Jesus said , “Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” His listeners took offense, proudly asserting that, being the seed of Abraham, they were already free. Jesus went on to explain that, being the servant of sin, one is hardly free! That did not go over very well, either, because his listeners thought they were pretty good people, and although they might have had a few problems, they were not about to admit they were slaves to sin! How different today is the patient who asks for help from a Christian Science practitioner for some problem, but is offended when it is suggested that there is a need for change of thought.

Mary Baker Eddy addressed this in the textbook: “As a man thinketh, so is he. Mind is all that feels, acts, or impedes action. Ignorant of this, or shrinking from its implied responsibility, the healing effort is made on the wrong side, and thus the conscious control over the body is lost.” (S&H) From this, we see that, in order to have dominion, we must take responsibility for our “mental household.” If our first resort is to turn to God, to know the truth as Jesus did: “I and the Father are one”; “The Father that dwelleth in me, He doeth the works”; “The Father hath not left me alone”, and consciously ask for His guidance, we will avail ourselves of our God-given freedom. When persistent effort is required, is not our freedom worth it? If, on the other hand, when a problem comes up, our first resort is to run to a medical doctor, or reach for a drug, or expect the government to bail us out, we effectively resign control of our destiny, and become subject to some system, and give up our God-given freedom!

It is reassuring to know that “Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free” is much more that a nice statement, but rather a scientific principle that we can put into operation, and that there is everything we can do about maintaining our freedom from tyrannical systems. “God has endowed man with inalienable rights, among which are self-government, reason, and conscience. Man is properly self-governed only when he is guided rightly and governed by his Maker, divine Truth and Love.” (S&H)

Andrew Kidd