STAND for real Sub-stance so you won’t FALL for the 5 erroneous postulates!Application ideas for the lesson on “Substance” for September 4 – 10, 2006
by Corde Hanzlik, CS Austin, Texas
Editor’s Note: The following background information and application ideas for the Christian Science Bible Lesson for this week are offered primarily to help CedarS campers and staff (as well as friends) see and demonstrate the great value of daily study of the Christian Science Bible lessons year-round, not just at camp.
Golden Text
Wow! Five sections jam packed with real substance! It is proof of the Golden Text, God’s continual goodness. Yippee, a camp song in he Responsive Reading. “I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies.” Look at the names that we can use to call upon Him – rock, fortress, deliverer, strength, buckler, horn of salvation, high tower. I will call upon my deliverer, my strength to save me from ???? I am safe. Why? God delights in me!
Our key to each section of the Lesson will focus on one of the five erroneous postulates (definition in the first section) that Mrs. Eddy lays out for us starting on page 91 of Science and Health. It will be fun to see how ridiculous the postulates are and not fall for their tricks.
Section 1 – How could we possibly forget God? There‘s nothing apart from God, so erroneous postulate 1 is doomed.
The first two markers of the Bible is God reminding us of who and what He is! How could we forget unless we are too full of ourselves to realize that without Him we are nothing. The last three markers are our affirmations to God. Every day we should affirm these pledges and requests for guidance. Even if we make a mistake and are tempted by selfish ideas, God is full of mercy. He’ll guide us, always.
Mrs. Eddy is quick in her definition of substance for us to take our stand. There is no option but to be “eternal and incapable of discord and decay.” We are compound ideas – that means we include all good. (S&H 1) No matter what matter would say, it’s not us. (S&H 2) In marker 3, we have our first postulate. So what’s a postulate? From the 1828 Webster’s dictionary, “A position or supposition assumed without proof, or one which is considered as self-evident, or too plain to require illustration.” When you read the statements, it is a “Well, duh. This can’t be true if God is All-in-all and all is spiritual.” “As mortals begin to understand Spirit, they give up the belief that there is any true existence apart from God” is the rebuttal to the postulate. But what is the requirement? We must give up the belief of any other true existence than Spirit. (S&H 5) No problem!
Section 2 Postulate 2: Man mental and material? No way!
God tells us that in Isaiah. (B6) He makes everything! Just in case we are tempted, we have our Parent’s (God) guiding reminder, “Learn not the way of the heathen ….” (B7) It is a waste of time. Besides, the ways of the heathen (anyone who worships or values material things or doesn’t worship at all) don’t have permanence or real substance to them. The idols or images can’t even move on their own. They have to be carried! (That’s what born with an e means. Borne=carried) So B8 says, “Give it up. Stick with Me, God. My “lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness.” He delights in us expressing His attributes!
What is our identity? The definition of man is in the entire section. Is man material? Anthropomorphic = putting God into a form like mortal man! Impossible. (Do you think that God could be so small?) (S&H 8) The five senses would try to reduce God to be like us. It’s really impossible. He’s much too expansive! Divine Science shows us that. (S&H 9) So, we have existed forever, never in matter, nothing can limit us. (S&H 10) So, the conclusion to the postulate is all of marker 11. You can’t mix oil and water.
Section 3 Is there good and evil? Of course not! Dream on. No!
Eden sounds like a great place to be if you behave, but this is a fairy tale, a dream state. This is where the concept of God being anthropomorphic really gets carried away. Talking serpents, too! A creator creating a charracter that he then says, “No, no.” Silly. How do you suppose the apple thing came about? It doesn’t say that it was an apple tree. Oh well. God not only is a “strong hold” (secure place), but He also has a strong hold (firm grip).
Mrs. Eddy takes us to the right and real creation. The tree of knowledge would pervert that. (S&H 13) As tempting as it is to believe the material testimony, we must remember that it is all a lie, based on sneaky snake talk. “Spirit is the only substance and consciousness recognized by divine Science.” (S&H 16) The material senses lie. There is no opposite to God, Spirit! The war between matter and Spirit seems rather intense at times. But only one is real and always wins, Spirit. And we know it! “Every object in material thought will be destroyed, but the spiritual idea, whose substance is in Mind, is eternal.” (S&H 18) That’s us! We are indestructible!
Section 4 Matter does not think! The body cannot act by itself!
