord, and
sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that
pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite: and
his son Gideon threshed wheat by the
winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.
And the angel of the Lord appeared unto
him, and said unto him, The Lord is with
thee, thou mighty man of valour. And
Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the
Lord be with us, why then is all this
befallen us? and where be all his miracles
which our fathers told us of, saying, Did
not the Lord bring us up from Egypt? but
now the Lord hath forsaken us, and
delivered us into the hands of the
Midianites. And the Lord looked upon him,
and said, Go in this thy might, and thou
shalt save Israel from the hand of the
Midianites: have not I sent thee? And the
Lord said unto him, Surely I will be with
thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites
as one man.
In that day shall this song be sung in the
land of Judah; We have a strong city;
salvation will God appoint for walls and
bulwarks. Open ye the gates, that the
righteous nation which keepeth the truth
may enter in. Thou wilt keep him in
perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on
thee: because he trusteth in thee. Trust
ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord
JEHOVAH is everlasting
strength:
If ye abide in me, and my words abide in
you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it
shall be done unto you.
(13)
380:22-1
Many years ago the author made a spiritual
discovery, the scientific evidence of
which has accumulated to prove that the
divine Mind produces in man health,
harmony, and immortality. Gradually this
evidence will gather momentum and
clearness, until it reaches its
culmination of scientific statement and
proof. Nothing is more disheartening than
to believe that there is a power opposite
to God, or good, and that God endows this
opposing power with strength to be used
against Himself, against Life, health,
harmony. Every law of matter or the body,
supposed to govern man, is rendered null
and void by the law of Life,
God.
The cause of all so-called disease is
mental, a mortal fear, a mistaken belief
or conviction of the necessity and power
of ill-health; also a fear that Mind is
helpless to defend the life of man and
incompetent to control it. Without this
ignorant human belief, any circumstance is
of itself powerless to produce suffering.
It is latent belief in disease, as well as
the fear of disease, which associates
sickness with certain circumstances and
causes the two to appear conjoined, even
as poetry and music are reproduced in
union by human memory. Disease has no
intelligence. Unwittingly you sentence
yourself to suffer. The understanding of
this will enable you to commute this
self-sentence, and meet every circumstance
with truth. Disease is less than mind, and
Mind can control it.
There is but one way to heaven, harmony,
and Christ in divine Science shows us this
way. It is to know no other reality —
to have no other consciousness of life
— than good, God and His reflection,
and to rise superior to the so-called pain
and pleasure of the senses.
(13)
I Chron 16:23, 31, 34, 35
Sing unto the Lord, all the earth; shew
forth from day To-day his salvation. Let
the heavens be glad, and let the earth
rejoice: and let men say among the
nations, The Lord reigneth. O give thanks
unto the Lord; for he is good; for his
mercy endureth for ever. And say ye, Save
us, O God of our salvation, and gather us
together, and deliver us from the heathen,
that we may give thanks to thy holy name,
and glory in thy praise.
Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I
say, Rejoice. Let your moderation be known
unto all men. The Lord is at hand. Be
careful for nothing; but in every thing by
prayer and supplication with thanksgiving
let your requests be made known unto God.
And the peace of God, which passeth all
understanding, shall keep your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus.
(16)
60:2, 24-1
Science inevitably lifts one's being
higher in the scale of harmony and
happiness. An ill-attuned ear calls
discord harmony, not appreciating concord.
So physical sense, not discerning the true
happiness of being, places it on a false
basis. Science will correct the discord,
and teach us life's sweeter harmonies.
Soul has infinite resources with which to
bless mankind, and happiness would be more
readily attained and would be more secure
in our keeping, if sought in Soul. Higher
enjoyments alone can satisfy the cravings
of immortal man.
Every valley of sin must be exalted, and
every mountain of selfishness be brought
low, that the highway of our God may be
prepared in Science.
Christians rejoice in secret beauty and
bounty, hidden from the world, but known
to God.
The Chaldean Wisemen read in the stars the
fate of empires and the fortunes of men.
Though no higher revelation than the
horoscope was to them displayed upon the
empyrean, earth and heaven were bright,
and bird and blossom were glad in God's
perennial and happy sunshine, golden with
Truth. So we have goodness and beauty to
gladden the heart; but man, left to the
hypotheses of material sense unexplained
by Science, is as the wandering comet or
the desolate star — "a weary searcher
for a viewless home."
We shall obey and adore in proportion as
we apprehend the divine nature and love
Him understandingly, warring no more over
the corporeality, but rejoicing in the
affluence of our God.
(15)
Heb 4:15, 16
For we have not an high priest which
cannot be touched with the feeling of our
infirmities; but was in all points tempted
like as we are, yet without sin. Let us
therefore come boldly unto the throne of
grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find
grace to help in time of need.
Now about that time Herod the king
stretched forth his hands to vex certain
of the church. And because he saw it
pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to
take Peter also. (Then were the days of
unleavened bread. ) And when he had
apprehended him, he put him in prison, and
delivered him to four quaternions of
soldiers to keep him; intending after
Easter to bring him forth to the people.
Peter therefore was kept in prison: but
prayer was made without ceasing of the
church unto God for him. And, behold, the
angel of the Lord came upon him, and a
light shined in the prison: and he smote
Peter on the side, and raised him up,
saying, Arise up quickly. And his chains
fell off from his hands. And when Peter
was come to himself, he said, Now I know
of a surety, that the Lord hath sent his
angel, and hath delivered me out of the
hand of Herod, and from all the
expectation of the people of the
Jews.
(21) 388:1-4
The Christian martyrs were prophets of
Christian Science. Through the uplifting
and consecrating power of divine Truth,
they obtained a victory over the corporeal
senses, a victory which Science alone can
explain.
If the Principle, rule, and demonstration
of man's being are not in the least
understood before what is termed death
overtakes mortals, they will rise no
higher spiritually in the scale of
existence on account of that single
experience, but will remain as material as
before the transition, still seeking
happiness through a material, instead of
through a spiritual sense of life, and
from selfish and inferior motives. That
Life or Mind is finite and physical or is
manifested through brain and nerves, is
false. Hence Truth comes to destroy this
error and its effects, — sickness,
sin, and death.
The miracle of grace is no miracle to
Love. Jesus demonstrated the inability of
corporeality, as well as the infinite
ability of Spirit, thus helping erring
human sense to flee from its own
convictions and seek safety in divine
Science. Reason, rightly directed, serves
to correct the errors of corporeal sense;
but sin, sickness, and death will seem
real (even as the experiences of the
sleeping dream seem real) until the
Science of man's eternal harmony breaks
their illusion with the unbroken reality
of scientific being.
By interpreting God as a corporeal Saviour
but not as the saving Principle, or divine
Love, we shall continue to seek salvation
through pardon and not through reform, and
resort to matter instead of Spirit for the
cure of the sick. As mortals reach,
through knowledge of Christian Science, a
higher sense, they will seek to learn, not
from matter, but from the divine
Principle, God, how to demonstrate the
Christ, Truth, as the healing and saving
power.