This week’s lesson uses the example of three people from the Bible to show ways in which we can experience the grace—unconditional love—of God that removes sin. “Divine Love corrects and governs man” is a law. (Citation S12, 6:3) And we see the activity of this law operate in the lives of these three individuals—Jonah, the man at the pool of Bethesda, and the unknown woman who washes Christ Jesus’s feet. We may each seem to face sinful suggestions such as these three people did—self-righteousness, ignorance, or unworthiness—but accepting God’s redeeming love frees us from the “everlasting punishment” of falsely believing we are unworthy of or separate from Love’s healing power.

The Easter promise that weaves throughout this week’s Bible Lesson on “Unreality” reminds me of the promise of the full-circle rainbow.  That clouds or trees or the horizon block our view of a rainbow doesn’t make it any less circular.  “Unreality,” as we learn in this week’s lesson, is like those clouds and trees on the horizon—a seeming blockage or veil—that cannot actually change the fact that the rainbow is indeed a “perfect round.”  Because we know the truth about rainbows, the half circle is a “‘bow of promise on the clouds” that indicates that there is a full-circle of radiant color.  Likewise, the view of eternality that Christ Jesus demonstrated with the crucifixion and resurrection is a promise of the full glory of eternal life. Christ Jesus saw the whole of divine Life’s creation, the metaphorical full-circle view, and saw this full-circle perfection where others seem to see broken arcs.  His correct view healed the sick and provided us with unobstructed insight into true health and eternal life.

Man cannot exist separately from God—the only cause, provider, protector, and know-er. God’s abundance is our abundance. The Responsive Reading concludes with a concise statement of the secure bond that unites all-loving God and man and that gives us our authority: “ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.” (Jeremiah 30:22)
Each of the sections of the Lesson, at least the way that I understand it, connect to the idea of strength and dominion. Here’s one way to see the outline of the Lesson: Section 1: Man has God-given dominion. Section 2: Man has dominion over [a limited sense of] body. Section 3: Man has dominion over cloudy thinking. Section 4: Man is upright and indestructible with God-given dominion. Section 5: Man has strength and dominion and does not tire. Section 6: Man runs to win…with dominion!

To me, Spirit is that which ignites, brings enthusiasm, gives freshness and newness, breathes life, and that which inspires. While each of us will find an individual connection with this week’s lesson, and each of us has our own understanding of the word “Spirit,” for the purposes of this week’s “Metaphysical Application Ideas” I’m thinking of Spirit as divine inspiration.

It is tempting to see a world consisting of millions of human opinions, warring media reports, racial strife, class warfare, tribalism, gender inequity, political personalities, family disagreements and even conflicts within ourselves.  The singular answer to this seeming divisiveness is the oneness of Truth, the oneness of good, the oneness of God.  God is indivisible. And therefore we, as the outcome of God, are also indivisible. This week’s Bible Lesson provides an undeniable affirmation of the oneness and all-ness of God.  In a quick count, I found over 60 references to the one-ness of God in this week’s lesson.  I think this is a record!  In this Met, I’ll underline references to “one” just to make this theme even more obvious.