Lord God walking in the garden? What do you suppose the Lord God was wearing, carrying or looking like? Adam and Eve were really in trouble now. Caught in disobedience! Shame. The question, “Who told thee that thou wast naked?” is a great question for us. If God, the real God isn’t telling us something, than it’s a lie. We can see error for it’s bare nothingness! Eve takes the blame. She knows what fooled her. Today, we call it animal magnetism. Are we the wretched man mentioned in Romans? (B14) No. We make mistakes, maybe often, but we mustn’t forget that God delights in us. He doesn’t know our faults. He knows us only as good! We have the Christly sonship with God, our Father/Mother. Jesus proved by his healing example that even a daughter of God couldn’t, even by a fever, be made to forget God’s delight in her.
We are not separated from God, ever. Knowledge and pleasure yield fear and shame! (S&H 20) Who wants it? That’s a lousy first impression. Matter man, the dust man was looking for fun in all the wrong places. What is the real substance? Good, Spirit, never lost. (S&H 21) Bottom line – there is no matter. Matter doesn’t matter. What man really is, is not, never has been, never will be, up for negotiation = incontrovertible. No argument! He is the image, reflection, upright, Godlike. (S&H 23) We are held by Principle, “perfect God and perfect man.” (S&H 24)
Jesus proved that death is one of the bare lies. (B17) Jesus had witnesses, but they only believed after he proved by his appearance that he was in fact, alive. It is hard to imagine that two of the disciples so misunderstood the teachings of Jesus that they didn’t recognize Jesus on the walk to Emmaus with them. How much more was it for Jesus to forgive their shortcomings to tenderly teach? Oh, did they learn. It is interesting that Jesus came back to the flesh as “unhealed” flesh. Wasn’t it to prove that matter has nothing to do with life or death? It’s condition doesn’t’ tell us how we are doing.
Matter has no hold on life and no identity as death. (S&H 25) Jesus proved that the flesh had no identity. What he did find was his inseparability from God. (S&H 26) Spend some extra study time with marker 26. There is a lot there. Jesus’ real change was not in the physical picture at all. We have to realize that fact. (S&H 27) Each demonstration that we have, each healing thought, is an ascension thought putting off the false limits of matter. Nerves cannot be translated into a spiritual concept because Mind knows all – all-action, all-understanding, Soul has all faculties, now. Ideas are immediate. There’s no time needed for the transmission of impulses. All functions are in accord with Mind, immediately. (S&H 28) Marker 29 sums up the answer to all of the erroneous postulates. Our instruction is to “hold and keep” the idea “that man is the image and likeness of God, in whom all being is painless and permanent.” Commit the last citation to memory. “All substance, wisdom, immortality, cause, and effect belong to God.” God owns us. We belong to Him. He delights in us, His perfect, indestructible idea, never in matter. Again, a big WOW! What immortal freedom we have in our real substance!
Camp Director’s Note: The above sharing is the latest in a long series of CedarS Bible Lesson “mets” (metaphysical application ideas) contributed weekly by a rotation of CedarS Resident Practitioners and occasionally by other metaphysicians. This document is intended to initiate further study as well as to encourage the application of ideas found in the Weekly Bible Lessons as printed in the Christian Science Quarterly and as available at Christian Science Reading Rooms. * Originally sent JUST to campers, staff and CedarS families who wanted to continue at home and in their home Sunday Schools the same type of focused Lesson study and inspiration they had felt at camp, CedarS lesson “mets” are in no way meant to be definitive or conclusive or in any way a substitute for daily study of the lesson in the books. The thoughts presented are the inspiration of the moment and are offered to give a bit more dimension, background and daily applicability to some of the ideas and passages being studied. The citations referenced (i.e. B1and S28) from this week’s Bible Lesson in the “met” (metaphysical application ideas) are taken from the King James Version of the Bible (B1-24) and the Christian Science textbook, Science and Health With Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy. (S1-30) The Bible and Science and Health are the ordained pastor of the Churches of Christ, Scientist. The Bible Lesson is the sermon read in Christian Science church services throughout the world. The Lesson-Sermon speaks individually through the Christ to everyone, providing unique insights and tailor-made applications for each one. We are glad you requested this metaphysical sharing and hope that you find some of these ideas helpful in your daily spiritual journey, in your deeper digging in the books and in closer bonding with your Comforter and Pastor.)
Enjoy!
Warren Huff, Director director@cedarscamps.org
CedarS Camps Office
19772 Sugar Drive
Lebanon, MO 65536
(417) 532-6699
